|
|
 |
Kelaniya Royal Temple (Kelaniya Raja maha Viharaya), Sri Lanka
City
The city of Kelaniya was the capital city of King Kelanitissa, a
scion of the dynasty of King Devanam Piya Tissa (third century
B.C.) of Anuradhapura. The royal family
of Magama in the south was connected to the royalty of Kalyani by the
marriage of King Kavantissa of Magama to Vihara Maha Devi, the daughter
of Kelanitissa. It was this matrimony that resulted in the birth of King
Dutugamunu (second century B.C.) of Ruhuna, the hero of the nation,
during whose period Sri Lanka enjoyed a golden era, both politically and
culturally.
Annual pageant
The glorious pageant called Navam Perahara in January, second in
splendour only to the famous Kandy Esala Perahera pageant in August, is
held annually in celebration of the event of Buddha's visit.
Kelaniya Royal Temple
Kelaniya Royal Temple, Sri Lanka, 10km east of Colombo in Colombo-Kandy
Road is one of the most sacred, most beautiful, largest temples of Sri
Lanka. The temple stands majestically on a higher plain of the west bank
overlooking River Kelani (Kalyana) that flows right in front.
History of the Kelaniya Royal Temple
The temple of endless beauty is of long history. The fascinating history
of Kelaniya goes back to pre-Christian times. The city was connected
with the epic of Ramayana in that Kelaniya's Prince Vibhisana was
befriended by Lord Rama of India in his battle against King Ravana of
Lanka. A younger brother of Ravana, Vibhisana, like his brother,
propitiated Brahma, and obtained a boon in return of a vow. The vow was
that he would never commit an unworthy action even in the greatest
extremity. Then when the payback time crashlanded, the testing encounter
took flight, he had to make his stand against his own land & his own
brother.
The chronicles, Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa, record in detail the story of
the Buddha's visit to Kelaniya on the eighth year after his
Enlightenment, on a Wesak day, on the invitation of the Naga King
Maniakkhika. Following the expounding of the Dhamma (Buddhism) by
Buddha, Kelaniya Royal Temple was build by the king. The jewelled
throne, on which the Buddha sat while preaching, Buddha's hair, the
utensils used in the past are said to have been enshrined in the stupa
at the Kelaniya temple. Kelaniya Vihara however, received its hallowed
status and became a place of Buddhist worship after Arhath (supremely
enlightened) Mahinda brought the Dhamma to the island.
Kelaniya has remained important in all historical periods, especially in
the fifteenth century under the reign of Parakramabahu the 4th
(1351A.D.) and his successors. In the years 1424 and 1475, Kelaniya was
visited by Buddhist monks of Cambodia, Thailand and Burma. After that it
remained an important religious centre through the centuries and
underwent successive developments. The temple was destroyed by marauding
Dravidian invaders from South India. But then, restored by the Sinhalese
kings.
Laid waste by the Portuguese
Laid waste again by the Portuguese in the 15th Century, the
reconstruction of the Vihara was carried out in the patronage of King
Kirthi Sri Rajasingha (1746-1778) under the supervision of then Chief
incumbent Venerable Mapitigama Buddharakkhita during time the Dutch held
sway in the western coastal belt of the island. The paintings of the old
shrines are dated to the middle of the nineteenth century by the
inscription in a medallion decorating the space within the makara-torana
(dragon arch) on the facade of the sanctum. It gives the date as 1851
AD. The style of the paintings corroborates this date.
Development during the first half of the twentieth century
The shrine has undergone further development during the first half of
the twentieth century in the patronage of Mrs. Helena Wijewardana &
under the supervision of then Chief incumbent (Viharadhipathi) venerable
Mapitigama Dharmarakkhita thera. A new shrine of great beauty was built.
The new shrine, together with an additional wing to the old shrine, has
been painted entirely with a completely new style of the old idiom that
remains unrivalled. Mrs. Wijewardana was able to get the services of one
of the greatest painters of the era to do the renovation. Illustrious
Solius Mendis, the highly respected master painter of neo-classical
tradition of Sri Lanka, brought the ancient paintings to its original
glory by using paints that he himself had made from organic materials.
The renovation work took 20 years to complete.
The Stupa of the Temple Complex
The stupa of Kelaniya is architecturally important in that its dome
retains to this day and apparently its original form was known as
dhanyagara (heap of paddy) shape.
The shrine of the Temple Complex
Today the large temple complex consists of Stupa, old shrine, a new wing
to old shrine, new shrine & monk's residence is of highest order. The
art therein, old series of painting at the old shrine, classical
paintings of the new shrine, an array of recumbent carved statues of
Buddha, a series of status of deities, makara torana (Dragon Arches),
Sinha Makara torana (Lion dragon arches) is testimony to the Buddhist
culture in the Low country of Sri Lanka. The portrayal of Lord Hanuman
among these deities is an unusual feature, apparently based on the
association of Kelaniya with the epic Ramayana through Vibhisana, the
tutelary deity of the city.
The older paintings of Kelaniya belong to the low-country idiom of the
Sittara art tradition of the nineteenth century. The selection of the
themes also conforms to the general pattern found at the shrines of the
same period. The arrangement of the paintings in the sanctum, with its
emphasis on the presence of important divinities attending on the
Buddha, however, is known only at a very few other shrines, of the
island. The exaltation of the Naga king Maniakkhika, the special
emphasis given to the Buddha's visit to Kalyani, represent the unique
features of Kelaniya, inspired by the history of the city.
The new paintings of the Kelaniya Rajamahavihara are without comparison,
as these have been the creation of one single artist, Illustrious Solius
Mendis of the twentieth century. However, the inspiration gained by the
artist through his studies of ancient Indian and Sinhalese painting is
quite apparent. The flying divinities in the Sumanakuta scene remind one
of the flying celestials of famous Ajanta frescoes at Ajanta caves (WHS)
in Aurangabad district, state of Maharashtra in India. The graceful bust
of Hemamala with elegantly arranged coiffure draws its inspiration from
the fastidious celestial nymphs at the
Lion Rock citadel (Sigiriya) The
thin diaphanous texture of the apparel and the smooth tonal built-up of colours, are obviously inspired by the Bengali school of painting
mastered by Rabanindranath Tagore. The scenes of the Buddha's descent
from heaven as well as the assembly of gods at the Tivanka pilimage at
Polonnaruwa seem to have influenced the portrayal of the Buddha and the
divinities. Above all, the divine and royal personages worshipping the
Buddha, clasping their outstretched hands in various postures, are
suggestive of the artist's study of the second-century Andhra sculptures
portraying vivacious ladies venerating the Buddha in various scenes.
The ceiling of the vestibule of the old shrine has been devoted to the
themes dealing with cosmology. It contains seven panels, bordered by
scroll and garland motifs. Four of these depict the Tree of Life, each
differing from the other in the delineation of the tree and the
environs, and yet each symbolizing the axis of the Universe where life
of all kinds originated. The other three panels contain three schematic
cosmological diagrams, consisting of
-
the
twelve signs of the Zodiac that mark the twelve phases of the
annual cyclic movement of the sun,
-
the
nine divine guardians of the world directions, conceived of as
identical with the nine planets that rule man's life from day to day,
and
-
the
ten incarnations of Vishnu which are associated with the cyclic
evolution of the world, namely, its creation, destruction and
re-creation.
The ceiling space was obviously conceived of as the vault of Heaven in
which the sun, the moon, the constellations and the planets rotate.
Nevertheless, there could have been another consideration behind the
installation of such diagrams in religious edifices. According to
ancient practice, such an act would have transformed the structures into
the axis of the Universe, the place of origin, and the consecrated abode
for the Supreme Lord of the Faith. And, vice versa, by the very act of
incorporating cosmological diagrams in the Buddha shrines, the entire
cosmos and all the divine powers that rule the world and the destiny of
mankind would come under the auspicious influences and the benevolent
protection of the Buddha.
|
|
 |
 |
|
click
on photo to enlarge |
|
