Support Bagan's monastics: the Heartland Relief Campaign
After learning about the dangers that nuns and monks are now facing in the Bagan region, Better Burma has decided to undertake a campaign to support them. Please read the following the following mission statement to see our objectives, and please consider sharing this within your networks of practitioners who may be willing to give back at a time when Burmese monastics are struggling so acutely.
1.2. Vision
(A) To provide for the convenient services of the Sanghās (monks, nuns and novices) in Bagan in their studies (Pariyatti), practice (Paṭipatti) and realization (Paṭivedha) and sharing/spreading (Dhamma Dūta), for a period of months during the crisis, so they are without any concerns for their food.
(B) To help solve the problem of the monasteries/nunneries/Parahita orphanages in Bagan where an increasing number of monastics/nuns/novices are moving from the sacred sites, ‘Soul land of Myanmar Buddhism’ to other places due to the hardship of receiving alms-food.
1.3. Missions
(A) We are working and trying our best to find and reach out to the monasteries/nunneries/orphanages which are in dire need or which experience shortage of food, mainly in Old Bagan, New Bagan and villages such as Myin Ka Bar, East Pwazaw, West Pwazaw and Min Nan Thu.
(B) We are working with local volunteer monastic supporters from different areas of these regions and Yadana Bone San Taw Ya (Forestry Monastery)’s Abbot to reach out to local needy monastics and nuns, as well the lay-children of different ethnicities who are taking refuge of the Sanghās.
1.4. Targeted Beneficiaries
For the first round of this program, we have collected a list of 315 monks, novices and nuns residing in (2) Pariyatti monasteries in Nyaung-U and 31 monasteries in Old Bagan.
100 nuns residing in 4 meditation centers: Nget Pyit Taung meditation center in Nget Pyit Taung Vipassanā tradition, Maha Si Vipassanā Center, Mogok Vipassanā Center and Alodawpyae Meditation Center. [3 centers in Nyaung-U, 1 center in Bagan]
Out of 315 monastics in the first list, 1 Pariyatti monastery is also a home for orphans from different ethnic minority groups.
1.5. Expected Impacts
The larger Pariyatti monasteries’ abbots will not need to go to other areas of the country to collect raw alms-rice for the coming months.
The forest seclusion monks can remain in their locality and will find it convenient to cook the raw alms-rice for themselves in their monasteries for a few months.
No monks, or nuns, or novices from Pariyatti monasteries, or forestry monasteries, or meditation centers will need to move to other parts of the country.