Upasampadā
Upasampadā (Pali) literally denotes "approaching or nearing the ascetic tradition."In more common parlance it specifically refers to the rite and ritual of ascetic vetting (ordination) by which a candidate, if deemed acceptable, enters the community as upasampadān (ordained) and is authorised to undertake ascetic life.[1][2] According to Buddhist monastic codes (Vinaya), a person must be 20 years old in order to become a monk or nun.A person under the age of 20 years cannot undertake upasampadā (i.e., become a monk (bhikkhu) or nun (bhikkhuni)), but can become a novice (m. samanera, f. samaneri).[5] This difference may originate from the historical shortage of temples in East Asia able to provide higher ordination according to the Vinaya.
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