Mahiyangana Raja Maha Vihara is an ancient

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

temple in

Mahiyangana Mahiyanganaya is a town situated close to the Mahaweli River in Badulla District, Uva Province of Sri Lanka. It is said that Gautama Buddha visited Mahiyanganaya on the Duruthu full moon poya day in order to settle a dispute arose between Yakkas a ...

, Sri Lanka. It is believed to be the site of

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

's first visit to the country, and is one of the

Solosmasthana 'Solosmasthana' are 16 sacred places in Sri Lanka, believed by Buddhists to have been hallowed by visits of Gautama Buddha. These places of worship are among the most important religious locations in Sri Lanka, and are located throughout the country ...

, the 16 sacred religious locations in Sri Lanka. Currently this temple has been declared as one of archaeological site in Sri Lanka.

Buddha's visit

Historical sources, including the ancient chronicle Mahavamsa, a record that the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

visited the Mahiyangana area in the ninth month after he attained enlightenment, which was his first visit to the country. According to the Mahavamsa, Sri Lanka was inhabited by

yaksha The yakshas ( sa, यक्ष ; pi, yakkha, i=yes) are a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in ...

s at the time. It says that the Buddha subdued the yakshas there and held a discourse on Dhamma with them. They were then sent to an island named Giri so that the country would be "purified" and Buddhism could be established there later on, where it would prevail "in all its glory".

History

A Yakka chieftain named Saman (who is now regarded as a deity) attained

Sotāpanna In Buddhism, a sotāpanna (Pali), śrotāpanna (Sanskrit; , , Burmese: သောတာပန်, Tibetan: རྒྱུན་ཞུགས་, Wylie: ''rgyun zhugs''), "stream-enterer", "stream-winner", or "stream-entrant" is a person who has see ...

(Sovan) after listening to the Buddha's discourse, and asked for a token from the Buddha that they could worship in his absence. The Buddha had given him a handful of hair from his head, which Saman later enshrined in a small stupa, in height. This was the first stupa to be built in Sri Lanka. According to the Mahawansa, King Devanampiyatissa caused his brother Moolabhaya to deposit the relic of Griwah-Dawtoe (a neck bone) and enlarge it to a height of 30 Cubits. Several kings have since renovated and enlarged this stupa, including Dutthagamani who raised it to a height of . Other rulers such as Voharika Tissa, Sena II,

Vijayabahu I Vijayabahu I (born ''Prince Keerthi'') (ruled 1055–1110), also known as Vijayabahu the Great, was a medieval king of Sri Lanka. Born to a royal bloodline, Vijayabahu grew up under Chola occupation. He assumed rulership of the Ruhuna principalit ...

and Kirti Sri Rajasinha have carried out repairs and maintenance work at the temple. In 1942, a society was formed for the renovation of the temple under

D. S. Senanayake Don Stephen Senanayake ( si, දොන් ස්ටීවන් සේනානායක,; ta, டி. எஸ். சேனநாயக்கா; 21 October 1884 – 22 March 1952) was a Ceylonese statesman. He was the first Prime Mi ...

. Reconstruction work began in 1953 and ended in 1980 with the completion of a new pinnacle for the stupa.

Images

File:Mahiyangana Raja Maha Viharaya - 1.jpg, Mahiyangana Raja Maha Viharaya sub gate File:Mahiyangana Pagoda.jpg, Mahiyangana Pagoda closer look File:Mahiyangana Raja Maha Viharaya Bodhi Tree.jpg, Mahiyangana Viharaya Bodhi Tree File:Mahiyangana Raja Maha Viharaya Museum.jpg, Mahiyangana Museum

References

External links

Official Facebook Page - Mahiyanganaya Rajamaha Viharaya

Official YouTube Channel - Mahiyanganaya Rajamaha Viharaya

Mahiyanganaya Esala Perahara

Mahiyangana Rajamaha Viharaya - Official Website

Miyuguna Seya the first Dagaba in Sri Lanka

Mahiyangana Cetiya - the first of its kind in Sri Lanka

The first place visited by Buddha

First ever stupa built by an Arhant

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahiyangana Raja Maha Vihara Buddhist temples in Badulla District Stupas in Sri Lanka Archaeological protected monuments in Badulla District

Buddha's visit

History

Images

See also

References

External links