283RAKHAING STATESIGHTSWESTERN MYANMARSIGHTSWESTERN MYANMARMRAUK U (MYOHAUNG)EAST GROUP
This area stretches a mile or so east of the
palace walls.
Kothaung Paya BUDDHIST TEMPLE
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One of Mrauk U’s highlights, this restored
temple is a mile or so east of the palace. At
230ft by 250ft, it’s Mrauk U’s largest temple.
Built in 1553 by King Minbin’s son, King
Mintaikkha, to outdo his pop’s Shittaung by
10,000 images (‘Kothaung’ means ‘Shrine
of 90,000 Images’), much of it was found
in fragments. Legends vary – that lightning
or an earthquake in 1776 destroyed it, jewel-
seekers overturned walls, or that it was built
with inferior stones by a superstitious king
bent on beating a six-month timeline.
The outer passageway is lined with thou-
sands of bas reliefs on the walls and buddha
images (some headless). Stairways lead up
to a top terrace, once dotted with 108 stupas.
Get here either on the winding road to
Sakyamanaung ( just north of Moe Cherry),
veering right at one fork, or from the east–
west road from the market, veering left be-
fore the bridge.
Sakyamanaung Paya BUDDHIST TEMPLE
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Roughly half a mile northeast of the palace
walls, and behind Shwegudaung hill, this
graceful Mon-infl uenced zedi was erected in
1629 by King Thirithudhammaraza. At this
later stage, stupas were built more vertically
and ornately than before.
The lower half of the well-preserved 280ft
zedi features a multitiered octagonal shape
as at Laungbanpyauk Paya, but beyond this
the bells revert to a layered circular shape
mounted by a decorative hti (umbrella-like
top). You’ll see brightly painted, half-kneel-
ing giants at the west gate.
Looking over Shwegudaung hill (back to
the west) Ratanamanaung off ers fi ne views.
From the path off the road, villagers will prob-
ably walk with you towards Ratanamanaung.Peisi Daung Paya BUDDHIST TEMPLE
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On a hill immediately south of Kothaung,
sits this unrestored four-door pagoda, hous-
ing four sandstone buddha images. Push
your way past the rubble and cobwebs for
the wondrous views from the top. It’s up
to you whether you believe the locals who
claim that it has the honour of keeping tes-
ticle relics of the Buddha.
Returning to town you’ll pass the
Phraouk Paya, another hilltop pagoda.PALACE SITE & AROUND
Just east of the main strip of Mrauk U vil-
lage, the one-time royal palace of Mrauk U
now is mostly crumbling walls (though the
outer walls still stand 11.5ft high).
According to the legend, King Minbin’s
astrologers advised a move here in 1429
after the palace at Launggret had been in-
vaded by ‘poisonous snakes and evil birds’.
His representatives witnessed some strange
things at this spot – an old guy playing a
fl ute pointed to a cat-chasing rat and then a
snake-biting frog – apparently suggesting its
soil as being worthy of a king. Construction
began in 1430 (though some sources say it
didn’t start until 1553).Palace Museum MUSEUM
(admission $5; h9am-4pm Mon-Fri) Just inside
the palace’s western walls is the Department
of Archaeology’s museum, which housesPAMELA GUTMANAn Honorary Associate in the Department of Art History at the University of Sydney, and au-
thor of Burma’s Lost Kingdoms: Splendours of Arakan, Pamela Gutman has been travelling
to Myanmar since the early 1970s when she began work on her PhD on Rakhaing’s ancient
art, architecture and inscriptions. The following are her top temple picks in Mrauk U:
» Shittaung Paya (p 281 ) Regarded as the repository of Rakhaing national identity.
» Dukkanthein Paya (p 282 ) For its mysterious buddha-lined passageways.
» Andaw Paya (p 282 ) For its remarkable collection of sculptures.
» Mahabodhi Shwegu (p 282 ) An example of the early style of Buddhist sculpture at
Mrauk U and for its representation of the Buddhist heaven, earth and hell. If you look
carefully you can spot some erotic carvings on the buddha’s throne – very naughty for
a Buddhist temple!