Buddha - Traveling Thru History

Chua Say Tevoda: A History of Angkor Temples

Erin — Sat, 26 Sep 2015 20:57:42 +0000

Whenever someone mentions anything ‘Angkor’, the first image that comes to most people’s minds is the impressive and daunting image of Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat is a magnificent temple complex that spans roughly 200 acres and includes the main temple, dozens of gopuras (carved towers over doorways), statues, galleries, libraries, towers, shrines, ponds, long promenades and smaller structures. Chua Say Tevoda is a group of small temples that sit roughly a mile away from the Angkor Wat complex and are classified as Angkor temples. Most of the Angkor temples in Cambodia were built during the mid 1100’s and composed of standstone blocks and laterite. Sandstone was used on the exterior and visible interior parts of the buildings while laterite was used for outer walls and hidden structural elements. The material used to join the blocks and hold them in place has yet to be identified, but a type of natural resin or slaked lime composition is being investigated. When you look around Siem Reap you may wonder where on earth all this stone came from. To build all of the Angkor era temples the residents had to use tens of millions of metric tons of sandstone which couldn’t be found in the nearby area. Interestingly, the entire city of Angkor used up far greater amounts of stone than all the Egyptian pyramids combined and occupied a greater area than modern-day Paris. Can you imagine having to import all of that stone through forests without the use of excavation equipment or trucks? To get the stone from the area where it was quarried on Mount Kulen there are two possible routes. The first suggested route travels 22 miles down a canal heading towards Tonle Sap Lake, then a further 22 miles across the lake and another 9.3 miles upstream along Siem Reap River. That journey is roughly 56 miles. The other suggested, and most likely route, has been suggested to be a now-hidden canal that spans 22 miles from Mount Kulen to Angkor Wat. This route was suggested by Etsuo Uchida and Ichita Shimoda of Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan, when they discovered the canal on satellite imagery in 2012. Chua Say Tevoda follows the same architectural and decorative style as it’s companion, Angkor Wat. Typical decorative elements are statues, Devatas (carvings of deity), Apsaras (female spirit of the clouds and waters in Hindu and Buddhist mythology) and bas-reliefs with extensive garlands and narrative scenes on pediments. Unfortunately, other decorative elements have been destroyed by looting and the passage of time, including gilded stucco on the towers, gilding on some figures on the bas-reliefs, and wooden ceiling panels and doors. But even though there has been a lot of damage from weather, age, looting and vandals the site still looks fascinating. One of the interesting things about the Angkor temples is that they are still active Buddhist temples. Any temple you enter could reveal chamber with a devotee in the act of praying or meditation. During the days when the Angkor state religion was Hinduism, these areas were known as a cella. Cellas are small central chambers inside the temples. They were made small for three reasons: the temples were considered the homes of the gods and only needed to be big enough to house the statues of the gods, the rituals which were held in them were reserved for a small group of elite elite (in the capital of the Khmer only the god king could enter the shrine) and the technology at the time the temples were built could not yet make large airy halls. Fruit and bottles of water were originally left at the shrines as a symbolic representation of the nectar of Dharma and the wish to achieve it. This reasoning is specific to Mahayana Buddhism. In the late 12th century King Jayavarman VII changed the state religion from Hinduism to Mahayana Buddhism. That lasted through 1243 when Indravarman II succeeded him and returned the state religion to Hinduism. Towards the end of the 13th century the state religion again shifted, but this time is was Theravada Buddhism and over the centuries Theravada Buddhism has replaced all other religions as the dominant religion of Cambodia. In Theravada Buddhism each offering has a specific meaning. Incense is lit to symbolize the fragrance of pure moral conduct and as a reminder to conduct yourself in a pure and moral way. Water is offered as a symbol of purity, clarity and calmness. This offering is a personal reminder to practice the Buddha’s teachings, so as to cleanse the mind of desire, ill-will and ignorance, and to continue working to attain the state of purity that is necessary to achieve Enlightenment. Fruit is offered as a symbol of the fruit of Enlightenment, which is the ultimate goal of Buddhist practitioners. Fruit serves as a reminder that all actions have an effect for good or evil and to constantly be aware of the fruits of your actions. What you see here is a porch leading to the cella. This porch is called a Mandapa and is usually facing East. These are the feet of what is presumed to have been a Buddha statue, but it could possibly be the remnant of a Hindu statue. With the back and forth of the state religion and the erecting and removal of statues during that time, it is impossible to tell which religion these feet originally belonged to, but the orange cloth is symbolic of what Buddhist monks wear, thus denoting that these feet have been claimed as a Buddhist religious statue. Unless the body of the statue is ever recovered, we may never know what the truth really is. This carving of a Buddha has fallen off the wall and been placed in one of the cella. I can’t find anything that specifically says what the stone pedestals are, but based off similar items I’ve researched online and what they were used for, these look like sacrificial alters used to catch the blood of the animal being sacrificed and then to burn sacrificial offerings. Seeing as the central article is placed in direct line to where the statue of a Hindu god would have once stood and based off of similar items, my non-professional understanding is that the the stone to the left would have stood outside the temple for the actual sacrifice and once the blood had been collected from the sacrificed animal and the exterior rituals performed, the sacrifice would be burned inside the temple in the center stone. This is one of the thousands of Devatas (deity) you will come across when exploring Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples. A Devata looks similar to an Aspara (a female spirit of the clouds and waters in Hindu and Buddhist mythology), but the main difference is the posture and direction of the head. While Asparas are in a dancing poses with their heads facing slightly or fully to the side, Devatas stand or sit erect with their faces fully forward. This window is flanked by Devata. It is sad that the combination of time and vandalism has made it so the carvings are so incomplete. Weather has also deteriorated the once clear and intricate details. Part of this exterior carving has been meticulously restored, but unfortunately only half of it survived to be restored. The central piece of the carving is that of a Makara, or sea creature of Hindu mythology. The Makara is an embodiment of Ganga, the goddess of the Ganges river and the sea god Varuna. It is also the insignia of the love god Kamadeva. Kamadeva is also known as Makaradhvaja (one whose flag a makara is depicted). Makara is the astrological sign of Capricorn. It is often portrayed protecting entryways to both Hindu and Buddhist temples. The tops of these temples would have once been adorned with an elaborate prang, a tall and intricately carved tower-like spire. The taller the prang, the more important the god housed therein. This temple at Chua Say Tevoda has a mostly intact prang. One of the unfortunate pieces of information I’ve learned about the Angkor temples is that after the fall of the Angkor civilization to the Ayutthaya kingdom in the early 1400s, many statues were taken to Ayutthaya and Angkor was largely abandoned. After the abandonment Angkor fell into decay and stones from the temples were used to build other temples. In recent years, due to the lack of protection and safeguarding of the ruins, there has been an increase in looting and the theft of carvings and other irreplaceable items from the temples. APSARA, the Cambodian agency that manages the preservation and restoration of Angkor released a statement in 1992 saying, “vandalism has multiplied at a phenomenal rate, employing local populations to carry out the actual thefts, heavily armed intermediaries transport objects, often in tanks or armored personnel carriers, often for sale across the Cambodian border.” It’s incredibly disheartening that any Cambodian citizen would be involved in the continued destruction and desecration of their own cultural heritage site and it is just so sad that the Cambodian government won’t take steps to protect these national treasures. Some sections of the stairs on this side of the main temple are completely gone or seriously damaged, necessitating the construction of a new staircase. You can also see that the central prang is missing along with the carvings and exterior sculptures typical of Angkor temples. This is all that’s left of the exterior wall and grand central walkway to the temple grounds. What’s left of the courtyard surrounding the main temple. The carving atop the side of this temple is mostly intact. Isn’t it beautiful? Beneath it is what’s called a ‘Blind Door’. Angkorean temples and shrines frequently opened in only one direction, typically to the East. The other three sides featured Blind Doors to maintain symmetry. Blind Windows were often used along otherwise blank walls as well. Another reason the Angkor temples are in danger is unsustainable tourism. Every year the rate number of tourists increases and more damage occurs to the site. Far too many tourists climb on the temples, carve their initials into them, go into areas where they are not supposed to and rub the fragile sandstone carvings causes irreparable damage. While tourists who are respectful and do not climb on the temples are appreciated, the sheer weight of tourist groups also threatens the stability of the site. Cambodia is so poor that the government isn’t willing to curb or restrict tourism for fear of losing a vast part of the national income, even if it means speeding up the destruction of such a culturally important site. Since millions of tourists visit the Angkor area every year and there are no plans to curb the amount of people allowed into the site or even close off the more fragile sections, what can we do to ensure the survival of this one-of-a-kind national treasure? Be careful where you walk Avoid areas where the stones are broken Do not jump on protruding stones Do not climb on the temples Use the stairs to get to areas you would like to explore Honor the “Do Not Enter” signs Take pictures, not stones Do not carve or write anything on any of the stones, temples, statues or monuments Do not rub or touch the carvings. Sandstone is incredible fragile Do not engage in horseplay on the temple grounds Do not pick up or attempt to pick up stones, statues or any other object inside the temples or on the grounds Do not throw things in or around the temples Put your trash in the provided receptacles – pick up any if you see it Keep your clothes on – whether or not you view it as such these are sacred religious sites Report any inappropriate behavior to a nearby official All of the Angkorian temples are beautiful and the area is so fascinating to visit. I don’t wish to discourage anyone from making the effort to experience the culture and history firsthand. My only wish is to help you have a better understanding of how culturally important and physically fragile these structures are. I really loved exploring the remnants of the Angkor Kingdom...

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Leshan Giant Buddha

Erin — Thu, 20 Aug 2015 03:51:55 +0000

In 693 AD one of the most colossal undertakings in pre-modern history began taking place. A Buddhist monk named Haitong decided he wanted to build a Buddha statue in the Sichuan Province of China. But it wasn’t going to be just any Buddha statue. This Buddha statue was going to be carved into the side of a mountain next to a river in hopes that the Buddha would be able to control to tempestuous river spirits and allow safe passage to the numerous travelers of that river. After saving alms for 20 years, Haitong saved up enough copper coins to begin building this monumental statue. He enlisted help from other monks, masons and his disciples and they worked tirelessly to create Haitong’s vision. Since the project was bigger than Haitong had realized, he didn’t quite have enough money to cover all the costs and he solicited a government grant. Soon after the project had begun, legend says that government officials lobbied for the cancellation of support for Haitong’s project in order to keep the money for themselves, but Haitong fought for his cause. Legend states that Haitong told them they would have his eyes before they would have the money for the Buddha statue. When they pressed further, in a fit of religious rage Haitong gouged out his own eyes and flung them at the government officials. Thus terrorized and convinced of his conviction, nobody ever tried to take that money again. Unfortunately Haitong died before his statue was completed and after his death the government officials were successful in diverting funds from the project to their own special interests. The statue languished, unfinished, for 70 years until a regional military governor funded the completion of Haitong’s dream and the statue was finally finished in 803 AD. Fun fact: there are 1,021 coiled buns in the Buddha’s hairdo. Another fun fact is that the ears on this statue are 23 feet long, made of wood and covered in mud. When you first arrive at the Leshan Buddha Park, you don’t really see much. Well, after you’ve gone past a few temples and pagodas you come to this open area with the tell-tale railings that zig-zag long lines of people. And, seriously, this was a LOOOOOOOOOOOONG line. From the time we got in line until we got to the bottom of the stairs at the base of the Buddha we had been in line for a little over 2 hours. But at least the line was bunched up next to the top of the statue and we got to entertain ourselves by trying to get pictures of it without one of the billion other people that were trying to do the same thing. Aside from entertaining ourselves that way, there was a snack cart with lots of things to choose from. The only problem is that they have it right next to the line and the only way to purchase from it is to get out of line. And yell. A lot. Those of you who have been to China know what I’m talking about. For some reason, I got voted as the person to stand in line and fight people to get my order taken. I tried a few times and I’d get shoved or yelled over. And I’m so not kidding. People were physically pushing me out of the way. I don’t do good in crowds and this type of situation was really making my anxiety go nuts, but I eventually pushed someone back and stood my ground and got our chips and water. The next fun part was making my way back through the line to find Troy and Scott. I kept saying “excuse me” and trying to politely make my way past people, but most of the time they’d just stand there or look at me and then move in front of me. It was so frustrating! Eventually I started getting mad at how rude people were being and started just shoving my way through people. Some people tried to block me (what the crap!) and I had to use a lot of force, which made me feel awful, but why were they not letting me through? At one point I had to shove my way through two guys who were blocking me and ended up dropping some of my stuff. It’s really hard to carry 4 water bottles and three bags of chips by yourself while trying to also protect a large camera. I really wanted to go home at that point and was about to cry. The elderly man in front of me turned around and helped me pick up my stuff and moved aside so I could get past. He was the only kind person in that entire line and I’m still grateful to him for that. By the time I made my way back to Troy and Scott I was super frustrated and told them next time we were in this situation that one of those two would be left behind to fight the crowds. It was not fun. But after a few minutes of non-stress I was able to calm down and get my anxiety back under control. Soon we made it over to an area where we could take pictures by the Buddha and we all took turns taking pictures of each other. It was pretty fun. It’s so embarrassing, but you can totally see how sweaty I am. It was so dang hot and humid that day. I don’t know how Troy isn’t a sweaty mess because he was sweating, too, but you can see it quite nicely on me. Even though getting the extra water had been frustrating, I’m glad I did it because we hadn’t expected it to be so hot and to be in full sun the entire time we were in line. After an hour and a half of zig-zagging slowly we finally figured out what the holdup was. In order to get down to the Buddha you have to climb down a thin 1,640 foot switchback staircase that was carved into the side of the mountain. It’s pretty steep at the end, so people were going super slow. Kinda hard to fault them for that. One of the neat things about the rock face (and another reason why the line moves so slowly down the stairs) is that there are carvings all down the wall. You can see several in the above picture. The few that we were able to see on our descent were pretty neat. It wasn’t until we got to the bottom of the stairs that we faced the true magnitude of exactly how tall this statue is. The Leshan Giant Buddha, also known as Dafo, is 233 ft tall. His shoulder span is 92 feet and each eyebrow is 18 feet. Seriously, they could fit almost 3.5 of me across one eyebrow. WOW. Another interesting thing to note is that there is a drainage system that runs through the statue to help protect from erosion and weathering. There are holes in his hair, collar, chest and back of the ears to keep excessive amounts of water from running down the whole of the statue. And there is also regular maintenance to clean up excess moss and repair any significant damage. We spent about a half an hour taking pictures at the base of the Buddha. We would have stayed longer, but after spending over two hours in the direct sun, we were ready to head out. But, before we did, we had to get our selfie. By this time pretty much my entire shirt was soaked. lol. Leaving the Buddha area is a bit easier than arriving and I totally recommend visiting via the exit. We saw a few people doing that and we wish we had. People like to hang out at the bottom for a while and the exit stairs aren’t nearly as crowded as the entrance stairs. Plus they’re wider and not as steep. There are also some neat carved tunnels to walk through. I love the texture on the walls. It’s really neat. We also found these on a wall in the tunnels. No clue what they say, but they look really neat. Admission Fee: RMB 90 Opening Hours: 9:00am-4:50pm Recommended Time To Visit: Early in the morning How to Get There: Long-Distance Bus from ChengduXinnanmen Bus Station toXiaba Bus Station and then take Bus 13Intercity High-Speed Train from Chengdu to Leshan Railway Station and then take Bus 3 Ferries to Yibin, Luzhou and Chongqing are available at the port of the city. You can also get there via taxi or rental car

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Maha Vihara Buddhist Temple

Erin — Sun, 12 Jul 2015 23:18:53 +0000

When we lived in Kuala Lumpur, I really enjoyed walking around the neighborhood and taking in the sites. We lived by Little India, which was filled with all sorts of Hindu shops and temples, and also by a little Buddhist section of town, so there were always really interesting things to see. One day I decided to just wander and see where my feet took me and I ended up at this cute little Buddhist temple from 1895 that I’d never known was there before. The main gate is known as the Sanchi Main Gate, after the village of Sanchi in India, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This gate has a similar architectural style to the structures in that village, but it’s less elaborate and of a more contemporary design. One of the things I love about most religious sites is that they have such beautiful features. I really like the fountain at Maha Vihara. The flower in the center of the fountain is a lotus blossom. You’ll actually see these a lot at Buddhist sites. Lotus blossoms are an important symbol of faith to Buddhists and the symbology is that the mud the lotus flower roots into is the materialism of the world while the water the flower grows through is our experiences and the blossom flowering above the water is a person basking in the light of enlightenment. It’s actually a pretty neat allegory. Also on the grounds is a tower with a Buddha statue. I haven’t been able to find any information online about when this was built or how tall it is, but it’s still really neat.The building the tower is attached to is a school, though it is also used for other things. There is a multi-purpose hall on the ground floor, the Buddhist Institute Sunday Dhamma School is on the first and second floor (second and third to Americans) and there are also a library, resource center and kindergarden rooms. Outside that building there is also a playground for the children. It was neat seeing the mix of old-style toys and a few of the more modern ones. Going past the toys you’ll come to an outdoor shrine area with a few Buddhas encased in glass. This is one of the areas where people can pray to the Buddha or leave offerings of flowers and fruit. The place I thought was really neat was the International Buddhist Pagoda. When I was first wandering around the area, I didn’t think I could go inside. I’m a bit on the shy side and didn’t even try to door, but a girl and her friend who were there praying came over to me and began talking to me about the temple complex and asked if I’d been inside the pagoda. When I said I hadn’t, she started gesturing fervently and told me I HAD to go inside. So, I went inside with her. They were doing maintenance work inside, but that didn’t distract too much from how amazing the room was. The lighting was really bad and it was hard to get good pictures with the glare on the glass, but it was just so neat being able to see Buddhas that were from so many places. After getting my fill of the beautiful Buddhas in the pagoda I wandered around the grounds for a bit. This stupa was built in memoriam of the Venerable Dr. Kirinde Sri Dhammanada Nayake Maha Thera. Venerable Dr. Kirinde Sri Dhammanada Nayake Maha Thera was the head monk of Maha Vihara from 1952 until his death in 2006. He was also the foremost Theravada monk in all of Malaysia and Singapore during that time. These pots are located outside the main shrine area. They are for devotees to light incense sticks and then pray before entering the shrine. The red building is the main shrine. Inside the main shrine are three depictions of Buddha. My guide told me that each one represents a different stage in the Buddhas path of enlightenment. Both of these Buddhas are in different styles of the abhāya mudrā position, which signifies fearlessness in the face of adversity. My guide told me that standing representations of the Buddha are indicative of his life and his quest for enlightenment. My guide said that a seated Buddha is representative of the Buddha’s life after he became Enlightened. The hands are in the bhūmisparśa mudrā position, which is known as Calling The Earth to Witness. This pose is a depiction of the moment of enlightenment for the Buddha. It represents unshaken strength and the truth of his commitment to liberation, which helped overcome the darkness challenging him right before he entered the Light. This statue depicts the Buddha in the last moments prior to the dying one last time before entering Nirvana. It is called the mahāparinabbāna pose. After walking through the different meanings of the statues and their hand positions, my guide talked to me a bit about Buddhism and how much she loves it. She told me she comes to this temple every afternoon to pray and that if I would like to receive a more in-depth tour, to give her a call and she’ll set up a time to show me around the entire complex and explain everything to me. I’m a bit sad that I never took her up on that. Life happens and time goes by so fast when you’re not paying attention and 4 months later we were moving back to the US. But I did learn a lot and I really enjoyed visiting the Maha Vihara Buddhist temple. It’s amazing what interesting things you can find just by wandering around in your own neighborhood. Have you ever wandered somewhere familiar and found something new?

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Candi Mendut

Erin — Mon, 06 Jul 2015 00:30:01 +0000

Candi Mendut is a 9th century Buddhist temple located in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It is one of three temples along a straight line that are of religious importance to the Javanese people, but the exact relationship between the three has been lost. All that is known now is that Candi Mendut, Borobudur and Pawon were all used for a combined religious ritual. Candi Mendut, more commonly known as Mendut, was built in the early 9th century, sometime before or around 824 AD. Dutch archaeologist JG de Casparis believes the temple mentioned in a Karangtengah inscription dated 824 AD is Mendut temple and has presented enough evidence to back up his claim that the archaeological community concurs. It is unknown how long Mendut was in use or what caused it to be abandoned, but in 1836 the temple ruins were discovered among an overgrowth of trees and bushes. Archaeologists began restoring the temple in 1897 after careful research and completed their restoration work in 1925. The stones used in the restored temple are mostly the same as were at the site when it was found, but there are not enough stones to complete the restoration. Off to the side of Mendut is a field of stones. These stones are those that remain of the rest of Mendut. The parts of the temple that are missing are the pinnacle on top, the walls of a front chamber and the roof of the front chamber. The stones are laid out in the positions they would be in had the remaining stones been on site. Mendut may be small and unassuming, but it has some beautiful bas-reliefs and stone carvings. These depict Boddhisattvas (Buddhist divinities) and other Buddhist figures. The Kejawen Buddhists of Central Java who practice mysticism or Buddhism believe that praying at Mendut will bring about the fulfillment of wishes. This bas-relief in particular is important to childless couples. They pray to this depiction of Hariti for children since Hariti is the symbol of fertility, the patroness of motherhood and protector of children. Inside the temple, you will be greeted by a small room filled with three figures. The central figure is Dhyani Buddha Vairocana. He represents liberation from bodily karma. To the left is Boddhisatva Avalokitesvara. She (some sects depict Avalokitesvara as male, others female) represents the liberation from the karma of speech. And the statue on the right is Boddhisatva Vajrapani. He represents liberation from the karma of thought. While Mendut is not a temple of popular use, it is once again being used for certain rituals. Aside from praying for certain wishes to be fulfilled, Buddhist devotees come to Mendut during the full moon of May or June to observe Vesak by walking from Mendut to Borobodur. Devotees take part in mass prayer while walking around the temples.

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She Myet Hna

Erin — Thu, 02 Jul 2015 20:43:46 +0000

She Myet Hna is one of the 2,200 Buddhist temples, stupas, payas and pagodas that still remain of the 10,000+ that were built in Bagan, Myanmar. While most have are in ruins or disrepair, this one has been preserved and restored. We actually found this temple by accident. One of the modes of transportation in Bagan is the bicycle. We rented our bikes from our hotel, Thante Nyaung U, and rode off in search of some of the temples. As you can see, our hotel wasn’t too far from Old Bagan. Old Bagan is the section inside the blue lines on the left side of the picture. It took us maybe 20-30 minutes to bike back to the hotel once we were done for the day. When we took off from the hotel we were actually looking for Shwezigone Temple, but we took a wrong turn somewhere and when we rounded the corner we found this one. There are a lot of streets not marked on maps and we got lost several times. It wasn’t too bad, though, because getting lost in Bagan just means you find more temples you weren’t expecting. Being that She Myet Hna was the first temple we saw I figured that it should have the honor of being the first Bagan temple I wrote about. Not much is known about She Myet Hna. The locals say it has been there as long as they can remember, but nobody knows how old it is, what prompted it to be built or if She Myet Hna is its original name. The history of it isn’t important to them, they just know it was built as a place of worship and reflection. To them, it’s just another one of the religious sites that cover the land. Another face in a crowded room that showed up one day and nobody knows why. Maybe someday someone will unearth a hidden text that names all the temples and explains what their purpose was. Maybe one day we will know why so many religious structures were built in the same area. Maybe one day we will truly understand what Bagan really means. We did find a placard with writing on it, but haven’t been able to find someone who can translate it. Does this tell the history of this temple? Does this explain more about Bagan? Perhaps it does. It’s actually driving me a little crazy to not know what this says. Perhaps it just explains a bit about Buddhism or maybe it just talks about the restoration of the temple. I really wish someone could tell me. This is a dvarapala. They are guardians set to protect the holy place inside the temple. Since She Myet Hna is small and has no real interior, prayers are done from the individual doorways and this dvarapala protects from outside the temple. One of the nice things about Bagan is that there are many places to get water. These are communal drinking basins. You just take the plate off the top, get yourself a cup of water and then place the cup upside down on the plate over the top of the ceramic basin. While it’s nice for locals, I wouldn’t recommend drinking the water from places like this. This water is usually from nearby lakes or streams and isn’t filtered or treated. Modern day Buddhist graffiti. It’s sad that someone would deface the temple, but I do have to admit it’s a pretty good drawing. These figure are known as deva statues. When King Anawratha was crowned in 1044 AD he began unifying the kingdom of Burma and instituted Theravada Buddhism as the national religion. In order to appease local cults and ensure peace, King Anawrath adopted nats and devas into the Buddhist culture. Buddhism revolves around the concept of reincarnation, but offshoot branches believe that violent deaths prevent a person from being reincarnated, thus their spirit roams and becomes dangerous to the living. Burmese Buddhism believes that these statues are a place where those spirits can dwell and be somewhat at peace. These guys are known as leogryphs or chinthe. Chinthe are almost always depicted in pairs and serve to protect the pagoda. They typically appear as animals, but are sometimes found with human faces. Why do chinthe guard temples and pagodas? Well, according to legend, a princess and a lion fell in love and were married. They had a son, but the princess eventually abandoned the lion who became enraged and began terrorizing the lands. When the princess’s son grew up, he sought out and killed the lion in an effort to protect the people. It was only after the prince returned and told his mother what he’d done that he found out he had killed his own father. To atone for his sin, the prince constructed a statue of a lion to stand as guardian of the local temple and thus the tradition began. The chinthe is revered and loved by the Burmese people and is used symbolically on the royal thrones of Burma. Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of mythical beasts like the chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items. And ever since the creation of modern currency in Myanmar there have been chinthe on the bills and the coins.

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