The main Buddha statue, two figures and whole structure

Buried stone pillars on the sea shore

The statues at sunset over Muhudu Maha Vihare

Buried glory in the East coast

By Mahil Wijesinghe

Having passed lush greenery along Wellawaya to Lahugala on the A4 Road a strange landscape accosts you when passing Sengamuwa. About 10 km beyond Pottuvil, on the A4 Road, a stretch of barren paddy field dotted with small houses and herds of white goats and cows lazily grazing could be seen. Most villagers ply the road on push bicycles, a popular and cost-effective mode of transport. Here fishing and farming is the main form of livelihood.

Entering the crowded Pottuvil town, populated by Muslims, it reminds one of the swarming dens of Colombo’s slum dwellers. However, the haven of windsurfers, the world famous Arugam Bay, lies on the eastern boundary of Pottuvil. The white sand dunes stood out like immaculate rocks scattered along the sandy coast. For thousands of years these mighty dunes have protected the land from progressive sea encroachment. Beneath the white sand lies buried, the glorious story of our heritage.

Ruins

The historic Muhudu Maha Vihare in Arugam Bay, in Pottuvil is the only Buddhist religious site on this eastern seashore. The ruins of the site could be seen juxtaposed among the sand dunes.

The shade of a mango tree gave us shelter before meeting with the temple’s chief Bhikku. The breeze across the Bay of Arugam rejuvenated us and gave a short respite from the tiring and hectic eight-hour journey from Ratnapura.

East of Pottuvil, there lies a historical site called Muhudu Maha Vihare, once a venerated Buddhist place of worship in the East. Its dagoba now lies there, buried amidst the ruins. To its west are the remains of a pillared structure where the torso of a Buddha statue was found and later renovated by the Department of Archaeology.

The sea shore covers much of the site where the dagoba lies, not yet excavated. Several stone pillars and broken bricks are visible from nearby. When this was uncovered, there emerged two beautiful life-size stone statues of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. This is now believed to be perhaps an ancient foundation which was later overlaid by Mahayanism.

Today, the Muhudu Maha Vihare faces the grave problem of losing its archaeological value. The main reason being the lack of a Sinhala population in the area pilgrims from all over the island once frequented this locale and donated money to build these Buddhist sites.

Hardship

Several Bhikkus continue to live in the temple premises despite severe hardship to preserve and protect the site from further decay and ruin.

During the war on terrorism in the East, these Bhikkus hardly received alms even for basic needs. The security forces who were assigned to give security to the temple shared their meagre meals with the Bhikkus. The situation has changed today as more and more pilgrims and visitors throng the site each day and bestow many donations to uplift the area.

The survey plan of the temple shows that the Muhudu Maha Vihare possessed 264 acres of land on the coastal strip. A government gazette notification issued in 1965 states that the temple had been given 30 acres of land and is protected as an archaeological reserve. Unfortunately, the temple now has only three acres as the rest of the land has been acquired by villagers.

History relating to the Muhudu Maha Vihare dated back to the reign of King Mahanaga, who built this temple in 552 B.C. Legend has it that the country suffered a terrible tsunami during the reign of King Kavantissa.

The king scarified his only daughter to the sea to avert a catastrophe. The king’s daughter was later washed ashore near the East coast, where Muhudu Maha Vihare stands today.

Later King Kavantissa who ruled Ruhuna, had met Vihara Maha Devi on this same shore, and to commemorate this historical event, the Vihare was built on the coast of the Arugam Bay site. Just 10 km away from Muhudu Maha Vihare in Pottuvil into the land in Lahugala, there lies another temple called Magul Maha Vihare with a number of ruins including a stone carved wedding platform (Magul Poruwa) believed to be used by King Kavantissa and Queen Vihara Maha Devi who it is said were married at this site.

The sand dunes absorb the merciless sun rays during the scorching midday heat, and attempting to tread on the dunes is akin to walking on red hot embers.

The rest of the stone pillars and bricks buried beneath could also be seen. The best time to visit this site is early morning or late afternoon. If you are in the site at dawn, you can probably see the magnificent sunrise over the Arugam Bay.

Buddha statue

It is believed that there are many ruins buried beneath the shore. Presently, the torso of the Buddha statue and two stone-carved figures are believed to be Avalokitesvara figures or King Kavantissa and Queen Vihara Maha Devi and are easily visible. All these statues were restored by the Department of Archaeology several years ago. Before restoration the statues were scattered along the ground exposed to the elements, vandals and treasure hunters.

Muhudu Maha Vihare is ample historical evidence of a Buddhist population that once inhabited the land close to Pottuvil in centuries past and made the route to Anuradhpura from Magam via Pottuvil a popular one.