The road on which a car carrying me is a tortuous but fine one. The facility is not straight because it is built on highland. Taking the car, I happened to think about the four paths that human beings ususally lead their lives:

(1) straight and fine path,

(2) straight but not fine path,

(3) fine but not straight path,

(4) not fine and not straight path.

When the car just passed through the entrance to Kengtung, I saw magnificent Kengtung University along with hostels for faculty members and students. After taking a rest at Maha Bodhi Kamatthana Monastery in Kengtung, we proceeded to the Maha Myat Muni Pagoda and Khemarattha Standing Buddha Image. Like the Sule Pagoda in Yangon, the Maha Myat Muni Pagoda is located at a junction of motor roads from four directions. Maha Myat Muni Buddha Image is a replica of Mandalay Maha Myat Muni Buddha Image.

I offered gold foils to the image and recited religious verses there. Then, the sun set. The 76 feet and six inches high image has an 18- foot-long pure-gold Thinkyit (decorative frontlet embodied on the forehead) with the weight of a viss. In June and July 1995, some ancient Buddha images were excavated there. So, the chairman monks of the township All Ganas of Members of the Sangha in Kengtung, local prominent monks led by the chairman of Kengtung Sangha Nayaka Committee Naga Hnakaung Sayadaw, and local authorities led by the commander of Golden Triangle Region Command (now Prime Minister General Thein Sein) built the Khemarattha Standing Buddha Image, enshrining the excavated images in it, with the aim of promoting and propagating the Sasana and ensuring peace and stability around the country.

The following day, I visited the historic Nawngton Lake in Kengtung. The word “Nawngton” is made up of two words “Nawng” and “Ton”. The word “Ton” is derived from a Shan language word “Tone“ that means “receive or hold”. There is an oral history that when the Buddha was alive, some wellwishers washed rice to offer alms food to the Buddha and His company of arahats. The spilled out water flowed up to the lake that would be known as the Nawngton Lake. After some periods elapsed, the word “Tone” was pronounced as “Ton”. The word “Nawng” means a large lake. So, the word “Nawngton” means the lake that receives or holds Hsan-hsay-yay (water that has been used to wash rice to cook).

And the word “Keng” means tripod or the place of the stove supporting the pot used to cook rice. The region where rice was cooked to offer alms food to the Buddha and His company of arahats was known as Keng at the time. The word “tripod” also means holding the pot containing rice and water. So, the words “Keng” and “Tung” were combined into a single word “Kengtung”.

So, I would say Kengtung is a town of tripod. From the religious point of view, Kengtung is a region where the Three Gems — Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha — exist firmly and so does is the tripod of “nondisintegration of Union, non-disintegration of national solidarity, and perpetuation of sovereignty”.

Nawngton Lake reflects the sense of upholding Our Three Main National Causes and oneness of over 100 national races.

Few days later, we left Kengtung for Tachilek.

The Union Highway is such a fine transport facility that it took us only over three hours to get to Tachilek, 102 miles from Kengtung.

In the past, passengers had to spend a night to make the same trip. On one side of Kengtung-Tachilek Road is a creek and other side, a ridge. Some ridges are made up of silt and sand. So, when it rains heavily or for several days consecutively, there was a landslide from the ridges and the road was blocked severely. Moreover, the U-shape bend road sections might be ravaged.

Unlike in the past, the road has been upgraded to a six-lane facility thanks to the goodwill of the Tatamdaw government.

The airport of Tachilek was found very splendid with works of Myanmar fine arts. Previously, Tachilek was just a small countryside town. Since 2000, it has been developed to a city, whose progress is on a par with that of Meisai of Thailand.

Due to the replica of the Shwedagon Pagoda that was built under the leadership of the Tatmadaw government, the dwellers of Tachilek have come to devote themselves to the Three Gems.

And there is the statue of King Bayintnaung that is distinct from Meisai side of Thailand. I also recalled some events that the Second Myanmar Empire built by King Bayintnaung collapsed into many parts shortly thereafter.

Since 1988, peace and stability has been restored well throughout the nation and the nation has enjoyed development at unprecedented level. That is tangible. The Tatmadaw government had to make a lot of sacrifices and work day in, day out to accomplish such a demanding task. Therefore, the Tatamdaw government would not allow any situations that can harm the already-achieved development momentum.

So far, the Tatmadaw government has nearly accomplished three steps of the seven-step Road Map that is the only process to deal with globalization in accordance with the background history, geopolitics, traditions and qualities of Myanmar.

I wish the entire Myanmar people a success in implementing the State’s seven-step Road Map with a broad view, a broad mind and understanding.