WAT BUDDHIKARAM
BY JENNY HOR
The entranceway of Wat Buddhikaram features traditional Cambodian architecture.
A five-headed naga lines the rails of Wat
Buddhikaram.
T
you have culture. They go together
side-by-side,” he says.
he past 41 years for the Cambodian
community have been a story of
struggle and survival.
The communist takeover of Cambodia
marked nearly four years of intense
labor and a longing for refuge. In 1975,
the first wave of Cambodian refugees
settled in Utah and they would
become part of the largest refugee
resettlement in the U.S.
In 1991, community leaders purchased
a home in West Valley City and
transformed it into Wat Buddhikaram.
For the last 25 years, the unassuming
neighborhood has come alive during
New Year celebrations and other
Cambodian holidays with the sounds
of beating drums and chanting
congregants.
“The temple is very important,” Thea
Yan says. “It’s a place for new
generations to understand the Buddhist
religion and for our Cambodian
community to get closer in building
relationships.”
1 1 | V O I C E S | M C A . U TA H . G O V
Wat Buddhikaram is the result of the
efforts put forth by a community
wanting to hold onto a culture they
never let go — even as they left
Cambodia. They converted the oncestanding garage into a sala chan, a
multipurpose room used for religious
and cultural activities, which the few
hundred members eventually outgrew.
When the time came to build a new
facility, they worked tirelessly to
cook and sell traditional food at large
festivals and asked members for their
support through financial contributions.
They raised $700,000 to fund the
construction of the temple.
“We built a new temple because of
the growing needs of the community,”
Ray Hour says, who serves on the
board of directors. “It was the right
time for our generation because
we have more time now to volunteer.”
For Hour, religion and culture are
inseparable and the temple serves as
a unifying front. “If you have religion,
The temple is also a practice space
for the Khemera Dance Troupe. Young
Cambodian Americans attend Sunday
classes to learn the intricacies of
Cambodian classical and folk dances.
“I joined the dance troupe to learn more
about my culture and to be around
people who are dedicated to preserving
a beautiful art form,” Emily Seang says.
Within a community that knows the
struggles of displacement, Wat
Buddhikaram is home to those who are
allowed to practice their cultural and
religious beliefs without systemic
resistance. It’s a place that celebrates
being Cambodian in Utah.
“I love that the temple is expanding to
the community,” Seang says. “It really
displays our culture and beliefs to
people in Utah and others that visit
from elsewhere.”