Food during Exams Week!
As our local team continues to disperse the donation made available by the Birthday Fund of a British donor, they have now made their way to Bago. Interestingly, they landed here during the middle of the all-important Monastic Exams, a time when the monks are so busy studying that they do not have time to go on their customary alms rounds. For this reason, the rice donations arrived a perfect time, allowing the monks to focus entirely on their studies while being assured that sufficient supplies of rice were already provided. What good fortune!
We are so grateful for any and all donors who have supported our work!
“The Sayadaw who organized the donation in Bago is one of the head monks of the monastery. He told me that they are having a very hard time to keep feeding 140 monastics including novices who are all studying Buddhist literatures in the monastery. There was a 5-day Buddhist Pali examination in the monastery when we contacted him and organized the donation. He emphasized the delightful message for the donors that our contribution helped them at the right time, when the exam was held and no monastics were sent to go alms-round, but they managed to be fed by us for both breakfast and lunch!
For those who do not know this, Buddhist monks in Myanmar are regularly required to take regular monastic exams. These exams are important not only for monks but also for the laity, as they help to ensure that monks are knowledgeable about the faith and can properly teach it to others, which is what allows the Buddha’s teachings to continue to be passed down and preserved in our country, even in times as hard as these. The exams cover a wide range of topics such as history, ethics, doctrine, and meditation. In order to pass, monks must demonstrate a thorough understanding of the material. The exams are administered by a panel of senior monks, and the results are made public. Those who do well on the exams are highly respected by the community, and those who do not do well may be asked to leave the monastery. The exams are an important part of the Buddhist tradition in Myanmar, and they help to ensure that monks are knowledgeable about the teachings and can properly teach it to others.
Anyway, we learned that this monastery was the only one where the abbot and his assistant monks maintained the number of residing student monks and novices since the outbreak of COVID-19. That is really remarkable. However, it was sad to know that there was a decrease in the number of monastics in the other monasteries and nunneries where the Buddhist literatures (Pariyatti) are taught.
