SURIYAGODA RAJAMAHA VIHARA

The Suriyagoda Vihara is situated in Yatinuwara in the District of Kandy and is a short distance off the Kiribathkumbura junction on the Colombo-Kandy Road.

The Vihara was built during Parakramabahu VI of Kotte (1412-1467) by a chieftain named Senarath Bandara, a raja guru or mentor to the king. The temple is also known as Narendraraamaya because of the support it received from King Narendrasinghe in the early 18th Century.

The temple was partially destroyed by Portuguese invaders in the early 16th Century. A burnt wooden beam, visible even today, is attributed to a fire that these invaders had started. After that, King Kirti Sri Rajasinha (1747-1780) helped re-develop the temple and later lent it his patronage.

Through the centuries, many kings supported, patronized and oversaw the temple's restoration and expansion. The essential phase of repairs began after the reestablishment of upasampada by Bhikku Upali of Siam in 1753. This was done on the initiation of Sangaraja Weliwita Saranankara Thera, whose teacher Suriyagoda Rajasundara was the temple's chief monk at the time.

In the lower maluwa are the bodhi tree and Bodhighara. This is separated from the upper maluwa by a decorative retaining wall. The entry to the upper maluwa is through a flight of rock-cut steps, with a simple fence connected to a tiled pavilion. One enters the leading site through the pavilion and then through an impressive elaborately carved wooden door.

One can see a stupa in the upper area, a pilgrimage and monastery, all set within a single complex and surrounded by monks' dwellings. The 15th-century pilgrimage, in the style of the Kandyan period Tampita architecture, is a simple wooden structure resting on eight 18 stone pillars, with solid wooden cross-beams for support. The walls are of wattle and daub, and the roof has flat tiles with a metal finial, giving the building a beautiful appearance.

Some of the wall paintings can be traced back to the period of King Kirthi Sri Rajasinghe.

The restored frescoes include scenes from the life of the Buddha and divinities paying homage to a stupa. The image of the Buddha in meditation is set against a traditional Makara Thorana background painted on the wall. The temple and its buildings and wall paintings are classic examples of Kandyan era temple architecture.

The Vihara houses a museum with a collection of Buddhist objects of historical value. These include a silver image of Maitreya Bodhisatva, a bronze standing Buddha and 24 Buddha images depicting the Suvisi Vivaranaya. Also, several rare manuscripts are written by Velivita Saranankara Thera himself and a stylus used by him.

(A Short Guide to Some less-visited Temples in Sri Lanka by Malika Jayasinghe 2015. P1 )

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