Salisbury and Stonehenge

Dr Maung Maung Nyo

I still remember our going to Stonehenge

We started from the Burmese Embassy thence

Situated in central London since Independence

It’s 19 A Charles Street W 1 for reference.

(Salisbury Town, England, UK)

We're State Scholars studying in Britain those days

We’re members of the Burmese Association UK

Established with Burmese diplomats of the day

To promote friendship, cohesion and cooperation

Among all the Burmese living and studying in the UK

It was 1968 in the heydays of BSPP administration.

(Tudor Houses in Salisbury)

President and senior diplomats rode in their own cars

We scholars about 60 or 70 rode in the coaches chartered

We had musical instruments, musicians, singers and jesters

It was a jolly and jerky rides to Salisbury Plains in September.

(River Avon passing Through Salisbury Town)

It was a Saturday in the middle of late autumn

There were both sun and clouds in the horizon

It rained when we’re near Salisbury town

We had to find a roofed place to rest and reckon

It was past noon and many were hungry now

So, Danbauk or Byriani rice was served along.

(Salisbury Cathedral, England , Built in the 13th Century AD)

Salisbury was a tiny town in Southern England

But, its history is as old as any in Wales and Ireland

It had the famed Salisbury Cathedral with its special spire

We watched with wonder its spire, the tallest in Britannia;

(Exterior of the Salisbury Cathedral, England)

Salisbury Cathedral was awe-inspiring and majestic in sight

Tiered roofs, decorated walls and stained glass made it right

Looking from distance it looked like the Ananda Temple in Pagan

I wondered how the East and West had conjured such a similar plan.

(Interior of the Salisbury Cathedral)

We walked along River Avon when the rain stopped

We found city gates, Tudor houses and souvenir shops

Trees and bushes were colourful with august autumn tops

Red and orange foliage donned the fields and forest fortes.

(Red and Yellow Foliage of Autumn in Salisbury Town, England)

Salisbury reminded me of one Salisbury in Rhodesia

Where Ian Smith unilaterally declared independence there

It was for the White and meant for racist policies and enigma

Native Black ultimately succeeded in toppling the White Rulers;

(Map of Zimbabwe, formerly Rhodesia, showing Harare, formerly

Salisbury)

The whole world supported Black’s independence with fervor

It included British Government in wrestling Ian Smith’s power

It’s a case of right prevailing over the wrong in majority’s favor

The world should also unite in similar cases like Darfur and Burma;

(Zimbabwe People Fleeing their Own Country for Survival)

By the way, Salisbury in Rhodesia was changed to Harare later

Rhodesia became Zimbabwe from the name of ancient African Empire

Yes, it’s changed legitimately by the elected Government of Rhodesia

It has now become a basket case of corruption, poverty and cholera.

(Great Enclosure of Great Zimbabwe Empire in East Africa 14th to

15th Century AD, Built by the African Bantu Tribes)

We drove to the Stonehenge when the sun came back

It’s a green mound with many slabs of stone standing erect

It’s the Stonehenge so imposing and inspiring to look at

I saluted the prehistoric people of Britain for their acts;

(Aerial View of Stonehenge; Note the Motorways near it)

Whether for astronomical purposes for equinoxes and solstices

Or for religious purposes for Pre-Pagan, Pagan and Druids’ Rites

Or a place of burial for the royals, aristocrats and tribe’s elders

Or a place of fertility worship as it resembles a woman’s genitalia;

(The Stonehenge, Salisbury Plains, England)

One thing is sure; it still gives people diverse ideas to ponder

Is it a landmark erected by the aliens for reconnaissance from yonder?

(Sunrise at Stonehenge, Summer Solstice, June 21)

We had a close look at the Stonehenge at close quarters

We walked around outer and inner peripheries for hours

We felt the stone blocks making the trilithons or stone bars

We estimated their weights to be around 50 tons or near

How could primitive people build heavy blocks of stone manually?

It’s a wonder human beings are capable of doing things amazingly!

(Winter Solstice at Stonehenge, December 22 to 29, England)

The Stonehenge has been built around 5000 BP or so

It was built in 3 stages to carry the big stones from Wales

The distance traveled covered sea, land and river ways

An ardent desire and united efforts had made it a show;

It took from 3100 BC to 1600 BC to be completed right

All of us should take pride as a human heritage site.

(Building of Stonehenge in 3 Stages from 3100 BC to 1600 BC)

There is evidence that similar sites exist in Wales and Ireland

There is one claim that the Irish Stones were brought to England

It was carried by Satan and the evidence of carriage was destroyed

Some claimed it's built by a giant and related to King Arthur’s legend.

(Stonehenge Trilithons that is two upright stones with a horizontal bar

stone connecting them on tops)

One interesting thing is that River Avon connects it to Stratford

It’s as though the ancient monument is connected to the legendary Bard

It’s the pride of the ancient Britons and the present British people

I admire the builders of megalith from its inception to its present view.

(The Victoria Falls Between Zambia and Zimbabwe)

Dr Maung Maung Nyo

18.12.2008 (original)