RICE POUNDING SONGS

(FOLK SONG FROM BURMA)

Translated by U Khan Saw

I.

Message of the Song

Rich or poor you deserve to be happy.

II.

Analysis of the Song

Stanza 1 4
Festive season in Burma for good harvest of Chickransia (kind of rice), the characters
pounds the rice while singing SHWE NAUNG. During this festive season monks in redgold dyed robes make rounds in town to ask for alms (usually foods) with their begging
bowls.
Stanza 5 -6
Describes the economic condition of the characters. The woman is rich who lives in a
house made from teak (a strong hard wood) while weaving a elegantly quilted fabric
called coverlet. Usually this bedsheet is used by rich people during the early 19th century.
Stanza 7-9
The man is a servant, I think in stanza 7 his master sarcastically told him to sell the gold
earing for his marriage. As in stanza 8 he was told to bring his future wife to help him in
his work (maybe jokingly said by his master or sister). But then in stanza 9 reveals the
wish of the girl to get married to him with the symbol of red sandals which means good
luck (chinese culture).
III.

My own reflection about the song:

Even a poor person can love a rich person as long as both of them feels the same
and they are true to each other.