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Maha Wizaya Zedi (မဟာဝိဇယစေတီ)
Burmese. Name of a Buddhist temple in
Yangon's Dagon Township, which was built in
1980 AD, on a hill known as Dhammarakkhita, a
Pali
name meaning either
Protected
by the
Dharma
or Guardian
of the Buddhist Law,
after one of the missionaries sent by Emperor
Ashoka
to proselytize the Buddhist faith.
The pagoda was built in order to commemorate the first successful
convening of all sects of the Buddhist monastic order of Myanmar under
one supervisory body. It features a
zedi
that
enshrines a
Buddha image
donated by the King and Queen of Nepal. On the inside, the convex
ceiling of the inner sanctum (fig.)
is richly decorated with 38 astronomical symbols, that are clarified by
means of a nearby chart titled
nakatayah amih myah (fig.),
i.e. Names
of the Planets,
while on the inside the entrance
gates
are flanked with replicas of different trees that play an important role
in
Buddhism,
such as the
Cluster Fig Tree
(fig.),
which is mentioned in the
Lotus Sutra, and that in
Theravada
Buddhism was used
by
Konagamana
(fig.),
the 26th
of the 28
buddhas,
as the tree for achieved
Enlightenment;
the
Bodhi Tree
(fig.),
i.e. the tree under which the
Sakyamuni
Buddha
attained Enlightenment; the
Sala Tree, i.e.
the tree under which
Siddhartha
Gautama
was
born; a
Mango
Tree
(fig.),
i.e. the tree which is said to have been used for achieved Enlightenment
by Sikhi, the 23rd of the 28 buddhas; the Pulila Tree (Bignonia
suaveolens), i.e. the tree which is said to have been used for achieved
Enlightenment by Saranankara, the 3rd of the 28 buddhas, as well as by
Vipassi, the 22nd of the 28 buddhas; the Indian Tulip Tree or Pacific
Rosewood Tree (Thespesia populnea), i.e. a tree that due to its strong
resemblance with the Ficus religiosa is sometimes used as a substitute
for the Bodhi Tree, whilst there is also ample lexical evidence that
both trees have been designated by identical or similar names in
Sanskrit;
and the
Banyan
Tree
(fig.),
the tree under which the god
Vishnu
was born, and
which in Buddhism
is the tree to which the
Buddha
moved to stay, seven days after he had gained
Enlightenment.
Surrounding
the inner sanctum is an
ambulatory-like aisle (fig.),
which is decorated with colourful murals
representing scenes from Buddhism, especially in the tunnel-shaped
entrances. On one side of this
corridor, along the outer walls of the inner sanctum, are
niches
with large-scale bonze Buddha
statues, displayed in an alternating fashion with wooden panels of
bas-relief
carvings that depict characters and scenes from Buddhism, while
on the opposite side, along the outer walls of the hallway, are big
showroom-like chambers with large windows on the front and sides. Each
one displays various Buddha images and occasionally a few other Buddhist
artifacts or characters, while in the background are murals depicting
Buddhist landmarks and famous temples from all over
Myanmar.
See MAP.
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