Naw Aung and His Sagawa

I spent the last two weeks in northern Myanmar working with Kachin villagers from Shinlonga (see Shinlonga and Morning Mist) on a community forestry project.  Much of the time I was living in a tent in the forest two hours walk from the village laying out a 100 hectare management area.  Naw Aung (shown above) was along to help us identify trees; he had also worked with me when I was in Shinlonga last May (see Field Crew; he's to my right in a woven hat.)

On the way to the management area, Naw Aung came across a large sagawa tree (Michelia champaca L.) that had fallen across the trail. Sagawa is one of the preferred construction timbers in Shinlonga and the species is hard to find. Although this tree had been dead for a while, the heartwood was still solid and several posts could be cut from it. To claim the wood, Naw Aung put a little sign in front of the log (shown in photo above) and then he carved his name on the log. This, apparently, is sufficient to let people know that the tree belongs to him.  

Confluence of the Ayeyarwady

The Ayeyarwady (or Irrawaddy) River, the largest river in Myanmar, is formed by the confluence of the N'mai and Mali Rivers in Kachin State. Perhaps the most interesting part about my trip to the confluence was meeting this group of five monks from the Kan Gyi Kyaung monastery near Inle Lake in Shan State. The older monk on the right is the Abbot of Kan Gyi Kyaung. He was giggly, interested to hear all about the rattans of Myanmar, and positively radiant.  He kept saying how auspicious it was for us to meet each other at the confluence. [NOTE: Andrew Henderson and I had just finished six weeks of fieldwork in the Hukaung Valley (see Hukaung Valley Rattan Survey) without a mishap. I, too, thought our encounter was pretty auspicious].

Nat Worship

Prior to the arrival of Buddhism in Myanmar, animistic spirits known as Nats were commonly worshipped. When King Anawrahta came to power in the 11th century, however, he wanted to make Theravada Buddhism the national faith and he ordered the destruction of all the Nat shrines in the kingdom. This didn't work at all, and when the King saw that he was turning people away from Buddhism - rather than destroying their faith in Nats - he rescinded his order and allowed Nats to be worshiped and displayed at Buddhist temples together with arhats. The image above shows a prominent group of Nats at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. [NOTE: King Anawrahta also added a 37th Nat, Thagyamin, to the existing list of spirits and crowned him "King of the Nats".] 

Kachin Portrait

Not much to say about this image.  Its early afternoon on the Ledo Road and this Kachin woman is carrying a huge basket of firewood. She is also shyly tickled that I am taking her picture. [NOTE: I really like this shot].   

Building a House

Kachin villagers in northern Myanmar build their houses out of variety of different plant parts (see Morning Mist and Shinlonga), and they build them by themselves. They harvest the bamboo, fell the timber, collect the rattan and thatch, and lift, tie, nail, and weave the pieces together - essentially by themselves - to make a home. I am humbled by the skill, patience, and resolve of these people.  

This Moment in Myanmar

There's so much happening in this country.  Most of it bad news.  And then there's the stillness, calm abiding, and hope of this moment...  

Reclining Buddha II

A slow pan of the beautiful Reclining Buddha statue in Myitkyina (see Reclining Buddha).  I especially like the rack of "loaner" malas shown at the start of the clip. Looks like they've been used a lot...

Before the Rain

Ricefield in Kayin State, Myanmar (see Bayin Ni Monastery and Caves). [NOTE: It started pouring as soon as I got back in the car after taking this picture].

Field Crew

Here's the crew that did the inventory work at Shinlonga last month (see Shinlonga). A fantastic team and a delightful group of people.  Was great fun working with them. [NOTE: Image was taken after the first day's transect when we were still fresh.]  

Leech Prevention

Kachin villagers in northern Myanmar use black tobacco and plastic string to keep the leeches away when working in the forest during the rainy season. No idea how effective this is.  [NOTE: I had decidedly mixed results with the imported leech socks that I bought in Tanai.]