Till this age, I was purely educated by domestic education system, had been familiarized “History” subject through the interesting stories since primary school. I believed a little boy put his index into mouth after touching a burnt piglet. That’s the way we eat pork after that. Actually, that’s the way we learnt to use fire in history and for me, more interesting story than Greek Mythology, “How Promethius brought fire for human being from Mount Olympus?” When we repeated Parade songs, they introduced us with Burmese Heroes, Min Ye Kyawzwa, Dabin Shwe Htee, Bayint Naung and Along Phaya. We were very much proud of ourselves to know about teenaged warriors in our History. (So pity to North Koreans) Nowadays, instead of arguing on the facts, even long lived immortals could not witness, better to take a lesson, a feeling, a thought or a moral on those stories. You may say that’s the vision through green glasses. That is different from the mist of propaganda, which allows the unique way of their leaded vision. For examples, half of the World believed that Maxism was the only and final destination of Global Historical changes while they’re teaching us Russian Revolution Lessons. In contrast, Naung Yoe Battle of Bayint Naung encouraged us no return decisions and brave leadership. (I’ve been taught both ways).
In sixth grade, I ‘ve never forget my history teacher, U Thein Tun, who illustrated the foundation of second Myanmar Dynasty in perfection and passion. Since then, I’ve realized that History is too boring to learn for the exams but so delicious to enjoy as stories. My other history teacher, Daw Hla Kyi, from 7th grade was also a perfect lecturer. I could still recall the rhymes on chronology of Last Myanmar Dynasty. As centuries passed by, even stony or brick buildings have been collapsed but some words in the air are still echoing till present days. “Et toi aussi, Brutus!” “Qu’ils mangent de la Brioche!” “Oh my elephant tamer!” “A pay is a pay, Lady Nu” Those teachers made me feel like I were there hearing those words on my own ears. Very much grateful to them for letting me see those dried grass through their green glasses.
Since my departure from history after Matriculation, a renaissance woke me up on a trip of my Tourism Course to Pegu pilgrimage. That was a teacher making an introduction to Pagodas and Historical Geography of Lower Burma like this. “Once in a starry starry night, some earthquakes shook the Taung Ngoo City under the brilliant light of Comets. The King, Min Kyi Nyo checked the Astrologic picture of the rare occasion and realized that a future Emperor was born. The Queen gave birth a prince on that night. Delightfully, the King admired his successor and found out a golden hair pointing straight on the baby’s caput. So he named him Dabin Shwe Htee, meant single golden crown. The King’s monk didn’t agree with him for that name which predicted the end of his dynasty after that prince. Anyway, there was another emperor to be who was born some days before in Minister’s house. Fortunately, those two princes had a common nursing mother. They grew up together and were trained under the same school and no doubt they loved each other….” That was the history of Dabin Shwe Htee and Bayint Naung, founders of the second Myanmar Dynasty. Then the teacher continued her history on the adventure of ear piercing ceremony on Shwe Mawdaw Pagoda. She linked that with the Hansawassi Dynasty of Mon Emperors, how the Prince Apathone betrayed his married cousin Dala Maydaw and met with a flower vender, Mwe Manate. The way he asked the royal jewels of ex-wife after getting on throne. The frustrated princess committed suicide when he took all her precious matrimony. Before Bawlaw Kyandaw, the little prince of late Dala Maydaw was accused for Rebellion and executed, the innocent prince swore and cursed in front of Shwe Mawdaw Pagoda. The Mystery never ends shortly. The little prince re-incarnated at Ava Palace and he became the youngest and only warrior, of whom the King Yarzar Darit (Father of previous life) was afraid. Nothing made me feel more realistic and interested in that historical trip than in green glass vision. I’d seen reflections of past at each and every corners. It seemed a walk in the cloud to History.
I’m sure these are not the true facts like the historical literature of Prof U Than Tun. But, for a layman like me without any professional expertise in History, they make me clear and fascinated. Classify me as you like whether Toddler reader, Jungle reader or poorly literate reader. I was obsessed with “Yarzar Darit Ayay Daw Pone” by Naing Pan Hla,“Kone Baung Sharbonedaw” by Nyo Mya and some more books of same taste. I agree on the fact that History is not a making up. If I told you about the King Along Sithu, who travelled by boat till the end of the world and composed our traditional music “Byaw” from a huge fish catching a fallen fruit, that would be a practical joke to Foreigners. They might not ROFL with courtesy but would smile at me with pity. I admit my vision in History is just a high school student level, as anyone who never had a single lecture outside my homeland.
Nowadays, Global vision becomes the only true vision and we need to look out of the confined foot print of ox. So I read through some words on outside vision on our country. Far vision and near vision are not the same, aren’t they? Should I say technically, they are not our visions? That’s what other peoples had seen us. In “She was a Queen” by Morris Collis, that was fantastic, incredible and inspiring to know about the culture and legendary Arts of Asians. But I felt disgusting on the happy ending with a Burmese queen, who was really clever, decent and royal, giving a hand to an old Chinese Ambassador. The author never understood the pride and prejudice of Burmese Lady in comparing with Western women. In the end, a fiction is a fiction. I wonder how they made “Gone with the wind” or “The Blue and the Grey”. Anyway, that was the vision from the West.
However, there are some Burmese versions which are much more westernized than real Western viewers. I do appreciate and thank them. Once, Sayagyi Shwe Oo Daung narrated his autobiography how some big thorns got deep into his heart. For me, because of those Intellectual Pandits, a big big thorn, itched in my heart has been taken out for good. That was the only blessing, expected in my life, to get a respectable degree from the Great Universities from England or America. Only the graduated candidates from those Universities should be ultra human expertise, I assumed. Actually, that was betrayal to my 6th grade teachers whom I prefer them now from the bottom of my heart. Because the American or England made Burmese Scholar versions of our History were really breath taking. I didn’t feel alive after reading them. Death becomes mine would be my last wish. They said that U Aung Zaya was a grandiose villager from Mote Sobo. Bayint Naung was an inhuman, cheating torturer. (Even in Thai History, they respected him as a god father of their King Narason) At Ava Palace, Muslim women had right to worship in the Mosques. Would it be the updated vision after graduation there? If so, leave me alone in 4th grade. I don’t want anything anymore. Of course, I prefer green glass vision for the dry grass. No doubt, those were my green green grass of home.
“The old hometown looks the same as I step down from the train.
And there to meet me is my Mama and Papa.
Down the road I look and there runs Mary,
Hairs of gold and lips like cherry,
It’s good to touch the green green grass of home.”
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