A pagoda festival

Myanmar is dotted with pagodas all over the country. No matter how small a village is, there must be a pagoda and monastery in the village. The people of the village are poor. So the pagoda is usually lime-washed with only the 'Hti' gilded at the top. The building of a pagoda is the most cherished ambition of the Buddhist people. They believe that this act will gain them great merits.

Last year, I went to Ywathayar, a village about ten miles from the town where I live. We went there by bullock cart. The villagers were holding a pagoda festival after their harvest. This is the time they must do meritorious acts because they have plenty of money from the sale of their paddy.

From early morning the village was already crowded with people from all the neighboring villages. They had come either by bullock carts like ourselves or on foot. They were all dressed in their silk and clean cotton shirts and gaunbaung. They were out to make the most of the festival. The Village Elders are in charge, and they had hired a 'zat' pwe for the occasion. There were little tuck shops scattered all around the pwe. The show stared at nine o'clock and gave over a t five in their morning. After a night of eats and laughter the villages all returned home happily.