Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

3031 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Modern · Buddhist · Myanmar

Kyaikhtisaung Pagoda

Bilin township, Mon State · 17.1604°, 97.1715°

Hair relic and tooth relic of Gautama BuddhaModern restorationPagoda
Sacred since
1971 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
restored from 1971; traditional origin BE 113
Modern restoration

History & significance

A hill pagoda in Bilin township, Mon State, said to enshrine a hair relic of the Buddha, with a tooth relic added under King Culasirimasoka. Long neglected, its hti came to lean — giving the name Kyaik Htisaung, the pagoda with the tilting umbrella — until the monk U Pannadipa returned in 1971 and led four decades of rebuilding across nine shrines.

Sthala katha — the traditional account

What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.

Tradition tells that Gautama Buddha came to Kaylartha mountain and gave strands of his hair to hermits, monks and two belu brothers, Deiwa Kondala and Namani Kondala, who raised the pagoda to enshrine them.

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Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-28 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Modern restoration