Thudhamma Nikaya
သုဓမ္မာနိကာယ | |
| Abbreviation | Thudhamma |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1800s |
| Type | Buddhist monastic order |
| Headquarters | Myanmar |
| Members | 467,025 (2016) |
| Part of a series on |
| Theravāda Buddhism |
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The Thudhamma Nikaya (Burmese: သုဓမ္မာနိကာယ, IPA: [θudəma̰ nḭkàja̰]; also spelt Sudhammā Nikāya) is the largest monastic order of monks in Burma.[1]
It is one of nine legally sanctioned monastic orders (nikāya) in the country, under the 1990 Law Concerning Sangha Organizations.[2] The Thudhamma is considered a more pragmatic order than the Shwegyin Nikaya, with looser rules regarding Vinaya regulations and is less hierarchical than the former.[3] Like all the major orders in Burma, the Thudhamma Nikaya prohibits monks from engaging in political activity.[4]
Statistics
[edit]According to 2016 statistics published by the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, 467,025 monks belonged to this monastic order, representing 87% of all monks in the country.[6] With respect to geographic representation, the plurality of Thudhamma monks live in Mandalay Region (19.76%), followed by Shan State (16.09%), Yangon Region (15.39%), and Sagaing Region (9.88%).[6] In 2016, the order had 56,492 monasteries, representing 90% of the country's monasteries.[7]
Origins
[edit]The Thudhamma Nikaya emerged in the late 18th century, as a result of Sangha reforms by King Bodawpaya, following a long tradition of Burmese kings attempting to purify and unify the Sangha.[8] The order's name Thudhamma comes from the Thudhamma Council (an ecclesiastical organization founded by Bodawpaya), which in turn is named after Mandalay's Thudhamma Zayats, the meeting grounds for the Council.[9]
The office of the Supreme Patriarch (သာသနာပိုင် or Thathanabaing), similar to the position of Sangharaja in Thailand and Cambodia, dates back to the 13th century, started by the monk Shin Arahan in the Pagan Kingdom.[10] The Thathanabaing was responsible for managing the monastic hierarchy and education at monasteries. In 1782, King Bodawpaya assembled the Thudhamma Council in Amarapura, led by the Thathanapaing and four elders (ထေရ် or thera) to resolve a century-old schism on the proper wearing of monk's robes - whether one (atin) or both shoulders (ayon) should be exposed.[10][8] The Cūḷagandhī faction, led by Atulayāsa and grounded in local traditions, supported the one-shoulder practice but was purged from the sangha.[11] The victorious Mahāgandhī faction, which became the Thudhamma majority, advocated the two-shoulder rule based on Pāli vinaya texts and their commentaries.[11]
Over time, the council expanded to twelve members, to oversee ecclesiastical matters.[8]
The monastic reforms unified the Sangha under centralized control, absorbing various monastic lineages into a single order regulated by the Thudhamma Council.[8] Toward the end of the Konbaung dynasty, the council oversaw religious affairs in the kingdom, including the appointment of monastery abbots, Vinaya regulations, discipline of individual monks, and administration of Monastic examinations.[10]
By the reign of King Mindon in the late 1800s, a movement toward independence emerged among monks to evade the Thudhamma Council's authority.[10] Splinters like the Shwegyin Nikaya, Mahādvāra Nikāya, and Hngettwin Nikaya all emerged during the reign of King Mindon.[10]
Sangharaja
[edit]Thanlyin Mingyaung Sayadaw is Sangharaja of Thudhamma Nikaya.
References
[edit]- ^ "Thuddama Nikaya". Department of Religion and Ethics, University of Cumbria. Retrieved 2020-05-19.
- ^ Gutter, Peter (2001). "Law and Religion in Burma" (PDF). Legal Issues on Burma Journal (8). Burma Legal Council: 10.
- ^ Matthews, Bruce (1993). "Buddhism under a Military Regime: The Iron Heel in Burma". Asian Survey. 33 (4). University of California Press: 411. doi:10.2307/2645106. JSTOR 2645106.
- ^ Aung-Thwin, Michael (2009). "Of Monarchs, Monks, and Men: Religion and the State in Myanmar" (PDF). Working Paper Series No. 127 (18). Asia Research Institute.
- ^ "The Account of Wazo Samgha of All Sect, M.E 1377 (2016)". The State Samgha Maha Nayaka Committee. Retrieved 2020-05-19.
- ^ a b "The Account of Wazo Samgha of All Sect, M.E 1377 (2016)". The State Samgha Maha Nayaka Committee. 2016. Retrieved 2025-05-06.
- ^ "The Account Monasteries of All-Sect in 1377 (2016)". The State Samgha Maha Nayaka Committee. 2016. Retrieved 2025-05-06.
- ^ a b c d Rowe, Mark Michael, ed. (2025-12-31), "2 The History of Macrolevel Monasticism in Myanmar", Living with the Vinaya, University of Hawaii Press, pp. 22–40, doi:10.1515/9780824899400-006, ISBN 978-0-8248-9940-0, retrieved 2025-05-10
- ^ Carbine, Jason A (2011). Sons of the Buddha: Continuities and Ruptures in a Burmese Monastic Tradition. Vol. 50. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-025409-9.
- ^ a b c d e James, Helen (2005). Governance and civil society in Myanmar: education, health, and environment. Psychology Press. p. 81. ISBN 978-0-415-35558-2.
- ^ a b Schober, Juliane (2010-11-30), Schober, Juliane (ed.), "Theravada Cultural Hegemony in Precolonial Burma", Modern Buddhist Conjunctures in Myanmar: Cultural Narratives, Colonial Legacies, and Civil Society, University of Hawai'i Press, p. 0, doi:10.21313/hawaii/9780824833824.003.0002, ISBN 978-0-8248-3382-4, retrieved 2025-05-11
See also
[edit]Theravada Buddhist orders | ||
|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | | |
| Cambodia | ||
| Myanmar (Burma) | ||
| Sri Lanka | ||
| Thailand | ||
