墮和羅（Dvāravatī，6–11 世紀）是猛族人（Mons）在古代暹羅（Siam）建國的一個國家，並有長期發展佛教的歷史。泰國學者地答．沙拉雅（Didha Saraya）將墮和羅的佛教分為兩種：（1）民間信仰的佛教，及（2）帝王信仰的佛教，並認為兩種都是小乘上座部（the Theravāda）的佛教信仰。地答．沙拉雅說，墮和羅的帝王能同時以：（1）「菩薩」或「聖神彌勒」（Phra Śrī Āriyamettrai）及（2）「轉輪王」（cakravartin）的面貌統治國家。從墮和羅帝王能以轉輪王的姿態統治天下此事，我們知道，墮和羅有長期使用「佛教轉輪王建國信仰」建國的歷史。所謂「轉輪王建國信仰」，即是法國學者戈岱司（G. Coedes）所言的「佛教帝王建國信仰」（Buddhist conception of royalty）。帝王使用轉輪王建國信仰時，必會用大乘佛教信仰作為其建國的方法及內容。因轉輪王建國信仰是一種大乘在歷史上奠立的治國術或政治傳統。筆者在此文中即要用大乘佛經及墮和羅的造像等證據證明墮和羅所發展的佛教，並不是小乘上座部的佛教，而是龍樹（Nāgārjuna）在 2 世紀後半葉於南印度奠立的大乘佛教建國信仰或「支提信仰」（the caitya worship）。 The kingdom of Dvāravatī (6–11th century) established in ancient Siam had a long history of promoting Buddhism. Thai scholar Didha Saraya classifies Dvāravatī’s Buddhism into two types: (1) folk Buddhism, and (2) Buddhism of royalty. Where the Buddhism of royalty is concerned, she suggests that a Dvāravatī king can simultaneously take the disguises of a “Bodhisattva” or “Phra Śrī Āriyamettrai” (the divine and saintly Maitreya) and a cakravartin, a “king of kings” who rules in accordance with Theravāda Buddhism. However, according to my research, a king with these two features can also be found in the caitya worship which belonged to a conception of Mahāyāna Buddhist kingship. This conception was established by Nāgārjuna in the late 2nd century A. D. in South India. I use Mahāyāna Buddhist texts and Dvāravatī Buddhist sculptures to prove that the Buddhism promoted in Dvāravatī belonged to the conception of Mahāyāna Buddhist kingship founded by Nāgārjuna.
