Learn about the fascinating history of the Kithsrimevan Kelani Raja Maha Vihara where the Buddha’s bathing robe is believed to be enshrined in the dagaba known as ‘Sivru dagaba’. Although many visitors come to worship the most sacred historical Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara from every corner of the country, a few visitors mostly from the neighbourhood of Kelaniya know there is another historical temple close by. Even I didn’t know such a temple close to the Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara until a villager informed me.
It is the historical Kithsirimevan Kelani Raja Maha Vihara or Egoda Kelaniya pansala as villagers know it. After visiting the Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara last week, I stepped down under a magnificent white-painted archway and moved towards a shady tree in the lower terrace in search of an elderly villager who promised to keep my shoes until I returned from the temple. The ‘Sivru dagaba’ of the Kithsirimevan Kelani Raja Maha Vihara, lies on the bank of the Kelani Ganga While I was taking leave from him, he inquired, “Mahattaya Egoda Kelaniya pansalata yanne nedda? ‘Sivrugala’ ethana thiyenawa, Ekath Balanna”.
(Sir, why don’t you visit the Egoda Kelaniya temple? ‘Sivrugala’ is over there). He showed me the way to the temple on the opposite bank of the Kelani Ganga from the main Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara. The villagers refer to this temple as the Egoda Kelani Vihara.
The glistening white-washed dagaba of this Vihara stands majestically against the cle.
