Anuradhapura – An Ancient Capital

I had originally planned to have a few weeks at home after our 2 week tour around the island but my mom had other plans!  Almost as soon as we had got back, she was on the phone planning another trip, this time to the far north and the Jaffna Peninsular!  

Many of you are probably aware that the civil war in Sri Lanka is now over.  The conflict lasted for more than 30 years and during this time travel up north was out of the question.  The main road leading north, the A9 was also closed for part of this time.  When we were kids, my dad had always talked about visiting Jaffna but somehow we never made it.  Jaffna is now the ‘in’ destination with local travellers.  There are many historic temples here and pilgrims people from all over the island are heading north and now so are we! 

With a few rest stops it is a 12 hour journey and we have invited a friend of my moms to join us.  Aunty Miriam is a friend from church and an ‘aunty’ I have known since I was very young. 
She isn’t related, but here in Sri Lanka, anyone who is your parents generation is referred to an ‘aunty’ or ‘uncle’ out of respect.  She is great fun and game for anything so I knew we would have a good time.

We set off shortly after 4 in the morning and I am barely awake.  We decide to break journey in Anuradhapura for breakfast and a quick visit to one of our ancient capitals.  Anuradhapura is a UNESCO World Heritage site and of immense significance to the Buddhists of this country.  The Anuradhapura period ranged from the 5th BC to 10 AD and was a period of cultural advancement amazing building activity.

The city is also home to a vast amount of ‘tanks’ and subterranean conduits built to supply water to the city.  In fact the city had one of the most complex irrigation systems back then and many of these tanks are still used for irrigation today.

This city’s most famous sites are referred to as the ‘Atamasthana’, ir the eight most venerated sites.  We have time on our whistle stop tour to see quite a few of them.

The Mirisaveti Stupa was built by King Dutugamunu after his famous battle with King Ellara in the 2nd century BC.   This battle resulted in unifying Sri Lanka and King Dutugamunu is remembered as one of Sri Lanka’s greats.  I believe a ‘stupa’ houses Buddhist relics while a ‘dagaba’ houses the relics of Buddha.  In this picture you can also see Tissa Wewa (or Tissa Tank). 

The Ruwanwelisaya is another amazing monument reputed to be one of the worlds tallest monuments and built by King Dutugamunu.  This is one of Dutugamunu’s great masterpieces but unfortunately its construction was not complete  before he died.  However, the stupa was covered by a white cloth and shown to the King on his deathbed and he died believing his beloved stupa was complete!

Thuparamaya Dagaba was built by King Devanampiyatissa and is reputed to enshrine the collarbone of Buddha.  It is believed to be the first dagaba built after the introduction of Buddhism and was originally constructed in the shape of a paddy heap.  Dagaba’s are found in one of four shapes: paddy, pot, bell and the bubble shape with the latter being the most popular shape here.

The Lankarama Stupa is unique in that it is encircled by stone pillars.  It is believed there might have been a house (vatadage) encircling and providing shelter to this stupa. 

Abayagiri Vihare was built by King Valagamba around the 1st century BC and was one of the great monastic centres of the ancient world.  It attracted international scholars and has been declared a World Heritage Site.  When Buddha’s tooth relic was brought to Sri Lanka, Abayagiri was selected to house it.  The first perahera is believed to have set out from this spot. 

Jethwanarama Stupa is also a World Heritage site and was built by King Mahasena during the 4th century AD.  At the time of its construction it was the tallest monument in the ancient world but today it is overtaken by the pyramids and is the 3rd tallest.  It is reputed to have housed thousands of Buddhist monks during its heyday and a belt worn by the Buddha is believed to be enshrined here.  It is estimated that 93 billion bricks have gone into its construction.   

Another interesting ruin in Anuradhapura is the Dana Sala or refectory.  This was the alms hall for more than 5000 monks who resided close by and in the picture here you see a 19 foot rice boat and a smaller curry boat!

The ‘Kuttam’ or Twin ponds are a great specimen of hydraulic engineering in Sri Lanka.  These bathing ponds were used by the monks who resided nearby and are fed by underground conduits.  The water which flows from one of tanks close by is first filtered before being allowed to flow into the ponds.  This picture shows the ponds and filtration system. 

There is so much more to see but we have a long journey ahead of us and it is time to move on.  I will definitely be coming back to the cultural triangle and the ruined cities of Sri Lanka!

“While in the progress of their long decay, Thrones sink to dust, and nations pass away.” Fredrick Howard