Chinthe
Encyclopedia
The Chinthe is a leogryph (lion-like creature) that is often seen at the entrances of pagoda
s and temple
s in Burma and other Southeast Asia
n countries. The chinthe is featured prominently on the kyat
, the currency of Burma. The chinthe is almost always depicted in pairs, and serve to protect the pagoda. They typically appear as animals, but are sometimes found with human faces.
A princess had a son through her marriage to a lion, but later abandoned the lion who then became enraged and set out on a road of terror throughout the lands. The son then went out to slay this terrorizing lion. The son came back home to his mother stating he slew the lion, and then found out that he killed his own father. The son later constructed a statue of the lion as a guardian of a temple to atone for his sin.
The chinthe is revered and loved by the Burmese people and is used symbolically on the royal thrones of Burma. Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of mythical beasts like the chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items.
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, Wingate decided to call this force "The Chinthes" - a name which became corrupted to "The Chindits" and is as such remembered in the annals of WWII.
Pagoda
A pagoda is the general term in the English language for a tiered tower with multiple eaves common in Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam and other parts of Asia. Some pagodas are used as Taoist houses of worship. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most commonly Buddhist,...
s and temple
Temple
A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...
s in Burma and other Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
n countries. The chinthe is featured prominently on the kyat
Myanma kyat
The kyat is the currency of Burma . It is often abbreviated as "K", which is placed before the numerical value.-First kyat, 1852-1889:...
, the currency of Burma. The chinthe is almost always depicted in pairs, and serve to protect the pagoda. They typically appear as animals, but are sometimes found with human faces.
Pagoda guardians
The story of why chinthes guard the entrances of pagodas and temples are given as such:A princess had a son through her marriage to a lion, but later abandoned the lion who then became enraged and set out on a road of terror throughout the lands. The son then went out to slay this terrorizing lion. The son came back home to his mother stating he slew the lion, and then found out that he killed his own father. The son later constructed a statue of the lion as a guardian of a temple to atone for his sin.
The chinthe is revered and loved by the Burmese people and is used symbolically on the royal thrones of Burma. Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of mythical beasts like the chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items.
Manussiha
The manussiha ( manothiha, manuk siha), a combination of Pali manussa (man) and siha (lion) is a half-lion half-man mythical creature that is symbolic of a guardian, usually found guarding the four corners of a pagoda. It has a human head and torso and lion hindquarters. It is comparable to the sphinxSphinx
A sphinx is a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head or a cat head.The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless...
.
Relation to Second World War Chindits
During the Second World War, the British Brigadier Orde Wingate was given command of forces charged with Long-range penetration operations behind Japanese lines in Burma. At the suggestion of Captain Aung Thin of the Burma RiflesBurma Rifles
The Burma Rifles were a regiment of the British Indian Army created in 1917. The regiment re-used the name of an unrelated earlier unit, the 10th Regiment Madras Infantry, which evolved into the 10th Princess Mary's Own Gurkha Rifles....
, Wingate decided to call this force "The Chinthes" - a name which became corrupted to "The Chindits" and is as such remembered in the annals of WWII.
See also
- Chinese guardian lionsChinese guardian lionsChinese guardian lions, known as Shishi lions or Imperial guardian lion, and often incorrectly called "Foo Dogs" in the West, are a common representation of the lion in pre-modern China...
- ShisaShisaShisa is a traditional Ryukyuan decoration, often in pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawan mythology. People place pairs of shisa on their rooftops or flanking the gates to their houses. Shisa are wards, believed to protect from some evils...
- Shishi
- Lion danceLion danceLion dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture, in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume. The lion dance is often mistakenly referred to as dragon dance. An easy way to tell the difference is that a lion is operated by two people, while a dragon needs many people...
- Chinese artChinese artChinese art is visual art that, whether ancient or modern, originated in or is practiced in China or by Chinese artists or performers. Early so-called "stone age art" dates back to 10,000 BC, mostly consisting of simple pottery and sculptures. This early period was followed by a series of art...