A New Breed of Monk Rises in Myanmar
Ashin Mettacara
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Tuesday, August 19, 2008
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Sitagu Sayadaw Ashin Nannissara
(WSJ)Sitagu Sayadaw sits on a raised platform, three visitors kneeling below him, and explains the source of his power as a Buddhist monk. "I don't have any guns but I have very strong weapons: love, kindness and compassion," he says, as two novice monks massage his feet.
He also possesses two traits that have propelled him to the equivalent of monastic superstardom in this Buddhist but military-run country: a knack for self-promotion and a keen sense of self-preservation.
Mr. Sitagu Sayadaw represents a new breed of monk who eschews traditional asceticism in favor of tactics more familiar ...
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