Lankathilaka Raja Maha viharaya

"Proud Of Our Up Country"

Lankathilaka Raja Maha Viharaya 

 

The Lankathilaka temple, situated on the outskirts of Kandy, is one of the finest examples of Sinhalese temple architecture. More info and images inside.

 

The temple was completed in 1334 by king Buwanekabahu IV, who had chosen Gampola as his kingdom. The five kings who ruled from Gampola made significant contributions to art and culture. The Gadaladeniya and Embekke temples, which will be covered in future posts, are also from this period.

 

The Image house contains devales to the four guardian deities of the island, each with his consort. A Pali inscription can be found on the rock which the temple is built on and it is supposed to be a record of the valuable gifts given to craftsman who worked on the temple. The exterior of the image house is decorated with sculpted elephants and other decorative designs.

 

The arched passage of the image house leads into an inner sanctum which is decorated with floral designs. The two side walls and the ceiling are covered with paintings and the inner sanctum contains a huge statue of the seated Buddha under a "Makara Thorana". I was unable to go into the image house as the priest was not around and the image house was locked. However, I was able to take a few shots of the artwork that decorated the main door to the image house.

Gadaladeniya Raja Maha Viharaya

"OUR HERITAGE OF VISIT UP COUNTRY"

Gadaladeniya Raja Maha Viharaya

Stupa of the Gadaladeniya temple

Entrance

Some of the carvings

Gadaladeniya Temple, which is situated at Pilimatalawa on the Kandy-Colombo Road, just passing Kadugannawa, is famous for its beautiful stone carvings. This temple was built on a flat rock at Diggala in the 14th Century.
Faded paintings from around that time provide many clues as to the manner in which the temple was built. The art is South Indian, so the general belief is that the workers were also brought down from abroad. The chief architect of this temple had been a South Indian called Ganesvarachari. Therefore, this temple is essentially a South Indian design.

The genius of the Kandyan master craftsmen is very obvious in this region; whereby Gadaladeniya Viharaya is built of stone, the nearby Lankatilaka Viharaya and its Devale are built of clay bricks with a unique architectural design; Embekke Devale is built of wood while the mysterious Galengolla Potgul Viharaya with its valuable ola leaf manuscripts has a cover-up in the style of Florentine rebirth and its interior resembles a Christian basilica with cupola (dome) and octagonal pillars.

The Gadaladeniya Temple also contains a beautifully painted giant wooden chest holding paintings and sculptures of great historical and artistic importance. The entrance to Gadaladeniya features large stone pillars, which support a roof of huge stone slabs.

Within the vihara, an ancient stone and plaster Buddha image looks down upon milkrice pots that have been collecting food offerings for centuries. The 638-year-old jak-wood doors still exhibit their original paintings.
According to an inscription there, this temple was built by King Buwanekabahu IV in the year 1344. The main shrine room has a seated (in Vajrasana ) Buddha statue under a Makara Thorana and four standing Buddha images. The Makara Thorana is decorated on both faces with gods such as Brahma, Suyama, Santhusuta, Natha and Maithree, and two attendants.
The chamber within the Sikhara (dome) has had a Buddha image, which had been destroyed by the Portuguese. Next to the shrine room is a Devale dedicated to God Vishnu.

According to the Mahavansa, the great chronicle of Sri Lanka, it was 'Upulvan Deiyo' (Vishnu) that was selected as the guardian to protect the land of Sri Lanka and Buddhism within it at the time of Buddha's passing away. Therefore, this deity holds a special place among Sri Lankans.
By the side of the Vishnu Devale is a stupa made on a rock. This is believed to have been constructed by King Parakramabahu V. This stupa has a roof built over it, held by four pillars. Four smaller satellite stupas are built on small shrine rooms around the main stupa. This structure is called the Vijayothpaya or Vijayantha Prasada after the mythical palace of god Indra.

This temple had been neglected for some time and then had been handed over to Velivita Saranankara Thera by King Viraparakrama Narendrasinha (1707 - 1739); it had been looked after ever since by his pupils in succession.

Though this temple is known as Gadaladeniya today, an inscription identifies it as 'Dharma Kirthi Viharaya', which is the name of the founding monk. 'Nikaya Sangrahaya' identifies this temple as 'Saddharmathilake' and 'Saddharmalankaraya' identifies this as 'Gadaladeniya Viharaya' after the village in which it is located.

Gadaladeniya is one of the best places to view the original stone carving designs; there are many carvings on the pillars. So, next time you visit Kandy, don't just return after visiting the Dalada Maligawa, visit Gadaladeniya too. You'll be amazed by the beauty of this temple

Posted by : Nilanka navinna

Kagugannawa Dawson Tower

INFORMATION FOR DAWSON TOWER 

              FOR KADUGANNAWA

Dawson Tower

The train after an hour of 1400 ft climb reaches Kadugannawa summit at 1690 above sea level. The station is located by the side of the Colombo-Kandy road which was completed in 1832, 30 years before the railway line was built. The historical land mark of Dawson Tower which was constructed in memory of Capt. Dawson, who successfully completed road construction, is seen through the train window. The train continues its final stretch from the Kadugannawa station from which the line drops gently to Peradeniya station at 1553 ft, passing the Mahaveli Ganga, Sri Lanka’s largest river. The line rises again to a height of 1602 ft at Kandy as the train completes its 72 mile journey.