lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

340RELIGION & BELIEFBright red robesare usuallyreserved fornovices under 15,darker coloursfor older, fullyordained monks.Monks & NunsEvery Buddhist Myanmar male is expected to take up temporary monasticresidence twice in his life: once as a samanera a (novice monk) betweenthe ages of 10 and 20, and again as a hpongyi (fully ordained monk)sometime after the age of 20. Almost all men or boys aged under 20 ‘takerobe and bowl’ in the shinpyu (novitiation ceremony).All things possessed by a monk must be offered by the lay community.Upon ordination a new monk is typically offered a set of three robes(lower, inner and outer). Other possessions a monk is permitted includea razor, a cup, a filter (for keeping insects out of drinking water), an umbrellaand an alms bowl.In Myanmar, women who live the monastic life as dasasila a (‘10-pre-cept’ nuns) are often called thilashin (possessor of morality) in Burmese.Myanmar nuns shave their heads, wear pink robes and take vows in anordination procedure similar to monks. Generally, nunhood isn’t consideredas ‘prestigious’ as monkhood, as nuns generally don’t performceremonies on behalf of laypeople, and keep only 10 precepts – the samenumber observed by male novices.In mornings, you’ll see rows of monks and sometimes nuns carryingbowls to get offerings of rice and food. It’s not begging. It’s a way of lettinglocals have the chance of doing the deed of dhana, thus acquiringmerit.For more onBuddhism, checkwww.dharmanet.org or www.accesstoinsight.org.Temples & MonasteriesPaya (pa-yah), the most common Myanmar equivalent to the often misleadingEnglish term ‘pagoda’, literally means ‘holy one’ and can refer topeople, deities and places associated with religion. Often it’s a genericterm covering a stupa, temple or shrine.There are basically two kinds of paya: the solid, bell-shaped zediand the hollow square or rectangular pahto. A zedi or stupa is usuallythought to contain ‘relics’ – either objects taken from the Buddha himself(pieces of bone, teeth or hair) or certain holy materials.The term pahto is sometimes translated as temple, though shrinewould perhaps be more accurate as priests or monks are not necessarilyin attendance. Mon-style pahto, with small windows and ground-levelpassageways, are also known as a gu or ku (from the Pali-Sanskrit guha,meaning ‘cave’).Both zedi and pahto are often associated with kyaung (Buddhistmonasteries), also called kyaungtaik and hpongyi-kyaung. The mostimportant structure on the monastery grounds is the thein (a consecrat-ed hall where monastic ordinations are held). An open-sided resthouseor zayat may be available for gatherings of laypeople during festivals orpilgrimages.FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS & THE EIGHTFOLD PATHThe Buddha taught four noble truths:The eightfold path consists of:1 Life is dukkha (suffering) 1 Right thought2 Dukkha comes from tanha (selfish desire). 2 Right understanding3 When one forsakes selfish desire, 3 Right speechsuffering will be extinguished.4 Right action4 The ‘eightfold path’ is the way to 5 Right livelihoodeliminate selfish desire.6 Right exertion7 Right attentiveness8 Right concentration