Mawaragala Aranya Senasanaya Explained

Building Name:Mawaragala Forest Hermitage
Native Name:මාවරගල ආරණ්‍ය සේනාසනය
Location:Dambana, Mahiyangana, Sri Lanka
Coordinates:7.3982°N 81.0966°W
Province:Uva Province
District:Badulla
Heritage Designation:Archaeological protected monument[1] (22 November 2002)
Architecture:yes
Architecture Type:Buddhist Temple
Architecture Style:Cave temple

Mawaragala Aranya Senasanaya or Mawaragala Forest Hermitage (Sinhalaː මාවරගල ආරණ්‍ය සේනාසනය) is an ancient Buddhist temple in Mahiyangana, Sri Lanka.[2] Situated in Dambana, the temple locate about 15km (09miles) away from the ancient temple Mahiyangana Raja Maha Vihara. The temple has been declared as one of archaeological sites in Sri Lanka.

History

It is believed that the history of Mawaragala Forest Hermitage dates back to the reign of King Valagamba (103 BC and c. 89–77 BC) and arhat Maliyadeva and 60 Buddhist monks have lived here during that period.[3] Cave inscriptions written in early Brahmi script and Old Sinhala Prakrit have been discovered at this site.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Protercted Monument List 2012-12-12. 12 December 2012. Department of Archaeology. 27 March 2016.
  2. Web site: Serenity of the Mawaragala forest monastery. Nation.lk. 29 April 2007. 6 February 2016.
  3. Web site: Mawaragala forest hermitage - where silence and serenity prevail . Sundayobserver. 18 May 2014 . 6 February 2016.
  4. Web site: Mawaragala Aranya Senasanaya (Dambana) . www.lankapradeepa.com. 23 April 2018 . 25 November 2023.