by Hla Min
Updated : September 2026
Alphabet
Burmese Alphabet
- Ka, Kha, Ga …
English Alphabet
- Upper case; A to Z
- Lower case : a to z
Greek Alphabet
- Alpha to Omega
- Used in Science texts
Pali
- Spoken language
- Written in various scripts including Burmese, Thai and Sinhalese.
- PTS (Pali Text Society) uses Romanized Pali.
Pyu Alphabet
Bhamaso Taya
- Metta
Loving Kindness, Unbounded Love - Karuna
Compassion - Mudita
Altruistic Joy, Sympathetic Joy - Uppekkha
Equanimity
Buddhism
Buddha
- The Blessed One, the Worthy One, and the Fully Enlightened One
- Nine Qualities of the Buddha
Dhamma
- Teachings of the Buddha
- Tipitaka (Three Baskets) ; Vinaya, Sutta, Abhidhamma
- Five Nikayas
- Six Qualities of the Dhamma
Sangha
- Monastic Order of the Buddha
- Nine Qualities of the Sangha
Vinaya
- Monastic Rules of Conduct
Sutta
- Discourses
Abhidhamma
- Ultimate Reality
Pali Texts
- Canon
- Commentary
- Sub-commentary
Buddhist Councils
- Six — According to the Theravada tradition
- First, Second and Third — Oral tradition (held in India)
- Fourth — Written texts (Compiled in Ceylon / Sri Lanka)
- Fifth — Mandalay (to celebrate 2400th Sasana Era)
- Sixth — Kaba Aye, Rangoon (to celebrate 2500th Sasana Era)
Books
- What the Buddha Taught
by Dr. Rahula Walpole
Translation by U Kelasa - In His Own Words
by Bikkhu Bodhi
Course / book by U Silananda
Burmese
- Burmese Language
Spoken Burmese (Myanmar Sagar)
Written Burmese (Myanmar Sar) - Burmese Department
Myanmar (Burma)
Overseas - Burmese Sayas
U Pe Maung Tin,
U E Maung,
U Wun
U Thein Han
U Chan Mya - Khit San Sar Pa
ICS U Sein Tin (Theikpan Maung Wa)
U Thein Han (Zawgyi)
U Wun (Minthuwun) - Burmese Language Commission
Bohmu Ba Thaung
U San Lwin - Text books
Kindergarten
Primary School
Middle School
High School
University - References
Dictionary (Abhidan)
Encyclopedia (Swel Sone Kyan)
Grammar (Thadda)
Proverbs (Sagar Pone)
Spelling (Thutt Pone) - Publications –
Cartoons
Comics
Journals
Magazines
Newspapers
Novels
Sar Saungs
Calendar
- Old Roman Calendar
Ten “working” months (from March to December) - Later Roman Calendars
Twelve months (from January to December) - Julian Calendar
- Gregorian Calendar
Child
- Khalay
- Khalay Ah Thinn (Association)
- Child Psychology
- Piaget
Fun
- Fun with Learning
Facebook group - Fun with English
Definitions
Palindrome
Tongue Twister
Word Games (Crossword puzzle, Lexicon, Scrabble, Anagram, Jumbled phrase) - Fun with Mathematics
Paradox
Puzzles - Fun with Physics
Online course
Maths
- Saya U Aung Hla
In 1950 – 52, Saya U Aung Hla was Dean of Arts. He was also Professor of Maths. He is an expert in music, and wrote notes for selected Burmese songs. His spouse Daw May Than is a vocalist. His son U Mya Than is a Guitarist and Pianist. - Maths Department
In the early days, the Maths Department was under the Faculty of Arts. Later, Maths Department was under the Faculty of Science. - Options (offered in different periods) at Rangoon University
Pure Maths
Applied Maths
Double Maths : Pure & Applied
Triple Maths : Pure, Applied & Statistics
My Contributions
- Five decades as Volunteer of various organizations and projects
- 26 years as Founder & Chief Editor of RIT Alumni International Newsletter
Silver Jubilee in 2024 - Member, HMEE (History of Myanmar Engineering Education). U Ohn Khine and I compiled the CD Supplement for the HMEE Book in 2012
- 220+ Videos (on selected topics) : Broadcast in 2019 and 2020
- 3000+ Articles
in my web site hlamin.com - Former Moderator of RU Centennial Facebook Group
Overview of RU Centennial Group (Posts)
Countdown to RU Centennial (Posts)
Photo Essays and Photo Albums - Memories
Memories of PPBRS (Private Primary Boundary Road School)
Memories of SPHS (St. Paul’s High School)
Memories of RIT (Rangoon Institute of Technology)
Memories of UCC (Universities’ Computer Center) - Contributor
Encyclopedia of Asian American Folklore and Folklife - Language Expert
Burmese Language Project, NFLC, University of Maryland at College Park - Contributing Editor, Dhammanda Newsletter
- Contributing Editor, “Homage to U Silananda”
- Contributing Editor, Souvenir Magazine for RUBC 90th Anniversary
- Contributing Editor, BAPS Newsletter
- Bilingual Author
- Wrote and translated Poems and Articles
- Interpreter, Meditation Retreats
- Edited books of Sayadaws and colleagues
New Year
- Gregorian Calendar
January 1st - Lunar New Year
aka “Chinese New Year” and “Tet”
January or February - Persian New Year
aka “First day of Spring”
around March 21 - Myanmar New Year
aka “Thingyan”
Mid April
cf : Songkran in Thailand - Karen New Year
- Bringing in the New Year
Celebrations of New Year’s Eve (December 31)
e.g. Dropping the ball at Times Square in New York
Olympics
- Ancient Games
Mount Olympus, Greece - Modern Olympic Games
proposed by Pierre de Coubertin
Early period : amateurs only
Later : commercialized (sponsors, hosts, professional athletes …) - Summer Olympics
Breaks during the World War
Postponed during the Pandemic - 1936 Berlin
- 1948 London
- 1952 Helsinki
- 1956 Melbourne
- 1960 Rome
- 1964 Tokyo
- 1968 Montreal
- 1972 Munich
- 1976 Montreal
- 1980 Moscow
- 1984 Los Angeles
- 1988 Seoul
- 1992 Barcelona
- 1996 Atlanta
- 2000 Sydney
- 2004 Athens
- 2008 Beijing
- 2012 London
- 2016 Rio de Janerio
- 2020 Scheduled for Tokyo
Postponed to 2021 due to pandemic - 2024 Paris
- Winter Olympics
Sleep
- Conventional
8 hours (for adults)
more (for infants) - Could/ should vary with person
e.g. my uncle slept 4 hours, but he had power naps in the day - Rationale for sleep
Rest
“Clean up garbage” in the brain
Activities by the Subconscious (e.g. problem solving) - Sleep studies
Dream
Sleep Apnea (Breathing difficulties)
Monitor brain (for a specified period)
Effect of duration (too little, too much)
Effect of rhythm (specified time to go to sleep) - Miscellaneous
Early to bed, early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise
The story of Pauk Kyaing
Thet Kyee Sayas and Alumni
- Sayagyi U Ba Toke
Phwa Bet Taw of Rangoon University in December 1920
Book about his life and achievements by Dr. Khin Maung Swe (Maung Thin Char, GBNF)
Saya of our sayas
Passed away on December 2, 2020 (the day after the RU Centennial Celebrations) but a few days short of his Centennial on December 26.
- U Thein Han (96 years)
Worked as Systems Engineer for IBM Burma
Active doing exercises and sharing memories / posts
- U Tin U (96 years)
Joined Rangoon University in 1946 along with Dr. Pe Nyun, Dr. Pe Thein and U Sein Hlaing.
Former part time Lecturer at Civil Engineering Department;
Oldest and Most senior among Past Captains of Rangoon University Boat Club that are still alive;
Opened the RUBC Centennial Ceremony in December 2023,
Past Captain of Rangoon Golf Club;
Lost his beloved spouse Dr. Daw Khin Nyunt, his eldest son Dr. Khin Tun (Peter, MRCP, Former Associate Dean of Oxford University) and his son-in-law U Tin Tun within a few months (late 2019 to May 2020)
- U Ba Than (94 years)
Won Collegiate Scholarship in 1947;
Gold Medalist for highest score in Intermediate Examinations for 1948 and 1949;
Retired as Professor and Head of Mechanical Engineering;
Early supporter of HMEE-2012 (History of Myanmar Engineering Education)
Now GBNF
- Other Thet Kyees
Several of my sayas, sayamas, relatives and friends are 90+ years young.
Time
- Clock / Watch
Mechanical, Electro-mechanical, Electrical, Atomic - Calendar
Various types - Time and Motion Study
Kenneth and Lillian Gilbraith - Time Management
- Five minute biographies
- One minute manager
- Early responder
within 4 or 5 minutes - Gettysburg Address
less than 2 minutes - TED Talk
less than 18 minutes - Toastmaster Speech
typically 5 to 7 minutes - Sports
Timing
Records
To Err Is Human
- “To err is human, but to make blunders use a computer indiscriminately.”
- Some software “auto-corrects” words incorrectly.
- In our younger days, there was a good Scrabble player named James Thet Wai (Proof Reader for the Guardian newspaper).
- Burmese publications have language experts (Burmese, English, Pali).
- Before the Internet, the production of a good book requires the expertise of editors and reviewers. Even then, some typos and discrepancies can appear.
e.g A reference book described Rajiv Gandhi as the “younger” son of Indira Gandhi. - Note that articles on the Internet / Social Media — with lax reviews — can have typos and errors.
An entry on Dr. Ba Than lists Dr. Aung Than as his son.
Another article claimed that Prof. U E Maung was “Bagyi Aung”.
One author did not know the time line / order of Arzani Nay and the assassination of ICS U Tin Tut. - It is important to check facts (especially historical dates & events) and provide correction.
YMBA
- Young Men’s Buddhist Association
- Illustrated History of Buddhism
Mahagandayone Sayadaw Ashin Janakabhivamsa (Author);
Saya U Ba Kyi (Artist)
First edition : Myanmar text
Supplement : English text
Reprint: Theravada Buddhist Society of America
YMCA
- Young Men’s Christian Association
- N. Smith — Invented Basketball
- Dale Carnegie — How to win friends and influence people; How to stop worrying and start living;
How to improve your diction - Dr. Ralph Smedley — Public Speaking and Leadership; Precursor to Toastmasters International
Zero
Numerals
- Hindu-Arabic numeral : 0
- No such Roman numeral
Miscellaneous
- The Dawn of Nothing
- Positional number system
- 0-based numbering
- Nil; Null; Nothing
- Often used to represent “False” in two-valued logic.
- Absolute Zero (temperature)
- Ground Zero
- Zero in
Zoom
Lens
- Photographers and Videographers often use Zoom lens for special effect.
- The more we grow older the more we have to avoid “zoom camera” to our face.
Zoom In and Zoom Out
- We zoom in when we want to see things in detail.
- We zoom out when we need to see things in the bigger picture.
Teleconferencing
- Zoom is a system for teleconferencing.
- Usage grew dramatically during the pandemic
- Free version; Deluxe version
