Kotikagoda Raja Maha Viharaya in Matara: 18th-c temple, famous image house from 1829 with Kandyan-style Buddha, decorative paintings & deity shrines.
Kotikagoda Raja Maha Viharaya K otikagoda Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: කොටිකාගොඩ රජමහා විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated in Wewahamanduwa village near Walgama in Matara District, Sri Lanka. History Although some link the history of Kotikagoda temple to the time of King Kumaradasa (513-522 A.D) of Anuradhapura , this temple is believed to have been established early 18th century (Abeyawardana, 2004; Ranaweera, 2015; Vanarathana, 1994; Wikramaratne, 2015). However, some believe that the temple received the patronage of King Mayadunna (1521-1581 A.D.) and Rajasinha I (1581-1593 A.D.) of Sitawaka (Ranaweera, 2015; Vanarathana, 1994; Wikramaratne, 2015). It is said that this temple flourished during the period of the Sitawaka Kingdom but Buddhist monks had to leave the temple when the Portuguese who arrived in Sri Lanka in the early 16th century destroyed the main religious places in the Matara area including the famous Devinuwara Devalaya (Ranaweera, 2015). Above the entrance door of the old image house which is though…
