我不认为单纯依据某种永恒的定则就能理解17世纪的柬埔寨社会。在很多方面,它和19世纪的情况不同。一方面,19世纪的柬埔寨已经被外国势力所屈服,17世纪的柬埔寨仍然有充分根据说是独立的。另一方面,19世纪柬埔寨被两个强国——暹罗与越南阻断了同外部世界的联系,这两个强国支配着柬埔寨的政局。而17世纪的柬埔寨同很多国家自由贸易。我们从柬埔寨文学经典著作罗摩衍那(Ramayana)的当地版本Reamker以及在吴哥碑铭和其余作品中可以看到17世纪的柬埔寨比19世纪更具有活力。 萨弗罗斯·波(Saveros Pou)将这一衰落部分归因于泰国的影响,但他认为更深刻的原因是他所说的“从17世纪开始的价值观的缓慢衰落过程”。在同时阅读Reamker和19世纪写成的拙劣诗体小说之后, 或者将阿德赫马德·莱克斯雷(Adhemard Leclere)翻译的17世纪法典同19世纪众多国王留下的散乱而呆板的文件相比较之后,我们很容易产生同他一样的印象。尽管他所引述的价值(Values)源自精英阶层,彼(Pou)仍将柬埔寨的衰落看作柬埔寨共同接受的传统价值的一种现代化进程。她将这些价值观念(Values)依次看成同佛教关于宇宙的观点相联系(包含在通称为“Trai Phum台风”或“三个世界”的说教性诗篇里),特别是看成佛教的口头说教,这些说教包含在“法 I do not think that we can understand the Cambodian society in the 17th century simply based on some eternal principle. In many ways, it differs from the situation of the nineteenth century. On the one hand, Cambodia in the 19th century has already been surrendered by foreign forces. In the 17th century, Cambodia was still fully justified as being independent. On the other hand, in the 19th century, Cambodia was blocked by two powerful nations, Siam and Vietnam, from its relations with the outside world, which dominated Cambodia’s political situation. In the 17th century, Cambodia enjoyed free trade with many other countries. We can see from the Cambodian literary classics Reamker, a local version of Ramayana, and inscriptions on Angkor and other works that the 17th century Cambodia was more dynamic than the 19th century. Saveros Pou attributed this decline partly to Thailand’s influence, but he thinks the more profound reason is what he calls “the slow decline of values ​​since the 17th century.” After reading both Reamker and the poignant poetic novels of the 19th century, or comparing the 17th century code translated by Adhemard Leclere with the scraggly and inflexible paper left by many kings in the 19th century After that, we can easily produce the same impression with him. Although his quoted values ​​originate from the elite, Pou still regards the decline of Cambodia as a modern process of the common accepted values ​​of Cambodia. She views these values ​​in turn as connected with Buddhism’s view of the universe (contained in the preaching poem commonly known as the “Trai Phum typhoon” or “Three Worlds”), especially as oral precepts of Buddhism , These preaching is included in the "law