Kadadora Viharaya | Temple Under the Waters of Kotmale Reservoir

Kadadora Viharaya | Temple Under the Waters of Kotmale Reservoir

Not to be confused with Ancient Kadadora Kadadora Viharaya (Sinhala: කොත්මලේ කඩදොර විහාරය), was a Buddhist temple located in the village of Kadadora in Kotmale in Nuwara Eliya District, Sri Lanka. The temple no longer exists as it was abandoned to be submerged in the waters of Kotmale Reservoir commissioned in 1985. The ruins of the temple are still visible when the water level of the reservoir is low in dry seasons. History Kotmale project is one of five major projects that was undertaken under the  Mahaweli Development Scheme  (Manatunge & Takesada, 2013). Its dam was constructed in 1979 and the water filling of the reservoir was started in 1984. Kadadora Viharaya which is said to have been established by the  Mulkirigala  fraternity of monks, was abandoned as it had got submerged in the waters after the construction of the dam (Abeyawardana, 2004).  Besides Kadadora Viharaya, several other religious sites such as Thispane Viharaya, Morape Kataragama Devalaya  and shrines at Kadadora and…