Conservationists in Myanmar
Express Concern Over Public Display of Sacred Hair Relic of the
Buddha
Craig Lewis Buddhistdoor
Global | 2018-04-16 |
Conservationists in Myanmar
have expressed concern that a public procession and display
scheduled this month of an ancient Buddhist relic, believed to be a
hair from the historical Buddha, risks damaging the object of
reverence.
The relic, believed to have
come from the head of Shakyamuni Buddha more than 2,500 years ago
is usually enshrined within Botataung Pagoda in downtown Yangon.
However, due to planned renovation work at the ancient monument,
the Buddha’s hair relic has been moved to a nearby prayer hall
where it has been placed on public display. The relic is scheduled
to be carried by procession and placed in the Chanthagyi Prayer
Hall of the city’s iconic Shwedagon Pagoda for five days, along
with a number of other sacred items from Botataung Pagoda, on the
morning of 19 April. On 24 April, the hair relic and other revered
objects are to be conveyed back to Botataung Pagoda.
“The interior of the
chamber needs renovation,” said U Sein Maw, director of Yangon
Region’s Ministry of Religious Affairs. “Water leaks from its
ceiling,” he added, explaining that the removal of the relic was
necessary before the repairs could be carried out. (The
Irrawaddy)
The Buddha’s hair relic
will be carried around Yangon in a procession for people to
venerate, said Dr. Badana Eidi Bala, chair Sayadaw of the Yangon
Region Sangha Nayaka was cited as saying by the Myanmar
Times.
“We carried out a
consecration ceremony at Shwedagon Pagoda with 18,000 sangha
[members], and now we will schedule a meeting with every sangha
[member] . . . in Yangon Region,” said
Dr. Badana. “This ceremony for the relic is led by the regional
Sangha Nayaka and the regional government, so I urge believers to
follow.” (Myanmar Times)
Critics of the decision,
who include conservationists as well as members of State Sangha
Maha Nayaka Committee, a government-appointed body of high-ranking
Buddhist monks that oversees the country’s monastic sangha, have
expressed concern for the safety of the relic.
“Should a piece of national
heritage like the sacred hair relic be out for a long time due to
its fragility?” said Daw Moe Moe Lwin, director of the Yangon
Heritage Trust. “What if it is accidentally damaged during the
display and procession? I wonder if precautions have been taken.”
(The Irrawaddy)
She drew a comparison with
Sri Lanka’s most sacred Buddhist relic, a tooth of the historical
Buddha, which is enshrined in a heavily guarded room in the Temple
of the Sacred Tooth in the city of Kandy. “Even when you are in the
room, you don’t actually see the tooth. It’s kept in a gold casket
which contains a series of six caskets of diminishing size,” she
observed. (The Irrawaddy)
According to accounts of
its history, Botataung Pagoda was first built by the region’s Mon
civilization some 2,500 years ago. The pagoda was destroyed by
British aircraft during the Second World War, although the relic
casket was found undamaged in the
rubble. The pagoda was rebuilt in 1948 after the country regained
independence.
U Sein Maw offered
assurances that a plan had been put in place to ensure the relic is
properly protected during thr renovation period. “We have been
discussing the best way to carefully put the relic casket in the
car and transport it from Botataung to Shwedagon Pagoda,” he said,
noting that repairs and renovations for the relic chamber were part
of a larger plan to restore the entire pagoda, including replacing
all the gold on the structure. An estimated 50–60 kilograms of gold
would be needed to complete the project, he added. (The Irrawaddy)
Myanmar is a predominantly
Theravada Buddhist country, with 80.1 per cent of the population of
almost 48 million people identifying as Buddhists, according to
2010 data from the Washington, DC-based Pew Research Center.
Christians, folk religions, and Muslims account for the bulk of the
remainder. Buddhist monks, venerated throughout Burmese society,
are believed to number around 500,000, with an estimated 75,000
nuns in the Southeast Asian country.