(4 votes, average: 2.50 out of 5)
Loading...
Image courtesy of Dr. Ashan Geeganage
You will find several rocks named Yahangala in different areas of the country. Loosely translated as Rock of Beds, all these rocks have been Buddhist monasteries in ancient times and what is common in all of them are the beds cut into the rock inside caves.
The Yahangala referred to here is a massive rock with several caves and 12 rock beds in a remote village accessed through the Galewela – Andiyagala road.
Based on the publication “Sigiriya and Beyond”, the site is accessed through Ranaviru Shokarathne Mawatha near the 29th-kilometre post on the Galewela – Andiyagala road. 4.5 km along this remote road you will reach a small temple at the base of the rock. It is also possible to reach this site by taking the by-road from Bulanawewa from the Bulanawewa Temple on the Galewela – Andiyagala road.
A long inscription found at the bottom of the rock was placed in the 2nd century AD by Professor Paranawithana. His interpretation of the inscription has led to suggest that the patron of this ancient monastery has come from the kingdom of Sumatra.
In addition to the ruins of this ancient monastery, the site gives an excellent 360-degree view of the surrounding area.
It is advised to speak to a priest and make your intentions known before attempting to climb the rock. With treasure looters destroying every bit of heritage, as in many remote ruined areas, the villagers are always vigilant and wary of outsiders roaming around thus gaining their trust is important before embarking on such a journey.
References
- Gunetilleke, N. et al. (2016) Sigiriya & Beyond: To Dambulla, Habarana, Kekirawa, galewela. Colombo, Sri Lanka: Back of Beyond Sigiriya (Pvt.) Ltd.
Also See
Map of Yahangala
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 Yahangala
| Route from Galewela to Yahangala |
| Through : Bulanawewa Time to Spend : 1 – 1.30 hours Distance :12 km Travel time : 20 min. 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 (197) Beaches (6) 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 (47) 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)