Myanmar vice president meets Chinese Buddhist delegation

Myanmar Vice President Dr. Sai Mauk Kham met with visiting Chinese Buddhist delegation, led by Wang Zuoan, in Nay Pyi Taw Sunday after the arrival of the Chinese Buddha sacred tooth relic in the country for a 48-day public obeisance. Wang is Director of the State Administration of Religious Affairs of China. Vice president Sai also met the Buddha sacred tooth relic escort team separately, led by Master Chuanyin, President of the Buddhist Association of China. Sai said the conveyance of the Buddha sacred tooth relic from China represents a major event of Buddhist culture exchanges between Myanmar and China, adding that the event contributes to the enhancement of friendship between the two countries and the two peoples. He thanked China for offering the opportunity of conveyance of the sacred Buddha tooth relic to Myanmar. A grand welcoming ceremony was held at the Nay Pyi Taw International Airport on Sunday afternoon to greet the arriving tooth relic, attended by Vice-President Dr. Sai Mauk Kham and other high government officials, representatives of Buddhist circle and followers totalling about 2,000. The sacred tooth relic was then conveyed by decorated float and a white elephant to Nay Pyi Taw's Uppatasanti Pagoda where another grand ceremony to keep the relic for paying homage took place, attended by both President U Thein Sein and vice presidents U Tin Aung Myint Oo and Dr. Sai Mauk Kham as well as about 6,000 Buddhist followers. It is the fourth time that the Chinese Buddha sacred tooth relic was brought to the country for obeisance 15 years after the last time. The Chinese Buddha sacred tooth relic will be kept in Myanmar for a total of 48 days for public obeisance from Nov. 6 to Dec. 24 covering three major cities -- Nay Pyi Taw, Yangon and Mandalay. At the invitation of successive Myanmar governments, the Chinese Buddha sacred tooth relic had been conveyed to Myanmar three times in 1955-56, 1994 and 1996-97 respectively.