Sigiriya

Sigiriya (Lion's rock) is an ancient rock fortress and palace ruin situated in the central Matale District of Sri Lanka, surrounded by the remains of an extensive network of gardens, reservoirs, and other structures. A popular tourist destination, Sigiriya is also renowned for its ancient paintings (frescos), which are reminiscent of the Ajanta Caves of India. The Sigiriya was built during the reign of King Kassapa I (AD 477 – 495), and it is one of the seven World Heritage Sites of Sri Lanka.

Sigiriya may have been inhabited through prehistoric times. It was used as a rock-shelter mountain monastery from about the 5th century BC, with caves prepared and donated by devotees to the Buddhist Sangha. According to the chronicles as Mahavamsa the entire complex was built by King Kasyapa, and after the king's death, it was used as a Buddhist monastery until 14th century.

History

In 477 CE, prince Kasyapa seized the throne from King Dhatusena, following a coup assisted by migara, the king’s nephew and army commander. Kasyapa, the king’s son by a non-royal consort, usurped the rightful heir, Moggallana, who fled to South India. Fearing an attack from Moggallana, Kasyapa moved the capital and his residence from the traditional capital of Anuradhapura to the more secure Sigiriya. During King Kasyapa’s reign (477 to 495), Sigiriya was developed into a complex city and fortress. Most of the elaborate constructions on the rock summit and around it, including defensive structures, palaces and gardens, date back to this period.

kashyapa was defeated in 495 by Moggallana, who moved the capital again to Anuradhapura. Sigiriya was then turned back into a Buddhist monastery, which lasted until the thirteenth or fourteenth century. After this period, no records are found on Sigirya until the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when it was used as an outpost of the Kingdom of Kandy. When the kingdom ended, it was abandoned again.

The Mahavamsa, the ancient historical record of Sri Lanka, describes King Kasyapa as the son of King Dhatusena. Kasyapa murdered his father by walling him alive and then usurping the throne which rightfully belonged to his brother Mogallana, Dhatusena's son by the true queen. Mogallana fled to India to escape being assassinated by Kasyapa but vowed revenge. In India he raised an army with the intention of returning and retaking the throne of Sri Lanka which he considered was rightfully his. Knowing the inevitable return of Mogallana, Kasyapa is said to have built his palace on the summit of Sigiriya as a fortress and pleasure palace. Mogallana finally arrived and declared war. During the battle Kasyapa's armies abandoned him and he committed suicide by falling on his sword.

Chronicles and lore say that the battle-elephant on which Kasyapa was mounted changed course to take a strategic advantage, but the army misinterpreted the movement as the King having opted to retreat, prompting the army to abandon the king altogether. It is said that being too proud to be surrendered he took his dagger from the waist band, cut his throat, raised the dagger proudly, sheathed it and fell dead.[citation needed] Moggallana returned the capital to Anuradapura, converting Sigiriya into a monastery complex.

Alternative stories have the primary builder of Sigiriya as King Dhatusena, with Kasyapa finishing the work in honour of his father. Still other stories have Kasyapa as a playboy king, with Sigiriya a pleasure palace. Even Kasyapa's eventual fate is mutable. In some versions he is assassinated by poison administered by a concubine. In others he cuts his own throat when isolated in his final battle. Still further interpretations have the site as the work of a Buddhist community, with no military function at all. This site may have been important in the competition between the Mahayana and Theravada Buddhist traditions in ancient Sri Lanka.

The earliest evidence of human habitation at Sigiriya was found from the Aligala rock shelter to the east of Sigiriya rock, indicating that the area was occupied nearly five thousand years ago during the mesolithic period.

Buddhist monastic settlements were established in the western and northern slopes of the boulder-strewn hills surrounding the Sigiriya rock, during the third century B.C. Several rock shelters or caves had been created during this period. These shelters were made under large boulders, with carved drip ledges around the cave mouths. Rock inscriptions are carved near the drip ledges on many of the shelters, recording the donation of the shelters to the Buddhist monastic order as residences. These have been made within the period between the third century B.C and the first century CE.

Location

The centre is located on the border of the Muthurajawela Sanctuary, famous for it's large number of animals and plants. Take the highway from Colombo to Negombo, and turn west (seaward) at the Thudalla junction, 1km north of 100m, just after crossing the old Dutch Canal, a signboard on your right hand shows you the approach road to the centre. The distance to Colombo is 20km, to Negombo 15km.       

Things to see

Sigiriya sanctuary is situated in the District of Matale in the Central province, 183 km from Colombo.
Situated in the middle of the country, famous cultural Triangle of Sri Lanka – it already draws millions of local and thousands of foreign tourists, and potential of increased tourist arrivals.

The frescos belong to 5^th Century.

The 400 foot high rock (Lion Hill) was the fortress of the King Kasyappa- the God King of Sigiriya, A.D.479- 497. In a sheltered pocket on a side of the rock are home of the world famous frescos of heavenly maidens.

Mirror wall

The term Mirror Wall is an attempt at translating the word used by the ancient writers. They used the term Kat Bitha for this wall enclosing a walk or gallery leading up to the Lion Staircase.According to the Sigiri Graffity; The lime plaster of the brick masonry wall had been so highly polished, that it had reflected the paintings on the opposite rock wall. Today, fifteen centuries later, the shine on this wall can still be seen.

Graffiti

A total of nearly 1500 writings have now been deciphered. The first study and publication was by Prof. Senerat Paranavitana which itself is a masterpiece of the literary, social and creative activities of the period, the earliest recorded poetry found in Sri Lanka.

Since Sigiriya was abandoned after Kasyapa's death, visitors had been attracted to it from around the 6th century till about the 13th century.

They had come to see the paintings and the palace on the summit and the garden below, even as they do today. Inspired by the wonder they saw, they transferred their thoughts into poetry, which they wrote on the Mirror Wall.

THE GARDENS

The Gardens of the Sigiriya city is one of the most important aspects of the site as it is among the oldest landscaped gardens in the world. The gardens are divided into three distinct but linked forms; water gardens, Cave and boulder gardens, and terraced gardens.

The water gardens

The water gardens can be seen in the central section of the western precinct. Three principal gardens are found here. The first garden consists of an island surrounded by water. It is connected to the main precinct using four causeways, with gateways placed at the head of each causeway. This garden is built according to an ancient garden form known as char bhag, and is one of the oldest surviving models of this forms.

The second contains two long, deep pools set on either side of the path. Two shallow, serpentine streams lead to these pools. Fountains made of circular limestone plates are placed here. Underground water conduits supply water to these fountains which are still functional, especially during the rainy season. Two large islands are located on either side of the second water garden. Summer palaces are built on the flattened surfaces of these islands. Two more islands are located further to the north and the south. These islands are built in a similar manner to the Island in the first water garden.

The third garden is situated on a higher level than the other two. It contains a large, octagonal pool with a raised podium on its northeast corner. The large brick and stone wall of the citadel is on the eastern edge of this garden.

The water gardens are built symmetrically on an east-west axis. They are connected with the outer moat on the west and the large artificial lake to the south of the Sigiriya rock. All the pools are also interlinked using an underground conduit network fed by the lake, and connected to the moats. A miniature water garden is located to the west of the first water garden, consisting several small pools and water courses. This recently discovered smaller garden appears to have been built after the Kasyapan period, possibly between the tenth and thirteenth centuries.

The terraced gardens

The terraced gardens are formed from the natural hill at the base of the Sigiriya rock. A series of terraces, each rising above the other, connect the pathways of the boulder garden to the staircases on the rock. These have been created by the construction of brick walls, and are located in a roughly concentric plan around the rock. The path through the terraced gardens is formed by a limestone staircase. From this staircase, there is a covered path on the side of the rock, leading to the uppermost terrace where the lion staircase is situated.