Yo, sit back and let me explain to ya a Tale bout Probably the most wild and revered dudes inside the Burmese Theravāda scene. We talkin bout U Thuzana Sayadaw. If u never ever heard about him, u in all probability livin less than a rock during the Kayin Point out or sumthin. This man was additional than simply a monk within a saffron robe; he was like a power of character, a true-lifetime legend who adjusted the whole vibe in the borderlands.
U Thuzana, he was the heart and soul of the Myaing Gyi Ngu location. Born inside the late 40s, I believe, but honestly, his age didnt make a difference bring about he experienced that outdated-soul Electrical power from the start. He wasnt about that fancy town lifetime in Yangon. Nah, he was a jungle gentleman. He loved the mountains, the trees, and buildin matters. And Once i say buildin, I suggest buildin. He had this obsession with pagodas. Everywhere you go he went, BAM—One more pagoda. White ones, gold types, huge ones, smaller kinds. It was like he was tryin to pin the earth down with holiness. Folks say he created hundreds. Can u imagine? Most of us cant even finish a LEGO established, which monk is out right here constructin monuments in the midst of a war zone.
Talking of war, thats the place points get authentic messy and real attention-grabbing. U Thuzana wasnt just sittin in the temple chanting all day. He was deep during the politics of the Karen persons. Again within the 90s, things were heated in between the KNU plus the gov. Thuzana, he made a decision to break up and fashioned the DKBA—the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army. Now, a monk leadin an army Seems insane, ideal? Like, absolutely from The foundations. But for his followers, he was protectin the religion. He made his soldiers quit eatin meat. Yeah, an entire army of vegetarians! That’s legit some hardcore self-discipline. He required a "pure" land in which people today lived via the Dhamma, or a minimum of his Edition of it.
But check here hey, dont Consider he was just some military services person. His followers, person, they worshipped the ground he walked on. They referred to as him "Sayadaw," which implies Terrific Teacher, they usually meant it. He experienced this aura. If u went to Myaing Gyi Ngu, u would see A huge number of persons livin there in order to be close to him. No booze, no meat, just pure devotion. It absolutely was like somewhat utopia he carved out of your chaos. Although the skin environment was lookin at him sideways cause of the conflict, towards the locals, he was there daddy, there protector, there saint.
I bear in mind hearin tales bout how he’d just walk into harmful destinations and nobody would touch him. He experienced that "metta" (loving-kindness) energy, or maybe folks have been just scared of his spiritual mojo. He handed absent in 2018 inside a medical center in Bangkok, and gentleman, the funeral was big. Like, Many men and women cryin, monks just about everywhere, an actual unhappy day to the Burmese Buddhist Local community. Even now, his legacy is almost everywhere. U see his experience on posters in very little tea shops or stickers on trucks drivin in the mud in Kayin Condition.
He was a posh dude, for sure. A lot of people say he was a peacemaker, some say he prompted far more hassle. But u cant deny his effects. He wasnt just talkin bout Nirvana; he was tryin to construct it on earth, 1 brick and one vegetarian soldier at any given time. He lived his lifetime his way, raw and unfiltered, just like the jungle he identified as home. Respect on the aged person, U Thuzana. He was certainly certainly one of A form, a true OG in the Theravāda tradition.