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In Myanmar， Buddhism is widely practiced. Despite tens of thousands of public temples， there is a shrine for worship in almost every family home. For average income families， they usually have a painted image of Buddha or a wooden Buddha； rich households， however， have gold， silver or jade Buddha statues. Jade statues are the most difficult to make， but their delicate and lustrous texture， are most precious.
In Daming Temple in Yangzhou， there are seven jade Buddha statues each of a different size and posture， with serene and solemn looks. All seven came from Myanmar. They were given at different times over the past 15 years by the city of Yangon to celebrate the success of friendship-city ties with Yangzhou.
An Inevitable Bond
The story of the jade Buddha statues of Daming Temple began in the 1990s. Yangon， then capital of Myanmar， wanted to twin with a Chinese city. It so happened that Chen Baoliu， Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar at the time， had just returned from a visit to Yangzhou.
He knew well the culture and national conditions of Myanmar and recommended Yangzhou to Yangon Mayor U Ko Lay. Thus， Yangzhou was fortunate to be listed as a candidate together with Beijing and Shanghai.
In July 1995， Mayor U Ko Lay headed a delegation to China. Having visited Beijing and Shanghai， the party arrived in Yangzhou and made a formal visit to Daming Temple. Given the Burmese natural affinity for Buddhism， the visit to the thousand-year-old worldfamous Daming Temple aroused the party’s great interest.
The majestic halls， towering pagodas and the deep-rooted Buddha dharma overwhelmed the Mayor. When he learned that the newly built Tower of Buddhist Shrine would enshrine jade Buddha statues， he immediately pledged to present five statues as gifts to the Temple and suggested Yangon establish friendship-city relations with Yangzhou.
Though Yangzhou was not as famous as Beijing and Shanghai in the world， its profound Buddhist culture was highly valued by the people of Yangon， thus cementing the bond.
In the wake of the visit， Nengxiu， Abbot of the Temple， as well as a group of jade masters of Yangzhou went to Mandalay， the second largest city in Myanmar known for its jade production， to select raw material. They walked all over the jade mountains in the city and used geomancy to select a valuable piece of land.
Dozens of Burmese workers worked and lived in the mountain and dug out a piece of jade weighing about 400 tons， the largest in the world to date. It took half a year and more than 20 jade-carvers of the well-known father and son carving society of the city to complete the work of five jade statues， which were shipped to Yangzhou on April 29， 1996. Of the five statues， one was a re-clining Buddha while the other four adopted a sitting pose. They all bore fine features and calm expression characteristic of Myanmar. The Reclining Buddha， 5.7 meters long and weighing 18 tons， is the largest of its type in China； the four sitting Buddha statues， all 1.75 meters high and weighing four tons each， are very rare in China.
Later， a big hall was built specially to house the Reclining Buddha， and the four sitting Buddha statues were enshrined in the Tower of Buddhist Shrine.
To express gratitude for the profound friendship of the Yangon people， Yangzhou gave in return a pleasure boat named “Yangzhou” and an octagonal pavilion. In July 1997， Mayor U Ko Lay once again led a delegation to Yangzhou and signed an agreement on friendly exchanges. He promised that every future mayor of Yangon would give a jade Buddha statue to Yangzhou.
A Witness to In-Depth Exchanges
Frequent contacts between Yangzhou and Yangon have been carried out ever since. On the government level， frequent exchanges of visits have helped increase the friendship； in the economic and trade fields， business groups and entrepreneurs conduct regular inspection tours seeking business opportunities； in culture， visits by performance troupes have been exchanged and TV specials filmed； in agriculture， expert groups have been sent by Yangzhou to give guidance for Yangon’s agricultural development and fine-quality rice seeds have been provided； in the field of religion， high monks exchange constant visits.
In May 2008， when Cyclone Nargis hit Yangon， Yangzhou Mayor Wang Yanwen sent a message of condolences， the Yangzhou Municipal Government donated 100，000 RMB， and Daming Temple also donated 10，000 RMB.
The fruitful exchanges and co
operation have added new contents to the traditional “paukphaw” friendship between China and Myanmar. In May 2000， Mayor U Ko Lay made a keynote speech at the International Friendship Cities Conference held in Beijing， introducing the friendly exchanges between Yangon and Yangzhou.
In 2004， Aung Thein Lynn became Mayor of Yangon. He visited Yangzhou in May of the same year and the following year to continue bilateral exchanges. In 2005， Yangon once again presented Yangzhou with a jade Buddha statue — one that had been standing in the Government Square of Yangon.
It is the first and the only giant standing Buddha statue in Yangzhou and is now placed in the compound of the Jianzhen School of Buddhism. A Statue for Celebration of 15 Years of Friendship-City Ties
In 2012， on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the establishment of friendship-city relations， Yangon Mayor U La Min visited Yangzhou， when he told Xie Zhengyi， Secretary of the Yangzhou Municipal Committee of the CPC， that his city would again give Yangzhou a jade Buddha statue.
On December 25， entrusted by the Mayor， a delegation of the Yangon City Development Committee presented a statue to Yangzhou for the third time to mark 15 years of friendly ties.
On the morning of Dec. 26， presentation and consecration ceremonies were held in Daming Temple. Sun Yongru， Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Yangzhou Municipal People’s Congress， accepted the seated Sakyamuni Buddha statue carved out of white marble that was consecrated by Abbot Nengxiu before all the monks in the Temple. This Buddha statue with delicate texture and masterful art work is 2.8 meters high and weighs 10.8 tons. It is now placed between the Hall of Reclining Buddha and the Tower of Buddhist Shrine.
Now， there are seven jade Buddha statues in Daming Temple. In return， Yangzhou has given 300 magnolia grandiflora to Yangon that now grow luxuriantly in the city’s central park as an evergreen symbol of friendship.
The friendly contacts between Yangzhou and Yangon will continue under the witness of the jade Buddha statues， and the profound friendly sentiment the people of the two cities cherish for each other will grow under their joint care.
In Daming Temple in Yangzhou， there are seven jade Buddha statues each of a different size and posture， with serene and solemn looks. All seven came from Myanmar. They were given at different times over the past 15 years by the city of Yangon to celebrate the success of friendship-city ties with Yangzhou.
An Inevitable Bond
The story of the jade Buddha statues of Daming Temple began in the 1990s. Yangon， then capital of Myanmar， wanted to twin with a Chinese city. It so happened that Chen Baoliu， Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar at the time， had just returned from a visit to Yangzhou.
He knew well the culture and national conditions of Myanmar and recommended Yangzhou to Yangon Mayor U Ko Lay. Thus， Yangzhou was fortunate to be listed as a candidate together with Beijing and Shanghai.
In July 1995， Mayor U Ko Lay headed a delegation to China. Having visited Beijing and Shanghai， the party arrived in Yangzhou and made a formal visit to Daming Temple. Given the Burmese natural affinity for Buddhism， the visit to the thousand-year-old worldfamous Daming Temple aroused the party’s great interest.
The majestic halls， towering pagodas and the deep-rooted Buddha dharma overwhelmed the Mayor. When he learned that the newly built Tower of Buddhist Shrine would enshrine jade Buddha statues， he immediately pledged to present five statues as gifts to the Temple and suggested Yangon establish friendship-city relations with Yangzhou.
Though Yangzhou was not as famous as Beijing and Shanghai in the world， its profound Buddhist culture was highly valued by the people of Yangon， thus cementing the bond.
In the wake of the visit， Nengxiu， Abbot of the Temple， as well as a group of jade masters of Yangzhou went to Mandalay， the second largest city in Myanmar known for its jade production， to select raw material. They walked all over the jade mountains in the city and used geomancy to select a valuable piece of land.
Dozens of Burmese workers worked and lived in the mountain and dug out a piece of jade weighing about 400 tons， the largest in the world to date. It took half a year and more than 20 jade-carvers of the well-known father and son carving society of the city to complete the work of five jade statues， which were shipped to Yangzhou on April 29， 1996. Of the five statues， one was a re-clining Buddha while the other four adopted a sitting pose. They all bore fine features and calm expression characteristic of Myanmar. The Reclining Buddha， 5.7 meters long and weighing 18 tons， is the largest of its type in China； the four sitting Buddha statues， all 1.75 meters high and weighing four tons each， are very rare in China.
Later， a big hall was built specially to house the Reclining Buddha， and the four sitting Buddha statues were enshrined in the Tower of Buddhist Shrine.
To express gratitude for the profound friendship of the Yangon people， Yangzhou gave in return a pleasure boat named “Yangzhou” and an octagonal pavilion. In July 1997， Mayor U Ko Lay once again led a delegation to Yangzhou and signed an agreement on friendly exchanges. He promised that every future mayor of Yangon would give a jade Buddha statue to Yangzhou.
A Witness to In-Depth Exchanges
Frequent contacts between Yangzhou and Yangon have been carried out ever since. On the government level， frequent exchanges of visits have helped increase the friendship； in the economic and trade fields， business groups and entrepreneurs conduct regular inspection tours seeking business opportunities； in culture， visits by performance troupes have been exchanged and TV specials filmed； in agriculture， expert groups have been sent by Yangzhou to give guidance for Yangon’s agricultural development and fine-quality rice seeds have been provided； in the field of religion， high monks exchange constant visits.
In May 2008， when Cyclone Nargis hit Yangon， Yangzhou Mayor Wang Yanwen sent a message of condolences， the Yangzhou Municipal Government donated 100，000 RMB， and Daming Temple also donated 10，000 RMB.
The fruitful exchanges and co
operation have added new contents to the traditional “paukphaw” friendship between China and Myanmar. In May 2000， Mayor U Ko Lay made a keynote speech at the International Friendship Cities Conference held in Beijing， introducing the friendly exchanges between Yangon and Yangzhou.
In 2004， Aung Thein Lynn became Mayor of Yangon. He visited Yangzhou in May of the same year and the following year to continue bilateral exchanges. In 2005， Yangon once again presented Yangzhou with a jade Buddha statue — one that had been standing in the Government Square of Yangon.
It is the first and the only giant standing Buddha statue in Yangzhou and is now placed in the compound of the Jianzhen School of Buddhism. A Statue for Celebration of 15 Years of Friendship-City Ties
In 2012， on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the establishment of friendship-city relations， Yangon Mayor U La Min visited Yangzhou， when he told Xie Zhengyi， Secretary of the Yangzhou Municipal Committee of the CPC， that his city would again give Yangzhou a jade Buddha statue.
On December 25， entrusted by the Mayor， a delegation of the Yangon City Development Committee presented a statue to Yangzhou for the third time to mark 15 years of friendly ties.
On the morning of Dec. 26， presentation and consecration ceremonies were held in Daming Temple. Sun Yongru， Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Yangzhou Municipal People’s Congress， accepted the seated Sakyamuni Buddha statue carved out of white marble that was consecrated by Abbot Nengxiu before all the monks in the Temple. This Buddha statue with delicate texture and masterful art work is 2.8 meters high and weighs 10.8 tons. It is now placed between the Hall of Reclining Buddha and the Tower of Buddhist Shrine.
Now， there are seven jade Buddha statues in Daming Temple. In return， Yangzhou has given 300 magnolia grandiflora to Yangon that now grow luxuriantly in the city’s central park as an evergreen symbol of friendship.
The friendly contacts between Yangzhou and Yangon will continue under the witness of the jade Buddha statues， and the profound friendly sentiment the people of the two cities cherish for each other will grow under their joint care.