The festivals that the board, called the Ramonnya Nikarya [Association], will draw up rules and regulations for will include ordinance ceremonies for novices and monks and the cremations of deceased senior monks.

On 8 July Sayadaw Thilar Sarya said: “The Mon monk group is still drawing up the rules and regulations. This will be done next year. After this text is written, the rules will state how both monks and laypeople obey and show respect. The group will also plan how every monk will show respect after the rules for incineration of monks that have passed-away are laid down.“

There has been some criticism by monks and devotees (laypeople). The devotees donate money and other offerings to celebrate religious festivals and merit making festivals but the donations are not always a formal transaction.

Sayadaw Thilar Sarya said: “Although the devotees are generous during ceremonies of novication or ordinance, they [often also] buy themselves alcohol or beer. This can cause people to become drunk and leads to problems that are not necessary. Spending money on such things is not beneficial, and it destroys the image of traditional festivals”.

He continued: “Mon people are very generous when it comes to offering and donating in their villages. But outside of their villages, for matters of Mon literature and culture and other related Mon national matters, they do not want to offer much.”

This year the Ramonnya Nikarya will celebrate the hundredth anniversary of the first Buddhist exams to be held in the Mon Language

Thousands of Buddhist monks come to the Mon State capital of Moulmein every year to take the annual Ramonnya Nikarya exam, which is held at the Sarsana 2500 monastery.

According to Mon historical records, the Rehmonnya Nikarya [Association] was founded in the year 2406 of the Sarsana/Buddhist Calendar (1863 in the Gregorian Calendar) in Pegu City in what was then known as Rehmonnya Land.

This article originally appeared in Guiding Star

Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI