Weherahena Viharaya (Matara)

Weherahena Viharaya (Matara)

Weherahena Viharaya , also known as Veherahena Poorwarama Viharaya (Sinhala: මාතර වෙහෙරහේන විහාරය), is a Buddhist temple situated in Matara District, Sri Lanka. It became more popular among devotees after the construction of its gigantic Buddha statue (80 ft. tall) in the meditation posture (Abeyawardana, 2004). History The history of the Weherahena temple runs back to the early part of the 20th century, probably to 1929-1930 (Abeyawardana, 2004; Ranaweera, 2015). The spot where the present temple stands was a forest land owned by six individuals (BJM, 1956). However, at the request of Buddhist devotees, Bedigama Sri Ratanapala Thera, the chief high priest of South Sri Lanka who lived at the time at Maha Mantinda Pirivena converted this land into a religious place of retreat [( Was Bhumiya ) BJM, 1956]. He appointed his own second pupil Parawahera Revata Thera as the first incumbent of the place (BJM, 1956; Ranaweera, 2015). The temple The temple has been built on a plot of land extending a…