Page 133 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

Mrauk u and around The DelTa anD wesTern MyanMar 131
Entry is from the east, and there are often groups of nuns and monks gathered
outside waiting for alms from passing tourists. Inside the walls (which are sandstone
on the outside, and faced with brick within), most of the temple is actually open,
split on two levels with corridors, now largely roofless, around each level and a large
stupa on the higher section. The outer corridor (on the lower level) is particularly
fine, its walls intricately carved with thousands of identikit miniature mosaic-style
Buddhas interspersed with larger Buddhas seated on plinths. The inner corridor (on
the upper level) is more fragmentary, lined with hundreds of small, seated Buddhas,
while two quaint ogre guards flank the entrance to the corridor on the northern side 2
opposite the stupa.

Sakya Manaung Paya
• Daily 24hr • Entry covered by main temple ticket
The Sakya Manaung Paya was built at the same time as the similar Mong Khong
Shwetu Paya nearby. Two huge, brightly painted ogres stand guard over the entrance,
facing outwards, while behind them two more supersized figures stand praying towards
the temple – the statues are revered in their own right, with squares of gold leaf applied
to their bases (although some people content themselves with offering strips of
gold-coloured adhesive tape rather than the real thing).
The main stupa is a classic example of the later Mrauk U style, set inside a ring of
eleven mini-stupas and rising from a quasi-octagonal, zigzagging base which has now
expanded to many levels, making up almost half the height of the entire structure.
Elaborate two-storey niches decorate the stupa’s four faces, with makara-like finials
at the corners of the three main base terraces.

Ratanaman
• Daily 24hr • Entry covered by main temple ticket
Halfway between the northern and eastern groups, the Ratanaman is another elegant,
late-period stupa set on a many-tiered octagonal base. Eight colourful little figures
representing the days of the week (see box, p.74) stand around the base of the stupa,
along with a modern prayer hall and a pair of old brick shrines. At the time of research,
major restoration work was under way here.

South of the centre
The area south of the centre is relatively devoid of ancient monuments, although you
can still see the modest remains of the old Laksaykan Gate, leading through to the
gorgeous Laksaykan Lake.
Sandamuni Kyaungtaik
• Daily 24hr • Free; donations welcome • Approaching from the town centre, turn off the road running south
from the bike rental shop through a yellow arch (signed, but in Burmese only) and continue to the end of the road, before turning left up
the steps at the sign saying “Sanda Muhni Phara Gri Kyang Tak”
The extensive Sandamuni Kyaungtaik monastery (aka the Bandoola Kyaung)
complex spreads up a grassy hillside just west of the gently rippling waters of
Laksaykan Lake. It’s best known as the home of the Sandamuni Buddha, which
is said to date from as far back as 308 BC. The image had once been covered with
a thick layer of cement – possibly to hide it from marauding British troops in the
1850s – and was then somehow forgotten about until one of the eyes suddenly
dropped out in 1988, revealing the original statue hidden deep within.
There’s also a small museum here – the metal table-top on the right as you enter is
actually an original copper roof tile from the old Mrauk U palace, which is one of
the few pieces of the royal residence that escaped being looted when the city was
sacked in 1784.

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