Heritage

Western Monastery ‘B’ of Ancient Anuradhapura (අනුරාධපුර බටහිර ආරාමය B)

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Ruins of the Western Monastery 'B' of Ancient Anuradhapura — Ruins of the Western Monastery ‘B’ of Ancient Anuradhapura

A special type of vihara complexes are found western and northwestern suburbs of the city of ancient Anuradhapura. They are variously referred to as ‘Outer Circular Road Palaces‘, ‘Western Ruins‘ or ‘Western Monasteries‘, ‘Double-platform buildings‘, ‘Tapovana Monasteries‘, ‘Padhanagara Monasteries‘ etc., The distinctive feature of these buildings are that their central structure is made up of 2 segments, a prasada and a malaka connected through a narrow passage.

Padhanaghara monasteries found west of Anuradhapura Ancient City are identified as

Padhanaghara Complexes were used by the meditating monks and are located away from the cities and human settlements. Padhanaghara are built on a unique architectural style with a moat surrounding them. Quite often these structures were built as twin structures on a rocky outcrop surrounded by the moat. Sometimes there are waterways even inside the moat underneath the buildings such as this building complex.

The concealed Western Monastery “B” lies nestled amidst contemporary residences and overgrown shrub jungles in Anuradhapura. Its secluded location makes it unlikely for any pilgrim to discover or explore. While some restoration efforts have been made in the past to revive parts of the main Padhanaghara complex, a significant portion of the area is currently dominated by shrub jungle, having fallen into disuse.

Little further back this road lies the site identified as Western Monastery “A”.

Plan of the Western Monastery 'B' of Ancient Anuradhapura — Plan of the Western Monastery ‘B’ of Ancient Anuradhapura

References

Bandaranayake, S., 1974. Sinhalese Monastic Architecture – The Viharas of Anuradhapura. Leiden: Brill.

Also See

Anuradhapura – The city of the God King

Map of Western Monastery ‘B’ of Ancient Anuradhapura

Please click on the button below to load the Dynamic Google Map (ගූගල් සිතියම් පහලින්)

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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

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Driving Directions to Anuradhapura (Western Monastery ‘B’)

Colombo to Anuradhapura By Bus

Anuradhapura is easily reached by bus, train or private transport. Air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned buses start at the Colombo Fort Main Bus Station. There are luxury busses which start from various places in Colomb travelling past Anuradhapura, to Vavuniya and Jaffna. However, you need to search the web and book a seat. These luxury buses mostly travel at night reaching their final destination early in the morning.

Colombo to Anuradhapura By Train

5 daily trains are starting from Fort Railway Station to Anuradhapura. Generally, the first train leaves at 9.40 am and the last train at 8.30 pm. Travel time is 4-5 hours depending on the number of stops of the particular train.

Colombo to Anuradhapura By Car or Van

Anuradhapura can be reached through many routes from Colombo. The two main routes are through Puttalam (Puttalama) and through Kurunegala. Travelling from Puttalam, you will pass the scenic Wilpattu area. There are two main routes to Anuradhapura from Kurunegala. 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 Anuradhapura	Route 02 from Colombo to Anuradhapura
Through : Negombo – Chilaw – Puttalam Distance from Colombo : 210 km Travel time : 4.30- 5.00 hours Driving Directions : see on Google map	Through : Katunayake Expressway – Central Expressway – Kurunegala – Dambulla Distance from Colombo : 223 km Travel Time : 4.30- 5.00 hours Driving Directions : see on Google maps
Route 03 from Colombo to Anuradhapura	Route from Kandy to Anuradhapura
Through : Katunayake Expressway – Narammala – Wariyapola – Padeniya – Thambuthegama Distance from Colombo :203 km Travel Time : 4.30- 5.00 hours Driving Directions : see on Google map	Through : Katugastota – Matale – Dambulla Distance from Colombo :136 km Travel Time : 3.5 hours Driving Directions : see on Google map

Route from Anuradhapura Railway Station to Western Monastery ‘B’

Distance : 5 kilometers
Travel time : 15 minutes
Driving directions : see on google map

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