Contesting Buddhist Narratives religion; and thathana is the Burmese rendering of sasana, the Pali word for the Buddhist tradition as a whole (explained in more detail below). The formation of these new groups could be a response to a ban on the political use of the 969 symbol in September 2013 by the Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee (Ferrie and Min Zayar Oo 2013). However, they also represent a tactical shift, as the groups are working more closely with political parties and other actors inside the system. Although 969-allied monks such as U Wirathu still maintain prominent and visible positions, the shift in tactics indicates that Buddhist nationalism in contemporary Myanmar is responsive to changing political opportunities. It is difficult to characterize adequately the complexity of MaBaTha. Probably the most common perception of the organization among foreign observers (also held by some in Myanmar) is of a discriminatory group that spreads a virulently anti-Muslim message and reinforces notions of an exclusively Buddhist nation. While this is certainly true of some of the most outspoken and prominent MaBaTha monks, other monks convey more mixed messages. One MaBaTha monk, Galon-ni Sayadaw, became well known in the days after the June riots in Mandalay, when a video spread of him telling rioters to disperse, that violence and hatred were not appropriate responses to their concerns, and that monks would resolve the situation.16 Another example is the seeming ambivalence of the influential monk Sitagu Sayadaw, who is associated with MaBaTha and also regularly participates in interreligious dialogues and preaches for peace and tolerance. In explaining the association, one monk close to him said that he was seeking to channel the MaBaTha monks’ motivation to protect Buddhism into reconciling rather than divisive ways.17 Indeed, multiple people (sympathetic to the organization, it must be noted) explain the genesis of MaBaTha as an initiative on the part of some senior Burmese monks who felt that the 969 movement was in danger of creating a negative perception of Burmese Buddhism and wanted to bring it under more control.18 While this may have been the intention of some of the monks who launched the organization, its creation has certainly not resulted in the disappearance of anti-Muslim preaching or violence directed against Muslims. In the past year, some of the most controversial monastic mobilization has focused on passage of a law that would restrict interfaith 15