Meditation

Meditation holds great prestige in contemporary Burmese Buddhist practice, especially the 'insight' tradition. This chapter argues that meditation's high status comes from its model of overcoming social vulnerability by withdrawing from interaction. Drawing on observations from a ten-day insight meditation retreat, the analysis suggests that meditation's prominence reflects the high value placed on autonomy, particularly for males. By enacting a cessation of interaction, meditation embodies a state of invulnerability and serenity that detachment offers.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Many Burmese Buddhists consider meditation the most praiseworthy activity one can undertake as a pious Buddhist, whether religious or lay. This chapter suggests that meditation’s prestige stems from its model of overcoming vulnerability in interaction by withdrawing from it. The chapter relates the course of a ten-day meditation retreat based on the currently more prestigious “insight” rather than “concentration” meditation tradition. It analyzes the prominence of meditation in contemporary Burmese discourse as reflecting the great value placed on autonomy, particularly for males. By instantiating the cessation of interaction, meditation models a condition of invulnerability and serenity that achieving detachment proffers.