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Concept
Chinthe
Summary
Chinthe (ခြင်္သေ့ (tɕhɪ̀ɰ̃ðḛ); ဇာဒိသိုၚ် (cɛ̀atìʔsaŋ); သၢင်ႇသီႈ (sàːŋ si)) is the Burmese word for 'lion'. The leograph of Chinthe is a highly stylized lion commonly depicted in Burmese iconography and architecture, especially as a pair of guardians flanking the entrances of Buddhist pagodas and kyaung (or Buddhist monasteries).
Contrary to popular belief, the Chinthe is not a mythical creature but instead an entirely natural lion, although often associated with myths and legends.
The Burmese leograph is related to other stylized lions in the Asian region, including the sing (สิงห์) of Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and the simha (සිංහ) of Sri Lanka, where it is featured prominently on the Sri Lankan rupee. It is also related to East Asian leographs, such as the guardian lions of China, komainu of Japan, shisa of Okinawa and Snow Lion of Tibet.
The story of why the lions guard the entrances of pagodas and temples is given in the Mahavamsa:The princess Suppadevi of Vanga Kingdom (present day Bengal) had a son named Sinhabahu through her marriage to a lion, but later abandoned the lion who then became enraged and set out on a road of terror throughout the lands. The son then went out to slay this terrorizing lion. The son came back home to his mother stating he slew the lion, and then found out that he killed his own father. The son later constructed a statue of the lion as a guardian of a temple to atone for his sin.
The leograph of Chinthe appears as an element of Burmese iconography on many revered objects, including the palin (Burmese royal throne) and Burmese bells.
Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of iconic animals like the Chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items.
In the Burmese zodiac, the lion sign is representative of Tuesday-born individuals.
The leograph is featured prominently on the successive post-independence State seals (including the current State Seal of Myanmar) and most paper denominations of the Burmese kyat, and its statues are found as guardian statues of most pagodas and temples.
Official source
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