Building Ordination Hall

In Burmese, ordination halls are called thein (Burmese: သိမ်), derived from the Pali term sīmā, meaning "boundary". The thein is a common feature of Burmese monasteries (kyaung), although the thein may be not necessarily be located on the monastery compound itself. Shan ordination halls, called sim (သိမ်ႇ), are exclusively used for events limited to the monkhood.

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The central importance of the ordination hall in the pre-colonial era is exemplified by the inclusion of an ordination hall, the Maha Pahtan Haw Shwe Ordination Hall (မဟာပဋ္ဌာန်းဟောရွှေသိမ်တော်ကြီး), as one of seven requisite edifices (နန်းတည်သတ္တဌာန) in the founding of Mandalay as a Burmese royal capital.