Thudhamma Nikaya is the largest monastic order of monks in Burma, with 85-90% of Burmese monks (250,000) belonging to this order. It is one of 9 legally sanctioned monastic orders (nikaya) in the country, under the 1990 Law Concerning Sangha Organizations. Thudhamma Nikaya was founded in the late 18th century by King Bodawpaya

Bodawpaya

Bodawpaya was the sixth king of the Konbaung Dynasty of Burma. Born Maung Shwe Waing and later Badon Min, he was the fourth son of Alaungpaya, founder of the dynasty and the Third Burmese Empire. He was proclaimed king after deposing his nephew Phaungkaza Maung Maung, son of his oldest brother...

, after a series of Sangha

Sangha

Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as "association" or "assembly," "company" or "community" with common goal, vision or purpose...

 reforms by prior Konbaung kings

Konbaung dynasty

The Konbaung Dynasty was the last dynasty that ruled Burma from 1752 to 1885. The dynasty created the second largest empire in Burmese history, and continued the administrative reforms begun by the Toungoo dynasty, laying the foundations of modern state of Burma...

 to purify and unite the Sangha. Thudhamma is considered a more pragmatic order than the Shwegyin Nikaya

Shwegyin Nikaya

Shwegyin Nikaya is the name of the second largest monastic order of monks in Burma. Approximately 5% of Burmese monks belong to this order. It is one of 9 legally sanctioned monastic orders in the country, under the 1990 Law Concerning Sangha Organizations...

, with looser rules regarding Vinaya

Vinaya

The Vinaya is the regulatory framework for the Buddhist monastic community, or sangha, based in the canonical texts called Vinaya Pitaka. The teachings of the Buddha, or Buddhadharma can be divided into two broad categories: 'Dharma' or doctrine, and 'Vinaya', or discipline...

 regulations and is less hierarchical than the former. Like all the major orders in Burma, Thudhamma Nikaya prohibits monks from engaging in political activity.

See also

• Shwegyin Nikaya
  Shwegyin Nikaya
  Shwegyin Nikaya is the name of the second largest monastic order of monks in Burma. Approximately 5% of Burmese monks belong to this order. It is one of 9 legally sanctioned monastic orders in the country, under the 1990 Law Concerning Sangha Organizations...
  
  
• Hngettwin Nikaya
  Hngettwin Nikaya
  Hngettwin Nikaya is the name of a monastic order of monks in Burma, numbering approximately 1,000 monks, primarily in Mandalay. Founded in the mid-19th century by the abbot of the Hngettwin Monastery, it is one of 9 legally sanctioned monastic orders in the country, under the 1990 Law Concerning...
  
  
• Dwara Nikaya
  Dwara Nikaya
  Maha Dwara Nikaya , numbering a three to four thousand monks, primarily in Lower Myanmar. This order is very conservative with respect to Vinaya regulations. Its founding was inspired by nikaya reforms in Sri Lanka during the 19th century...
  
  
• Nikaya
  Nikaya
  Nikāya is a word of meaning "collection", "assemblage", "class" or "group" in both Pāḷi and Sanskrit. It is most commonly used in reference to the Buddhist texts of the Sutta Piṭaka, but can also refer to the monastic divisions of Theravāda Buddhism...
  
  
• Buddhism in Burma