Now, at 15 years of age, time came for him to be novitiated. But his parents could not afford their son's Shin Pyu, the ordination ceremony of a Buddhist novice into the order of monks, the Sangah. Buddhist parents never feel the importance of being parents so much as when the time comes to send their son as monk to a monastery for a period of time.

As our friend's birthday was coming soon he decided to become the donor of the Shin Pyu Ceremony of his friend Maung Chit Swe. The parents were exited about this and all was arranged for the big day to come in a short time. Yellow robes and all the paraphernalia of novices were bought and on the appointed day we arrived at the village. The welcoming 'umbrella man' with his transportable orchestra and his huge grammophone - blasting traditional percussion music - made sure that latest now everybody knew that there was a Shin Pyu Ceremony going on.

And there were the proud parents next to their son whom we did not recognize anymore. In a beautifully, princely robe of white silk and gold, on a decorated horse's back, the gilded umbrella covering his head, he looked with a serious face down to us. The procession thus started, the dancing 'umbrella man' leading, hundreds of villagers following to one of the oldest teak monasteries in the Bagan area.

Surrounded by shady trees, the monastery's compound well kept, we finally arrived at the novice's destination. There was our prince - sitting on a red velvet sofa, surrounded by the donors and family members.

Last pictures were taken, before the shaving knife of the monk touched the boy's head. The parents held a snow-white sheet to receive his hair, which they intended to bury near a pagoda. Only we heard the our friends speaking: "Poor boy, poor boy, now he is bald!". Luckily his parents did not hear that, because for them it was the happiest day in their life.