Sri Sudharmalaya Viharaya

Sri Sudharmalaya Viharaya (Sinhala: ගාලු කොටුව සුධර්මාලය විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated within the ancient Galle Fort, Sri Lanka. It is the only old Buddhist religious place found inside the fort.

History

During the Dutch Period (1640-1796 A.D.), there is said to be a hall used as a storage room for commercial goods or as a common religious centre for the people who lived in the fort (Abeyawardana, 2004). This hall was converted into a Buddhist place of worship around 1884 (Abeyawardana, 2004). Some of the buildings and structures of this temple portray elements of Dutch and European architecture.

Attribution

1) Sri Sudharmalaya Buddhist Temple by Francisco Anzola is licensed under CC BY 2.0

References

1) Abeyawardana, H.A.P., 2004. Heritage of Ruhuna: Major natural, cultural and historic sites. Colombo: The Central Bank of Sri Lanka. ISBN: 955-575-073-4. p.30.

Location Map

This page was last updated on 15 August 2022