|
It may be easy to make Myanmar Buddhists come to revere, take interest in and come to accept the Triple Gem, the Buddha, the Dhamma and the sangha. But it isn't easy to make foreigners who are not Buddhists revere, take interest in and come to accept the Triple Gem. One has to give them talks which are practical. One has to ask them to undertake the meditation practice. Building upon their own personal experience, they will become interested and come to respect and accept the Buddha's teaching. If one speaks exclusively on the scriptures to them, one won't get very far. Only if one combines theory with practice will they be pleased and accepting. They don't think the way Myanmar people give talks, using a lot of modulation of their voice, is anything unique. This type of voice doesn't have the ability to do the work of instilling the Dhamma in their hearts. Only a voice with the sound of wisdom can do that.
U Sîlânandâ-bhivamsa, living in America, said that once he had put on a Dhamma tape of a famous Myanmar Sayadaw and was listening to it. One non-Myanmar person asked him, "Is that singing?" It seemed that this person thought it was a Dhamma song. Myanmar peoples' ears aren't the same as other peoples'. It is something to remember.
|
|