Paramanuchitchinorot ( th, ปรมานุชิตชิโนรส, or ; also spelt ''Paramanujita Jinorasa'', ''Paramanujit Jinoros'', etc.; 11 December 1790 – 9 December 1853) was a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

writer and a prince of the Chakri dynasty. One of his well-known epic poems is '' Lilit Taleng Phai''. In 1851 he was appointed the

Supreme Patriarch 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'' ...

of the Rattanakosin kingdom and remained in that position until his death.

Life

Prince ''Wasukri'' ( th, วาสุกรี) was a child of King

Rama I Phra Phutthayotfa Chulalok Maharaj (, 20 March 1737 – 7 September 1809), personal name Thongduang (), also known as Rama I, was the founder of the Rattanakosin Kingdom and the first monarch of the reigning Chakri dynasty of Siam (now T ...

and Lady Chui ( th, จุ้ย), born at the Grand Palace he was the king's twenty-eight child. In 1802, he became a

Samanera A sāmaṇera (Pali); sa, श्रामणेर (), is a novice male monastic in a Buddhist context. A female novice is a ''śrāmaṇerī'' or ''śrāmaṇerikā'' (Sanskrit; Pāli: ''sāmaṇerī''). Etymology The ''sāmaṇera'' is a ...

or novice monk at the age of 12 years old, eight years later he was ordained a

Bhikkhu A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist ...

monk. As a monk he resided at

Wat Pho Wat Pho ( th, วัดโพธิ์, ), also spelled Wat Po, is a Buddhist temple complex in the Phra Nakhon District, Bangkok, Thailand. It is on Rattanakosin Island, directly south of the Grand Palace. Known also as the Temple of the Recl ...

and studied to become a religious scholar there. He was also learned in the Khmer and

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

languages. In 1812 he was made the

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

of the temple. King

Rama III Nangklao ( th, พระบาทสมเด็จพระนั่งเกล้าเจ้าอยู่หัว, ; 31 March 1788 – 2 April 1851), birth name Thap ( th, ทับ), also styled Rama III, was the third king of Siam u ...

, who was his nephew, frequently called upon him to write, translate, and compile books. During his reign the king gave his uncle the ecclesiastical rank equivalent to that of a deputy patriarch, in which he was put in charge of all the temples within

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

. The prince abbot was also a prolific poet and composed many religious and sacred verses. Many of these verse were made into inscriptions which can be found all over Wat Pho today, making the temple a place of worship and a place of learning. In 1851, the new monarch, King

Rama IV Mongkut ( th, มงกุฏ; 18 October 18041 October 1868) was the fourth monarch of Siam (Thailand) under the House of Chakri, titled Rama IV. He ruled from 1851 to 1868. His full title in Thai was ''Phra Bat Somdet Phra Menthora Ramathibo ...

, appointed the abbot as the Supreme Patriarch of the kingdom, and he was given the official title ''Phra Chao Boromawong Ther Krom Phra Paramanuchitchinorot''. Unfortunately, this honour was briefly held, as he died on 9 December 1853. His body lay in state for a full year before his cremation. His residence at Wat Pho, Tamnak Wasukri, also called the poet's house, was built by Rama III as a gift, it is open once a year on his birthday. On 12 April 1921, in the reign of King

Rama VI Vajiravudh ( th, วชิราวุธ, , 1 January 188126 November 1925) was the sixth monarch of Siam under the Chakri dynasty as Rama VI. He ruled from 23 October 1910 until his death in 1925. King Vajiravudh is best known for his efforts ...

an additional title was created to denote his status as both a royal prince and patriarch of the kingdom. From then on he was known posthumously as ''Somdet Phra Maha Samana Chao Krom Phra Paramanuchitchinorot''.

References

Supreme Patriarchs of Thailand Thai poets Buddhist poets 1791 births 1852 deaths Thai Buddhist monks 18th-century Chakri dynasty 19th-century Chakri dynasty Thai male Phra Ong Chao People from Bangkok Thai male writers 19th century in Siam 19th-century non-fiction writers 19th-century poets Male non-fiction writers {{Theravada-stub