Schwedegon Pagoda, Myanmar

Recorded by Michael McDermott.

"As a practicing American Buddhist in the Theravada tradition it was a sacred experience for me to see a Buddhist country first hand. As common as churches are in Europe, Thailand and Myanmar have Buddhist temples every few blocks. Also seeing monks and sometimes nuns in orange or maroon robes walking around the cities, interaction with people and living their lives was very special and serene. Many of the temples were very small, sometimes just the size of a corner church in Europe or America. However, Yangon is home to some of the world’s largest pagoda temples. One place we visited twice was the Schwedegon Pagoda. It’s a massive golden structure that you can see from all over the city. It’s a beautiful complex of smaller shrines, altars and places where Buddhism pilgrims light candles, ring bells and pay homage. After we took our shoes off and climbed up the stairs and escalators to the top, I took out my binaural headphones and recorded some of the sounds at the top of the pagoda."