Nay Pyi Taw September 23
Opening ceremony of a paper reading session in commemo-ration of the 555th birthday of Shin Maha Ratthasara, a Buddhist monk and a laure-ate poet, was held at MICC-2 in Nay Pyi Taw this morning, attended by Chairman of State Administration Council Prime Minister Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and wife, Daw Kyu Kyu Hla.
Also present together with the Senior General and wife were the Joint SAC Secretary and wife, SAC members and wives, union ministers, union level officials and wives, senior military officers from the Office of the Commander-in-Chief and wives, the Nay Pyi Taw Command commander, deputy ministers, chairmen of the session, resource persons, officers and staff of ministries, and honoured guests.
On arrival at the venue, the Senior General and wife were welcomed by officials. They were conducted round the birthday commemorated exhibition, and the Senior General and wife looked around the biography and documentaries of Shin Maha Ratthasara, his works including treatises, contemporary poets, the articles honouring Shin Maha Rtthasara and looked into the requirements presented by officials.
At the ceremony, Union Minister for Religious Affairs and Culture U Tin Oo Lwin reported on the purpose of holding the 555th birthday ceremony of Shin Maha Ratthasara.
The Senior General and wife and attendees enjoyed the first part of a musical play “A flowery poet portraying gratitude and loyalty” held in honour of Shin Maha Ratthasara, performed by artistees of the Fine Arts Department of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture.
At the paper reading session, Director Dr Lae Lae Win of Department of Historical Re-search and National Libraries read the paper on studying Shin Maha Ratthasara from historical point of view, U Arn Yu Maung (Maung Lu Hmwe-Myanmar Hmu), fundamental Myanmar literature and spelling, Director Dr Tun Tun Oo of DHRNL, royal ethics of Myanmar Myanmar moral conducts, independent resource person U Thura Zaw honoured Shin Maha Rattha-sara from the poetic point of view. The paper reading session was followed by a question and answer session.
Then the Senior General and wife and attendees enjoyed the second part of the musical play. The Union Minister for RA&C presented gifts to the chairmen and resource persons of the paper reading session.
The history of Myanmar lite-rature saw the emergence of a large number of literary idols. Myanmar literature developed alongside the Theravada Buddhist treatises, and the literary scholars include monks, intellectuals, civil servants of the kings, courtiers, and commoners, and Shin Maha Ratthasara who emerged during Inwa period in ME 830 was one of them. Shin Maha Ratthasara had composed a large array of poems of various categories that compared the secular world and Dhamma. His historic poem about the way of learning the rules of composing a poem with eight words, which are, listening, idea, quest, discussion, exploration, noting, practicing, memorizing, is still useful today. The musical play was staged as an effort to honour the poet monk. The name of the play represented the matchless graduate owned to the monks by the Myanmar literature wold.
