Mahamuni Buddha Image is also called the Mahamuni Pagoda is a Buddhist temple and major pilgrimage site, located southwest of Mandalay. The Mahamuni Buddha image (literal meaning: The Great Sage) is deified in this temple, and originally came from Arakan.
Ancient tradition refers to only five likenesses of the Buddha, made during his lifetime; two were in India. two in paradise, and the fifth is the Mahamuni Buddha image in Myanmar. According to the legend, the Buddha visited the Dhanyawadi city of Arakan in 554 BC. King Sanda Thuriya requested that an image was cast of him. After casting the Great Image, the Buddha breathed upon it, and thereafter the image became the exact likeness of the Mahamuni.
The image was brought to Mandalay in 1784 by King Bodawpaya and placed within the specially built Payagi Pagoda. Since that time it has been the most venerated Buddha image in all of Burma. The statue is 3.8 meters tall. Originally cast of metal, it is now entirely coated with a two-inch thick layer of gold leaf. So much gold leaf has been applied by so many different hands that the figure has developed an irregular outline. Many thousands of pilgrims visit the shrine each day and a great festival in early February draws hundreds of thousands.
Ancient tradition refers to only five likenesses of the Buddha, made during his lifetime; two were in India. two in paradise, and the fifth is the Mahamuni Buddha image in Myanmar. According to the legend, the Buddha visited the Dhanyawadi city of Arakan in 554 BC. King Sanda Thuriya requested that an image was cast of him. After casting the Great Image, the Buddha breathed upon it, and thereafter the image became the exact likeness of the Mahamuni.
The image was brought to Mandalay in 1784 by King Bodawpaya and placed within the specially built Payagi Pagoda. Since that time it has been the most venerated Buddha image in all of Burma. The statue is 3.8 meters tall. Originally cast of metal, it is now entirely coated with a two-inch thick layer of gold leaf. So much gold leaf has been applied by so many different hands that the figure has developed an irregular outline. Many thousands of pilgrims visit the shrine each day and a great festival in early February draws hundreds of thousands.
The Mahamuni Buddha Image of Mandalay is one of the most respected and worshipped Buddhist pilgrimage sites. Thousands of devotees come to visit this temple from the early morning when the cleaning ritual is started and the senior monks use the fresh towel contributed by devotees to clean this great Statue.
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