Buddhist monks’ cremation ceremonies break the bank in impoverished Myanmar

c. 2015 Religion News Service

MAWLAMYINE, Myanmar (RNS) Two years ago, residents of the village of Taung Bone donated an estimated $120,000 to finance the cremation ceremony of Badana Kawnarnya, the chief abbot of a local monastery. By contrast, the average annual salary in Mon State, situated along Myanmar’s southern coast, is $1,000, and most wedding receptions cost between $2,000 and $3,000.

Buddhists in Mon State have long spent vast sums—more than 100 times an average annual salary—on elaborate cremation ceremonies to mark the passing of influential monks.