Heritage and Hope

Episode #123: Lucine has been the liaison officer between France and Myanmar for decades. With this rich experience, she offers an insightful perspective on the workings and machinations of the hidden world of diplomats across multiple crises in Myanmar.Burma used to be viewed as a kind of remote backwater that few knew much about. But that all changed with the ’88 democratic uprising. Working with the European countries and the US, Lucine advocated for an immediate travel ban and economic restrictions on high level military figures. Surprisingly, she was never arrested, a mystery that eludes her to this day.Back then, Western countries were very sympathetic to Burma’s plight. But since Aung San Suu Kyi’s fateful decision to personally defend the Rohingya genocide at the IJC, that all changed. Lucine explains that Aung San Suu Kyi hoped her hard stand would both help her election chances and placate the military, making a coup less likely. However, not only did Aung San Suu Kyi single-handedly lose worldwide sympathy and support for her country’s democratic transition, the military ultimately launched a coup anyway.Away from Myanmar, Lucine describes the anxiety many Burmese exiles now have in not knowing if their respective ambassadors support the democracy movement, or are little more than spies for the junta. Even worse, the military has instructed its embassies not to issue new passports, leaving approximately 80,000 stateless Burmese in limbo.Lucine cannot understand how most of the international community has simply stood by and watched the suffering of the Myanmar people grow exponentially. “No sympathy, no empathy, I would say! They don't care how many people are killed in a day, even though we've been sharing news and we've been crying out in many ways around the world!”

16 Sep 20221h 53min

Episode #122: Gil Fronsdal’s single visit to Myanmar came over three decades ago, but the impact of the trip on his spiritual life stays with him still.Initially practicing Zen, he went to Japan to deepen his practice, but he soon became disillusioned with the emphasis on ritual. He traveled on to Thailand, where he took a Mahasi course. Immediately impressed, he felt inspired go to the source of the teaching and seek further guidance under Sayadaw U Pandita, himself.When Gil did finally arrive in the country, he devoted himself to intensive meditation at the large Mahasi center in Yangon, including several months as an ordained bhikkhu. The experienced touched him “in some deep, emotional way.”However, studying under U Pandita was not easy. Gil knew a lot of the Westerners who burned out and developed psychological problems under U Pandita’s stern and exacting teaching about striving for attainment. But Gil’s Zen background helped temper the effect of this, while at the same he was fascinated with the attention to detail the Mahasi practice afforded. He began sitting in extended periods of bliss.In the context of Gil’s balanced and deeper practice space, Sayadaw U Pandita’s emphasis also resonated with him in a new, more concrete way, helping him realize how, in the “micro-moments” of his life, he was not so accepting as he believed himself to be. This eventually impacted his own teaching career, as Gil became increasingly conscious of not only presenting meditation as an aid to leading a balanced life, but also reminding his students about the potential of full liberation.Overall, that brief stay in the Golden Land continues to be a special memory for Gil. “Of the eight months I was there in the Mahasi center, I really felt like I was a guest of the country, and the whole culture. The whole country was hosting me and caring for me.”Following the talk, Gil requested that Insight Myanmar address his group, The Sati Center for Buddhist Studies. This talk will take place September 17 at 9.30 am, Pacific time. If you would like to join the discussion, you can register here.

10 Sep 20221h 20min

Episode #121: While perhaps a strange choice for some, Steve Jarand and Kati Schweitzer elected to spend part of their honeymoon meditating in Myanmar. Both being practitioners in the vipassana tradition of S.N. Goenka—a Burmese citizen of Indian heritage who trained in a Burmese lineage—that 2016 trip was something of a spiritual homecoming for them.The visit broadened their horizons regarding their spiritual path. For example, Steve learned to appreciate Burmese Buddhist culture on its own terms through the realization that “it's much more rich and complex than just what I had known about the practice!” And from the start, Kati appreciated how interwoven the practice was in daily life throughout Myanmar. They also found much meaning while staying longer in monastic environments.Overall, there was much joy to remember from the trip, particularly the way they always found their Burmese friends quick to smile, and their amazing generosity. With the memory of that kindness in mind, Steve and Kati speak to the wider practitioner community about how important it is to support the people of Myanmar during these very dark days, since the military coup, and find a way to reciprocate.

7 Sep 202252min

Episode #120: On Thursday, August 25th, 2022, the accomplished artist and longtime activist, Htein Lin, was arrested along with his wife, Vicki Bowman. We had only just recently interviewed him, so hearing this news was doubly shocking.Htein Lin became was involved in the 1988 uprising in opposition to the military junta, and experienced guerilla warfare as a member of the revolutionary group, All Burma Students’ Democratic Front. While living in a reconnaissance camp along the Indian border, Htein Lin met an artist from Mandalay who became his mentor. Together they discussed art and painting techniques, and Htein Lin’s passion for art grew.Then in 1998, Htein Lin was arrested for nearly seven years when the letter of an old friend, a retired school teacher, was intercepted by the Tatmadaw. In prison, he continued to work as an artist, using objects found around the jail, such as pieces of glass, dismantled cigarette lighters, and syringes, etc. He even staged an art exhibition of this work for guards and prisoners.At one point, Htein Lin was transferred to Death Row. He and a poet friend were confined more than 23 hours per day with serious criminals, including at least two murderers. Yet his new neighbors offered up the one thing in their possession: their white, prison-issue sarongs as cloth upon which Htein Lin could continue to paint.Then just as suddenly, he was released. After returning to civil society, Htein Lin became increasingly involved in artists’ discussion groups and experimental performance art. He met and married his wife, Vicki Bowman, the former British ambassador to Burma. Together, they sought and found meaningful spiritual community in Dhamma Dipa, a vipassana meditation center in the tradition of SN Goenka. This led to further awakening and integration of his life and art: “If you are living in the present without reacting, without anger, and [if you] share in anything negative, sharing with loving-kindness and compassion in you, you become a very beautiful piece of art.”May his equanimity be of support to Htein Lin in his recent re-arrest.

31 Aug 20222h 7min

Episode #119: Erin Murphy has been involved in Asia issues since 2001, and Myanmar, in particular, since 2008. She relates all this in her recently released book, Burmese Haze. She contrasts the somewhat distorted, emotionally charged view of Myanmar held by American policy-makers during the transition period with the harsh, even brutal military reality in Myanmar that was lurking just under the surface. Murphy recalls the sheer callousness of the military government’s refusal to accept humanitarian aid in the aftermath of the horrific and devastating Cyclone Nargis in 2008. Regarding sanctions, for some in the American government the push for sanctions against the Tatmadaw has become almost a moral crusade. However, Murphy explains that the effect of any sanctions imposed on the regime will not be that onerous if other countries do not follow suit. As for any role that China might play, Murphy states, “I think one word that summarizes [the relationship between Myanmar and China] is ‘complicated’.” When asked to speculate about the motivations of Aung San Suu Kyi, Murphy says that we may never know exactly what she was planning. She believes that The Lady has had to walk a fine line, balancing priorities, and no one really knows what her internal calculus was. As for the Rohingya, it is but one of many decades-long, ethnic wars waged by the Burmese junta. Murphy says many in the international community should have seen it coming, but did nothing to stop it. Besides being an overall global failure, more recently it’s an instance of unfortunate timing, in which international attention got distracted by Myanmar’s nascent yet fragile democracy period. On a sobering but positive note, Murphy concludes by saying that none of the protests have been in vain. “These are lessons; I don't see them as failures. Did they succeed in getting a democracy? No. But did they succeed in getting their cause recognized by the world? People know about it. And that's important, laying the groundwork… What you do is you keep getting new generations of people interested and then they bring in their tools, and their thoughts and their experiences.”

26 Aug 20222h 17min

Episode #118: Kyar Phyu returns to the Insight Myanmar Podcast to update listeners on how eventful the past number of months have been, in particular regarding her association with the CDM.Her activities came to the notice of military intelligence, and Kyar Phyu was forced to flee, taking refuge in a safe house for eight months. During that entire time, she only ventured outside twice, both times out of necessity: first when she contracted COVID, and then when her safe house became compromised, and she had to move to another. Eventually, Kyar Phyu realized it would only be a matter of time until she was captured if she stayed put. Eventually, she went to Thailand, ultimately settling in Mae Sot.To maintain her mental balance amid all the stress and challenges, she took up ānāpāna meditation, following the instructions of pyit-pyet (ဖြစ်ပျက်), or the arising and passing away of breath from the nostrils. “It made me be more compassionate to myself,” she says. “It made me more peaceful, so I can accept anything that happens.” Though Kyar Phyu also admits that balancing Buddhist meditation with a concerted effort to defeat an evil enemy is no easy to task.While Kyar Phyu still sees CDM as essential to the cause, she recognizes that it could not be sustained, financially or otherwise; many had to leave hiding and return to the office due to financial hardships, while many other workers were either pressured to return to work or arrested and found themselves in jail. She asserts that the People’s Defense Forces are the most important component of the movement now, more than the NUG.She also calls attention to the emerging woman soldier divisions, and is in awe of the brave, young Burmese females who are putting their lives on the line. This is no small thing in traditional Burmese society, with its heavily circumscribed gender roles.Finally, she remains confident that the SAC is facing defeat. “We are winning, but still, we have to be more systematic and have stronger communication. But still I feel we are in very good situation now.”

19 Aug 20221h 41min

Episode #117: “The army believed democratic fighters were hiding in my center, so they moved very aggressively. They entered my meditation center! They shouted, ‘Hey, I will kill you. I will kill you!’ Their soldiers knocked in the door of the female kūtis. Oh God, everyone is very scared. Very afraid. They are shooting; they are firing in the air. But when they came to the female Dhamma Hall, they saw the female yogis are practicing in the Dhamma Hall. So, they are very surprised and shocked, and they see that this is a meditation center, and see we are practicing. So, they calm down their anger.”The first portion of this interview contains a blow-by-blow narrative about the direct and personal experience of war, as experienced from the confines of a silent meditation retreat at Kyun Pin monastery, a meditation center in the tradition of Sayadaw U Pandita. Myanmar’s military bombarded two neighboring villages with mortars and rockets for two days, and at one point barged into the meditation center itself. Calmly and in great detail, Sayadaw U Jatila relates the screaming, the burning of houses for days on end, and the purposeful destruction of animals and basic necessities for daily life. He describes soldiers who have lost their minds due to alcohol and drugs, and ordered by higher military officials to engage in brutal acts against their own people.He then goes to discuss a wide range of matters. U Jatila feels strongly that people from all ethnic and religious backgrounds in Myanmar should enjoy basic human rights of freedom and safety. He calls out the military for using scare tactics to promote a nationalist Buddhist agenda that encourages anti-Islam sentiments. He also recounts his past meetings with Aung San Suu Kyi, and discusses what he learned about her meditation practice. Finally, he touches upon the very sensitive topic of armed resistance, discussing how Burmese democracy activists can resist the military.

12 Aug 20222h 6min

Episode #116: On July 7th, the official account of the European Union in Myanmar posted a two-minute video urging factories in conflict-torn Myanmar to re-open, charging that the factory shutdowns had driven former employees to poverty and even prostitution. In response, many charged that the EU was trying to manipulate Burmese voices to advocate for a policy that would benefit themselves but goes against the aspirations of the democracy movement. Today’s guest, Maung Maung, currently president of the Confederation of Trade Unions in Myanmar (CTUM), addresses this video, as well as labor’s role in the current revolution and the overall conditions for Myanmar’s workers.While Maung Maung does not dispute an accusation in the video that the closed factories harm ordinary Burmese workers, he believes it is hurting the regime more, and that is the current priority.Maung Maung also found the video highly offensive because it is quite chauvinistic and insulting for Western powers to try and “educate” the Burmese people on the dangers of local young women turning to prostitution.To make matters worse, the junta has picked up on the video and has begun to promote it as a way to normalize their brutal regime, meaning that, in effect, the EU has managed to provide the Tatmadaw with a key piece of propaganda to boost their rule.Yet, as hard as things are now in the country, Maung Maung is hopeful for the future. “We are winning. We want people to not just think like well, ‘The military is going to win again.’ No, it is not!”

9 Aug 202232min