Polonnaruwa Lankatilaka Vihara, Sri Lanka

Address

Polonnaruwa Lankatilaka Vihara Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka

Diety

Buddha

Introduction

Lankatilaka Vihara temple of the Buddha situated in the ancient city of Polonnaruwa in North Central Province, Sri Lanka. It was fashioned in the 12th century by Parakramabahu I. Lankatilaka Vihara is one of the most emblematic structures of the ancient kingdom of Polonnaruwa. Two great walls, each with a thickness of 4m & a height of 17m form a narrow aisle leading to a very impressive, though now sadly headless Buddha statue still standing, over 14m high. Built by King Parakrabahu the great, the shrine is a definite deviation in terms of Buddhist architecture: instead of the abstract symbolism of the stupa (dagoba) the attention is focused on the giant figure of the Buddha, which fill up the entire space within the shrine. The intriguing bas reliefs (low reliefs) on the exterior walls are horizontally divided into elaborate five floors most possibly representing the Vimana (adobe) of the gods.