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Myanmar's pilgrims flock to participate in traditional Kason water pouring festival

STORY: Myanmar's pilgrims flock to participate in traditional Kason water pouring festival SHOOTING TIME: May 22, 2024 DATELINE: May 22, 2024 LENGTH: 00:01:01 LOCATION: YANGON, Myanmar CATEGORY: CULTURE SHOTLIST: 1. various of activities held at the Shwedagon Pagoda STORYLINE: On Wednesday, pilgrims in Myanmar gathered at the Shwedagon Pagoda to join in the traditional Kason water pouring festival on the Kason Full Moon Day. The Kason water pouring festival, now in its 41st year, is organized annually by the pagoda's board of trustees, U Boe Thin, a member of the Shwedagon Pagoda Board of Trustees, told Xinhua. The Bodhi tree, considered the birth partner of Lord Buddha, is treated with great reverence. Water pouring ceremonies are held to cool and bring peace to the tree during the hot season, he said. Kason Full Moon Day, also known as Buddha Day, commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and death of Buddha, all of which are believed to have occurred on this day. As a significant religious occas

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Myanmar's Shwedagon Pagoda attracts nearly 80,000 foreign visitors in 2023

STORY: Myanmar's Shwedagon Pagoda attracts nearly 80,000 foreign visitors in 2023 SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 8, 2024 DATELINE: Jan. 9, 2024 LENGTH: 00:03:01 LOCATION: YANGON, Myanmar CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the Shwedagon Pagoda 2. various of activities held at the Shwedagon Pagoda 3. various of tourists STORYLINE: The Shwedagon Pagoda, also known as the golden pagoda in Myanmar, attracted over 10 million visitors including nearly 80,000 foreign visitors in 2023, U Boe Thin, a member of the Shwedagon Pagoda Board of Trustees told Xinhua on Monday. The tourists paying the most visits to the pagoda were from China, Thailand, Vietnam and Japan, he said. "Shwedagon is a landmark in our country. So the pilgrims from other regions and states think that they must visit the Shwedagon Pagoda when they come to Yangon," he explained why the pagoda is famous in the country. The number of visitors still needs to catch up to the pre-COVID period, but this year, the number of visitors has increased mor

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Int'l tourist arrivals to Myanmar hike in January

STORY: Int'l tourist arrivals to Myanmar hike in January DATELINE: March 16, 2023 LENGTH: 00:03:24 LOCATION: YANGON, Myanmar CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the downtown Yangon 2. various of the Shwedagon pagoda and the Yangon airport STORYLINE: International tourist arrivals to Myanmar surged by about 214 percent in January year on year, according to the country's Ministry of Hotels and Tourism on Tuesday. The country welcomed 35,722 tourists in January this year, as compared to 11,372 visitors registered in the same period last year, the ministry's figures showed. In January this year, 17,884 tourists visited Myanmar by air, 89 travelers arrived in the country by cruise and 17,421 entered the country through land border gates, its data showed. Last year, the Southeast Asian country welcomed a total of 233,487 international tourists. Myanmar received more than 4.36 million tourists in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. Tourist arrivals in the country sharply dropped to 900,000 in 2020 and 13

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Myanmar holds traditional sticky rice-making competition after two-year pause

STORY: Myanmar holds traditional sticky rice-making competition after two-year pause DATELINE: Feb. 4, 2023 LENGTH: 00:02:53 LOCATION: YANGON, Myanmar CATEGORY: CULTURE/ENTERTAINMENT SHOTLIST: 1. various of the Htamane competition in Yangon 2. various of people participating in the Htamane competition STORYLINE: Myanmar held a traditional Htamane (sticky-rice) making competition at the country's famous Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon on Friday evening after a two-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The competition was suspended in 2021 and 2022, said U Htay Hlaing, a member of the pagoda's board of trustees, adding it is a Buddhist tradition as well as Myanmar people's tradition. A total of 24 six-member teams participated in the competition, accompanied by traditional music groups and fans, at the pagoda's compound. Yangon Region Chief Minister U Soe Thein attended the competition. Participants in the competition said that they will offer the food prepared in the competition to monks as well as pilgri

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MYANMAR-YANGON-TRADITIONAL HTAMANE-MAKING COMPETITION

(230204) -- YANGON, Feb. 4, 2023 (Xinhua) -- People participate in a traditional Htamane (sticky rice) making competition at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 3, 2023. TO GO WITH "Myanmar holds traditional sticky rice-making competition after two-year pause" (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-TRADITIONAL HTAMANE-MAKING COMPETITION

(230204) -- YANGON, Feb. 4, 2023 (Xinhua) -- People participate in a traditional Htamane (sticky rice) making competition at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 3, 2023. TO GO WITH "Myanmar holds traditional sticky rice-making competition after two-year pause" (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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A scene in Myanmar

A woman prays at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangonon Jan. 29, 2023, ahead of the Feb. 1 anniversary of the military coup that ousted Myanmar's democratically elected government in 2021.

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A scene in Myanmar

People pray at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon on Jan. 29, 2023, ahead of the Feb. 1 anniversary of the military coup that ousted Myanmar's democratically elected government in 2021.

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XINHUA-PICTURES OF THE YEAR 2022-WORLD NEWS

(230110) -- BEIJING, Jan. 10, 2023 (Xinhua) -- This photo taken on Sept. 1, 2022 shows the sunset behind Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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Tourism in Myanmar

YANGON, Myanmar - Tourists visit Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Nov. 6, 2012.

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Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon

YANGON, Myanmar - Foreign tourists visit Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Feb. 6, 2012.

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Suu Kyi reunited with son

YANGON, Myanmar - Pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi (C) walks arm in arm with her son Kim Aris during their visit to Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Nov. 24, 2010. Aris, the younger son of Suu Kyi and the late British scholar Michael Aris, arrived in Yangon the previous day to meet his mother, who was freed from house arrest earlier in the month, for the first time in 10 years.

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Foreign Minister Kawaguchi talks with Myanmar's senior leader

YANGON, Myanmar - Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawagauchi (C) tours Yangon's famous 100-meter-high Shwedagon pagoda on Aug. 4 after meeting with Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, first secretary of Myanmar's ruling junta. Kawaguchi will meet opposition leader Suu Kyi at her house on Aug. 5.

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Suu Kyi attends ceremony to remember father

YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi lays orchids at the tomb of her father Gen. Aung San at the Martyrs' Mausoleum near the foot of Shwedagon pagoda in central Yangon on July 19. She took part in a state ceremony paying tribute to deceased national heroes.

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MYANMAR-YANGON-SCENERY

(220902) -- YANGON, Sept. 2, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Photo taken on Sept. 1, 2022 shows the sunset behind Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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MYANMAR-COVID-19-DEATH TOLL

(220806) -- YANGON, Aug. 6, 2022 (Xinhua) -- People visit the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Aug. 6, 2022. Myanmar has recorded no new COVID-19 deaths over the past 122 days, the longest stretch without any fatalities from the virus since the start of the pandemic in the country, the Ministry of Health said on Saturday. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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MYANMAR-COVID-19-DEATH TOLL

(220806) -- YANGON, Aug. 6, 2022 (Xinhua) -- People wearing face masks pour water onto a statue of Buddha at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Aug. 6, 2022. Myanmar has recorded no new COVID-19 deaths over the past 122 days, the longest stretch without any fatalities from the virus since the start of the pandemic in the country, the Ministry of Health said on Saturday. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-STATE OF EMERGENCY-EXTENSION

(220801) -- YANGON, Aug. 1, 2022 (Xinhua) -- A man walks near the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, Aug. 1, 2022. Myanmar's National Defense and Security Council decided on Sunday to extend the state of emergency for another six months. The decision was made for necessary preparations for the multi-party general elections, the council said. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

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Myanmar people celebrate full moon day of Kason

STORY: Myanmar people celebrate full moon day of Kason DATELINE: May 15, 2022 LENGTH: 00:02:16 LOCATION: Yangon CATEGORY: CULTURE SHOTLIST: 1. various of Myanmar people celebrating STORYLINE: Myanmar people, especially Buddhists, ritually watered the sacred Bodhi Trees across the country on Vesak or Buddha Day on Saturday. Ashin Varitta, a 33-year-old Buddhist monk from Myanmar's Mandalay, told Xinhua that Vesak or Buddha Day in Myanmar falls on the full moon day of Kason, the second month of Myanmar lunar calendar. "Vesak is the most important of all the Buddhist festivals, and Myanmar people mostly celebrate the day watering the Bodhi Trees," Varitta said, adding that other Buddhist countries also celebrate in their own traditions. The Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, the most sacred Buddhist pagoda in Myanmar, organized the Bodhi Trees Watering Festival this year, more than two years after it suspended the festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Yang

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MYANMAR-YANGON-FULL MOON DAY

(220514) -- YANGON, May 14, 2022 (Xinhua) -- A girl waters a Bodhi Tree at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, May 14, 2022. Myanmar people, especially Buddhists, ritually watered sacred Bodhi Trees across the country on the full moon day of Kason lunar month in the Myanmar calendar. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-FULL MOON DAY

(220514) -- YANGON, May 14, 2022 (Xinhua) -- People water a Bodhi Tree at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, May 14, 2022. Myanmar people, especially Buddhists, ritually watered sacred Bodhi Trees across the country on the full moon day of Kason lunar month in the Myanmar calendar. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-FULL MOON DAY

(220514) -- YANGON, May 14, 2022 (Xinhua) -- A woman carries a container to water a Bodhi Tree at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, May 14, 2022. Myanmar people, especially Buddhists, ritually watered sacred Bodhi Trees across the country on the full moon day of Kason lunar month in the Myanmar calendar. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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Myanmar Buddhists visit Shwedagon Pagoda on traditional New Year's Day

STORY: Myanmar Buddhists visit Shwedagon Pagoda on traditional New Year's Day DATELINE: April 18, 2022 LENGTH: 00:00:58 LOCATION: Yangon CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of people visiting the Shwedagon Pagoda STORYLINE: People in Myanmar, mostly Buddhists, visited the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon on the first day of Myanmar's traditional New Year on Sunday. The Southeast Asian country ushered in traditional New Year on Sunday after its four-day Thingyan Water Festival. Buddhists across the country have crowded pagodas to do their annual rituals. Elderly people around the country also visited monasteries to take precepts, and young people paid respect to their parents, grandparents, teachers and the elderly to gain merits on the traditional New Year. Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Yangon. (XHTV)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-NEW YEAR

(220417) -- YANGON, April 17, 2022 (Xinhua) -- People pour water over a Buddha statue on the first day of Myanmar calendar New Year at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 17, 2022. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-NEW YEAR

(220417) -- YANGON, April 17, 2022 (Xinhua) -- People pay homage on the first day of Myanmar calendar New Year at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 17, 2022. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-NEW YEAR

(220417) -- YANGON, April 17, 2022 (Xinhua) -- A woman lights candles on the first day of Myanmar calendar New Year at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 17, 2022. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-NEW YEAR

(220417) -- YANGON, April 17, 2022 (Xinhua) -- A woman lights candles on the first day of Myanmar calendar New Year at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 17, 2022. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-SHINBYU-NOVITIATION CEREMONY

(220410) -- YANGON, April 10, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Boys in traditional attire attend the Shinbyu novitiation ceremony at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 10, 2022. The Shinbyu novitiation ceremony is an essential part in a life of a male Myanmar Buddhist under the age of 20. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-SHINBYU-NOVITIATION CEREMONY

(220410) -- YANGON, April 10, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Boys in traditional attire attend the Shinbyu novitiation ceremony at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 10, 2022. The Shinbyu novitiation ceremony is an essential part in a life of a male Myanmar Buddhist under the age of 20. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-SHINBYU-NOVITIATION CEREMONY

(220410) -- YANGON, April 10, 2022 (Xinhua) -- A boy in traditional attire attends the Shinbyu novitiation ceremony at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 10, 2022. The Shinbyu novitiation ceremony is an essential part in a life of a male Myanmar Buddhist under the age of 20. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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MYANMAR-YANGON-SHINBYU-NOVITIATION CEREMONY

(220410) -- YANGON, April 10, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Boys in traditional attire attend the Shinbyu novitiation ceremony at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, April 10, 2022. The Shinbyu novitiation ceremony is an essential part in a life of a male Myanmar Buddhist under the age of 20. (Xinhua/U Aung)

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Scene in Yangon ahead of 1st anniversary of coup

A street in Yangon, Myanmar, is quiet on Jan. 17, 2022, ahead of the first anniversary on Feb. 1 of the military coup. Yangon's famous Shwedagon Pagoda can be seen in the background.

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Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon

YANGON, Myanmar - Foreign tourists visit Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Feb. 6, 2012. (Kyodo)

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Suu Kyi reunited with son

YANGON, Myanmar - Pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi (C) walks arm in arm with her son Kim Aris during their visit to Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, on Nov. 24, 2010. Aris, the younger son of Suu Kyi and the late British scholar Michael Aris, arrived in Yangon the previous day to meet his mother, who was freed from house arrest earlier in the month, for the first time in 10 years. (Kyodo)

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