Magul Maha Viharaya at Yala:

Serenity in the wilderness

Story and pictures by Mahil Wijesinghe

The herd of spotted deer, silhouetted against the morning sun, remained motionless as we drove down the gravel road. In the stillness of the forest, the melodious trills of the long feathered peacocks were distinct as were the swishing of leaves and the calls of the other animals. It was serenity at its best.

We were a few kilometres inside the magnificent Ruhuna Wildlife Sanctuary, heading towards a lesser known archaeological site called Magul Maha Viharaya, with its 2nd Century BC monastery, majestic rock boulder and stone ruins.

Five kilometres from Tissamaharama, a gravel road branches off the main road that lead to Situlpahuwa. A half-hour drive takes you through quaint village-scenes that progressively becomes dense jungle, and before long you are at the foot of a huge rocky boulder, to the left of which you find the majestic Magul Maha Viharaya. For many of those travelling to Situlpahuwa, this is a stopover point, for breakfast, lunch or just respite.

From here it is another half-hour drive to Situlpahuwa, another ancient monastic site, believed to be one of the few of its kind in Sri Lanka. Most visitors to the Kataragama sacred site detour to this place for a brief visit.

Magul Maha Viharaya is a massive rock boulder comprising natural water pools and numerous drip-ledged caves, scattered around several acres in Block-1 of the Yala Wildlife sanctuary. Surrounding the Magul Maha Viharaya, lie many ruined dagobas and monuments.

One of the Bhikkunis who dwelled in the main cave talking to a group of pilgrims in 1990

The small cave with partly damaged walls used by monks to meditate

According to folklore, Magul Maha Viharaya at Yala was built to commemorate the marriage celebrations of Vihara Maha Devi, daughter of Kelani Tissa to Kavan Tissa, ruler of Ruhuna. Vihara Maha Devi, according to tradition, was set adrift on a boat by her father as a living sacrifice to appease the remorseless sea erosion in his kingdom. After days and nights of drifting, her boat touched at Kirinda where soldiers found her and took her to King Kavan Tissa, who later married her at the site of Magul Maha Viharaya. They were the parents of Princes Duthagamini or Duttu Gemunu and Saddha Tissa. Warrior King Duttu Gemunu vanquishing all rivals, created a unified Sri Lanka.

However, there are two contradictory legends associated with Queen Vihara Maha Devi's drifting. Some historians say the Queen's boat had touched at what's currently known as Arugam Bay in Pottuvil.

Contradictory legends

This is corroborated by the evidence of ancient ruins at Mudu Maha Viharaya, close to the shore at Pottuvil. Here, legend has it that as King Kavan Tissa married Queen Vihara Maha Devi at another ancient site called Magul Maha Viharaya in Lahugala, 11 kilometres from Mudu Maha Viharaya at Pottuvil. At Lahugala, we can still see among other ruins, the ruins of a stone carved foundation purportedly of King Kavan Tissa's nuptials.

Legends notwithstanding, Magul Maha Viharaya at Yala still tweaks the travellers' curiosity, despite the, numerous renovations that have been made to the original structure. In fact the Stupa on a small hillock constructed only a few years ago.

Until recently the Magul Maha Viharaya remained inhabited, with a few Bhikkunis dwelling in the caves of the site. The chanting of aged-old verses could be heard from a distance, while smoke rose from the kitchen indicating life. My memory goes back to 1990, when I first visited Magul Maha Viharaya at Yala with my mother. We were on a pilgrimage. The main cave of the Viharaya was triangular in shape. The front wall built with thick bricks and had a narrow door and two small windows. The Viharaya was occupied by saffron-clad Bhikkunis. They said they were not disturbed by wild animals that roamed nearby, not even when wild elephants put their trunk inside the room. However, during my recent visit, I saw the main cave and entire site abandoned and staying desolate. The meditating Bhikkunis had left the place a long while ago.

Centre of Buddhism

Built into a side of the rock is the recently renovated shrine room, containing a statue of the Buddha. The drip-ledged cave of the shrine room is believed to have been originally used by monks to meditate. Scattered around the site are many small caves with partly damaged brick walls that had been used by meditating monks of bygone eras. Today, the more adventurous venturing off the little path that lead out from near the shrine room, can find remnants of the caves and rooms.

Unlike the rest of the sanctuary, the best way to enjoy the sights and sound of the area surrounding the rocky boulder of Magul Maha Viharaya is to traverse by foot instead of being cramped inside a vehicle.

Recently, a team of archaeologists of the Department of Archaeology carried out some archaeological excavations at the site of Magul Maha Viharaya and have found evidence that it had been a Buddhist monastery dating back to the 2nd Century BC. They also unearthed the Bodhigaraya (enclosure for the Bo tree) dating back to the 1st Century and remnants of pottery.

During the Pre-Christian era, the Ruhuna Wildlife Sanctuary and its environ had been prosperous human civilization and a centre of Buddhism with numerous monasteries and rock caves. More than 50 inscriptions are found within the Ruhuna Wildlife Sanctuary, most of which dates back to the first or second century BC. There are about 40 documented archaeological sites within the Ruhuna Wildlife Sanctuary. Thus, an examination of historical monuments shows that Ruhuna played an important part from very early times in the history of Buddhism.