Munneswaram Temple is a Hindu shrine situated in Munneswaram near Chilaw. It is traditionally considered one of ancient Ishwara shrines in the country
Munneswaram Temple (Chilaw) M unneswaram Temple , also known as Vadivambiga Sametha Munna Nathaswamy Temple (Tamil: முன்னேசுவரம் கோயில்; Sinhala: හලාවත මුන්නේශ්වරම් කෝවිල), is a famous Hindu shrine situated in Munneswaram village near Chilaw in Puttalam District, Sri Lanka. It is traditionally considered one of the ancient Ishwara shrines in the country (Veluppillai, 1971). The temple is also among the few temples where all festivals and religious practices listed in the Hindu calendar are conducted. History The origin of the Munneswaram temple is obscure (Pathmanathan, 1974). The Dakshinakailasa Mahatmyam, a Sanskrit work glorifying the temples in Sri Lanka records some details about this temple (Sarma, 2007). According to it, Lord Rama, a mythical figure appearing in the ancient Hindu epic Ramayanaya, and sage Vyasa have worshipped at this shrine (Pathmanathan, 1974; Sarma, 2007). However, as the authenticity of the Ramayanaya is
controversial, it is today dismissed as a myth by Sri Lankan scholars (JRASSL, 2014…
