Visiting Swedagon Pagoda in 1852 Lord Dalhousie, governor general of India, called it the best historical building after the Taj Mahal. It was an insensitive comparison by a colonial ruler. But on Tuesday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh prayed at Myanmar's holiest shrine and symbol of nationalism. He promised to gift a 16-ft sand replica of Sarnath Buddha, thus emphasising the unique bond linking our two countries.