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Image courtesy of Dr. Ashan Geeganage
Rakkhiththakanda Rajamaha Viharaya is an ancient cave temple rarely visited by the average traveller. The temple lies 2 km off the picturesque Ella – Wellawaya Road in the village known as Karandagolla in the Wellawaya DS area of Monaragala District.
The early Brahmi script cave inscriptions at the temple date the existence of the temple to the 2nd century at the earliest (Urugodawatte, 2022). According to tradition, this cave temple is believed to have been built by King Walagamba (89-77 BC) and carries signs of Kandyan Era renovations.
Today this cave temple consists of elegant paintings of the Kanyan Era. The date 1886 can be seen among the paintings but further study of these paintings indicates some of the paintings predate 1886.
The British influence during this era can be clearly seen in these paintings. At the top of the entrance to the cave temple lies The British royal symbol and a painting of the queen and among the cave paintings you could see two hands shaking hands.
Only one priest resides in this remote temple now.
References
- Urugodawatte, B. (2022) ‘Church Missionary Society School of Kotte’, Archeo Sri Lanka – Newsletter of the Department of Archaeology, Sri Lanka, 2(2), p 7.
Also See
Map of Rakkhiththakanda Rajamaha Viharaya at Karandagolla
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Travel Directions to Rakkhiththakanda Rajamaha Viharaya at Karandagolla
| Route from Bandarawela to Rakkhiththakanda Rajamaha Viharaya at Karandagolla |
| Through : Ella Distance :26 km Travel time : 45 minutes Driving directions : see on Google map |
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