Yangon - Kaba Aye Pagoda

A little ahead from the Inya Lake, the Kaba Aye Pagoda is on Thirimingalar Kaba Aye Hill on the Kaba Aye Road in the Mayangone Township of Yangon. Kaba Aye, in Myanmar means 'World Peace' and this is what the pagoda aims to achieve. 

The Pagoda was erected by U Nu, one of the earliest prime ministers of free Myanmar in 1954 in dedication to the Sixth Buddhist Council (1954-56). The Sixth Buddhist Council was held to mark the 2500 birth anniversary of Buddha's enlightenment. The Pagoda rises to a height of 111-feet and measures 34 meters around the base. The compound in which the pagoda stands is big enough and houses a number of monasteries within. Also located within the same compound are the Maha Pasana Guha (The Great Cave), the Buddhist Art Museum, the newly built Wizaya Mingalar Dhamathabin Hall and the International Buddhist Learning Centre. The stairways of the Pagoda is full of vendors who try to sell their hand made products to incoming devotees.

The Maha Pasana Cave is great man made cave measuring 455 feet long and 370 feet broad. The internal dimensions of the cave is 220 feet x 140 feet. The assembly hall of the cave has the capacity to accommodate around 10000 people. The cave was built to hold the Sixth Buddhist Council and till date it functions as the venue for major religious ceremonies like the World Buddhist Conference. The cave is modeled on the "Sattapani Grotto" near Rajagaha city of India which was the venue for the first Buddhist Synod or Great Council, held just some months after the Buddha went through Parinivarna, the Decease. The name "Maha Pasana" means "Great Cave of Stone". 

Source: http://www.buddhist-tourism.com/countries/myanmar/monuments/kaba-aye-pagoda.html