By Douglas Long

I t is nearly impossible to think about the ancient

ruins of Mrauk U without comparing them to

Bagan. Bagan is bigger, grander and more famous, but Mrauk U is

more mysterious and remote, and therefore less crowded. While

Bagan is a location as well as an experience, Mrauk U is both of

these plus a journey, a destination book-ended by 65-kilometre

boat trips away from Sittwe on the coast of Rakhine State and

back again. Getting there is part of the adventure.

16 Air Mandalay

Founded around 1430, Mrauk U is quite a bit
younger than Bagan, which entered its golden
era around the 11th century AD. Mrauk U was the
last capital of the Rakhine kingdom, preceded
by royal cities such as Dhanyawaddy, Vesali and
Launggret. The latter was founded in 1251 and
served as the capital until 1406, when it was
invaded by the king of Inwa. For the next 24
years, armies from central Myanmar, Inwa and
Bago battled nearly constantly for control of the
city, and it traded hands a number of times.
Following the 1406 invasion, the Rakhine King
Minsawmon had been forced to flee to Bengal.
In 1429 he attacked Launggret and won it back
once and for all. According to legend, a series
of bad omens prompted him to seek another
site for the capital with the help of astrologers.
Historians say the king was simply dissatisfied
with the geographical vulnerability of Launggret,
which sat in the middle of a plain. He is said to
have chosen Mrauk U because of its location in
a valley surrounded by defensible mountains.
Mrauk U was the Rakhine capital from 1430 to
1785, during which time it gained great wealth as
a duty-free port that attracted large numbers of
merchants from near and far, including western
countries such as the Netherlands, Portugal and
Kothaung Pagoda
According to legend, a series of bad
omens prompted King Minsawmon
to seek another site for the capital
with the help of astrologers.
Spain. King Minbin (1531-1553) built a large
naval fleet with modern cannon to patrol 1600
kilometres of coastal territory. Chronicles from
the period claim the number of ships reached
10,000. In addition to defensive walls that were
built to join higher natural points, a network
of moats was dug to supply fresh water, and
for transportation and defence. In 1623 the
Rakhine became even more formidable when
Japanese samurai came to Mrauk U to serve
as royal guards.
Much of this history and more can be digested
at the Rakhine State Cultural Museum in Sittwe.
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The remote mysteries of Mrauk U
While it is possible leave for Mrauk U by boat
shortly after arriving at the airport, the museum
and other sights around town make it worth
staying for at least one night.
My travel companion and I opted to linger,
checking out the Jama Mosque, Lokananda
Paya and the markets filled with products
imported from neighbouring Bangladesh. In late
afternoon we hired a trishaw to take us to the
Point, an arrow of land where the Kaladan River
flows into the Bay of Bengal. Along the way, we
passed groups of locals strumming guitars by
the road, playing football and repairing boats
The winding hallways are lined with Buddha
figures and lead to the cave-like central
chamber with the main Buddha image.
18 Air Mandalay
Rakhine State Cultural Museum in Sittwe
on the tidal flats, and pulling fishing nets in
from the shallows. We reached the Point just in
time to enjoy a drink while watching the sunset.
Waves crashed on the rocks where black crabs
scuttled. When darkness fell, red lights came
on in the fishing boats off the coast. When the
beauty of the sea became too much to bear,
we walked back down the road to Gisspanadi
Restaurant, deservedly famous for its fresh
seafood dishes.
Our boat for Mrauk U left at 7:15am the next
morning. Like the locals, we huddled in our sling
chairs against the chilly December morning as
the ferry pulled away from the dock and into
the wide river. Relative warmth came pretty
quickly though, and after a couple hours I was
able to snap photos without my hands shaking
too badly from the cold. The river narrowed and
twisted as we passed a series of picturesque
towns – Po Knarr Kyaun (overlooked by a hilltop
pagoda), Set Tharr (a small town with a long
pier) and Pya Te (a big town with a short pier)
– on our way to Mrauk U.
We reached our destination just past 1:00pm,
giving us time to explore a bit before dark. The
 The remote mysteries of Mrauk U

distances in Mrauk U are not as great as those

in Bagan, so we took off on foot, heading north
to the pagodas closest to our hotel.

Our first encounter was with Shittaung Pagoda The winding hallways are lined with Buddha
(Shrine of 80,000 Images), named for the number
of religious images placed inside by its builder,
figures and lead to the cave-like central
King Minbin. The central stupa, surrounded by chamber with the main Buddha image.
nearly 30 smaller shrines, has thick walls that
lend a dark, eerie atmosphere to the interior. The
winding hallways are lined with Buddha figures
and lead to the cave-like central chamber with
the main Buddha image. Also at the shrine is
the three-metre-high Shittaung Pillar, brought
to the site from Vesali by King Minbin in 1535.
Three sides are inscribed with Sanskrit-language
chronicles of Rakhine history.

Northeast of Shittaung is the octagonal

Andaw Paya, said to contain a Buddha tooth
relic brought by King Minbin from Sri Lanka.
Outside, we could hear monks chanting in a
nearby monastery and children shouting and
playing in the adjacent village.

After a stop at the solid-brick Ratanabon Pagoda,

we walked through a small valley on a dirt track
that we shared with villagers carrying wood, as
well as with wandering gangs of goats, cattle Sunset at the Point in Sittwe

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The remote mysteries of Mrauk U
Thousand of Buddha images line the passageways of Kothaung Pagoda
To the east of Ratanamanaung Pagoda was
Laykhinpyin field, once used as a training
ground for Rakhine soldier archers.
20 Air Mandalay
and dogs. Despite the company, we basked
in the late afternoon serenity of the place as
we wandered past the awkwardly leaning
Laungbyanpauk Paya, with its glazed tiles of
red, yellow, blue and green, and the tiny Pitaka
Taik, built in 1591 as a repository for the books
of the Buddhist canon.
From the valley floor we scampered up a
hillside to check out Mahabodhi Shwegu and
Ratanasanraway Pagoda before descending to
a smoky village of barking dogs and children
shouting “Bye bye!” as we approached. On the
far side was the 55-metre-high Ratanamanaung
Pagoda, to the east of which was Laykhinpyin
field, once used as a training ground for Rakhine
soldier archers. With the day and our strength
waning, we bushwhacked to another hilltop
to watch the sun go down. Local women sang,
laughed and waved to us from the bottom of
the hill. The bats that flitted across the darkening
sky looking for insects to eat reminded us that
we were hungry too, so we climbed back down
and set out in search of dinner.
The next day we opted to rely on our feet once
again, even though we had much greater distances
to travel. There was Laymyetnha Paya, with its
small, circular hallway around a central Buddha,
 The remote mysteries of Mrauk U

followed by Dukkanthein Paya, whose layout is

based on a creepy spiralling hallway lined with
146 Buddha alcoves that allows a smattering of
sunlight to pass through and illuminate even
the innermost chamber.

We wandered footpaths through small villages

and past jungle monasteries on our way to gilded
Sakyamanaung Paya, and then followed a wider
dirt road for the long trek to Kothaung Pagoda
(Shrine of 90,000 Images), the biggest in Mrauk
U. It was built by King Mintaikkha, son of King
Minbin, in 1553 to outdo his father’s Shittaung
pagoda by 10,000 images. Some say that’s why
it was found in such a state of disrepair, having
been struck by lighting for the disrespect King
Mintaikkha had shown to his father.

The last stop on our agenda was the old palace

area. There’s not much left except the 3.5-metre-
high sandstone walls, which are impressive
enough. Also on the site is an archaeological
museum displaying artefacts from the Vesali,
Launggret and Mrauk U periods. But where
the magnificently lacquered and gilded teak
residence of kings and queens once stood is
now a weed-covered lawn pocked with pits
dug by archaeologists working to uncover the
lost glories of the past.

After dark on our last evening before heading

back to Sittwe, we went for a walk outside of
town. Out there, past where the streetlights
ended, twinkling stars and flashing fireflies
competed to be the main source of light. We
could see almost nothing, but we could hear
disembodied voices singing, laughing and
shouting from a nearby village. Despite the loss
of the ancient palace and other monuments to
the ravages of time, it was easy to imagine that
the nights would have sounded pretty much
the same hundreds of years ago, when Mrauk
U was at the height of its power.

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Still waters reflect the pagodas and sky of Mrauk U.