Paungde held the 129th Buddha Tooth Relic Pujaniya Festival in western Bago Region on the 13th waxing of Tawthalin (24 September), touring the township.
The sacred Buddha Tooth Relic, enshrined in a glass casket within the Gandakuti Chamber in Paungde Township, was opened at 4 am on the first day of the festival (24 September), with the Ovadacariya Sayadaws from Shwekyauggyi Monastery consecrating it by reciting. Afterwards, at 8 am, the Buddha Tooth Relic was carried from the Gandakuti Shwekyaungtaw to the Golden Throne in the Shwekyaung hall and at 1 pm, the Buddha Tooth Relic was taken around to downtown wards for the public to pay homage. Then, at 8 pm, the Buddha Tooth Relic was returned to the Gandakuti.
On 25 September, the Buddha Tooth Relic will be opened in a diamond casket and offered to the public from 8 am to 8 pm. On 26 September, the full moon day of the Tawthalin, the Buddha Tooth Relic will be offered to the public from 8 am to 8 pm on the Golden Throne. At 8 pm, the Buddha Tooth Relic will be taken back to the Gandakuti, where it resides annually, and the festival will be closed.
During the festival, people from near and far come to pay homage, along with stalls selling various goods, entertainment programmes, children’s playgrounds, and a Ferris wheel, according to residents.
The enshrined Buddha Tooth Relic in Paungde is also a revered relic that was once jointly venerated with another sacred tooth relic of the Gotama Buddha from the island of Ceylon (Sri Lanka). — TWA/MKKS
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