Word: buddhist
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Called Myanmar by its military leaders, Burma derives its name from the Buddhist Burman (or Bamar) people. The country's largest ethnic group, the Burman historically lived in Burma's central and upper plains. But this patchwork country of 55 million is made up of more than 100 unique ethnicities. The isolation enforced by Burma's numerous mountains and hills helped nurture these culturally discrete groups, making it one of the most diverse countries in Southeast Asia, despite its relatively small geographic size. Here are five ethnicities, some of who have unsuccessfully waged long insurgencies against the central government...
Clustered in the northeastern hills of Burma, the Buddhist Shan were accorded a measure of self-rule by British colonialists. When Burma became independent in 1948, they agreed to join the fledgling nation in return for autonomy. But the promise, say Shan opposition groups, was never kept - and several militias were soon formed to fight against the Burmese army. Although a ceasefire was signed in the mid-90s by most Shan groups, the minority's resistance is still active in pockets. Over the past decade, forced relocations by the Burmese military of tens of thousands of Shan, who are thought...
...recall reporting Burma's doomed pro-democracy uprising for TIME in September 2007, one image stands out. Amid cheering crowds, a monk holds aloft an upturned alms bowl to indicate his brethren's refusal to accept offerings from the military. It's a powerful gesture in a devout Buddhist country, but what strikes me is not the monk but the ordinary Burmese holding aloft cell phones and cameras to record his protest. Images like these were then transmitted out of Burma via the Internet, where they were picked up by major broadcasters and shown to the world...
...benediction (the opening and closing prayers) at his Inauguration. Graham did the same for Bill Clinton in 1993 and again in 1997. The decision to delegate the religious role to Graham seemed a reasonable alternative to filling the stage with an ever-growing number of Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Hindu and Baha'i clergy. The famous Evangelist regularly topped the list of people Americans most admired, and he prayed in fairly broad terms, referring just to "God" and using the formulation "I pray" instead of "we pray" to make clear that he was not imposing his Christian prayer...
...Denied state documents, the Rohingya have to apply for permission to move from village to village, to repair a mosque, even to get married. Rohingya frequently fall victim to forced-labor drives by the military. The Burmese government, say Rohingya rights-groups, sees them as interlopers in the predominantly Buddhist land. Illiteracy rates in North Rakhine state, where the Rohingya are a majority, run near 80%, and malnutrition at 60%. (See pictures of the devastation of Burma after the huge 2008 cyclone...