Spirited away to one of the world's
largest nunneries, in Myanmar
Christine Toomey 16 March
2016 The Guardian
Visitors to Sakyadhita Thilashin, near Mandalay, can witness the
daily routine of some of the 12,000 monks and nuns who live
there
Most visitors to
Myanmar include the lost Buddhist civilisation of Bagan on their
itinerary; it’s one of the world’s greatest archaeological sites,
where the remnants of 2,000 temples are spread across a dusty
plain. Many then head up the Irrawaddy River to the former colonial
outpost of Mandalay. Few realise that nestled in the hills, less
than an hour’s taxi ride from the city, lies a hidden gem called
Sagaing, which is a living example of what Bagan once was: a
vibrant community of Buddhist monks and nuns. More than 6,000 of
each live within just a few square miles – it’s one of the greatest
concentrations of monasticism in the world.
Sagaing is known for
being a spiritual heartland and nowhere do you get a better sense
of this than by visiting the Sakyadhita Thilashin nunnery school.
At lunchtime, the school opens its gates and visitors can witness
the daily routine of the novices lining up to go into the dining
hall, their flowing pink-and-orange robes making them look like a
flock of flamingos. Novices in Burma are known
asthilashin, or “keepers of moral virtue”, and the
thilashin at Sagaing’s nunnery school are among the most highly
educated and disciplined in Burma.