Pethiyagoda Paramartha Dharmakara Piriven Viharaya (Sinhala: පෙතියාගොඩ පරමාර්ථ ධර්මාකර පිරිවෙන් විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated in Kelaniya, Gampaha District, Sri Lanka.
History
The history of Pethiyagoda Viharaya runs back to the 18th century. The image house of the temple which contains the sculptures and paintings of the Kandyan tradition is said to be built in 1747 A.D. (Chandrasoma, 2018). It is also considered the second oldest Buddhist temple in the area after Kelaniya Raja Maha Viharaya (Chandrasoma, 2018).
Image house
The image house is the main attraction of this temple with an archaeological significance. It has been constructed, according to the date mentioned above the entrance of the image house, in 1747 (2391 Buddhist era). According to the local people, this image house originally was a Tempita Viharaya but has been altered to the present state after it was flooded by the waters of the Kelani Ganga river in 1940 (Chandrasoma, 2018).
The image house consists of two parts: the inner shrine and the outer ambulatory. The inner shrine is considered the oldest part of the image house and it preserves a collection of paintings and sculptures belonging to the Kandyan tradition (Chandrasoma, 2018). The outer ambulatory has been added to it later.
The image house was conserved by the Archaeological Department on 26 March 2018.
A protected site
The ancient image house with paintings and sculptures in Dharmakara Pirivena premises in Pethiyagoda village in Kelaniya Divisional Secretariat Division is an archaeological protected monument, declared by a government gazette notification published on 23 February 2007.
References
1) Chandrasoma, S., 2018. Sanrakshanaya kerunu Kelaniya-Pethiyagoda perani vihara mandiraya janapathi athin vivurtha kere (In Sinhala). Dayada Newsletter. July 2018. 12th edition. Department of Archaeology. p.28.
2) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1486. 23 February 2007. p.122.
Location Map
This page was last updated on 22 July 2023
