When I see different countries, I get the pulse of the area, I can feel the spiritual vibration, enjoy and learn new dishes, get a deep insight into their culture and sense the earth, flora and fauna, and admire the sceneries. Every country has something new to offer, something to teach me and I can’t help but appreciate the magnificence of that One great power that has designed all this creation.
Travelling across Myanmar has brought a deep shift in me. Every country has too many highs and lows in the spiritual dimension. But in Myanmar, the country as a whole is at a higher vibration level. The whole country meditates; children are initiated between 9-12 years of age. This is a Buddhist country where I could feel total peace and an underlying vein of surrender. In many other Buddhist countries, beneath the peaceful exterior, a sort of aggression, sometimes a tinge of depression used to be palpable. I was curious to know the underlying factors.
People in Myanmar are genuine and relaxed, respectful and humble. Yet, beneath all of this, they have a deep sense of pride, nationalism and great love for their leader, Nobel Peace Prize-winner Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
Evenings and mornings are times when people of any denomination go to their respective places of worship to pray.
The people are, for the most part, deeply engaged in spiritual practice. Individuals of all ages go to meditation centers during the holidays to become a ‘monk’ or ‘nun’ for limited time.
Buddhism in Myanmar
Buddhism in Myanmar is predominantly of the Theravada tradition, practised by 88% of the country's population. It is the most religious Buddhist country in terms of the proportion of monks in the population and proportion of income spent on religion. Theravada tradition adheres most closely to the oldest texts in the Buddhist tradition and focus on cultivating sound moral behaviour. It emphasizes a more rigorous observance of the monastic code than other schools of Buddhism. The ultimate aim of Theravada is to be released from the cycle of suffering (samsara) and to achieve nirvana. They strive to build positive karma, or merit to be successful in this world and to progress towards enlightenment in subsequent rebirths.
Ordinary people accumulate merit by making offerings to the Buddhist monastic community. This is done during monks' morning procession through neighbourhoods to collect alms or in the form of donations to temples and monasteries.
Accumulating merit is very important to this nation: people visit temples and pagodas with money and food, to wash the Buddha’s head, or simply pray. The effect of this is in simple things: there are no muggings, it is completely safe to walk alone at night and you can leave your shoes outside your house knowing they will be there in the morning.
Buddha idols
There are thousands of Buddha idols in Myanmar. On the second day when I told my daughter, “I think there are more Buddha idols in this country than the number of people” she laughed it off. But towards the end of our trip she agreed that what I told must be correct.
The serenity and compassion that exuded from each of these idols was unique.
No two idols looked alike. I could sense the dedication with which the artisans made them, by putting their hearts and souls in them. In one pagoda I saw many old people cutting mirrors into small pieces to stick onto the pillars.
With what patience and precision they were working!
The idols are consecrated after installation which makes the temples powerful energy centres. The whole country is studded with temples, which keeps up the energy levels.
Novice monk initiation rites
I was so happy to hear about this. In the present times, generally children are trained how to be a part of the rat race, but no guidance is given on how to live life. But in Myanmar, during long school holidays, boys are inducted into monkhood with Novice monk initiation rites. They are brought to the monastery by parents and relatives dressed in gowns, crowns, flowers, glitters, stockings, and make-up. There will be a big gathering. Hired singers will give a performance, a layman will give a pep talk and some rituals will follow. After having photographs with their parents, the boys are brought again to another monastery (Myoe Daung Monastery) to have their heads shaved, and bathed. Finally they all assemble in the hall in front of the abbot for some prayer recitation, oath taking and robe-blessing ceremonies after which they are dressed in their new robe vestment by their parents. They will stay the rest of their school holiday in the monastery.
What an amazing way to introduce children to the meaning of life and to learn discipline! Full moon days are National holidays and the families go to the temples in the mornings. They have their breakfast and lunch there only, with meditating for 2 hours at a stretch in between. They return home in the evening.
Vipassana
With the passage of centuries, in some countries, the teachings of the Buddha did not remain in the original, authentic form. But in Myanmar, people preserved the words of the Buddha and the technique of Vipassana meditation in their pristine purity from generation to generation. The earliest modern writer of vipassana manuals was a Burmese monk named Medawi (1728–1816) who was influential in reviving the Burmese interest in meditation practices.
Under this rich tradition, Sayagyi U Ba Khin, a senior civil servant from Burma, learnt the technique of Vipassana and out of immense love and compassion, taught to many students. Mr. S. N. Goenka, a wealthy businessman of Indian origin, was one amongst them. After firmly establishing himself in this technique for 14 years, Mr. Goenka was appointed as the principal teacher of Vipassana meditation by Sayagyi U Ba Khin in 1969.
Sayagyi U Ba Khin had an earnest wish that the technique of Vipassana meditation should return in its pristine purity to India. His most cherished wish got fulfilled when Mr. Goenka returned to India in 1969 to conduct a Vipassana course for his ailing mother and other family members. Over a period of almost 45 years, Mr. Goenka and the teachers appointed by him taught hundreds of thousands of people in courses in India and other countries, East and West. Today, meditation centers established under his guidance are operating in Asia, Europe, the America, Africa and Australasia. Meditation in these centers is free of cost.
Food habits
I strongly believe that one’s thoughts are influenced by the food consumed. Any processed food that comes in packets (like chips, biscuits) if taken for extended periods of time, deteriorates health. It was such a pleasure to see that people in Myanmar had much less snacking habit. Even when they had snacks, it was roasted sunflower seeds with the skin. Each seed has to be split open with teeth and then it is eaten after discarding the covering. It is impossible to over eat this, like the doughnuts or muffins.
Traditionally they had only two meals a day—one at around 10:00am and another in the mid afternoon—the same schedule monks eat on. When they have three meals, breakfast is generally eaten between 6:30am and 7:30am and often consists of rice or soup. Lunch is between 12:00 noon and 1:00pm and Dinner is eaten between 6:00pm and 7:00pm. I found so many restaurants empty at times other than meal times, unlike in India where we are always having tea and snacks. We didn't notice obesity here.
Richness in heart
When we went to the restaurants for meals in Myanmar, we were surprised at the free accompaniments. We had to order only rice (they will give unlimited quantity), and a side dish. Then a succession of side dishes would follow. One of these side dishes was invariably soup, either an Indian-influenced peh-hìn-ye (lentil soup), studded with chunks of vegetables, or a tart leaf-based hìn-jo (sour soup). A tray of fresh and par-boiled vegetables and herbs is another common side dish; they’re eaten with various dips, ranging from ngăpí ye (a watery, fishy dip) to balachaung (a dry, pungent combination of chillies, garlic and dried shrimp fried in oil). Additional vegetable-based side dishes, unlimited green tea and a dessert of pickled tea leaves and chunks of jaggery (palm sugar) are also usually included.
And they serve with so much love! I couldn’t help myself comparing with my experience in Oslo, one of the richest countries where on arrival at the hostel after a long journey, there was no free water to drink, and we had to get a miniscule cup of black coffee for about Rs. 500/- I totally believe that richness comes from the heart, not from the money or prosperity.
Tourists are never hassled in Myanmar to buy anything. We saw a lady selling churan near one pagoda and asked her to give 250 gms. She told she sells only 1 kg. We politely refused and were walking off when she packed a small quantity and gave us, vehemently refusing to take any money!
Clothing and male female interaction
These are two things that showed similarity with Bhutan. People are proud of their National dress and I observed dentists coming in the local dress to attend my presentation and saw men and women in the same attire throughout the country and in the air port.
I remembered attending weddings in Indian villages where bridegrooms were wearing coat and tie in the sweltering heat of the afternoon. Indian brides are slowly shifting from sari to designer dresses; don’t know whether I will get to see them in trousers/short skirts and tops during wedding cermonies.
Men and women interact so naturally, without sexual connotations, it was such a joy to see. I didn’t sense any sexual objectification of women during the journey across the country. The dating culture in Myanmar is an interesting fact about their life. For most locals, dating means marriage. There’s no such thing as going on dates for fun, cohabiting or dating just to get know each other. Relationships are taken very seriously and the pressure on both sides is intense.
Our experience in this beautiful country can be summed up in my daughter’s (who travelled with us) words: “A pilgrimage is when a land/ destination is so powerful that simply journeying to it transforms you, without you having to do anything special. This country is a pilgrimage in itself. Travelling through it left us healed, uplifted and transformed. How and when, we don't even know.”
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