Bagan Pagodas and Temples

At Bagan are much more temples than pagodas but the fact is that most religious edifices are a combination of both, means there is a temple and on top is a pagoda, its a pragmatic approach. There are several monumental Buddhist temples in Bagan with a Hindu touch, actually comparing the temples of Bagan to the Vatican, the Mosques of Mecca and Medina, the new Mosques of Putrajaya in Malaysia or elsewhere, they are no match to the temples of Bagan.

A Bagan temple has two parts,

one part is the outside vie and another is the interior with spacious rooms decorated with mural paintings and Buddha statues. The murals depict the time when the temple was built. Its a great showcase to find out what was going on about one thousand years or more. As a normal tourist it's impossible to see all this because the people

at the administration who overlook all this wont let anyone to have a look unless a substantial amount of money change hand on top of it they are a lazy bunch of people who rather prefer to sleep than to work. This people are a pain of every serious traveler to Bagan.

The greatest temple at Bagan is the Ananda Temple.

The Ananda temple is a grandiose structure visible from far away telling everyone what's there.

Ananda Temple

The Nanpaya Temple

is close to the Manuha temple. According to tradition, it was used as the residence of the captive Mon king, Manuha.

It is built of brick and mud mortar and surfaced with stone and is square in plan with a porch projecting on the east face.

Flanking the sanctuary in the main building are four stone pillars on the sides of each of which are carved triangular floral designs and the figures of the Brahma holding lotus flowers in each hands seen in the picture on the left side.

Like other temples this one has perforated stone windows to admit light into the building.

The arch pediments over the windows and the carvings of the frieze are fine examples of architectural motifs in stone.

Some of the most fascinating of the temples of Bagan

is not visible to the normal visitor, they don't let them see it, you have some cash available, maybe a miracle might happen. It reminds me to the "Dire Straits" hit, ...money for nothing and xxxx for free, here we talk about pagodas and temples.

The fascinating monuments have something to show "in the cellar" richly decorated rooms with great murals and Buddha statues. The mural paintings are covering whole walls and ceilings in great color and are sometimes more than thousand years old.

Different topics include pictures with obvious influences from other religions like Christianity and Islam. Even other, e.g. a few people are boiled in huge soup pot.

The Thatbyinnyu Temple

"Thatbyinnyu" signifies "omniscience" one of the attributes of the Buddha. The temple was built about the middle of the 12th century A.D. by King Alaungsithu, grandson and successor of the King who erected the Ananda.

Standing within the city walls, some 500 yards to the south-west of the Ananda,

the Thatbyinnyu rises to a height of 201 feet above the ground and overtops all the other monuments. Its general plan is not unlike the Ananda, but it does not, like the latter form a symetrical cross. The eastern porch alone projects considerably from the wall. It has two main stories and the Buddha image is seated on the upper floor.

The central stairway of the Thatbyinnyu Temple has two standing figures of guardians faces the eastern hall and entrance. The steps lead to a circumambulatory corridor round the central mass. Climbing up one of the pair of stairs built in the thickness of the walls one reaches the top of the vestibule from where an external flight of stairs lead to the upper store .

The high cubicles, the corner stupas on the terraces, the flamboyant arch-pediments and the plain pilasters combine to give a soaring effect to the monument.

The two tiers of windows in each storey make the interior bright and airy. But the walls are bare and the recesses along the plinth and terraces do not contain any glazed plaques.

The Dhammayangyi Temple

under King Narathu who was also called the king killed by the kalas. The Burmese chronicles assert that while the construction of the temple was in progress, the king was assassinated by some kalas and it was never completed.

Sinhalese sources, however, indicate that it was the Sinhalese who put the king to death. Most of the arches and the major portion of the structure are still sound. The finest brickwork is to be seen in this temple and the enclosure wall.

By cross section the Dhammayangyi Temple it is similar to the Ananda, but only the outer corridor is accessible as all the entrances to the inner one are blocked by brickwork for an unknown reason.

The Apayadana Temple

Walking into the dark labyrinth within the temple, pale light breaks through the stone windows, no electricity to illuminate the beautifully painted relief and the sculptures.

Built in the early 11 th. Century the legend is that before he became king, Kyansittha had to hide from his arch enemy the King Saw Lu. After he became king he ordered a temple to be built on the place he hid.

Thatbyinnyu Temple

Thatbyinnyu Temple Bagan

Dhammayangyi Temple

Dhammayangyi Temple

Apayadana Temple

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