Bimpokuna Buddhist Monastic Ruins

RATE THIS LOCATION : 1 Star

(2 votes, average: 2.00 out of 5)

The Bimpokuna site in Vakare is an early Anuradhapura-era forest monastery centered on a rocky outcrop. Despite treasure-hunting damage, it preserves a stone-slab stupa, a ruined image house with pillar bases, a circular pedestal, and a stone-walled building complex. Its layout integrates natural rock features with formal monastic architecture.

The Bimpokuna Archaeological Site, located in Kunjankulam within the Madurankenikulama 211-B Grama Niladhari Division of Korale Pattu North (Vakare) Divisional Secretariat, preserves the remains of an ancient Buddhist monastic complex dating to the early Anuradhapura Period.

Access Route

From Vakare, travel along the Batticaloa Road (A15) and near the 52 km (32.3 miles) milestone, turn right onto the Kirimichcha road. After traveling approximately 2.5 km (1.55 miles), turn left at the Kunnaman junction via the Kokkuvil area. Continue along this road up to the tank bund, then proceed to the far end of the bund and walk approximately 1 km (0.62 miles) through the forest on the western side to reach the site.

Historical Background

The archaeological remains presently known as Bimpokuna consist of evidence preserved both in their original positions and in displaced secondary settings. Despite extensive disturbances, the surviving architectural elements clearly indicate that the site functioned as a Buddhist monastery belonging to the early Anuradhapura Period.

Location and Nature of Archaeological Evidence

The site is centered around a rocky outcrop located within a forested area to the southeast of the Kunjankalkulama reservoir and near the Kirimichcha reservoir. A Buddhist religious monument dating to the early Anuradhapura Period was constructed around this rocky landscape. Locally, the site is also known as Bimmupokuna.

A stupa, or chethiya, was constructed on the eastern edge of the rocky hill, although its central section has been heavily damaged through illegal excavations. Construction of the monument made extensive use of irregular stone slabs of varying sizes, while bricks appear to have been used in smaller quantities. Excavations carried out by treasure hunters have exposed and displaced the internal filling material of the relic chamber, including stone slabs, bricks, and soil.

The entrance approach to the stupa is located on the western side, near a ruined building foundation containing stone pillars. One pillar, though slightly tilted, still remains in its original position. The pillar sections and the foundation stones appear to have been firmly interconnected.

Across the sloping ground extending from the south toward the north-west, numerous stone pillars, pillar bases, and stone blocks are scattered, indicating the remains of another building complex. Some pillars still survive in their original positions, while broken stone fragments are distributed throughout the site.

At the north-western edge of the rocky terrain, the land becomes relatively flat at ground level. In this area, evidence survives of a somewhat larger and architecturally distinctive building. Four medium-sized pillar bases arranged in a single row remain fixed in their original positions. Nearby is a circular stone feature that may have functioned as a flower pedestal, although it now lies displaced from its original setting. Bricks associated with building construction are scattered throughout the area, together with numerous stone fragments of varying sizes and shapes. Based on these remains, it is possible that an image house or shrine room once existed at this location.

Further evidence of ancient construction can be observed along the northern slope of the rocky hill, where traces of a small stairway have been identified. Between this location and the surrounding ruins is a building site enclosed by boundary walls constructed using both circular and square-shaped stone slabs.

Geographical Coordinates

The exact location of the site is as follows:

North Latitude: 8°00′34.5″ N
East Longitude: 81°24′43.2″ E,

References

Exploration and Documentation Division (Ed.). (2017). පුරාවිද්යා ස්ථාන හඳුනා ගැනීමේ ගවේෂණ වාර්තාව, මඩකලපුව දිස්ත්රික්කය. Department of Archaeology, Sri Lanka.

Also See

Traveling Directions to Bimpokuna Buddhist Monastic Ruins

Route from Trincomalee to Bimpokuna Buddhist Monastic Ruins

Through: Mutur – Senunuwara – Vakare
Distance: 94 km
Travel time: 2.20 hours
Driving directions : see on Google Maps

Map of the Bimpokuna Buddhist Monastic Ruins

Click on the button below to load the Dynamic Google Map

Show Location on Google Maps

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.