Southern Esoteric Buddhism andBorān Kammaṭṭhāna ("former practices") are terms used to refer to a collection of esoteric practices, views, and texts withinTheravada Buddhism. Often known asEsoteric Theravada orTantric Theravada, these labels highlight its parallel with tantric traditions—though it does not employ actual tantras—and it is also sometimes referred to asTraditional Theravada Meditation.
L.S. Cousins defines this phenomenon as "a type of Southern Buddhism which links magical and ritual practices to a theoretical systematisation of the Buddhist path itself."[1][2] One notable strand within these traditions is theYogāvacara system. Historically, Yogāvacara was a major current inSoutheast Asia and is most widely practiced today inCambodia andLaos, where it has preserved many unique ritualistic and meditative practices.
Over the past two centuries, the Boran tradition has been marginalized by colonial governments and by the "Protestant Buddhist" movement—reformers who promote a strict "Pali Tipitaka only" sola scriptura approach and dismiss local practices as deviations from orthodox scriptural teachings.[3] As such, the tradition stands in opposition toBuddhist modernism andSecular Buddhism.
In the West, the study of Southern Esoteric Buddhism was pioneered by professorFrançois Bizot and his colleagues at theÉcole française d'Extrême-Orient. Their research, especially focusing on material discovered atAngkor, has been instrumental in revealing the complex interplay between orthodox Theravada doctrines and these esoteric practices.[4] In essence, Southern Esoteric Buddhism comprises a range of practices derived from the Pali Tipitaka that extend beyond the explicit teachings of the suttas, incorporating devotional, ritual, symbolic, and meditative elements that have been transmitted through local and esoteric traditions.
Historically, the Buddhists of the Abhayagiri andJetavanaramaya fraternities inSri Lanka are known to have applied theBodhisattva precepts and Tantric rituals in their practice[1] and this might have had an influence onSoutheast Asia through their missionary work inJava. According to Cousins, it is possible that Southern Esoteric Buddhism developed within the "orthodox" Mahavihara tradition ofSri Lanka, citing the 5th century Buddhist scholarBuddhaghosa's mention of secret texts (gulhagantham), those being texts that can only transmitted through a guru-disciple relationship, as well as other textual evidence from the Pali commentaries. This shows that esotericism was prevalent in Theravada prior the 5th century AD.
One can also trace the present tradition of paritta chanting in Lanka to tantric traditions practised by mendicants of the Abhayagiri Vihara.[5] Similarly, the Sri Lankan Theravāda tradition is unique in developing and maintaining paritta bhanaka lineages dedicated to the oral transmission of parittas. While oral recitation lineages that once preserved the Vinaya, Sutta, and Abhidhamma Piṭaka texts from teacher to disciple have faded over time, the paritta transmission lineages have endured due to the essential role of oral transmission in conferring the power of specific texts upon disciples.[6] his is not found in standard, academic Theravada. Likewise, some of these parittas are not included in the standard Pali Tipitaka.
The origin of yantra usage in the Theravada tradition as an aid to meditation can be said to come from the Abhayagiri sangha.[7]
Cousins concludes that "It is quite possible that present-day Southern Esoteric Buddhism contains ideas and practices deriving from more than one of these sources. Nevertheless it is certainly premature to assume that it has its origins in unorthodox circles."[1]
Among the last mendicants to be initiated into the Boran Kammatthana tradition in Sri Lanka was Doratiyāveye Thera who lived around 1900.[8]
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Ari Buddhism was a form of Buddhism practiced in the Bagan kingdom ofBurma which also contained Tantric elements borrowed from India and localNat (spirit) andNāga worship. In many of Bizot's works there is some suggestion that the Buddhism of the Mon may have influenced the later Yogāvacara tradition. Southeast Asian Theravada was heavily influenced by the practice ofVajrayana Buddhism which flourished in the region during the time of theKhmer Empire andSrivijaya, but it's most likely that Vedic esoteric practices may have already been present in these regions due to the Indianization of Southeast Asia.[4]
The Yogāvacara tradition was a mainstream Buddhist tradition in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand well into the modern era. An inscription from Northern Thailand with esoteric elements has been dated to theSukhothai Kingdom of the 16th century. Kate Crosby notes that this attestation makes the esoteric tradition earlier than “any other living meditation tradition in the contemporary Theravada world.”[9]
During the reign ofRama I, the Thai Yogāvacara masterKai Thuean [th] (1733-1823) was invited to Bangkok to be head of the meditation tradition there and was later madeSangharaja (head of the religious community) byRama II of Siam in 1820.[4] In Sri Lanka, a revival of Buddhist meditation in the 1750s saw a proliferation of Yogāvacara teachings and texts by Thai monks from theAyutthaya Kingdom, one of which is theYogāvacara's manual.[10]
After the re-establishment of the Sri Lankan sangha by the venerableUpali Thera, Monks of theSiam Nikaya practiced and spread these teachings, establishing several monasteries aroundKandy. As late as the 1970s, Yogāvacara practices such as the rapid repetition ofAraham were recorded inSri Lanka.[4]
The decline of Southern Esoteric Buddhism began in the 19th century with the rise of reformed Buddhism, particularly the establishment of theDhammayuttika Nikaya by KingRama IV (1851–1868) of the ThaiRattanakosin Kingdom in 1833. This reform movement emphasized thePali Canon as the main authority for monastic practices and sought to eliminate superstitious and folk religious elements.[11] The Dhammayuttika Nikaya was later introduced intoCambodia, then a protectorate of the Thai kingdom, further contributing to the decline of esoteric traditions.[4]
The textual foundation of this reform movement was rooted in theSri LankanMahavihara school, which had undergone its own reforms in the 12th century underParakramabahu I. This school, heavily influenced by the works of the 5th-century scholarBuddhaghosa, was regarded as the orthodox interpretation of Theravāda Buddhism and viewed other Buddhist practices as unorthodox.[4] The reforms reinforced monastic discipline, leading to a decline in esoteric Buddhist practices and the production of non-canonical texts.
Further suppression occurred under theFrench colonial empire, which ruled Cambodia and continued the policy of marginalizing pre-reform Cambodian Buddhism. Despite these efforts, traditional esoteric practices persisted in rural areas. However, the devastation caused by theKhmer Rouge in Cambodia and religious repression inCommunist Laos inflicted additional damage on these traditions.[9]
Southern Esoteric Buddhist influences may be present in the practices and views of the modern ThaiDhammakaya movement.[12][13][14] As well as their mother temple, Wat Paknam. Though Wat Dhammakaya's claims of an "inner, true self" existing in the Dhammakaya are their own and do not come from any historical esoteric lineage. Likewise in the Thai Forest Tradition.
Among the practitioners of Boran Kammatthana in the West are Samatha Trust, an organization dedicated to promoting the older Samatha tradition of meditation.
While lacking tantras, Boran Kammatthana retains extensive meditation manuals and esoteric practices. Cousins describes Southern Esoteric Buddhism as "tantro-kabbalistic" mysticism, characterized by mapping inner and outer worlds through elaborate correspondences—linking the human body, cosmos, and higher knowledge. This system integrates magic, sound and number symbolism, sacred gestures, and structured ritual patterns.[1]
Key features of Yogāvacara and Boran Kammatthana practice include:[1][4]
These practices are most commonly associated with Cambodian Buddhism but have historical roots in various Theravāda traditions across Southeast Asia.[4] It also contains South Asian religious elements like protective tattoos, astrological practices, spirit invocation, and meditative visualization of sacred lights and syllables within the body.[16]
Bizot's research highlights a rebirthing ritual involving a cave-as-womb metaphor, leading to the Dhammakaya transformation.[4] Several studies by Bizot have examined certain "rebirthing" rituals that were common in pre-modern Cambodia. These rituals incorporated symbolic sacred syllables, meditation on embryonic development, and the belief that this practice would allow one's body to be reborn as the Dhammakaya.[4]
Another practice studied by Bizot was the use ofyantras or sacred diagrams, which were made with Pali words and phrases and used as tattoos and on clothing.[4] These esoteric traditions also include visualization practices featuring colored lights paired with sacred syllables located throughout the body, culminating in visions of the Buddha and astupa at the top ofMount Sumeru.[4]
Among the sacred mantras in Yogāvacara texts, "Namo Buddhaya" ("Homage to the Buddha") and "Araham" ("Worthy One") are widely used. The recitation of these sacred phrases was employed as a meditation practice.[4]
The esoteric interpretation of "Namo Buddhaya" assigns mystical values to its syllables, linking them to familial and societal virtues:[1]
Robert Percival, who was in Ceylon from 1796 to 1800, described Buddhist mantra meditation as follows: "To their girdles they wear suspended strings of beads made of a brownish or black wood; and mutter prayers as they go along."[4]
The Saddavimala, a widely circulated Yogāvacara text, describes how practitioners rebuild themselves spiritually by internalizing Dhamma as bodily components, forming a new, immortal spiritual body that replaces the physical form at death.[4] This process involves several key steps, which the yogavacara must undertake:
These esoteric practices remain most prevalent in Northern Thai and Cambodian Buddhism, where they integrate elements of Theravada and esoteric Buddhist traditions.[17]
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![A statue of a Ruesi at Wat Suan Tan in [Nan, Thailand]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fwikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3a2013_Wat_Suan_Tan_02.jpg)
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In Cambodia and Laos, these methods are prevalent among forest monks and magicians, who are believed to possess supernormal abilities, including the divine eye and communication with spirits.
The practices of the Burmese BuddhistWeizza ("Wizards"), who follow an esoteric system of occult practices (such as recitation of spells, samatha and alchemy) believed to lead to supernormal powers and even immortality, might also be related to Southern Esoteric Buddhism.
Today, practitioners using these techniques are most prevalent along the banks of theMekong in Cambodia and Laos. These monks and magicians are believed to have thedivine eye and the ability to communicate with spirits. They practiceKasina meditation, mantra recitation, and ascetic practices (dhutanga).
Thai forest monks such as Ajahn Lee Dhammadharo were also influenced by esoteric practices, as exemplified by his text *The Divine Mantra*.[18]
In one text studied by Bizot, meditation includes visualization of colored lights paired with sacred syllables within the body, along with visions of the Buddha and astupa atopMount Sumeru.[4] Another text, the Ratanamala, uses theitipi so formula for various purposes, including:
Thus, while Boran Kammatthana lacks a direct tantric framework, it retains complex esoteric practices that align with other forms of Buddhist mysticism. The integration of mantra recitation, sacred symbolism, visualization, and ritual purification methods demonstrates its unique position within the broader landscape of Theravāda esotericism.[4]
Thus, while Boran Kammatthana lacks a direct tantric framework, it retains complex esoteric practices that align with other forms of Buddhist mysticism. The integration of mantra recitation, sacred symbolism, visualization, and ritual purification methods demonstrates its unique position within the broader landscape of Theravāda esotericism.[4]
This is a list of texts, that for whatever reason, were not included into the standard Pali Tipitaka or have largely only been passed down orally. Some chants require oral transmission.
Here is a list of deities that are emphasized in the local/popular folk practices or oral transmission traditions of Boran Kammatthana that are not emphasized in orthodox Theravada.
Sri Lankan Deities and Figures
Thai Deities and Spirits
Other Southeast Asian Deities
Here is a list of figures that have been praised in local Theravada Buddhist traditions on account of their extraordinary saintliness and powers.
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These are a list of sites that have great importance in local Buddhist tradition and may have influence from local animist traditions but are not referenced in the Pali Tipitaka.
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