Abeyadana Temple

Further south along the road on the right side is Abedyadana Temple. Legend tells us that renowned Bagan monarch Kyansittha, while fleeing from his elder brother, King Sawlu, had planned to meet his lover, Abeyadana, where the temple now stands. She was late so he wandered off and fell asleep nearby. When she found him, an enormous naga (legendary snake) was hooded over the sleeping Kyansittha protecting him. She screamed, waking Kyansittha, and the naga was frightened away. Kyansittha took the naga's action to be a sign that he would become king. When he finally ascended the throne in 1084, he built the temple, naming it after Abeyadana, now his wife. It houses a large seated Buddha. Around the corridors are many small Buddha images in the niches, and there are also some good Mahayanist and Hindu frescoes.