Wat Khemararam Toul
Wat Khemararam Toul was listed as a Khmer Theravada Buddhist temple in Toul, in the Lorraine region of France.[1][2] From 1997 it occupied a house on the rue du Champ-de-Foire, and in 2016 the local newspaper L'Est Républicain called it the only pagoda in the area.[2]
History
A Temple News directory listed the temple at 34, rue Champ de Foire, F-54200 Toul, with the telephone number 03.83.64.22.73.[1] In 2016 the pagoda was used in turn by the Cambodian and Laotian communities. A single monk led both communities' two yearly celebrations, the New Year and the Festival of the Dead. The monk set the dates of services and then sent out invitations. Services were often held on Sundays, and attendance varied.[2]
The pagoda
In 2016 the pagoda was a gray house with no outward sign of a place of worship. Behind the house stood golden chapels and altars decorated with many statuettes, and at the center a tall Buddha image sheltered under a colorful temple. The worshippers built these chapels and altars themselves, from the concrete slab to the roof frame and the wiring.[2]
Inside, a kitchen held the food offerings that worshippers brought for the monk. The prayer room was richly decorated, with carpets on the floor, illustrations covering the walls and an altar that shone with the statues around it. Shoes were removed before entering.[2]
Community
The pagoda drew Buddhists from Toul, from Nancy and from as far as Metz. It was kept up by donations and by the goodwill of its worshippers. Khamphouy Bounpaseuth led the Laotian community association supporting Buddhist educational and cultural activities, Wat Khemararam. The Laotian community did not keep an exact count of the people who attended.[2]