The holiest object west of the Irrawaddy.
Arakanese belief says the bronze image was cast in the Buddha's presence in the legendary visit of 554 BC; the legend, which the campaign board repeats, has Anawrahta coming for it and failing to move it; the Burmese carry it off in 1784 or 1785 (the campaign board says 1785) and it ends in Mandalay (English Wikipedia; also in the town record). The old walled city of Dhanyawadi, with brick walls about 9.6 km round and a moated palace site, is mostly of the fourth to sixth centuries or earlier; by 1200 it is a decayed old city that holds a living shrine. The keepers are not named, and nothing is known of the shrine's estate or revenue.
The king of Arakan is its patron and its prize.
Who holds it
- Title
- Keepers of the image
- Since
- not known
- Born
- not known
- Family
- not known
- Confidence
- low
English Wikipedia (Mahamuni Buddha Temple, Dhanyawadi); no keeper named.
What it holds
- The image and its temple on the old city's ridge
How things stand that morning
A shrine whose value to the Arakanese is greater than the town round it.
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
- 1784 or 1785A Burmese king (Bodawpaya, from our own knowledge, not read in this session) takes the image from Arakan to Burma.Depends on: A Burmese conquest of Arakan, which has not happened by 1200. Stopped by: Arakan remaining independent or Burmese kings failing to cross the Yoma.
Places of note
- The Mahamuni: Shrine on the old city's hill.
Where the sources disagree
- The campaign board entry dhanyawadi-mahamuni is carried by the town record Dhanyawadi (Mahamuni).
Evidence: The walls are archaeology; the image's cult in 1200 is tradition and a modern summary.
"The campaign board" is OMNIA's working map. These notes record where its earlier claims were checked against the sources.
Primary sources for Kingdom of Arakan (the Lemro)
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- The Glass Palace Chronicle of the Kings of Burma, The Royal Historical Commission of King Bagyidaw (Monywe Sayadaw and others), drawing on U Kala's Maha Yazawin (about 1724) and earlier chronicles (1829 to 1832). The standard Burmese court chronicle, compiled six centuries after 1200 from older chronicles now lost. Read online
- Epigraphia Birmanica, being lithic and other inscriptions of Burma, Various, edited by Taw Sein Ko, C. Duroiselle and C. O. Blagden (inscriptions of the 11th to 15th centuries; the series ran from 1919 to 1936). The Archaeological Survey of Burma's series of edited inscriptions with full translations. Read online
- Inscriptions of Pagan, Pinya and Ava; Inscriptions of Burma, Various (the Pagan kings, queens, ministers and donors), edited by Tun Nyein, Taw Sein Ko, G. H. Luce and Pe Maung Tin (inscriptions of the 11th to 14th centuries; editions 1899 and 1933 to 1956). The dedicatory inscriptions of Pagan are the only contemporary texts for the kingdom of Narapatisithu (reigning 1174 to 1211). Read online
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.