The Most Venerable Sobhita, popularly know to Shan/Tai Buddhist devotees as either Sao Sra Sophi or Sao Sra Mwe-daw and to the Burmese devotee as Pinlon Sayadaw, was the lord abbot of the Mangala Mwe-daw Monastery in the historic town of Panglong, Shan State, the Union of Myanmar.
He had been active in the promotion of the study of Buddhist scriptures in the Tai (Shan) language for over forty years through the examination board, Pariyatti saddhammapala of the Shan State, annually and jointly organised by his and another neigbhour monastery, Wat Pitaka Tai. Together, both monasteries constitute the HQs of the Shan State Sangha and the translation of the Tipitaka into Tai.
The Venerable Sobhita Mahathera was elected chairman of the board and he served for many years in that capacity as well as in lesser ones. Prominent among the Tai Buddhists,the Venerable was elected to represent in the Sate Ecclesiastical Central Representatives Council, Loilem District (i.e. 11 townships) Sangha when the new Buddhist ecclesiastical administration knwon as Sangha Mahanayaka for the whole country came into being in 1980.
Just over a decade later in 1991, he was promoted to the highest executive body, State Sangha Mahanayaka Committee, which he served more than ten years. When he retired in 2007, he was made a member of the State Ecclesiastical Advisory Council.
For his dedicated service to the Buddha-sasana, he was awarded by the government the titles of aggamaha-pandita for his contribution in promoting Budhdist studies in among the Tai/ Shan monastics, and the aggamaha-saddhamma- jotikadhaja for propagating the dhamma among the populace.
He was taken ill in 2008 with TB and received medical treatments in Rangoon, Taungyi and Singapore. He passed away at 11.05pm on Sunday 22 November 2009 in his monastery. He was 78 and had been in higher ordination, a bhikkhu/monk, for 57 years. His remains will lie in a specially arranged pavilion, traditionally called Kyaung nikban, Nirvanic Abode; the ceremony of moving the remains to the Abode will take place on 1 December 2009. The cremation is yet to be announced.
