King Sirimeghavanna [303-311 CE]

Predecessor		Successor
King Mahasena [276-303 CE] -House of Lambakanna I-	King Sirimeghavanna (Kithsiri Mevan) [303-331 CE] -House of Lambakanna I-	King Jettha Tissa II [331-340 CE] -House of Lambakanna I-
COMPLETE LIST OF RULERS OF SRI LANKA

About King Sirimeghavanna (Kithsiri Mevan)

King Sirimeghavanna (Kithsiri Mevan, Kirthisrimegha) ascended to the throne of Anuradhapura in 303 CE following the death of his father, King Mahasena. One of the most significant events during his reign was the arrival of the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha from the kingdom of Kalinga in India. This occurred in the 9th year of his rule.

According to the chronicles, his reign was primarily focused on rebuilding the destruction left by his father, King Mahasena, who had demolished the Maha Vihara and its institutions under the malicious counsel of Sanghamitta and the minister Sona.

Establishment of a Pilgrims Rest in Bodh Gaya (Buddhagaya)

King Sirimeghavanna, was a contemporary of the renowned Indian Emperor Samudragupta. The two monarchs maintained friendly relations, as evidenced by historical records. The Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta lists the people of Saimhala (Sri Lanka) among those who paid homage to him. Further details of their relationship are preserved in the Chinese work Hingtchoan by Wang Hiuen-ts’e.

According to the account, King Sirimeghavanna sent two bhikkhus on a pilgrimage to the sacred Bodhi Tree in India. Upon their return, they described the hardships they faced due to the lack of proper accommodations near the site. Responding to this, King Sirimeghavanna dispatched an embassy with gifts, requesting permission to construct a monastery near the Bodhi Tree. Emperor Samudragupta granted this request, leading to the establishment of a monastery that later became a refuge for many pilgrims.

This event might be linked to an inscription discovered at Bodh Gaya, which documents the establishment of a shrine by a sthavira (elder monk) named Mahanama from Lanka. Interestingly, none of the local Pali or Sinhala chronicles mention this event in their records.

Rebuilding the Buddhist Monasteries

King Sirimeghavanna‘s father, King Mahasen, had demolished the monasteries and learning centers (pirivenas) associated with the Maha Vihara before reconciling with the Maha Vihara monks. He managed to rebuild some of these structures later in his life but could not complete them all.

One of the first casualties of this dark period was the magnificent Lovamahapaya, originally constructed as a nine-story building by King Dutugemunu (161-137 BCE) and later rebuilt as a seven-story building by King Jettha Tissa I (253-266 CE). King Sirimeghavanna restored Lovamahapaya to its former glory. Additionally, he reconstructed all the viharayas and pirivenas destroyed by the Vaithulyavada monks with the support of his father. He also completed the construction of the Jethavanarama Viharaya.

King Sirimeghavanna (Kithsiri Mevan) built a life-size gold statue of the revered Mihindu Thero and transported it to Ambasthala Chethiya in Mihintale. On the ninth day, he moved it in a grand procession to the vihara in Sotthiyakara (believed to be Puliyankulama). On the twelfth day, he brought the statue from Sotthiyakara to Maha Viharaya, where it remained for three months in the courtyard of the Sri Maha Bodhi. Finally, he placed the statue in an ornate shelter in the southeastern corner of the palace.

Arrival of Tooth Relic in Sri Lanka

King Sirimeghavanna’s reign is most notable for the arrival of the Tooth Relic (danta-dhatu), which later became the revered symbol of the Sinhalese kings’ authority. According to the Culavamsa, in the ninth year of his reign, the daughter of the Kalinga king, disguised as a beggar (ආඬියා) woman, brought the Tooth Relic to Sri Lanka, where it was received with great reverence.

The Dalada Pujavaliya recounts that during Sirimeghavanna‘s reign, Kalinga was ruled by King Guhasiva, the guardian of the Buddha’s right Tooth Relic. The king of Seveth Nuwara (සැවැත් නුවර) went to war with Guhasiva over the tooth relic. Before the battle, King Guhasiva entrusted the relic to his daughter, Princess Hemamala, and her husband, Prince Dantha, instructing them to take it to his friend Mahasena, the king of Lanka, if they saw a red flag from the battlefield indicating Kalinga’s defeat.

When the red flag appeared from the battlefield, Princess Hemamala and Prince Dantha disguised themselves as Brahmins left the palace and arrived at the Lanka Patuna port in Sri Lanka. Unbeknownst to them, King Mahasena had passed away in Anuradhapura, and his son, King Sirimeghavanna, was in his ninth year of reign. King Sirimeghavanna welcomed Prince Dantha and Princess Hemamala with the highest honours.

King Sirimeghavanna brought the Tooth Relic to the Dhammacakka building in Anuradhapura, originally constructed by King Devanampiya Tissa (307-267 BCE). This became the first Temple of the Tooth Relic. He donated land for the temple’s upkeep and organized a grand festival for the relic. He also decreed that the relic be annually transported to the Abhayagiri Monastery and celebrated with a festival.

It is believed that the royal couple, Prince Dantha and Princess Hemamala were settled in Keerawella (near modern-day Kirinda). The Keerawelle family is thought to be descendants of this royal couple.

Works of King Sirimeghavanna (Kithsiri Mevan)

Rebuilding of Lovamahapaya: Destroyed by his father
Completion of Jethavana Monastery

Ancient Manuscripts Detailing the Sovereigns of Sri Lanka

Sovereigns of Sri Lanka are chronicled in several ancient manuscripts. These texts not only record the lineages of kings but also the significant events and developments of their reigns. Some of the most significant ancient sources are:

Dipavamsa: compiled between the 3rd and 4th centuries CE, and the earliest known historical chronicle
Mahavamsa: Initially compiled by Mahanama Thero in the 5th or 6th century CE, this chronicle was later expanded upon by other authors who added additional chapters. Covers events up until the reign of King Mahasena of Anuradhapura
Culavamsa: Starts where the Mahavamsa stops and records the history of Sri Lankan rulers from the 4th century to 1815. Mahavamsa and Culavamsa are often seen as one extended chronicle, commonly referred to simply as the Mahavamsa.
Pujavaliya: Written by a monk in or around 1266 during the reign of King Panditha Parakrama Bahu of Dambadeniya Kingdom
Rajavaliya: A 17th-century historical chronicle of Sri Lanka, covering the history of the island from its beginnings up to the accession of King Vimaladharmasurya II in 1687.

References

Blaze, L. E. (2004). History of Ceylon. Asian Educational Services. (Original work published 1933)
Geiger, W., & Rickmers, C. M. (1929). Culavamsa: Being The More Recent Part Of The Mahavamsa: Vol. Part I–II. Pali Text Society.
Nicholas, C. W., & Paranavitana, S. (1961). A Concise History of Ceylon : From the Earliest Times to the Arrival of the Portuguese in 1505. University of Ceylon.
Paranavitana, S. (1959). History of Ceylon (University of Ceylon): Vol. 1 (part 1)–3. Ceylon University Press.
Suraweera, A. V. (2014). රාජාවලිය. Education Publication Department of Sri Lanka. (Original work published 1976)
Jayawardana, C. D. S. K. (1914). Sulu Rajawaliya : A Historical Narrative of the Dynasty of Sri Lankan Kings from Vijaya the first king of Ceylon to Sri Wickrama Rajasignha compiled by a LEARNED AUTHOR. (self-published). (Original work published during the reign of King Sri Wickrama Raja Singha)
Perera, K. M. (1893). දළදා පූජාවලිය (Dalada Pujawaliya). K.M. Perera.
Dharmakeerithi Thero, R. P. (1994). දාඨාවංස වනරත්න ව්‍යාක්‍යා (R. Vanarathna, Trans.). Samayawardhana Publishers.