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Photo courtesy of Dr. Ashan Geeganage
Tempitiya is an ancient agricultural village hidden in the Mahaoya area. This village is built based on the Empitiya Reservoir and the Tempitiya Rajamaha Viharaya which lies opposite the reservoir both of which are credited to King Saddhatissa (137-119 BC) of Anuradhapura kingdom who was the regional ruler of the Digamadulla Kingdom during the reign of king Dutugemunu.
The temple which had been forgotten and covered by the jungles was revived in the 1920’s by Bogaha Aruwe Seelarathne Thero. A large number of ruins believed to be belonging to the period of King Saddhatissa can be found scattered all over this site. One unique artefact found here is a rare carving of a seven-hooded cobra with its traditional Bahirawa figures. In addition, this ancient temple site is scattered with granite Buddha statues, various forms of Korawak Gal, Moonstones and pillars of ancient buildings.
The ruins of the Tempitiya Rajamaha Viharaya were declared as a protected archaeological site by the Government in the Gazette issued on 10th October 2014, and describes the location as follows ;
“Weheragoda site of ruins with four hillocks of ancient Chaityas, places containing buildings with stone pillars
and other archaeological remains belonging to Weheregoda Kudalakatuwa village (Latitude 07º 60088′ N and longitude 081º 41850′ E) situated in the Grama Niladhari Division, Tempitaiya in the Divisional Secretary’s Division, Mahaoya in Ampara District in Eastern Province.”
Also See
Map of Mahaoya Tempitiya Rajamaha 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
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Travel Directions to Mahaoya Tempitiya Rajamaha Viharaya
| Route from Mahaoya to Tempitiya Rajamaha Viharaya |
| Through : Mahaoya – Chenkaladi Road Distance :13 km Travel time : 20 mins Time to spent : 30-45 mins Driving directions : see on google map |