Burma: Buddhism & archaeology (1/2)

Sat Sep 11 07:40:49 UTC 1999

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ANTHROPOLOGY TODAY: `REMAKING MYANMAR AND HUMAN ORIGINS' - PART 1/2
an account of the role of pagoda relics and museum fossils
in SLORC-SPDC concepts of nation-building
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(c) Royal Anthropological Institute 1999
Vol 15, No 4, August 1999, pp 13-19.
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by Gustaaf Houtman
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[This article is a development of  pages 142-47 in Gustaaf Houtman's
MENTAL CULTURE IN BURMESE CRISIS POLITICS: AUNG SAN SUU KYI AND THE
NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR DEMOCRACY, which was  published in March 1999 as
monograph no. 33 of the Institute for the Study of Languages and
Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. In
the book, full references are given. The book is - as is common with
publications from Japanese university presses - distributed free of
charge to selected libraries, journals and scholars. It is also
available for free downloading from the Internet
http://homepages.tesco.net/~ghoutman/index.htm. Bibliographic
references have been omitted from this article as they can easily be
found on the Internet site.

Dr Houtman was the first Leach/RAI_Fellow in Social Anthropology at
the University of Manchester, 1991-92, and has been closely involved
with ANTHROPOLOGY_TODAY_since its foundation in 1985, with occasional
absences to concentrate on his own research.]
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In 1988, the Burma Socialist Programme Party, built up after General
Ne Win's 1962 coup, unravelled under popular protest. General Ne Win
resigned and the experiment with military socialism lasting over a
quarter century was over. In May 1990 democratic elections were held,
in which the National League for Democracy, co-founded by Aung San Suu
Kyi, overwhelmingly won the elections. However, by early 1991 it
became clear that the military was in no hurry to hand over the
instruments of government, for they gradually routinized themselves
from a temporary committee running the country into a 'government'.
Indeed, the generals, initially temporarily 'caring' for ministries
until a legitimate government would be in place, today call themselves
'Ministers', and  General Than Shwe, Chairman of the State Peace and
Development Council and Minister of Defence, calls himself today
'Prime Minister'.

The regime systematically intimidates what it considers 'the
opposition' with house arrest and imprisonment and has closed down for
the best part of the last decade the entire educational system,
including even primary schools, for fear of protests. This combined
with forced labour on a large scale and a severe refugee problem with
its neighbours, resulted in the regime's international reputation
sinking until its infamy triggered the European and American economic
and political boycotts around 199[5]. The 1997-98 Asian financial
crisis scared many of its Asian backers. Though it was drawn within
the orbit of ASEAN in 1997, the Indonesian democratic elections has
deprived it of its greatest supporter within ASEAN. Furthermore, the
Nigerian democratic elections deprived it of one of its principal role
models. It retains a powerful ally in China, but internationally Burma
is today regarded as a pariah regime sometimes compared to Iraq.

Here I examine two notable features of this regime. Desperate for
national and international recognition, it began the large-scale
renovation and construction of pagodas, on the one hand, and museums,
palaces and ancient monasteries on the other. These constructions have
taken place on a scale and with a rapidity never before witnessed in
the history of Southeast Asia. It has decided to renovate and rebuild
all the thousands of pagodas in the 11th century capital Pagan. It is
furthermore committing enormous funds to pagodas all over the country.

At least two dozen new museums have been built. These house ancient
heritage, but also the history of the army and the Pondaung fossils,
that it claims represent  the oldest humanoids of the world. The
latter, it hopes, places the Myanmar people on the world's map as the
oldest civilization. It also has rebuilt all ancient palaces in the
ancient capitals. As I hope to show, these are vital elements at the
heart of the regime's 'new' ideology I have dubbed 'Myanmafication',
after their decision to rename the country Myanmar in 1989.

Building a house

One of the regime's journalists explained that 'Myanmar resembled a
house that tumbled down. The Tatmadaw [army] had to pick up the pieces
and build a new one.' Indeed, General Saw Maung himself asserted that
during the 1988 unrest 'the State Machinery had stopped functioning'
and in the aftermath 'it is just like building a country from
scratch'. A new house had to be built, and since 1989 museum building
and the museumification of pagodas have become indispensable
activities for the regime.

However, there is much evidence that, given their Buddhist tradition,
freethinking people in Burma have no desire to live in this national
house. As the Buddha said,

`I have passed in ignorance through a cycle of many rebirths, seeking
the builder of the house. Continuous rebirth is a painful thing. But
now, housebuilder, I have found you out. You will not build me a house
again. ... All your rafters are broken, your ridge-pole shattered. My
mind is free from active thought, and has made an end of craving.'

These two quotations sum up two contrasting approaches to the
institutionalization of tradition; the one compartmentalizes and the
other does not, since compartments are seen as merely a product of
ignorance. The latter view is essentially expounded by Aung San Suu
Kyi in her concept of the 'spiritual revolution'. Taking the mind as
its centrepoint, it contrasts universalist mental culture with the
bounded material cultural stance of the military.

History and archaeology

The Burmese term for history is literally 'pagoda history' (thamaing).
Museums and pagodas both deal with history. Indeed, they embody
history. However, though surrounding often similar objects (e.g.
bones), the radically different circumstances and reasons for finding
and displaying these mean that they are conceived very differently
(fossils vs. relics). In short, they tell very different kinds of
history.

Burma's military regime attaches much importance to history. The State
Peace and Development Council (SPDC), or, as they were formerly called
(until 1997), the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC),
sees itself playing a vital and honourable role in the history of the
country. The late General Saw Maung, one of the current regime's
founders, commented in 1990 that if American culture is 'very recent .
only 200 years old', Myanmar history 'shows our culture has been here
for tens of thousands of years'. There was a great 'difference'
between Burma and the rest of the world, and Burma had rubies and real
jade that no one else had, and the Burmese did not need air
conditioning or winter coats. Such radically different and unique
ancient culture could not permit itself to be enslaved by foreigners
yet again. SLORC inevitably had to show some spectacular reason that
it was a legitimate government based on 'old' culture. It could only
render this believable, of course, with proof.

In the opinion of SPDC Chairman General Than Shwe the creation of
Myanmar represents not so much fostering respect for the diversity of
cultures within the union, but 'revitalization of a civilization'.
Civilization, as we know the concept from evolutionary anthropologists
at the turn of this century, meant human beings historically emanating
from a single family, hierarchically ordered depending on their
ability to shake off nature through their cultural advances. This is a
convenient singular concept, a shorthand for a unified people all
related to a single source, but some of whom are in greater need for
civilization, and therefore 'development', than others. Today's
military rhetoric of 'development' and 'modernization' goes hand in
hand with this institutionalisation of the past and with archaeology
as the instrument for recovering the past. The military aims to be at
the forefront at recovering the past in all these ways.

Burmese politicians sometimes express the origins of their political
system, and of political, social and religious order, in terms of the
Buddhist genesis myth. In this myth the Brahmas, the entirely
spiritual and meditating celestial deities came to earth only to be
transformed into the first material human beings of flesh and blood as
the result of partaking of earthly material food. Evacuation of human
waste brought about gender differentiation and the ideas of shame and
property. Having lost their radiance,  society deteriorated due to
greed to the extent that the first president and the first judge had
to be elected to keep order.

In the origin myth, political and legal office is thus devised to
compensate for a lack of meditation. However,  ethnic and national
identity are also bound up with this misty view of the past. The
popular etymology of both Burma and Myanmar is sometimes brought back
to Brahma. Furthermore, political philosophy is closely bound up with
it. For example, U Nu defined his socialism this way, and the social
meditation practices that transcend embodiment and return to the
spiritual disembodied Brahma (byama-so taya, brahma-vihara) have been
held up as ideal Burmese behaviour.

Hitherto, entertaining such remote origins at only the level of myth
and exhortation to practice social meditation (of loving-kindness and
compassion) used to satisfy demands for an ethnic identity. The
regime, however, concerned with Myanmar as a physical, strictly
bounded, unity rather than a product of the mind, is beginning to
formulate the origination of humanity along a very different track
based on physical archaeological evidence. It is impatient with mere
'ideas' about spiritual origination in the texts over which it feels
it has insufficient control. It seeks to found the Myanmar State not
on the transformation of human beings through mental culture and
spiritual attainment, as Aung San and early nationalists conceived it,
and as even General Ne Win expounded in his socialist ideology, but is
beginning to take an interest in transforming the status of Myanmar
visibly in the eyes of the world, by locating, no less, actual proof
of the origins of all mankind in Burma itself. If successful, it
would, of course, represent a coup de grâce for the generals. Not only
would their censorship have succeeded in extending 'Myanmar' as the
preferred mode of self-identification right across the English
speaking world (the country was renamed Myanmar in languages other
than Burmese in May 1989), but they would be able to claim that the
rest of the world (including its severest critics) is inferior and
less civilized in the family of man.

The generals are subconsciously still in pursuit of the  etymological
conjunction between Burma-Myanmar and the superior Brahma deities at
the beginning of the world. In Burma mental culture has fulfiled this
association perfectly adequately so far, and the attainments of the
four stages of sainthood (ariya) were attributed to mental culture in
the here and now backed up by mental perfections attained over
countless lives. Burmese ideas about political leadership  continues
to demand encounters with these saints, and their commemoration by
building pagodas and praying for the attainment of nibbana. Today,
however, the generals go beyond pagoda building in the belief that
culture must be unearthed by collecting physical archaeological
evidence that must be housed in museums (and to some extent pagodas)
placed under their control. In short, the regime looks for a more
substantive and tangible impersonal pillar than the mind to tie their
Myanmar mandala to.

Through this archaeological quest it hopes to restore to Myanmar its
most impressive achievements and to locate the oldest forms of human
life within its boundaries. The regime sums up its 'culture and
traditions' as follows:

`Myanmar's existence dates back to many centuries where under the rule
of Myanmar kings and its own culture and traditions, civilization
flourished. As part of the restoration of the rich cultural heritage
of Myanmar, palaces and related edifices of Myanmar kings have been
carefully excavated  and renovated or reconstructed to their original
designs. These magnificent structures clearly depict the once rich and
affluent civilization of the Myanmar people.
Moreover, in the Pon-Taung-Pon-Nyar region of central Myanmar, recent
discoveries of some primate fossils dating back to some 40 million
years may qualify Myanmar as the region where mankind originated. The
findings, as  recent as 13 April 1997, however, clearly indicate the
existence of Myanmar culture and traditions since time immemorial.'
(Website, Myanmar Today, http://www.myanmar.com)

I have described the regime's 'Myanmafication' projects as the
attempt, since 1989, to attain to national unity without appealing to
martyr and national hero Aung San. The regime's 'Aung San amnesia' was
hastened when Aung San was reclaimed for the democracy movement by his
daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi. If Aung San and Aung San Suu Kyi followed
Burmese tradition by advocating universal and boundless
loving-kindness meditation (metta) as a crucial ingredient to national
harmony, the current military aims for a very different kind of
national unity known as 'national reconsolidation'. In this,
archaeology has become an indispensable instrument to localise and
regionalise a substantively superior form of national identity. By
these means the regime hopes to conquer prehistory and unify the 135
ethnic groups under the  family umbrella now referred to as 'Myanmar
culture'. It is of such great importance that the more significant
archaeological finds require nothing less than the Defence Services
Intelligence Unit, namely the Office of Strategic Studies (OSS), which
currently governs Burma under General Khin Nyunt, also Secretary 1 of
the SPDC and de facto head of government. In this Myanmafication
programme the archaeology and palaeoanthropology of Myanmar fall
within the realms of national defence.

National archaeology teams

Though the story has earlier beginnings, the contemporary evaluation
of the Pondaung fossils as a public national treasure began in January
1997 when General Khin Nyunt learnt about them after an announcement
of a discovery of a French team of the earliest primate fossils extant
in Southern Thailand. He learnt that Burma also had very rare fossils
from Pondaung, north west of Mandalay, which had been discovered in
1978 by expeditions led by U Ba Maw and U Thaw Tint, members of the
geology department of Mandalay University. The potential of  Pondaung
had first been discovered as early as 1914 by a team from the
Geological Survey of India. Both teams referred to the discoveries as
Pondaungia.

After national independence archaeology was not considered a great
priority, and the 1978 discoveries had even been suppressed by the Ne
Win military regime. However, theories had been floated that these
included fossils of ancient higher primates and, with the regime's
reputation at a low ebb, General Khin Nyunt decided that these studies
should  be followed up, and on 12 February 1997 a round table
discussion was held on the fossils at the National Museum with six
academics. Two days later, Khin Nyunt directed his Office of Strategic
Studies [OSS] and geologists of the Ministry of Education to explore
and search for fossilized remains in Pondaung. By the end of February,
during meetings between the Ministries of Education and Defence at the
OSS, the (Myanmar) Fossil Exploration Team was put together, including
members of the OSS for 'full logistic support' and geologists from the
Geology Department. Colonel Than Tun of the OSS was appointed leader
of the Expedition.

General Khin Nyunt ordered his team to go out on 'mission' and to
'find evidence . since it would greatly enhance the stature of the
country in the world' as follows:

`Secretary 1, and Chief of the Office of Strategic Studies, Lieutenant
General Khin Nyunt, met the members of the Expedition Team at the
Dagon Yeiktha of the Ministry of Defence at 1000 hours on 8 March,
1997 to give necessary guidance and counsel. At the meeting,
Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt stated that it was necessary to search
for and uncover further incontrovertible evidence that the fossilized
remains of higher primates found in Myanmar could be dated as being 40
million years old, in order to advance the studies into man's origins.
The joint expedition team of the Ministry of Defence and the
geologists of the Ministry of Education, he said, were being
dispatched to search, explore and find such evidence. He emphasized
the fact that the mission of this team about to embark on this venture
was of vital importance since it would greatly enhance the stature of
the country in the world. He therefore urged the scholars to make
every endeavour for the success of the mission.' ('The Pondaung Fossil
Expedition'. Myanmar Perspectives, May 1998)

Between 9 March and 21 April 1997 numerous visits were made to a
number of sites. Excitement mounted as finds were made including an
elephant's tusk, about which it is said that 'it is very rare and an
exception to find such a complete fossilized tusk. Few countries can
claim that they have such a priceless exhibit for progeny. That is why
it is a very proud occasion for those who have had the privilege to
help the country acclaim such honour.'

On 11 May, the team's geologists collected a variety of fossils,
including those of primates, namely the Pondaungia Amphipithecus
Mogaungensis, the Amphipithecus Bahensis, and other valuable
specimens. They were presented to a gathering of government officials,
scholars and media personnel, at the Defence Forces Guest House in
Rangoon. On this occasion General Khin Nyunt gave the keynote speech
alluding to the discovery as proof that human life and civilization
began in Burma. The report stated that the recent discoveries
illustrated the origins of the great Burmese nationality and the
superiority of Burmese culture. The report went on to say that should
the academics be able to prove the claims, then Burmese people could
definitely say that 'culture began in Myanmar.' It was reported that
'analyses reveal that the latest find belongs to the genus of the
previously discovered remains of Amphipithecus primate . The new find
may be classified as a new species and it is named Amphipithecus
Bahensis by the exploration teams because it was discovered from a
site near Bahin Village, Myaing Township'. It was also stressed  in
the reports that it was army officers who had heroically discovered
some of the vital human remains in the fossil jigsaw, for 'the left
lower jaw was discovered by Captain Bo Bo of the Office of Strategic
Studies and Lance Corporal Ohn Hlaing of No. 252 Regiment.'

International validation

The military wished to be seen at the cutting edge of archaeology
discovery. However, they had no clue how to interpret the evidence,
and the next step was to invite foreign researchers to make sense of
and legitimize these discoveries. At this stage, entered
palaeontologist of Iowa University Dr Russell L. Ciochon, staff of the
Museum of Paleontology of California University, and Dr Patricia
Holroyd, who studied the fossil specimens at the National Museum,
Rangoon, between 20 October and 1 November 1997. Dr Ciochon had joined
the early 1978 Mandalay University team and was familiar with the
debates. He had also made visits in 1982 and 1996,  but he was ejected
because his visit was unauthorized. The regime's change of mind meant
that he was reported 'highly gratified' at the leaders' keen interest
and their interest in facilitating the study of primate fossils. He
was pleased at being  invited to continue his studies. The American
fossil exploration team then made a field trip to Pondaung with the
Burmese team between 24 December 1997 and 14 January 1998. The
Americans 'were much gratified at the briefing they were given,
supported by such detailed records and were highly impressed at the
interest shown, and the support and encouragement given by the Myanmar
Government leaders.'  Further archaeological discoveries were  made
after 30 January 1998.

A third field survey was undertaken by the Myanmar-France Pondaung
Fossils Expedition, a team made up between the original Burmese team
and a group of French palaeontologists, including Jean Jacques Jaeger
(persistently misspelled in the Burmese media as Jacger) of France's
Montpellier University, Stéphane Ducrocq, Rose Marie Ducrocq, Mouloud
Bennami of Morocco, and Yaowalak Chaimanee (Department of Mineral
Resources) of Thailand. The team arrived in Rangoon on 30 March, met
the Burmese team on 31 March at the No. 2 Defence Services Guest
House, and visited the National Museum to inspect the fossils. They
then carried out an expedition between 1-20 April 1998. When they
assessed the finds displayed in the National Museum they concluded
that these 'may belong to higher anthropoid primate[s] and to the
Eocene, which is about 40 million years back', but somewhat
disappointingly, they also said that they would need further evidence
'to determine the origin of man and that further study need be made'.
The Myanmar-France Pondaung Fossils Expedition Team held a press
conference in conjunction with military intelligence sponsored by the
OSS at the Defence Services Guesthouse.

Yet a fourth academic team - the Joint Myanmar-Japan Pondaung Fossil
Expedition Team - involved Japanese scholars from the Primate Research
Institute of Kyoto University. This team consisted of Professor Dr
Nobuo Shigehara and Assistant Professor Masanaru Takai, who carried
out studies on the primate and other fossils at the National Museum
between 19-25 April 1998 but later returned for a field survey between
6-20 November 1998.

(to be continued in Part 2/2)
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Gustaaf Houtman
ghoutman at tesco.net
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Mental Culture in Burmese Crisis Politics:
Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League
for Democracy (Tokyo Univ. of Foreign Studies, 1999)
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read a full electronic version of this print-published book at
http://homepages.tesco.net/~ghoutman/index.htm
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