Encyclopedia of Buddhism

woodcarving flourished, as seen in a number of splen-
did carved wood monasteries, including Shwe Kyaung
in Mandalay and Bagaya Kyaung in Ava. The unfin-
ished Mingun Pagoda, built by the megalomaniacal
King Bodawhpaya in 1790, is said to be the largest brick
structure in the world, and its bell is the largest work-
ing bell in the world. Across the Irrawaddy from Man-
dalay, the pilgrimage center of Sagaing contains a
number of Ava, Konbaung, and colonial-period dedi-
cations revealing the high levels of craftsmanship
achieved in the decorative arts during these periods. Il-
lustrated manuscripts (secular and religious), glass
mosaic work, textiles, lacquer ware, and silversmithing
are but a few of the crafts that flourished.

The sixth conquest of AYUTTHAYAin Thailand in
1767 resulted in the relocation of a number of Thai
artists in Burma whose work includes the redecoration
of the Upali Thein at Pagan. Chinese influences ap-
peared in the works of Bagyidaw. The hand of Italian
engineers employed by King Mindon can be seen in a

number of Italianate pavilions at the new Mandalay

palace and in a number of religious dedications, no-

tably the Atu-ma-shi Monastery, destroyed by fire in

an 1890 war and since reconstructed. Following the

British annexation of Upper Burma in 1886, the Bud-

dhist arts underwent something of a renaissance as a

result of increased prosperity coupled with the libera-

tion of a devout mercantile class from sumptuary con-

trols. Splendid monastery complexes, such as the

Ma-so-shin and Myin-wun-taik monasteries, were

constructed in the 1890s with traditional ground plans

and pseudo-Palladian facades. The classical arcades of

the Yakhine Maha-myat-muni Hpaya-gyi, the princi-

pal pagoda of modern Mandalay, dedicated in 1784 but

largely rebuilt in the colonial period, again reveal this

European influence. In the mural paintings found

within the Hpaya-gyi, early portrayals of Europeans,

railway trains, and steamboats are depicted in classical

Konbaung style.

See also:Cave Sanctuaries; Merit and Merit-Making;

Monastic Architecture; Myanmar; Shwedagon

Bibliography

Aung Thaw. Historical Sites in Burma.Rangoon: Ministry of

Union Culture, 1972.

Harvey, G. E. A History of Burma from Earliest Time to 10 March

1824.London: Frank Cass and Co., 1925.

Luce, G. H. Old Burma—Early Pagan,3 vols. Locust Valley, NY:

J. J. Augustin, 1969–1970.

Pichard, Pierre. Inventory of Monuments at Pagan,8 vols. Paris:

UNESCO; Gartmore, Scotland: Kiscadale Publications,

1992–2002.

Spiro, Melford E. Buddhism and Society: A Great Tradition and

Its Burmese Vicissitudes.New York: Harper and Row, 1972.

Strachan, Paul. Pagan: Art and Architecture of Old Burma.Whit-

ing Bay, Scotland: Kiscadale Publications, 1989.

Than Tun. Essays on the History of Buddhism in Burma,ed. Paul

Strachan. Whiting Bay, Scotland: Kiscadale Publications,

1988.

PAULSTRACHAN

MYO
E. SeeKo
ben

MYSTICISM. SeeBodhi (Awakening); Meditation

MYANMAR, BUDDHISTART IN

Kyaiktiyo Pagoda hangs on a cliff top in Mon state, Myanmar
(Burma). Pilgrims must hike seven miles up a jungle mountain path
to reach it. The twenty-four-foot-tall stu
pa atop the rock is said to
contain a hair from the Buddha’s head. AP/Wide World Photos.
Reproduced by permission.