Veheragalla Samudragiri Purana Viharaya in Mirissa

RATE THIS LOCATION : 1 Star

(2 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5)

Image House of Samudragiri Viharaya, Veheragalla, Mirissa
photo by Danushka Senadheera | Inspiring Moments

Veheragalla Samudragiri Viharaya features rare Kandyan-era murals representing the distinctive Matara low-country tradition. These well-preserved paintings depict Jātaka stories against deep red backgrounds, showcasing stylistic freedom through European-influenced costumes and complex floral motifs. This national heritage site offers tourists a unique, vivid glimpse into Sri Lanka’s coastal artistic evolution.

Veragalla Samudragiri Viharaya stands within a coconut grove close to the beaches of Mirissa and is therefore also commonly referred to as Mirissa Viharaya.

The early history of this temple is not well documented, though available evidence suggests that the site was already in existence during the eighteenth century. According to local folklore, a number of small shrines once stood in the area and were used by monks who travelled to Mirissa to perform their daily religious observances.

Veheragalla Samudragiri Viharaya has been declared a national heritage site due to the remarkable murals found in its image house, which date to the Kandyan era. The temple is particularly important as one of the few locations where murals representing the Matara tradition of low-country temple art have been preserved in relatively good condition.

During the period of the Kandyan Kingdom, the coastal regions of Sri Lanka were controlled by various European colonial powers. In these areas, local artists developed distinctive styles of temple painting by modifying the traditional Kandyan artistic conventions and incorporating influences from European art.

Within the Kandyan Kingdom itself, temple murals generally followed a strictly defined artistic formula with very little variation. In contrast, artists in the low country enjoyed greater creative freedom and introduced stylistic innovations into their work.

Murals of the Image House

The finest paintings of the temple are found in the image house, particularly on the exterior walls surrounding the inner chamber. The mural surface is divided into several horizontal strips. The uppermost band illustrates important episodes from the life of Prince Siddhartha, while the lower strips portray various Jātaka stories.

Among the Jātaka narratives depicted are Kanthiwadi Jātakaya, Sasa Jātakaya, Sāma Jātakaya, Kurudamma Jātakaya, and Devadamma Jātakaya. Of these, Kurudamma Jātakaya has been given particular prominence. The murals are painted against a deep red background, enhancing the visual richness of the compositions.

According to the well-known archaeologist Senaka Bandara, the paintings in the image house of Veheragalla Samudragiri Viharaya are especially distinctive because they clearly represent the low-country Matara style of temple art. Although many coastal temples constructed during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries show the influence of the European Rococo artistic style, this temple stands out as one of the few places where a substantial number of murals in the traditional Matara style remain well preserved.

Characteristics of the Matara Style

Traditional Kandyan murals usually employ a limited palette of carefully defined colors, with red commonly used as the background. In contrast, the Matara style employs a broader range of colors and often uses darker backgrounds, including black.

Another distinguishing feature is the treatment of decorative backgrounds. While Kandyan murals typically fill spaces with floral motifs alone, Matara paintings incorporate leaves and branches along with flowers. The costumes and headgear worn by the figures in these murals also differ from the Kandyan style and reveal subtle European artistic influence.

Interior Decorations

The inner chamber of the image house is accessed through three separate entrances. Each entrance is adorned with a sculpted makara thorana (dragon arch). One of these arches is carved around an image of Maitrī Bodhisattva. Inside the chamber, the walls are decorated with paintings depicting arahants, various deities, and scenes representing the heavens and hells.

Present Condition

Despite their historical and artistic value, many of these murals are reportedly under threat due to insufficient conservation efforts and lack of attention from responsible authorities. Without proper preservation measures, this important example of Sri Lanka’s low-country temple art tradition may face gradual deterioration.

Mirissa Veheragalla Samudragiri Purana Viharaya

Also See

Map of Veheragalla Samudragiri Purana Viharaya

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.