Oopali or Upali was a 9th century Burmese monk who is credited with founding pongyi thaing

Pongyi thaing

Pongyi thaing is a Burmese martial art created by the monk Oopali in the 9th century. Based on the Hindu-Buddhist principle of non-violence and non-aggression, its objective is not to cause maximum harm but simply to defend oneself...

 and establishing a Buddhist order. His order still exists today in Myanmar

Myanmar

Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, Cambodia

Cambodia

Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...

 and Laos

Laos

Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...

 but his fighting art disappeared. During the 19th century, the elder abbots Mogak Sayadaw, Mandalay Sayadaw, Mingun Sayadaw, Shwelbo Sayadaw and Anapura Sayadaw were the only monks who continued to teach the system in northern Burma.