Bodhimaluwa Raja Maha Viharaya (Sinhala: බෝධිමළුව රජමහා විහාරය) is a Buddhist temple situated in Raluwa village near Medamulana in Hambantota District, Sri Lanka.
The Buddha Shrine
The site consists of an old Buddha shrine containing valuable sculptures and murals following the traditional art style of the Kandyan Period. A seated Buddha statue accompanied by two figures of Sariputta (left) and Moggallana (right), the chief disciples of Gautama Buddha is found inside the shrine. Two standing statues of Buddha are also found facing each other on both left and right walls. The inner walls of the shrine are filled with paintings of Buddhist themes and various decorative motifs. A boundary stone around the Chapter House of the temple is engraved with the year 2484 B.E (1940 A.D.)
There is a plot of land known by the name Elagawa-watta located towards northwest about 500 m from the Bodhimaluwa temple premises. The ruins of an ancient building along with a newly-built shrine dedicated to God Iswara are found there.
A Protected Site
The ancient Buddha shrine in the premises of Bodhimalu Raja Maha Vihara in Medamulana in Weeraketiya Divisional Secretary’s Division is an archaeological protected monument, declared by a government gazette notification published on 1 November 1996.
References
1) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 948. 1 November 1996.
Attribution
#) LankaPradeepa.com extends its gratitude to V. M. Vidanapathirana for providing the necessary photographs required for this article. All the photos are published here with the permission of the author.
