Rising prominently above the surrounding plains are the unusually bald boulders of the Rajagiri Kanda or the mountain of the kings. This is accessible from the road almost directly in front of the entrance to the Kaludiya Pokuna complex.
In this area are found rock caves “which have been occupied by monks of great virtue and wisdom from time to time” Several cave inscriptions belonging to the earliest periods of the Buddhist era have been found on the brows of these caves..
A short climb up a flight of rock-cut steps under an avenue of profusely flowering White Araliya Trees leads to its summit where nestles the Rajagiri Lena. The cave comprising many compartments, appears to have once included a shrine.
Bell who examined these caves described them thus: “A better hermitage for Buddhist monks could hardly be selected than these airy caverns. They provided every facility for a quiet retreat: within 8 miles of the Anuradhapura shrines, and adjacent yet wholly distinct from the monasteries at Mihintale and Anai-kutti kanda, they command from their peaceful secluded elevation an unimpaired restful view across many miles of dark green forest and silvery tanks”.
Daily Mirror
Also See
Map of the Rajagiri Kanda of Mihintale
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.
Driving Directions to Rajagiri Kanda of Mihintale
Mihintale can be reached through many routes from Colombo. The two main routes are through Puttalam (Puttalama) and through Kurunegala. Traveling from Puttalam you will pass the scenic Wilpattu area. From Kurunegala, there are two main routes to Mihintale. The most common route is through Dambulla. The other route is through Galgamuwa. Out of all the routes, the most commonly used is the Kurunegala – Dambulla route (Route 2).
Route 01 from Colombo to Mihintale (A3) | Route 02 from Colombo to Mihintale |
Though : Negombo – Chilaw – Puttalam Distance :231 km Travel Time : 5.15 hours Driving Directions : see on Google map | Through : Central Expressway – Badagamuwa – Dambulla Distance : 223 km Travel Time : 4.45 hours Driving Directions : see on Google maps |
Route 03 from Colombo to Mihintale | Route from Anuradhapura to Mihintale |
Though : Ambepussa – Kurunegala – Padeniya – Thambuthegama Distance : 232 km Travel Time : 5 hours Driving Directions : see on Google map | Distance :15 km Travel Time : 30 minutes Driving Directions : see on Google map |
0-09 m (87) 10-19 m (74) 20-29 m (43) 30-39 m (49) 40-49 m (24) 50-99 m (47) Ambalama (153) Ancient Anicuts (31) Articles (0) Asanaghara (8) Ashtapala Bodhi (5) Attraction Articles (3) Attractions (214) Beaches (7) Biosphere Reserves (3) Botanical Gardens (4) Bridges (34) Cave Art (4) Caving (7) Churches (12) Cities (9) Destinations (15) Dethis Pala Bodhi (15) Devalaya (41) Events Articles (2) Flora and Fauna (48) Forts (49) Heritage (1605) Heritage Articles (28) Historic Events (5) History (7) Hot Springs (9) Hydro Heritage (85) Irrigation Articles (4) Islands (15) Kovils (25) Kuludage (11) Lighthouses (27) Memorials (47) Mile Posts (6) Mosques (3) Museums (8) National Parks (22) over 100 m (19) Pabbatha Vihara (11) Personalities (7) Pillar/Slab Inscriptions (35) Pre Historic Burial Sites (19) Prehistory (37) Prehistory Articles (2) RAMSAR sites (6) Ravana (12) Reservoirs (46) Rock Inscriptions (1) Ruins in Wilpattu (5) Ruins in Yala (24) Santuaries (7) Sluice Gates (11) Stone Bridges (18) Strict Nature Reserves (3) Sumaithangi (3) Survey Towers (13) Tampita Vihara (239) Travel (3) View Points (13) Walawwa (12) War Memorials (21) Waterfalls (375) Wildlife Articles (24) Yathuru Pokuna (4)
Abhayagiri Monastery (21) Ampara District (193) Anuradhapura District (200) Badulla District (113) Batticaloa District (19) Colombo District (71) Galle District (60) Gampaha District (56) Hambantota District (101) India (1) Jaffna District (71) Kalutara District (49) Kandy District (185) Kegalle District (150) Kilinochchi District (12) Kingdom of Anuradhapura (80) Kingdom of Kandy (14) Kingdom of Kotte (9) Kingdom of Polonnaruwa (55) Kurunegala District (165) Maha Vihara (14) Mannar District (47) Mannar Island (10) Matale District (82) Matara District (39) Mihintale (22) Monaragala District (92) Mullaitivu District (19) Negombo (6) Nuwara Eliya District (116) Polonnaruwa District (111) Puttalam District (32) Ratnapura District (156) Trincomalee District (46) Vavuniya District (30) waterfalls in Sinharaja (3) z Delft 1 (5) z Jaffna 1 (20) z Jaffna 2 (24) z Jaffna 3 (11)