I have recently been travelling to South East Asia for business and one of my recent trips was to Burma (Myanmar) which is a fascinating country, but one which I know very little about, especially in terms of its Buddhism. I had always taken Burmese Buddhism to be very similar to that of other Theravada nations such as Thailand and Sri Lanka, with an emphasis on Vipassana or Insight meditation. To my surprise, I came across this book in lobby gift store in the Sule Shangri-La which describes a hitherto little known aspect of Buddhism in great detail. This book - Champions of Buddhism - describes the phenomenon of the Weikza, or wizard, or one who has mastered the moral precepts, meditation and has attained certain supernatural powers in order to defend and protect Buddhism. The generalized lack of knowledge in the Western world regarding this phenomenon can be seen by the short Wikipedia entry thrown up when one does a short web search.
Rather than striving for nivarna through the practice of meditation, the Weikza seeks to master various occult and supernatural practices such as alchemy, talismans, yantra, ayurvedic medicine (anatomy and pharmacy) and mantras in order to attain an extraordinary long life, verging on immortality. This is attained by ultimately leaving the human body behind to attain a higher form, but may still communicate with ordinary people or followers through several different channels such as visions, possession and the transmission of different types of energy. They are often called upon for protection, healing or to perform exorcisms.
Although Buddhist texts describe the Buddha's sasana in exorable decline, Burmese Buddhists are constantly vigilant to preserve as much of it as possible during their age, equating the loss of Buddhism with a myriad of disorders and disasters that would be fatal to society. A will to safeguard Buddhism motivates many forms of Burmese Buddhist practice: worshiping the Buddha and his physical relics and statues, preserving the Pali Canon in its allegedly pristine state, supporting the monastic community and so forth. And the Weikza plays an important part in this process defending against supernatural attack especially during the process of Pagoda building.
Longevity practices are also a characteristic of the weikza. They seek to prolong their lifespan through various means so they may, in this life, witness the re-gathering of Gotama Buddha's relics for a final sermon at the end of this current sasana or the arrival of the future Buddha Maitreya. By avoiding death, they also avoid the risk of being reborn in one of the hells of Buddhist cosmology, and thus simply miss the moments when Gotama's sermon, or the advent of Maitreya would make enlightenment possible once more.
The practices of the Weikza can be traced back to borran Kammatthana or "older meditation practices" and other forest traditions of the Tai-Khmer which were actually at the center of Buddhist practice before the rise of Vipassana and a belief that enlightenment could be achieved in one lifetime during the 19th Century. For me, the most fascinating aspect of the book lies in the close family resemblance Weikza practices hold to Daoist practices and tantric practices in the Bengal. Although it is now impossible to ascertain how these practices and cults evolved in history there are enough similarities to indicate that these practices are somehow tapping a deep core of practices and power that is common across many religions.
With the validation of Vipassana meditation by the West and the modern scientific community the practice of Weikza has become seen as unscientific and magical. But it continues in to operate below the threshold of modernity and has a strong hold on the folk consciousness. The book is a fascinating collection of essays which deal with different aspects of the Weikza in Burma including their practices, history and talismans. Highly recommended as a book to spread knowledge of the Weikza amongst the western world and especially timely as Myanmar continues to make progress in rejoining the world family of nations.
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