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The Ruwanweli Maha Seya, also known as the Mahathupa (), is a
stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circumamb ...
(a hemispherical structure containing relics) in
Anuradhapura Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central ...
,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. Two quarts or one Dona of the Buddha's relics are enshrined in the stupa, making it the largest collection of his relics anywhere. It was built by
Sinhalese Sinhala may refer to: * Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka * Sinhalese people * Sinhala language, one of the three official languages used in Sri Lanka * Sinhala script, a writing system for the Sinhala language ** Sinha ...
King
Dutugemunu Dutugamunu the Great (, , also spelled as ''Dutthagamani''), also known as Dutthagamani Abhaya ("fearless Gamini"), was the greatest king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom who reigned from 161 BC to 137 BC. He is renowned for reuniting the whole island ...
in 140 B.C., who became king of Sri Lanka after a war in which the
Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
King Elāra (Ellalan) was defeated. It is also known as Swarnamali Seya, Svaṇṇamāli Mahaceti (in
Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...
) and Rathnamali Seya. This 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 count ...
" (the 16 places of veneration) and the "
Atamasthana Atamasthana () or Eight sacred places are a series of locations in Sri Lanka where the Buddha had visited during his three visits to the country. The sacred places are known as Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya, Ruwanwelisaya, Thuparamaya, Lovamahapaya, Abhaya ...
" (the 8 places of veneration). The stupa is one of the world's tallest ancient monuments, standing at and with a circumference of . The original stupa had been about in height and was renovated by many kings. The
Kaunghmudaw Pagoda The Kaunghmudaw Pagoda ( my, ကောင်းမှုတော် ဘုရား ; Yaza Mani Sula Kaunghmudaw (); pi, Rājamaṇicūḷā) is a large Buddhist pagoda on the northwestern outskirts of Sagaing in central Myanmar (Burma). Model ...
in
Sagaing Sagaing (, ) is the former capital of the Sagaing Region of Myanmar. It is located in the Irrawaddy River, to the south-west of Mandalay on the opposite bank of the river. Sagaing with numerous Buddhist monasteries is an important religious and ...
,
Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
is modelled after this stupa The Mahavamsa contains a detailed account on the construction and the opening ceremony of the stupa. The stupa was covered by wilderness as of the 19th century. After fund raising efforts by a
bhikkhu A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist ...
, it was renovated in the early 20th century. The Ruwanweli Seya Restoration Society was set up, most notably the philanthropist Hendrick Appuhamy, donated Rs 20 million (1912 ) adjusted for inflation in 2021 it is worth 611 million US Dollars for the restoration works, the foundation was founded in 1902 and the modern day crowning (a "crown" is a large gem placed at the very top of the stupa) was done on June 17, 1940, and the final crowning of the stupa took place on November 26, 2019.


Buddha’s Relic

In the ''Mahavamsa'',
Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...
of the
Maurya dynasty The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...
chooses not to retrieve Buddha relics in the possession of Nagas at Ramagrama. It was said that on his deathbed, Buddha told a prophecy that of the eight donas of his body relics, one would be venerated by the
Koliya Koliya (Pāli: ) was an ancient Indo-Aryan clan of north-eastern South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The Koliyas were organised into a (an aristocratic oligarchic republic), presently referred to as the Koliya Republ ...
s of Ramagrama, then the relics would belong to the Nagas until being enshrined in Sri Lanka. Ashoka is told more prophecy by arhats, who speak of the future enshrinement of these relics by king
Dutthagamani Dutugamunu the Great (, , also spelled as ''Dutthagamani''), also known as Dutthagamani Abhaya ("fearless Gamini"), was the greatest king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom who reigned from 161 BC to 137 BC. He is renowned for reuniting the whole island ...
. King Dutthagamini then received from the Sangha the Buddha’s relics upon his head in a casket and departed from the golden pavilion in the midst of manifold offerings and honours made by gods and ‘‘Brahmas’’. He circumambulated the relic-chamber three times, entered to it from the east, and when laid the relic-casket on a silver couch one ‘‘koṭi’’ worth, that was arranged in the north side. An image of the Buddha was then, according to the Buddha’s determination, created in the lion’s reclining posture (‘‘sīhaseyya’’), and all the relics were enshrined within that image. When the enshrining of the relics in the Great Stūpa Ruvanveli was completed, the two novices Uttara and Sumana closed the relic-chamber with the stone-blocks that were previously hidden to be used as a lid. In the Thupavamsa numerous types of beings attended the enshrinement of the relics into the Mahathupa; including the Naga king Mahakala who until recently guarded them. The relics were to be placed atop a golden throne crafted by Visvakarman the divine artificer; the throne brought by Indra. Brahma offers his invisible umbrella of sovereignty, with the king Dutthagamani offering his own. The arhat Indagutta creates a metal canopy over the universe, so that Mara will not interfere, as monks chanted the Sutta Pitaka (the Collection of Discourses delivered by the Buddha). Dutthagamani ceremoniously enters with the urn atop his head; but as he is about to place the urn on the golden throne, the relics rise into the air and form Buddha, with each of the 32 major signs and 80 lesser signs of a great man. In this form he performs the twin miracle of fire and water, fulfilling the fifth of his death bed resolutions. One hundred and twenty million gods and humans gain arhatship from this experience. The relics return to the urn and they are laid to rest and the chamber sealed with forty meter stone slabs. ‘‘"The relic-chamber shall not shake even by an earthquake; flowers such as jasmine that were offered on that day shall not wither till the end of Buddha Gotama’s Dispensation; the lamps that were kindled with ghee-oil shall not be extinguished; the clay that was mixed with perfume and sandalwood shall not dry; even a single scratch shall not appear within the relic-chamber; stains shall not appear in any of the golden goods that were offered.’ All this occurred by the determination-power of all Arahants present. They determined also that inimical persons should not be able to even see the relic-chamber. Furthermore, by order of king Dutugemunu, the people of Srī Lanka enshrined, along with many other objects such as golden and silver caskets, thousand more of the Buddha's relics over the relic-chamber."


History

King Dutugemunu started the construction of the stupa, however he died from an illness before it was finished. The construction began only after he conquered
Rajarata Rajarata ā dja ra tə(Meaning: King's country) ( Sinhala: රජරට) (Tamil: ரஜரட) was one of three historical regions of the island of Sri Lanka for about 1,700 years from the 6th century BCE to the early 13th century CE. Several anci ...
from the Chola general Elāra. The stupa was damaged by during the Chola conquest of Anuradhapura, but was renovated during the reign of
Parakramabahu I Parākramabāhu I ( Sinhala: මහා පරාක්‍රමබාහු, 1123–1186), or Parakramabahu the Great, was the king of Polonnaruwa from 1153 to 1186. He oversaw the expansion and beautification of his capital, constructed extensiv ...
(1153–1187), who invaded South India, capturing large parts of
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
. Parakramabahu used the captured Tamils for the work of renovation.


Images


See also

*
Ancient stupas of Sri Lanka Stupas, also called and cetiyas, are considered an outstanding type of architectural creation of ancient Sri Lanka. Under the influence of Buddhism, there were several changes in the field of architecture in Sri Lanka. The stupa commands a promine ...
*
List of tallest structures built before the 20th century List of pre-twentieth century structures by height See also *History of the tallest buildings in the world The tallest building in the world, as of , is the Burj Khalifa. The title of " world's tallest building" has been borne by various buil ...
* Ancient Constructions of Sri Lanka *
Architecture of ancient Sri Lanka The architecture of ancient Sri Lanka displays a rich diversity, varying in form and architectural style from the Anuradhapura Kingdom (377 BC–1017) through the Kingdom of Kandy (1469–1815). Sinhalese architecture also displays many ancient Nor ...
*
Architecture of Sri Lanka The architecture of Sri Lanka displays a rich variety of architectural forms and styles. Shaivism has had a significant influence on early Sri Lankan architecture, during the reign of King Ravana, then Buddhism has also had a significant influence ...
*
Jetavanaramaya The Jetavanarama stupa or Jetavanaramaya ( si, ජේතවනාරාමය, jētavanārāmaya) is a stupa, or Buddhist reliquary monument, located in the ruins of Jetavana monastery in the UNESCO world heritage city of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. ...
*
Atamasthana Atamasthana () or Eight sacred places are a series of locations in Sri Lanka where the Buddha had visited during his three visits to the country. The sacred places are known as Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya, Ruwanwelisaya, Thuparamaya, Lovamahapaya, Abhaya ...
* Mahawansa *
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 count ...


References

* ‘‘This page incorporates content from Dr. Rohan Hettiarachchi’

used with permission of website owner.’’


Bibliography

*Shereen Amendra, "Beyond the Seeing Eye: The Mahathupa of Lanka: An Insight", Shereen Amendra, 2006, *Ulrich von Schroeder, "Buddhist Sculptures of Sri Lanka", Visual Dharma Publications, 1990, * {{Tallest structures in Sri Lanka Buddhist temples in Anuradhapura Stupas in Anuradhapura Archaeological protected monuments in Anuradhapura District Buildings and structures completed in the reign of Dutugamunu