Sri Lanka Pilgrimage - Dambulla caves, Anuradhapura and Kelaniya Temple

Our journey went further North, leaving the tea fields and the Kandy plateau behind us. We arrived at the hot planes of Anuradhapura. On the way, we stopped at the Dambulla cave temple complex. There are five caves with statues, stupas and wall paintings.

Dambulla caves from the outside

Buddha statue at Dambulla caves

Stupa in Dambulla caves

Moving on, we arrived in Anuradhapura, welcomed by a torrential downpour, the likes of which I have not seen very often (although I'm used to Indian monsoons!). Anuradhapura has been Sri Lanka's capital for many centuries, and successive kingdoms have left behind many impressive sites. But perhaps the foremost place to visit, is the Bodhi tree, the Jaya Shri Maha Bodhi. The Buddha had foreseen that Sri Lanka would be a place were his teachings would be upheld for a long time, and blessed the country with three visits. He came, as it is recorded in the sutra's, neither through land nor through water. But at the time of his visit the teachings did not yet spread. That was to happen during the reign of the great king Ashoka, whose very own son Mahendra and daughter Sangamitta came to Sri Lanka to establish the Sangha. It was Sangamitta who brought a sapling of the original Bodhi tree from Bodhgaya to Sri Lanka and planted it here. Now, it is reputedly the oldest known plant planted by humans in the world.

Reciting Miphams practice of Shakyamuni Buddha and the Aspiration to Good Actions

The actual tree is quite small, since it was planted in a golden pot and thus never became very large. It is supported by several beams. Surrounding it are larger specimen of the fig tree.

Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi

The ancient city is huge, and we continued our journey to the Thuparamaya stupa. It is considered the first stupa or Pagoda in Sri Lanka, and was build by King Devanampiyatissa at the request of Ashoka's son himself, Mahendra, to house the right collar bone of the Buddha.

Thuparamaya

Probably the Mirisawetiya Stupa

Ruins in the ancient capital

Our final visit for the day was the Jetavanaramaya stupa. It is a very important stupa, since it represents the tension between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism in Sri Lanka. It is also the largest structure of the ancient world, and one of the tallest.

Jetavanaramaya stupa

Sculpture of a Mahayana Bodhisattva

Paintings in the small temple tell us the history of the stupa

A lot of planning preceded our arrival, and we were greeted with traditional dances.

Dance performance in front of Jetavanaramaya stupa

Around hundred monks had been requested to bless us with the recitation of a few sutras. They recited the Ratana sutta, the Mangala sutta, the Metta sutta and also the first ever giving discourse by the Buddha after he attained enlightenment, the Dhammachakkappwattana sutta. A recording of the melodious chants can be listened to here. We offered the monks new robes, and in turn the main abbots offered Buddha statues to the three main monks in our delegation.

Distribution of monk robes, headed by Philip and Tashi-laa

Offering of a Buddha statue by the abbot of Abhayagiri Buddhist university

The venerable monks

Sutra in Pali script

Wild elephant on the way to Colombo

Kelaniya Temple

Finally, we left for Colombo, where we visited the Kelaniya Temple. Buddhists believe the temple to have been hallowed during a visit of the Buddha to Sri Lanka, eight years after gaining enlightenment. The temple contains some of the most beautiful paintings in the Buddhist world, made by local artist Solias Mendis. He visited the Ajanta and Elora caves, and mixed Indian with Sri Lankan art. The paintings depict the life story of the Buddha, his visit's to Sri Lanka and also the history of Buddhism in Sri Lanka.

One of the Buddha's visits to Sri Lanka

One of the paintings depicts Buddhagosa, Sri Lanka's most renowned scholar. The interpretations provided by Buddhaghosa have generally constituted the orthodox understanding of Theravada scriptures since at least the 12th century CE. Buddhagosa came from India, and visited Sri Lanka in order to find a commentary which has been lost in India. In Anuradhapura Buddhagosa requested to study all the texts in the Pali canon. In order to test him, the monks asked him to write a treatise summarizing the meaning of the scriptures. He wrote it, but at night it disappeared. Again he wrote it, and again it disappeared. Then finally, the third time it did not disappear. When he went to present his composition to the monks, suddenly all three texts appeared. The texts were identical and thus he passed his trials. This text is the Visuddhimagga, the Path of Purification, which is a comprehensive summary and analysis of the Theravada understanding of the Buddha's path to liberation.

Buddhagosa presenting his composition

Also the ceilings are filled with exquisite paintings 

The statues doing their daily job of upholding the temple

The story goes that one of the times the Buddha visited Sri Lanka (you can read more about the Buddha's visits to Sri Lanka here), he came in order to pacify a conflict two kings where about to engage in, because of a huge jewel. They offered the Jewel to the Buddha, who then sat on it. He said 'now it is mine', but then he gave it back, after which a stupa was build to enshrine it.

The stupa build at the spot the Buddha visited Sri Lanka

That concluded the pilgrimage. Needles to say we need to thank Orgyan Tobgyal Rinpoche, all the other lamas and monks, and everybody else who volunteered to make this pilgrimage possible. Special mention should be made however to venerable Manjushri, who relentlessly helped organize everything, and was an unfathomable source of information.

Bhikkhu Manjushri 

Buddham saranam gacchami

I go to the Buddha for refuge.

Dhammam saranam gacchami

I go to the Dhamma for refuge.

Sangham saranam gacchami

I go to the Sangha for refuge.