Mingun
Encyclopedia
Mingun is a town in Sagaing Region, northwest Myanmar
(Burma), located 11 km up the Ayeyarwady River
on the west bank from Mandalay
. Its main attraction is the ruined Mingun Pahtodawgyi.
in 1790. It was not completed, due to an astrologer
claiming that, once the temple was finished, the king would die. The completed stupa would have been the largest in the world at 150 meters. Huge cracks are visible on the structure from the earthquake of 23 March 1839, Like many large pagodas in Myanmar, a Pondaw paya or working model of the stupa can be seen nearby.
King Bodawpaya also had a gigantic bell
cast to go with his huge stupa, the Mingun Bell
weighing 90 tons, and is today the largest ringing bell in the world. The weight of the bell in Burmese measurement, is 55,555 viss or peiktha (1 viss = 1.63 kg), handed down as a mnemonic "Min Hpyu Hman Hman Pyaw", with the consonants representing the number 5 in Burmese astronomy and numerology
.
, built in 1816 by Bodawpaya's grandson and successor Bagyidaw
and dedicated to the memory of his first consort Princess Hsinbyume (Lady of the White Elephant, granddaughter of Bodawpaya, 1789–1812) who died in childbed.
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
(Burma), located 11 km up the Ayeyarwady River
Ayeyarwady River
The Irrawaddy River or Ayeyarwady River is a river that flows from north to south through Burma . It is the country's largest river and most important commercial waterway. Originating from the confluence of the N'mai and Mali rivers, it flows relatively straight North-South before emptying through...
on the west bank from Mandalay
Mandalay
Mandalay is the second-largest city and the last royal capital of Burma. Located north of Yangon on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, the city has a population of one million, and is the capital of Mandalay Region ....
. Its main attraction is the ruined Mingun Pahtodawgyi.
Mingun Pahtodawgyi
The Mingun temple is a monumental uncompleted stupa began by King BodawpayaBodawpaya
Bodawpaya was the sixth king of the Konbaung Dynasty of Burma. Born Maung Shwe Waing and later Badon Min, he was the fourth son of Alaungpaya, founder of the dynasty and the Third Burmese Empire. He was proclaimed king after deposing his nephew Phaungkaza Maung Maung, son of his oldest brother...
in 1790. It was not completed, due to an astrologer
Astrologer
An astrologer practices one or more forms of astrology. Typically an astrologer draws a horoscope for the time of an event, such as a person's birth, and interprets celestial points and their placements at the time of the event to better understand someone, determine the auspiciousness of an...
claiming that, once the temple was finished, the king would die. The completed stupa would have been the largest in the world at 150 meters. Huge cracks are visible on the structure from the earthquake of 23 March 1839, Like many large pagodas in Myanmar, a Pondaw paya or working model of the stupa can be seen nearby.
King Bodawpaya also had a gigantic bell
Bell (instrument)
A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
cast to go with his huge stupa, the Mingun Bell
Mingun Bell
The Mingun Bell is a bell located in Mingun, Sagaing Region, Myanmar. It is located approximately north of Mandalay on the western bank of the Irrawaddy River.-Description:The weight of the bell is 55,555 viss...
weighing 90 tons, and is today the largest ringing bell in the world. The weight of the bell in Burmese measurement, is 55,555 viss or peiktha (1 viss = 1.63 kg), handed down as a mnemonic "Min Hpyu Hman Hman Pyaw", with the consonants representing the number 5 in Burmese astronomy and numerology
Numerology
Numerology is any study of the purported mystical relationship between a count or measurement and life. It has many systems and traditions and beliefs...
.
Hsinphyumae Pagoda
Just a couple of hundred yards from the great stupa and bell lies the beautiful white Hsinbyume or Myatheindan Pagoda with a distinctive architectural style modelled after the mythical Myinmo taung or Mount MeruMount Meru (Mythology)
Mount Meru is a sacred mountain in Hindu and Buddhist cosmology as well as in Jain cosmology, and is considered to be the center of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritual universes...
, built in 1816 by Bodawpaya's grandson and successor Bagyidaw
Bagyidaw
Bagyidaw Bagyidaw's reign saw the First Anglo-Burmese War , which marked the beginning of the end of the highly militaristic Konbaung dynasty. Bagyidaw inherited the largest Burmese empire, second only to King Bayinnaung's, but also one that shared a long ill-defined borders with British India...
and dedicated to the memory of his first consort Princess Hsinbyume (Lady of the White Elephant, granddaughter of Bodawpaya, 1789–1812) who died in childbed.
External links
- Wanderings in Burma by George W Bird, 1897 F J Bright & Son, London, pp 316A, 318, 318A, 320A inc. old photos of Mingun by Signor Beaton of Mandalay
- Col Henry Yule's Remarks on the Senbyu Pagoda at Mengun, 1869 SOAS
- The Art and Culture of Burma: The Konbaung Period - Amarapura Dr. Richard M. Cooler, Northern Illinois UniversityNorthern Illinois UniversityNorthern Illinois University is a state university and research institution located in DeKalb, Illinois, with satellite centers in Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was originally founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895 by Illinois Governor John P...
- A Trip to Mingun GLOBOsapiens.netGlobosapiensGLOBOsapiens is a cooperation head-quartered in Munich, Germany, providing Internet services worldwide. The company is perhaps best known for its multicultural oriented Worldwide Internet Travel Community, GLOBOsapiens.net, and a classified service named findix. GLOBOsapiens was founded out of a...
, December 26, 2006