World Monuments Fund is investigating the extent of the damage to religious and cultural buildings after the deadly earthquake struck the Southeast Asian country last week—with neighbouring Thailand a

The earthquake leaves over 1,700 dead. "All temples and pagodas have collapsed," says a Mandalay resident, the country's second-largest city and the most devastated by the earthquake. In the heart of Myanmar,

Sri Lanka and Myanmar are predominantly Buddhist, with Theravada Buddhism as their official religion. Both nations were once British colonies and inherited colonial administrative systems. Some 70.2 percent of Sri Lanka’s 22 million follow Theravada Buddhism.

Thousands have evacuated from cracked buildings in Bangkok three days after a powerful earthquake in central Myanmar.

The death toll from Friday’s earthquake has risen to 1,002 with 2,376 injuries, Myanmar’s junta said on Saturday. The 7.7-magnitude quake struck northwest of Sagaing city on Friday. The death toll is expected to rise and many areas, including Sagaing, Mandalay and Naypyitaw, suffered casualties and extensive building damage.

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Myanmar called for a nationwide ceasefire on March 29, just a day after the 7.7 magnitude quake struck the nation, resulting in the deaths of at least 1,700 people, with thousands still missing. The tremors were also felt in neighboring Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and the adjacent Chinese region of Yunnan.

The military government has made a rare appeal for help, but aid groups are hampered by infrastructure damage and an ongoing civil war.

Myanmar is trying to come to terms with the scale of the disaster after an earthquake damaged not only large parts of the country, but also destroyed historic sites, delivering a blow to its spiritual culture.

In a censored nation that runs on rumor and omens, people in Myanmar wonder whether the latest disaster might be a portent of regime change.

The devastating quake whose death toll has surpassed 1,600 coincided with a parade to celebrate the military junta – a coincidence too far for many in this superstitious nation, who now believe it to be an unmistakable sign that the government is doomed,