Southern Siam was however to some extent affected by another wave of Buddhism.  From early times the eastern coast of India (and perhaps Ceylon) had intercourse not only with Burma but with the Malay Peninsula.  It is proved by inscriptions that the region of Ligor, formerly known as Sri Dharmaraja, was occupied by Hindus (who were probably Buddhists) at least as early as the fourth century A.D.,[201] and Buddhist inscriptions have been found on the mainland opposite Penang.  The Chinese annals allude to a change in the customs of Camboja and I-Ching says plainly that Buddhism once nourished there but was exterminated by a wicked king, which may mean that Hinayanist Buddhism had spread thither from Ligor but was suppressed by a dynasty of Sivaites.  He also says that at the end of the seventh century Hinayanism was prevalent in the islands of the Southern Sea.  An inscription of about the fourth century found in Kedah and another of the seventh or eighth from Phra Pathom both contain the formula Ye dharma, etc.  The latter inscription and also one from Mergui ascribed to the eleventh century seem to be in mixed Sanskrit and Pali.  The Sukhothai inscription summarized above tells how a learned monk was brought thither from Ligor and clearly the Pali Buddhism of northern Siam may have followed the same route.  But it probably had also another more important if not exclusive source, namely Burma.  After the reign of Anawrata Pali Buddhism was accepted in Burma and in what we now call the Shan States as the religion of civilized mankind and this conviction found its way to the not very distant kingdom of Sukhothai.  Subsequently the Siamese recognized the seniority and authority of the Sinhalese Church by inviting an instructor to come from Ceylon, but in earlier times they can hardly have had direct relation with the island.

We have another picture of religious life in a Khmer inscription[202] of Lidaiya or Sri Suryavamsa Rama composed in 1361 or a little later.  This monarch, who is also known by many lengthy titles, appears to have been a man of learning who had studied the Tipitaka, the Vedas, the Sastragama and Dharmanaya and erected images of Mahesvara and Vishnu as well as of the Buddha.  In 1361 he sent a messenger to Ceylon charged with the task of bringing back a Metropolitan or head of the Sangha learned in the Pitakas.  This ecclesiastic, who is known only by his title, was duly sent and on arriving in Siam was received with the greatest honour and made a triumphal progress to Sukhothai.  He is not represented as introducing a new religion:  the impression left by the inscription is rather that the king and his people being already well-instructed in Buddhism desired ampler edification from an authentic source.  The arrival of the Sangharaja coincided with the beginning of Vassa and at the end of the sacred season the king dedicated a golden image of the Buddha, which stood in the midst of the city, and then entered the order.