The Hsinbyume Pagoda ( my, ဆင်ဖြူမယ်စေတီ ; also known as Myatheindan Pagoda ( )) is a large pagoda on the northern side of Mingun in

Sagaing Region Sagaing Region ( my, စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းဒေသကြီး, ; formerly Sagaing Division) is an administrative region of Myanmar, located in the north-western part of the country between latitude 21° 30' north and lon ...

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

, on the western bank of the

Irrawaddy River The Irrawaddy River ( Ayeyarwady River; , , from Indic ''revatī'', meaning "abounding in riches") is a river that flows from north to south through Myanmar (Burma). It is the country's largest river and most important commercial waterway. Orig ...

. It is approximately northwest of

Mandalay Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census). Mandalay was fou ...

and is located in the proximity of the Mingun Pahtodawgyi. The pagoda is painted white and is modelled on the physical description of the Buddhist sacred mountain, Mount Meru.

Construction

The pagoda was built in 1816 by

Bagyidaw Bagyidaw ( my, ဘကြီးတော်, ; also known as Sagaing Min, ; 23 July 1784 – 15 October 1846) was the seventh king of the Konbaung dynasty of Burma from 1819 until his abdication in 1837. Prince of Sagaing, as he was commonly know ...

. It is dedicated to the memory of his first consort and cousin, Princess

Hsinbyume Princess Hsinbyume ( my, ဆင်ဖြူရှင်မယ်; ) was crown princess of Burma from 1808 to 1812, and first wife of King Bagyidaw of Konbaung dynasty. She married Bagyidaw when he was Prince of Sagaing on 9 February 1803. Hsinbyu ...

(, lit. Princess White Elephant, 1789–1812) who had died in childbirth in a site nearby.

Design

The pagoda's design is a great departure from Burmese pagoda design norms. It is based on descriptions of the mythical Sulamani pagoda on Mount Meru, and the lower parts of the pagoda represent the mountain. Seven concentric terraces represent the seven mountain ranges going up to the Mount Meru according to Buddhist mythology.

Restoration

The pagoda was badly damaged by an earthquake in 1838 and was restored by King

Min Min or MIN may refer to: Places * Fujian, also called Mǐn, a province of China ** Min Kingdom (909–945), a state in Fujian * Min County, a county of Dingxi, Gansu province, China * Min River (Fujian) * Min River (Sichuan) * Mineola (Amtr ...

don in 1874.

References

Central Myanmar Destinations, Yadana NarawatThe Hsinphyume Pagoda
Buildings and structures in Sagaing Region Pagodas in Myanmar 19th-century Buddhist temples Religious buildings and structures completed in 1816 {{Burma-struct-stub

Construction

Design

Restoration

See also

References