Chapter (2)
The Spread of Theravada Religion
In the 12th century A.D., Buddhism disappeared from India. By that time, Buddhism was already spreading and flourishing throughout the Asian continent. In some parts of Asia, Buddhism had arrived and was spreading since the time of Asoka, or even earlier.
Just as Mahayana Buddhism was established in the great northern regions, Theravada Buddhism was also spreading in the southern regions. The countries where Theravada Buddhism spread were what are now called Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. Let us first briefly examine the history of how Theravada Buddhism arrived and spread to these countries.
How Sri Lanka Became Theravada
In the 235th year of the Buddhist Era, after the Buddha’s Parinibbāna, King Asoka dispatched missionary monks to nine countries and nine places to propagate the Sāsana. Sri Lanka, then called the island of Laṅkā, was included among these places.
The elder monks who undertook the mission to Sri Lanka were the king’s son, the Venerable Mahinda, and five accompanying monks. The Venerable Mahinda and his companions arrived in Sri Lanka on the full moon day of Nayon in the year 236. Later, the king’s daughter, the Theri Sanghamitta, was also sent to ordain the women of Sri Lanka as bhikkhunīs (nuns).
The Theri Sanghamitta brought a southern branch of the Mahabodhi tree from Buddhagayā to Sri Lanka. It was planted in the city of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka, and its lineage continues uninterrupted to this day.
At the time of Venerable Mahinda’s arrival, King Devānampiyatissa was ruling in Sri Lanka. The king had only been coronated for about a month.
King Tissa, one month after becoming king, went hunting on the Mihintale mountain on the full moon day of Nayon. It was on this mountain that he met the Venerable Mahinda.
The Venerable Mahinda preached the Cūḷahatthipadopama Sutta to King Devānampiyatissa. At the end of the sermon, the king, along with his retinue of 40,000, established themselves in the Three Refuges and became Buddhists.
The Venerable Mahinda and his companions observed the rains retreat (vassa) at the Cetiyapabbata on the full moon day of Waso, and ordained 55 men, including Ariṭṭha, as monks. They propagated the Sāsana at Mihintale during that year.
King Devānampiyatissa built and donated the Mahāvihāra monastery for the elder monks to reside in. He also built stupas, pagodas, Bodhi trees, boundary markers, and hermitages.
Subsequent kings also continued to support the Buddhist Sāsana. Among these kings, some emerged who gave special support to Buddhism.
King Duṭṭhagāmaṇi built the monastery called Lohapāsāda. In the city of Anuradhapura, he also built the great stupa. This stupa remains a prominent stupa in Sri Lanka to this day. A unique achievement of the Sri Lankan Sangha was their ability to commit the Buddha’s teachings to writing on palm leaves by holding a council.
The Sangha Sects of Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, sects also arose concerning Theravada Buddhism. This division was also due to the support given by the ruling kings.
In ancient Sri Lanka, there were three major sects. They were:
(1) The Mahāvihāravāsī sect
(2) The Abhayagirivāsī sect
(3) The Jetavanavāsī sect.
The Mahāvihāravāsī sect: This great sect was the original sect established since the time of Venerable Mahinda. Because the elder monks resided continuously at the Mahāvihāra monastery built by King Devānampiyatissa, it came to be known as the “Mahāvihāravāsī sect.”
The Abhayagirivāsī sect: King Vaṭṭagāmaṇi, while fleeing from the threat of the Tamil invaders, was supported by the venerable monks. When this king ascended the throne for a second time, he built the Abhayagiri monastery and the Abhayagiri stupa and offered them to the Venerable Tissa who had helped him.
Because this Venerable Tissa was of the Kula Tissa clan, the monks of the Mahāvihāravāsī sect performed the Pabbājanīyakamma (act of temporary expulsion) against him. At that time, Venerable Tissa’s disciple, Mahādhammarakkhita, protested. The monks, claiming he was a supporter of the impure, performed the Ukkhepaniyakamma (act of suspension) against this monk as well.
This monk, being dissatisfied with the suspension, took 500 monks and left the Mahāvihāravāsī sect. From that time on, it became known as the Abhayagirivāsī sect. This schism occurred in the 454th year of the Sāsana.
The Jetavanavāsī sect: This sect appeared during the reign of King Mahasena. King Mahasena built the Jetavana monastery within the great Mahāvihāra monastery. Monks from the Dakkhiṇagiri monastery came to reside there. These monks did not associate with the monks of the Mahāvihāravāsī and established a separate sect. It was called the Jetavanavāsī sect.
The Jetavanavāsīs, in conspiracy with King Mahasena to destroy the Mahāvihāravāsī sect, destroyed the great Mahāvihāra monastery. They destroyed the Lohapāsāda palace-monastery built by the great King Duṭṭhagāmaṇi. As a result, the great Mahāvihāra monastery remained devoid of monks for nine years.
The three major sects mentioned above remained established in Sri Lanka for many years. When King Parākramabāhu I of the Sirisanghabodhi dynasty ascended the throne, he recognized the monks of the Mahāvihāravāsī sect as the pure sect. He had the monks from the other two sects, whom he deemed to be of corrupt practice, disrobed.
From that time on, only the Mahāvihāravāsī sect remained.
Modern Day Sects
Currently in Sri Lanka, all three of the ancient major sects have disappeared. Due to the invasion and rule of foreigners and natural disasters, the Theravada Sāsana weakened and faded. Therefore, in later periods, the Sāsana had to be revived with the help of Myanmar and Thailand.
Currently in Sri Lanka, the following major sects are flourishing:
Siam sect: In the Buddhist Era 2298, during the reign of King Kirti Sri Rajasinha, as there were no monks, monks were invited from Siam (Thailand) to re-establish the Sāsana. This sect is called the Siam sect (Siam Nikāya).
Amarapura sect: In the Buddhist Era 2344, six Sri Lankan lay disciples and one upāsaka arrived in the royal city of Amarapura in Myanmar and received the higher ordination (upasampadā) under the tutelage of the Ñāṇābhivaṃsa Dhammasenāpati elder at the Shwegu Gyi monastery. Subsequently, other Sri Lankan monks came and received new ordinations. The lineage from these monks became prominent in Sri Lanka as the Amarapura sect (Amarapura Nikāya).
Ramanna sect: In the Buddhist Era 2406, Venerable Dhammālaṅkāra, Venerable Sumana Tissa, and 17 other monks from Sri Lanka came to Pegu in the Ramanna division and received new ordination at the Kalyāṇī Sīmā under the tutelage of the Saddhammadhajamahāthera from Yangon.
They received a new ordination at the Kalyani Sima under him as their preceptor. This sect is called the Ramanna sect (Ramanna Nikāya).
Furthermore, just before World War II, some Sri Lankans came to the Mahāvisuddhārāma monastery in Mandalay to study. Among these monks, the Venerable Siri Saddhamma established the Mahāvisuddhārāma monastery upon his return to Sri Lanka and propagated the Sāsana, leading to the flourishing of his disciples. However, after the passing of that venerable teacher, due to the weakness of his disciple monks, the Shwegyin sect of Sri Lanka is no longer prominent.
How Thailand Became Theravada
In the early period, the land of Thailand was not the land of the Thai people. It was a country founded by the Mon people. The Mon people established two Mon kingdoms in what is now Thailand. The southern Mon kingdom was called Dvāravatī. Its capital was Lavo (Lopburi). The city of Lopburi still exists today. It is located on the banks of the Mae Nam River, north of the capital city of Bangkok.
The northern kingdom was called Haribhuñjaya. Its capital was Lamphun. That city also still exists near the city of Chiang Mai.
The Dvāravatī kingdom was at its peak in 700 A.D. Around the 10th century A.D., the Mon kingdom was destroyed due to the invasion of the Cambodian people. These Khmer (Cambodian) people conquered and ruled up to the central part of Thailand. Therefore, the Mon princess Cāmadevī gathered new forces and re-established the Haribhuñjaya kingdom.
At that time, the Thai people from the north of China gradually migrated southwards. In the 11th century, the Thai people reached the territory ruled by the Cambodians, called Khmers.
They lived under the rule of the Khmers. At that time, the Thai people worshipped the Mahayana Buddhism and Brahminism that their rulers, the Khmers, worshipped. Therefore, the culture of the Thai people was influenced by Mahayana and Hindu Brahminical culture.
Even today, traces of Mahayana and Hindu religious culture are clearly visible in the customs and court ceremonies of the Thai people.
The Founding of Thailand
Around the middle of the 13th century A.D., when the Thai people became powerful, they attacked and drove out the Cambodians. They also destroyed and conquered the small Haribhuñjaya kingdom. The Thai people established the Lanna kingdom in the north and the Sukhothai kingdom in the central region. From that time on, it became known as the kingdom of Thailand.
After the Thai people established the two kingdoms of Lanna and Sukhothai, the Thai kings sent monks to Sri Lanka to study. They also invited learned teachers from Sri Lanka to Thailand and had them establish the Theravada Sāsana.
By doing so, the Mahayana and Brahminical doctrines they had accepted while under Cambodian rule gradually faded and disappeared. Later, Theravada became dominant and became the state religion.
In the middle of the 19th century A.D., the ruling King Mongkut was a devout monk. He was also extremely respectful of the Theravada Buddhist religion.
For the purification of the Sāsana and to ensure adherence to the Vinaya rules, he founded the Dhammayuttika Nikāya sect.
From that time on, in Thailand:
- The Dhammayut sect (Dhammayuttika Nikāya)
- The Mahanikai sect (Mahā Nikāya) arose as two major sects.
How Cambodia Became Theravada
As early as the 1st century A.D., the Indochina peninsula was a route for Indian merchants. In ancient times, Indochina was called Anam. The Pallava people from India came to the Anam region for trade. Some Pallavas established themselves in the region of Champa, and from there they spread to Sumatra, Java, and the Eastern Indian archipelago.
Over the years, Champa became a bustling port for trade.
The first king to rule the Champa region was a Brahmin of the Kaundinya lineage from the Pallava capital of Kanchi in India. When he was coronated, he took the title “Varman,” following the custom of the Pallava kings. At that time, the kings primarily worshipped Hinduism. It is known that the Sabbatthivāda sect, which branched off from Theravada, also had a small presence.
While Hindu kings ruled in southern Cambodia, the northern region was inhabited by a people called the Funan. These people established the kingdom of Funan in 435 A.D. The Funan kings built Buddhist religious structures in their territory. They built stupas and pagodas. They adopted Buddhism from the islands of Sumatra and Srivijaya.
In the 9th century A.D., King Jaya Varman founded the city known as Angkor in Cambodia. The meaning of Angkor is “royal capital.” In the royal capital of Angkor…
He also built the magnificent temple known as Angkor Wat. This great temple is one of the wonders of the world. Although the Angkorian kings were followers of Hinduism, they also supported and promoted Mahayana Buddhism.
Jayavarman VII and Buddhism
Around the 11th century A.D., kings who were devout worshippers of Buddhism emerged. At that time, the form of Buddhism was Mahayana Buddhism.
Among the kings who supported Buddhism, King Jayavarman VII was the one who gave the greatest support. This king also diligently worked for the development of other state affairs. He built the new city of Angkor in the 12th century.
The new city of Angkor was built in a magnificent square shape, two miles long and two miles wide. In the center of the city, he built the Buddhist temple known as Bayon. The Bayon temple is 130 feet high. King Varman decorated the great temple with many artistic works. At the central viewing point of the temple, he had 102 stone Buddha images carved and worshipped.
Five years after completing the palace, King Varman also built the Ta Prohm monastery. The great monastery was built in dedication to the king’s mother. For the construction of the Ta Prohm monastery, 79,365 people from 3,140 villages were assigned to the work.
In that monastery:
18 great teachers,
2,740 monks,
2,202 lay disciples resided.
As early as 1200 A.D., the Varman dynasty also came to an end. In the 12th century A.D., a monk from Myanmar went to Cambodia and preached Theravada Buddhism. At that time, the Cambodian kings were fond of Theravada Buddhism and gave their support and assistance. Later, as Theravada Buddhism spread, by the end of the 13th century, Mahayana and Hinduism had faded and disappeared.
In the 14th century, they also made contact with Theravada Buddhism from Sri Lanka and Theravada from Thailand. From then on, Theravada became the foundation and has remained so.
Currently, in the country of Cambodia, Theravada Buddhism is flourishing like the rising sun and moon.
How Laos Became Theravada
The country of Laos (Lao) emerged as a separate nation only in the 14th century. The Khmer people provided assistance for the emergence of Laos. In the early period of Laos, Mahayana Buddhism also flourished. It is said that Theravada Buddhism was received from the Khmers (Cambodians) and Thailand.
As the Laotian kings supported and promoted Theravada Buddhism, they were able to declare Theravada Buddhism as the state religion as early as the 14th century. Even during the period of communist rule, Theravada Buddhism did not waver or decline but remained steadfast. It can be said that the state of Buddhism did not decline but rather developed even more.
Currently, 95% of the population in Laos are followers of Theravada Buddhism.
