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The Stupa at Uththara Jayamaha Viharaya |
Uththara Jayamaha Viharaya (Sinhala: උත්තර ජයමහා විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple in Ampara District Sri Lanka. It is situated in Hingurana town approximately 500 meters away from the Hingurana Sugar Factory.
History
As the presence of a drip-ledged cave with an Early Brahmi Inscription, the history of this temple can be dated back to the pre-Christian era. Several ancient structures and monuments belonging to the early Anuradhapura Period are found scattered on the temple premises.
The Cave Inscription
The early Brahmi inscription which belongs to the 2nd century B.C. is found engraved on the inner cave wall of the image house (Medhananda, 1984). It was copied by the Department of Archaeology on 6 March 1971 (Dias, 1991).
Uttara Jayamaha Vihara inscription of Racita
Period: 2nd century B.C.
Script: Early Brahmi
Language: Old Sinhalese
Transcript: Mahamata-Utara-jhita-Racitaya lene
Translation: The cave of Racita, the daughter
of the great minister Uttara
Notes: If the stroke after the word jhita is considered a punctuation mark, the name of the cave donor should be Cita (Citra).
Citation: Dias, 1991
A Protected Site
The caves with drip ledges and inscriptions belonging to the premises of Uththara Jayamaha Vihara situated in Hingurana village in Grama Niladhari Division No. W/27/F, Karalewa in the Divisional Secretary’s Division, Damana are archaeological protected monuments, declared by a government gazette notification, published on 26 December 2014.
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References
Books, Government Gazette Notifications
Dias, M., 1991. Epigraphical notes (Nos 1 -18). Colombo: Department of Archaeology. p.4.
2) Medhananda, E. 1984. Aprakata Brahmi Sellipi Ha Puravastu (In Sinhala). Sri Lanka Society of Archaeology. p.22.
3) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, No: 1895, 26 December 2014, p.1148.