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Kyaikhtiyo Pagoda

  • Deep within the jungle of the Paunglaung Range of the south-eastern Yoma, perched precariously on a rocky precipice, over 1000 meters above sea level is a huge boulder 25 meters in circumference resembling a human head crowned with a pagoda five meters high. The boulders is so placed on the edge of the precipice that it seems a slight push with a finger will tip it over into the gorge below. Yet when you try to do so it only rocks slightly. This is the Kyaikhtiyo Pagoda which enshrines a strand of Hair of the Buddha. 
  • The pagoda legend states that when Buddha visited Thuwunna Bhumi, the land of gold, (present-day Thaton), the hermit Tissa implored Buddha for a strand of Hair to be worshipped for perpetuity. So The compassionate Buddha gave him a strand of Hair. Near the end of the hermits life, Sakka, the lord of nats spiritual beings persuaded the hermit to relinquish the Hair so that it could be enshrined in a suitable location. The hermit agreed on condition that the Hair be enshrined in a boulder resembling his head and that a pagoda be erected on that boulder. 
  • The lord of nats, Sakka, agreed and fetched from the bottom of the sea a boulder which resembled the hermits head. The hermit on fulfillment of his wish relinquished the sacred Hair to Sakka whereupon Sakka scooped out a hole in the boulder and enshrined the Hair therein, and erected a pagoda of fitting height upon that spot. 
  • The boulder was placed on the edge of a rocky precipice with the resolution that it would never fall come storm or earthquake or human endeavor. And so it stands there today. 
  • The facial features of the hermit may be seen on the surface of the boulder. The view from the Kyaikhto Hotel will let you see the face very well, sometimes serious, often smiling. 
  • You can take the railway to Kyaikhto or the 200 km road by car through Bago and over the bridge spanning the Sittaung River. The distance from Kyaikhto to the base camp Kinmunsakhan is 12 km. For quicker access and convenience to make possible a day trip from Yangon, a road has been cut through the jungle from the base camp to the foot of the Kyaikhtiyo ridge From there you can make the half-hour climb to the top or be carried up in style on 1 palanquin.
  • Formerly, the only way to get to the Pagoda was by a 12 kilometer hike through the jungle. The path was well trodden but steep in several places with names like "Choke in the chest", "Grandpa Goes Back", "The wild Ox Tilts Up Its Head". There are about 20 camps along the route so that there' s some place to rest whenever you feel tired; tea, drinks and fritters are available. The main wayside-camp is at Yemyaung-gyi (Water Gulch) where baths are led from mountain streams and food is plentiful. Some people who can leave Yangon only in the afternoon spend the night at Yemyaung-gyi.The whole route is sheltered from the sun by the jungle canopy. Half the attraction of a pilgrimage to the Kyaikhtiyo is the trek which tests the physical stamina of the city-dweller. Now the pleasure has been lost to people who take the new motor road. 
  • A circumbulatory plaza built below the sacred Boulder has taken the unique experience of looking down into the deep gorge from the Pagoda platform. However, the construction of several large rest-houses for pilgrims is a welcome addition . On fullmoon nights or on the eve the place is so crowded that people have to sit or lie the night through on the platform in the cold mist which rolls in from the surrounding mountains after midnight. 
  • The Pagoda platform is not the only place to visit. At the foot of the hill are Kyeepasuk (Crow Beak) cave, Nagaphayas (Dragon Pagoda), and Phaphayar (Frog Pagoda) For sturdier people there are the hills opposite the ridge to climb: Moksotaung (Hunters' Hill). Rathedaung (Hunters' Hill), Myaseintaung (Emerald Hill), Soontaung (Kite Hill) and Weikzataung (Wizard Hill). 
  • It is believed that pilgrimage to the Kyaikhtiyo for three consecutive years will bring prosperity and success.
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