The Maligawila Buddha statue is a standing figure of the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, 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 ...

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 ...

, which was carved out of a large limestone rock during the 7th century by a prince named Aggabodhi. It is the tallest free-standing ancient statue of the Buddha found in the country. It had been broken into several pieces by the time it was found in 1951. The statue was reconstructed and raised again in 1980 under the direction of the then president

Ranasinghe Premadasa Sri Lankabhimanya Ranasinghe Premadasa ( si, රණසිංහ ප්‍රේමදාස ''Raṇasiṃha Premadāsa'', ta, ரணசிங்க பிரேமதாசா ''Raṇaciṅka Pirēmatācā''; 23 June 1924 – 1 May 1993) was t ...

Appearance

The Maligawila Buddha statue is located close to the village of

Maligawila Maligawila, or Maligavila is a village in Sri Lanka, approximately south from Monaragala and from Okkampitiya in the Monaragala District. It is the site of several important archaeological pieces, including a free-standing or tall limestone ...

in the

Moneragala District Monaragala (, ) is a district in Uva Province of Sri Lanka. It is the second largest of the 25 districts in Sri Lanka, with an area of . Main Towns * Monaragala * Bibile * Buttala * Wellawaya * Kataragama * Siyambalanduva * medagama * Thanam ...

of the

Uva Province Uva Province ( si, ඌව පළාත, Uva Paḷāta, ta, ஊவா மாகாணம், Uvā Mākāṇam) is Sri Lanka's second least populated Provinces of Sri Lanka, province, with 1,259,880 people, created in 1896. It consists of two dis ...

. It has been carved from a single large

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

rock, and is considered to be the tallest ancient free-standing image in Sri Lanka, at a height of . Along with the Buddha statues of Avukana and Buduruvagala, the Maligawila Buddha statue is considered one of the best examples of the standing image of the Buddha from ancient Sri Lanka. It bears a close resemblance to the Avukana statue, and depicts the same ''asisa mudra'', a variation of the

Abhaya mudra The Abhayamudrā "gesture of fearlessness" is a mudrā (gesture) that is the gesture of reassurance and safety, which dispels fear and accords divine protection and bliss in Buddhism and other Indian religions. The right hand is held upright, a ...

. The standing Buddha clutches the robe at the left shoulder, while the right hand is raised to the right shoulder. Ruins around the statue indicate that an image house had been constructed around the statue. It appears to have been about each in length and breadth, with walls thick. Its height would have been about .

History and restoration

According to the ancient chronicle Chulavamsa, the statue was built in the 7th century by a prince named Aggabodhi from

Ruhuna The Principality of Ruhuna, also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern Sri Lanka. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri Lanka. Magama, Ti ...

. It mentions that he built a temple named ''Pathma Vihara'', and also constructed a great statue of the Buddha there. The statue was discovered in 1951, fallen from its pedestal and lying broken to pieces. Before that, it had been damaged by treasure hunters around 1948. A 1974 attempt to raise the Maligawila statue ended in failure. However, another attempt was made in 1991 under then-president

. Several of the broken pieces had been damaged, including the right hand, face and feet; these were repaired before reconstructing the statue and re-erecting it. This has been described as a "very significant task" carried out under Premadasa's direction. The Restoration was done by

Lankem Ceylon Lankem Ceylon PLC is a chemicals, paints and consumer goods manufacturing company in Sri Lanka. The company also engaged in the hospitality industry by owning and operating resorts in Sri Lanka. The company is incorporated in 1964 by Royal Dutch S ...

PLC Sri Lanka and the chief technical advisor was Mr Kirthi Samarasuriya (founder o
Petrokem Lanka (Pvt) Ltd
who came up with the epoxy adhesive to chemically paste the pieces together. The successful raising of the statue was undertaken by Mr. Gemunu Silva (State Engineering Corporation) and Mr. H.A. Wijegunawardhana (Chief Engineer, Sri Lanka Ports Authority). The Maligawila Buddha statue attracts a large number of pilgrims every year.

References

Bibliography

von Schroeder, Ulrich. (1990). ''Buddhist Sculptures of Sri Lanka''. (752 p.; 1620 illustrations). Hong Kong: Visual Dharma Publications, Ltd.

External links

News article with photos of statue
{{Colossal Buddha statues 7th-century religious buildings and structures Anuradhapura period Colossal Buddha statues 7th-century Buddhism Archaeological protected monuments in Monaragala District

Appearance

History and restoration

See also

References

Bibliography

External links