Burmese pagoda

in Yangon is Myanmar's most prominent zedi. in Bagan is a classic example of a pahto. In the Burmese language, pagodas are known by a number of various terms. The umbrella term phaya (, pronounced ), which derives from Sanskrit vara, refers to pagodas, images of the Buddha, as well as royal and religious personages, including the Buddha, kings, and monks. Zedi ' (စေတီ), which derives from Pali cetiya, specifically refers to typically solid, bell-shaped stupas that may house relics. Pahto (ပုထိုး) refers to hollow square or rectangular buildings built to resemble caves, with chambers that house images of the Buddha. Burmese pagodas are distinguished from kyaungs in that the latter are monasteries that house Buddhist monks. == Types ==

Burmese zedis are classified into four prevalent types: • Datu zedi (ဓာတုစေတီ, from Pali dhātucetiya) or datdaw zedi (ဓာတ်တော်စေတီ) - zedis enshrining relics of the Buddha or arhats • Paribawga zedi (ပရိဘောဂစေတီ, from Pali paribhogacetiya) - zedis enshrining garments and other items (alms bowls, robes, etc.) that belonged to the Buddha or sacred personages == See also ==