Nelum Pokuna (Polonnaruwa)
The Nelum Pokuna (lit: the Lotus Pond/Lotus Bath ) (Sinhala: නෙළුම් පොකුණ) is an old pond situated in the Ancient City of Polonnaruwa , Sri Lanka. History
This pond is referred to in chronicles by the name " Paduma-nahana-kotthaka " and is located within the Jetavanarama monastery premises built by King Parakramabahu I [(1153-1186 A.D.) Nicholas, 1963; Ray, 1960; Wikramagamage, 2004]. The chronicle Mahawamsa states that King Parakramabahu built eight ponds of stone to "cleanse the outward impurity of the monks" (Jayasuriya, 2016). Of these eight ponds, the names of four are given in the chronicle; i) Vatta-nahan-kottha , ii) Guha-nahana-kottha , iii) Paduma-nahana-kottha (the present Nelum Pokuna), and iv) Bhadda-nahana-kottha (Nicholas, 1963). Ruins of several ponds similar in structure to Nelum Pokuna have been found within the limits of the Jetavanarama monastery (Ray, 1960). Pond
The circular stepped Nelum Pokuna pond has been built in the form of a full-blown lotus …
