Last weekend my family went on a trip to the southern part of Sri Lanka.
We visited a well known temple called Kiri Vehera in Kataragam, a town located about 269 km (167 miles) from Colombo. According to Buddhist chronicles, Buddha visited Katargama during his third and the last visit to Sri Lanka in the 6th century BC. It is said that King Mahasena who ruled the area met Buddha on that visit and built the stupa on that exact location. Therefore Buddhists consider Kiri Vehera to be a very sacred place of worship.
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| The ancient stupa at Kiri Vehera is approximately 95 ft tall, with 280 ft circumeference. |
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| Kiri Vehera |
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| Kiri Vehera |
We were there the day before Poson Poya, the day Buddhists commemorate the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka in the 3rd centrury BC. So the temple was a bit crowded in the evening.
Kataragama area has a long history that dates back to the last centuries of BC. There are many old Buddhist temples and lakes built by Sinhalese kings.
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| Kiri Vehera from a distance. |
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| Another temple by the road to Kataragama. |
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| Yatala Vehera - Another stupa built in the 3rd century BC. (Link) |
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| Tissa Wewa - An artifiial resevoire built in the 3rd centruty BC. |
Both my parents have relatives in various towns in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. We visited some of them during the trip. A weekend is way too short to see all the beautiful places and meet everyone, but we will go back again next year. 😊
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Nil
I am feeling homesick! :) We used to go to Kataragama almost every year.
ReplyDeleteVery historical! Andrea
ReplyDeleteA lovely, lovely visit........
ReplyDeleteFascinating history.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful place! I would love to see it.
ReplyDeleteOh what a lovely visit you must be having. Soak it all in - friends and family and all the scenery are worth their weight in gold.
ReplyDeleteThat's wonderful, Nil. I have had dreams about those kinds of temples. The ones in my visions were gold. What an exciting trip!
ReplyDeletewhat a beautiful country it truly is <3
ReplyDeleteWhat a peaceful-looking, wonderful, beautiful place. I'm glad you're having a nice visit!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a beautiful weekend getaway..enjoy your time there!
ReplyDeleteNil, How lovely to take a trip with your family to Sri Lanka where they came from. It certainly helps to have that local knowledge when you are travelling, I would feel a little bit nervous about travelling there I think unless I was on a tour. It looks beautiful. I'd love to hear more about that part of the world. Cheers, Pauline
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