In a country with countless temples Werawsana Jade Pagoda stands out as unique because the main tower has been constructed using 10 million kilograms of jade stone.
About Werawsana Jade Pagoda
The Werawsana Jade Pagoda stands 23.01 metres tall. The structure has been strengthened to withstand earthquakes with a steel and concrete frame on the inside. The rest of building was constructed over a 3 year period from 2012 to 2015 using bricks made from jade and jade coverings laid over the top, including an estimated 30,000 small jade statues of the Lord Buddha adorning the outside. The base of the pagoda has four small rooms, often described as caves, on each of the four sides of the structure aligned with the four cardinal points. Inside each of these caves is a shrine the centrepiece of each is jade statue of the Lord Buddha. The Myanmar Government has proclaimed the tower to be the world’s first jade pagoda.
Werawsana Jade Pagoda near MandalayThe jade Werawsana Jade Pagoda that was used in the construction, the site were it is situated, and the funds for builders and craftsmen to construct the temple, were all donated by extremely wealthy Burmese jade mine owners and traders Soe Naing and Aye Aye Khaing. Their story is as interesting and the jade pagoda is unique. The brothers were born into a poor family in a impoverished part of Upper Myanmar. To earn a living they travelled to work in the jade mines of Kachin State. Starting from the lowest rung of the jade industry ladder, as cutters paid by they hour, they moved on to become jade traders and then mine owners. Through their family jade mining company they spent 25 years collecting the materials to build the pagoda demonstrating the same perseverance as they did building their large fortune. The brothers are devout Buddhists and the construction of the pagoda has been undertaken as an act of religious merit making.
Location of Werawsana Jade Pagoda
- Werawsana Jade Pagoda is located 24.4 km by road from Mandalay Railway Station.
Travel to Werawsana Jade Pagoda
Werawsana Jade Pagoda is located near to Mandalay. Follow the links below for information about travel to Mandalay:
- Train times from Yangon to Mandalay
- Train times from Naypyitaw to Mandalay
- Train times from Bagan to Mandalay
- Train and bus times from Inle Lake to Mandalay
- Train and bus times from Mawlamyine to Mandalay
- Bus times from Magway to Mandalay