A new blog!

While this Burma Dhamma blogspot will remain active, we are moving over all upcoming posts to the Insight Myanmar platform. We are now more active than ever with original content, including essays, interviews, and videos. And be sure not to miss our new Insight Myanmar podcast, which brings inspirational stories from meditators and monastics all over Burma. Thank you for your loyal readership, and we hope to see you there!!!

A Dhamma podcast in Burma!

The first ever Burma Dhamma podcast is in the books! Thanks to a surprise donation we are now provided this opportunity to bring the Dhamma from the Golden Land to you in new ways from 2020. The mission of sharing the practice and teachings from the Buddha as they manifest in Myanmar will continue in deeper forms. Enjoy!

Insight Myanmar Podcast #4: Alan Clements on Mahasi Sayadaw, Sayadaw U Pandita, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and the future of Myanmar.

“There was nothing to go back to,” Alan Clements recalls in the Insight Myanmar Podcast Episode #4, referring to his decision to leave the West in 1977 and ordain as a monk in Burma. “I’d made a lot of money, I’d been in a long-term relationship...I was well-educated, I read, I painted, it was creative, I played music, I had all the things that people long for.”

You can listen on your favorite podcast app by searching “Insight Myanmar,” or right off the web, or YouTube here. 

At a time when foreigners were only given seven-day visas to Burma, then one of the most closed countries in the world, Alan managed to stay nearly five years, training directly under Mahasi Sayadaw and then Sayadaw U Pandita, despite several forced disrobings and deportations and eventual blacklisting. Added to that were the difficult conditions of enduring an extreme climate with no meditation cushions, mosquito nets, sleeping mattresses, purified water, or vegetarian food, and so one cannot help but wonder how Alan was able to persevere as he did. The answer: the promise of receiving powerful Dhamma teachings from some of the greatest Burmese masters of the era. In spite of being so far from the familiar, Alan notes simply, “I felt like I’d come home.”

From there, our talk examines the growth of the mindfulness meditation movement from Burma into the rest of the world, focusing in particular on the Mahasi and U Pandita traditions that he was most associated with, and how the student-teacher relationship that characterized his time as a yogi had to be modified to accommodate greater numbers. Moreover, Alan adds a provocative note to this discussion for those who think they ‘know” what the Mahasi system is: he explicitly states that “there is [actually] no 'Mahasi system'” that can be spread to aspiring yogis in different parts of the world, due to the flexible, individual-student-centered nature of Mahasi’s and U Pandita’s teaching.

Later, we discuss the series of conversations Alan had with Aung San Suu Kyi in 1995, and how her own meditation practice and understanding of the Buddha’s teachings has impacted her political life. While acknowledging the turbulent recent history, Alan is hopeful that the promise of reconciliation is still alive for the country, and that the Dhamma teachings he has learned here can point a way towards this positive transformation.

We end by exploring Alan’s remarkable relationship with Sayadaw U Pandita. He notes how this monk came from the horrors of war-torn Burma following WWII, to become one of Mahasi’s most important disciples and eventually the Dhamma teacher of not only Aung San Suu Kyi but also those in the Burmese military. What is less known is how U Pandita was “trans-religious,” speaking a variety of languages, as well as being able to quote Tolstoy and other great Western authors, and endlessly curious about the lives and practice of his students.

Later, Zach joins to discuss the implications of Alan’s statement that there is no such thing as a “Mahasi technique” that can be boxed up and applied as a single structure to meditators at centers. Joah mentions how deeply moved he was to hear about Alan’s close relationship with his mentor Sayadaw U Pandita, and reminisces on the golden generation of Burmese meditation masters to which U Pandita belonged. They both reflect on U Pandita’s reputation as a strict disciplinarian, and how that was balanced with a real affection and generosity towards those students who gave their all. That the majority of Alan’s Dhamma practice was taking place within a military dictatorship cannot be lost on the story of the mindfulness meditation movement, which leads the two to consider Alan’s insight of how conditionality influences not only what the mind is, but also what it is capable of doing. All this, and a disruptive elephant!

If you find the Dhamma interviews we are sharing of value and would like to support our mission, we welcome your contribution. You may give monthly donations on Patreon, or one time donations on PayPal. If you are in Myanmar and would like to give a cash donation, please feel free to get in touch with us.

Alan Clements on Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi, Sayadaw U Pandita, and Mahasi Sayadaw

At a time when foreigners were only given seven-day visas to Burma, then one of the most closed countries in the world, Alan Clements arrived in 1977 and managed to stay nearly five years, training directly under Mahasi Sayadaw and then Sayadaw U Pandita, despite enduring repeated forced disrobings, deportations and eventual blacklistings. Despite this, Alan has returned to the Golden Land whenever and however possible, including a 1995 trip in which he was permitted to interview Aung San Suu Kyi, then temporarily released from house arrest. In this discussion, he reflects on his personal experience comprising over four decades of Dhamma practice and activism in the country that he so loves.

Blind Date in Mandalay

The online culture reigning supreme in Myanmar today, there is little material better than capturing a foreigner seeming to behave just below the standards they are deemed to be held to. This includes anything from hand-holding to less than modest dress to picture-taking at various Buddhist sites. Unfortunately, the mirror is rarely if ever held back to careless behavior in the local community. Take this example (https://bit.ly/2Qrzq38), created by the company "Perfect Date For You", in which a Mandalay dating service is charging 5,000 kyat to pair college-aged Burmese singles with one another. The backdrop for this flirtatious fun? Kuthodaw Pagoda in Mandalay, whose 729 marble slabs were meticulously carved in the 19th century under King Mindon, and house the entire of the Tipitaka, the whole of the Pali Canon, thus protecting and enshrining the liberating words of the Buddha. Where the color of one's skin or the flag on one's passport gives or denies license to follow or degrade the Buddha's teachings, there is a fundamental problem. That this dating service is flaunted and promoted so freely online with no criticism to speak, and where a photograph or dress by a foreigner is enough to (literally) threaten their safety and demand their removal from the country, such a double standard is harmful for all followers of the Buddha.

Insight Myanmar Podcast #3: Sayalay Piyadassii

Joah connects with Sayalay Piyadassii, a foreign meditator who took up robes in Myanmar, about growing up under the shadow of the old Soviet Union in Lithuania. Her initial enthusiasm for Christianity fizzled away at a young age, and her spirituality was later rekindled after taking several silent vipassana meditation retreats in the tradition of S.N. Goenka. She eventually began spending time in vipassana centers across Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. That ultimately led her to Burma, where she ordained as a Buddhist nun in 2013, and she has remained in robes ever since. Sayalay Piyadassii is now a full-time student at Shan State Buddhist University in Taunggyi, a new school which was just started by Oxford Sayadaw.

You can listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast player by searching “Insight Myanmar,” or right off the web by going here.

Sayalay speaks openly about the early difficulties of her time as a monastic, during which she felt her spiritual life became unbalanced, with too much time spent in formal, sitting meditation. This ultimately led her to leaving to Burma and residing in a cave in Spain where she practiced mettā full time. When she felt she had regained the physical and spiritual balance she was seeking, she returned to Burma with a clearer picture of how to best construct her time in robes.

In the course of the talk, Sayalay also discusses several themes that have animated her time as a nun. One these was finding a balance between a structured form of meditation instruction on one hand, and being open and flexible to the moment on the other. She also contrasts her experience as a nun in Burmese Buddhist society with the preferential treatment received by monks, and her attitude towards this gender discrimination. Concerning her prior overemphasis on formal practice, Sayalay remarks on the importance of devoting greater amounts of time to study (pariyatti), and the deeper insights that can be derived solely from familiarity with the scriptures. Additionally, having spent so much time now in Myanmar, Sayalay shares how the culture of the country has benefited her practice, and how appreciative she has been overall. This, and much more! She closes by discussing her first year of studies here and the quality of the education.

After the talk, Zach Hessler joins in to discuss the overall themes from the interview. Joah remarks how inspiring it was to hear Sayalay discuss the series of transformations her spiritual journey took, preventing her from ever being “stuck” at any one stage. They note how little even Western meditators know about monasticism in general and the monastic’s life in specific, and how much training is needed for a monk or nun to feel even somewhat independent. Zach notes that the fruits of Sayalay’s practice can be heard clearly throughout the interview, and her joyous exclamation of loving the simple life was one of the overall highlights. They close by reviewing the nun discrimination that Sayalay has faced in Burmese society, and her recent enrollment in the Shan State Buddhist University in Taunggyi.

If you find the Dhamma interviews we are sharing of value and would like to support our mission, we welcome your contribution. You may give monthly donations on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/insightmyanmar, or one time donations on PayPal at www.paypal.me/insightmyanmar. If you are in Myanmar and would like to give a cash donation, please feel free to get in touch with us.

An incredible dhamma story out of the Sagaing Hills

The Sagaing Hills are full of wondrous and amazing stories to inspire any Dhamma practitioner, but few can hold a candle to the tales told about the 18th-century monastic Taung Pyi Lar Sayadaw.

Like many great Burmese monastics of the past 1,000 years, he choose the Sagaing Hills as a preferred place of practice to get away from the rigid orthodoxy (and laxness) of the central capital, instead enjoying the peace and quiet of living alone in nature.

The Burmese king wished to test his fortitude to ensure he was truly a monk worthy of respect. So he devised a plan in which a half-naked woman came running through the forest, and finding the monk, begged him to be permitted to stay at his monastery, fearfully claiming that a horde of rapists and murderers were hot on her tail. The monk refused, saying that it was against vinaya, but as the woman insisted, the monk relented, allowing her to stay in his kuti as he slept outside in the forest.

However, at night Taung Pyi Lar Sayadaw was so racked by lust, and having such a beautiful and nubile young woman close at hand after so many years of celibacy, that he was unable to concentrate on any of his meditation objects. So he took a nearby knife, and began to slice at his palms, with the gross pain finally allowing him to feel bodily sensations. The lust not subsiding, he sliced the other palm, and then both soles of his feet, and finally his thigh.

The next day, the king showed up with his royal entourage, and he found himself accused of impropriety. The monk argued he had done nothing wrong, but the king exclaimed, "How can you be believed with a half-naked woman walking out of your kuti?"

The monk responded by taking a Vow of Truth, and dropping the knife in a nearby pond. "Let the knife tell the truth then! If I am lying, it will sink. If I tell the truth, let it float across the water to the other side."

The knife did not sink in the end, and the monk became one of the most revered in the kingdom after this.

Thabarwa Sayadaw podcast

Thabarwa Sayadaw has had a meteoric rise in Myanmar. After weathering a series of crises that threatened the very existence of his monastery, the Burmese monastic’s mission is now expanding at an unprecedented rate across not only the country but the entire world. And then there is his monastery itself, which is redefining the role of monasticism and the shape of Burmese Buddhism in the 21st century. In this inaugural interview, Thabarwa Sayadaw shares his biography from layman to monastic, as well as the early start of his monastery.

Insight Myanmar Podcast #1: Thabarwa Sayadaw

Subscribe the "Insight Myanmar" podcast on your preferred podcast app! Otherwise, listen right off the web here.

This inaugural talk with Thabarwa Sayadaw focuses on the teacher’s biography and the origins of his monastery. With the Thabarwa mission starting as a local phenomenon and now becoming an international one, this is an important discussion in illuminating where it all came from. 

Despite being born in Myanmar, Sayadaw did not have full rights of citizenship because of his family’s Chinese ancestry. This prevented him from pursuing his dream of higher education, so he instead embarked on a business career by opening a convenience store franchise. Although he became quite successful—and at a time when entrepreneurs were extremely rare in Myanmar, no less—the stress led to a series of mental breakdowns that ultimately brought him to meditation (27:30). After initial experiences in the Mogok and Thae Ingu traditions, it was the vipassana courses he took at the Dhamma Joti Vipassanā Center, in the tradition of S.N. Goenka, which propelled him to seek full ordination and become a monk. 

Thabarwa Sayadwa’s initial meditation center occupied just half of a residential apartment building in downtown Yangon (58:20), before he eventually moved to some undeveloped land that had been offered to him in Than Lyin, across Yangon River. He was followed by a small number of disciples, who under Sayadaw’s leadership had begun caring for a growing number of refugees as well as others living on the margins of society. This group would eventually number in the thousands and became wholly reliant on the care provided by Thabarwa volunteers. This non-conventional approach on the part of a Burmese abbot, coupled with the development of a non-prototypical Buddhist monastery, ultimately resulted in a tense stand-off between him and senior members of the Saṅgha, along with government authorities who wanted them evicted (1:29:00). Ultimately it was the opening of the country and especially the freedom of the press that ended Thabarwa’s existential fears and opened a new chapter in their development. 

At the end of the podcast, Zach Hessler, a former forest monk in Myanmar, joins Joah to reflect on the Thabarwa story (1:40:00). They note how the Sayadaw’s critical nature sets him apart in a culture where conformity and mimicry is often the standard. Joah compares Sayadaw’s hunger for wisdom with that of a 19th century Burmese monastic, Ledi Sayadaw, and Zach comments on the deep faith that Sayadaw holds about the power of good deeds. 

If you find the Dhamma interviews we are sharing of value and would like to support our mission, we welcome your contribution. You may give monthly donations on Patreon, or one time donations on PayPal. If you are in Myanmar and would like to give a cash donation, please feel free to get in touch with us.

The Trash Problem in Myanmar

Last month, Kandawgyi Gardens in Pyin Oo Lwin held a very special event: the France Flower Festival. To showcase the beauty of nature in a garden that is known as one the country's best maintained natural wonders, it went all out in showing the splendor and diversity of its flowers and other fauna. Many Burmese came from all around to attend, and after it was over... well, there are some rock concerts that come away less trashed. Ko Zaw Min captured some of the disturbing scenes of the careless and wanton debasement of the garden. In a country that has literally banned and threatened artists who use the Buddha's image to send a sign of caution concerning the rising toxicity of air quality, and where its third most holy site (Golden Rock) was nearly shut down due to its lack of trash refuse system turning it into a large landfill, the local destruction and overall lack of care in preventing littering continues unabated. Despite the growing concern in the younger generation and increasing activism to create a sustainable environment that is pleasant for all to live in, the road ahead seems long and and hard.

The Inaugural episode for Insight Myanmar!

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We are proud to present the inaugural episode of the Insight Myanmar podcast! Our host, Joah McGee, will first give a brief introduction about the podcast’s mission and background, followed by short previews of each of the first six interviews we’ve conducted so far. The full-length podcasts will be aired once weekly and feature (in order of appearance on the trailer):

Alan Clements, an American yogi, activist, and author, describes his time as a monk during the late 1970s and early 1980s in Myanmar. Sayalay Piyadassi, a Lithuanian nun, discusses her early years as a nun in Myanmar and her joy in simplicity. Thabarwa Sayadaw, a leading Burmese abbot, shares the stressful early years of trying to establish his monastery and the crises they faced. Ashin Chanda, a Bangladeshi monk, tells how the early heartbreak of losing his mother set him on a path in search of inner peace that ultimately led to his ordination. Sebestien Le Normand, a French meditator, reflects on a special visit to International Meditation Center (IMC) in Yangon. Ashin Sarana, a Czech monk, describes why he is so concerned with the problem of Burmese monks touching money. We invite you to rate, review, and share our podcasts, as every little bit helps.

You can subscribe to the Insight Myanmar podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or however you get your podcasts; or, you can listen and download right off the web at https://insightmyanmar.captivate.fm/. If you cannot find our feed on your podcast player, please let us know and we will ensure it can be offered there. We would also like to take this time to thank everyone who made this podcast possible, especially our two sound engineers, Martijn Comes and Thar Nge; Zach Hessler, content collaborator and part time co-host; Michael Alahouzos, who assisted in our fund-raising efforts; and Ken Pransky, who helped with editing. Finally, we are immensely grateful for the donors who made this entire thing possible. We also remind our listeners that the opinions expressed by our guests are their own and not necessarily reflective of the host or other podcast contributors. If you find the Dhamma interviews we are sharing of value and would like to support our mission, we welcome your contribution. You may give monthly donations on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/insightmyanmar, or one time donations on PayPal at www.paypal.me/insightmyanmar. If you are in Myanmar and would like to give a cash donation, please feel free to do so.

Vipassana for those of African descent

Thanks to Victoria Robertson, who shared this memory of over ten years ago, when a meditation course was organized in India for meditators coming from an African heritage. She writes:
"In keeping with his volition to spread Dhamma throughout the world, may it be known that S. N. Goenka, insightfully allowed a 10-day course for people of African Heritage to be held at Dhamma Pattana- Mumbai, India Dec. 2009-10. Pictured here is an informal meeting with Guruji and Mataji on metta day and an inspired painting created by a student who attended this historical course."

Although the event was held with much pride and a deep sense of community was experienced, it is uncertain why such an event was not permitted to take place again. Since then, some senior meditators and teachers have pushed for greater inclusiveness among peoples and socio-economic classes not typically represented.

Opening a new hotel? Give to monks!

It is hard to find an occasion of any kind in the Golden Land that doesn't involve generosity and deference towards the Sangha, the Buddhist monastic order. In this case, to inaugurate the opening of Hotel Dawei, the owners and senior staff invite several monks from a local monastery. After feeding them a full nutritious meal consisting of several courses, requisites are presented and accepted on the part of the monks, who then give discourses to the householders and chant Pali suttas. Such a selfless start to any company grants the staff with some good merit and a clear heart to start on the business side of running the day to day operations. As Dawei opens up to greater tourism and unexplored beaches find their bums, it is refreshing to see local values and spiritual beliefs still held onto.

A tentative opening...

A recent view of Maha Bodhi Myaing Sayadaw and his current forest abode. For many years the forest recluse's whereabouts were kept a highly classified secret that only a select few had access to. Now, he seems to be allowing a small trickle of visitors to see him in his temporary home, and meditators who take the pilgrimage are beginning to share their auspicious encounters with the venerable.

Insight Myanmar Episode #1: Trailer

The Insight Myanmar podcast

Check out our new podcast called "Insight Myanmar", which is available wherever you get your podcasts by searching. You can also use these relevant links:

Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/…/p…/insight-myanmar/id1495592193

Listen off the web: https://insightmyanmar.captivate.fm/

Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/insight-myanmar

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4b306XVfpXHkb0KPUrnQ64?si=_mq2nn0oT5-yS4ce_G5Imw&nd=1

Tune In: https://tunein.com/…/Religion--Sp…/Insight-Myanmar-p1286837/

Please rate, review, subscribe and share! And if you appreciate our content, please consider donating to help us continue to carry out our mission. You may give via Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/insightmyanmar, as well as via PayPal at www.paypal.me/insightmyanmar. If you are in Myanmar and would like to give a cash donation, please feel free to get in touch with us.

The Sound of a Wooden Gong at a Burmese Monastery

We intend the upcoming Burma Dhamma podcast to give not only voice to the people and practitioners of the Golden Land, but also the actual sounds of Burmese monasteries, virtually bringing the listener into this rarified environment as much as possible! So today our intrepid sound engineer, Ko Thar Nge, spent the morning at a Burmese monastery getting just the right sound of the wooden hammer striking the "own maung," the ubiquitous wooden noise-maker that every Burmese monastery must have to call monks together. These ambient sounds of Burmese monastic life will be featured between interviews and discussion, bringing the listener closer to the experience of practice and renunciation.

This week is another packed schedule of interviews-- Alan Clements, Ashin Chanda, and U Sarana have all confirmed. Three interesting guests with much to share about their own life and practice of Dhamma in Myanmar.

Of the interviews already completed, we are nearing a release date, and hope to have them out in the next week. Stay tuned for more to come!

A late night interview podcast with Thabarwa Sayadaw

What a talk! Thabarwa Sayadaw made a surprise stop by our recording studio at midnight and we talked till almost 4 a.m. Still, there was so much to discuss that we only reached halfway through our topics, so we hope to continue our talk later this month.

The majority of our conversation focussed on the origin story of Sayadaw himself as well as the development of the Thabarwa center and mission. He discussed his difficulties in being from a family of Chinese immigrants in Yangon and his early interest in education and business. While wildly successful in a time in Myanmar when almost no entrepreneurial activity was taking place, it led to a severely imbalanced mind that became dominated by greed and anger, causing him to make several key poor business decisions. Concerned about his deteriorating mental state, this led to an interest in meditation, and he spent several years studying intensively at such centers as Mogok, Thae Inngu, Goenka, U Ba Khin, and Mahasi.

He became a proper teacher in his own right at the time that massive societal and political transformations were underway in Myanmar, and he discusses openly how the the upheaval of his country put his entire center and mission in an existential crisis, not knowing if they were going to be shut down from one month to the next. Ultimately, the advent of a free press by 2014 finally allowed independent journalists to share more widely what his unique meditation center was trying to accomplish, and the resulting stability led to steady growth and today, international renown.

Thank you to Thabarwa Sayadaw and so many close to him that helped make time in his busy schedule. Sayadaw had just flown from the UK on December 31st, and had spent the prior several days driving from one event to the other throughout Yangon, as well as side trips to Hpa An and Mandalay, and is leaving today to Vietnam. So we were really privileged to have access to so much of his time.

A Dhamma podcast with Ashin Sarana

What a great talk with Ashin Sarana yesterday! We started by learning about his earliest interest in Buddhism and spirituality. Who would have thought that an early fascination with magic and Chinese action movies were the entryway for this Czech monk into the Dhamma. U Sarana went on to describe his (mostly unsuccessful) search for a Buddhist friend in his youth, and his eventual decision to leave his girlfriend in Europe for novice ordination in Sri Lanka followed by a three year degree in Buddhist studies. Now almost a decade in Myanmar, he came just as the internet became available in a country just beginning to open up, and while Facebook was exploding. He joined the social network initially only to make Burmese friends, as a way of practicing his written Burmese ability, and from there began to use the online platform as a way to answer wide-ranging questions on Burmese culture and history, meditation practice, and the Pali scriptures. This unwittingly led to a controversial incident last month in which he found himself the center of attention in his role to speak out against monks touching money, and U Sarana discusses this matter in detail on the podcast. He also mentions a number of other wide-ranging activities, such as his translation of 20 hours of Dhamma talks of Sayagyi U Ba Khin which were recently unearthed, his creation of two picto-dictionaries for English/Burmese/Singhalese/Czech, his upcoming video Dhamma series, his assistance on the Shwe Lan Ga Lay meditator's guide, his new meditation monastery, his search throughout rural Myanmar for a true arahant, and much, much more.

We are finalizing our podcast feed and hope that it will be live in the next few days! Stay posted for more information.

We can only continue to manage the technical costs of producing our Burma Dhamma podcast with the generous support of meditators who find this information valuable. If you'd like to support our mission, please consider leaving a donation at paypal.me/insightmyanmar or https://www.patreon.com/insightmyanmar