Shan Archive Living: Connecting archival materials with living Shan traditions of practices

This presentation takes the Samothana Parivasa manuscript on Buddhist monastic probation housed in the SOAS Library Special Collections as a starting point to explore how we as researchers can make use of the special collection, the importance and untapped potential of the Tai manuscripts housed at SOAS, and the development of an interdisciplinary research project with manuscript material at its centre.  

First, we will look at how the manuscript is catalogued and consider how this relates to the visibility of Tai manuscripts in Western library collections. Then we shall explore the content of the manuscript itself which details samodhāna- parivāsa 'combined probation', the concealing of offences during monastic probation, and examine the types of offences committed by badly behaving monks that result in monastic probation. 

We will consider how we might draw on canonical and commentarial textual material and ethnographic fieldwork to complement our investigation of the manuscript to construct a more holistic investigation of a contemporary Buddhist practice that has received very little scholarly attention. 

Olivia Porter: biography

Olivia Porter is a Research Associate at the SOAS Centre of Buddhist Studies. She works primarily on Tai Buddhism practiced by communities living in the Myanmar-China borderlands. Her approach is textual and ethnographic which reflects her training in classical languages (Sanskrit and Pali) and social anthropology. 

Her current research interests include Pali-vernacular mix literature, specifically a genre of Tai literature called lik long, and zares, the practitioners who disseminate it to the community through oral recitation. Olivia has lectured at the University of Roehampton and the University of Oxford, where she currently teaches on the Anthropology of Buddhism module.  

This study focuses on the role of Lik Long manuscripts in the housewarming rituals of the Tai people, with a particular focus on practices in Northern Shan State, Myanmar. Lik Long texts are valuable cultural and religious texts that play an important role in numerous ceremonies, serving as both a spiritual guide and a source of moral teachings. It is understood that the beliefs, customs, and way of life of the Tai people—especially in ceremonies such as memorial services, blessings, funerals, and housewarmings—have been deeply influenced by the Lik Long manuscript tradition. This study is designed to explain the full process of the housewarming ceremony in detail, step by step, to highlight how the manuscript is used throughout the ritual. 

Jom Harn Candim: biography

Ven. Jom Harn Candima is a Buddhist monk from Shan State Buddhist University (SSBU), Myanmar. He holds a B.A. in Buddhism from the State Pariyatti Sāsana University (SPSU), Yangon in Myanmar, an M.A. in Social Science from Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University (MCU), Thailand, and a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) from SSBU. He currently serves as a Pāli lecturer, Administrative Staff, and a secretary of the Administration and Management Committee at Shan State Buddhist University, where he plays an active role in both academic and institutional affairs. 

This presentation explores some rare and intriguing Tai Khuen manuscripts preserved in the Special Collections of the SOAS Library. The manuscripts are valuable sources for understanding Buddhist devotional practices, such as the chanting of the thirty pāramitās (perfections) and the reflection on the qualities of the Buddha and his former lives, known as Jataka. 

This form of chanting plays a significant role in contemporary Shan religious life and has been promoted by the revered monk Khuva Bunchum (Nyanasamvara), also known Maing Phone Sayadaw. Originally, this chanting practice has been associated with the Tai Khuen of Kengtung, Eastern Shan State, which was once part of the historic Lan Na kingdom. However, the tradition has seen significant revival and dissemination throughout Shan communities in Myanmar, especially in the 21st century.  

Through a multi-dimensional approach, this presentation aims to shed light on the textual, ritual, and cultural significance of the chanting, and more broadly, on the creative and dynamic role of Shan Buddhism within the Theravāda world. 

Nyanasami Laṅkāra: biography

Ven. Nyanasami Laṅkāra is from Shan State, Myanmar and received his early education through Myanmar’s traditional monastic education system. He earned the prestigious Alankāra degree and the Dhammācariya (BA equivalence) qualification. He later pursued his further studies in Pāli and Buddhist Studies at the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, where he was awarded a Postgraduate Diploma and an MA. 

From 2019 to 2022, he served as a lecturer in Pāli at the Shan State Buddhist University (SSBU), Myanmar. Currently, Ven. Nyanasami Laṅkāra is pursuing a second MA in Buddhist Studies at SOAS University of London while also serving as an assistant to the Abbot of the Oxford Buddha Vihara Trust, Oxford. His primary areas of interest include Pāli literature, commentarial studies, and the transmission of Theravāda Buddhist teachings.  

SOAS is one of the leading UK institutions that have special collections of archives, manuscripts and rare books on Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Hence, unsurprisingly, a number of rare Shan manuscripts and other archival materials are housed in SOAS Special Collections. In this presentation I will give a brief overview of Shan manuscripts and other archival materials in the SOAS Special Collections. 

I will then discuss some resources of information on Shan people and their traditions of practices as recorded in the manuscripts and archival materials. A key aim of this paper is to promote and raise more awareness of old manuscripts and other forms of archival materials as primary sources for research that would pave ways for linking with the people and communities somehow connected with such archival materials. 

Jotika Khur-Yearn: biography

Jotika Khur-Yearn is a subject librarian for Southeast Asia, History, Religions & Philosophies at SOAS, University of London. He is also a teaching fellow at the Shan State Buddhist University, Shan State, Myanmar. He has research interest in Tai/Shan literary traditions, with a focus on lik long / လိၵ်ႈလူင် literature and related traditions of practices. 

Curatorial practice-based research is now in its second year thanks to the SOAS Special Collection Co-Creator Internship. In this session I discuss my experience of mentoring student interns’ co-curation of Burmese Buddhist manuscripts, and their display at the SOAS library in May 2025. 

Their research questions were underpinned by personal interests in Buddhist practice and material culture. But they were also excited about the opportunity for tactile engagement with these relatively under-studied materials, and being able to share these with peers, and the wider SOAS community. Guidance on curatorial processes of selection, research, interpretation, and display, included access to the MA Curating Cultures programme which ran in parallel to this project.  

Collaborative research was also undertaken with Jotika Khur-Yearn and Nyanasami Lankara, through their recitations of Shan and Burmese (Pali) scripts. Drawing on their own monastic careers, these nuanced sonic interpretations foreground the performative potential of manuscripts that were intended for ritual use. 

I will explore how co-curation inevitably engages multiple voices and forms of meaning, in this case evidenced through the embodied knowledge of ritual practitioners. And how curatorial practice-based research can address SOAS’ on-going decolonising agenda. 

Heidi Tan: biography

Heidi Tan is Lecturer in Curating and Museology at the School of Arts, and convenes the MA Curating Cultures programme. Her research interests focus on temple museums in Myanmar and Northern Thailand. She is currently developing a digital collection for the SOAS Special Collection titled: ‘Meritorious Curating: Pagoda Museums in Myanmar’ with a focus on Shan temple museums; some of her works are already online on SOAS Digital Collections. 

Alex Kither, curator of rare books and manuscripts, Special Collections, SOAS Library, will lead in curating the display of manuscripts in SOAS Special Collections Reading Room, along with show and tell activities. This session is for people attending the event in person only. 

A key aim of this session is to provide an opportunity for the attendees to learn about handling old manuscripts and archival materials which need more care in order not to damage them. And hence we hope that this session will also provide an opportunity for the attendees to learn some basic knowledge and skills about working with archives and special collections.