Chaukhtatgyi Buddha Temple — Attraction in Yangon

Visited on November 15, 2024

Today, I had the chance to visit Chaukhtatgyi Buddha Temple in Yangon, and it was an absolutely stunning experience. The temple is home to a massive reclining Buddha statue, which is the highlight of the site and truly breathtaking.

The reclining Buddha at Chaukhtatgyi is enormous—66 meters long—and beautifully crafted. Its serene expression and the intricate details, especially on the soles of the feet with 108 sacred symbols, were fascinating. Standing in front of such a grand statue, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of calm and reverence. The colors and design of the Buddha make it visually striking, and it’s a sight I’ll never forget.

The temple’s peaceful atmosphere was one of the best parts of my visit. It wasn’t crowded, and the gentle sound of chanting and the aroma of incense created a tranquil setting. Watching the locals offering flowers and prayers gave me a deeper appreciation of the space as a living, spiritual place.

Getting to the temple was straightforward, and entry was free, though I left a small donation. The grounds were well-kept, and there were shaded areas where I could sit and take in the atmosphere. It was nice to see that photography was allowed, so I could capture some memories without feeling intrusive.

Dress Code: Make sure to wear modest clothing, covering shoulders and knees. Best Time to Visit: I went before lunch and it is very humid outside.

Chaukhtatgyi Buddha Temple is a must-visit if you’re in Yangon. The reclining Buddha alone is worth the trip, and the peaceful environment made it a perfect escape from the city. It’s a place I’d definitely recommend to anyone...

SCAM ALERT!!! We were looking for the entrance when walking by the back of the temple and unfortunately were fooled by an old man that offered to show us the way in. After ten days traveling Myanmar we hadn’t had any bad experiences so we naively acceded and were accompanied by this man to a door at an ally where there was another man telling us that in order to go see the reclining Buddha we first needed to get the blessings from the main monk. Everything looked really weird but somehow we got inside the dark house following this second man who spoke a fairly good English. We were taken before a (probably fake) old monk that blessed us with a few words and after all this acting the second man told us that we had to give a donation right there. We gave them K3000 (1.5€?) and told them that’s all we had. The second man said that wasn’t enough and we said that we were traveling with little money. He kept demanding more money and we kept saying that we did not have any more. At some point the second man looked at the (fake?) monk, which nodded back, and they “escorted” us outside. They had locked the fence with us inside, another guy opened it and we got out.

What was going to be a great experience turned into a feeling of great disappointment, and a few hours later we’re still trying to remind to ourselves that this was an isolated event and that we just need to keep a sharper eye for this kind of people which happen to be everywhere...

Free tour, no charge for foreigners.The temple is famous for having a huge, six-storey-high reposing Buddha, originally an open-air sitting Buddha, built in 1953 and later transformed into a giant reposing Buddha using a large amount of Burmese jade.Measuring 20 meters long and 5.4 meters high, the Buddha's eyes are set in glass and pointed out by a Chinese painter with a kind and generous manner.There are no walls around the Buddha, and his two feet are one behind the other. There are 108 patterns on the soles of his feet, which represent the 108 cycles of reincarnations. He USES his hands as a pillow and his eyes are fixed on the pious believers kneeling on the ground, which is said to be the Buddha resting, not nirvana. There are 108 squares scratched on the bottom of the foot of the Buddha, each of which represents an image of the six paths of rebirth. The English text next to it explains the meaning of each image one by one, describing the wheel of life here as representing the Buddha far above the cycle of...