Sri Dalada Maligawa; Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic
TOP PLACES TO VISIT IN CENTRAL PROVINCE SRI LANKA
Location – Kandy
Central Province
Sri Lanka
- This is a Buddhist temple in the city of Kandy
- Kandy is a World Heritage Site mainly due to the Sri Dalada Maligawa
- Vimaladharmasuriya I is the founder of this heritage site
- The Relic has played an important role in local politics from ancient time because people believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country
Daily Worship at Sri Dalada Maligawa
- Bhikkhus of the two chapters Malatte and Asgiriya conduct daily worship in the inner champer of the temple
- Rituals are performed three times per day
- At Dawn
- At Noon
- In the Evening
- There is a special ritual on Wednesdays called Nanumura Mangallaya
(Symbolic bathing of the relic with a herbal preparation made from scented water and fragrant flowers: This holy water is believed to contain healing powers and is distributed among those present)
- Kandy Esala Perahera held in the month of July
Historical Background of the Temple
- Prencess Hemamala and prince Dantha smuggled the tooth relic to the island during the reign of Sirimeghavanna Of Anuradhapura and handed over the tooth relic
- Safeguard of the relic was a responsibility of monarch
- Therefore Tooth Relic became a symbol of right to rule
- It was brought to Kandy by hiripitiye Diyawadana Rala and Devanagala Rathnalankara Thero
- King Vimaladharmasuriya I built a Two-story to deposit the tooth relic is now gone
- In 1603 when the Portuguese invaded Kandy, Tooth Relic carried to Meda Mahanuwara in Dumbara
- It was recovered in the time of Rajasinghe II and it reinstated the original building
- The present day temple of tooth was built by Vira Narendra Sinha
- The octagonal Paththirippuwa and Moat were added during the reign of Sri Vikrama Rajasinha. It was created by royal architech Devendra Moolacharya
Architecture of Sri Dalada Maligaya
- It contains Mahawahalkada at the main entrance gate which lies over the moat
- At the foot of Mahawahalkada steps, there is a Sandakada Pahana (Moonstone) It is carved in kandyan architectural style
- A Makara Torana and Two Guardian Stones are placed on top the staircase
- The Golden Canopy over the main shrine, built in1987 by Prime Minister Ranasinghe Premadasa and golden Fence encircles the main shrine are other notable features
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