Horana Raja Maha Viharaya
Photo credit: Google street view Horana Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: හොරණ රජ මහා විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated in Horana town in Kalutara District, Sri Lanka. History
The history of Horana temple runs back to the early Anuradhapura Period (Abeyawardana, 2002). It is believed that a princess from Andra Pradesh in India established this temple after planting a Bodhi tree sapling at the site (Abeyawardana, 2002). During the 13th century, the temple was popular as a prominent education centre and has been referred to as Prathiraja Pirivena in the Kelaniya Vihara inscription (Abeyawardana, 2002). Pathiraja was the name of a minister of the Dambadeniya Period and he is believed to be the one who is responsible for the establishment of this institute. The temple is said to have been developed by Alagakkonara in the 14th century. It was destroyed later by the Portuguese who arrived in Sri Lanka in the 16th century (Abeyawardana, 2002). The author of Mayura Sandeshaya is believed to be h…
