Myanmar Beauty Secret Tha Na Ka

For over 2000 years Tha Na Ka has been a part of Myanmar women's beauty routine. Tha Na Ka  is s a Myanmar term for a kind of tree call Limonia acidissima.
Smeared moisturizer, sunscreen, and perfume like Tha Na Ka paste is a traditional carriers to Myanmar peoples; when my young times such primary school time my mothers prepare the Tha Na Ka paste and smeared to my face before to school every morning. Not only me but also all of my friends, none of my friends, either boys or girls and enjoy the Tha Na Ka wearing even teacher’s too.
When you visit to Myanmar; you can see the young boy and girl are practices the Tha Na Ka paste on their faces for the old woman too not only in the country site, but also in the big city. Some women use the make-up but at night time they paste the Tha Na Ka (some women smeared for the whale body).

The Original of the Tha Na Ka

Naturally grow of Tha Na Ka is at the upper portion of Myanmar; we can call at dry zone. Shwe Bo, Shinma Taung, Pakokku and Monywa areas are the most famous. Now a day, the growing farm of the Tha Na Ka tree is famous among our peoples. The Tha Na Ka tree growing is needed to wait about 7 years to harvest.  Cut to block, grind on stone use for grinding with a little of water, to become the paste and smears on face or any part of the body; woman, kid and some man sprinkle, stripe or blotch their faces with thin Tha Na Ka (pondered back as make-up) because of using the Tha Na Ka paste, can protect from sunburn; use as moisturizer, and medicinal too. The country women are wearied the Tha Na Ka thickly when they go to field. They practice thin layer to the whole body in the night time as to cool down the body heat and perfume. Outside of Myanmar, Tha Na Ka is said to grow in India, South Asia, and North Western region of Himalayas. In Myanmar its grow in Shwe Bo, Monywa, Khin Oo and Tong Twin Gyi townships are the most famous for Tha Na Ka.
A tree of medium size reaching up to 20 or 30 feet in height, the tree has a long top root with many aside spreading roots. Inner and outer bark develops as it grows with the passage of time. It is widely believed to be a tree of many medicinal properties. In the days of the past, children with smallpox and chickenpox. Tha Na Ka paste and Tha Na Ka liquid applied all over their bodies and drinking its ground bark mixed in water can release such ailment from urinary disorders, feeling of dullness, headache; hazy eye-sigh. For woman, mixing Tha Na Ka ponder with turmeric ponder in water and applying the mixture on all over the body, is good for the release inflammation. Tha Na Ka is the best body and face conditioner for Myanmar people.
  
           
The Tha Na Ka market at present time

Daw Thi Tha Na Ka at Mandalay is holding the whole country market from city to local community. Liquid form, paste form and powder form are sole in the market. The original tree trunk blocks are cut and sole at every market, especially at the pagodas festival markets at country wide. Some ready made Tha Na Ka pastes are distributed in to a small plastic box, bottle for market places. Tong Gyi  Maruk Me, Shwe Bo Min Tha Mee and Ma De trade marks are popular at the present market places. The Shwe Pyi Nan, Song Daw Kuu, Pin Taing San, Sandar and Brandni brands are also recently the popular brands of the Tha Na Ka in the market.