Gifted Persons

When I was young, I have heard of the words 'orang alim' or bomoh' or 'dukun' from my paternal grandmother (Nyai) who was a 'mak andam' and 'mak bidan'. She told me that those people were gifted persons, who were given certain divine knowledge and skills to assist other people  who were in need such as to cure certain illnesses, etc. But, sometimes they were paid for their assistance to cure the patients, although most of the time, their services were free. 

Being a 'mak andam' and also a 'mak bidan' during her life time, I would like to think that my late Nyai was also a gifted person based on the skills she rendered. In fact, on many occasions, I had the opportunity to be tagged along by her to the villagers' houses @SweetWater Village, when they needed her help and assistance - whether to 'andam' (make up) the brides or to deliver new borns. 

However, I have not heard the word fortune teller from my Nyai, until I arrived in Myanmar and get to know about another type of gifted persons. In fact, in a country surrounded by many pagodas, it was a culture or a common tradition which is totally acceptable by the people that in almost every matter, they would consult a fortune teller or a seer.

I was very fortunate to meet some of these gifted persons during my stay in Yangon. Irrespective of their genders, the 'Seers' or the 'Fortune Tellers' main purpose was to tell the person who came to them (customer) about their future. In most cases, the results were favorable and the customers came out with happy faces. Sometimes, the 'Seers' also help to make decisions for the customers who were in crossroads. Other than that, they also helped to cure the sickly customers who came before them by citing some mantras, etc.

There was also an interesting event about gifted persons which I have come across in Yangon or I'd prefer to note it as a lesson to be learned event about seeing a fortune teller. The most important rule is that the customer must not only be alert but must be prepared for the consequences or result of seeing a seer! It is because in some cases the consequences can be very detrimental to them. 

In fact, there was a real story about a so-called loving  couple who met a fortune teller and upon coming out from the seer's residence, they got divorced! It was indeed a frightening experience yet it was also a reality in Yangon. What actually happened was in the seer's room, without the couple said anything to the seer, she could 'see through' deep into the mind and heart of the husband and therefore tell the wife who was actually her husband that she was married to. He was not what he portrayed to his wife as a loving couple and what nought. All were just sweet talk and flattery or just fascarde yet, the other side of him was evil - he betrayed his wife by having a mistress and the seer knew about this, and worst to come was that the seer knew the address and telephone number of the mistress :(

Well, the opportunity to meet some of the gifted persons in Yangon was also one of life time experiences to me. It was not only surprisingly memorable, but certainly an unforgettable experience which led me to have some thoughts of self reflections. Sometimes, we may feel that we can hide our secrets, emotions and many more from others, but these gifted persons could see-through us just like flipping our personal diaries. Except, we must remember that all the happenings which they saw and revealed to us were all with Allah SWT will and grace - who He wants to give the gifts.