Beyond Myanmar

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What do you know about Myanmar?

✤ Irrawady River!

✤ Lots of teak wood (forested area)!

✤ Buddhism!

✤ Oil, natural gas, gemstones!

✤ Capital: Naypidaw!

✤ Largest city: Yangon, Mandalay

Naypyidaw

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Historical Facts

✤ Officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar!

✤ A British colony in the 19th century!

✤ Gained independence from British in 1948!

✤ 1948-1962 a democratic nation!

✤ Coup in 1962, ruled by a military dictatorship which finally ended in 2011!

✤ Being reported for its consistent human rights violations in the country

Date Burmese Religious Life

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Burmese Religious Life

✤ Land of devout Buddhists!

✤ 95% of its people practice Buddhism (mostly Theravadee)!

✤ Celebration of Buddhist New Year

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Burmese Religious Life

✤ Worshipers climbing a temple’s steps!

✤ Published in the Picture Post, a British photojournalism magazine, in 1949-1950

Burmese Religious Life

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✤ Burma gained independence from the British in 1948. !

✤ U Nu, the prime minister of Burma, praying before the religious shrine

Burmese Religious Life

DateMonks reading Buddhist Web sites

Date

The Shwedagon Pagoda

Lighting candles of luck

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Think-Pair-Share

✤ What do these photographs say about the extent to which Buddhist monks are part of daily life and society in Myanmar? !

✤ To which other country does the slide show compare Myanmar in terms of its devotion to Buddhism? !

✤ What conclusions can your draw about the role of religion in Myanmar based on these images?

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What makes a monk mad? ✤ Read the article ‘What makes a monk mad?’!

✤ Why did Buddhist monks in Myanmar turn their begging bowls upside down, and what were the implications of this action? !

✤ How does the article describe the relationship between Buddhist monks and soldiers in Myanmar? !

✤ What are some other historical examples of protest in this country, according to the article?!

✤ What does it mean that the monks’ power comes from ‘bestowing legitimacy’ on the rulers? !

✤ What conclusion can you draw about the future of Myanmar based on this article?

Citations

✤ http://www.photosjunction.com/photo/4722.aspx#.Uq_uAmQW1ss!

✤ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11749661!

✤ http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20071003wednesday.html!

✤ http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2007/09/30/weekinreview/20070930_MYANMAR_SLIDESHOW_13.html!

✤ http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/buddhist-monks-lead-burma-protest/2007/09/24/1190486222009.html!

✤ http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=51,5080,0,0,1,0#.Uq_2GWQW1ss