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338When Myanmarlocals go onholiday its oftenin the form of apilgrimage. MaThanegi describesone suchtrip in The NativeTourist: In Searchof Turtle Eggs.All religiousgroups are barredfrom engaging inpolitical activitiesand acceptingfunds fromforeign sources.Religion & BeliefFaith and superstition go hand in hand in Myanmar. About 89% of thepeople of Myanmar are Buddhist, but many also pay heed to ancientanimist beliefs in natural spirits or nats. Locals are proud of their beliefsand keen to discuss them. Knowing something about Buddhism in particularwill help you better understand life in the country.Freedom of religion is guaranteed under the country’s constitution.However Buddhism is given special status. Myanmar’s ethnic patchworkof people also embraces a variety of other faiths, among which Islam andChristianity are the most popular.BuddhismThe Mon were the first people in Myanmar to practise Theravada (meaningDoctrine of the Elders) Buddhism, the oldest and most conservativeform of the religion. King Asoka, the great Indian emperor, is known tohave sent missions here (known then as the ‘Golden Land’) during the3rd century BC. A second wave is thought to have arrived via Sinhalesemissionaries between the 6th and 10th centuries.By the 9th century the Pyu of northern Myanmar were combiningTheravada with elements of Mahayana (Great Vehicle) and Tantric Buddhismbrought from their homelands in the Tibetan Plateau. During theearly Bagan era (11th century), Bamar king Anawrahta decided that theBuddhism practised in his realm should be ‘purified’ from all non-Theravadaelements. It never completely shed Tantric, Hindu and animistelements, but remains predominately Theravada.RELIGIOUS CONFLICTSFriction between religious groups in Myanmar is not uncommon. In February 2001, riotsbetween Buddhists and Muslims broke out in Sittwe, followed a few months later byones in Taungoo that, according to Human Rights Watch, resulted in nine Muslim deathsincluding three children, the destruction of 60 homes and looting of Muslim-ownedshops.As David Steinberg notes in Burma/Myanmar: What Everyone Needs to Know, theseriots are ‘usually based on some perceived insult by a Muslim to Buddhism or to a Burmesewoman’. There is also the ongoing problem of the government’s non-recognition ofthe Muslim Rohingya minority, which is very controversial among most locals in RakhaingState (see p 277 ).Relations between each of the religions hasn’t been helped by the fact that withingovernment Buddhists tend to attain higher rank more easily than non-Buddhists.There has also been a programme of building pagodas in border regions including theChristian area of Kachin State bordering China and the Muslim areas of Rakhaing Statebordering Bangladesh.For information on violations to religious freedom in Myanmar, read the 2006 USState Department report at www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71335.htm.