Eliminating suffering through the birth of metta: A critical hermeneutic inquiry of the identity and ethical intention of selected monks of Burma

The September 2007 Saffron Revolution profoundly brought to the attention of the world the struggle between the Theravada Buddhist monks of Burma and the State Peace and Development Council, the successors of a military regime that came to power shortly after Britain removed their occupying forces from Burma in 1947. Approximately 50,000 monks took to the streets in an unprecedented display of imagination, courage, and selfless resolve; that resolve was met by a military regime with an equally unprecedented display of violence, brutality, and inhumanity. This text explores the identity and ethical intention of selected monks of Burma --- the monks of the Saffron Revolution.;The research protocol is guided by the critical hermeneutic tradition as described by Herda (1999). The research categories used to guide this research included Martin Heidegger's Care (1962), and Paul Ricoeur's Identity and Ethical Intention (1992; 1984).;The narratives from my conversation partners, text analysis, and research findings show that understanding the identity and ethical intention, grounded in care, of selected monks of Burma has potential to lessen social injustice and social challenges of many kinds. The findings of the research are vipassana -- insightful contemplation -- orientates the monk toward the other; the monk's identity is partially formed by the wishing of luck; and, the root of the monks' everyday actions is metta -- loving-kindness. The first finding identifies the unique positioning of the monks toward the laity in particular, and the other in general. The second finding acknowledges the socially formative and symbiotic nature of luck-wishing. The last finding identifies the fundamental tenet by which the monks derive their impetus to act on behalf of the people of Burma.;This research project has significant and direct implications for action in the public sphere, leadership development, and program and policy development. These practical implications include: the importance of creating platforms between leaders and constituents that express a person's authentic being in community; complementing professional development with a focus upon relationship building and reciprocity; and, augmenting program and policy assessments with narratives from social, professional and or religious contexts.