Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Tampita Viharaya

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කිරිමැටියාව ඇඹුල්ගිරි රජමහා ටැම්පිට විහාරය - Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Rajamaha Tampita Viharaya
කිරිමැටියාව ඇඹුල්ගිරි රජමහා ටැම්පිට විහාරය – Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Rajamaha Tampita Viharaya
Image source : a video clip by Dilini Munasinghe

Kirimatiyawa lies between Kuliyapitiya and Panduwasnuwara in in Kurunegala District. Traveling from Madampe it lies 40 kms away.

Tampita Vihara was a popular architectural feature during the Kandyan kingdom where the temple was built on a platform which was held on an array of pillars, mostly stone.

The Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Tampita viharaya lies on 12 rock pillars 1.14 meters tall. A narrow corridor runs around the image house. An half height railing is built surrounding the corridor. This is 30 centimeters wide at the front and 30.4 centimeters wide at the sides and the rear. The image house is 3×2.18 meters in size and the building is 4.32×3.58 meters in size. 12 wooden pillars raising from the wooden platform holds the roof the tampita viharaya. Carvings on the pillars are simple and plain. However each pillar is decorated with pillar heads. Each side of the pillar head is carved in form of a flower. The roof the viharaya is uses a “Madol Kurupawa” at the center of the roof to join all the beams and balance the weight of the roof. Two ‘Kanimadala‘ carved with a lotus design can be seen on the two edges of the Madol Kurupawa. Two clay pinnacles are seen placed on top of the Kanimadala to protect it from water.

A mandapa has been built in front of the Tampita Viharaya connected to main entrance. Therefore access the viharaya is through this mandapaya.

The door frame at the entrance has a simple petal design carving. Two guardian deities are painted on the wall beside the door. The main statue, a seated Buddha lies facing the door. A head dress (siraspatha) and a horse shoe shaped halo painted with a flame design surrounding the whole statue is typical of Kandyan era designs. However the Siraspatha of this statue takes a different 3 dimensional form from the commonly found designs. Two statues of Sariyuth and Mugalan theros are seen beside the Buddha statue. Two standing Buddha statue in Ababya Mudra is seen on the side walls. It is interesting to note to find statues of 4 deities, Siva, Vishnu, Indra and Brahma inside the image house.

Please note that the location marked below on the google map is only an approximate location.

References

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Map of Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Tampita Viharaya

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Travel Directions to Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Tampita Viharaya

From Madampe to Kirimatiyawa Ambulgiri Tampita Viharaya
Though : Dummalasuriya – Kuliyapitiya
Distance : 41 km
Travel time : 1 hour
Time to Spend : about 30  minutes
Driving directions : see on Google Map

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