When we were in Myanmar we had the opportunity to go to Shwedagon Pagoda. While there we got to see many locals, our taxi driver included, walk up to various Buddha statues and pray to it before picking up a little silver cup and pouring water over the statue repeatedly. It was an interesting sight. People would walk past multiple other statues until they found the right one and then only pray and pour water on one. It was curious to watch.
After our taxi driver finished praying and pouring water over one statue, we asked him what that was all about. Some people were walking past several Buddha statues before stopping to pray and pour water over one before turning and continuing on their way. Others scrutinized the front of several before stopping to pray. We wanted to understand what was so special about whichever statue the people were choosing to pray to and how they made their choice.
Our guide explained to us that each statue represented the day of the week the person was born and that in Myanmar there are statues for the week. This, he told us, is because Wednesday counts for two days, AM being one day and PM being another. Each statue is marked with animal that represents that day. The galon, which is a bird from Buddhist mythology, is the animal for Sunday, the tiger represents Monday, the lion is the animal for Tuesday, the tusked elephant is for the first half of Wednesday with the tuskless elephant for the second half of Wednesday, the mouse is the animal for Thursday, the guinea pig symbolizes Friday and Saturday is embodied by a mythical serpent dragon. Each location where a statue is set is referred to as a planetary post and contains a Buddha statue with a guardian angel statue behind the Buddha. Underneath the Buddha is a statue of the animal that represents that day. Unfortunately, this does not contain a picture of that.
He also explained that the people were not praying to the Buddha. He said it the Buddha discouraged people from worshiping him during his lifetime and instead of praying to the statues, people recite the five precepts of Buddhism, which are:
- I take the precept to abstain from killing
- I take the precept to abstain from taking that which is not given
- I take the precept to abstain from sexual misconduct
- I take the precept to abstain from false speech
- I take the precept to abstain from intoxicants
When choosing the Buddha to recite the precepts to, the person chooses the Buddha above the animal that represents the day they were born. Buddhists recite the precepts to the Buddha statue before pouring water on it and then pray and make a wish while pouring water. The flowers they offer the statue is a sign of devotion to the Buddha and also as a recognition of the inconstancy of human life. Another ritual observed when coming to show devotion to the Buddha is to walk around the stupa in a clockwise direction, as tradition dictates is an act of merit.
It was a really neat experience to watch people engrossed in their religion and showing their devotion to the Buddha. There is so much ritual and symbolism at the pagodas and in their worship. We really enjoyed being able to witness the people’s love for Buddha and their dedication to their worship.
