One of the most beautiful pagodas in Bagan and one of the largest, Shwezigon Pagoda was built as the most important reliquary (container of relics) shrines in Bagan. The Shwezigon Pagoda was built to enshrine one of four replicas of the Buddha tooth, the original is in Kandy, Sri Lanka. The other 3 tooth replicas were enshrined in Lawkananda Pagoda, a smaller pagoda to the south, Tan Kyi Tuang Pagoda, a pagoda on the western banks of the Irrawaddy River and the last tooth replica was enshrined into Tu Yuan Taung Pagoda which is on a hill 32km to the east.
It is believed to bring good luck and prosperity if you visit all four teeth replicas in one day. We did not do this!All of this for a REPLICA of a tooth, not the original.. that is some strong love and devotion.. and a lot of money being thrown around in the 11th century!
Shwezigon ranks as one of the oldest pagodas in Bagan, it is also known as the site where the 37 pre-Buddhist nats (or spirits) were officially recognized and endorsed by the Myanmar monarchy. There is an outlying shed where the images of the nats can be seen. Most of them are behind glass. A few are not and those are the photos above of the little statues.
The 37 Nats of Burma is a structured system of animistic spirits which is fascinating, read more HERE. & HERE
No comments:
Post a Comment