VIDEO: In the heart of Brooklyn a devout Cambodian culture celebrates centuries-old traditions
At 26 Rugby Rd. off Caton Avenue in the landmarked neighborhood of Prospect Park South, stands stately a Queen Anne-style house that serves as the Watt Samakki-Dhammikaram Buddhist temple, Brooklyn’s only Cambodian Buddhist temple.
Cambodian and Buddhist flags flutter on a sloppy Saturday bathed in heavy rain that brought the pass of a nor’easter through the city last weekend. Oversized statues of Buddha planted in the front yard guard the temple’s entrance. The porch is flooded with all sizes of shoes.
Inside, surrounded by golden Buddhist sculptures, five monks in traditional orange robes pray and chant in front of dozens of barefoot Cambodians that gathered to celebrate Bon Kathen, a holiday that marks the end of the rainy season.