Across the arid plain studded with thousands of bare red-brick monuments at ancient Bagan, Shwezigon Pagoda (Burmese: ရွှေစည်းခုံဘုရား) in the town of Nyaung-U blazes like a mountain of solid gold mirrored in the waters of the Irrawaddy River. Rather than adopting the vaulted hollow temple plan with dim interior corridors seen at Ananda Temple or Sulamani Temple, Shwezigon rises as a solid monumental stupa (zedi) reaching approximately 49 meters above three receding square terraces. Its entire bell-shaped dome and spire moldings ascending to the crowning hti umbrella are encased in more than 30,000 copper plates covered in gold leaf, catching the fierce Upper Myanmar sunlight in a radiant beacon visible to riverboats miles away along the great river.
Stepping through the covered colonnades onto the cool stone-paved courtyard, pilgrims encounter a distinctive synthesis of 11th-century Pagan imperial history and living devotion. At the four cardinal points around the base of the stupa stand four pavilions housing cast-bronze standing Buddha statues nearly 4 meters tall, representing the four Buddhas of the present fortunate aeon. Immediately outside the eastern entrance stand two four-sided stone pillars inscribed in Old Mon by King Kyanzittha in the late 11th century, while in the southeastern corner of the compound rests the famous shrine of the 37 indigenous Nat spirit guardians, a direct survival of King Anawrahta's religious reform that established Theravada Buddhism as the state faith of Myanmar's first unified empire.
IThe White Elephant Relic Legend and the Integration of the 37 Nats
The Burmese name Shwezigon derives from the phrase Shwe Zeya Bon or Zeyabon, meaning the Golden Pagoda on the Dune of Victory, because the monument was erected upon a natural sandbank rising beside the Irrawaddy River. In the religious history of Myanmar, Shwezigon holds supreme sanctity in the Bagan region as the inaugural monument of orthodox Theravada Buddhism under King Anawrahta (reigned 1044 to 1077 CE), the monarch who unified the Irrawaddy valley to found the Pagan Empire.
According to the royal chronicles Maha Yazawin and Hmannan Yazawin (the Glass Palace Chronicle), after being converted by the venerable Mon primate Shin Arahan, King Anawrahta resolved to champion pure Theravada Buddhism and curb the influence of the Ari sect, which blended esoteric magic and animal sacrifice in Upper Myanmar. To establish a preeminent focal point of veneration for his unified realm, the king decided to construct the great stupa of Shwezigon to enshrine three of the most sacred corporeal relics of the Buddha acquired by the Pagan court.
The three sacred relics sealed within the core of Shwezigon Pagoda comprise: first, the Buddha's collar-bone (clavicle) relic, which King Anawrahta brought from an ancient Pyu stupa at Sri Ksetra (Prome), second, the Buddha's frontal bone relic, and third, a miraculous duplicate of the Kandy Tooth Relic sent by King Vijayabahu I of Sri Lanka in gratitude for King Anawrahta's support. According to chronicle tradition, King Anawrahta mounted the jeweled reliquary upon the back of a sacred white elephant and let the animal roam freely with a solemn vow: wherever the white elephant halted and knelt down, that spot would be consecrated as the site of the great stupa. The white elephant walked along the bank of the Irrawaddy River until it reached a sandbank at Nyaung-U and knelt down, fixing the foundation of Shwezigon Pagoda.
King Anawrahta's policy incorporating the 37 Nat spirits
A remarkable feature of religious history that sets Shwezigon Pagoda apart from other monuments at Bagan is the official inclusion of the pantheon of 37 Nats (indigenous guardian spirits) within the pagoda precinct. Prior to King Anawrahta's reign, the inhabitants of the Myanmar plains venerated numerous local Nat spirits associated with mountains, rivers, ancient trees, and historical figures who died tragic deaths. When encouraging his subjects to take refuge in the Triple Gem of Theravada Buddhism, King Anawrahta initially attempted to confiscate and ban Nat images, only to find that folk spirit worship remained deeply rooted in popular consciousness.
Rather than attempting total suppression by force, the king enacted a pragmatic policy of religious accommodation: he selected 36 of the most widely revered folk Nats, placed them under the supreme authority of a 37th deity, Thagyamin (the Buddhist king of the gods Sakra or Indra), and installed carved wooden figures of all 37 spirits inside the compound of Shwezigon Pagoda as converted guardians paying homage to the Buddha's relics. The Burmese chronicles preserve King Anawrahta's famous maxim explaining this strategy: Men will not come for the sake of the new faith, let them come for their old gods, and gradually they will be won over (often paraphrased as people coming for the Nats and staying for the Pagoda).
It was right here at Shwezigon Pagoda that the canonical roster of the 37 Great Nats (Maha Gyi Nat) of Burmese culture was first standardized under royal patronage. The Nat shrine hall in the southeastern corner of the courtyard still houses 37 antique wooden statues, foremost among them a carved teakwood figure of Thagyamin dating back approximately 900 years to the Pagan period, regarded as the oldest surviving wooden Nat sculpture in Myanmar.
IIConstruction History from Anawrahta to Kyanzittha and Later Restorations
The construction of Shwezigon Pagoda spanned the two most illustrious reigns of the Pagan Empire during the second half of the 11th century and the opening years of the 12th century. Regarding the exact dates of foundation and completion, Burmese royal chronicles and epigraphic records document successive phases carried out by King Anawrahta and his successor King Kyanzittha.
According to Burmese chronicle tradition and Encyclopædia Britannica, King Anawrahta began laying the foundation and raising the three receding square terraces of Shwezigon Pagoda in 1059 or 1060 CE. When King Anawrahta died in 1077 CE, only the lower terraced levels had been completed. Following the brief reign of King Sawlu, King Kyanzittha (reigned 1084 to 1112 or 1113 CE) ascended the throne and mobilized tens of thousands of stonecutters to quarry sandstone blocks from the Tuyin hills (about 11 kilometers to the southeast), forming a human chain to pass the stones hand to hand all the way to Nyaung-U to complete the bell dome and spire. Some historical accounts note that the main masonry structure was raised within seven months in 1086 CE, while the final consecration and completion of the entire complex took place in 1102 CE.
- 1059 - 1060 CEKing Anawrahta founds the stupa where the white elephant kneltAfter unifying the Irrawaddy basin and establishing Theravada Buddhism as the state religion with the guidance of Shin Arahan, King Anawrahta placed the Buddha's collar-bone relic from Sri Ksetra, the frontal bone relic, and the Sri Lankan tooth relic replica upon a sacred white elephant. On the Nyaung-U sandbank where the elephant knelt, the king initiated the lower square terraces of Shwezigon Pagoda and established the shrine of the 37 guardian Nats.
- 1086 - 1102 CEKing Kyanzittha completes the great stupa and erects Old Mon pillarsKing Kyanzittha organized large-scale sandstone quarrying from the Tuyin hills to complete the circular bell dome, the terrace galleries fitted with over 550 green-glazed terracotta Jataka plaques, and the four cardinal standing bronze Buddha statues. Outside the eastern entrance, King Kyanzittha erected two four-sided stone pillars inscribed in Old Mon recording his royal biography, benevolent statecraft, and pious dedication.
- 1557 CEEmperor Bayinnaung of the Toungoo dynasty regilds the stupa and donates a bronze bellEmperor Bayinnaung (reigned 1551 to 1581 CE), the celebrated ruler of the Toungoo Empire, made a royal pilgrimage to Bagan. He regilded the entire Shwezigon stupa and cast a massive bronze bell weighing approximately 3,400 kilograms (over 2,100 viss), inscribed in Burmese, Mon, and Pali recording his religious endowments and repairs at Bagan.
- 17th - 18th centuryRestorations under the Nyaungyan and Konbaung dynastiesMonarchs of the Nyaungyan and Konbaung dynasties, including King Hsinbyushin and King Bodawpaya, repeatedly refurbished the devotional pavilions (tazaung), renewed the jewel-encrusted iron hti umbrella atop the spire, and maintained hereditary pagoda attendants, keeping Shwezigon the most active pilgrimage sanctuary in the Nyaung-U area long after Bagan ceased to be the royal capital.
- 1975Major Bagan earthquake and restoration of the summit spireOn July 8, 1975, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake shook the Bagan plain, tilting and damaging the upper finial and hti umbrella of Shwezigon Pagoda. Thanks to King Kyanzittha's solid sandstone core construction, the main bell dome and the three square terraces stood completely intact. Devotees nationwide subsequently funded a new hti spire and preserved the damaged historical hti inside the pagoda courtyard.
- 1983 - 1984Encasing the stupa in over 30,000 gilded copper platesThrough nationwide donations from tens of thousands of Buddhist devotees, the entire bell dome and upper spire moldings of Shwezigon were clad in more than 30,000 hand-beaten copper plates gilded in gold leaf, creating a durable metallic skin resilient against the Upper Myanmar desert climate.
- 2019UNESCO inscribes Bagan as a World Heritage SiteAt the 43rd session of the World Heritage Committee in Baku, Shwezigon Pagoda and the Bagan archaeological zone were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site (Ref. 1588) under criteria (iii), (iv), and (vi), honoring the monument as the architectural prototype that defined the classic Burmese zedi.
IIIArchitectural Prototype, Four Bronze Buddhas, and Old Mon Inscriptions
In the architectural history of Southeast Asian Buddhism, art historians recognize Shwezigon Pagoda as the definitive prototype marking the transition from the bulbous or cylindrical stupa forms of the ancient Pyu culture (such as the Bawbawgyi Pagoda at Sri Ksetra) to the gracefully flared bell-shaped stupa (zedi) characteristic of Burmese civilization. Its harmonious integration of stepped square terraces, an octagonal transition zone, and a soaring circular bell dome became the canonical model for thousands of later stupas across Myanmar, including the mature profile of the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon and the Uppatasanti Pagoda in Naypyidaw.
Three receding square terraces, bell dome, and over 30,000 gilded copper plates
Unlike the vast majority of Bagan monuments built entirely of fired brick, the structural core of Shwezigon Pagoda was constructed from dressed sandstone blocks quarried from the Tuyin hills combined with kiln-baked brick. The monument stands at the center of a spacious stone-flagged square courtyard enclosed by boundary walls pierced at the four cardinal directions by covered entrance colonnades (zaungdan). The principal western approach connects via a long covered walkway leading directly from the town market of Nyaung-U, whereas the oldest Pagan-era ceremonial approach faces the Irrawaddy River.
Rising from the courtyard pavement, the stupa ascends through three receding square upper terraces (paccaya) set atop two lower base plinths. Centered on each of the four sides of the three square terraces is a steep medial staircase climbing straight from the pavement to the base of the bell dome, flanked by balustrades sculpted in the form of mythical Makara sea creatures. Above the third square terrace rests an octagonal (eight-sided) band that provides a smooth geometric transition from the square earthly base to the circular celestial dome. From this octagonal base swells the great bell-shaped dome (khaung-laung-boun), encircled around its waist by an ornate relief band (yin-bandu). Above the bell dome rise concentric Diminishing rings known as inverted begging bowls (hpet-lan), downturned and upturned lotus-petal moldings (kya-hmauk and kya-lan), the banana-bud finial (hnget-pyaw-bu), and at the summit the gilded metal hti umbrella hung with hundreds of wind chimes and precious stones at a height of approximately 49 meters (160 feet).
Sacred treasures: 550 Jataka plaques, 4 bronze Buddhas, and 2 Old Mon pillars
Set into recessed square panels along the vertical retaining walls of the three square terraces are green-glazed terracotta plaques illustrating the 550 Jataka tales (previous birth stories of the Buddha). Originally 584 glazed plaques were installed around the terraces, each inscribed in Old Mon script with the title of the story and its sequential number so that monks guiding lay pilgrims in clockwise circumambulation (pradakshina) could impart moral teachings on karma, generosity, and virtue.
Housed inside four devotional pavilions (tazaung) positioned symmetrically at the north, east, south, and west cardinal points directly opposite the medial staircases are four original late 11th-century cast-bronze standing Buddha statues measuring 3.7 to 4.0 meters (12 to 13 feet) in height. They represent the four Buddhas of the present fortunate aeon (Bhadrakalpa): Kakusandha on the north, Konagamana on the east, Kassapa on the south, and Gautama on the west. Each statue raises its right hand in the gesture of fearlessness (Abhaya Mudra) while holding the robe hem in the left hand, blending Gupta-Pala Indian modeling with Mon-Pagan sculptural aesthetics. These are the only four large-scale Pagan-period bronze Buddha statues surviving intact at Bagan.
Sheltered inside two small pavilions flanking the eastern entrance to the pagoda compound stand two four-sided sandstone pillars densely inscribed in Old Mon script, erected by King Kyanzittha in the late 11th century. In the text, King Kyanzittha identifies himself as a past incarnation of the god Vishnu, proclaims his duty to uphold the Buddhist Dhamma, vows to wipe away the tears of the suffering with a hand of compassion, and describes the peace and agricultural abundance of the Pagan kingdom.
Suspended in a bell pavilion east of the main stupa is a massive bronze bell weighing approximately 3,400 kilograms donated by Emperor Bayinnaung of the Toungoo dynasty in 1557 CE. Its surface bears a trilingual inscription in Burmese, Mon, and Pali detailing the quantities of gold and silver offered by the king to regild the stupa along with solemn imprecations against anyone who would desecrate the monastery's endowments.
Cut directly into the stone courtyard pavement on the eastern side of the stupa is a small circular basin barely a handspan wide filled with clear water. When a pilgrim stands at the proper angle and gazes down into this tiny pool, the entire 49-meter spire of Shwezigon Pagoda and its golden hti umbrella appear reflected in miniature without the viewer needing to crane their neck into the blinding sun.
Placed beneath the pedestal of the Kassapa Buddha statue in the southern shrine is a sandstone slab carved with the sacred footprints of the Buddha (Buddhapada) shaped like a Bodhi leaf with the Wheel of the Law at the center. Around the courtyard also stand sculptures of the mythical Byala creature with its wide Mon-style grin, alongside a sacred stone (Kyaukmyat) that local worshippers lift to test the fulfillment of their wishes.
Located in the southeastern corner of the compound is a long pavilion housing the complete pantheon of Myanmar's 37 Nat spirit guardians, ranging from the Mount Popa spirits (Min Mahagiri and his sister Shwe Myet Hna) to historical heroes. The most prized artifact in the hall is a carved teakwood statue of Thagyamin (Indra) standing with hands joined in reverence, an original 11th-century wood carving from the era of Anawrahta and Kyanzittha.
IVThe Lie of the Land and Sacred Orientation
Theravada Buddhism in Myanmar does not employ Chinese compass geomancy, instead siting stupas according to Indo-Mon sacred geography and auspicious omen traditions. At Shwezigon Pagoda, the location was determined through the royal ritual of releasing a white elephant bearing the Buddha's relics to identify the victorious sandbank (Zeyabon), while the ground plan was laid out as a four-sided cosmic Mandala with Mount Meru at the center and the four Buddhas guarding the east, west, south, and north cardinal axes. The analysis below examines the actual riverine topography of the monument at Nyaung-U through the comparative lens of traditional landform geomancy.
Examined on the hydrological map of the Irrawaddy basin at coordinates 21.1953 degrees North latitude and 94.8939 degrees East longitude, Shwezigon Pagoda commands the northeastern gateway of the Bagan plain at Nyaung-U, precisely where the mighty Irrawaddy (Ayeyarwady) River flowing down from the north-northeast makes a sweeping bend toward the southwest to embrace the ancient capital of Pagan. In classical landform water analysis, the Nyaung-U sector represents the upper water mouth (Water Mouth (Shui Kou)) of the entire ten-thousand-stupa plain. By selecting an elevated, flood-free sandbank (Zeyabon) on the eastern bank of this great river bend to erect the national reliquary stupa, King Anawrahta achieved an auspicious water-embracing bright hall (Bright Hall (Ming Tang)) formation: the broad expanse of the Irrawaddy River passing just 400 meters north and northwest of the pagoda tempers the arid climate while forming a jade-belt watercourse (Ngọc đới thủy) around the sanctuary.
Regarding the four emblems and axial orientation: because Shwezigon Pagoda is built on a symmetrical four-sided Mandala plan with four medial staircases and four bronze Buddha shrines facing due East, due West, due South, and due North, the stupa gathers qi from all four cardinal directions rather than relying on a single facade. Considered in historical and topographic terms, the eastern gate where King Kyanzittha erected his two Old Mon stone pillars greets the rising sun and aligns toward the Tuyin hills (Tuyin Taung) and sacred Mount Popa to the southeast as its distant ancestral mountain and rear backing (Rear Backing Mountain (Hou Zhen)), while the northern and western approaches open toward the Irrawaddy river landing and the main pilgrimage road linking Nyaung-U market with Old Bagan. The combination of the high riverbank sandbank and the solid 49-meter golden stupa acts as an enduring geomantic anchor stabilizing the upper dragon vein (Dragon Vein (Long Mai)) of the Bagan plain for over nine centuries.
VThe Tazaungmon Pagoda Festival and Pilgrimage Traditions
Unlike many archaeological monuments at Bagan that now stand as quiet historic ruins, Shwezigon Pagoda has remained a vibrant living pilgrimage center for the people of Nyaung-U and the wider Mandalay region from the 11th century to the present day. The climax of its liturgical calendar is the annual Shwezigon Pagoda Festival celebrated during the lunar month of Tazaungmon (the eighth month of the traditional Burmese calendar, usually falling in November) following the conclusion of the Buddhist rains retreat.
| Time (Calendar system) | Festival / Ritual name | Traditional observance and activities at Shwezigon Pagoda |
|---|---|---|
| Full moon of Tazaungmon (Burmese lunar calendar, approx. November) | Shwezigon Pagoda Festival (Tazaungdaing Festival) | A major two-week pilgrimage fair drawing tens of thousands of rural families arriving in traditional bullock carts. On the full moon day, hundreds of monks and novices walk in alms procession to receive offerings of alms bowls, robes, and harvest produce from devotees lining the courtyard, accompanied by country markets, puppet theater, and thousands of oil lamps lit around the stupa terraces. |
| Full moon of Kason (Burmese lunar calendar, approx. May) | Bodhi Tree Watering Festival (Nyaungye-thun Pwe) | Commemorates the Birth, Enlightenment, and Parinirvana of the Buddha. Processions of women in traditional dress carry earthen pots of scented water clockwise around the golden stupa before pouring the water onto the sacred Bodhi tree in the courtyard to pray for favorable rains in the Upper Myanmar dry zone. |
| Full moon of Thadingyut (Burmese lunar calendar, approx. October) | Festival of Lights at the End of Lent (Thadingyut) | Marks the Buddha's descent from Tavatimsa Heaven after preaching the Abhidhamma to his mother. All three square terraces and the stone courtyard of Shwezigon Pagoda are illuminated for three nights with thousands of candles and oil lamps to welcome the Buddha. |
| March to April (Gregorian / Traditional agricultural calendar) | Shinbyu Novitiation Ceremonies and Thingyan New Year | Buddhist families from Nyaung-U and Bagan lead boys dressed in princely attire under golden parasols in a three-circuit clockwise procession around Shwezigon Pagoda and offer prayers before the four bronze Buddhas prior to their ordination as novice monks at nearby monasteries. |
| Daily from dawn until late evening (Year-round) | Flower offerings and planetary birthday water-pouring (Mahabote) | Pilgrims circumambulate the stupa clockwise, offer fresh flowers and gold leaf at the four cardinal bronze Buddha shrines, and pour cups of cool water over the Buddha image and animal emblem at the planetary post corresponding to the day of the week on which they were born. |
Throughout the Tazaungmon festival season, the grounds surrounding the western and northern colonnades of Shwezigon Pagoda transform into a traditional tent city. Farming families from distant villages travel by bullock cart to camp for days on end, spending the daylight hours offering alms to the Sangha and venerating the Buddha's relics, and gathering at night to watch classical musical dramas (Zat Pwe) reenacting the Jataka tales beneath the golden glow of the nearly thousand-year-old stupa.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Nyaung-U, Đông Bắc cố đô Bagan, bờ Đông sông Irrawaddy, Vùng Mandalay, Myanmar
- Getting there
- From Nyaung-U Airport or the Bagan intercity bus terminal, visitors can travel 4 to 5 kilometers along the main Bagan-Nyaung-U road toward the Irrawaddy River to reach the western and southern entrance colonnades of Shwezigon Pagoda in central Nyaung-U, from Old Bagan, it is an easy 15-minute ride by electric bike (e-bike) or horse cart along the riverside Anawrahta Road.
- Coordinates
- 21.1953, 94.8939
When visiting Shwezigon Pagoda, please remove all shoes, sandals, and socks at the outer entrance gates before stepping onto the covered walkways leading into the pagoda courtyard. Both men and women must dress modestly with shoulders covered and garments extending below the knees. The steep medial staircases ascending the three upper terraces of the stupa are closed to protect the historic masonry, visitors circumambulate the stone courtyard clockwise, venerate the four cardinal bronze Buddha statues, and may peer into the small circular water basin on the eastern pavement to see the complete reflection of the golden spire.
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?Quick Questions
What sacred relics of the Buddha are enshrined inside Shwezigon Pagoda?
According to Burmese royal chronicles, the core of Shwezigon Pagoda enshrines three revered relics of Gautama Buddha: the collar-bone (clavicle) relic brought from an ancient Pyu stupa at Sri Ksetra, the frontal bone relic of the Buddha, and a sacred replica of the Kandy Tooth Relic sent by King Vijayabahu I of Sri Lanka to King Anawrahta.
Why does a Theravada Buddhist sanctuary like Shwezigon Pagoda contain a shrine to the 37 Nat spirits?
In the 11th century, when King Anawrahta established Theravada Buddhism as the state religion, he recognized that local people remained deeply attached to indigenous Nat spirit worship. To harmonize popular devotion with Buddhism, he placed 36 folk Nats under the authority of the 37th deity, the Buddhist god Thagyamin (Indra), and installed their images at Shwezigon as guardians honoring the Buddha.
What is the significance of the four standing bronze Buddha statues around the base of Shwezigon Pagoda?
The four cast-bronze standing Buddha statues measuring 3.7 to 4 meters tall inside the four cardinal shrines date from the late 11th century and represent the four Buddhas of the present fortunate aeon: Kakusandha on the north, Konagamana on the east, Kassapa on the south, and Gautama on the west. They are the largest intact Pagan-period bronze Buddhas surviving at Bagan.
What language is carved on the two stone pillars at the eastern entrance of Shwezigon Pagoda, and who erected them?
The two four-sided sandstone pillars sheltered at the eastern entrance are inscribed in Old Mon script and were erected by King Kyanzittha in the late 11th century upon completing the stupa. The inscriptions proclaim the king's ideal of compassionate Buddhist rule, pray for the prosperity of the realm, and record the completion of Shwezigon Pagoda.
How did the architecture of Shwezigon Pagoda influence later stupas across Myanmar?
Shwezigon Pagoda was the first monument to unite three receding square terraces with medial staircases, an octagonal transition band, and a flared bell-shaped dome tapering up to a crowned hti spire. This design replaced earlier cylindrical Pyu stupa forms and became the architectural prototype for almost all classic Burmese zedi stupas built in subsequent centuries.