by Jim Goodman
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| Shwesandaw and Dhammayan Gyi |
For a country long used to
negative reports in the international media, this year Myanmar drew the world’s
attention for a very felicitous reason.
On 6 July 2019 UNESCO recognized the ancient capital of Bagan as a World
Heritage Site. It was a long time
coming. Myanmar’s government had
first nominated Bagan for the award in 1995. But Myanmar was a pariah country then, under the
military-led State Law and Order Restoration Council (the notorious
SLORC). Western governments
discouraged their citizens from making it a tourist destination. And members of the UNESCO committee
objected to some of the restoration work.
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| the gilded stupa of Shwezigon |
Time passed. Eventually a civilian government came
to power. Tourist arrivals have
been burgeoning for at least fifteen years, with Bagan one of the most popular
excursions. Despite the original
qualms, UNESCO could no longer deny the site its due recognition.
It certainly deserved it. The Bagan Archaeological Zone, with
over 3000 pagodas and temples, comprises 104 square kilometers, making it the
world’s largest. Founded in the mid-
to late 9th century, capital of the country’s first Burmese Empire
from 1044-1287, the plain around it once held over 10,000 religious
monuments. Bagan’s religious
tradition followed that of their Pyu predecessors, a Tibeto-Burman people
occupying several city-states in the Ayerewady Valley, heavily influenced by
their trade links with India. It
encompassed both Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism, plus Tantra, Hindu cults of
Shiva and Vishnu, as well as the indigenous spirit (nat) beliefs.
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| stupas on the way to New Bagan |
Wars with its neighbor
Nanzhao, in contemporary Yunnan, China, from 750-830, destroyed Pyu political
power.
In this power vacuum rose
the Kingdom of Bagan, founded by Burmese people (Bahmar), who would by two
centuries later extend their control over the whole Irrawaddy Valley and its
periphery.
Under King Anawrahta,
who ascended in 1044, the state became an empire.
He extended the rice cultivation area, especially to the
east, with weirs and canals, which encouraged the immigration of ever more
farmers.
He made Theravada
Buddhism the state religion, though tolerated other beliefs, and sponsored the
formation of a script for the Burmese language.
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| Thatbinniyu (right), the tallest pagoda on the plain |
His able successors Kyinsuttha
(1081-1112), who patronized Mon scholars and artisans, and Alaungsithi
·1112-1167), who constructed more irrigation systems and standardized weights
and measures, presided over a long period of peace and prosperity.
The empire had no real rivals and grew
quite wealthy.
And with both kings
and commoners religiously pious, much of that wealth became devoted to building
temples and pagodas.
Their palaces,
houses and walls have disappeared, but their spectacular array of religious
monuments remains as a legacy that draws visitors from all over the world.
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| pagodas on the Bagan plain |
People can fly to Bagan’s
airport, but a more interesting way there is to go by boat from Mandalay, to
the north.
The fastest boat takes
about eight hours, though one could take cheaper, slower ones that arrive well
after dark, or even the next morning.
The journey by road also takes the entire day and is basically a boring
succession of farms and villages.
The river route can also be tedious for long stretches, but at least one
can walk around on deck and enjoy food and drinks.
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| sunrise view from Shwesandaw |
After departing Mandalay in
early morning, the boat soon passes slowly by the former medieval capital
Sagaing.
The town lies on the west
bank and morning light from the east on the two long, temple-studded hills that
make up the town keeps the passengers’ cameras clicking.
After Sagaing the scenery is monotonous
until the junction with the Chindwin River, and then relatively boring again
until just before the landing at Bagan, where the northernmost stupas are first
visible.
I made the trip on a sunny day
in December 2006.
The monsoon had
ended less than two months previously but already the river was rather
shallow.
The boat zigzagged its
way downriver to avoid getting stuck on a sandbar.
It made brief stops at a village south of Sagaing, where
children waded out from shore to sell bananas and other snacks, and at the
confluence with the Chindwin, where a few passengers disembarked.
Until approaching Bagan scarcely any
other vessels were in the river, with a surprising dearth of fishing activity.
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| Sulamani Temple |
The boat pulled into the pier
at Old Bagan next to Bupaya Temple, reputedly the oldest monument in the
city.
Unfortunately, a devastating
earthquake of 6.3 magnitude in1975 completely leveled the building and what
stands there now is a reconstruction.
Most of the main temples remained standing, though some lost a few
spires.
Bagan suffered periodic
earthquakes throughout its history and it’s a tribute to the skills of the
planners and architects that so many major temples and pagodas survived them
relatively intact.
Reconstruction commenced soon
afterwards and by 2006 even the smaller temples and stupas had all been
restored.
Some had plaques placed
in front listing the names of those who sponsored the restoration and others
had newly installed Buddha images.
Because they used new bricks it was easy to tell which spires or other
parts had been damaged and some were completely rebuilt from the base up.
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| typical bell-shaped stupa |
We arrived late in
the afternoon when the waning light enriched the colors of the monuments,
enhancing the 40-minute hike to New Bagan, where I stayed in a moderately
priced hotel for four nights.
Clusters
of pagodas along the way gave me a foretaste of what to expect come
morning.
Rich visitors stayed in luxury
hotels in Old Bagan and backpackers headed for cheap guesthouses in Nyaungthu
village.
But wherever one lodged,
wonderful temples and pagodas were just a short walk away.
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| gilded stupa atop Dhammayazika |
For the most majestic view of
the archaeological zone one could take an expensive balloon ride over the
plain.
The government had also
erected a 60-meter-tall viewing tower on the northern side. Most people were
content to explore the area on foot, by bicycle or by pony-cart.
I did all three.
About a dozen temples have interior
staircases enabling visitors to reach the upper levels, provided you can find
the groundskeeper to unlock the door.
A notable exception is
Shwesandaw, southeast of Old Bagan, which has exterior stairways on three
sides, with handrails.
It’s the
most popular spot to watch the sun set behind the mountains west of the
river.
Perhaps because guests did
not want to miss the free morning breakfast in their hotels, hardly anyone
showed up for the sunrise, which I found even more enchanting.
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| severed Buddha head on the ground |
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| stone carving on a temple facade |
Climbing up to the fifth level
of this whitewashed temple and looking west I could see groups of pagodas at
intervals, with the distant mountains in the background.
The nearest cluster stood about a
hundred meters away.
The first
sun rays bathed the fronts of the buildings, while wispy, low, skinny clouds lay
between the trees in nearby groves.
When the sun rose higher, the clouds dissipated and it was time to move
on.
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| stone frieze on Abeyodana Temple |
Scholars divide the buildings
into three periods.
The early
period, 850-1100, reflects Mon and Pyu influence, with small perforated windows
and dark interiors.
The middle
period, 1100-1170, features bigger windows, taller stupas and a vertical
emphasis.
Those of the late
period, 1170-1300, are more elaborate, with more sculptural embellishments.
The majority of the buildings
are individual stupas, both simple small ones and big ornate ones.
The earliest were often cylindrical or
like mounds, but from the 11
th century the bell shape
dominated.
A few are whitewashed,
others gilded, but most are of brick.
Some have smaller stupas at the corners of each of the pagoda terraces
and some are completely gilded.
All of them are supposed to contain relics, indicating, from the sheer
number of such stupas, just how prevalent the collecting and preserving of
relics was to the religious-minded people of the Bagan era.
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| temple and stupas |
Stupas also rise above the
tops of the temples, which have extended hollow chambers at the base, generally
one or four, used for meditation and rituals.
They may also have large Buddha images from the original
construction or smaller, modern ones installed during restoration.
Several temples feature interior
frescos.
UNESCO sponsored restoration
of the biggest group, at Abeyodana Temple, mainly Hindu and Mahayana Buddhist
imagery, but including lots of secular everyday life activities. Nandamannya Pahto’s set of Mahayana
panels is in less good condition.
Its most famous scene, the Temptation of Mara, with its bare-breasted
beauties, is covered with glass and difficult to see. Those at Ananda Ok Kyaung and Updi Thein depict daily life
activities from the 17th-18th centuries, when they were
painted. Frescos in the Kyanzitthi
cave temple, 800 years old, are too worn to see well, though they include
panels of Mongols.
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| interior Buddha images |
Compared to the sculptural
paradise of Angkor, Bagan doesn’t have many extant carvings.
Here and there one comes across a
toppled Buddha head on the ground.
A few stone panels of deities, mythical animals and dancing
apsaras exist, like the set at Abeyodana
Temple.
A couple others have
standing Buddhas or well-worn elephants.
Dhammayazika, with a recently re-gilded spire, has panels of
Jataka scenes, stone sculptures around
the base and protruding, stone
makara-headed
drainage pipes on the terrace levels.
Among the most picturesque
temples are three from the early period:
Shwesandaw—the sunrise/sunset viewing favorite, Thatbinniyu—the tallest
on the plain, and Ananda Pahto—the biggest and most complex. All three are whitewashed. For its 900th anniversary in
1992, Ananda Pahto had its spires gilded
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| Manuha Temple, built by a captive Mon king, 11th c. |
Besides Abeyodana and
Dhammayazika, other Bagan temples draw much visitor attention.
Sulamani has the most classic shape,
with small stupas lining the sides of the multi-tiered base.
Mahabodhi is an exact replica of the
ancient one in Bodh Gaya, India, where the Buddha achieved Enlightenment.
Dhammayangyi is the largest in volume,
though its spire has toppled.
The
Sein Sisters pair are in completely different styles from each other. Seinnyet
Nyima resembles a smaller version of Sulamani, while Seinnyet Ama is a large,
bell-shaped stupa.
Bagan reached the zenith of
its prestige and power in the late 12th and early 13th
centuries, under Kings Narapatyi Sithu (1174-1211) and Htilominlo (1211-1235). These rulers enlarged the borders, prevented
Khmer expansion out of central western Thailand, codified the law, established
a standing army and extended Burmese cultural influence beyond its boundaries. The capital’s population then is
estimated as anywhere from 50,000 to 200,000. Yet this heyday was not to last much longer.
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| everyday life in ancient Bagan |
Piety had become a
problem.
Kings and nobles granted
much of the agricultural land to temples and monasteries, which were exempt
from taxation.
Falling revenues
meant less money for state administration, especially in the furthest away
border provinces, building canals to open new farmland, and equip the
army.
The religious spirit, which
had inspired so much architectural grandeur, was undermining the state.
Conflict began in the south
and Bagan lost territory to Arakan and Martaban. Later in the 13th century Bagan faced Mongol
invaders. While the Mongols
apparently never occupied the city itself (they usually destroyed every city
they captured), their campaigns successfully terminated Bagan’s power. By 1287 Bagan’s empire was history and
its population reduced to several thousand. The Myinsaing Kingdom to the south became the pre-eminent
state in the country, though neither it nor any of its successors for the next
few centuries held sway over Myanmar as much as Bagan had.
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| UNESCO-restored frescos at Abeyodana |
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| Mahabodhi Temple |
Though it was no longer
important politically, Bagan continued to attract pilgrims from all over the
country.
They concentrated on
Ananda Pahto, Shwezigon, Sulamani, Htilominlo and Dhammayazika.
The other monuments fell into decline.
When the Konbaung Dynasty (1752-1885)
took control of Burma, holding territory even greater than the Bagan Empire,
its government sponsored many restorations in Bagan, though not necessarily
following the originals.
Nevertheless, the ancient site’s prestige, with its importance to
Burmese culture, endured.
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| Winido Temple, near the viewing tower |
Pilgrims continued to journey
to Bagan throughout the colonial period and in the first few decades after
independence.
With a slightly
improved political situation, tourism began taking off in the 21
st
century.
It did not draw anywhere
near the numbers that visited Cambodia’s Angkor, but it was a less congested,
more relaxing experience.
Like
Angkor the main sites had their local hawkers, selling souvenirs, bric-a-brac
and snacks, plus the ubiquitous painters.
But they were never very persistent.
In 2006 the entry ticket was a
mere US$10, valid for however long you stayed. Unlike Angkor, where the nearest hotels were in urban Siem
Reap, the lodgings were all inside the quiet archaeological zone. Right after you left your hotel you
were in the vicinity of ancient monuments. You could even walk among them by moonlight. Many travelers explored the zone on
their own. Groups in buses were
not so numerous and didn’t stay long at any particular site, other then the
sunset viewing pagodas.
Visitor numbers have increased
since my 2006 excursion, and are likely to grow more now that Bagan is a
recognized World Heritage Site. No
doubt more people will be taking the balloon flights over the plain, but the
area is too vast to get very congested.
And for an example of what religious fervor can do for architecture,
Bagan remains one of the world’s most outstanding,
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| Seinnyet Nyima and Seinnyet Ama |
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