Corporate

Further Relaxed Health Protocols for Arrivals to Sri Lanka.

Anuradhapura is the first capital of Sri Lanka located in north central province of Sri Lanka. It is one of the ancient capitals of Sri Lanka. Locally known as Rajarata (Land of Kings), the UNESCO World Heritage Site was the first established kingdom on the island (in 377 BC) and is at the heart of Sri Lanka’s Buddhist culture. The  Eight sacred places are a series of locations which has situated in Anuradapura where the Lord Buddha had visited during his three visits to the country.  As a result of rich collection of archaeological and architectural wonders: enormous dagobas (brick stupas), ancient pools and crumbling temples, built thousand years back, UNESCO named it as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1982 under the name of Sacred City of Anuradhapura.

Anuradhapura is greatest monastic city of the ancient world that dates back to 5th Century BC remained the majestic seat of the kingdom of Sri Lanka until the 11th century A.D. Anuradhapura flourished as the Capital of Lanka from 377 BC to the end of the reign 1017 AD and was the Royal Seat for 1400 years under 130 kings as the capital of the Country.

The city gives a fascinating glimpse of a stately, well laid-out pre-Christian metropolis of massive Buddhist shrines and monasteries, splendid palaces, pavilions, parks, bathing ponds and vast reservoirs, many of them are masterpieces of architecture, art, sculpture, and engineering. Anuradhapura offers a host of memorable sightseeing highlights.

Other attractions at Anuradhapura are magnificent rock carvings of monumental richness and remarkable grace, colossal stone pillars that stand proud amidst the ruins of royal palaces, Buddhist monasteries and temples, and magnificent stone cut swimming pools with sophisticated hydrology engineering techniques.

RUWANWELI STUPA

One of the most significant religious places for Buddhists and it is one of the Eight Sacred Places in Anuradhapura. It is the principal monument of Mahavihara Complex of Anuradhapura and is situated between the Sri Maha Bodhi Tree and Thuparama Stupa. Ruwanveliseya was constructed by King Dutugamunu in the 2nd century BCE. The great chronicle Mahawamsa refers to Ruwanveliseya as the “Maha Thupa”. According to legends, there was a tree consecrated to a tree-sprit known as “Swarnamalee” at this point before the stupa was constructed. Hence, the stupa was also named as “Swaranamalee Maha Chetiya”.

SRI MAHA BODHI (THE SACRED BO TREE)

The sacred Siri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura is considered as the oldest historical tree in the world. It was brought to Sri Lanka by Theree Sangamitta and planted in the Mahameghawana at Anuradhapura by King Devanampiyatissa under the guidance of Arahant Mihindu Maha Thero. It was a branch of the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi at Buddhagaya where Lord Buddha was sat in Meditation when he attained supreme Buddha hood. This was a spiritual gift to king Devanampiyatissa by the Emperor Asoka on the request of his son Arahat Mahinda.

THUPARAMAYA

This stupa is the first stupa constructed in Sri Lanka after Buddhism was embraced as the state religion . It is one of the Eight Sacred Places in Anuradhapura. This was constructed by King Devanampiyatissa on the request of Arahat Mahinda Thera in 3rd century BCE. According to the Mahavamsa, the right collar bone of the Buddha has been enshrined in this stupa. The stupa was constructed in the form of a paddy heap. But after reconstruction of it in the 19th century, it has taken a shape of a bell. This stupa was housed in a circular Chethiyaghara (Vatadage). The remains of the ancient Chethiyaghara are retained as three rows of stone pillars around the stupa.

Sigiriya (Lion Rock) is an ancient rock fortress located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. Sigiriya is one of the most valuable historical monuments of Sri Lanka. It has a historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock nearly 200 meters (660 ft) high.

According to the ancient Sri Lankan Culavamsa, this site was selected by King Kashyapa for his new capital. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides with colorful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway upside of this rock he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure – Sinhagiri, the Lion Rock.

The capital and the royal palace were abandoned after the king’s death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14^th century.  Sigiriya today is a UNESCO listed world heritage site. It is one of the best-preserved examples of ancient urban planning. The innovative engineering and design have been used in the building of the palace/fortress.

Sigiriya, considered as the eighth wonder of the world. It has many Archaeological remains and features such as Frescoes, Mirror wall and Gardens. The gardens, one of the most beautiful aspects of Sigiriya, consist of three sections: the water gardens, the terraced gardens, and the cave and boulder gardens. These landscaped gardens are among the oldest in the world, there are paths through the gardens which takes to the palace at the top of the rock. The upper sky palace sited on the flat top of the rock, A mid-level terrace includes the lion Gate and the Mirror wall and Sigiriya Frescoes. About halfway up, there are two lion paws that were part of a massive lion with an open mouth. The open mouth is the entrance to the palace.

One fascinating feature of the site is the Mirror Wall. Situated on the western side of the rock, the Mirror Wall was a brick wall covered with white plaster so highly polished that it could produce reflections. As time passed, this wall became a graffiti board, covered with messages from the various visitors to Sigiriya. This site provides the visitor with a stunning view of the jungle around the rock.

Pidurangala is a massive rock formation located a few kilometers north of Sigiriya in Sri Lanka. It has an interesting history closely related to that of the Sigiriya Rock Fortress. The rocky outcrops that surround the central rock gives one an indication of what the area around Sigiriya may have looked like prior to its clearing and preparation as a royal citadel. The Pidurangala area has been occupied on and off for over two thousand five hundred years by monks who lived in the caves around the site. It really came into prominence when King Kasyapa (477- 495 AD), who built Sigiriya, moved monks living around Sigiriya Rock to a newly refurbished and enlarged temple and monastery here at Pidurangala.

On the first landing is located shallow cave with a beautiful 12.5-meter-long statute of a recumbent Buddha. This statue was at one time the largest brick statue of Buddha in the world. It may originally have been commissioned by King Kasyapa. The head and torso of the statue were destroyed by treasure hunters in the 1960s and have been reconstructed.

One of Sacred City in Sri Lanka popularly known as the city of Senkadagalapura. It was the last capital of the ancient kings’ era of Sri Lanka. It is the second-largest city on the island and the capital of Central Province. Kandy is in the mountainous and thickly forested interior of the island. The city is located in between multiple mountain ranges including the Knuckles mountain range and the Hanthana Mountain Range, giving the city an e levation of 500 meters (1,600 ft) above sea level. The city has a relatively wetter and cooler temperatures than that of the tropical climate of the rest of the country, especially the coastal regions.

Sri Dalada Maligawa or the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a Buddhist temple in the city of Kandy, where the left Canine tooth of Gautama Buddha is enshrined. It was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1988. The Sacred relic was brought to Sri Lanka by Princess Hemamala & Prince Dantha from the city of Kalinga in ancient India, during the reign of King Keerthi Sri Meghavarna (Kithsirimevan 301 -328). The temple which carries a lot of value to Buddhists all over the world also has immense cultural value. The architecture, the unique Kandyan architectural style has used to build “Dalada Mandira” the shrines which housed the Sacred Tooth Relic previously in other kingdoms.

Ananda Thero was the chief personal attendant of living Lord Buddha. He had pure endless affection and immense respe ct towards Lord Buddha and dedicated his entire life being the personnel help to Lord Buddha. The Sacred left Canine Tooth Relic of Lord Buddha, which is housed at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy is being regarded as the living Lord Buddha. Therefore, poojas and rituals had been dedicated towards Lord Buddha, which was carried out by Ananda Thero back then. Today it has been carried out as Theva (Daily Services) which are led by the Maha Nayaka Theros of Malwathu and Asgiri Chapters and followed by the residing Maha Sanga of those temples who are dedicated to do the rituals.

There will be major festivals held at the Temple of the Tooth. It will name as Temple Perahera or the Esala Festival. The Esala festi val is considered to be the main festival of the palace. The specialty of this place is the holding of the ‘Dalada Perahera’. The Perahera of the four Maha Devalaya in Kandy joins the Dalada Perahera or the Esala Perahera. Esala Perahera at the Temple of the Tooth Relic will be named soon as a world heritage and an Intangible Heritage by the UNESCO.