{"id":105238,"date":"2020-08-03T17:01:26","date_gmt":"2020-08-04T00:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=105238"},"modified":"2020-08-03T17:01:26","modified_gmt":"2020-08-04T00:01:26","slug":"buddhism-in-present-day-eastern-province-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/08\/03\/buddhism-in-present-day-eastern-province-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"BUDDHISM IN PRESENT DAY EASTERN PROVINCE Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Ven Ellawala Medhananda has  explored the present day  Buddhist ruins of the Eastern Proivince.  He found \nevidence in today\u2019s Eastern  \nProvince , to show  that the\nEastern Province had a vibrant Buddhist civilization in the ancient and\nmedieval period.  He has also shown that\nit had special features, such as hillside monastic complexes and a series of\n\u2018Muhudu Maha vihara. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monastic complexes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda found evidence of huge monastic\ncomplexes in the Eastern province. There was a  monastic complex at Bambaragastalawa in Kumana. This monastery extends to over 450 acres. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At\nBambaragastalawa he found over\nten stupa,  on hill tops and flat ground.  He found rock cut\nsteps,   Buddha statues, asanaghara, \npillars, caves, viharas, image houses, chaitya  and  very\nold bricks. There was a stone seat, 15\u2019\nby 5\u20199\u201d, beautifully carved at the edges. This may be an asanaghara, said\nMedhananda. He also saw a\nstupa 50 ft wide and 23 ft high. He \nfound a rectangular arrangement of six rows of six\ncolumns each.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a huge pilima lena surrounded by\nsmaller lena, said Medhananda.  In it there was a reclining Buddha\nimage, 36 feet in length, built with brick, mud and lime plaster, vandalized by\ntreasure hunters. There is a  drip ledge all round the cave. Brick\nwalls were built dividing the cave into many rooms, with the top decorated with\nswan sculptures. The bricks used were excellently  burned ones. \nThere was a vestibule 16 by 48 ft in front of cave. It had  ten square holes  for wooden beams. There was a stone pillar in\nfront, and  stone steps indicating two entrances,  a  wooden door frame and  a wooden pillar, of milla wood, concluded Medhananda.\n  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda \nhad  also explored Sembumale monastery,  in \nKuchchaveli,  which covered over\nhundred acres. He  visited the monastic\ncomplex at Mahapattuwa in Veheragoda area. This has not\nbeen explored by the Department of Archaeology and there is no official record of it. Bovattegala\nshowed ruins of a monastery, said Medhananda . \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda went to Omunugala<\/em> Cave Monastery ( \u2018len vihara\u2019 ) at Ampara. The\nmeditation caves at Omunugala\nextended from the foot of the mountain to a level little below the summit.  They  were\nvery  impressive. Every cave had its   drip ledge inscription .  Most caves had remains of walls. There\nare ancient  paintings in one cave. One\ncave is startling, said Medhananda .  The\ncave and the rock in front\nhave been combined to make something like a two storey house. another cave had\nrectangular holes drilled into it probably to support beams to an upper\nstorey.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The largest cave, a shrine cave, is about 120\u2019\nin length, had walls on three sides and a window. There was a  flight of steps leading to a door frame to\nenter the cave.  It had a makara\nthorana.  There are more\nundiscovered   caves but access was very difficult\n and  I did not climb them, said Medhananda.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was also the magnificent monastic\ncomplex at Rajagala. The Rajagala monastery was known as Girikibalavi Tisa\nMahavihare. The Rajagala hill range, also known as  Rassehela kanda,  is \n1030 feet above sea level. Both north and south slopes have many ruins.\nAll over the hills there  are   ruins of stupa.  There is a hermitage to the  north. Many\nstone pillars of various heights and sizes, circular, rectangular, octagonal\nare seen scattered. Stone ponds, one\nhad a sluice. Medhananda noted its\nspecial features such as the two water spouts to fill large stone cisterns.There were decorated urinal stones. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were over hundred caves. Brick and stone walls created separate rooms\ninside the caves. One cave had a bed and pillow cut out of rock. Cave walls\nwere plastered and painted, paintings have faded. One cave has a roof carved in\nshape of an umbrella and handle of the umbrella is done in most exquisite\nfashion, said Medhananda . <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rajagala yielded 70 cave\ninscription, 20 slab inscription and rock inscriptions. One huge inscription said\nthat the ashes of Mahinda and Ittiya are enshrined there. Inscriptions spoke of donations of tanks,\ncaves, fields. Inscription also made reference to statues, taxes and coins. One\ninscription refers to tilling the land with a \ngolden plough. One Inscription has been tampered with, concluded\nMedhananda. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forest hermitages<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The eastern Proivnce hosts many forest\nhermitages  today. There is Kudimbigala. Medhananda\nsaid that there were  Buddhist ruins\nextending over at least    600 acres\naround Kudumbigala   with numerous stupas  on the rocks. Kudimbigala\nhas  the only cylindrical stupa known in\nSri Lanka, said Medhananda . inscriptions show that Kudimbigala was established\nby  king Kavantissa.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \ncave architecture of Kudimbigala was astounding, said Medhananda . The cave technique is amazing. Cave\nafter cave, placed on top of\neach other for 100 acres or so. He\nhad counted 105 caves. one cave was a Budu madura.   One cave was named Maha Sudarsana ,another was Yoda lena. Sita\npokunu lena had paintings of  7th<\/sup>\ncentury. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was a huge\ncave project at Samangala forest hermitage, Ampara. This was a high\nlevel hermitage. Inscription  indicates\nthat this was started by Saddhatissa. One cave is 60 feet in height and can shelter about 500\npeople. All caves had drip ledges. There were many inscriptions which have not\nyet been  recorded. No\narchaeological  explorations have been\ndone here. An attempt to\nturn this into a meditation centre, some years ago, failed, said Medhananda. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There has been a\nmonastery at present day Namalu chetiya. Namalu chetiya was huge, almost as large as Ruvanveli. The villagers used to worship there. The\nmonastery of 150 acres  occupied flat\nground , rock, hill and forest. There were ponds, flights of steps, heaps of\ninscriptions and several stone beds.  The\nmonastery ended at Heda oya. This\nwould have been a developed, scenic, large monastery, said Medhananda . A\nmonk was living by the stupa in a small \nhut when Medhananda went there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buddhangala aranya Senasana,  Ampara has 200 acres of ruins,  on \nfive hills. Stone bridges connect one rock to the other. Caves were\npartitioned into three by walls. Bricks with\ndecorations and inscribed are found in plenty. There was a fine siripatula,\ncircular , 11 feet and well carved.  In\n1964 Buddhangala was restarted as a hermitage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Piyangala\nvana Senasuna,  Ampara has over 100   meditation caves with and without drip\nledges. Some of the old walls remain. The old badama is there,  this is worth examining, said\nMedhananda.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cave shrines.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda has drawn attention to the existence\nof   cave shrines. The most notable  of the cave shrines explored by\nMedhananda  was   the Karandahela  cave complex, in Hulannuge, Ampara, 633 feet\nabove sea level. Karandahela has the biggest cave in Asia. .https:\/\/roar.media\/sinhala\/main\/features\/caves-in-karandahela-sri-lanka\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Padikemgala Medhananda found many caves\nfirst inhabited by monks, then turned to shrines. There were many shrines in\nthese caves, the paintings on the walls could \nstill be seen. One  cave had brick\nwall with many niches and no windows.  \nNeelagiri  pilima lena  had   \ntwo important caves at the top, both are shrines.  The caves had walls, one wall was of stones. The walls \nhad been plastered, the plaster can be seen, also the  paintings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muhudu\nMaha viharas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muhudu Maha viharas could be seen in abundance\non south, east and northern coastal areas, said Medhananda. These  shrines were built  to be seen \nfrom the sea. Medhananda\ndrew attention to the Muhudu maha viharas built along the coast of the Eastern\nprovince.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kucceveli Maha vihara was one of these muhudu\nviharas, he said. Magul\nMaha vihara , Kirinda  had rows of caves\nwith walls and  drip ledge. The viharas at Bundala,  Gokanna, Gotha pabbata, Jambulkolaptuna  Kirinda, Lankapatuna,Okanda, Potuvila,\nSangaman kanda, Sastravela, were in existence \nuntil recently, he said. Stupas were also  built at the mouths of the rivers where\nthey  meet the sea, as at Walawe ganga. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ariyakara\nviharas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruhuna has had several Ariyakara vihara where\nvenerated arahats lived and Ariyawansa sutra was preached. <\/em>This was very popular in Ruhuna, there is evidence to prove\nthis., said Medhananda . There was Ariyakara Raja maha vihara   at Kettama village, in the Eastern Province.\n It has steps, siripatul, gal vangediya,\nfaded inscription, naga carvings on rock as well as  carvings of horse and  bahirawa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ariyawansa sutra was  also preached at Mulhitiya Velegoda near\nPulligoda, said Medhananda . this was Pelegama vihara originally. Veheragala,\nat Rajagala, had Ariyawansa preached there. Inscription says Kubira bhikkhu\nstayed there. This inscription is still there. Bovattegala\nInscription  indicates that the  Ariyawansa sutra was preached there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were other\nviharas where the Ariyawansa sutra was preached from a seat set on a hilltop. There\nare such open places with a seat at Molhitiya, Velegala, Mutugalla ,  Panama,\nSastravela,\nsaid Medhananda .  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda thinks\nthat there was also an Ariyakara building at \u2018Punchi Sigiriya\u201d in Digamadulla.\nPunchi Sigiriya is not a rock, it is a cave. With a one  Sigiriya like painting, seen by Paranavitane, which is\nfading away. Medhananda was more interested in a ruined building  on a hill close by, reached by a flight of\nsteps. Medhananda \nthinks  this was for preaching\nAriyawansa sutra.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forgotten\nviharas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda has \ndiscovered  many forgotten\nviharas, in the eastern province such as Boralukanda\nvihara ,Nilaveli. Illukpitiya kanda len vihara, Ampara. Sri Pana Raja Maha\nVihara, Pottuvil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another\nforgotten vihara is Kotaveheragala vihara in Yalpota village, Lahugala, the\nvillage has just four families doing chena cultivation. Kotaveheragala vihara has a cave second only to that in Karandahele. It\nhas a carved drip\nledge. It is divided\ninto four  rooms and the walls are still standing.  there is an \ninscription on the steps, faded which says the steps were donated by a\nmonk.\nIt must have been an image house .  there\nare  lovely\noverflowing ponds on the rock . Lots of bricks all over.  It is possible to go round the rock to the\ncaves on the other side,  but it is\ndangerous, because   bears and leopards\ncome there. This vihara  has not been\nseen by the Department of Archaeology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda  has \nexplored Somawathi vihara at Kombanachchiya, near Kiliveddi. It has\nruins no one has seen before. Malayadikanda\nvihara  has  27 caves and ruined stupa. Niyagunakanda\nvihara   has caves near it with drip\nledge inscription. Site has never been examined. Both viharas  are near Hingurana sugar factory.\nKappangamuyaye Kadurugoda vihara by Namal oya had stupa, columns, and\nmoonstone. There were  ruins in the\nforest around. Ganegama vihara,\nAmpara had veddha paintings of crocodiles, elephant and other figures . it had\na simple sandakada pahana,  and a\ndoratupala with  punkalasa. Medhananda  \n has also looked at <\/strong>Balahudu ,\nKukuluvagala   and Galaba len vihara. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some forgotten viharas catered to small populations.\nKirivehera Raja Maha Vihara  \nLahugala,  was in village where a\nfew families were living off     banana\nplantations. It was reached  by a\nfootpath from Hulannuge junction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda also commented on  some of the \nobjects found in his explorations. Medhananda took special interest in the bricks<\/strong> that lay in abundance in the\nsites he explored.Around Verugal ara  near Uppar lagoon there are  hillocks \nfull of old bricks, he said.   At Henangala \nhe found three types of ancient bricks. At Veheragoda, Ampara ,  in the \u2018Pansal kalla\u2019 section there were\nbricks measuring 2\u20191\u201d and 1\u20192\u201d. Kudagala  had \nbricks some  1\u20194\u2019x8\u201dx 2 \u00bd and\nothers 8\u201dx9\u201dx 2 \u00bd .Buriyakulam kanda ruins would have had  very attractive steps judging by  the decorative \nbricks found there.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda found two clay puvaru<\/strong> 14\u201d by 11\u201d by 1 \u00bd at Medagama\nkanda Aranya senasanaya. On one puvaru there was garadi veta carved, resembling\nthe veta at Sanchi. Also an attractive line \nof flowers. The  carvings have\nbeen  done before firing. These\npuvaru  were probably used for decoration\n. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rock\ncut  steps<\/strong> at Padi Kemgala ruins are unique. there are \nseveral flights of steps. The first consists of 52 steps   which\nwere  2\u20196\u201d long and 1\u20192\u2019 wide. This was followed by several sets of 7 steps\neach, with a resting stone between, \nending with a set of rounded steps .the resting stone was 10\u201d\nby 5 with three circles in it,  and a\nlotus design in the center. The last step was decorated with a curled\nelephant trunk. I have never been seen such a flight of steps, before exclaimed\nMedhananda . There was also an inscription which said how the steps were\nmade.  That inscription was  decorated with two lotus buds on stems.  Padi Kemgala ruins  also had a moonstone carved  in the \nrock. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Neelagiri \npilima lena  was probably a very important aramaya.  There is set of steps all the way up the\nhill. there seem to be more than 200 steps. It has breaks in it, for people to\nstop and rest every   50 feet or so, with\narukku gal. There are moon stones at the breaks. the only other flight of steps\nlike this is at Hachchikuchi, said Medhananda . <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medhananda found\na special siripatul <\/strong>gala at  Konduvattavana\nruins in Inginiyagala. It was a round siripatula gala, and siripatula is\nelevated in the middle of the  sculpture.\nThis is rare. the upper terrace\nof the stupa  at Panama Raja Maha Vihara\nhas siripatula on it.  I have seen this\nonly in two other places, Vehera galkanda and Dammina, said Medhananda . <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\nearly Buddhism, the  Buddha was depicted\nsymbolically by an empty\nchair. This was one of the earliest symbols used for the Buddha. These empty\nchairs were housed in Asanghara.<\/strong> The\nAsanagara found at  Pulunkunawa is\nunique, and not found anywhere else in the country, said Medhananda . It was owalankara  in shape. Veheragoda ruins, Ampara     had an \nasanaghara. Medhananda\nsaw a possible asanaghara at Bambaragastalawa too.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diviyagala vihara in Ampara district has a\nbeautiful moonstone and umbrella stone<\/strong>\nin good preservation as well as a complete chatragala, and three\nsiripatul. Tampitiya vihara\nby Tampita wewa, off Pullumalai junction, Batticaloa district,    has a very unique guard stone<\/strong> with 9 snake heads, a person holding a pun kalasa and a\nwoman bending down and collecting water. ( continued) <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS Ven Ellawala Medhananda has  explored the present day  Buddhist ruins of the Eastern Proivince.  He found  evidence in today\u2019s Eastern   Province , to show  that the Eastern Province had a vibrant Buddhist civilization in the ancient and medieval period.  He has also shown that it had special features, such as hillside monastic complexes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-105238","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105238","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105238"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105238\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105238"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105238"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105238"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}