- Address: Thaton District, Myanmar (Burma)
- Founded over 2500 years ago
Myanmar is not without reason recognized as one of the world centers of Buddhism, because it is on the territory of this state that there are ancient religious pagodas and temples adorning cities and serving as a pilgrimage site for many believers from around the world. About one of the oldest pagodas below and will be discussed.
Pagoda Chaittio - legends and facts
Not far from the city of Kinpun (Mont) at the very edge of the Chaittio mountain there is an amazing landmark of the country - the Kaiktiyo pagoda, but it surprises and admires its location: the five-meter-high Chaittio pagoda is crowned by a huge golden stone hanging on the edge of the mountain. According to ancient legends, the stone was raised from the seabed by Burmese perfume (Burma - formerly Myanmar's name), which left the stone hover over the rock, but because of the sins of earthlings, the stone sank to the rock, where now, contrary to all the laws of physics and natural disasters . Buddhists claim that they hold the stone in nothing other than the Buddha's hair immured in the Chaittio pagoda and only women are able to destroy this structure.
Many skeptics claim that stone and rock are a single entity or that stone is held by special mechanisms, but local monks are happy to give such people the opportunity to rock a stone with a pagoda, one person will not be able to do it, but 3-4 men will shake this stone easily , yes, it's men, because women, because of the existing legend, are forbidden not to touch the shrine - even to approach it closer than 10 meters.
Every year Chaittio Pagoda in Myanmar is visited by a huge number of pilgrims, the peak of visits is in March (Tabang), which here is considered the final month of the year. At the entrance to the pagoda are sold plates with gold leaf - they are bought by pilgrims and monks for decorating the stone. Near the Chaittio Pagoda there are many religious buildings ready to take pilgrims for the night, however guests of the country are not allowed to spend the night near the pagoda.
How to get there?
If you decide to visit the Chaittio Pagoda in Myanmar, then be prepared for the hard way: Buddhists should walk to the shrine on foot, which is about 16 km of rocky road from the city of Kinpun, tourists have a slight easing - part of the way can be overcome by a special truck (we warn, that it is possible to name this trip with great difficulty), however you will still have to walk the last 3 km, and the last km even barefoot.
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