Humans depend on water for many means, irrigation works since prehistoric times. Pyu people of Myanmar used ecological opportunism of their environment, replaced natural landscapes with man made landscapes. Ancient Pyu city Sriketra (2nd Century to 9th Century C. E.), situated between the Myin-bar-hu mountain range and Nawin chaung valley. Water management system utilized with skillful calculation, measurement and construction by Pyu engineers. By irrigation, manual or extensive agriculture produce surpluses of food and other goods. Able to work in non-subsistence (not food-producing) activities, eg. craftspeople, religious practitioners, education, political administrators, defense forces etc.

1. Prof. Khin Zaw, MBBS, PhD

2. Introduction
 Humans depend on water for many means
 Irrigation works since prehistoric times.
 By irrigation, manual or extensive agriculture produce
surpluses of food and other goods.
 Able to work in non-subsistence (not food-producing)
activities, eg. craftspeople, religious practitioners,
education, political administrators, defence forces etc,
 Help the process of cultural evolution.

3.  Pre-Pyus and Pyus used
ecological opportunism of
their environment
 Replaced natural
landscapes with man
made landscapes.
 River Ayarwaddy flowing
through the centre of
Myanmar like a life-giving
blood vessel,
 Pyu usually did not rely
directly on it.
 Pyu major settlements,
except Tagaung, situated
not so near to the river.
 They depend upon the
upstream tributaries.

4.  Sriketra, situated between the Myin-bar-hu mountain range and
Nawin chaung valley.
 Largest ancient City through Myanmar history.
 Water management system utilized with skillful calculation,
measurement and construction by Pyu engineers.
 Originally, might have some early settlement and agriculture for
it's fertile land.
 A huge city plan & irrigation system built on the prime settlement.

5. Pyu engineers
 still unknown what carpenter's instruments, e.g. plumb-
bob, spirit-level, squares and compasses were used,
 the basis of measurements by hand spans and footsteps
 What instruments used for topographical and land
survey.
 After field measurements were done, projects might have
been drawn for implementation.
 Designs and models might have been built and drawn
 absolutely impossible to do such a huge and grand plan
only in ideas, memory and words.

6. Human resources
 A lot of manpower might been
used in implementing the plan,
eg. thousands of manual
labourers .
 Many slaves might been
collected.
 Some would not be the slaves
but only the volunteers
summoned according to the
villages' quota.
 Foremen, work site supervisors
and experts might have been
assigned in hierarchy.
 Systematic management of
human labour was demanded
expert managers.

7. Physical geography of Sriketra
 Selecting the site for the city
 Pyu engineers acknowledged
well about the slopping
nature of the ground.
 Terrain descended from the
Myinbahu mountain range in
order to irrigate water as
necessary.
 City construction was not a
random work
 Systematic ally based on
thorough field measurement,
selection of the best land site
from many suitable places
and careful and precise
calculation.

8. From Myinbahu to the City
 Under the backbone-like
mountain range which was
the highest of the
Myinbahu, remains and
traces of water reservoirs
and the drains could be
found.
 A hillock from Myinbahu
range at the south-west of
the city Sriketra was called
as Mount Kan-thone-sint
meaning three tiers of lakes.

10. Pyudaiks
 Outside the city, numerous Pyudaiks, where urns were buried and
used for religious purposes.
 Most Pyu-daiks situated in the slope south of the city.
 built in rectangular position and surrounded by walls.
 Some were enclosed by moats for draining water, connected each
other through channels.

11.  Bawbawgyi, Bebe,
Lemyethna, Yahandagu, city
Beikthano, cemetery of the
Queen Beikthano, the east
Pyudaiks, the west and the
south Pyudaiks, etc were
situated at the south of the
city.
 Some no longer stand as
visible pagodas, mounds of
debris exist.
 drainage flew through these
areas.
 necessary to preserve as the
ancient heritage site.

13. Inside the city
 Over one-third of the south-west of
the city Sriketra surrounded by the
city walls was situated upon the
Lateritic rocks of Ayeyawaddian
Series.
 Difference in contour was 61 metres
and 42.67 metres above the sea level,
it is found that the land slope
towards the north-east significantly.
 Pyu water utilization engineers drew
the design for canals, lakes and dams
after systematic measurement of the
land and implement the plan
precisely.

14. Enclosure of the city by moats and walls
 The walls surrounding
Sriketra and the moats.
 turn damaged and
ruined after thousands
of years.
 In aerial photography,
traces of three layers of
city walls at the south-
east, the south-west and
the west were found
obviously.
 Evident of three layers of
moats around the city
walls.

15. The network of channels and
water reservoirs
 At the centre of all Pyu city
states, the palace or the wall of
inner stronghold was observed.
 This position was so typical and it
appears to be the most
standardized one among other
Pyu city states.
 In Sriketra, a rectangular palace
at the south-west from the
centre.
 The palace was not situated at the
exact centre of the city.
 The palace of Pyu King was
enclosed by the city walls and
moats in layers.

16. The south and the north lakes
 Although the lakes were named
as the south lake and the north
lake,
 more suitable to call them the
south-east lake and the north-
west Lake depending on their
positions inside the city.
 Water from the south lake flew
to the north lake delivering
water along its course,
 Connection between 2 lakes.
 Then, water leaving the north
lake in circular flow continued
distributing water to the
northern part of the city.

18. The significance of the east
 A large reservoir called
“Pinletain ” which silt up
and left as farmlands and
muddy fields after
thousands of years.
 East of wall was not so high
and strong than other sides.
 Lake at the east of city
Sriketra was similar to that
of ancient city Beikthano.
 In Beikthano , the west city
wall was not strong enough
and the defense system of
the city was structured upon
the water reservoir.

20. Outside the city
 Beyond the walls at the north and the east of the city, the land
became lower to 30.48 meters.
 Since it reached to the plane of Nawin stream at the north, the
slope leveled smoothly.
 Then, the slope of the land turned again from the north-east to
the south-west.
 Water courses below land height 30 meters changed its flow and
canals at north-east reversed their flow towards the south-west.

21. Amazing Sriketra
 Water utilization engineering of
Pyu at the ancient Sriketra
 magnificent enough to be amazing.
 Depth of the technology used can
be guessed through the creations
inside city walls & surroundings.
 In the ancient Sriketra where Pyu
civilization was to the utmost,
 might have been groups of the
engineers, the experts, the
supervisors and the labourers who
regularly maintained, inspected
and supervised the drainage of
water at moats and the canals.

22. Water in daily life and its symbol
 Water is essential for daily living.
 Water creates “life” and trees including the agricultural fields.
 In daily living as well as in terms of its symbolized purity, nobility
and the meaning of water is so deep and wide.
 In addition to socioeconomics, water plays an important role in
defense and security.
 Also, water exerts its meaning in religion and spiritual context.

23. Concept of Mandala-Cekara
 Symbol of Dhamma Cekkyar came from the combined
concept of Mandala-Cekara.

25. Concept of Mandala-Cekara
 Pyu engineers made water flow in clock-wise direction through
skillful calculation and applying naturally existed land geography.
 Central pivot was the palace, and the king represent as Dharma-
raja.
 Water drifted through the Pyu-daiks where all religious rituals had
done and keeping funeral urns, and distribute spiritually purified
water along the urban residents and agricultural fields.

26.  King at palace controlled the
wheel of power, authority and
dharma.
 People’s feeling that the King who
provide water for agriculture and
made them free from worries
about foods in their daily life.
 State of law and order and
peaceful living under the rule of
the palace.
 Unity and strength was achieved.
 Used water as one of the political
arsenals.
 With flourished cultivation,
prosperity, and sophistications,
the meaning of Sriketra (Paddy
field of goddess Sri) was well
pertinent.

27. References
 Hudson, Bob (2004) The Origins of Bagan. PhD Thesis. University of Sydney.
 Hudson, Bob & Lustig, Terry (2008). "A new view of the old walls and hydraulic system at Sriksetra,
Myanmar". Journal of Southeast Asian Studies.
 Luce, G. H, (1937) "The Ancient Pyu", Journal of Burma Research Society, Vol. XXVII, iii, p 241;
Burma Research Society Fiftieth Anniversary Publication No 2, Yangon, 1960, p 309.
 Stargardt, Janice (1990). The Ancient Pyu of Burma: early Pyu cities in a man-made landscape
PACSEA Cambridge.
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