Kandy Kataragama Devalaya

Kataragama Devalaya, Kandy
Kandy Kataragama Devalaya (Sinhala: මහනුවර කතරගම දේවාලය) is a Devalaya Shrine situated on Kotugodella Vidiya in Kandy town in Sri Lanka. It has been dedicated to God Kataragama, a Sinhalese deity who is considered one of the patron deities of the Buddha Sasana in Sri Lanka. This shrine is also one of the four Devalas (Hatara Devala) associated with the Maha Wasala (the Royal Palace) and the Dalada Maligawa (the Temple of the Tooth Relic) during the Kandyan Period.

History
After marrying a South Indian princess, King Sri Vira Parakrama Narendra Singha (1707-1739 A.D.) constructed this shrine to place the statue of God Kanda Kumaru (Kataragama) that was being worshipped by the princess (Rajapakse, 2016).

The Devalaya
The entrance to this shrine faces the street through an arch-shaped Vahalkada decorated with Makara Thorana. Above the Vahalkada is a small square-shaped storey made out of wooden pillars. The other components of this shrine including the Devala-gruhaya, Dig-geya etc. are located to the west about 8 m distance from the Vahalkada (Rajapakse, 2016).

The Devala-gruhaya consists of four sections (Rajapakse, 2016). Of them, the innermost one forms the sanctum with an image of God Kataragama. To the north of it are several other buildings attached to the main shrine such as a kitchen, Pattini shrine, dwellings, stores and an image house containing Buddha statues (Rajapakse, 2016).

The priests who perform rituals in this shrine are Hindu Brahmins (Abeyawardana, 2004). Except for God Kataragama, two female deities named Lakshmi and Saraswathi are also venerated here (Abeyawardana, 2004).

A protected site
The Kataragama Devalaya situated within Kandy City limits in Kadawath Sathara (Kandy) Divisional Secretary’s Division is an archaeological protected monument, declared by a government notification published on 14 May 1971.

See also

Attribution

References
1) Abeyawardana, H.A.P., 2004. Heritage of Kandurata: Major natural, cultural and historic sites. Colombo: The Central Bank of Sri Lanka. pp.15-16.
2) Rajapakse, S., 2016. Pauranika Sthana Ha Smaraka: Mahanuwara Distrikkaya (In Sinhala). Archaeological Department of Sri Lanka. ISBN:955-9159-34-8. pp.16-17.
3) The government notification. No: 14958. 14 May 1971.

Location Map
This page was last updated on 5 December 2022

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