Naipena Viharaya (Polonnaruwa)
The ruins of the Naipena Viharaya (Photo credit: Google Street View) Naipena Viharaya (Cobra Hood Shrine) (Sinhala: නයිපෙන විහාරය, ශිව දේවාලය අංක 5, විශ්ණු දේවාලය අංක 4) is referred to a complex of two Hindu shrines namely Siva Devale No. 5 and Visnu Devale No. 4 , situated in the Ancient City of Polonnaruwa , Sri Lanka.
History
Although this site is popularly known as Naipena Viharaya ( Viharaya is a suffix use to denote a Buddhist temple), it has been identified that this is a Hindu temple complex. The present name is thought to have been derived due to the cobra-hood ( Naipena ) decoration of the Vimana of the Visnu shrine (now fallen down) located in the northern part of the complex (Jayasuriya, 2016; Prematilleke, 1990; Wikramagamage, 2004). The ancient name or the builder of this complex is not known. However, it is believed to have been constructed during the Cola Period of Sri Lanka [(1017-1070 A.D.) Wikramagamage, 2004]. The temple complex The temple complex surrounded by a wall has…
