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Richard Humpheries (Black and White) Jason Miller Shwe Koako, Karen State Sylvia Murcfeld Photographs Jean de La Tour Richard Humphries _______________ Version Date June 2004 12/01/2005 Website: Designed, Built and written by Paul Keenan |
Name
Pu Nya Po Age
86 years Sex
Male Religion
Christian Occupation Farmer Location
Mae Ra Ma Laung
What do you parents do?
My parent were farmers.
How many children do you have? I have 5 children, two daughters and three sons. Now they all here in the refugee camp and live here. before they came to this refugee camp they were farmers.
How many brothers and sisters do you have?
I have no brothers and sisters just only one me.
What
did you do when you were children?
When I was young I worked
on the farm.
What did you do during the day?
I woke up early and then
worked on the farm the whole day till sunset.
Can you explain marriage
ceremonies?
The boy's went to the girl's
home and slept there and then an elder tied their hands and they
will
live together and have
children.
What did people do when people died ?
Our parent traditions about 40 years
ago was that whenever people died they use to play traditional music for seven
day seven night and
then the person was buried.
How has your life change between the past
and now?
When we lived on our land we got the
barn full all of paddy and we were very happy. But currently we are more sad,
when we consider when we live in our land, if we like something we can do, if we
like to go, we can, but the current we situation is we live under the
control of a foreign
hand. if their say: 'You don't do it.' you can't do. You have to follow
their rules.
Where did you get food?
When we lived in our land we never
worried. We can find and we can eat. We didn't need to go to the town [to buy] everything
was full.
Before you became a Christian what was your religion?
Former I was traditional [Animist].
Can you tall me about when you were in animist beliefs?
Custom were to feast for the spirit, to call, the spirit back to the person
and to make a new house in August. to this we, they had to eat sticky rice cake, and
also there was wrist-tying to
call the spirit back. we had different wrist tying for, calling spirit back,
wrist -tying for" Ta Oo Ta Paw".
Did people used fowl that time?
Yes, but everything they did
affected bad things to the people. they made people dead. They used
this [magic] in many different ways at that time, we also had many powerful places that
people didn't dare to go.
What was your job?
I was a hunter and
before sunset I arrived at the forest everyday. We could find will good
eating and fishing. Although, this wasn't important for me. The most important
was farming. I fed my children these three ways.
When you were a farming did you have some one help you?
When I was farmer I didn't have anybody to help me. I did everything by
myself. just only my children when they were adult.
What traditions do you have about marriage? I married the same as Christians do. The lady we like we can discuss with the elder and pastor then we get married.
After you were married did you live with your parents?
After I was married I went to live with my wife's parents, my parents died
when I was a baby.
Who had control of the money in your family?
I got the money, then I gave the money to my wife to use for the future,
the money must be under the woman's control.
How did the work different man and woman?
It is different job for a man and a woman. The woman would raise chickens,
pigs, and look after the house. The man can't look after the house the
hard work would be the man, If the man get the money it must be under the
woman's control.
How do you educate you children and what is your aim for
them? Some time I would beat them, or sometimes I would scold them, why? We they should hear our talk and I have three aims for them One, to takes note, two, record what elders taught them and lastly; to keep our customs.
When you were young did you keep your culture and customs?
My parents held them and II followed them. But always we tell our children to
hold our culture and customs, but do they hold or not we don't know, if
they hold it will be their fortune.
What kind of houses did people used to build?
Normally,the house was built with bamboo at that time about the festival, we
couldn't see chairs, or tables whenever we met we just sat on the bamboo floor
and talked about the year, where we will go for our farming. we listened
to each other.
Can you tall me about feast
" Bghai"? About the feast "Bghai" was eaten twice a year. A pig was used to feast the "Bghai" and they will cut thin green bamboo strips for tying sliced piece of bamboo. They will slice pieces of bamboo outside inside the shell. Their can't only be one slice. And then two slices will be tied on the pig's nose, hand, and foot. Two slices are used to make a little tent of bamboo. The little tent is built on upper sleeping bed up on the house and the pig is left under the little tent and all of the couples children will push the side of the pig's body . They then pray to the spirit. and they said: you asked us to give you the pig and we will give you, come down and live together with us and make us lucky, don't punish us, don't make pain to us, heal us. make us happy and make us lucky as you need I do now. They put water ion a big plate and they cove rthe pig's nose with water and cloth and they push the pig into it's nest till the pig dies this begins in the morning until evening. Once the pig is dead they take of the pig's intestines, they burn the pig is in the kitchen. they can't burn anywhere else. they burn till the pig skin is yellow.And then they wash the pig and lie a pig on upper sleeping bed. the mean that customs will be dirty on the bed. First they carve the left of shoulder, second time the right thigh, and put them together. Then they carve the righ shoulder and left thigh and put together. then they cut the pig's heart and put it under the little tent as an offering. The little bamboo tent on the upper sleeping bed is called a "poor house" and then they pray to the spirit to come and eat this all together with out spices. All of the intestine is cooked together and then when they are already they take the pig eat meat a little, and intestine a little, it's oil a little and they called the spirit again and say: 'Oh my god, came down and eat the food first and make us happy and give us good
life. Now we are offering to you.' Then they put the meat and intestine,
oil together and throw to outside
Can you explain about the offering? Offering are made for Nya Tee, or bad place. tThe elders know that it is bad and say that: it has a Nya Tee. If they cross this place, they will die. So they say that this place is bad and they will make a offering to it. The offering consists of chicken 1 kilo, and alcohol 1 kilo. Three people when they arrive at this place build a little tent, they cut the chicken nest, they smear their tools with the chicken blood beside the stairs. The posts they join. They put the chicken i in the water and once the chicken is wet they burn it and carve it .
The chicken's
intestine and body are cooked together with out anything till the curry is ready.
They put the curry on the tent offering.
Then they call Tha Rod
Na Tee because something is wrong so
we come and feed you, come on and eat.
Could you explain me about, Karen gold and silver books?
About the Karen gold and silver the elders say:
The gold
and silver book, the god book
The lost
book, English. When the father God had gone back he called sons the eldest Karen,and the younger brothers Muslim and English, the oldest son wasn't free to go to his father so just only two young brothers, Muslin and English, went to their father. He gave his sons 3 books the father said: " this gold book is to be given to your oldest brother about these two are for you". He's young sons came back on the road they didn't do as their father told them. so young English brother changed his book with his the oldest brother book and be oldest brother book. When he arrived at his oldest brother place he said:This is your book it's from father. Their oldest brother said: Okay; put it on the wood I will go and pick it up soon. but the oldest son" Karen" forget about the book. A month later he remembered he went there but only sew ants, chickens, etc… ' Because of this book the Karen people
haven't had education so they feel suppressed even until today. So we must
remember, must study, must find the truth about the book, clothes, and places,
occupations so that we can maintain Karen
majesty, characteristics,
u[kunD>f,
among the Karen people. |
