Saved by Buddha
Saved by Buddha is an ongoing long-term personal project.
DATING back to the 11th century, the Buddhist monastic school system in Myanmar was a binding social tool that provided education for children from all walks of Burmese society. It also helped the country achieve a literacy rate that surpassed other Far Eastern countries in the early 1900s. Even the Father of Burmese Independence, General Aung San, received his primary education at a monastic school in Natmuak, Yangon.
However, as the pages of Myanmar’s turbulent history filled up over the years with scars from a messy era of colonialism and the disastrous establishment of socialist rule, the role of monastic schools changed in importance too.
As the British established their presence over 62 years of rule, missionary schools gradually replaced monasteries as educational hubs in the cities, despite still being the centre of learning in rural areas. It was eventually in 1962 that the junta abolished the monastic education system in a nation-wide effort to consolidate power and implement the ways of socialism.
While the rest of Asia jumped on the bandwagon of progress over the next few decades, Myanmar, once the wealthiest country in Southeast Asia and the world’s largest exporter of rice, sank into a black hole of poverty and civil unrest. It was only in the early 1990s that the government decide to revive monastic education as a way of coping with the growing number of orphans and children whose families were caught in the country’s deepening economic crisis.
NEW WAVE, NEW HOPE
TODAY, an estimated 190,000 orphans and children from impoverished backgrounds attend the 1,300 monastic schools in Myanmar. The number is growing, as monks and volunteer teachers work hard to spread the message of hope that education will bring.
Take Ashin Ardaksa, 42, who became a novice to escape a troubled childhood, for example. He opened his village’s first monastic education centre three years ago to help others like himself. From a humble 46 students, the centre now caters to 240 needy children from a cluster of villages in Bagan.
“Even though our economic and political situations are not good, people still have a healthy spiritual well-being and seek knowledge,” he says. “If we start from our home, I believe our actions can slowly influence the whole country to progress.” Around 89 per cent of Myanmar’s 50-million citizens are followers of Theravada Buddhism.
According to the Education Ministry, monastic schools are required to use the same grading system, curriculum and examinations as state schools. In addition, students develop an ethical and moral foundation through the teachings of Buddha.
Many of the larger monastic schools in cities like Yangon and Mandalay accept orphans from remote areas who have been sent by monks from their villages. Relying heavily on donations, they operate as boarding schools and provide the children meals and lodging. Although it is not compulsory for the children to become novices, it is encouraged so the child can collect his own share of daily food alms.
BEYOND THE MONASTERY’S WALLS
AS the monastic education system only provides for children up to 16 years of age, the road ahead for Myanmar’s underprivileged youth to continue learning is fraught with challenges. Other than the lack of a support network, many of them are also pressurised to return home and start work in the fields.
Daw Katthrakayi, 51, who runs the Withakha nunnery in the outskirts of Yangon, says that sometimes, the push for children to study is a lost cause, as most rural families do not understand the potential of the changes education can bring.
“For them, life is nothing more than good harvests and healthy children,” she says. “They don’t realise that with education, a child can be the master of his own life and have a chance to experience the world outside.”
