I’m just back from my latest sojourn from the enchanting land of Myanmar (Burma). Although I have traveled to Myanmar many times before, this experience was the most enlightening, because I got to travel along the countryside with a band of monks and their disciples and I became immersed in their spiritual world.

Most people know of about the strictness and discipline of Buddhist life, but consider for yourself if you would be able to follow their daily routine. At the hint of dawn, the monks and their disciples wake and prepare their long walk to the closest village. When they arrive, the villagers give them offerings of food, in hopes of bringing good karma to their family and village. The elder monks eat once a day before noon, while the younger disciples can have two meals a day, if food is available. To do my part, I would buy food at the nearby open market to make sure everyone in each monastery had his portion of food for the day. The expressions of gratitude of the monks have definitely left an imprint on my mind. The rest of the day is spent in deep prayer and isolation. There is little contact from the outside world. By being sheltered from the material world, the monks are able to practice self-renunciation and achieve nirvana. While observing them during their daily duties and meditation, I could sense their inner serenity and contentment.

As for myself, I felt isolated in a different way, as I had no access to newspapers, phone service or the internet. Phone lines were often cut off at random times and electricity was limited to six hours a day. This was the most challenging part of my journey.

When you peruse my latest photos, you will see magnificent pagodas and temples that dot the landscape from Bagan to Mandalay to Sagain, just to name a few. One of my favorite pagodas is the Hsinbyume Pagoda in Mingun with its seven concentric terraces to represent the seven hills around Mount Meru, “the center of the universe.” Unfortunately, in most of these shrines, thieves and earthquakes have destroyed the intricate details of the religious structures. Kings attempting to find favor or improve their karma have built gigantic Buddha images throughout the country. Also worth viewing are the reclining Buddha of Manuha temple in Bagan and the Shwethalyaung Buddha in Bago.

With each visit to Myanmar, I gain more spiritual contentment. I hope I can once again bring this positive karma back with me and share it with all my friends. Hope to see you all soon. We have a lot of catching up to do.

Peace and happiness,

Best wishes,

Michael Chen

email: mc@mc-images.com
url: www.mc-images.com