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Gadaw
Gadaw ( my, ကန်တော့, ; also spelt kadaw) is a Burmese verb referring to a Burmese tradition in which a person, always of lower social standing, pays respect or homage to a person of higher standing (including Buddhist monks, elders, teachers and Buddha), by kneeling before them and paying obeisance with joined hands, and bowing. This is usually done by students to their teachers or children or grandchildren to their elders (parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents), in order to show gratitude and reverence and an opportunity to ask for forgiveness, often involving gift-giving. It is traditionally done on New Year's Day of Thingyan and during the month of Thadingyut (roughly October), which marks the end of Vassa, the Buddhist lent. The tradition is widely believed to have Buddhist roots, as teachers and parents () are honored as part of the Five Infinite Venerables (), along with the Three Jewels, namely the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha. Moreover, the Mangala ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kowtow
A kowtow is the act of deep respect shown by prostration, that is, kneeling and bowing so low as to have one's head touching the ground. In Sinospheric culture, the kowtow is the highest sign of reverence. It was widely used to show reverence for one's elders, superiors, and especially the Emperor of China, as well as for religious and cultural objects of worship. In modern times, usage of the kowtow has been reduced. Terminology An alternative Chinese term is ''ketou''; however, the meaning is somewhat altered: ''kou'' () has the general meaning of ''knock'', whereas ''ke'' () has the general meaning of "touch upon (a surface)", ''tou'' () meaning head. The date of this custom's origin is probably sometime during the Spring and Autumn period or the Warring States period of China's history (771–221 BC), because it was a custom by the time of the Qin dynasty (221 BC – 206 BC). Traditional usage In Imperial Chinese protocol, the kowtow was performed before the Emperor of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wai Khru
The ''wai khru'' ceremony ( th, พิธีไหว้ครู, pronounced ) is a Thai ritual in which students pay respects to teachers in order to express their gratitude and formalize the student–teacher relationship. It is regularly held near the beginning of the school year in most schools in Thailand. ''Wai khru'' has long been an important rite in the traditional martial and performing arts, as well as in astrology, Thai Massage and other traditional arts; students and performers of Muay Thai and Krabi Krabong, as well as Thai dance and classical music, will usually perform a ''wai khru'' ritual at their initiation as well as before performances to pay respect and homage to both their teachers and the deities who patronize their arts. History The rituals of ''wai khru'' are believed to have derived from ancient animistic beliefs, influenced by the spread of Brahminism from India. This is evident in the ''wai khru'' ceremonies of traditional dance and music, where s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Awgatha
An ''Awgatha'' (ဩကာသ; from Pali: ''okāsa''), sometimes known as the ''common Buddhist prayer'' is a formulaic Burmese Buddhist prayer that is recited to initiate acts of Buddhist devotion, including obeisance to the Buddha and Buddhist monks and the water libation ritual. The term ''okāsa'' literally means "permission" in Pali, and is used to request permission to pay homage, seek forgiveness of any intentional and unintentional offenses, and precedes the undertaking of the Five Precepts. Minor variations of this Burmese language prayer exist from one Buddhist monastery to another. Okāsa explicitly references the gadaw of the Five Infinite Venerables (Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, parents and teachers). Standard prayer See also * Three Refuges * Five Precepts * Gadaw * Paritta * Prostration (Buddhism) * Buddhism in Myanmar Buddhism ( my, ဗုဒ္ဓဘာသာ), specifically Theravāda Buddhism ( my, ထေရဝါဒဗုဒ္ဓဘာသာ), is t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Okāsa
An ''Awgatha'' (ဩကာသ; from Pali: ''okāsa''), sometimes known as the ''common Buddhist prayer'' is a formulaic Burmese Buddhist prayer that is recited to initiate acts of Buddhist devotion, including Prostration (Buddhism), obeisance to the Gautama Buddha, Buddha and Buddhist monks and the Libation, water libation ritual. The term ''okāsa'' literally means "permission" in Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ..., and is used to request permission to pay homage, seek forgiveness of any intentional and unintentional offenses, and precedes the undertaking of the Five Precepts. Minor variations of this Burmese language prayer exist from one Kyaung, Buddhist monastery to another. Okāsa explicitly references the gadaw of the Five Infinite Venerables (Buddha, Dhamma, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wai Khru
The ''wai khru'' ceremony ( th, พิธีไหว้ครู, pronounced ) is a Thai ritual in which students pay respects to teachers in order to express their gratitude and formalize the student–teacher relationship. It is regularly held near the beginning of the school year in most schools in Thailand. ''Wai khru'' has long been an important rite in the traditional martial and performing arts, as well as in astrology, Thai Massage and other traditional arts; students and performers of Muay Thai and Krabi Krabong, as well as Thai dance and classical music, will usually perform a ''wai khru'' ritual at their initiation as well as before performances to pay respect and homage to both their teachers and the deities who patronize their arts. History The rituals of ''wai khru'' are believed to have derived from ancient animistic beliefs, influenced by the spread of Brahminism from India. This is evident in the ''wai khru'' ceremonies of traditional dance and music, where s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burmese Language
Burmese ( my, မြန်မာဘာသာ, MLCTS: ''mranmabhasa'', IPA: ) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Myanmar (also known as Burma), where it is an official language, lingua franca, and the native language of the Burmans, the country's principal ethnic group. Burmese is also spoken by the indigenous tribes in Chittagong Hill Tracts ( Rangamati, Bandarban, Khagrachari, Cox's Bazar) in Bangladesh, Tripura state in Northeast India. Although the Constitution of Myanmar officially recognizes the English name of the language as the Myanmar language, most English speakers continue to refer to the language as ''Burmese'', after Burma, the country's once previous and currently co-official name. Burmese is the common lingua franca in Myanmar, as the most widely-spoken language in the country. In 2007, it was spoken as a first language by 33 million, primarily the Burman people and related ethnic groups, and as a second language by 10 million, particularly ethnic m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Desire Realm
The desire realm ( Sanskrit: कामधातु, ''kāmadhātu'') is one of the trailokya or three realms ( Sanskrit: धातु, ''dhātu'', Tibetan: ''khams'') in Buddhist cosmology into which a being wandering in '' '' may be reborn. The other two are the form realm, (Sanskrit ''rūpadhātu'') and the Formless Realm (S. ''ārūpadhātu''). Within the desire realm are either five or six domains (Sanskrit: ''gati'', also sometimes translated as "realm"). In Tibetan Buddhism, there are six domains () and in Theravada Buddhism there are only five, because the domain of the Asuras is not regarded as separate from that of the Nāgas. The five realms are also found in Taoism and Jainism. The ''Śūraṅgama Sūtra'' in Mahayana Buddhism regarded the 10 kinds of Xian as separate immortal realms between the Deva and human realms. The six domains of the desire realm are also known as the "six paths of sufferin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burmese Culture
The culture of Myanmar (also known as Burma) ( my, မြန်မာ့ယဉ်ကျေးမှု) has been heavily influenced by Buddhism. Burmese culture has also been influenced by its neighbours. In more recent times, British colonial rule and easternisation have influenced aspects of Burmese culture, including language and education. Arts Historically, Burmese art was based on Buddhist or Hindu myths. There are several regional styles of Buddha images, each with certain distinctive characteristics. For example, the Mandalay style, which developed in the late 1800s, consists of an oval-shaped Buddha with realistic features, including naturally curved eyebrows, smaller but still prominent ears, and a draping robe. There are 10 traditional arts, called ''pan sè myo'' (), listed as follows: # Blacksmith ( ''ba-bè'') # Woodcarving ( ''ba-bu'') # Goldsmith ( ''ba-dein'') # Stucco relief ( ''pandaw'') # Masonry ( ''pa-yan'') # Stone carving ( ''pantamaw'') # Turner ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mingalaba
Mingalaba ( ; variously romanised as mingalarpar, mingalabar, or mingalar par) is the formal Burmese greeting." It is typically accompanied by a slight bow, or more formally, an Añjali Mudrā gesture, wherein the palms are folded together. The phrase "mingalaba" is typically rendered in English as "may you be blessed" or "auspiciousness to you." Origins Much like the Thai greeting, mingalaba is a relatively modern creation. The phrase first emerged during British rule in Burma in the 19th to 20th centuries, coined as a Burmese language equivalent to 'hello' or 'how are you.' In the late 1960s, the Burmese government institutionalized the phrase in the country's educational system. Burmese pupils now greet their teachers with mingalaba at the beginning of each school day. Mingalaba itself is a phrase, decomposed into mingala + ba. The first word "mingala" (မင်္ဂလာ) originates from the Pāli term , which means auspicious, lucky, prosperous, or festive. The word al ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhist Devotion
Devotion, a central practice in Buddhism, refers to commitment to religious observances or to an object or person, and may be translated with Sanskrit or Pāli terms like ''saddhā'', ''gārava'' or ''pūjā''. Central to Buddhist devotion is the practice of '' Buddhānussati'', the recollection of the inspiring qualities of the Buddha. Although ''buddhānussati'' was an important aspect of practice since Buddhism's early period, its importance was amplified with the arising of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Specifically, with Pure Land Buddhism, many forms of devotion were developed to recollect and connect with the celestial Buddhas, especially Amitābha. Most Buddhists use ritual in pursuit of their spiritual aspirations. Common devotional practices are receiving a blessing, making merit, making a resolution, prostrating, making offerings, chanting traditional texts and pilgrimage. Moreover, many types of visualizations, recollections and mantras are used in Buddhist meditation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Refuge In Buddhism
In Buddhism, refuge or taking refuge refers to a religious practice, which often includes a prayer or recitation performed at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. Since the period of Early Buddhism until present time, all Theravada and mainstream Mahayana schools only take refuge in the Three Jewels (also known as the Triple Gem or Three Refuges, Pali: ''ti-ratana'' or ''ratana-ttaya''; Sanskrit: ''tri-ratna'' or ''ratna-traya'') which are the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. However, only Vajrayana school includes an expanded refuge formula known as the Three Jewels and Three Roots. Taking refuge is a form of aspiration to lead a life with the Triple Gem at its core. Taking refuge is done by a short formula in which one names the Buddha, the dharma and the saṅgha as refuges. In early Buddhist scriptures, taking refuge is an expression of determination to follow the Buddha's path, but not a relinquishing of responsibility. Refuge is common to all major sch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cetiya
upright=1.25, Phra Pathom Chedi, one of the biggest Chedis in Thailand; in Thai, the term Chedi (cetiya) is used interchangeably with the term Stupa Cetiya, "reminders" or "memorials" (Sanskrit ''caitya''), are objects and places used by Buddhism, Buddhists to remember Gautama Buddha.Kalingabodhi jātaka, as quoted in John Strong, ''Relics of the Buddha'' (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004), 19 According to Damrong Rajanubhab, four kinds are distinguished in the Pāli Canon: "Relic hatu Memorial aribhoga Teaching hamma and votive desaka" Griswold, in contrast, states that three are traditional and the fourth, the Buddha Dhamma, was added later to remind monks that the true memory of Gautama Buddha can be found in his teachings. While these can be broadly called Buddhist symbolism, the emphasis tends to be on a historical connection to the Buddha and not a metaphysical one. In pre-Buddhist India ''caitya'' was a term for a shrine or holy place in the landscape, gene ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
