A Deep Connection with Burma's Nuns
We are happy to report that a group of foreign meditators who spent time in Burma wished to offer a donation to help Buddhist nuns facing hardship. Our local team received their generous contribution, and we share the results of the trip here. We invite other kind hearted supporters to let us know what cause they may like to support, and we will do our best to bring this to fruition!
We visited a long-standing nunnery that has 8 branch nunneries across Myanmar, and all of them teach pariyatti nunnery education. There are 200 nuns residing and studying at the main nunnery where we visited.
I was happy to bring the donation to the nuns there because their dedication to education and spiritual practice is truly inspiring. Supporting them in these challenging times ensures they can continue their vital work and studies without interruption. Their resilience and commitment to helping others, even amid their own struggles, deeply moved me, and so it was an honor to carry out this aid trip.
When we arrived, one of the assistant nuns received our rice sacks on behalf of the Chief Nun, who was traveling at the time. The nun who is in charge of the nunnery’s kitchen and storehouse told us that recently, they have only been receiving local alms-rice offerings four or five days a month. We were told by a meals sponsor that it costs between 1.3 and 1.8 million kyats to offer the two meals—breakfast and lunch—for the 200 nuns there. The nunnery has to cook meals by themselves on most of the days in a month.
Aside from the Chief Nun and some of her assistants, the nuns are not aware of the stress the manager of the kitchen and storehouse is under every month. She said that the nuns go on alms-rounds, whether in nearby cities or villages, just four times a month. The amount of alms-rice that they receive is simply not enough.
In previous years, before the rainy season, the nuns would typically receive 50-70 tins (30-45 sacks) of rice donated by residents of the Chief Nun’s native village. That donation covered the required amount of rice for a whole year! But due to the instability in the country, the nuns did not receive that this year.
Recently, the Chief Nun called us to saying “thank you” to the donors, and that she was planning to use some of their donation to her nunnery to help a nearby monastery, where the abbot has been feeding 650 IDP refugee families from a village that was burned to ashes by the junta’s forces. The Chief Nun informed us that there were no other donors to help that compassionate abbot in his heroic efforts, and so asked if we could kindly consider to help him, too.
Again, I would like to say thank you for your generous support during these challenging times! The situation in Myanmar is incredibly tough right now, with many facing severe hardships. Your contributions are making a significant difference, especially for communities and religious institutions. Your compassion and solidarity provide much-needed relief and hope to those who are struggling. We deeply appreciate your continued support and commitment to helping those in need.