Ecclesiastical peerages ( th, สมณศักดิ์; ; literally "ecclesiastical dignity") have traditionally been given to ordained members of the Thai sangha, the community of the Buddhist monks of

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

. Each ecclesiastical peer holds a rank ( th, ยศ; ) and a title ( th, ราชทินนาม; ). For example, ''Phra Dharma Kośācārya'' ( th, พระธรรมโกศาจารย์; ) is the title of a monk holding the rank of '' phra rachakhana'' ( th, พระราชาคณะ) in the dharma class. In addition to an ecclesiastical peerage, a monk may also be known by a layname (name as a layperson) and a dharmic name. Holders of certain ranks are given ( th, พัดยศ; ).

History

The custom of giving peerages to Buddhist priests originated in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

and is believed to have been practiced in Thailand since the time of the

Sukhothai Kingdom The Sukhothai Kingdom ( th, สุโขทัย, , IAST: , ) was a post-classical Thai kingdom (mandala) in Mainland Southeast Asia surrounding the ancient capital city of Sukhothai in present-day north-central Thailand. The kingdom was fo ...

, during which the Sri Lanka's sect of Buddhism known as '' Laṅkāvaṃśa'' ( th, ลังกาวงศ์) was prevalent in the region and it appears that Srī Śraddhā ( th, ศรีศรัทธา; ), a nephew of King

Pha Mueang Pha Mueang (full name Pho Khun Pha Mueang, th, พ่อขุนผาเมือง; late 13th century – mid 14th century) was a Thai nobleman and general who was the Lord of Rad and played a significant role in the founding of the Sukhothai ...

, a local leader at that time, even travelled to the isle of Sri Lanka where he was ordained as a priest and was given a peerage. Stone inscriptions of that time mention such ecclesiastical titles as ''Mahāthēra'' ( th, มหาเถร; ) and ''Mahāsvāmī'' ( th, มหาสวามี; ). During the reign of King

Mahathammaracha II Maha Thammaracha II ( th, มหาธรรมราชาที่ ๒, ), born as Lue Thai ( th, ลือไทย, ), was a king of the Sukhothai Kingdom, a historical kingdom of Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam ...

of Sukhothai, the Buddhist community of Sukhothai was divided into two sects: '' araṇyavāsī'' ( th, อรัญวาสี; ; literally "forest dwellers") and '' gāmavāsī'' ( th, คามวาสี; ; literally "village dwellers"). The patriarchs of both sects held the title ''Mahāthēra''. In the

Ayutthaya Kingdom The Ayutthaya Kingdom (; th, อยุธยา, , IAST: or , ) was a Siamese kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. The Ayutthaya Kingdom is conside ...

, the ''gāmavāsī'' sect was again divided into two subsects: the northern sect ( th, หนเหนือ) and the southern sect ( th, หนใต้). The patriarchs of the northern sect were styled ''Phra Vanaratna'' ( th, พระวันรัตน์; ) or ''Phra Banaratna'' ( th, พระพนรัตน์; ) and those of the southern sect were styled ''Phra Buddhaghoṣācārya'' ( th, พระพุทธโฆษาจารย์; ), whilst the patriarchs of the ''araṇyavāsī'' sect were styled ''Phra Buddhācārya'' ( th, พระพุทธาจารย์; ). It is also believed that senior monks had been appointed by the monarch of Ayuthaya as supreme patriarchs in charge of the entire monastic community. In the subsequent kingdoms of

Thon Buri __NOTOC__ Thonburi ( th, ธนบุรี) is an area of modern Bangkok. During the era of the Kingdom of Ayutthaya, its location on the right (west) bank at the mouth of the Chao Phraya River had made it an important garrison town, which i ...

and Rattanakosin, the same custom was practiced until the enactment of the ''Sangha Administration Statute 1902'' ( th, พระราชบัญญัติลักษณปกครองคณะสงฆ์ รัตนโกสินทรศก ๑๒๑) by King Rama V, which established a

Sangha Supreme Council The Sangha Supreme Council of Thailand ( th, มหาเถรสมาคม; pi, Mahāthera Samāgama; abbreviated SSC) is the governing body of the Buddhist order (Sangha) of Thailand, and is the ultimate authority for all ecclesiastical mat ...

to nominate monks to the monarch to be appointed to peerages. This is upheld in the present ''Sangha Act 1962'' ( th, พระราชบัญญัติคณะสงฆ์ พ.ศ. ๒๕๐๕), except the appointment of the supreme patriarch which has been amended in January 2017 to solely be at the monarch's pleasure in line with the previous tradition.

Ranks and titles

At present, the ranks and titles given to members of the Thai sangha are as follows (from highest to lowest):

Supreme patriarch

Supreme patriarch ( th, สมเด็จพระสังฆราช; ) is the highest rank in the Thai sangha. A supreme patriarch who is a member of the royal family is called ''somdet phra sangkharat chao'' ( th, สมเด็จพระสังฆราชเจ้า), whilst one who is a commoner is merely called ''somdet phra sangkharat''. At present, all the supreme patriarchs are appointed by the

monarch of Thailand The monarchy of Thailand (whose monarch is referred to as the king of Thailand; th, พระมหากษัตริย์ไทย, or historically, king of Siam; th, พระมหากษัตริย์สยาม) refers to the c ...

and are titled '' Ariyavaṃśāgatañāṇa'' ( th, อริยวงศาคตญาณ; ), prefixed by the honorific ''Somdet Phra'' ( th, สมเด็จพระ).

''Somdet phra rachakhana''

''Somdet phra rachakhana'' ( th, สมเด็จพระราชาคณะ) is the second highest rank in the Thai sangha after the supreme patriarch. At present, ''somdet phra rachakhana'' are appointed by the

and there can only be eight ''somdet phra rachakhana'': four from the Mahā Nikāya sect and the other four from the

Dhammayuttika Nikāya Dhammayuttika Nikāya (Pali; th, ธรรมยุติกนิกาย; ; km, ធម្មយុត្តិកនិកាយ, ), or Dhammayut Order ( th, คณะธรรมยุต) is an order of Theravada Buddhist ''bhikkhus'' (monk ...

sect. The titles for ''somdet phra rachakhana'', each prefixed by the honorific ''Somdet Phra'' ( th, สมเด็จพระ), are as follows:

''Phra rachakhana''

''Phra rachakhana'' ( th, พระราชาคณะ) is the third highest rank in the Thai sangha, divided into two classes: special ( th, พิเศษ) and ordinary ( th, สามัญ). At present, ''phra rachakhana'' are appointed by the

, except those in the ''saman yok'' group of the ordinary class who are appointed by the supreme patriarch.

Special classes

There are four special classes: * ''Chao khana rong'' ( th, เจ้าคณะรอง): 13 posts available for the Mahā Nikāya sect and 7 for the

sect, being 20 in total. Members of this class have the honorific ''Phra'' ( th, พระ) prefixed to their titles, such as: * ''Dharma'' ( th, ธรรม; ): 30 posts available for Mahā Nikāya and 15 for Dhammayuttika Nikāya, being 45 in total. Members of this class have the honorific ''Phra Dharma'' ( th, พระธรรม; ) prefixed to their titles, such as: * ''Dēba'' ( th, เทพ; ): 56 posts available for Mahā Nikāya and 30 for Dhammayuttika Nikāya, being 86 in total. Members of this class have the honorific ''Phra Dēba'' ( th, พระเทพ; ) prefixed to their titles, such as: * ''Rāja'' ( th, ราช; ): 135 posts available for Mahā Nikāya and 54 for Dhammayuttika Nikāya, being 189 in total. Members of this class have the honorific ''Phra Rāja'' ( th, พระราช; ) prefixed to their titles, such as:

Ordinary class

There are 477 posts available in the ordinary class, with 348 for Mahā Nikāya and 129 for Dhammayuttika Nikāya. Members of this class have the honorific ''Phra'' ( th, พระ) prefixed to their titles, such as: ''Phra rachakhana'' in the ordinary class are also divided into four groups: * '' Parian'' ( th, เปรียญ) * ''Parian''-equivalent ( th, เทียบเปรียญ) * '' Vipassanā'' ( th, วิปัสสนา; ) * ''Saman yok'' ( th, สามัญยก)

''Phra khru''

''Phra khru'' ( th, พระครู) is the lowest rank in the Thai sangha, divided into three classes: * ''Sanyabat'' ( th, สัญญาบัตร): appointed by the

in an unlimited number. * ''Thananukrom'' ( th, ฐานานุกรม): appointed by special-class ''phra rachakhana'' in the number specified in the letter of appointment of each ''phra rachakhana''. * ''Prathuan'' ( th, ประทวน): appointed by the Thai sangha in an unlimited number. Holders of this rank have the honorific ''Phra Khru'' prefixed to their titles, such as:

References

{{reflist category:Buddhism in Thailand