Yangon Journal 6, July 2014 - Gilded Bronze Buddha


This image of the Buddha is one of the most striking we've seen in Yangon. Enshrined in the Pagoda of the Sacred Hair Relic, it is made of bronze, gold & silver. Green, white, red & gold neon light flicker behind it to indicate the Buddha's aura, which represents his state of Enlightenment. The locals seem to like the touch. (Sorry, it doesn't work for me.)

Remember King Singu's bell? The Brits also tried to bring this image to London - and succeeded this time! It was on display at the Victoria & Albert Museum for a while. Then, as the story went, Queen Victoria began suffering from a terrible headache that her doctors could neither cure nor alleviate. One night, the Queen had a dream. The Buddha told her to return his image to Myanmar. She did, and her headache disappeared.

Read about the Pagoda of the Sacred Hair Relic in my Yangon Journal 7.

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