Sumi-e

I spent yesterday in a retreat and brush painting workshop with Dairyu Michael Wenger from the San Francisco Zen Center. Not as controlled and technically demanding as classic sumi-e, Michael teaches more of a free-stroke, let-the brush-paint-the-picture approach. It was great fun and I very much enjoyed the painting, but it's clear that I shouldn't give up my day job. [NOTE: Deep bows of gratitude, Michael].

Addendum: Couldn't resist posting one of my efforts from the workshop. Yeah, I know. And this was probably my best one...

Signage

At the entrance to the main pagoda in Myitkyina (see Reclining Buddha II). I assume that what they meant to say was "take off your shoes".   

Beautiful Nats

This exquisite carving of a nat spirit adorns one of the main doors to the Mahapasana Cave (see Examination Hall) in Yangon. The blending of nat worship and Buddhism is ubiquitous in Myanmar (see Nat Worship), and nat iconography can be extremely well developed. The image below shows three beautifully rendered nats at the Kyauktawgyi Pagoda (see Kyauktawgyi Buddha).  

 

Making Flip Charts

Making flip charts for community meetings is always a bit tedious.  What is the best way to explain obscure scientific concepts to a group of subsistence farmers in northern Myanmar?  Things take a turn toward the artistic, however, when the charts have to be written in Burmese script.  Beautiful calligraphy. The sound of the Sharpie on the course paper (turn up the volume).  The text is about the medicinal plants to be included in the inventory of the Shinlonga Management Area (see The Last Stake). [NOTE: Saw Htun, the WCS director of the Northern Forest Complex, is doing the writing (thx, Saw Htun)]. 

Day of the Rat

Many religious rituals in Myanmar are based on the day of your birth. This is derived mainly from ancient Burmese astrology, called Mahabote, which is thought to have Hindu origins. There are eight days of the week (Wednesday is divided into morning and afternoon), and each day is represented by an animal, a ruling planet, and a direction. I was born on a Thursday, the day of the Rat. To achieve optimal results in my practice, the Theravadan tradition in Myanmar suggests that I should always bow, offer incense, bathe the buddha, etc. at altars specifically designated for the Rat.  I was directed to the altar shown above at the Myitkyina pagoda (see Reclining Buddha). I offered incense. 

Dion edule (from the Archive)

A large cycad, Dion edule, growing near Jalcomulco in the state of Veracruz, Mexico. I conducted a series of long-term ecological studies on this species in the mid-1980's with Andrew Vovides from the Instituto de Ecologia in Jalapa. We monitored the growth and reproduction of marked individuals for several years and discovered some fascinating facts about this primitive plant.

We found out, for example, that some of the individuals on our study site were more than 2,500 years old, and that Dion edule is the oldest living plant in Mexico. Given their great age and small stature, we also estimated that these are some of the slowest growing plants in the world. A more detailed description of the Dion edule study can be found here. [NOTE: Soon after we published our findings, Dion edule was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the slowest growing plant in the world. I couldn't find a link to the Guinness book, but the species is listed in several other places (e.g. here; scroll down to Slowest Growing Tree) with this distinction.

Kachin Guides

Video snapshot of Naw Aung (see Naw Aung and His Sagawa and Tool Repair) and Naw Sein (see Naw Sein), two Kachin villagers who helped layout the management area baseline and do the inventory work at Shinlonga.  It was great fun to work with these guys. 

Indigenous Knowledge

This is a follow-up on the previous post about Naw Aung (see Tool Repair). A lot of people at the base camp were watching when Naw Aung fixed his machete. The next day in the field, he stopped clearing line long enough to teach one of the younger crew members how to do this. [NOTE: Naw Aung's handiwork is clearly visible on the handle of his machete].

Tool Repair

The handle on Naw Aung's (see Naw Aung and His Sagawa) machete cracked while laying out the baseline of the management area in Shinlonga (see The Last Stake). Probably from over use. He repaired it in the field using the local rattan, pyant kyein (Calamus nambariensis Becc.). Wonderful to watch this. First he split the cane and shaved it down to the appropriate size.  Then he wove a ring, which he slipped over the cracked handle and then pounded into place to close the crack using another piece of rattan as a buffer. He finished the job by weaving a beautiful rattan sleeve around the handle. The machete was back in use clearing line the next day.

Crossing Mawning Stream

Before we decided it was best to just camp out (see Room With A View) by the Shinlonga Management Area, twice a day we had to wade across Mawning Stream. On the way there, the cold water was an instant wake up; coming back it was deliciously refreshing. In both directions, the hassle was taking off the leech socks, the regular socks, and the boots, rolling up your pants, lacing the boots together with the socks, and putting the whole thing around your neck - and then repeating the entire process in reverse after reaching the other side.