A child looks at a wand for sale at Toenaya lantern shop in Yadanabon Market in downtown Mandalay last week.

WITH Myanmar’s Thadingyut festival of lights just around the corner, vendors in Mandalay have started selling the colourful lanterns displayed by residents and businesses during the holiday.

The lanterns are available in a wide variety of forms, with smaller ones shaped like stars or butterflies selling for K1000 to K1500, and classic Chinese lanterns prices at K4000 to K4500.

Fancier shapes that attract the attention of children – such as giraffes and motorcycles – also sell for about K4000 to K4500. While many of these are imported from China, locally made lanterns shaped like cars, airplanes or horse carts are available for K300 to K1000.

Thadingyut, which will be celebrated throughout the county from October 25 to 27 this year, marks the day the Buddha returned to earth after he had spent the three Lenten months in Tavatimsa (abode of celestial beings) delivering a sermon to his mother to thank her for giving birth to him.

To facilitate the Buddha’s safe return to the abode of men, the King of the Celestials is said to have created three stairways leading back down to earth: a gold one for the spirits that would accompany the Buddha, a silver one for the Brahmas and a ruby one radiating a six-hued aura for the Buddha.

The lanterns displayed throughout Myanmar during the holiday are meant to recreate the radiance of the ruby bridge that guided the Buddha back to earth.