Gadaladeniya Viharaya | Ancient Dharmakirti Viharaya

Gadaladeniya Viharaya | Ancient Dharmakirti Viharaya

Gadaladeniya Viharaya , also known as Sri Saddharmathilaka Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: ගඩලාදෙණිය විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated in Gadaladeniya village in Kandy District, Sri Lanka. History The history of the Gadaladeniya temple goes back to the Gampola Period . According to epigraphic sources, the Buddha shrine and Devalaya at Gadaladeniya were erected by the great monk Dharmakirti Sthavira during the reign of King Buvanekabahu IV  (1341-1351 A.D.) in the Saka year 1266 which is 1344 A.D. (Abeywardana, 2004; Paranavitana, 1934; Seneviratna, 1983). The temple was repaired later by King Parakramabahu VI [(1412-1467 A.D.) Seneviratna & Polk, 1992]. Although this temple is presently known as Gadaladeniya Viharaya, the inscriptions in situ name it Dharmakirti Viharaya after the name of the founder monk (Seneviratna, 1983). The Nikaya Sangrahaya (14th century) names it Saddharmatilaka while the Saddharmalankaraya calls it Gadaladeniya Viharaya after the name of the village (Senevi…