A shinbyu is a religious donation in the full sense of the term, crucial in the lives of the Buddhist Burmese. While the shinbyu has been studied for its symbolic and ritual aspects by various anthropologists, this article proposes to analyse it through the social scenes in which different types of transfers intertwine with the religious donation. It focuses especially on “The Plate Scene”, an ambiguous moment where uncertainty about the meaning of the staging reveals the political work at play in interpreting transfers when an elderly lady refuses to be caught in the game.

An anthropological analysis of a single gesture at a community meal offering.