Kiri Vehera, Lahugala

Not to be confused with Kiri Vehera, Polonnaruwa & Kiri Vehera, Kataragama

Lahugala Kiri Vehera (also known as Kirivehera Viharaya) is an ancient Buddhist temple located in the village of Lahugala in Ampara District, Sri Lanka.

History

The history of this temple is believed to be dated back to the reign of King Dappula I [(661-664 A.D.) Withanachchi, 2013].

A protected site

The ancient Chaithya (Stupa) and ruins of Vihara complex in the territory of Kirivehera Viharaya, belonging to Lahugala village in Perani Lahugala PP 10 Grama Niladari Division in the Divisional Secretary’s Division, Lahugala are archaeological protected monuments, declared by a government gazette notifications published on 10 October 2014.  

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References

1) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1884. 10 October 2014. p.917.
2) Withanachchi, C. R., 2013. Pauranika Sthana Saha Smaraka: Ampara Distrikkaya (In Sinhala). Department of Archaeology (Sri Lanka). ISBN: 955-9159-44-5. p.25.

Location Map

This page was last updated on 5 March 2022
For a complete tourist map follow this link: Lankapradeepa Tourist Map

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Pilikuththuwa Raja Maha Viharaya (Gampaha)

Pilikuththuwa Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: පිළිකුත්තුව රජ මහා විහාරය) is a cave temple located in Pilikuttuwa village near Yakkala town in Gampaha District, Sri Lanka. The site can be reached by travelling along the Yakkala - Radawana road about 3.4 km distance from the Yakkala junction.

History

The history of the Pilikuttuwa temple expands from the Prehistoric Period to the Kandyan Period (Jayarathne & Gunawardhana, 2017). Archaeological evidence dating back to the prehistoric period has been found in several caves located on the site. Early-Brahmi inscriptions found from some caves indicate that this area was in existence as a Buddhist religious place since the pre-Christian era. Also, the cave temples such as Uruwala, Maligathenna, Varana, Miriswatta, and Koskandawala those situated in the vicinity of Pilikuththuwa Viharaya are said to have formed one major cave site during the early part of the Anuradhapura Period.

 

Locals link the history of this temple to King Valagamba (103, 89-77 B.C.).  It is said that the king used this site as a hideout during the reign of the Five Dravidians (five Indian invaders who ruled the Anuradhapura Kingdom from 103 to 88 B.C.). 

 

Inscriptions

Four cave inscriptions written in early-Brahmi characters have been found at the site. Three of them are published by Senarath Paranavitana in 1970 (Paranavitana, 1970).

Pilikuttuwa cave inscription of Aggibhuti

Period: 3rd century B.C.- 1st century A.D.
Scripts: Early Brahmi
Language: Old Sinhala
Transcript: Anikatasa batuno Agibutino dane agata anagata chatudisa sagasa
Content: This inscription records that the cave of Aggibhuti, the brother of Cavalry officer has been given to the Sangha of four quarters present and absent.
Reference: Paranavitana, 1970.

Temple complex

A large number of caves with or without drip ledges have been identified on the temple premises. The small Stupa which is surrounded by a large drip-ledged cave has been built during the Kandyan period and had been sheltered with a roof. Other monuments such as the ancient cave temple with paintings of the Kandyan period, three-storied preaching hall, roads, and the mould creeper (Pus Wela) with a perimeter of 6 feet (which is believed to be about 400 years old) have increased the historical value of the temple. 

The pond made with cairus of stones, the underground water canal, the wooden bridge, and the ancient reservoir are also considered important monuments found within the temple premises. The wooden bridge has been constructed across the underground water channel that runs between the pond and the reservoir during the Kandyan period.

A protected site

The ancient image house, all the caves, cave inscriptions, monks' dwelling houses, Stupa, Diggala, Dewala Lena, wooden bridge, pond, and the Dharmasala (the preaching hall) within the premises of Pilikuththuwa Rajamaha Vihara situated in Grama Niladhari Division of Pilikuththuwa in the Divisional Secretary’s Division Mahara are archaeological protected monuments, declared by the government gazette notifications published on 1 November 1996, 22 November 2002 and 7 July 2016.  

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See also

#) Historical and Memorial Trees in Sri Lanka

References

1) Jayarathne, H.A.S.N.; Gunawardhana, K.K.H.M., 2017. පිළිකුත්තුව රජමහා විහාරයේ සිතුවම්, සෙල්ලිපි හා ආවාස සම්ප්‍රදාය පිළිබඳ අධ්‍යයනයක් [A study on the paintings, inscriptions and dwelling tradition of Pilikuttuwa Raja Maha Viharaya (In Sinhala)]. Undergraduates' Research Conference on Archaeology, Tourism and Cultural Resource Management (URCAT), Department of Archaeology, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya. p.35.
2) Paranavitana, S., 1970. Inscription of Ceylon (Vol. I). Department of Archaeology Ceylon. p.86.
3) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 948. 1 November 1996.
4) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1264. 22 November 2002.
5) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka: Extraordinary. No: 1974/16. 7 July 2016. p.5A.

Location Map

This page was last updated on 5 July 2022

A short note for local school students

පිළිකුත්තුව රජමහා විහාරය

පිළිකුත්තුව රජමහා විහාරය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ගම්පහ දිස්ත්‍රික්කයේ පිළිකුත්තුව පිහිටි බෞද්ධ සිද්ධස්ථානයකි.

ඉතිහාසය

පිළිකුත්තුව විහාරයෙහි ඉතිහාසය පූර්ව ඓතිහාසික යුගයේ සිට නුවර යුගය දක්වා විහිදෙයි. මෙහි පිහිටි සමහරක් ලෙන් වලින් පූර්ව ඓතිහාසික යුගයට අයත් පුරාවිද්‍යාත්මක සාධක හමුව තිබේ. සමහරක් ලෙන්වල වන පූර්ව-බ්‍රාහ්මී සෙල්ලිපි මෙම ස්ථානය ක්‍රිස්තු පූර්ව යුගයේ සිටම ආගමික ස්ථානයක් වශයෙන් පැවති බව තහවුරු කරයි.

පිළිකුත්තුව විහාරයට ආසන්නව පිහිටි අනෙකුත් ලෙන් විහාර වූ ඌරුවල, මාළිගාතැන්න, වාරණ, මිරිස්වත්ත හා කොස්කඳවල යන විහාර අනුරාධපුර මුල් අවධියේදී එකම විහාර සංකීර්ණයක් වශයෙන් පවතින්නට ඇතැයි සැළකේ.

ජනප්‍රවාද

දකුණු ඉන්දියානු ආක්‍රමණිකයන් විසින් අනුරාධපුර පාලනය කරන සමයේ වලගම්බා රජු මෙම ස්ථානය භාවිත කල බව ජනප්‍රවාදයේ සඳහන්ය.

විහාර සංකීර්ණය

කටාරම් සහිත හෝ රහිත ලෙන් විශාල සංඛ්‍යාවක් (99ක් පමණ) මෙම විහාර පරිශ්‍රයෙන් හමුව තිබේ. විශාල කටාරම් සහිත ලෙනකින් වටවූ කුඩා ස්තූපය අතීතයේ වහළයකින් ආවරණය වී තිබුණි. නුවර යුගයට අයත් සිතුවම් සහිත ලෙන් විහාරය, ධර්මශාලාව, මං පෙත්, අඩි 6ක වටප්‍රමාණයෙන් යුත් වසර 400ක් පැරණි යැයි විශ්වාස කෙරෙන පුස් වැල, විහාරයේ ඓතිහාසික බව වැඩිකරන අනෙකුත් ස්මාරක වෙයි. 

සක්ක ගලින් නිර්මිත පොකුණ, භූගත ජල මාර්ගය, පැරණි දැව පාලම, හා පුරාණ වැව ද විහාර භූමියෙහි හමුවන වැදගත් ස්මාරක වේ.

පුරාවිද්‍යා ස්මාරක ස්ථානය

පිළිකුත්තුව රජමහා විහාර පරිශ්‍රයේ පිහිටි පැරණි විහාර ගෙය, සියළුම ලෙන්, ලෙන් ලිපි, භික්ෂු කුටි, ස්තූපය, දිග්ගල, දේවාල ලෙන, දැව පාලම, පොකුණ, සහ ධර්ම ශාලාව, 1996 නොවැම්බර් 1 වන දින හා 2002 නොවැම්බර් 22 හා 2016 ජූලි 7 වන දින ප්‍රකාශයට පත් රජයේ ගැසට් නිවේදන මගින් ආරක්ෂිත පුරාවිද්‍යා ස්මාරක ලෙස නම් කොට ඇත.

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Nissanka Latha Mandapaya

Nissanka Latha Mandapaya (lit: Nissanka Flower-trail hall) is a pillared pavilion located in the Sacred Quadrangle of the Ancient City of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka.

History

According to several historical sources, this building was constructed by King Nissankamalla [(1187-1196 A.D.) Coomaraswamy, 1927, Nicholas, 1963]. The portico slab inscription of Hetadage and the Gal Potha inscription have confirmed that this building was known at the time as Nissanka Latha Mandapaya (Wikramasinghe, 1928). Historical sources further reveal that this is the place where Nissankamalla worshipped the Tooth Relic of the Buddha or listened to the chanting of Pirith [(recital of Buddhist scriptures) Chaturawong, 2017; Nicholas, 1963].

Inscriptions

Two inscriptions of King Nissankamalla have been found from this pillared pavilion.

Nissanka Latha Mandapa slab inscription

This inscription has been inscribed upon the surface of the coping slab to the basement of the Nissanka Latha Mandapaya (Ranawella, 2007). The text of this inscription is very similar to that of the Kirivehera Slab Inscription (Ranawella, 2007).

Nissanka Latha Mandapa pillar inscription

There are several inscriptions on the base of eight ornamental pillars but only one remains nearly complete (Ranawella, 2007). That inscription reveals that it is the pavilion where the king is listening to (the reciting of) Pirith (Ranawella, 2007).

Building

The pavilion contains eight curvilinear pillars and is surrounded by a wall known as the Buddhist-railing (Coomaraswamy, 1927; Wikramagamage, 2004). The pillars are fixed on an elevated stone platform and arranged in two rows, with four in each row. These pillars are considered unusual and unique as they have been curved like a lotus stalk with a flower as the capital. Stone pillars similar to Nissanka Latha Mandapa are also found in a ruined building located near Satmahal Prasadaya.

The original building is thought to be covered with a roof. In the centre of the building is a small rock-cut Stupa of which the top has been truncated. Probably this had been used as a stand to receive the relic casket during Pirith chanting.


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References

1) Chaturawong, C., 2017. Mandapas of India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand. In India-Thailand Cultural Interactions. Springer, Singapore. p.68.
2)  Coomaraswamy, A.K., 1927. History of Indian and Indonesian art. London. p.165.
3) Nicholas, C. W., 1963. Historical topography of ancient and medieval Ceylon. Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, New Series, vol VI, Special Number: Colombo. Royal Asiatic Society (Ceylon Branch). p.178.
4) Ranawella, S., 2007. Inscription of Ceylon. Volume VI. Department of Archaeology. ISBN: 978-955-91-59-61-2. pp.158-159,200.
5) Wikramagamage, C., 2004. Heritage of Rajarata: Major natural, cultural and historic sites: Colombo. Central Bank of Sri Lanka. p.210.
6) Wikramasinghe, D.M.D.Z., 1928. Epigraphia Zeylanica: Being Lithic and Other Inscriptions of Ceylon: Vol. II. Published for the Government of Ceylon by Humphrey Milford Oxford University Press, Amen House, E.C. London. pp.84-90, 121.

Location Map

This page was last updated on 2 July 2022

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Meddepola Raja Maha Viharaya

Veramune Sri Sundararama Viharaya, popularly known as Meddepola Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: වේරමුණේ ශ්‍රී සුන්දරාරාම විහාරය, මැද්දේපොල විහාරය) is an ancient Buddhist temple located in Meddepola village in Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka. The site can be reached by travelling along the Meddepola temple road about 2.2 km distance from the Giriulla town.

Name

"Muni Vehera" was the ancient name used to identify this temple. It was later converted to "Vehera Muni" and finally evolved to the present name "Veramune". However, the temple is popularly known among the people as Meddepola Viharaya.

History

The origin of the Meddepola temple is linked by the locals with the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa (307-267 B.C.). An early-Brahmi inscription has been found below the drip-ledge of the main cave that houses the image house today. Another such inscription is said to have been found in a drip-ledged cave located southwestern to the main cave (Anuradha & Kumari, 2015).

Meddepola inscription
Period: 3rd century B.C. - 1st century A.D.     Script: Early Brahmi     Language: Old Sinhala
Transcript: Shumana data (te)rasha gahapa (..) shaha lene
Translation: Cave of the elder Sumanadatta and of householder ....sa.
Reference: Wijesekara, 1990.

The temple is said to have been renovated and developed under the patronage of several kings including Valagamba (103, 87-77 B.C.)  and Parakramabahu II (1234 - 1269 A.D.). The Culavamsa, the latter part of Mahavamsa, mentions that King Kirti Sri Rajasinghe (1742-1782 A.D.) had restored the Meddepola temple in the 18th century [Livingstone & Withers (eds.), 2011]. A copper plate grant issued by Kirti Sri Rajasinha reveals a donation of land from Malgamuwa village to Ginigathpitiye Deepankara Thera, the then incumbent of Meddepola Viharaya.

The construction works of the image house (the cave temple) were completed in 1844, by Kadahapola Sangharakkhitha Sri Medhankara Thera (Anuradha & Kumari, 2015; De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009). The original paintings that adorn the inner walls of the image house have been done by the artists headed by Devaragampola Silvath Thena and belong to the Kandyan tradition. However, most of the paintings remaining today are recent works of two modern painters, Soliyas Mendis, and S. J. S. Silva.

Preaching hall

Several historical sources reveal that the preaching hall of Meddepola temple was constructed during the reign of King Kirti Sri Rajasinghe (De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009). 

This building bears typical architectural features belonging to the Kandyan Period. Some of the modifications have been done to the building in 1992 (De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009).

Antiquities

A large number of antiquities belonging to the temple can be seen conserved in a museum established at the temple premises. Many important objects, such as a gold statue donated by a king, silver and ivory statues, caskets, ola manuscripts, coins, ceramics from the Dutch period, and clothes, such as Somanas are found preserved in the museum (Rambukwella, 2014).

A protected site

The drip-ledged cave temple with Brahmi letters, ancient Dhammasala (preaching hall), Pohoya Geya (Bhikkus disciplinary hall), Bhikkus residence (dwelling house), and drip-ledged caves belonging to the Weramune Sri Sunandarama Raja Maha Vihara premises situated in the Grama Niladhari Division of Ihala Meddepola in the Divisional Secretary’s Division of Pannala are archaeological protected monuments, declared by the government gazette notifications published on 23 January 2009 and 24 July 2009.  

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References

1) Anuradha, R.K.S.; Kumari, A.S., 2015. Pauranika Sthana Ha Smaraka: Kurunegala Distrikkaya (In Sinhala). Department of Archaeology. ISBN: 955-9159-37-2. pp.82-83.
2) De Silva, N.; Chandrasekara, D.P., 2009. Heritage Buildings of Sri Lanka. Colombo: The National Trust Sri Lanka, ISBN: 978-955-0093-01-4.  pp.75,89,105.
3) Livingstone, D.N. and Withers, C.W. eds., 2011. Geographies of nineteenth-century science. University of Chicago Press. p.126.
4) Rambukwella, M.W.C.N.K., 2014. Heritage representation in culturally diverse societies: a case study of the Colombo National Museum in Sri Lanka (Doctoral dissertation, School of Museum Studies). pp.362-363.
5) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1586. 23 January 2009. p.106.
6) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1612. 24 July 2009. p.1023.
7) Wijesekara, N. (Editor in chief)], 1990. Archaeological Department Centenary (1890-1990): Commemorative Series: Vol. II: Inscriptions. p.45.

Location Map

This page was last updated on 29 April 2020
For a complete tourist map follow this link: Lankapradeepa Tourist Map

A short note for local school students

මැද්දේපොළ රජමහා විහාරය

මැද්දේපොළ රජමහා විහාරය හෝ වේරමුණේ ශ්‍රී සුන්දරාරාම විහාරය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ කුරුණෑගල දිස්ත්‍රික්කය තුල පිහිටි විහාරස්ථානයකි.

ඉතිහාසය

මුණි වෙහෙර යනු මෙම විහාරය හැඳින්වීමට අතීතයේ භාවිත කල නාමය වේ. එය පසුකාලීනව වෙහෙර මුණි බවටත් අවසානයේ වේරමුණේ බවටත් පත්ව ඇත. විහාරයේ ඉතිහාසය ප්‍රාදේශීය ජනයා විසින් දේවානම්පියතිස්ස රජ සමයට (ක්‍රි.පූ. 307-267) සම්බන්ධ කරයි. වත්මන් ලෙන් විහාරයේ කටාරමට යටින් කොටවන ලද ක්‍රි. පූ යුගයට අයත්විය හැකි බ්‍රාහ්මී අක්ෂරයෙන් රචිත ලෙන් ලිපියක් දැකගත හැකිවන අතර තවත් එවැනි ලිපියක් ඊට නිරිත දිශාවෙන් පිහිටි කටාරම් කෙටූ ලෙනක හමුවෙයි.

විහාරය වළගම්බා (ක්‍රි.පූ. 103,87-77) හා 2වන පරාක්‍රමබාහු වැනි රජවරුන්ගේ අනුග්‍රහය යටතේ ප්‍රතිසංස්කරණයට හා සංවර්ධනයට ලක්වූ බව පැවසෙයි. දහඅටවන සියවසෙහි පමණ රචිත චූලවංශයෙහි දැක්වෙන ආකාරයට කීර්ති ශ්‍රී රාජසිංහ රජු (ක්‍රි.ව. 1742-1782) විසින් මැද්දේපොළ විහාරය ප්‍රතිසංස්කරණය කොට ඇත. එසේම රජු විසින් නිකුත් කෙරූ තඹපත් ප්‍රධානයකින්, එවක මැද්දේපොළ විහාරයේ විහාරාධිපති වූ ගිනිගත්පිටියේ දීපංකර තෙරණුවන්ට මල්ගමුව ග්‍රාමයෙන් ලබා දුන් දේපලක් පිළිබඳව තොරතුරු හෙළිදරව් කරයි.

වත්මන් ලෙන් විහාරයෙහි වැඩකටයුතු කඩහපොළ සංඝරක්ඛිත ශ්‍රී මේධංකර තෙරණුවන් විසින් 1844දී සම්පූර්ණ කර තිබේ. එහි ඇතුල් බිත්ති සරසන මුල්ම සිතුවම් නුවර සම්ප්‍රදායට අයත්වන අතර ඒවා දෙවරගම්පල සිල්වත් තැන ප්‍රමුඛ සිත්තරුන් විසින් නිමවා ඇත. කෙසේනමුදු, වත්මන් ලෙන් විහාරයේ දැකගත හැකි සිතුවම් බොහොමයක් නිමවා ඇත්තේ සෝලියස් මැන්දිස් හා එස්.ජේ. එස්. සිල්වා යන සිත්තරුන් දෙදෙනා විසිනි.

පුරාවිද්‍යා ස්මාරක ස්ථානය

පන්නල ප්‍රාදේශීය ලේකම් කොට්ඨාශයේ ඉහල මැද්දේපොළ ග්‍රාමනිළදාරී වසමට අයත් වේරමුණේ ශ්‍රී සුන්දරාරාම විහාර පරිශ්‍රයෙහි වූ බ්‍රාහ්මී අක්ෂර සහිත කටාරම් කෙටූ ලෙන් විහාරය, පැරණි ධර්ම ශාලාව, පොහොය ගෙය, භික්ෂු ආවාසය හා කටාරම් කෙටූ ලෙන් 2009 ජනවාරි 23 හා 2009 ජූලි 24දින ප්‍රකාශයට පත් රජයේ ගැසට් නිවේදන මගින් ආරක්ෂිත පුරාවිද්‍යා ස්මාරක ලෙස නම් කොට ඇත.

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Koskandawala Raja Maha Viharaya

Koskandawala Raja Maha Viharaya (also known as Koskandawala Sri Sunandarama Piriven Viharaya) is a Buddhist temple located in the village of Koskandawala in Gampaha District, Sri Lanka. The site can be reached by traveling along the Yakkala - Radawana road about 2.8 km distance from the Yakkala Junction.

History

The history of this temple goes back to the period of the Anuradhapura Kingdom (377 B.C. - 1017 A.D.). The rock cave that houses the image house today is a drip-ledged one and therefore, it can be assumed that the cave was an abode of Buddhist monks in ancient times. The cave temples at Uruwala, Maligathenna, Varana, Miriswatta, and Pilikuththuwa which are situated in the vicinity of Koskandawala temple are said to have formed one major cave site during the early part of the Anuradhapura period.

A protected site

The ancient image house and the Dharmasala (preaching hall) within the premises of Koskandawala Rajamaha Vihara situated in Grama Niladhari Division No. 308, Koskandawala in the Divisional Secretary’s Division, Aththanagalla are archaeological protected monuments, declared by the government Gazette notifications published on 1 November 1996 and 7 July 2016.  

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References

1) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 948. 1 November 1996.
2) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka: Extraordinary. No: 1974/16. 7 July 2016. p.5A.

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Ata Seta Len

Ata Seta Len (the Sixty-eight caves) is a cave complex located in the ancient Buddhist monastery Mihintale in Anuradhapura District, Sri Lanka.

History

The chronicle Mahavamsa states that King Devanampiyatissa (247-207 B.C.) had prepared 68 caves as dwellings for Bhikkhus headed by Arhat Mahinda Thera (Seneviratna, 1994). The early-Brahmi inscriptions presenting below the drip-ledges of these caves confirm that they had been prepared for the use of the Buddhist monks during the pre-Christian era. 

According to Mahavamsa (Mahavamsa, Chap: XXXV, vv: 9-12), King Kanirajanutissa (31-34 A.D.) imprisoned sixty monks who were engaged in a conspiracy against him and finally he had commanded these monks to be flung into the caves called Kanira (Wickremasinghe, 1912). It is believed that the mountain which forms the Ataseta Len complex could be that place mentioned in the Mahawamsa.

References

1) Geiger, W., 1986. The Mahāvaṃsa, or, The Great Chronicle of Ceylon. Asian Educational Services, New Delhi. p.247. 

2) Seneviratna, A., 1994. Ancient Anuradhapura: the monastic city. Archaeological Survey Department. p.236.

3) Wickremasinghe, D.M.D.Z., 1912. Epigraphia Zeylanica: Being lithic and other inscription of Ceylon (Vol. I). London. Archaeological Survey of Ceylon. pp.75-113.

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Nelligala International Buddhist Center

Nelligala International Buddhist Center (Sinhala: නෙල්ලිගල ජාත්‍යන්තර බෞද්ධ මධ්‍යස්ථානය) or Nelligala Viharaya is a modern Buddhist temple in Muruthalawa village in Kandy District, Sri Lanka. Situated at the top of the Nelligala mountain, the site is popular among sightseeing visitors and tourists due to its scenic view of the surrounding landscape. It is visited by both Buddhists and people from other religions.

Construction of the Nelligala temple was started in 2015, under the guidance of Wathurakumbure Dhammarathna Thera.

Presently, the site is highly venerated by the Buddhist community in the region. It is said that the sacred relics of the Buddha and Arhats are enshrined at this temple. Local and foreign tourists who follow the Buddhist culture use the library facilities from this place.  

 

A Stupa and Bodhi Tree have been established at the site to do various religious rituals. Also, the gold color Buddha statues and the statue of God Sumana Saman, the Buddhist deity of Sri Pada Mountain have added a unique appearance to the temple. Some of the famous mountains such as Sri Pada, Hanthana, Alagalla, and Batalegala can be seen at the distance from Nelligala Viharaya.

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See also

#) Kuragala Ancient Buddhist Monastery

#) Mahamevnawa Buddhist Monastery

#) Umandawa Global Buddhist Village

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Kotagama Tamil Slab Inscription

Kotagama Tamil Slab Inscription is one of the Tamil inscriptions in Sri Lanka. It is now exhibited in the Stone Gallery of the National Museum of Colombo. This inscription is considered important as it reveals some historical facts related to the Arya Cakravarttis of Jaffna.

Discovery

The slab was found from Kotagama Viharaya located near Rambukkana in Kegalle District (Codrington, 1932). It is said that it was brought to the temple from a high land named Koholan Godella close to the temple (Wijesuriya, 1990). The inscription was later taken to Colombo Museum in 1892 by H.C.P. Bell (Wijesuriya, 1990).

Inscription

The inscription has been engraved on a stone slab of about 7 feet 7 inches long, 2 feet 8 inches broad, and 7 inches thick (Wijesuriya, 1990). It consists of five lines and has been written in a form of a poem. The epigraph is in the Tamil language with the Tamil scripts of the mid-14th century A.D. (Pathmanathan, 2005).

The inscription gives no detail about the purpose of its establishment. As well as no regal year has been indicated in the record. Depending on the palaeographical considerations and historical accounts, scholars such as S. Paranavitana have assigned this inscription to the mid-14th century A.D. (Paranavitana, 1960; Pathmanathan, 2005). The forms of the letters in this epigraph are said to be similar to those found in the Tamil rock inscription (engraved in 1344 A.D.) at Lankathilaka Viharaya in Kandy (Paranavitana, 1960; Pathmanathan, 2005). Also, several Sinhalese chronicles such as "Rajavaliya" and "Nikaya Sangarahaya" (written in 1369) provide some accounts of the activities of Arya Cakravarti in the Gampola Kingdom during the 14th century.

Some authors have dated this inscription to the mid-15th century A.D. (Codrington, 1932; Veluppillai, 1979) but other authors have disagreed with that assumption by pointing out the scarcity of the historical sources which record a conquest of a Sinhalese king by the Arya Cakravarti during the 15th century.

Content

According to S. Paranavitana, this is the only inscription that mentions about an Arya-Cakravarti of Jaffna (Paranavitana, 1961). It records a conquest of a Sinhalese king by Arya Cakravarti but the name of the king who was defeated is not given in the record (Codrington, 1932; Pathmanathan, 2005). However, the scholar John Siriman de Soyza has pointed out that this inscription can be seen as a defeat of a Tamil king and a victory of a Sinhalese king (Wijesuriya, 1990).

The interpretations for the Kotagama inscription by S. Pathmanathan (2005) are given below,

Kotagama Tamil Slab Inscription Period      : Mid-14th century A.D. Language & Script  : Tamil Transcript: (1)  Cetu  (2)  Kankanam  ver  kanninaiyar kattinar 3) Kamar valaip .....>> Translation : Setu.  The  young  women  of  the king(s)  of  Anurai,  who  did  not  submit to the Ariyan of  Cinkainakar  of  resounding  waters, shed tears from the pairs of their lance-shaped eyes  and   spread   their  fore-head   marks  on their beautiful braceleted lotus-like hands. Citation: Pathmanathan, S., 2005

The first line of the inscription only contains one word "Setu". Setu is identified as an emblem of the kings of Arya Cakravartis who reigned in Jaffna (Rasanayagam, 1926). This word is found on all the coins issued by them (Rasanayagam, 1926; Pathmanathan, 2005). The Arya Cakravarti is mentioned in this record as Ariyan of Cinkainakar. The word Anurai is the abbreviation used to indicate Anuradhapura and then for any capital of the Sinhalese Kingdom (Codrington, 1929; Codrington, 1932; Pathmanathan, 2005). 

References

1) Codrington, H.W., 1929. A short history of Ceylon. Asian Educational Services (1994). p.89.
2) Codrington, H.W., 1932. The problem of the Kotagama inscription. The Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland, 32(85), pp.214-225.

3) Paranavitana, S., 1960. [Ray, H.C. (Editor in chief)]. Chapter II: Gampala and Raigama. History of Ceylon: Volume I: Part II. Ceylon University Press. Colombo. p.642.
4) Paranavitana, S., 1961. The Arya kingdom in north Ceylon. The Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. pp.174-224.
5) Pathmanathan, S., 2005. Tamil inscriptions in the Colombo National Museum: Spolia Zeylanica. Vol 47. (2010). Department of National Museums, Sri Lanka, pp.69-74.
6) Rasanayagam, C., 1926. Ancient Jaffna: Being a Research Into the History of Jaffna from Very Early Times to the Portuguese Period. Asian Educational Services (1984). p.364.
7) Veluppillai, A., 1979. Language Variations in Sri Lanka Tamil Inscriptions. Journal of Tamil Studies, 14. pp.65-83.
8) Wijesuriya, W., 1990. [Wijesekara, N. (Editor in chief)] Section V: Inscriptions (1200-1600). Archaeological Department Centenary (1890-1990): Commemorative Series: Vol. II: Inscriptions. pp.205-206.

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Bambarakele Sri Maha Viharaya, Nuwara Eliya

Bambarakele Sri Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: බඹරකැලේ ශ්‍රී මහා විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple located in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka. The site can be reached by traveling along the Nuwara Eliya - Kandy road about 2 km distance from the Nuwara Eliya main bus stand. This temple is considered to be the first Buddhist temple built in Nuwara Eliya (Abeywardana, 2004).

History

Sri Maha Viharaya was established in 1885 by the Saddharmadhara Society under the guidance of Ven. Vidurupola Sri Ratanajoth Thera (Abeywardana, 2004). It is said that the then Governor of the region had employed spies to report him about the content of the first preaching delivered from this site (Abeywardana, 2004). Several other buildings, including a Stupa were added to the temple in 1905 (Abeywardana, 2004).

The temple received high recognition within the country after Ven. Vidurupola Piyatissa Nayaka Thera, a famous scholar-monk, assumed responsibilities as the chief incumbent of this temple (Abeywardana, 2004).

A protected site

Sri Maha Viharaya bearing assessment No 351/1 in Kandy road in the Administrative Limits of Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council in Nuwara Eliya Divisional Secretariat Division is an archaeological protected site, declared by a government gazette notification published on 23 February 2007.  

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References

1) Abeywardana, H.A.P., 2004. Heritage of Kandurata: Major natural, cultural and historic sites. Colombo: The Central Bank of Sri Lanka.  p.220.
2) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1486. 23 February 2007. p.127.

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Delgamuwa Raja Maha Viharaya

Delgamuwa Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: දෙල්ගමුව රජ මහා විහාරය) is a historic Buddhist temple located in the village of Delgamuwa in Ratnapura District, Sri Lanka. This temple has obtained a special place in Sri Lankan history as it provided protection for the Tooth Relic of the Buddha for over 40 years (Abeyawardana, 2002).

History

After the death of King Bhuvanekabahu VII (1521–1551 A.D.) and the designation of Dharmapala as the successor, the political stability of the country became unstable with the activities of the Portuguese. At the time, Hiripitiye Diyawadana Nilame was the noble person who entrusted with the custody of the Tooth Relic (Pieris, 1920). One night he experienced a strange dream in which he was warned about the security of the Tooth Relic. Distressed by the dream, he secretly moved the relic from Kotte to Sitawaka and presented it to King Mayadunna [(1521–1581 A.D.) Pieris, 1920]. For the purpose of further protection, the Tooth Relic was moved to Delgamuwa Viharaya where it was hidden in a Kurahan Gala (maize grinding stone). 

In 1560, the Portuguese claimed to have captured the Tooth Relic and had carried it to Goa, India (Hocart, 1931). Dom Constantino de Braganza, a Portuguese viceroy who obtained the alleged Tooth Relic, had pounded the relic in a brazen mortar and threw it into the sea (Hocart, 1931; Pieris, 1920). However, the Tooth Relic captured by the Portuguese was an imitation carried by Veediya Bandara (Pieris, 1920).

Konappu Bandara who recorded a successful victory over the Portuguese at Danthure, near Kandy in 1592 ascended the throne as King Vimaladharmasuriya I (1592–1604 A.D). He brought the sacred Tooth Relic from the Delgamuwa temple in Sabaragamuwa Province to safeguard it from the Portuguese army. Due to the initiative of Devanagala Ratnalankara Thera and Hiripitiye Diyawadana Nilame, the relic was placed in a two-storied temple built in the neighbourhood of the Royal Palace at Senkadagala (present Kandy) during the period 1593-1595 (Abeywardana, 2004; Pieris, 1920; Seneviratna & Polk, 1992).

A protected site

The grinding stone which had been used to conceal the Tooth Relic of the Buddha, the ancient temple and the library of Delgamu Raja Maha Viharaya in the Kuruwita Divisional Secretary’s Division are archaeological protected monuments, declared by a government gazette notification published on 22 November 2002.  

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References

1) Abeyawardana, H.A.P., 2002. Heritage of Sabaragamuwa: Major natural, cultural and historic sites. Sabaragamuwa Development Bank and The Central Bank of Sri Lanka. ISBN: 955-575-077-7. p.10.

2) Abeywardana, H.A.P., 2004. Heritage of Kandurata: Major natural, cultural and historic sites. Colombo: The Central Bank of Sri Lanka.  p.10.
3) Hocart, A.M. ed., 1931. Memoirs of the Archaeological Survey of Ceylon IV: The Temple of the Tooth in Kandy. Messrs. Luzac & Co. pp.3-4.
4) Pieris, P.E., 1920. Ceylon and the Portuguese, 1505-1658. American Mission Ceylon Press. Telippalai. pp.76, 86, 142.
5) Seneviratna, A. and Polk, B., 1992. Buddhist monastic architecture in Sri Lanka: the woodland shrines. Abhinav Publications. p.133.

6) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1264. 22 November 2002.

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Balapokuna Raja Maha Viharaya

Balapokuna Raja Maha Viharaya is a Buddhist temple located in Pamankada in Colombo District, Sri Lanka.

Pond

Balapokuna is a small natural pond located in the premises of Balapokuna temple. According to the historical sources, the history of this pond is dated back to the period of the Kotte Kingdom (1412–1597 A.D.). The pond was originally known as Bata-pokuna [giving the meaning of "the pond of soldiers"]  and the word "Bata" later evolved to the present name Bala-pokuna.

During the reign of King Parakramabhu VI (1412-1466 A.D.) the water of this pond is said to have been used by the king's soldiers. As it is possible to see a vast area of the Kotte Kingdom, the high spot located next to the pond is believed to be used as a lookout point by the soldiers who had been appointed as sentries. Presently, this area is known as Balahenmulla, the name has been derived from the Sinhalese equivalent of the garrison. Therefore it is assumed that this area could be a "Forward defense line" of the Kotte Kingdom.

Popular legend

According to local folklore, the pond located in the Balapokuna temple is one exit point to an ancient underground tunnel that runs from Kotte. Two other points that had been connected to this tunnel are said to be located at the Ambalama (wayside rest) in Ethul Kotte and at the premises of Ananda Shastralaya College in Kotte.

A protected monument

The ancient pond of Pamankada Balapokuna Viharaya in the Grama Niladhari Division of Pamankade East, in the Thimbirigasyaya Divisional Secretary’s Division, is an archaeological protected monument, declared by a government gazette notification published on 6 June 2008.  

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References

1) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1553. 6 June 2008. p.533.

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Pigeon Island National Park

Pigeon Island National Park is one of the three marine national parks in Sri Lanka (Perera & Kotagama, 2016). The island is located about 2.2 km offshore of the Nilaweli beach in Trincomalee District. It is the 17th national park in the country.

Name

The island's name derives from the wild rock pigeon (Columba livia) which has colonized it (Katupotha & Senevirathna, 2017).

Island

The pigeon island national park consists of two small islands; large pigeon island and small pigeon island (Rajasuriya et al, 2005). The large island has two small beaches located in the south-western and northern flank of the island (Rajasuriya et al, 2005). The main coral reef which is about 200 m long, 100 m wide is found in front of the south-western beach. This coral reef is extended in a depth of 1 to 6 m and dominated by branching and tabulate Acropora species (Rajasuriya et al, 2005). The small island is surrounded by rocky islets. Faviidae, Mussidae, and Portidae species are found in the coral reef around the rocky islets (Rajasuriya et al, 2005). Areas with soft corals such as Sinularia, Lobophytum and Sacrophyton are also identified. The total area of the park is about 471 hectares (Katupotha & Senevirathna, 2017; Perera & Kotagama, 2016).

Flora & Fauna

A large number of coral species (over 100 species) and coral reef fishes (over 222 specie) have been recorded around this national park (Perera & Kotagama, 2016). Juvenile and adult Blacktip reef sharks, Hawkbill, Green, and Olive ridley turtles are some of the marine animals found around the shallow coral areas. The island is also an important breeding and nesting ground for rock pigeons.

A protected site

During the colonial era, the island is said to be used as a shooting range (Katupotha & Senevirathna, 2017). In 1963, the island was designated as a sanctuary for the purpose of protecting birds (Rajasuriya et al, 2005). In 2003, the island and the surrounding area within a one-mile radius, including its coral reefs, were re-designated as a National Park under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance (The Gazette, no: 1291/16). Today, this national park is governed by the Department of Wildlife Conservation.
Attribution
1) Sri Lanka-Trincomalee-Pigeon Island by Dschen Reinecke is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

References

1) Katupotha, K.N.J. and Senevirathna, C., 2017. Geomorphology of the Pigeon Island National Park, Sri Lanka. National Research Symposium - Sharing Knowledge for a sustainable management of Pigeon Island National Park.

2) Perera, N.; Kotagama, S.W., 2016. Recommendations for co-existence of coral reef conservation and tourism at Pigeon Island National Park. Journal of Tropical Forestry and Environment, 6(1). pp.20-35.

3) Rajasuriya, A., Perera, N. and Fernando, M., 2005. Status of coral reefs in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. Coral reef degradation in the Indian Ocean (CORDIO): status report 2005, pp.97-103.
4) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka: Extraordinary, no: 1291/16. 4 June 2003. p.546.

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Dambadeniya Sri Vijayasundararama Viharaya

Dambadeniya Sri Vijayasundararama Viharaya (or Dambadeniya Vijayasundararamaya) is a Buddhist temple located in the ancient city of Dambadeniya in Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka. The site can be reached by travelling along the Giriulla-Narammala road about 5 km distance from Giriulla town.

History

Struggles to grab the power of the throne among the last rulers who came after King Nissankamalla (1187-1196 A.D.) had put the country's political environment into an unstable state (Dias et al., 2016). Magha (1215–1236 A.D.) of Kalinga (India) who came with a large army from Malabar (Kerala) easily invaded Sri Lanka during this period (Dias et al., 2016). As a result of the invasion, Polonnaruwa Kingdom collapsed and Dambadeniya became the new and the third kingdom of the country (Sudharmawathie, 2008). 

King Vijayabahu III (1232-1236 A.D.) made Dambadeniya (Jambudoni) the capital city of the country in order to safeguard Buddhism, the kingdom, and its people. He built Vijayasundararama Viharaya as the main temple of the kingdom and started an academy similar to Maha Viharaya and Abhayagiriya in Anuradhapura. He also adopted the first Dambadeniya Kathikawatha (Dambadeniya edicts) at this temple with the presence of Gramavasi (village dwelling) and Aranyawasi (forest-dwelling) Bhikkus.

The next ruler, King Parakramabahu II (1236-1270 A.D.) had constructed two temples for the sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha; one on the Summit of the Rock Palace and the other on the premises of Vijayasundararama temple. The temple built at the rock palace was the permanent house for the Tooth Relic and the other at Vijayasundararamaya was used mainly for the relic expositions (Seneviratna, 1987). He continuously made offerings to the relic at Vijayasundararama Viharaya and engaged in many meritorious deeds. It is said that, as a wish of the king, the Tooth Relic performed a miracle for seven and half hours by creating an image of Buddha walking in the sky (Holt, 2011) between the temple of tooth and the tree called Sapu Bodhiya. This tree can be seen today at the temple premises, located near to the Temple of the Tooth building.

The Temple of the Tooth built-in Vijayasundararama Viharaya was initially a three-storeyed building and later it was renovated during the reign of Kirti Sri Rajasingha (1747-1780 A.D.) by Meegasthenne Adikaram, the chief ruler of Sath-Korale (Seneviratna, 1987). He renovated this building as a two-story mansion (Seneviratna, 1987).


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Temple

The Temple of the Tooth building at Dambadeniya Vijayasundararamaya is considered to be the oldest (best conserved) such kind of building found in Sri Lanka. It has been built on a raised platform made of stone and the building is today used as an image house. Both lower and upper floors contain statues of Buddha and other sculptures and paintings belonging to several periods. The lower image house is encircled with a circumambulatory path of about 3 feet wide. Two stone slabs known as Veeragal are found at the entrance to the ground floor. These slabs are considered strange as they contain few figures related to Hindu tradition. The ground floor is connected to the upper story through a wooden stairway. The upper floor was initially used to deposit the Tooth Relic of the Buddha but after the removal of the relic from Dambadeniya, the upper floor became an ordinary Buddha shrine.

The Stupa of the temple has been built on an ancient platform that was once used to exhibit the Tooth Relic of the Buddha. The roof over the Stupa is sustained by several granite pillars. At the sides of the entrance to the Stupa house are two Korawak Gal (balustrades) carved with elephant figures. 

 

Archaeological Museum

A small site museum of the Archaeological Department has been established in the premises of Vijayasundararama Viharaya. The museum is used to exhibit antiquities recovered from the temple as well as from the surrounding area. 

A protected site

The ancient image house at the premises of Dambadeniya Vijayasundararama Raja Maha Viharaya in the Divisional Secretariat Division of Narammala is an archaeological protected monument, declared by a government gazette notification published on 9 March 1962. 

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References

1) Dias, M.; Koralage, S.B.; Asanga, K., 2016. The archaeological heritage of Jaffna peninsula. Department of Archaeology. Colombo. p.178.
2) Holt, J. (Editor), 2011. The Sri Lanka reader: history, culture, politics. Duke University Press. pp.105-106.
3) Seneviratna, A., 1987. The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic: An Architectural History of the Daḷadā Māligāwa, the Symbol of Buddhist Faith and Sovereignty in Sri Lanka. Government of Sri Lanka. p.59.
4) Sudharmawathie, J.M., 2008. Historical significance of the kingdom of Dambadeniya, Proceedings of the Annual Research Symposium 2008, Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Kelaniya. p.105.
5) The government gazette notification, no: 12977. 9 March 1962.

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