Shin Arahan

The Venerable Shin Arahan (Burmese: ရှင်အရဟံ; formally Dhammadassī Mahāthera, ဓမ္မဒဿီ မဟာထေရ်; c. 1034–1115) served as Thathanabaing of Burma within the Pagan Kingdom from 1056 to 1115. Originally from the Thaton Kingdom, this influential monk became religious adviser to four successive Pagan kings, from Anawrahta through Alaungsithu. Historical tradition credits him with converting King Anawrahta to Theravada Buddhism and directing the comprehensive reformation of Buddhist practice throughout the kingdom.

However, substantial evidence indicates that the Theravada Buddhism practiced by Shin Arahan and early Pagan bore strong Hindu influences when measured against later, more orthodox standards. Within seventy-five years of Shin Arahan's death, Pagan Buddhism would be realigned with the Mahavihara school of Ceylon, though his Conjeveram-Thaton tradition persisted for another two centuries before disappearing entirely.

Despite these qualifications, Shin Arahan's conversion of Anawrahta represents a pivotal moment in Theravada Buddhist history. The powerful monarch's embrace of the faith provided crucial stability to a Buddhist school that had been losing ground throughout South and Southeast Asia. The strength and success of the Pagan Empire created the conditions that enabled Theravada Buddhism's subsequent expansion across mainland Southeast Asia during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.