Myanmar (Burma) · MM

Maha Myat Muni Pagoda, Keng Tung

Maha Myat Muni Pagoda—also known as Wat Phra Sao Luang—is Keng Tung's most celebrated sacred site and one of the major Buddhist temples of Shan State, Myanmar. Housed in a classic Shan-style vihara adorned with gold-lacquered walls and ceilings, the temple enshrines a shimmering replica of the famous Mahamuni Buddha image from Mandalay, brought here over 700 kilometers of mountain roads and rivers in the 1920s. Set in the middle of a town-centre roundabout, the pagoda is impossible to miss and easy to visit on foot. Locals and pilgrims gather here daily to make offerings beneath the tapering nine-tiered roof, and the revered Buddha image still undergoes its devotional face-washing ritual two to three times each month.