Anointing Pavilion is a ruined building situated near the pond on the right hand of the southern entrance to the Abhayagiri Stupa in Anuradhapura.
Anointing Pavilion (Abhayagiriya) A nointing Pavilion or Anointing Hall (Sinhala: අභිෂේක මණ්ඩපය) is a ruined building situated near the pond which is on the right hand of the southern entrance to the Abhayagiri Stupa in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. This is probably used for anointing Buddha statues and other sacred items (Hettiaratchi & Kulatunge, 1993). History It is a building that belongs to the type known as Snanaghara (bathing house) described in the Bodhicharyavatara (Wikramagamage, 2004). In ancient times there was a practice of anointing the Buddha images with scented waters and this ritual is held even today in Sri Lanka at some places such as Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi premises in Anuradhapura and Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy (Wikramagamage, 2004). The chronicles also mention a Mahayana anointing ceremony performed with six pots of fragrant water (Hettiaratchi & Kulatunge, 1993). This ruined building in Abhayagiriya premises is believed to have been used for the consecration of the Buddha and Bodhisattva ima…
