Burkitt, William, M.A.. a pious and learned di- vine of the Church of England, was born at Hitcham, in Suffolk, duly 25, 1650, and was admitted :■■ Pem- broke Hall, Cambridge, in 1664. Prom the college he came to Bilston Hall, in Suffolk, and was chaplain there. In 1(571 he was settled in Milden, in Suffolk, whero he remained twenty-one years, as curat ■ and rector, eminently acceptable and useful. In 1692 he became vicar ofDedham, in Essex, where he died 17' :;. His most important work is Expository Notes >>" V. '/'.. which has passed through many editions, and is still constantly reprinted I X. V. 2 vols. 8vo). His l.'f . I y Parkhurst, was published in London (1704, 8vo).
Bui'mah, a kingdom (formerly called an empire) of Farther India. Before the English conquests in 1826, it included Burmah Proper, Cathay, Arracan, Pegu, Tenasserim, and the extensive country of the Shan tribes. By those conquests and the subsequent war of 1853 Arracan, Pegu, and Tenasserim, with the entire sea-coast of the country, have been incorporated into the British territory. The population of the en- tire country probably amounts to five or six millions, and belongs to various tribes, among which the Pur- mans, the Karens, the Peguans or Talaings, and Shans are the principal.
I. Religion. — "Buddhism (q.V.) is the prevailing re- ligion of Burmah, where it has been preserved in great purity. Its monuments, temples, pagodas, and mon- asteries are innumerable ; its festivals arc carefully observed, and its monastic system is fully established in every part of the kingdom. While directing the reader to the special article on Bi ddhism for an ac- count of its doctrines, history, etc., we may here glance. at its development, institutions, and edifices among the Burmans. The members of the monastic fraternity are known in Burmah as pon-gyees, meaning 'gnat glory ;' but the Pali word is rah in, or holy man. The. pon-gyees are not priests, in the usual acceptation of the term, but rather monks. Their religious ministra- tions are confined to sermons, and they do not inter- fere with the worship of the people. They are a very numerous class, living in monasteries, or kyotmgs, and may at once lie known by their yellow robes (the color of mourning), shaven heads, ami bare feci. 'I hey sub- sist wholly by the charily of the people, which, how- ever, they well repay by instructing the boys of the country. The kyoungs are thus converted into na- tional schools, 'the vows of a pon-gyee include celi- bacy, poverty, and the renunciation of the world; but from these he may at any time lie released and return to a secular life. Hence oearlj every youth assumes the yellow robe for a lime, as a meritorious ad or lor the purpose of study, and the ceremony of making a
pon-gyee is one of great importance. 1 1 stensible
object' of tiie brotherhood i- the more perfect observ- ance of the laws of Buddha. The order is composed of live classes— viz., young men who wear the 3 1 How robe and live in the kyoungs, but are not professed
members; those on whom the title and character of
pon-gyees have been solemnly conferred with the usual ceremonies; the heads or governors of the sev- eral communities; provincials, whose jurisdiction ex- tends over their respective provinces; and. lastly, a superior general, or great master, who directs the af- fairs of the order throughout the empire. No provi- sion is made for religion by the government, but it
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meets with liberal support from the people. A pon- gvee is held in profound veneration ; his person is sa- ered, and he is addressed by the lordly title of pra or pkra; nor does this reverence terminate with his death. On the decease of a distinguished member his body is embalmed, while his limbs are swathed in linen, var- nished, and even gilded. The mummy is then placed on a highly-decorated cenotaph, and preserved, some- times for months, until the grand day of funeral. The Burman rites of cremation are very remarkable, but we cannot here enlarge upon them. On the whole, a favorable opinion may be passed on the monastic fra- ternity of Burmah ; although abuses have crept in, discipline is more lax than formerly, and many doubt- less assume the yellow robe from unworthy motives. In Burmah, the last Buddha is worshipped under the name of Gotama. His images crowd the temples, and many are of a gigantic size. The days of worship are at the new and full moon, and seven days after each ; but the whole time, from the full moon of July to the full moon of October, is devoted by the Burmans to a stricter observance of the ceremonies of their religion. During the latter month several religious festivals take place, which are so many social gatherings and occasions for grand displays of dress, dancing, music, and feasting. At such times barges full of gayly- dressed people, the women dancing to the monotonous dissonance of a Burman band, may be seen gliding along the rivers to some shrine of peculiar sanctity. The worship on these occasions has been described by an e)re-witness, in 1857, as follows : ' Arrived at the pagodas and temples, the people suddenly turn from pleasure to devotion. Men bearing ornamental paper umbrellas, fruits, flowers, and other offerings, crowd the image-houses, present their gifts to the fav< rite idol, make their shek-ho, and say their prayers with all dispatch. Others are gluing more gold-leaf on the face of the image, or saluting him with crackers, the explosion of which in nowise interferes with the seren- ity of the worshippers. The women for the most part remain outside, kneeling on the sward, just at the en- trance of the temple, where a view can be obtained of the image within.' On another occasion we read: 'The principal temple, being under repair, was much crowded by bamboo scaffolding, and new pillars were being put up, each bearing an inscription with the name of the donor. . . . The umbrellas brought as offerings were so numerous that one could with diffi- culty thread a passage through them. Some were pure white, others white and gold, while many boasted all the colors of the rainbow. They were made of pa- per, beautifully cut into various patterns. There were numerous altars and images, and numberless little Go- tamas; but a deep niche or cave, at the far end of which was a fat idol, with a yellow cloth wrapped round him, seemed a place of peculiar sanctity. This recess would have been quite dark had it not been for the numberless tapers of yellow wax that were burn- ing before the image. The closeness of the place, the smoke from the candles, and the fumes from the quan- tity of crackers constantly being let off, rendered res- piration almost impossible. An old pon-gyee, how- ever, the only one I ever saw in a temple, seemed quite in his element, his shaven bristly head and coarse features looking ugly enough to serve for some favorite idol, and he seemed a fitting embodiment of bo senseless and degrading a worship. Offerings of flowers, paper ornaments, flags, and candles were scat- tered about in profusion. The beating a bell with a deer's horn, the explosion of crackers, and the rapid muttering of prayers, made up a din of sounds, the suitable accompaniment of so misdirected a devotion.' The rosary is in general use, and the Pali words Ami- 1ya! doka! anatta! expressing the transitory nature of all sublunary things, are very often repeated. The Burman is singularly free fr< in fanaticism in the ex- ercise of his religion, and his most sacred temples may