Sri Lanka is a country with a proud history of over 2,500 years, resplendent with the equatorial natural beauty, vibrant culture and traditions and of course rich in a unique blend of arts and crafts. One of the best places you can witness the splendor of the country’s arts and crafts is at the ancient Golden Temple of Dambulla , a place of not only worship but also of artistic grandeur.
Located approximately 3 hours from the capital Colombo, in close proximity to the Kandy-Jaffna Highway in the Matale District, the Golden Temple of Dambulla or the Dambulla cave temple (Sinhala: දඹුලු ලෙන් විහාරය) is the largest and best-preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka. You can plan your expedition to the ancient temple with Sri Lanka Holiday Travel , one of the leading and experienced tour operators in Sri Lanka which will ensure that you will be able to not only enjoy your tour but also to gain a lot of insight into the historical importance of the temple.
The story of how the Golden Temple of Dambulla was created is most fascinating indeed. The great King Valagambahu sought refuge from the invading South Indians in these pre-historic caves and later converted them into a temple in thankful worship after reclaiming his capital. The temple through the years saw many additions to it by later kings, and became a major religious centre that is still functional and contains some of the crème de la crème of ancient Sri Lankan art and sculptor.
The Golden Temple of Dambulla is made up of 5 grottos filled with intricately detailed paintings and sculptors belonging to the Kandyan style which is said to be somewhat similar to ancient Egyptian art, as they both have similar characteristics. All the paintings and sculptors are dedicated to portraying the life of Lord Gautama Buddha.
The first cave of the temple is the Devaraja or “Cave of the Divine King and features a 14-meter statue of the Buddha carved straight out of the rock. The second and largest cave, the ‘Cave of the Great Kings’ in addition to containing 16 standing and 40 seated statues of the Buddha also has a bizarre spring dripping water from a crack in the ceiling, that is said to have special healing powers. At the other 3 caves, the “Cave of the Great Kings, the Cave of ‘ Western Temple’ and the Cave of ‘ Second New Temple’ you can see a vast amount of paintings and sculptors as well, such as the murals depicting the temptation by the demon Mara, and Buddha’s first sermon; the beautifully seated Buddha image with a Makara Torana and a 32-feet sculptor of the Buddha reclining.
Thanuja Silva is a travel writer who writes under the pen name Auburn Silver. She has a passion for fashion and a deep interest in admiring new and exotic attractions around the world. Google+
