Maha Muni

The Maha Muni is the second most important Buddha image in Myanmar, the first being at the Shwe Dagon Paya in Yangon. The name means Great Sage and it was transported from what is now Rakhine State, and was then Arakan, in the west of the country. In the 11^th century, King Anawrahta tried to move the more than six tonne image over the mountains to his kingdom of Pagan. He was not successful, neither were others who prized the image.

On our way to the paya, we enter a vast hall decorated floor to ceiling with paintings depicting how the image was cast and how it came to be here. The first mural showed the Buddha and 500 of his disciples visiting Arakan. The king learned of his proximity and invited him to the palace. The next mural depicted a retinue of gaily-caparisoned elephants and the court in their costly attire leading the Buddha to the palace where the people could come and pay tribute. When it came time for the Buddha to leave, the people asked for a lasting reminder of him. So more than 2,000 years ago, the image was cast. Apparently the Buddha touched the image’s head seven times to breathe life into it.

The image became the much longed-for prize of many kings, but it was a relatively short time ago that King Bodawpaya of Amarapura (close to Mandalay) claimed the Maha Muni for himself. Further murals depicted the Buddha on a vast sleigh pulled by hundreds of men over the mountain ranges. Eventually, they reached the Ayerawaddy River and at long last the king pulled the image onto his land.

Steeped in the story of how the Buddha came to Mandalay, we walked into the cool, quiet paya where dozens of people at all times of the day come to pay homage. The Buddha has been covered with gold leaf over the centuries, so it takes a while to make out his arms and legs. His chest is covered with layer upon layer of golden medallions, but the face is smooth and gleams gold. At four o’clock each morning the Buddha’s face is washed with the milky liquid of the Thanaka tree. As the liquid runs down, it is collected and can be taken home by the women. Those who donated the towels may also take them home comforted in the knowledge that they have been blessed by the Buddha.

 

Men applying gold leaf

Paying homage

Paying respects

The shimmering golden image