Yo, sit down and allow me to explain to ya a story bout One of the more wild and respected dudes during the Burmese Theravāda scene. We talkin bout U Thuzana Sayadaw. If u never heard about him, u most likely livin underneath a rock from the Kayin Point out or sumthin. This guy was far more than simply a monk in a saffron robe; he was just like a pressure of nature, an actual-daily life legend who transformed The full vibe of your borderlands.
U Thuzana, he was the guts and soul of the Myaing Gyi Ngu spot. Born while in the late 40s, I believe, but Actually, his age didnt make a difference cause he experienced that aged-soul Power from the beginning. He wasnt about that fancy metropolis lifetime in Yangon. Nah, he was a jungle male. He beloved the mountains, the trees, and buildin points. And when I say buildin, I necessarily mean buildin. He experienced this obsession with pagodas. In all places he went, BAM—An additional pagoda. White kinds, gold types, big kinds, smaller types. It absolutely was like he was tryin to pin the earth down with holiness. Individuals say he designed hundreds. Can u think about? Many of us cant even end a LEGO established, which monk is out here constructin monuments in the midst of a war zone.
Talking of war, thats in which issues get authentic messy and real exciting. U Thuzana wasnt just sittin within a temple chanting all day. He was deep inside the politics of your Karen persons. Back during the 90s, issues had been heated concerning the KNU and also the gov. Thuzana, he decided to split and fashioned the DKBA—the Democratic Karen Buddhist Military. Now, a monk leadin a military sounds insane, suitable? Like, thoroughly in opposition to the rules. But for his followers, he was protectin the religion. He manufactured his soldiers stop eatin meat. Yeah, a complete army of vegetarians! That’s legit some hardcore willpower. He wished a "pure" land in which folks lived from the Dhamma, or no less than his Edition of it.
But hey, dont Feel he was just some armed service male. His followers, man, they worshipped the bottom he walked on. They called him "Sayadaw," which suggests Good Teacher, and they intended it. He experienced this aura. If u went to Myaing Gyi Ngu, u would see Many folks livin there only to be close to him. No booze, no meat, just pure devotion. It absolutely was like just a little utopia he carved out with the chaos. Even when the outside world was lookin at him sideways reason for the conflict, for the locals, website he was there daddy, there protector, there saint.
I try to remember hearin tales bout how he’d just wander into risky places and nobody would touch him. He experienced that "metta" (loving-kindness) electrical power, Or even people have been just petrified of his spiritual mojo. He handed absent in 2018 inside of a clinic in Bangkok, and person, the funeral was substantial. Like, A large number of folks cryin, monks all over the place, a real unfortunate day for that Burmese Buddhist Local community. Even now, his legacy is everywhere you go. U see his experience on posters in minimal tea shops or stickers on trucks drivin from the mud in Kayin State.
He was a posh dude, obviously. Some people say he was a peacemaker, some say he brought about additional hassle. But u cant deny his effects. He wasnt just talkin bout Nirvana; he was tryin to make it on this planet, just one brick and 1 vegetarian soldier at a time. He lived his everyday living his way, raw and unfiltered, much like the jungle he named house. Respect to the aged man, U Thuzana. He was really one among a kind, an actual OG of the Theravāda tradition.