Burmese Buddhism is an intricate blend of Theravada teachings and Myanmar’s older animist traditions. Pagodas often hold space for both Buddhas—sometimes illuminated with LED halos—and nats, the ancestral spirits still honored across the country. As a half-Burmese Unitarian Universalist, Thida Cornes reflects on the complex ways spirituality, culture, and daily life intertwine in Myanmar, and invites us to consider what insights this rich tradition might offer our own spiritual journeys.
Worship leader: Thida Cornes
Special music: Ruth Huber, singer and pianist
If you prefer to join the community of those attending online, there are two options. One, join the service via Zoom bit.ly/uucpa_service_1015am_v3. To get the passcode, email sundayservice@uucpa.org or call UUCPA’s outgoing voicemail message, 650-494-0541. It is also included in the weekly update emails. Two, to watch the service live on our Facebook page (no passcode required), visit UUCPA’s live Facebook feed. You can follow along in the order of service, which will be posted here before Sunday.
Photo: Guardian Nats outside the temple, Kalaw, Myanmar, by ReflectedSerendipity from United Kingdom, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons