Be the first to rate
Loading...
Image courtesy of Dr. Ashan Geeganage
Travelling through Meegahakivula towards Mahiyanganaya and 2 km past the town, you will come across the B86 road (Dambagahapitiya – Pinnagolla – Arawa – Meegahakiula road) at the Arawa Junction. Travelling 2.6 km on this road, you will come across the Purana Meda Maha Viharaya of Karandagahamada.
This temple is believed to have been built during the 3rd century BCE and the ancient stupa by King Kawanthissa ( father of King Dutugemunu). Unfortunately, this stupa is no more with a new one being constructed over the ancient stupa. But the “Chatra Gala” also known as the “Gal Kude” or the “Umbrella Stone” of the ancient stupa still can be seen lying on the ground of the temple.
The very first stupas built in Sri Lanka didn’t have the Devatha Kotuwa and the Kotha as of now, but a “Chatra Gala” standing on a “Yupa Kanuwa”, a tall granite pillar. This Chatra Gala along with the Siri Pathul Gala found lying on the premises confirms the antiquity of this temple.
Also See
Map of Karandagahamada Purana Meda Maha Viharaya
The map above also shows other places of interest within a approximately 20 km radius of the current site. Click on any of the markers and the info box to take you to information of these sites
Zoom out the map to see more surrounding locations using the mouse scroll wheel or map controls.
Travel Directions to Karandagahamada Purana Meda Maha Viharaya
| Route from Badulla to Karandagahamada Purana Meda Maha Viharaya |
| Distance : 28 km Travel time : 50 mins Driving directions : see on Google map |
0-09 m (80) 10-19 m (69) 20-29 m (42) 30-39 m (47) 40-49 m (23) 50-99 m (43) Ambalama (152) Ancient Anicuts (31) Ashtapala Bodhi (5) Attraction Article (3) Attractions (198) Beaches (7) Biosphere Reserves (3) Botanical Gardens (3) Bridges (34) Caving (4) Church (6) Cities (9) Destinations (16) Dethis Pala Bodhi (15) Devalaya (41) Flora and Fauna (43) Forts (48) Heritage (1602) Heritage Article (28) Historic Events (5) History (7) Hot Springs (9) Hydro Heritage (85) Irrigation Article (4) Islands (15) Kovil (25) Lighthouses (27) Memorials (28) Mile Posts (6) Mosque (3) Museums (8) National Parks (22) over 100 m (15) Pabbatha Vihara (10) Personalities (7) Pillar/Slab Inscriptions (35) Pre Historic Burial Sites (18) Prehistory (37) Ravana (12) Reservoirs (44) Ruins in Wilpattu (5) Ruins in Yala (24) Santuaries (7) Sluice Gates (11) Stone Bridges (18) Strict Nature Reserves (3) Survey Towers (13) Tampita Vihara (238) Travel (3) View Points (9) Walawwa (12) Waterfalls (375) Wildlife Article (24) Yathuru Pokuna (4)
Abhayagiri Monastery (19) Ampara District (191) Anuradhapura District (194) Avissawella (4) Badulla (2) Badulla District (105) Batticaloa District (19) Buttala (2) Colombo (5) Colombo District (62) Dambulla (4) Delft (5) Galle (1) Galle District (56) Gampaha District (48) Hambantota (4) Hambantota District (99) India (1) Jaffna (7) Jaffna District (54) Kalutara District (47) Kandy District (177) Kegalle District (146) Kilinochchi District (9) Kingdom of Anuradhapura (80) Kingdom of Kandy (14) Kingdom of Kotte (9) Kingdom of Polonnaruwa (55) Kurunegala (5) Kurunegala District (110) Maha Vihara (14) Mannar District (47) Mannar Island (10) Matale (3) Matale District (63) Matara District (26) Mihintale (22) Monaragala (5) Monaragala District (70) Mullaitivu District (19) Nuwara Eliya (7) Nuwara Eliya District (108) Panama (1) Polonnaruwa District (107) Puttalam District (24) RAMSAR site (1) Ratnapura (4) Ratnapura District (142) Tissamaharama (2) Trincomalee (7) Trincomalee District (43) Vavuniya District (27) waterfalls in Sinharaja (3) Wellawaya (6)