This podcaster is a good story teller. The video imagery incorporated is quite nice as well. Bagan is one of the world’s if not the world’s largest archaeological park.

Just two major notes to this video podcast: 1 - It is to be noted that ruling elites of Nanchao Kingdom spoke a Tibeto-Burman language closely related to the Burmese or Mien as Chinese called them. As did the Pyu people who had settled in present-day Burma following the same migration route 1000 years earlier. The rulers of Nanchao were a mystery until the recent years. One of the ways historians identified Nanchao as being similar to Burmans or Bamars was their practice of forced migration and re-settlement of peoples of the lands they conquored, usually for economic advantages. A second characteristic they shared was their rulers had an unusual convention of naming the first name of their children with their last name.

2 - at 44:00 the reasoning for Anawrahtha’s conquest of Thaton and southern Burma - while the podcast says Anawrahtha was motivated by trade, this was likely secondary. At the time Khmers were a rising power in Southeast Asia mainland having conquored the lands of Mons in present-day Thailand and pushing west towards Burma. Historians believe Anawrahtha invaded Mon kingdom of Thaton in order to halt Khmer Empire’s expansion west and meet their threat.