The role of Yadayā (Reversal of Karma)

DVB TV News, a local media outlet, reported on 24 March that 30-year-old banyan trees were being cut down in Pyapon township in the Ayeyarwady Region for the purpose of Yadayā (meaning to attempt to reverse the acts of Karma) for the chief of the junta that carried out the coup, Min Aung Hlaing. The report stated that the banyan trees were not cut down by the township’s development committee, but by military officers who paid some wood-cutters for the job. A total of eight banyan trees had reportedly been cut down since early March. 

In Burmese, the word for banyan tree is “Nyaung-bin (ညောင်ပင်),” the first letter of which, “Nya (ည),” is part of the group of “Tuesday names and letters.” Everyone in Myanmar knows that the act of cutting down banyan trees is intended to weaken the power of someone born on a Tuesday… which in this case would be Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. She has been referred to as “Suu Kyi” by generals in positions of power now and in the past. The letter “Suu” is also one of the Tuesday letters. Therefore, cutting down the trees clearly seems to be aimed at weakening the power of this particular Tuesday-born Lady. 

On top of this, the town where the banyan trees were cut down is Pya-pon. The letters “Pya” and “Pon” are part of the Thursday names and letters, which suggests the act is intended to weaken the power of a woman which is “Ma (မ)” or “Main-ma (မိန်းမ)” in Burmese. The words “Ma (မ)” and “Main-ma (မိန်းမ)” are Thursday letters. This is another clear sign that the act is intended to weaken the power of the Lady. 

Referring to yet another interpretation by an astrologer who spoke anonymously due to safety concerns, the report stated that another interpretation is that the act is actually intended to weaken the power of the junta leader himself, who was also born on a Tuesday (July 3, 1956)! Therefore, removing one Tuesday name (the banyan trees) would be substituted for any harm done to the power of the junta chief himself. The letter “Sit (စစ်)” in the word for military is also a Thursday letter. Hence, this astrologer believed that cutting down the banyan trees, which are associated with Tuesday names, were a kind of proxy for removing the junta chief or his military. Whichever the interpretation, it is clear that the leader of this coup is foolishly engaged by magical thinking by pursuing Yadayā (acts to reverse Karma), instead of trying to create positive Karma, and all the while holding his country hostage in the process.

Past Burmese generals have pursued similarly silly projects. The former leader, General Than Shwe, pursued a crazy castor oil project in 2006, when he directed his followers to cut off “Kyaat-suu” trees halfway up and plant them upside down. The public reason given for this was to plant trees for manufacturing biofuel as the country was under sanctions from many countries at the time. However, the word “Kyaat-suu” is a kind of anagram for “Suu Kyi,” in that “Kyaat-suu” is a Monday-Tuesday name, while the Lady’s is a Tuesday-Monday name. The generals pursued this crazy campaign nationwide in the hopes it would weaken her influence over the people at that time. Instead, “The Lady became even more popular; she and her party won the general elections and took over the government in 2015,” according to a 63-year old astrologer. She continued, “Thanks to them, castor oil trees have flourished across the country and it helped make Daw Suu the head of state!”

Now it appears that the junta’s chief and his generals have forgotten that these meaningless actions never helped them in the past. If they had, the Lady should have disappeared back then. The news report stated that the military officers told the wood-cutters to only cut down the banyan trees on Sundays, which signifies the head in Burmese astrology. Whatever their intention, the power-hungry generals obviously do not grasp the basics of the Buddha’s teachings on Karma! They have forgotten that their actions have results--that they must reap what they sow. Good deeds lead to beneficial results whereas bad ones have bad outcomes. The Enlightened One taught, “O Monks. Volition (cetanā) is what I call action, for through volition one performs the action by body, speech or mind.” The generals must have forgotten that the volition behind their actions aimed at weakening someone through meaningless actions, will not produce the results they want, but the results of their bad intentions will be visited only on themselves. These actions are being done with bad intentions, and thus instead of achieving their wishes, they will actually create the opposite results. The astrologer emphasized that according to her tradition and understanding, such reversal acts can only work through pure (selfless) intentions. 

Nevertheless, the generals are continuing to engage in these crazy Yadayā rituals, and never even try to have wholesome volitions or intentions for the good of the people or the country. A recent rumor seen in pro-military Facebook groups and Telegram channels claimed that the Sagaing Region is bleeding because of a cursed drum hanging in the southeast (Tuesday) corner of the Kaung-hmu-daw Pagoda in Sagaing. Fake pro-military accounts spread posts about the drum, claiming it had been made with black magic. In fact, this drum was made by a musician and friends who are from Indaw township, and was hung by the former chief minister of Sagaing Region, Dr. Myint Naing, under the guidance of Sitagu Sayadaw who named it “The Unequal Drum” (Mahā Berī or Adhika-dun-dhu-ba). A local news outlet reported that the Sagaing Regional State Administration Council removed the drum and sent it back to Indaw township on March 15 because of the Facebook posts shared by fake pro-military accounts! A young astrologer from Sagaing said that was just the superficial reason, but was in fact a form of Yadaya, intended to take down the drum (‘Sī ’ in Burmese). Well, the word “Si” is another Tuesday name. Other locals agree that this is another silly Yadayā by the junta’s chief to try to take down a Tuesday item (drum) at the Tuesday corner (southeast) of the pagoda in Sagaing Region where the military had been facing fierce resistance from many local defense groups. In fact, the word Sagaing itself is spelled “Sit-kaing”. Although the exact meaning of this name is open to several various interpretations, one is as follows: ‘Sit’ means “army/military/war” whereas “Kai/Kaing” means “to bend down/bend over/droop”, and thus many generals believe that the region’s very name is not good for them. 

Most of the generals are fanatical about astrology and Yadayā rituals. Instead of doing good deeds like tolerance, kindness and forgiveness, they carry out brutal deeds and focus on silly actions like Yadayās. In fact, their actions are a deviation from true Buddhist beliefs and practices. Their Kotūhala Vāda (irrational beliefs) lead them to engage in Yadayā to try to reverse the results of their bad deeds, which also goes against the Buddha’s teachings. These Yadayā are actually a sign that shows their lack of confidence. They are typical of people who are trying to avoid responsibility.