The Spirits of Mount Popa
In central Myanmar, a monastery sits on top of a volcanic plug, home to the 37 great spirits. Visitors are warned not to wear red or black.
What was reported
Mount Popa is an extinct volcano in central Myanmar. Beside it rises Taung Kalat, a steep pillar of rock with a monastery on its summit, reached by hundreds of steps. It's the most important home of the nats, the 37 great spirits honoured alongside Buddhism in Myanmar.
The nats were mostly people who died violent or tragic deaths, including a brother and sister, the Mahagiri nats, said to have been burned in a tree on the king's orders. Pilgrims bring them offerings, and visitors are told not to wear red, black or green, swear, or bring meat, so as not to offend them.
Explanations offered
Nat worship is older than Buddhism in Myanmar and has lived alongside it since an 11th-century king organised the spirits into an official group of 37. The rock is the old plug of a volcano. Hundreds of macaques now live on the steps.
- When
- For centuries, and today
- Where
- Mount Popa, Mandalay Region, Myanmar
- Witnesses
- Pilgrims and visitors
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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