It is now ‘Waso’ (June/July) here in Burma. The monsoon has been here for about 4 weeks and very soon it will be in full swing. The monsoon in Burma begins in Nayon (May/June) and lasts for the next 3 months, which are Waso (June/July), Wagaung (July/August) and finally Thawthalin (August/September). Soon the monsoon season will reach its peak. As the Burmese saying goes: “Waso, Wagaung rain and flood”.

Many Burmese people, however superstitious, have called ‘Nat gadaw’ (wife or medium of a nat/guardian spirit) to “protect” their houses and compounds from flooding and have made offerings to the nat ‘U Shin Gyi. ‘, the guardian spirit of rivers and lakes in order to put them in a good mood so that they take care that the water stays away from their homes.

To understand the Burmese belief in Nats, you need to know that in the Burmese version of Theravada Buddhism, Buddhism, Naga worship, and Nat worship go hand in hand.

It was ‘Mucalinda’, a ‘Naga’ (mythical being half serpent, half dragon) who protected Siddhartha Gautama Buddha during his 7 weeks of meditation in ‘Lake Mucalinda’ upon obtaining Enlightenment, that is, after breaking the cycle of ‘Samsara’ (re-incarnation) thus protecting him from the dangers of a strong storm. For this reason, the ‘Naga yone’ (an image of Gautama Buddha against the background of a naga, who shields the Buddha’s head with his own hooded head) is a central icon of naga worship. And it was animistic worship that was practiced by the natives before the introduction of Theravada Buddhism into the kingdom of Pagan during the reign of King Anawrahta, who reigned from 1044 AD. C. until 1077 d. King Anawrahta was converted to Buddhism by ‘Shin Arahan’, a pony from the then powerful and highly civilized Mon Kingdom in which Buddhism, more precisely Theravada Buddhism, was already a long-accepted and practiced religion. There are other speculations as to who Shin Arahan was, but that should be the subject of another article. Let’s continue with this story.

Even King Anawrahta was unable (and most likely unwilling, as that would have met with strong resistance from his subjects) to eradicate the animistic beliefs of his people and compromised by officially accepting a group reduced to 36 primary ‘Nats’ (beings gods or guardian spirits) to which he added as the 37th nat ‘Thagyamin’, a Hindu deity based on Indra, as the ‘King of Nats’ who reigns over ‘Tavatimsa’ (abode of celestial beings also called heaven or abode of the seven highest in heaven).

Both the ‘Naga Cult’ and the ‘Nat Cult’ have been assimilated into Buddhist doctrines in Burma and remain an integral part of the religious beliefs of the Burmese people. Even Buddhist pagodas have nats and nagas as their guardian spirit. As for Yangon’s grand and golden ‘Shwedagon Pagoda’ (one of the largest and most famous pagodas in the world), this is the nat (guardian spirit) ‘Bo Bo Gyi’, Bo Bo Gyi is in harmonious coexistence with an image of Gautama’s bright brass. Buddha’s head on the terrace of the pagoda that protects the Shwedagon from evil fate. However, my brief explanation in this article will suffice for our present purpose and we can now return to our main topic.

With the rain many things have changed as with it the stifling summer heat is almost gone (I can sleep so much better now that the nights are almost cool) and nature has undergone a magical transformation across the country. Having taken a few deep, deep breaths of fresh air and shaken off the dry summer dust, nature is now bursting at the seams. The rivers and ponds are brimming with water and the landscape has changed drastically. Everywhere in the country, from Mawlamyaing to Yangon, Pyay, Bagan, Sagaing, Mandalay, you name it, the country is covered in a thick layer of lush green foliage and grass, thickly dotted with colorful flowers, both wild and cultivated.

Suddenly, the whole country was awash with snow-white and fragrant ‘Sabai’ (jasmine) and other flowers. Waso is also the month of flowers such as the Waso flower, the lily (Liliaceae family, Liliales order, onion genus Allium), as well as all kinds of fruits.

Awakened by the ‘Mango showers’ of ‘Kason’ in April/May, the delicious ‘Tha yet Thee’ (Mango) was the first to come out, ready to be eaten.

It was followed in rapid succession by ‘Thin baw thee’ (Papaya), ‘Pein gne thee’ (Jackfruit), ‘Duwin thee’ (Durian), ‘Min gu thee’ (Mangosteen), ‘Ma la ga thee’ (Guava), ‘Chet mauk thee’ (Rambutan), ‘Na na thee’ (Pineapple), ‘Awza thee’ (Cherimoya), and so on. I can’t get enough of all these wonderful fruits, such delicious fruits! However, my favorite breakfast is still the ‘Hnget pyaw thee’, Banana.

The life of the rural population has also changed drastically; now they are very busy in the paddy fields as it is time to plant the paddy fields. The Burmese need a lot of rice because it is the core of their staple diet. But with the day of the full moon looming just around the corner, they are also busy with other things. More on this a few lines later in this article.

Waso is also the month of self-communion, ordination, and the beginning of Buddhist Lent, and while the Lenten season will be a solemn time of quiet contemplation, meritorious deeds, and self-denial, it begins with music, singing, and dancing without which almost nothing OK in Burma.

By the way, for those couples who can’t wait to get married, it’s about time to do it before ‘Waso la pyei htun pwe daw’, Waso Full Moon Festival arrives because marriages are strictly taboo during the three months of slow .

So hurry, you have no time to waste or as an ‘anonymous’ Burmese (couldn’t figure out who the composer was so I call it – or was it her? – ‘anonymous’) so beautifully said it is:

“Oh my love, a kokko tree fell,

and cut it fast!

Make a cart!

But then, it takes too long.

Why worry, my love,

there is Ma Boke Sone,

her roomy hip for us to ride,

ride merrily,

happily all the way to happiness.”

I wish all the newlyweds the very best and much happiness for the future.

The time leading up to the full moon festival is a busy time. People are heavily involved in preparing for the ordination or initiation of their children, fasting and making slow offerings to the ‘Pongyis’ (monks) in the ‘Kyaungs’ (monasteries) and organizing ‘Doh bats’ (musical troupes). Waso moon day, called ‘Dammacakya’ or ‘Dharmacakra’ is a very important day for Buddhists in which, again, they celebrate some important events in and from the life of Gautama Buddha.

According to Buddhist belief, all these four events have taken place on a full moon day which here in Burma is the Waso full moon day. Particularly the first of these events celebrated on this day I could not, however hard I tried, find it confirmed by the facts. However, these events are, first of all, the conception of Siddhartha Gautama (later to become Gautama Buddha) in the womb of his mother, ‘Maidaw Maya’, who after her death was reborn in ‘Tavatimsa’ as the ‘ Deva’ (guardian spirit) ‘Mother Angel-God’, ‘Maidaw-mi-nattha’.

Secondly, it was Siddhartha Gautama’s resignation from his worldly life after seeing the ‘Four Omens’.

Thirdly, Siddhartha Gautama’s celebration of his first sermon, the ‘Sutta’, in the ‘Sarnath’ Deer Park near Benares/India (present-day Varanasi) after the ‘Bodhi’ (Enlightenment). The text of this contains the essence of Buddhism, the ‘Eightfold Noble Path’ and the ‘Four Noble Truths’ and, fourthly, the miracles of Siddhartha Gautama to subdue heretics.

As stated above, Waso full moon is also called ‘Dharmacakra’, which is also one of the six ‘Mudras’ (prescribed postures in which Gautama Buddha is depicted in art). Regarding this, here are some words of explanation for you. In the ‘Dharmacakra Mudra’, both of the Buddha’s hands are placed in front of his chest. The tips of the middle finger and thumb of the right hand are placed on top of the thumb and forefinger of the left hand in such a way that they form a circle. This mudra is reminiscent of the Gautama Buddha Sutta and the hand sign is said to set the ‘Wheel of Law’ in motion.

The other five mudras are the ‘Bhumisparsha Mudra’, the ‘Dhyana Mudra’, the ‘Abhaya Mudra’, the ‘Varada Mudra’, the ‘Abhaya and Varada Mudra’. The various hand and leg positions and body postures of the mudras have different meanings and each represents an important event in the life of Gautama Buddha. All Buddha image makers must strictly follow the specific mudra as well as any additional rules. All the 108 specific features of a total are exactly prescribed in the ‘Digha Nikaya’ (collection of long discourses), which is one part of the five parts in the whole ‘Sutta o Sutra Pitaka’ (a collection of discourses), which in turn it is one of the three Pitaka’s (baskets) that make up the ‘Three Baskets’, ‘Tripitaka’ (in Sanskrit) or ‘Tipitaka’ (in Pali).

Waso traditions are still very much alive in the lives of and practiced by Burmese Buddhists. Apart from the very harmonious atmosphere in Waso between the older and younger generations, it is tradition to organize ‘Shin pyus’ (initiation ceremonies) in Waso and although initiation ceremonies are held in all monasteries, it is one of the preferred kyaungs. of the country for boys or young men. having their shin pyu ceremony is the ‘Shwe Ume Kyaung’ in Sagaing. Basically, shin pyus can be celebrated throughout the year and many things, for example, before ‘Thingyan’ (Burmese New Year). But Waso is the preferred month for initiation and ordination ceremonies and during the time of the Burmese kingdoms, the ordination ceremony in Waso was organized by a royal council, generously funded by the king’s treasury and held in grand style.

As stated earlier in the chapter, the Waso Full Moon Festival is also the beginning of the three-month Buddhist Lent, which is also the beginning of the rain retreat for monks and nuns. I will quickly explain the topic of ‘Rain Retreat’ through a short story that will clarify why Pongyi are generally not allowed to leave Pongyi Kyaung for the purpose of traveling during the three months of Buddhist Lent. Here is the story, which I will pass on to you without further comment.

In an unspecified year during Gautama Buddha’s later life, a group of monks decided during the rainy season to pay homage to Siddhartha Gautama, who at that time stayed in a place far from where he resided. On their journey, the monks walked through paddy fields and thus unintentionally destroyed the crops. This prompted the rice farmers to file a complaint with Siddhartha Gautama. Also, when the monks finally arrived and visited Siddhartha Gautama, they were covered in mud and drenched, which made him very upset. Consequently, Siddhartha Gautama prescribed that no monk may travel during the three months of Buddhist lent so as not to destroy the rice fields and not disturb the farmers in his work. Instead, the monks should use the rain retreat for studying the Buddhist scriptures, for the propagation of Siddhartha Gautama’s teachings and the practice of the doctrine, as well as for meditation.

All that is left to say now is that I hope you enjoyed this ‘Waso Full Moon Day’ with me and added one or another new fact and information to what you might already know about Burma.