{"href":"http://player.captivate.fm/services/oembed?url=http%3A%2F%2Fplayer.captivate.fm%2Fepisode%2Fe8c7ecf4-1079-48e2-af44-e21df44ab3c9","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Captivate.FM","provider_url":"https://www.captivate.fm","width":600,"height":200,"type":"rich","html":"","title":"Drawing a Line Between Hope and Fear","description":"Kyawt Thiri Nyunt\u2019s journey from Myanmar to the United States at age 19 was not just a physical one, but a cultural and psychological one as well. She had traveled to enroll in a small liberal arts college in California, having won a full merit scholarship. But then came the pressure of integrating into a new environment, on top of the anxiety to achieve, and so she did something she had never done before: she began therapy to explore the stress that was building up inside her.\n\nThe therapy also uncovered deep-rooted trauma that she had been holding her entire life growing up under a military dictatorship. Unprocessed memories flooded out, including the associated emotions of anger and fear. Properly understanding\u2014even honoring\u2014the pervasiveness of this trauma is especially important at this moment, because without doing so, the Burmese protest movement simply cannot be properly appreciated. Once one truly understands how dark the days had been under past military rule, one realizes that no matter how aggressively the military chooses to respond in the days that come, the protesters have no choice but to keep on, as they will never accept a return to the past system. Kyawt explains how the mett\u0101 meditation that defines the practice of many Burmese Buddhists has so far contributed to the protests\u2019 nonviolent nature, but that they are getting close to the breaking point.\n\nThis is a time of real social change and upheaval in Myanmar, and it is impossible to know where this will ultimately go. Beyond worldly culture, these changes could also ultimately impact the shape of Burmese Buddhism as well, as with the people\u2019s embrace of their newfound sense of agency, the Burmese people themselves are determining which members of the Sa\u1e45gha truly speak for them, and which do not have their interests in heart.\n\nIf you are finding value in these shows, please consider sharing to friends and contacts so more can learn about what is currently happening in Myanmar.","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/85c76e62-225b-47f6-a9a4-946280b20205/0vUAHBhXlN6g_hFPmAhOALZ3.jpg"}