Bells peal for new Buddhist leader
HM King, dignitaries make their offerings
Across the country and abroad, monks at Buddhist temples chanted prayers and rang bells yesterday evening as a congratulatory gesture welcoming the new supreme patriarch who was proclaimed at the investiture ceremony at Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram or the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.
His Majesty the King presided over the ceremony after he appointed Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong as the 20th Supreme Patriarch under the amended Sangha Act passed by the National Legislative Assembly on Dec 29.
The ubosot, or ordination hall of Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram was thronged with senior monks from both branches of Dhammayuttika Nikaya and Maha Nikaya, chairman of the Privy Council, and the heads of government, legislature and judiciary.
Buddhist devotees, dressed in black in mourning for the late King, were crammed outside the ubosot to pay respects to His Majesty and the new Supreme Patriarch. They hailed the occasion as one of the most precious moments in their lives.
In the solemn ceremony broadcast live, a representative from the cabinet’s secretariat read out the royal command appointing Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong as the Supreme Patriarch. At the end of the announcement, the ubosot was filled with prayers led by senior monks.
The Supreme Patriarch then proceeded to a prepared seat along with members of the Sangha Supreme Council (SSC). His Majesty presented the blessed water, a gold name plate, and a rank fan to the head of the clergy.
At this auspicious moment, bells at temples across the country and abroad rang 20 times, signalling that the investiture of the country’s 20th supreme patriarch was now complete.
The rarely-heard chime came from the bell at Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram. The bell, which hangs at the top of a high tower south of the main chapel in the temple, is only rung on special royal ceremonies and the investiture of the supreme patriarch.
At the highlight of yesterday’s ceremony, Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong moved to a prepared spot in the middle of the ubosot reserved for the Supreme Patriarch.
He was surrounded by other senior monks who recited a prayer to herald the era of the new Supreme Patriarch.
His Holiness received offerings from His Majesty, the Privy Council president, the prime minister, the National Legislative Assembly chairman and the Supreme Court president.
After that, Supreme Patriarch left the ubosot and received offerings from senior monks from other sects. His Majesty departed from the ubosot, marking the conclusion of the investiture ceremony.
The last investiture ceremony took place in 1989 when the late Somdet Phra Nyanasamvara was appointed by the late King as the head of the Buddhist clergy.
Booncherd Kittitarangkoon, director of the secretariat of the Sangha Supreme Council (SSC), said the Buddhist community was overwhelmed.
“The entire Buddhist community will roar with Sadhu and the temple bells will chime across the country as a gesture that the investiture ceremony has taken place,” he said earlier yesterday. Buddhist followers also turned up at their local temples which held activities to mark the investiture of the new Supreme Patriarch. The ceremonies began at the same time at 6.30pm yesterday.
In the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, more than 2,500 temples held chanting and bell ringing ceremonies, while Buddhist followers decorated the temple halls with flowers and a portrait of the new Supreme Patriarch.
In Nakhon Phanom province, at Wat Phra That Phranom Woramahawihan, the ceremony was attended by Somchai Witdamrong, the provincial governor, and attended by a large number of Buddhists eager to express their congratulations and best wishes to the new Supreme Patriarch.
In Si Sa Ket, about 500 people from Oddar Meanchey province in Cambodia came to Wat Prai Pattana in Phu Sing district to take part in the ceremony to mark the investiture of the new Supreme Patriarch held there.
In the northern province of Chiang Mai, large TV screens were installed at Wat Chedi Laung temple to relay the telecast of the main ceremony being held in Bangkok for people in Chiang Mai to see while attending a similar ceremony held locally. At the temple in Chiang Mai’s Muang district, more than 3,000 copies of the Supreme Patriarch’s portrait were handed out to the ceremony’s participants. Inkam, a Shan ethnic who works as housekeeper at the temple said she was very glad to know that Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong has become the Supreme Patriarch as she had seen the monk when he came to the temple in the past and was very impressed with his kindness. Early in the day, many Buddhist f ollowers went t o pay respects to Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong at Wat Rajabopit where he serves as abbot. Buddhists are welcome to pay respects to the new Supreme Patriach from Feb 13-15 at the temple from 9am10.30am and 2pm-4pm.
The appointment of Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong as the new Supreme Patriarch by His Majesty the King has left no room for doubt about his credentials for the top monastic post, according to people close to him.
Committed to the ascetic life, staying away from physical pleasures and comforts, the 90-year-old abbot of Wat Rajabopit in Bangkok has proved to be a worthy successor to the late, highly-revered supreme patriarch, Somdet Phra Nyanasamvara, who passed away on Oct 24, 2013.
Buddhists have welcomed the new appointment and have agreed Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong, Amphon Amparo, has what it takes to assume the top monastic role.
Among the eight senior monks holding the title of “somdet” — the second-highest ranking after the supreme patriarch in the monastic hierarchy, Somdet Phra Maha Rat ch am an gala ch a rn, the 92- year-old abbot of Wat Pak Nam Phasi Charoen, is the most senior, receiving the title in 1995 before all the rest.
But a question of propriety was raised as he was embroiled in a car tax evasion scandal.
Next in line was Somdet Phra Maha Wirawong, 99, abbot of Wat Samphanthawong, who received the somdet title in 2001, though he is said to be in frail health.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha previously said the government would consider seniority, appropriateness and the health of potential candidates for the supreme patriarch post before nominating them for royal consideration.
Given those factors, Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong — who is the third most senior on the Sangha Supreme Council (SSC), having received the title of somdet in 2009 — was deemed as the most fitting choice as he met all the criteria.
On Feb 7, the prime minister broke the news of the appointment of Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong by His Majesty the King as the 20th Supreme Patriarch, to the joy of Buddhists nationwide.
The nomination and appointment of the new supreme patriarch was in compliance with the amended Sangha Act passed by the National Legislative Assembly on Dec 29 last year.
Under the amended law, the King reserves the right to name the supreme patriarch. In the old version of the law, the SSC had the power to nominate the supreme patriarch.
His Majesty the King presided over the investiture of the new supreme patriarch at Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram or the Temple of the Emerald Buddha at 5pm yesterday. The ceremony, the first in many decades, was broadcast live on the TV Pool.
He is the third abbot of Wat Rajabopit to serve as the Supreme Patriarch, after Somdet Kromma Luang Jinavorn Sirivaddhana, the 11th Supreme Patriarch who was made Supreme Patriarch between 1921 and 1922 and again from 1937 to 1938, as well as Somdet Phra Ari ya von gs agatanana, Vasana Vasano, the 18 th Supreme Patriarch who occupied the top position from 1973–1988.
Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong belongs to the Dhammayuttika Nikaya, one of the two major sects of Theravada Buddhism in Thailand. The other is Maha Nikaya.
Traditionally, the Supreme Patriarch position alternates between the two sects.
Santisuk Sophonsiri, a Buddhism scholar and author of a book titled My Lord Buddha, revealed Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong strictly follows the rules and regulations of the clergy, and particularly the Vinaya — the disciplinary code of conduct for Buddhist monks.
This has won him recognition from monks of the two Buddhist sects.
Mr Santisuk also said residents who live in the neighbourhood of Fueang Nakhon Road near Wat Rajabopit hold the top monk in the highest esteem and greatly respect other monks from the temple.
The new Supreme Patriarch has gained admiration of many who have witnessed him take the early morning alms bare-footed.
When invited to attend a religious function outside the temple, he catches a taxi rather than take a chauffeur-driven luxury sedan as is the preference of some other senior monks.
Despite his high monastic ranking, Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong remains accessible and approachable. He always sees to it that the monks at the temple behave properly and are looked after well, Mr Santisuk said.
According to Phra Prommethi, a spokesman of the SSC, Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong is committed to a simple life with barely any physical pleasures.
Phra Prommethi, also an SSC member, said when Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong was a young monk, he often visited and sought advice from monks who were renowned meditation masters widely respected for their monasticism in the Northeast.
While in the Northeast, he also practised in the style of an ascetic monk in the so-called forest tradition, going on forest retreats, spending most of his time on meditation and eating only once a day, Phra Prommethi said.
Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong is also known to be a disciple of the late Phra Ajarn Fahn Ajaro, a highly-revered Vipassana mediation master and the former abbot of Wat Pa Udom Somphon in the northeastern province of Sakon Nakhon.
Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong assumed a crucial role in spreading Buddhism overseas.
He was among the first group of “phra dhammaduta” — a delegation of Buddhist monks sent to spread Buddhist teachings overseas. Dhammaduta means “a messenger of Dhamma or an ambassador of Dhamma”.
In 1973, the monk led a delegation of phra dhammaduta to Sydney, Australia, to blaze a path and lay the foundation for Theravada Buddhism to gain a foothold there.
Thanks to the monk’s pioneering role, Buddhism has since gained a wider following and spread to other major cities such as Canberra, Melbourne and Darwin.
He has been noted and credited with spreading knowledge and teachings in Buddhism to Australia and elsewhere.
Phra Thepsumethi, the abbot of Wat Srisuriyawongsaram in Ratchaburi and the younger brother of Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong, said the new supreme patriarch is the second son of the family of nine children — four sons and five daughters.
Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong deeply values filial piety, according to his brother.
When Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong was a young monk staying at Wat Rajabopit in Bangkok, he would make the long journey in those days home to Ratchaburi every month to visit their parents, said Phra Thepsumethi, also the Ratchaburi chief monk.
Tuenjit Mingkhamlert, 70, a sister of Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong, said family and relatives are pleased and proud the monk has been appointed as the new supreme patriarch.
“After we heard the good news, his siblings and relatives are elated and feel very proud. This brings the greatest honour to the family and people of Ratchaburi,” Ms Tuenjit said.
The new supreme patriarch was born Amphon to Nab and Tarn Prasatthapong, a local business family, in Ratchaburi’s Muang district on June 26, 1927.
He attended the Thewa Nukhro primary school in Lop Buri’s Muang district before being ordained a Buddhist novice at a temple in Ratchaburi in 1937.
The young novice studied Buddhist teachings in Pali and graduated with a certificate in Pali studies at the fourth level in 1947.
He later moved to Wat Rajabopit where he was ordained a monk on May 9, 1948, with the late 18th supreme patriarch, Vasana Vasano, as his mentor.
There, the monk continued with his Pali studies and went on to receive a certificate at the sixth level in 1950.
The ninth level is the highest in Pali studies in Thailand.
The monk then studied at Maha Makut Buddhist University in Bangkok and graduated in religious studies in 1957 before obtaining a master’s degree in history and archaeology from Banaras Hindu University in India in 1969.
After we heard the good news, his siblings and relatives are elated and feel very proud. This brings the greatest honour to the family and people of Ratchaburi. TUENJIT MINGKHAMLERT A SISTER OF SOMDET PHRA MAHA MUNIWONG