Shwebo: Webu Sayadaw and the LabLab bean

On our pilgrimage, we will learn not only about the Dhamma history of the sites and famous figures from the past, but also about the local color of culture, customs, and yes, even food! For example, while our main purpose of visiting Shwebo is to meditate at the third monastery built for Webu Sayadaw, the spiritual guide to Sayagyi U Ba Khin, it's also worth noting one of the famed Shwebo dishes.

As an area famous for its farming, it is not surprising that Shwebo has its share of specialty foods. One is the lablab bean—beygyi (ပဲႀကီး), “great beans,” or bey htaw beq (ပဲေထာပက္), “butter beans” —which is added to boiled tomatoes. Sometimes this dish is cooked by whole villages as a communal offering to monasteries. 

We'll make sure to get a dish ready for meditators following their monastery visit!