Bagan Myinkaba Kubyauk-gyi Temple, Myanmar

Address

Bagan Myinkaba Kubyauk-gyi Temple, Myanmar

Myin Ka Bar,

Myanmar (Burma)

Moolavar

Buddha

Introduction

Myinkaba Kubyauk-gyi Temple is the earliest datable monument at Bagan, built in the year 1113 by Prince Yazakumar, the son of King Kyansittha (r. 1084-1112/13). It is located on the north side of Myinkaba village, adjacent to the Myazedi stupa (monument #1320), a larger monument built in the 19th century over the ruins of a much older stupa.

Puranic Significance

Strachan classifies the years 850-1120 as the “Early Period” of Burmese art and architecture, placing the Kubyauk-gyi at the tail end of this first flowering of Bagan culture. By this time, King Kyansittha was the dynasty’s eleventh historically verifiable ruler, the first being King Pyinba who founded Bagan in the year 849. As Bagan had already existed by nearly three centuries by Kyansittha’s era, its “Early Period” culture was considerably advanced, and a number of Buddhist temples—from which Yazakumar certainly derived inspiration—were already standing on the plains of Bagan. For instance, the plan of the temple bears considerable resemblance to the nearby Abe-ya-dana-hpaya and Naga-yon-hpaya temples, constructed only a few decades earlier. All three temples comprise two main components: a square sanctuary space and a smaller antechamber attached to the front of the temple. Within the sanctuary space, a continuous ambulatory runs around the central core containing a single small room (4.34 x 4.84 m) for the primary Buddha image.

According to Strachan, the temple’s chief architectural innovation was the inclusion for the first time of an upper-level shrine, heralding later temples such as the That-binnyu which did away with the lower level shrine entirely. At the Kubyauk-gyi, the upper level shrine is located at the juncture of the entrance hall and the sanctuary; from the front and side elevations it is barely noteworthy, with a small sikhara–like spire on the roof (now damaged) and a small east-facing entrance. The shrine was accessible from the ground via a staircase located in the south-facing window of the entrance hall (the stairway is now closed to visitors).

Among its peers, the Kubyauk-gyi stands out for the quality of its detail. The kirtimukha friezes, rendered in stucco on the exterior, are among the finest in Bagan for a temple of this early date. Likewise, the mural paintings on the interior show a rich variety of themes and are in good condition. Restored with the assistance of the U.N.D.P., the paintings are of such importance that visitors are forbidden to take any photos inside the building.

The subject matter of the paintings chosen for the Kubyauk-gyi were primarily from the three canonical works of the Pali Canon noted above, especially the jataka tales of the Buddha’s past lives, which were part of theKhuddaka Nikaya, a section within the Sutta Pitaka. All 547 jataka tales are shown with a single vignette from each, captioned in mon writing to identify each. There are also numerous scenes from the bodawin(life of the historical Buddha).