Sulamani Temple

The last, but not the least, temple in my tour of the Bagan Archeological Zone is the Sulamani Temple. This temple has strong similarities to the Htilominlo Temple and the Gawdawpalin Temple in Bagan. This temple is brick red and is considered one of the best built temples in Bagan. The Sulamani Temple was built in 1181 and it is known for its exquisite detail in an outside the temple.

Frescoes Inside the Sulamani Temple

The Sulamani Temple is a short distance away from the massive Dhammayangyi Temple, though not as massive, the Sulamani Temple can definitely stand up to its big brother. Inside the Sulamani Temple is probably the best preserved example of frescoes in Bagan temples. Actually, it was a little bit underwhelming but maybe it is just that I don’t know how to appreciate these kinds of things. The paint has faded from the walls but you can still make out the Buddhist paintings that once covered the entire temple interior.

Buddha Statues Inside the Sulamani Temple

I would not be hard to imagine that the other Bagan temples also had this kind of interior but it most of them have already been plastered over in an effort to “restore” it. Such is the plight of the temples in Bagan. The locals want to restore it, but tourists want it “ruined”. There are a lot of more of these temple here in Bagan and a lot of the major temples have already undergone major restoration or even complete rebuilding as in the case of the Bu Paya. As for me, I would prefer that the temples stay “ruined” unless they are really in danger of toppling over. I hope that the Myanmar authorities also see this point of view.

Related Posts:

Shwegugyi Temple

Thatbyinnyu Temple

Htilominlo Temple

Tags: Bagan, Bagan Archeological Zone, Buddha, Burma, frescoe, Myanmar, Sulamani, temple