"Devotee, I met all you relatives when you came to make offerings on Sayadaw's birthday. It's been about four years since I've had the pleasure of seeing you all together as a family like that. Before I got to meet the whole family as one, I knew Sayadaw's relatives only vaguely."

The author was speaking to Sayadaw's own sister, Daw Tin Nyunt. She replied, "Sayadaw doesn't want us to celebrate his birthday. We dedicate the good deed of donations on that day to all those who have passed away, our parents, our older brothers and sisters, our and aunties, and we share the merit with them. Sayadaw wants to us to be related not only in the worldly sense but also by the blood of Dhamma. So, he wants those of his relatives who haven't yet meditated to do it. 'Only if you've practiced to become satisfied with the Dhamma will it have been worth it to have been born as a human and have gotten the chance to meet the Sâsana. It is not enough to be related by blood in the worldly sense. We still need to become related by Dhamma blood,' Sayadaw says. 'To look at him, with his solemn attitude from his strong concentration, you might well think Sayadaw was cold, Bhante. But in his mind, he really has mettâ for all of his relatives, Bhante."

"Devotee, when have you meditated? With which teacher did you practice? How long were you on retreat?"

"Sayadaw lived at the Mandalay Sein Pan Meditation Center for a full two years. When we were packing his things in the car to go to Mandalay, I told him, "I want to come to Mandalay and meditate, Bhante."

"Can you really come?" Sayadaw asked. He told me to think about it for three days. Then, "…if you have really made up your mind to come meditate, when I have arrived and got settled in Mandalay, I will just send a telegram. Come on over then," he said. When Sayadaw's telegram came from Mandalay, our older brother Ko Oun Maung's daughter Ma Htwe Kyi and I went together to Mandalay and meditated. We stayed for three months. Sayadaw himself gave us interviews. Back then, Ma Htwe Kyi was not yet married, Bhante. When the three months of meditation were up, Sayadaw asked us, "Are you satisfied? If you are not yet satisfied, keep going."

"Devotee, hadn't you meditated before the time at Sein Pan Yeiktha?"

"I had practiced with Sayadaw himself at the Mahasi Sâsana Yeiktha, Bhante. Those times, I just practiced for a week or ten days before going home. The reason I gave for going home was that my health was not good. Sayadaw even tried to stop me from going home, saying, "Don't go home. There are doctors here. Get them to treat you." Actually, my health wasn't the reason, Bhante. It was because I missed home, Bhante. I came for a week or ten days like that three or four times."

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