by Rohan Jayetillake

Myanmar is a land of Buddhist monasteries numbering over 3,500 and each monastery has its own statues of Buddha turned out in different styles.

To most Myanmars and foreign visitors the name of Maha Muni would call to mind the vision of a richly gilded bronze statue of Buddha in a specially built shrine in the Nouth-Western sector of Mandalay, the last royal capital of the Myanmar Kings.

This great statue of the Buddha greatly venerated by Myanmars was originally in a shrine in far away Rakhine (Arakan) in the western part of Myanmar towards the border with India and Bangladesh.

The legends say that this statue was cast during the life time Gautama Buddha c. 563 - c. 483 BC, during the visit of the Buddha to Rakhine and it was in its original shrine near Kyauktaw for over 2,400 years and highly venerated by Myanmar Buddhists both clergy and the laity.

It has been in the present site in Mandalay for around 200 years. The oldest Buddhist tradition in the country is during the Buddha's week-long sojourn in Rakhine, it was cast with the blessings of the Buddha.

The Myanmars for many centuries believe Buddha accompanied by his Chief Attendant and his first cousin Venerable Ananda made an aerial journey and alighted on the summit of Selagiri Hill opposite Kyauktaw township. The Rakhine King Sanda Thuriya (Chandasurya) of Dhanyawadi (Dhanyavati) accompanied by his chief queen Sandra Mala (Chandramala) with her retinue of 1,600 ladies-in-waiting, his entire court went and paid their obeisance to the Buddha.

On the eve of Buddha returning to Sarasvati (modern Sahet-Mahet) the King made a request to the Buddha, "We have no opportunity to pay homage to you, as your goodself is in India, and as such for our veneration please leave an image of yourself". Thus came to be made the Maha Muni Statue.

The Maha Muni image was lost for a number of years after the fall of the Dhanyavai kingdom when the capital was moved to weythaki (Vesali) and still later to Mrauku in Myanmar. The Maha Muni Shrine is one of the most sacred sites in Present day Mandalay, but it was under the aegis of Amarapura, the last capital of Myanmar kings.

The indigenous people call the shrine 'Paya-gyi' or the Great pagoda or Rakhine Paya, meaning the pagoda housing the image from Rakhine. It is located in the Kyun-lon U - shaung quarter of Chan Mya thasi township of Mandalay. The Maha Muni Buddha image measures 12 feet and 7 inches in height and in the Bhumisparsa Mudra (touching the ground with the right hand) one of the Mudras of the Buddha.

The statue is crowned with very thick layer of gold leaf, except the face and is on 7 foot pedestal. Myanmars, Thais and Japanese even today visiting Buddhist shrines in India paste gold leaf on the walls of shrines. Similarly in Myanmar too only men are allowed to enter sanctum sanatorium where they can climb a small ladder to paste gold leaves.

Myanmars believe Maha Muni Statue is having life and every morning before the break of dawn between 4.00 and 4.30 am, its face is washed and its Teeth brushed.

The towels used by the worshippers to wipe the face after use are taken away by them as holy momentos to place in their own shrines at home. In these homes, there is also a cult where a separate shrine is built in the compound to light lamps and offer flowers and food to their ancestors who are supposed to be divine beings called 'Nats'.

There are two Maha Muni Shrines in Myanmar one in mandalay and the other one near Kyauktaw, both of which are the rendezvous of the Myanmar Buddhists.

Buddha Image with gold rimmed spectacles

At a distance of 150 to 180 miles to the north of Yangon (formerly Rangoon) is the sprawling mid-country city near the ancient Pyu city of Sre Kestra on the Shwe Nat Taung hillock is a temple with an image of Buddha built of brick and plaster in earth-touching posture wearing a pair of gold rimmed spectacles. The image has been adorned with the pair of spectacles only at a later time.

The Buddha image being adorned with a pair of gold rimmed spectacles is recorded in Myanmar history.

King Duttabaung, the founder of Sri Kestra dynasty circa 5th century BC, and his Queen Sanda Devi who formerly ruled Beithano (Vishnu) City came on state pilgrimage to Shwe Nat Tsung Pagoda.

They renovated the run down pagoda and holding many religious oblations returned to their palace. En route to the capital they spent the night at a place called Tei Kon (temporary royal residence. In her deep sleep the queen dreamt of her worshipping to the Buddha image situated somewhere to the north of their temporary residence.

The following having narrated the dream to the king, the royal couple along with their courtiers went in search of the image of the dream. When once they reached, the site, to their great amazement, they saw a halo of six rays of light appearing and ascending towards heaven.

They interpreted this strange miracle of being suggestive that it was the site for building the Buddha image of the dream. Thus they later built the image at the site. Soon after the completion of the Buddha image King Duttabaung lost his divinely gifted Third Eye.

The preceptor Brahamin of the king, advised the king to donate a pair of spectacles in proportion to the eyes and face of the Buddha image he had built. This being done, the king regained his third eye.

In the Konsung dynasty era (1752-1885) serious controversies arose in the interpretation of the Dhamma, which resulted in the Buddhist clergy emerging in many sects with different ideologies.

The Lord of the Shwe Taung Town Zeya Nsndameik, did his best to unite the divergent sects and renovated the Buddha image and framed the spectacles with solid gold rims. In 1885 Ad, when British annexed Upper Myanmar to British India, and deported the last king of Myanmar Thibaw and his royal family to India, there were great upheavals in the country and the gold rimmed spectacles were stolen probably by the invading British soldiery. U Mei, the junior minister in charge of Shwe Taung Town had the spectacles replaced.

As anarchy was at its height the gold rimmed pair of spectacles for safety were removed and enshrined in the pagoda right behind the image. Thus the image had no pair of spectacles for a time.

During the British rule

During the British rulership of Myanmar the image got another pair of spectacles. The wife of the British Deputy Commissioner of Shwe Taung Hurtno was afflicted with an eye ailment not amenable to medicine or surgery.

The couple went to a Buddhist monk named UH taung Bo of the gold rimmed spectacles called Shwe Myet Hman, who was reputed for his occult sciences.

The monk advised them to do a pair of gold spectacles on the image and pray and the affliction would be immediately cured.

This being done with a pair of spectacles weighing 6 viss of metal and glass with gilt frame and adorned the image. In 1901, Daw Sai and family of Thayet Taw Street, Shwe Taung repaired and renovated the Hurtnos spectacles which had been affected by the elements. Now Myanmars visit the image with offerings and pray for the survival of good sight until the end of their day.

Kengtung the beautiful city is in Eastern Shan State of Myanmar. In Swamhsat hill of this city is another landmark of a Buddha statue called Khemarettha - the Stading Buddha prophessing the future.

Located near Hinthada, an agricultural township on the west bank of Ayeyawaddy river, in steel iron and concrete structured is the image of the largest reeling Buddha image in Myanmar, named Tiloka U Shaung - The crown of the Three Worlds The construction commenced in 1909 and was completed in 1913.

The image measures 252 feet in length.

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