Photo credit: Denuwan ATTILIGODA VITHANAGE, Google view
Ganegoda Kataragama Devalaya (Sinhala: ගණේගොඩ කතරගම දේවාලය) is a Devalaya shrine situated in Ganegoda village in Kandy District, Sri Lanka. It has been dedicated to God Kataragama, a Sinhalese deity who is considered as one of the patron deities of the Buddha Sasana in Sri Lanka.
History
It is said that this Devalaya was constructed by King Rajasinghe II (1635-1687 A.D.) in fulfillment of a vow made by him to win the battle at Gannoruwa against the Portuguese (Abeyawardana, 2004; De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009). However, according to another belief, this shrine was originally built during the days of King Senasammata Vikramabahu [(1469-1511 A.D.) De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009]. King Kirti Sri Rajasinghe (1747-1782 A.D.) donated certain lands to this shrine from the villages at Udowiti, Elpitiya, Godawela, and Medapitiya (Abeyawardana, 2004).
The shrine is said to have been plundered on two occasions (Abeyawardana, 2004). Also, some valuable documents which were in the shrine had been burnt by fire (Abeyawardana, 2004).
A protected site
The Ganegoda Sri Kataragama Devale premises and the ancient building thereof and other archaeological remains, the street and the throne hall situated within the No. 1159 Ganegoda Grama Niladhari Division in the Dholuwa Divisional Secretary’s Division are archaeological protected monuments, declared by a government gazette notification published on 8 April 2009.
References
1) Abeyawardana, H.A.P., 2004. Heritage of Kandurata: Major natural, cultural and historic sites. Colombo: The Central Bank of Sri Lanka. pp.60-61.
2) De Silva, N.; Chandrasekara, D.P., 2009. Heritage Buildings of Sri Lanka. Colombo: The National Trust Sri Lanka, ISBN: 978-955-0093-01-4. p.111.
3) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, no: 1597. 8 April 2009. p.445.
2) De Silva, N.; Chandrasekara, D.P., 2009. Heritage Buildings of Sri Lanka. Colombo: The National Trust Sri Lanka, ISBN: 978-955-0093-01-4. p.111.
3) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, no: 1597. 8 April 2009. p.445.
Location Map
This page was last updated on 9 June 2022
For a complete tourist map follow this link: Lankapradeepa Tourist Map
For a complete tourist map follow this link: Lankapradeepa Tourist Map
