The Nome daily nugget., 1935-12-02

7 1 about it is entertainment. Here, 90 miles southwest of Mandalay, the traveller finds himself in the midst of veritable forest of tenn pies and pagodas, large and small, nearly perfect or almost unrecog- nizable because of decay. Before their vast bulks the traveller be- comes painfully conscious of his littleness and insigniticance. His mere presence seems an imperti- hence. The crumblin. walls, the fall en pinnacles and the desOlation are eloquent of the vanity of fame, the hollowness of glory, and the futil- ity of human effort.
 Of the 5000 or more temples that are still to be seen, the Amanda, the Thatbyinnyu, and Gawdawpalin, standing all three within a circle of a quarter of a mile radius, are surprisingly beautiful and majestic.
 The Amanda rises like a struc- ture of foam. On its summit. like the flame upon some altar, slen- der, golden spire gathers the radi- ance of the sun and filings 1t forth again to every quarter. It is the first of all the temples to com mand the travellers attention it is the last upon which he gazes as the swift steamer bears him away.
 The Thatbyinnyu has suffered more from time and neglect than has the Amanda. Its walls are blackened and much of the detail of its ornamentation has fallen away. It Is hardly beautiful; 1t is majestic About it is a suggestion of enormous solidity and a noble l loftiness of conception.
 The third temple has neither the exquisite beauty of the Amanda nor the sublimity of the Thatbyinnyu yet in the perfect harmony of its proportions, the refinement of every detail, 1t has charm of it's own. It contributes with the others to the spell which Pagan casts over even the most careless visitor.
 Lovely View From Circuit House.
 Past the Gawdawpalin the path leads on to the circuit house At every step is revealed some new grouping of effects, some new har- monies of proportion or felicities of detail, and from the spacious veranda of the resthouse the view is one never to be forgotten West ward the river and the hills, silver and gold and blue in the sunset; near at hand the GawdaNpalin, with orange light and soft purple shadows minglng and shifting over its huge battlements; farther away the Amanda and the Thatbyinnyu. now indistinct in the twilight; and all around, the half-seen outlines of pagodas.
 Heroic achievements, the basest yillainy, successful subtlety-all these are mingled in the history of this ruined city.
 The greatness of Pagan, and with it reliable Burmese history, dates from the accession of Anawrata, about A. D. 1017. This truly re- markable monarch won by the sword splendid empire and es- tabllshed dynasty that continued in power for more than POO years. At the beginning of his reign he de voted himself to the moral and re- ligious uplift of his people. A cor rupt and degrading "Naga worship" or obedience to devils, in the form of serpents, had come through As sam from northern India.
 Anawrata's Great Reform.
 Soon after Anawrata ascended the throne Buddhist missionaries arrived at Pagan from the country of the Talaings, people dwelling to the south and, as a result of the frequent and easy communication with India by sea, highly civilized. These Talaing missionaries found the king a jealous convert. He ex- pelled the priests of the abomin- able cult that for so many years had debauched his people, strict ly prescribed the Naga worship, and did everything in his power to furth- CT the efforts of the preachers.
 His fervor had, however, one la mentabe result. Hearing that there were in Thaton, the Talaing capi- tai, copies of the Buddhist Sacred Books and several precious relics, he sent noble envoy to beg for such portions as might be spared. His reasonable request was refused in singularly insolent manner.
 With characteristic energy Ana wrata assembled an army and fleet and moved against Thaton. He was completely successful, and as