lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

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AROUND YANGON

NORTH OF YANGON

four Mon sisters were connected with the

construction of the buddhas; it was said that

if any of them should marry, one of the bud-

dhas would collapse. One of the four bud-

dhas disintegrated in the 1930 earthquake,

leaving only a brick outline (since restored)

and a very old bride.

Maha Kalyani Sima

(Maha Kalyani Thein) BUDDHIST TEMPLE

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This ‘Sacred Hall of Ordination’ was origi-

nally constructed in 1476 by Dhammazedi,

the famous alchemist king and son of Queen

Shinsawpu. Like almost everything in Bago

it has suff ered a tumbledown history and

has been destroyed and rebuilt many a time.

Next to the hall are 10 large tablets with

inscriptions in Pali and Mon describing the

history of Buddhism in Myanmar.

If you can’t get enough of buddha statues

then across the road from the Maha Kalyani

Sima is the Four Figures Paya, with four

buddha fi gures standing back to back. An

adjacent open hallway has a small reclining

buddha image, thronged by followers, and

some macabre paintings of wrongdoers be-

ing tortured in the afterlife.

Relaxing in the sun next to these two

monuments is the Naung Daw Gyi Mya

Tha Lyaung, a reclining buddha sprawled

out over 250ft, which is almost as long as its

name. It was built in 2002 with donations

from the people and, though locals adore it,

you probably won’t fi nd it all that interesting.

Mahazedi Paya BUDDHIST STUPA

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The design of the Mahazedi Paya (Great Stu-

pa), with its whitewashed stairways leading

almost to the stupa’s summit, is unusual for

southern Myanmar and certainly one of the

more attractive religious buildings in Bago.

Originally constructed in 1560 by King

Bayinnaung, it was destroyed during the 1757

sacking of Bago. An attempt to rebuild it in

1860 was unsuccessful and the great earth-

quake of 1930 comprehensively levelled it,

after which it remained a ruin. This current

reconstruction was only completed in 1982.

The Mahazedi originally contained a Bud-

dha tooth, at one time thought to be the most

sacred of all Buddha relics, the tooth of Kandy,

Sri Lanka. After Bago was conquered in 1539,

the tooth was moved to Taungoo and then

to Sagaing near Mandalay. Together with a

begging bowl supposed to have been used by

the Buddha, it remains in the Kaunghmudaw

Paya (p 229 ), near Sagaing, to this day.

Shwegugale Paya BUDDHIST STUPA

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A little beyond the Mahazedi, this zedi has a

dark gu (tunnel) around the circumference

of the cylindrical superstructure. The monu-

ment dates to 1494 and the reign of King Byin-

nya Yan. Inside are 64 seated buddha fi gures.

In the evening many locals venture out here.

From the zedi, cross a rickety wooden

footbridge and you’ll arrive at a nat shrine

with life-sized statues of Ko Thein and Ko

Thant, the nat of the temple compound.

Kanbawzathadi Palace PA L AC E

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The original site of Hanthawady, which sur-

rounded Kanbawzathadi Palace, a former

Mon palace, was excavated just south of the

huge Shwemawdaw Paya. Walled in the Mon

style, the square city measured a mile along

each side and had 20 gates.

ENTRANCE FEES &

OPENING HOURS

Though foreigners can visit the town

for free, offi cially they must buy an

entrance ticket ($10) valid for all the

town’s sights. During our visit, this could

be purchased only at the Shwemawdaw

Paya, but should also be available at the

Shwethalyaung Buddha. Nearly all of

the sights charge an additional K300

for camera and K500 for videocameras.

All the sights are open from just before

sunrise until well after dark.

THE HAMSA

In deference to legend, the symbol

for Bago is a female hamsa (hintha

or hantha in Burmese; a mythological

bird) standing on the back of a male

hamsa. At a deeper level, the symbol

honours the compassion of the male

hamsa in providing a place for the

female to stand in the middle of a lake

with only one island. Hence, the men

of Bago are said to be more chivalrous

than men from other Burmese areas. In

popular Burmese culture, however, men

joke that they dare not marry a woman

from Bago for fear of being henpecked!