In Monywa, monks are going hungry
Recently, the Voice of Myanmar, a local news outlet, reported about gradual disappearance of Bon-swam-laung (alms-rice charity organizations) in Monywa, the city considered to be the birthplace of the Vimutti Vipassana Age of the late-19th/early 20th centuries, which developed into a global vipassana meditation movement.
This tradition of organized alms-rice charities actually began during British Colonial rule in Monywa. Mahā Ledi Sayadaw and his disciples arranged with local sponsors to start offering cooked alms-rice to monastics living in the town’s monasteries in each urban quarter as a way to address food shortages at that time. This was a brilliant innovation which responded to the sacking of the Burmese king, the principle donor to monks, and empowered lay Buddhists to feed the Sangha. As time went on, this became institutionalized within Burmese Buddhist culture, and not only in Monywa; but local communities across the country similarly began to organize the distribution of alms-food to support monastics, especially during hard times. One local charity administrator described the range of alms support that these organizations have offered: “Some associations offer cooked alms-rice to the Sanghās every full moon day, some every Sabbath Day (i.e., every 7-8 days) and the rest do Aruna Swam (dawn alms-rice) every day.”
Now fast forward to present times. According to data from the Monywa township’s Office for Religious Affairs, there are around 400 monasteries in the town’s thirty-one quarters, in which 30,000 monks and 10,000 novices reside. Most of these monasteries have relied on the Bon-swam-laung. In that same Voice of Myanmar article, it is reported that there had once been a public alms-rice offering association in each of the town’s quarters!
Yet a local residing monk in Monywa, Ven. Suriyarāma, admitted, “It has already been over a year since these charities last distributed rice. It is obvious that there are very few left.” Indeed, volunteer administrators of these local Sangha Dāna charity associations have noted this unfortunate trend began around the last Vassa (rain retreat period) in 2021, due to the lack of donors and volunteers. These good works can only be sustained only if there are enough capacity, which appears to no longer be the case. Without this support, the age old monk-lay relationship is under a threat we haven’t seen in many generations, as our people can simply no longer feed the Sangha without help.
Another local volunteer of a Sangha Dāna charity noted, “Even the biggest associations such as Chindwin San Hlu association, which had a long history here with many local donors and volunteers, have now stopped their distributions. So it is even more difficult for the other, smaller charities to continue.”
Therefore, there is truly a pressing need of donors and volunteers to ensure that these Bon-swam-laung do not entirely disappear! And while it is also the case that the local people in Monywa are also facing an economic struggle due to the current situation, there are some volunteers who nonetheless feel compassion and sympathy for the Sanghas, and are willing to help.
Please help us to continue the tradition that Ledi Sayadaw established so long ago. Now, perhaps even more so than then, our Buddhist tradition is facing an existential threat. The Tatmadaw is a far greater destructive force to the continuation of the Dhamma than the British colonials ever were.
Please also keep in mind that a generous donor has offered to match all donations through the month of March, and so anything you give now may count as double!