More religious sites in the island

Dambadeniya

As you all know, Sri Lanka has had many capitals in its rich history. The capital of the country has been moved to many parts of the country mainly due to foreign invasions.

Dambadeniya was one such capital city in ancient Sri Lanka. It is situated in the North Western Province (Wayamba) on the Kurunegala - Negombo Road. It was the royal capital of the island in the mid-13th century.

Excavations (digs) have uncovered remains of the Temple of the Tooth Relic and the royal palace, ponds and garden layouts, moats and city walls. Dambadeniya was selected as the capital of ancient Sri Lanka by King Vijayabahu the 3rd (1232-36). Little remains of the palace buildings, though the six ponds are still there.

The two-storey temple (originally three), which is located about 400m south, and containing Buddha images, is identified as the Vijayasundaramaya. It has some interesting wall paintings dating from the 18th Century, when it was restored. The temple was used to exhibit the Tooth Relic which was normally housed in another temple near the palace.

The sovereignty of the country was at stake as a result of the foreign invasions which dislodged Polonnaruwa as the capital. Vijayabahu, the king of the Dambadeniya era, fought the invaders and established Dambadeniya as the capital. On the summit of the Dambadeniya rock, he built fortifications and sturdy walls and gates.

The city was made secure in its day by a moat, a marsh and ramparts around the royal palace. Much of Dambadeniya still lies buried on a huge fortified (strengthened) rock. It is believed that the Dambadeniya period was the ‘Golden Era’ of Sinhala literature.

Lovamahapaya

When you think about King Dutugemunu’s contribution to Sri Lanka, you will immediately think about the Ruwanveliseya and Lovamahapaya. Today, we will feature some facts about the Lovamahapaya, also known as a chapter house.

King Devanampiyatissa, the first Buddhist king of the country, built a chapter house in this location on the instructions of Arhath Mahinda Thera who brought Buddhism to the country. A century later, King Dutugemunu (161-131 BC) built a massive structure of which you see the remains today.

According to the Mahavamsa, the great chronicle of the Sinhalese, this was a massive nine-storeyed building with a height of 150 ft (47 metres) and each side with a 150 feet (46 metres) length.

The building was supported by 40 rows of stone pillars with 40 pillars which totalled 1,600 pillars. In each storey there were 1,000 rooms and 100 windows.

The building was adorned with corals and precious stones. Its roof was covered with copper-bronze plates. Although this description may be a little exaggerated, this would have been a very impressive building at that time, judging by what remains of the site today.

The superstructure of the building would probably have been of wood and the height of this building is believed to have reduced with time. According to the Mahavamsa, this building was destroyed by fire during King Saddhatissa’s era (137-119 BC) and was rebuilt to seven storeys. King Sirinaga II (240-242) restored this building again to five storeys. King Jettatissa (266-276) once again raised the size of the building to seven storeys.

King Mahasena (276-303) completely demolished this building and gave the material to the Abhayagiri Vihara due to a conflict with the monks in the Mahavihara.

His son Sirimeghavanna rebuild this mansion, which was again destroyed by the Pandyans from South India; they invaded the city in the Ninth Century and was rebuild again in the same century by King Sena II.

Again, the Cholas from India invaded the city in the 10th Century and stole the city of all its valuables which finally saw the fall of Anuradhapura as the capital of Sri Lanka after over 1400 years.

King Parakramabahu I, the great king who reigned from Polonnaruwa (1153-1186 AC), again raised the 1,600 pillars and partly restored it. What you see of the site today is what this king had restored.

Compiled by Janani Amarasekara