Muwangala Raja Maha Vihara

Muwangala Raja Maha Vihara, also known as Digamadulle Purana Raja Maha Vihara, (Sinhala: මුවංගල රජ මහා විහාරය හෝ දිගාමඩුල්ලේ පුරාණ රජ මහා විහාරය) is an ancient Buddhist temple in Muwangala, Sri Lanka. The temple is located on Hingurana – Ampara road approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) from Hingurana. The temple has been formally recognised by the Government as an archaeological site in Sri Lanka. The designation was declared on 26 December 2014 under the government Gazette number 1895.^[1]

Muwangala Raja Maha Vihara
මුවංගල රජ මහා විහාරය
The Stupa of Muwangala Raja Maha Vihara
Religion
Affiliation	Buddhism
District	Ampara
Province	Eastern Province
Location
Location	Muwangala, Hingurana
Country	Sri Lanka
Geographic coordinates	07°15′00.7″N 81°39′50.0″E
Architecture
Type	Buddhist Temple

The temple

A 3rd century inscription, engraved on the rock surface near to the Stupa. In where the period of reign is not indicated.^[2] It mentions a grant to a temple by viceroy a named Kodini.^[3]

The temple complex at Muwangala has been constructed on two rocky outcrops between Ampara and Hingurana. The modern buildings of the temple are situated at the lower ground of the mountain and the ruined structures of the ancient temple are scattered on the top of rocky plateau. Among the ancient structures, Sri Pathul Gal (slabs of Buddha footprint), an Asanaghara, pieces of Sandakada pahana, plight of steps, rock inscriptions, a drip ledged cave, bases of buildings and pillars can be identified. Before the construction of Buddha statues, people used various objects such as Asanaghara and Sri Pathul Gal to represent Buddha. Therefore, the presence of Sri Pathul Gal or Asanaghara in a temple is considered by archaeologists as an indicator that the temple was there before the Buddha statues were built in the country.^[4]

References

1. Gazette 1895 & 26 December 2014, p. 1148.
2. Wijesekera, Nandadeva (1990). Archaeological Department Centenary (1890-1990): Inscriptions. Volume 2 of Archaeological Department Centenary (1890-1990): Commemorative Series. Commissioner of Archaeology, 1990.
3. Manjula, H.A.K.L. (15 March 2020). "Muwangala Raja Maha Viharaya". Lanka Pradeepa. Retrieved 29 October 2023. It records a grant to a Vihara of which the name is lost, by Kodini-uparaja who is not at present known from other sources
4. Wijethunga, Sirisaman (20 March 2017). "සිරිපතුල් වන්දනාව (in Sinhala)". Budu Sarana, Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited. Archived from the original on 24 March 2017. Retrieved 1 September 2017. ඉතාම පැරණි පුදබිමක් ලෙසින් හඳුනා ගැනීමට නිශ්චිත පුරාවිද්‍යාත්මක සාක්ෂියක් ලෙසින් පුරාවිද්‍යාඥයෝ සිරිපතුල් ගල් හඳුන්වති

Works cited

• "PART I : SECTION (I) — GENERAL Government Notifications" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. 1895. 26 December 2014.^{[permanent dead link‍]}