Bahirawakanda (Sinhala: බහිරවකන්ද සහ බුද්ධ ප්රථිමාව) is a mountain [600 m (1,965.5 ft. amsl)] located west of Kandy town in Central Province, Sri Lanka. Presently, this site has gained recognition among people due to the massive Buddha statue erected on its summit.
Name
In the Sinhala language, Bahirawa-kanda means "the mountain of Bahirawa". According to local belief, Bahirawa is a spirit controlling the mineral sources (Abeyawardana, 2004). When commencing a new construction such as a house, some people offer a Bahirawa Puja to this spirit as a customary practice (Abeyawardana, 2004).
There are several stories explaining how Bahirawakanda Mountain got its name. According to one story, this mountain once had a shrine dedicated to Bahirawa.
History of Bahirawakanda Viharaya
Bahirawakanda Buddha Statue
In the late 1980s, Ampitiye Dhammarama Thera started to construct a giant Buddha statue at the site and the project later received some financial support from President Ranasinghe Premadasa (Abeyawardana, 2004; Abeysekara, 2002). The completed statue was unveiled by the President in January 1993 (Abeysekara, 2002).
The Buddha statue is depicted in the position of the Dhyana Mudra, the posture of meditation. Standing up to a height of 25.85 m (84.80 ft.), the statue presently has become an iconic feature of Kandy City (Abeyawardana, 2004).
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#) What are the other major mountain peaks in Sri Lanka?Attribution
References
1) Abeyawardana, H.A.P., 2004. Heritage of Kandurata: Major natural,
cultural and historic sites. Colombo: The Central Bank of Sri Lanka. p.46.
2) Abeysekara, A., 2002. Colors of the robe: religion, identity, and difference. Univ of South Carolina Press. pp.167-169
Location Map
This page was last updated on 26 August 2023