Yo, sit down and allow me to notify ya a story bout one of the most wild and respected dudes inside the Burmese Theravāda scene. We talkin bout U Thuzana Sayadaw. If u by no means heard about him, u possibly livin underneath a rock inside the Kayin Condition or sumthin. This guy was more than just a monk in the saffron robe; he was like a drive of nature, an actual-everyday living legend who improved The entire vibe of your borderlands.
U Thuzana, he was the center and soul in the Myaing Gyi Ngu region. Born in the late 40s, I feel, but Truthfully, his age didnt issue bring about he had that aged-soul Electricity from the beginning. He wasnt about that fancy metropolis existence in Yangon. Nah, he was a jungle man. He loved the mountains, the trees, and buildin matters. And when I say buildin, I mean buildin. He had this obsession with pagodas. In all places he went, BAM—One more pagoda. White kinds, gold types, huge kinds, small ones. It absolutely was like he was tryin to pin the earth down with holiness. Folks say he designed hundreds. Can u envision? The majority of us cant even complete a LEGO set, and this monk is out right here constructin monuments in the middle of a war zone.
Talking of war, thats where items get authentic messy and authentic exciting. U Thuzana wasnt just sittin in the temple chanting all day long. He was deep in the politics of the Karen persons. Back again inside the 90s, factors were being heated between the KNU and also the gov. Thuzana, he chose to break up and fashioned the DKBA—the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army. Now, a monk leadin a military sounds crazy, right? Like, fully versus The foundations. But for his followers, he was protectin the faith. He built his soldiers stop eatin meat. Yeah, a complete army of vegetarians! That’s legit some hardcore willpower. He preferred a "pure" land wherever men and women lived through the Dhamma, or a minimum of his Edition of it.
But hey, dont Assume he was just some army person. His followers, man, they worshipped the bottom he walked on. They known as him "Sayadaw," meaning Terrific Trainer, and so they meant it. He experienced this aura. If u went to Myaing Gyi Ngu, u would see thousands of folks livin there in order to be near him. No booze, no meat, just pure devotion. It absolutely was like just a little utopia he carved out with the chaos. Although the skin environment was lookin at him sideways reason behind the conflict, to your locals, he was there daddy, there protector, there saint.
I bear in mind hearin stories bout how he’d just walk into hazardous areas and nobody would touch him. He had that "metta" (loving-kindness) energy, Or perhaps persons ended up just terrified of his spiritual mojo. He handed absent in 2018 inside of a medical center in Bangkok, and gentleman, the funeral was enormous. Like, thousands of folks cryin, monks almost everywhere, a true unfortunate day for the Burmese Buddhist Neighborhood. Even now, his legacy is everywhere. U see his deal with on posters in tiny tea retailers or stickers on vehicles drivin through the mud in Kayin State.
He was a posh dude, needless to say. Some individuals say he was a peacemaker, some say he triggered more problems. But u cant deny his impact. He wasnt just talkin bout Nirvana; he was tryin to create it on earth, one brick and one particular vegetarian soldier at any given time. He lived his daily life his way, Uncooked and unfiltered, much like the jungle he termed home. Regard get more info to your old guy, U Thuzana. He was really one among A sort, an actual OG on the Theravāda custom.