Myanmar 82 Goodbye Myanmar

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82
Myanmar
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The day that one has born is the most important
in daily life in Myanmar. Every individual soul
is being named after the day that he or she has
born
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Most Myanmar are Buddhist of the Theravada
stream. Central to their religious beliefs is
karma, the concept that good begets good and evil
begets evils
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Another belief is that all living things go
through reincarnation. If a person has committed
sins, (he or she) will be reincarnated into a
lower level being such as an animal or suffer in
Hell on the other hand, if he has done good
deeds, he will be elevated to a higher level of
existence to the world of devas.
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The ultimate aim in life according to Buddhist
belief is to escape the cycle of rebirth and
reach Nirvana. Meritorious deeds that will help a
person to achieve Nirvana include giving
donations (especially to monks) and abiding by
the Five Precepts and practicing Bavana
(meditation).
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The Five Precepts are exhortation not to kill,
steal, lie, drink alcohol, and commit adultery.
The Five Precepts are codes of conduct for
laypeople.
Kyauktawgyi Pagoda Yangon
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There are also Eight, Nine and Ten precepts,
meant to be practised by more serious lay
devotees. The Jemghas or monks have to abide by
the 227 rules of conduct or vinayas.
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Bagan Lokananda Pagoda
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Donors fill all the cots at a blood drive on New
Year's Day of the Myanmar calendar, a day on
which people traditionally make donations of
blood, food, birds or fish and pay their respects
to the elderly
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Mon State Mudon, Limestone landscape
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Mandalay
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Some Myanmar people, especially those from the
rural areas, have many superstitions Astrology,
palmistry and clairvoyance are sometimes relied
upon to make important decisions.
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These may include marriage, going into a business
partnership, naming a baby, and others. To
offset bad luck, certain meritorious deeds or
yadaya may be performed such as setting free some
live birds or animals, building a footbridge, or
mending a road.
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Superstition of different cultures are
interesting in some ways. Here are some of the
Myanmars     Don't go underneath a
staircase. You will loose your will power.    
Don't go under a pole or rope, where women used
to hang-dry their longyis. You will loose your
will power.
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Festival of Lights The symbol of the candles
flame represents the light of the Buddhas
teaching and the enlightenment the lessons added
to the world
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Superstition of different cultures are
interesting in some ways. Here are some of the
Myanmars     Don't leave a shoe or a slipper
up-side-down. It'll cause bad luck.     Don't
keep a broken glass or a mirror in homes. Replace
the window panes a sap if broken.
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Superstition of different cultures are
interesting in some ways. Here are some of the
Myanmars     Don't wash your hair within a
week after a funeral in the neighborhood.    
Don't hit the pot with a ladle after you stir the
curry. It's like hitting your parents' head.
    Don't hit 2 lids of pots and pans against
each other. A tiger may bite you.
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Superstition of the Myanmars     Don't feed
someone with the palm upward. The food might
cause you disorder.     Don't clip your nails
at night. Ghosts don't like that.
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Superstition of the Myanmars     Don't take
kids to dark places. Ghosts may posses them.
    Carrying some hairs of an elephant tail
will avoid evil.
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Myanmar parents favour their sons over their
daughters but the latter are treasured as well.
Daughters are not considered a burden as no
dowry is paid to the bridegroom when they marry.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
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Bamboo
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Typical Inle Lake bamboo home
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Traditional Myanmar women are not aggressive and
usually play second fiddle to their husbands.
Women are expected to help with the household
chores and take care of their aged parents more
than men.
This house provides another example of woven
bamboo walls
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Where social life is concerned, unmarried women
and bachelors tend to mix with members of the
same sex. Between married couples, public
displays of affection are rarely seen.
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Taung Kalat (Mount Popa)
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Mount Popa is considered the abode of Burma's
most powerful Nats and as such is the most
important nat worship center.
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It has therefore been called Burma's Mount
Olympus.
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Mount Popa is a volcano 1518 metres above sea
level, and located in central Burma (Myanmar)
about 50 km southeast of Bagan (Pagan) in the
Pegu Range. Southwest of Mount Popa is Taung
Kalat (pedestal hill), sheer-sided volcanic plug,
which rises 737 metres (2,417 ft) above the sea
level. A Buddhist monastery is located at the
summit of Taung Kalat. At one time, the Buddhist
hermit U Khandi maintained the stairway of 777
steps to the summit of Taung Kalat. The Taung
Kalat pedestal hill is sometimes itself called
Mount Popa and given that Mount Popa is the name
of the actual volcano that caused the creation of
the volcanic plug, to avoid confusion, the
volcano (with its crater blown open on one side)
is generally called Taung Ma-gyi (mother hill).
The volcanic crater itself is a mile in diameter
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A Buddhist monastery is located at the summit of
Taung Kalat.
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Mount Popa is perhaps best known as a pilgrimage
site, with numerous Nat temples and relic sites
atop the mountain.
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From the top of Taung Kalat one can enjoy a
panoramic view.
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Mount Popa can be seen from the Ayeyarwady
(Irrawaddy) River as far away as 60 km in clear
weather.
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Burmese superstition says that on Mt Popa, one
should not wear red or black or green or bring
meat, especially pork, as it could offend the
resident nats, although Byatta and his brother
Byatwi were the only Muslims who had shipwrecked
and landed in Burma
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Although all 37 Nats of the official pantheon are
represented at the shrine on Mt Popa, in fact
only four of them - the Mahagiri nats, Byatta and
Me Wunna - have their abode here
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There are many Burmese myths about the mountain,
especially the one that said victory for any man
who collected their army on the slopes of the
mountain was guaranteed
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Buddha images are carved into cliffs above the
Ayeyarwaddy River at Akauk Taung (Customs Hill)
near Pyay in Bago Region
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Ayeyarwaddy River at Akauk Taung (Customs Hill)
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Baw Baw Gyi Pagoda
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Inwa Bagaya Kyaung, a teak monastery supported by
267 posts
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Pindaya View from access to Pindaya Caves
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The Pindaya Caves, located next to the town of
Pindaya, Shan State, are a Buddhist pilgrimage
site and a tourist attraction located on a
limestone ridge in the Myelat region.
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There are three caves on the ridge which runs
north-south, but only the southern cave can be
entered and explored. It is not known whether the
other two penetrate for any extended distance
into the hillside.
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its interior contains over 8,000 images of
Buddha.
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Some of the older statues and images in the cave
have inscriptions dating to the late 18th
century, or early Konbaung period, and the
earliest one dates from 1773. There may be some
images without inscriptions that are older, but
based on the style elements, Than Tun believes
that none of them is older than the early 18th
century and even suggests 1750 as the earliest
possible date
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There is a 15-m (49 ft) pagoda named Shwe U Min
(Golden Cave) Pagoda at the entrance to the
southernmost cave. Local legend attributes this
pagoda as being built by King Asoka and repaired
by King Alaungsithu in the 12th century, but this
is not corroborated by any other historical
source. In its present form and style, it is
immediately apparent that the pagoda is of recent
origin.
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Shwe U min Pagoda, the Pindaya Caves
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Hsaungdan (covered stairway) to the Pindaya caves
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The modern day entrance dates from 1925 when the
entrance to the cave was enlarged by explosives,
destroying some valuable images and epigraphs in
the process. A steel structure was erected to
accommodate the many pilgrims.
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Dedication inscriptions from this renovation
indicate a wide range of donors, not only from
the Theravada community, but also from the Hindu,
Chinese and even Muslim communities.
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During this renovation, some unique images were
removed to a nearby monastery. Unfortunately,
these images were destroyed during World War II
in a bombing raid
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An elevator was added in more recent times
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The Pindaya Caves, Hsaungdan (covered stairway)
to the caves
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Burma is the land of golden pagodas.
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Presentation Sanda Foisoreanu
2013
Sound Yatanarbon Mandalay Yatanarbon