Shwedagon Pagoda

View of the Great Dagon Pagoda in 1825, from a print after Lieutenant Joseph Moore of Her Majesty's 89th Regiment, published in a portfolio of 18 views in 1825–1826 lithography

Scene upon the terrace of the Great Dagon Pagoda, 1824–1826

Shwedagon Pagoda in the 1890s

Legend holds that the Shwedagon Pagoda was constructed more than 2,500 years ago — while the Buddha was still alive — which would make it the oldest Buddhist stupa in the world.[1] According to the Buddhavaṃsa, two merchants from Ukkalājanapada named Tapussa and Bhallika were passing through Bodh Gaya when they encountered the Buddha. The Buddha, who was at that time enjoying the bliss of his newly attained buddhahood as he sat under a rājāyatana tree, accepted their offering of rice cake and honey and taught them some of the dharma in return. In so doing, they became the first lay disciples to take refuge in the teachings of the Buddha.[2][3][4] The Buddha also gave eight strands of his hair to the merchants and gave them instructions on how to construct a stupa in which to enshrine these hair relics.[3] The merchants presented the eight strands of hair to King Okkalapa of Dagon, who enshrined the strands along with some relics of the three preceding Buddhas (Kakusandha, Koṇāgamana, and Kassapa) in a stupa on the Singuttara Hill in present-day Myanmar.[5]

The first mention of the pagoda in the royal chronicles dates only to 1362/63 CE (724 ME) when King Binnya U of Martaban–Hanthawaddy raised the pagoda to 18 m (59 ft). Contemporary inscriptional evidence, the Shwedagon Pagoda Inscriptions from the reign of King Dhammazedi of Hanthawaddy (r. 1471–1492), shows a list of repairs of the pagoda going back to 1436. In particular, Queen Shin Saw Pu (r. 1454–1471) raised its height to 40 m (130 ft), and gilded the new structure. By the beginning of the 16th century, Shwedagon Pagoda had become the most famous Buddhist pilgrimage site in Burma.[6]

A series of earthquakes during the following centuries caused damage. The worst damage was caused by a 1768 earthquake that brought down the top of the stupa, but King Hsinbyushin in 1775 raised it to its current height of 99 m (325 ft) (without counting the height of the hti (crown umbrella)). A new hti was donated by King Mindon in 1871, nearly two decades after the annexation of Lower Burma by the British. A moderate earthquake in October 1970 left the shaft of the hti out of alignment; extensive repairs were needed to rectify the problem.

The Shwedagon Pagoda Festival, which is the largest pagoda festival in the country, begins during the new moon of the month of Tabaung in the traditional Burmese calendar and continues until the full moon.[7] The pagoda is on the Yangon City Heritage List.

^ Hmannan Yazawin. Royal Historical Commission of Burma. 1832. ^ Goldberg, Kory; Decary, Michele (2013). Along the Path: The Meditator's Companion to Pilgrimage in the Buddha's India and Nepal (2nd ed.). Onalaska, Washington: Pariyatti Press. p. 125. ISBN 978-1938754586. ^ a b Strong, John S. (2004). Relics of the Buddha. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. pp. 73–74. ISBN 978-0691117645. ^ Sayadaw, Mingun (2008). "The Buddha's stay at the Seven Places". The Great Chronicle of Buddhas (PDF). Vol. 2 (Singapore ed.). p. 347. ^ "Shwedagon Pagoda | History of the gold plated diamond studded Yangon Pagoda". Renown Travel. Archived from the original on June 30, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2019. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hall1960 was invoked but never defined (see the help page). ^ Cite error: The named reference mizz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).