Ridi Viharaya

Ridi Viharaya

Ridi Viharaya (Sinhala: රිදී විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated in Ridigama in Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka. History The history of Ridi Viharaya goes back to the early period of the Anuradhapura Era (377 B.C.-1017 A.D.). Early Brahmi Inscriptions that have been discovered in the drip-ledged caves located on the premises of Ridi Vihara temple give evidence that the caves were used as the habitats of the forest-dwelling Buddhist monks since the 2nd century B.C. (Nicholas, 1963; Paranavitana, 1970).  The ancient name of this place was Ambatthakola-lena (Modder, 1896; Muller, 1883). During the reign of King Dutugemunu (161-137 B.C.), silver ore is said to have been found in the Ambatthakola-lena cave (Nicholas, 1963). In the Pali works such as Mahavamsa, this temple is called Rajata-lena (Sin: Ridi-lena; Eng: Silver-cave) and King Amandagamani Abhaya (22-31 A.D.) is said to have constructed the Rajata-lena Viharaya [(present Ridi Viharaya) Charles, 1990; Modder, 1896; Muller, 1883; Ni…