The little town of Devinuwara or the “City of Gods” is located at the southern edge of the country, about 6.5kms southeast of Matara. Devinuwara is also known as Dondra in English.
At the height of its splendour, in the 13th-15th centuries, Devinuwara has been a busy seaport and a most renowned place of pilgrimage and worship. It had been a landmark with its magnificent temple with a roof of gilded copper flashing far into the sea and undoubtedly must have been an aid to those who sailed the vast Indian Ocean. The many stone pillars variously sculptured in designs and shapes are evidence of the magnificent shrines and temples in this town that overlooked the ocean up to the latter half of the 16th century.
According to legend, Devinuwara was a flourishing city in the time is King Rawana and is connected to the Indian Epic of Ramayana. The 15th-century “Paravi Sandeshaya”, a poetical work describes the deity at Devinuwara as a destroyer of Asura. Thus it can believed that this same deity is also “Rama” of the Ramayana.
Mahavansa, The great chronicle of Sri Lanka, tells how the “Upulvan Deiyo” thus Vishnu was selected as the guardian to protect the land of Sri Lanka and Buddhism within it at the time of Buddha’s passing away.
“When the Guide of the World, having accomplished the salvation of the whole world and having reached the utmost stage of blissful rest, was lying on the bed of his nibbana; in the midst of the great assembly of gods, he, the great sage, the greatest of those who have speech, spoke to Sakka’ who stood there near him: `Vijaya, son of king Sihabahu, is come to Lanka from the country of Lala, together with seven hundred followers. In Lanka, O lord of gods, will my religion be established, therefore carefully protect him with his followers and Lanka.
When the lord of gods heard the words of the Buddha he from respect handed over the guardianship of Lanka to the god who is in colour like the lotus (Upulvan). “
— From Mahavansa
Popular belief is that Vishnu is a future Buddha after Natha. Therefore Vishnu always has had a high ranking among the deities worshipped by the Sri Lankans.
History of Devinuwara Upulvan (Vishnu) Devalaya
According to tradition, Upulvan (Vishnu) Devalaya was founded in 790 CE (Pieris, 1913). According to the ancient writings on Parakumba Siritha, In a dream, King Dappula was informed that a red sandalwood log (කිහිරි කඳ) with the spirit of the deity Upulvan (Vishnu) would be floated to Sinhasana Beach in Devinuwara.
The next day the king went to the beach in a possession, and found the image of Upulvan (Vishnu) carved on from a red sandalwood log floating to the beach. The king brought this statue to Devinuwara in a great possession, also made statues of Sandawatee, wife of Upulvan (Vishnu) and Dhanurdhara, son of Upulvan (Vishnu) and placed for worship (Wanarathna Thero, 1994).
According to folklore, the Kapurala (caretaker) of Seenigama Devalaya in Hikkaduwa dreamt that the statue would float to Seenigama the previous day but the Kapurala overslept and did not come to the beach on time, thus the log floated away from Seenigama and it reached Devinuwara (Wanarathna Thero, 1994).
In 1587 a Portuguese army led by Thome de Sonza attacked this sacred city destroying and plundering any valuables in the places of worship. But King Rajasinghe II (1635 – 1687) of the Kandyan Kingdom managed to free the Matara from the enemy and built a Devale at Devinuwara for the deity Vishnu.
The Devalaya (shrine) dedicated to Deity Vishnu draws devotees from around the country throughout the year, especially during the Esala Poya Period (month of July).
The origin of the Esala festival at Devinuwara goes back to the time of King Parakramabahu II of Dambadeniya Kingdom (13th century), who is said to have restored the dilapidated temple in this holy town and got this festival celebrated regularly in honour of the deity Upulvan.
Also See
References
- Pieris, P. E. (1913). Ceylon, the Portuguese Era : Being a History of the Island for the Period, 1505-1658 (Vol. 1). Colombo Apothecaries.
- Wanarathna Thero, K. (1994). මාතර පුරා විද්යාත්මක ඉතිහාසය. Sri Rohana Sangha Sabha Center.
Map of Devinuwara Upulvan (Vishnu) Devalaya
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Driving Directions to Devinuwara Upulvan (Vishnu) Devalaya
Route from Colombo to Devinuwara Upulvan (Vishnu) Devalaya |
Through : Southern Expressway Distance : 175 km Travel time : 3-3.5 hours Driving Directions : see on google map |
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