Akyaung (Burmese:ဘုန်းကြီးကျောင်း,MLCTS:bhun:kyi: kyaung:,[pʰóʊɰ̃dʑítɕáʊɰ̃]) is a monastery (vihara), comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces ofBuddhist monks. Burmesekyaungs are sometimes also occupied by novice monks (samanera), lay attendants (kappiya), nuns (thilashin), and white-robedacolytes (ဖိုးသူတော်phothudaw).[1]
Thekyaung has traditionally been the center of village life in Burma, serving as both the educational institution for children and a community center, especially for merit-making activities such as construction of buildings, offering of food to monks and celebration ofBuddhist festivals, and observance ofuposatha. Monasteries are not established by members of thesangha, but by laypersons who donate land or money to support the establishment.
Kyaungs are typically built of wood, meaning that few historical monasteries built before the 1800s are extant.[2] Kyaungs exist inMyanmar (Burma), as well as in neighboring countries withTheravada Buddhist communities, including neighboring China (e.g.,Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture). According to 2016 statistics published by theState Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, Myanmar is home to 62,649kyaungs and 4,106 nunneries.[3] Burmese monasteries are typically built on land zoned for monasteries, pagodas, or allotted by the government.[4] In urban centres, monasteries tend to cluster together, due to lack of available land.[4]
The modernBurmese language termkyaung (ကျောင်း) descends from theOld Burmese wordkloṅ (က္လောင်).[5] The strong connection between religion and schooling is reflected by fact that thekyaung is the same word now used to refer to secularschools.[6]Kyaung is also used to describeChristianchurches,Hindu temples, andChinese temples. Mosques are an exception, as they use the term wordbali (ဗလီ), which is derived from theTamil word for 'school.'
Kyaung has also been borrowed intoTai languages, including intoShan askyong (spelt ၵျွင်း or ၵျေႃင်း)[7] and intoTai Nuea aszông2 (ᥓᥩᥒᥰ, rendered in Chinese asChinese:奘房).
The Burmese-Pali commentaries ofCullavagga identify five types of Buddhist monasteries, each typified by distinct architectural features.[8] In practice, from an architectural standpoint, there are 3 main types of monasteries:[8]
In modern-dayMyanmar,kyaungs may be divided into a number of categories, including monastic colleges calledsathintaik (Burmese:စာသင်တိုက်,MLCTS:casang.tuik), remote forest monasteries calledtawya kyaung (Burmese:တောရကျောင်း,MLCTS:tau:ra. kyaung:), and monastic schools calledba ka kyaung (ဘကကျောင်း). Myanmar's primary monastic university towns areBago,Pakokku, andSagaing.[2]
_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg)
In pre-colonial times, thekyaung served as the primary source of education, providing nearly universal education for boys, representing the "bastion of civilization and knowledge" and "integral to the social fabric of pre-colonial Burma."[1][9] The connections betweenkyaungs and education were reinforced bymonastic examinations, which were first instituted in 1648 by KingThalun during theTaungoo Dynasty.[10] Classical learning was transmitted through monasteries, which served as venues for Burmese students to pursue higher education and further social advancement in the royal administration after disrobing.[11] Indeed, nearly all prominent historical figures such asKinwun Mingyi U Kaung spent their formative years studying at monasteries.
Traditional monastic education first developed in thePagan Kingdom, in tandem with the proliferation of Theravada Buddhism learning in the 1100s.[9] The syllabus atkyaungs included the Burmese language, Pali grammar and Buddhist texts with a focus on discipline, morality and code of conduct (such asMangala Sutta,Sigalovada Sutta,Dhammapada, andJataka tales), prayers and elementary arithmetic.[1] Influential monasteries held vast libraries of manuscripts and texts.[11] The ubiquity of monastic education was attributed with the high literacy rate for Burmese Buddhist men.[12] The1901 Census of India found that 60.3% of Burmese Buddhist men over twenty were literate, as compared to 10% forBritish India as a whole.[12]
Kyaungs calledpwe kyaungs (ပွဲကျောင်း) also taught secular subjects, such as astronomy, astrology, medicine, massage, divination, horsemanship, swordsmanship, archery, arts and crafts, boxing, wrestling, music and dancing.[13] During theKonbaung Dynasty, various kings, includingBodawpaya suppressed the proliferation of pwe kyaung, which were seen as potential venues for rebellions.[13]
Sumptuary law dictated the construction and ornamentation of Burmesekyaungs, which were among the few building structures in pre-colonial Burma to possess elaborate multi-tiered roofs calledpyatthat.[14] Masonbalustrades characterized royal monasteries.
Following the abolishment of the Burmese monarchy at the end of theThird Anglo-Burmese War, monastic schools were largely superseded by secular, government-run schools.[9]
In recent decades, monasteries have expanded to provide social welfare services; these are calledparahita kyaung (ပရဟိတကျောင်း).[4] They fill a void in government services, providing education, health services, housing, and vocational services.[4] One suchkyaung, Thabarwa Meditation Center in the Yangon suburb ofThanlyin is one of the largest social welfare centers in Myanmar.[4]
Since 1993, theMinistry of Education and theMinistry of Religious Affairs and Culture have jointly accredited thousands of independent monastic schools to operate in the country.[15] Colloquially calledba ka kyaung [my] (ဘကကျောင်း), these schools are functionally independent but teach the national curriculum, and students from these schools are allowed to sit in state-run examinations.[15] Teacher salaries at these schools are paid by the national government.[15] In 2018,Yangon Region had 280 such schools, attended by 80,000 students, whileMandalay Region had 325 monastic schools (e.g.,Phaungdawoo Monastic Education High School), attended by 68,000 students.[15] Many students who attend monastic schools today are from ethnic minorities including thePalaung,Pa'O, andShan, often fleeing violence and economic insecurity in the country's unstable border regions.[15]
In 2016, Mandalay, Ayeyarwady and Bago Regions were home to the most monasteries in Myanmar.[3][16]
Buddhist monasteries in Myanmar are affiliated with amonastic order. However, monks of different orders commonly cross sectarian lines and stay in monasteries of different orders.[17] In 2016, 89% of the country's monasteries were affiliated withThudhamma Nikaya, the country's largest monastic order.[16]
Akyaung is an autonomous organization led by an abbot, who oversees daily operations, grants or revokes residence, sets policy on interpreting monastic rules (Vinaya), and guides other resident monks in observing them.[18] Monastic abbots calledsayadaw or more preciselykyaung-htaing sayadaw (ကျောင်းထိုင်ဆရာတော်).[18] Monastic abbots are traditionally expected to have been ordained for at least ten years, know all 227 monastic rules (pāṭimokkha), perform rituals according to the Vinaya, and give Dhamma talks.[18] Educational qualifications have increasingly become important - rural abbots need to have passed at least an intermediate-levelmonastic examination, while urban ones need to have passed advanced-level exam or higher.[18]
In small monasteries, a single abbot manages everything, while larger monasteries have additional leadership roles —such as a vice monk, managing monk, and head of dormitories—who handle specific responsibilities.[18] These roles are appointed by the abbot, and the monks holding such roles are often considered likely successors to him.[18]
Ownership and inheritance of monastic real estate is complicated by theVinaya.[18] Monastic real estate disputes are adjudicated by religious courts run by theState Sangha Mahā Nāyaka Committee.[18] Forms of monastery ownership include:
The typicalkyaung consists of a number of buildings calledkyaung zaung (ကျောင်းဆောင်):[19]
Traditional monasteries of theKonbaung era consisted of the following halls:
In pre-colonial times, royal monasteries were organized as complexes known askyaung taik (ကျောင်းတိုက်), composed of several residential buildings, including the main building, thekyaunggyi (ကျောင်းကြီး) orkyaungma (ကျောင်းမ), which was occupied by the residingsayadaw, and smaller structures calledkyaungyan (ကျောင်းရံ), which housed the sayadaw's disciples.[22] The complexes were walled compounds, and also housed a library, ordination halls, meeting halls, water reservoirs and wells, and utility buildings.[22]Thayettaw is a majorkyaungtaik in downtown Yangon, comprising over 60 individual monasteries.
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link)sangha and state in burma.
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link){{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link)
.svg)