Magul Maha Vihara
Sri Lanka, Lahugala

The ruins of the ancient Buddhist temple Magul Maha Vihara are located in the southeast of the island of Sri Lanka, on the northern edge of the Lahugala Kitulana National Park, 11 km from the city of Pottuvil. According to one version, the temple was built in the 5th century, during the reign of King Datusen; according to another, the temple is much older, in the 2nd century BC it was built by order of King Kavantissa, the ruler of the ancient state of Ruhuna. Legend has it that Magul Maha Vihara was built specifically for the wedding ceremony of Kavantissa with the Vihara princess Maha Devi. The brave girl sacrificed herself to the gods of the sea, who were angry with her father, King Kelantissa, ruler of the state of Kelaniya. However, the gods spared the princess, the waves carried her to the shore of Arugam Bay, where King Kavantissa saw her. Over the following centuries, many rulers reconstructed, expanded and rebuilt the temple; over time, its territory “expanded” significantly; a palace, a stupa, a monastery were built on an area of ​​about 10,000 acres, and ponds were created. Historical chronicles mention that at one time 12,000 Buddhist monks lived in the temple, and during the invasion of Sri Lanka by Tamils ​​from South India, the temple turned into a real fortress - powerful defensive walls were built around it, food supplies and weapons warehouses were created. Nowadays, the ruins of Magul Maha Vihara are an archaeological site of Sri Lanka, under state protection, and one of the main tourist attractions in the Eastern Province. Visitors have the opportunity to see the remains of the fortress wall, a well-preserved stupa built on a high terrace, the ruins of a monastery and palace, and a headless statue of Buddha made of marble. On the temple grounds there is the only moonstone in Sri Lanka, which depicts elephants with mahouts on their backs (no other moonstone contains images of people). During the fighting between government forces and the Tamil Tigers (LTTE), from 1983 to 2009, the Magul Maha Vihara temple was practically unvisited. In recent years, pilgrims from different parts of Sri Lanka have begun to arrive here, and more and more foreign tourists are coming to see the ruins of the ancient temple.

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