Citizendia

Supreme Patriarch redirects here. For information on the patriarchs of the Western religions, see Patriarch. Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a Pater familias over an extended family For information on the Supreme Patriarch of Armenia, see Catholicos of Armenia. The Catholicos of All Armenians (plural Catholicoi, due to its Greek origin is the Chief Bishop of Armenia 's national church the Armenian

Sangharaja (Pāli: sangha religious community + raja ruler, king, or prince) is the title given in many Theravada Buddhist countries to a senior monk who is the titular head either of a monastic fraternity (nikaya), or of the Sangha throughout the country. Pali ( ISO 15919 / ALA-LC: Pāḷi is a Middle Indo-Aryan language or Prakrit of India. This article concerns the concept of Sangha in Buddhism. For information on other senses see Sangha (disambiguation. For other uses see Raja (disambiguation and Rajah (disambiguation. History Origin of the school The Theravāda school is ultimately derived from the Vibhajjavāda (or 'doctrine of analysis' grouping which was a continuation Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices Nikāya is a word of meaning 'collection' 'assemblage' 'class' or 'group' in both Pali and Sanskrit. This article concerns the concept of Sangha in Buddhism. For information on other senses see Sangha (disambiguation. This term is often rendered in English as 'Patriarch' or 'Supreme Patriarch'. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a Pater familias over an extended family

Contents

Overview

The position of sangharaja has been assigned according to various methods in different countries and time periods. In some cases, the sangharaja is determined by absolute monastic seniority; the sangharaja is the monk who has spent the most rains retreats (vassa) as a monk. Vassa (from Pāli vasso, Sanskrit varṣaḥ, both "rain" พรรษา pansa or phansaa; ဝါဆိုး In other cases, royal appointment may play a role- the sangharaja may be appointed by the king, particularly in Southeast Asian countries where the monarchy is closely associated with Buddhism (Thailand, for example). The Kingdom of Thailand (ˈtaɪlænd ราชอาณาจักรไทย, râːtɕʰa-ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k-tʰɑj Alternatively, the sangharaja may be chosen semi-democratically by monks or the laity (similar to the election of an abbot in some Theravada communities). The word abbot, meaning Father, is a title given to the head of a Monastery in various traditions including Christianity.

The authority and responsibility assigned to the sangharaja can also vary significantly. Traditionally, Buddhist monasticism has not imposed any particular obligation of obedience on Buddhist monks. Monasticism is one of the most fundamental institutions of Buddhism. A Bhikkhu ( Pāli) or Bhiksu ( Sanskrit) is a fully ordained male Buddhist Monastic. Any monk can offer criticism of any other monk with regards to violations of disciplinary rules, and a monk is not bound to follow the orders or recommendations of another monk - even a senior monk. The Vinaya (a word in Pāli as well as in Sanskrit, with literal meaning 'leading out' 'education' 'discipline' is the regulatory framework for the Buddhist While in practice, the respect accorded to a senior monk and the standards of the local community often provide a significant impetus for requests from senior monks to be obeyed, there is no traditional or scriptural demand for such attitudes. Most monasteries - even in areas where a sangharaja has been appointed - remain primarily self-governing or, at the most, dependent on a single larger temple in the same region.

As such, in some cases the sangharaja is primarily a figurehead, a focal point and spokesman for Buddhist piety, but not endowed with any particular authority. Even without any clearly designated authority or responsibilities, a sangharaja can often effect significant changes in a Theravada country by employing the respect accorded to he and his office to mobilize monks and laymen for social or religious change. Preah Maha Ghosananda of Cambodia was an example of this type of sangharaja- one whose influence over the local religious community far exceeded any ecclesiastic authority that he may have wielded. Maha Ghosananda, (full title Samdech Preah Maha Ghosananda - សម្ដចព្រះមហាឃោសានន្ទ ( 1929 - March 12, 2007 The Kingdom of Cambodia ( formerly known as Kampuchea (, transliterated: Preăh Réachéanachâkr Kâmpŭchea) is a country in South East

In other cases, the sangharaja may be part of a national or regional hierarchy that is responsible for settling issues of wider importance to the national sangha. The Supreme Patriarch of Thailand operates in this mold, in association with the civil government. The Supreme Patriarch or Sangharaja (พระสังฆราช is the head of the order of Buddhist monks in Thailand The central religious hierarchy is responsible for issues of national and regional importance- such as the curriculum of monastic schools, the creation of authoritative forms for scriptures and rituals, and reform issues of nation-wide importance- leaving most local decisions to the discretion of individual temples and abbots (such as the ordination and disciplining of individual monks).

Sangharaja in Thailand

Main article: Supreme Patriarch of Thailand

The Sangharaja of Thailand is traditionally appointed by the king. The Supreme Patriarch or Sangharaja (พระสังฆราช is the head of the order of Buddhist monks in Thailand The Supreme Patriarch or Sangharaja (พระสังฆราช is the head of the order of Buddhist monks in Thailand As a result, since the establishment of the Dhammayuttika Nikaya under King Mongkut, Thai sangharajas have tended to come from that order, despite it being a minority of the ordained monks in Thailand. The Dhammayuttika Nikaya or Thammayut Nikaya (ธรรมยุต (ทำมะยุด นิกาย ធម្មយុត្តិក និកាយ is an order Sometimes especially in Thai language documents King Mongkut might also refer to Vajiravudh (Rama VI, reigning title Phra Mongkut Klao Chaoyuhua (พระมงกุฏเกล้าเจ้าอยู่หัว

Sangharaja in Cambodia

Main article: Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia

In Cambodia and the former Khmer kingdoms, the sangharaja (Khmer: សង្ឃរាជ sanghreach) was a senior monk appointed by the king who headed one of the countries monastic fraternities. The Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia ( Pali: Sangharāja; Khmer: សម្តេចព្រះសង្ឃរាជ sɑmdac preah sɑŋ riec is the effective From the period between 1855 and the beginning of the Khmer era, one sangharaja existed for the Cambodian branch of the Dhammayuttika Nikaya, and another for the Maha Nikaya. The Dhammayuttika Nikaya or Thammayut Nikaya (ธรรมยุต (ทำมะยุด นิกาย ធម្មយុត្តិក និកាយ is an order Because the Dhammayuttika order enjoyred closer ties to the throne, it officially had primacy in Cambodia, despite constituting a small majority of Khmer monks.

During the Khmer period, the role of sangharaja essentially vanished, as Buddhism was officially suppressed first by the Khmer Rouge and then by the Vietnamese backed People's Republic of Kampuchea. In the late 70's, the PRK began to reverse its stance in order to gain wider popular support for its rule. As part of this effort, a new sangharaja was appointed by the government in 1981 (Venerable Tep Vong), with both nikayas being combined into a single unified order. Tep Vong ( Khmer: ទេព វង្ស b 1932 is a Cambodian Buddhist monk currently the Great Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia [1]

In 1991 King Sihanouk, having returned from exile, appointed Bour Kry sangharaja of the Dhammayuttika order, returning Cambodia to the two-patriarch system. Names and titles Since his abdication Sihanouk's official Cambodian title (short version the most-widely used is Preah Karuna Preah Bat Sâmdech Preah Norodom Sihanouk Preahmâhaviraksat Samdech Preah Sanghareach Bour Kry (បួរ គ្រី (born January 11, 1945) is the seventh and current Supreme Patriarch of the Dhammayuttika [2] As the monarchy no longer has government status in Cambodia, the two fraternities are now officially equals. [3] The full official title of the Supreme Patriarch of the Maha Nikaya is Samdech Preah Sumedhādhipati, while the full official title of the Supreme Patriarch of the Dhammayuttika Nikaya is Samdech Preah Sugandhādhipati. [4]

Modern sangharajas

In 1988, Maha Ghosananda was elected Supreme Patriarch by a group of exiled monks in Paris, however this status was not officially recognized in Cambodia. Somdet Phra Nyanasamvara (Charoen Suvaddhano ( th สมเด็จพระญาณสังวร (เจริญ สุวฑฒฺโน RTGS Somdet Maha Ghosananda, (full title Samdech Preah Maha Ghosananda - សម្ដចព្រះមហាឃោសានន្ទ ( 1929 - March 12, 2007 Samdech Preah Sanghareach Bour Kry (បួរ គ្រី (born January 11, 1945) is the seventh and current Supreme Patriarch of the Dhammayuttika The Dhammayuttika Nikaya or Thammayut Nikaya (ธรรมยุต (ทำมะยุด นิกาย ធម្មយុត្តិក និកាយ is an order Tep Vong ( Khmer: ទេព វង្ស b 1932 is a Cambodian Buddhist monk currently the Great Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia [6] During this same period, Tep Vong held the same office in the unified Cambodian sangha, and after 1991 as the Supreme Patriarch of the Maha Nikaya.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ (Harris 2001, p. The Supreme Patriarch or Sangharaja (พระสังฆราช is the head of the order of Buddhist monks in Thailand The Supreme Patriarch of Cambodia ( Pali: Sangharāja; Khmer: សម្តេចព្រះសង្ឃរាជ sɑmdac preah sɑŋ riec is the effective  75)
  2. ^ (Harris 2001, p.  77)
  3. ^ (Harris 2001, p.  77)
  4. ^ (Harris 2001, p.  74)
  5. ^ Cambodia Daily article on KI Media
  6. ^ (Harris 2001, p.  70)

References

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org