Aluvihare rock temple vehicle park, Sri Lanka.

Disabled veteran, selling sweep tickets.

Aluvihare, Sri Lanka.

Aluvihare rock temple, Sri Lanka.

On the A9 road from Mathale

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Aluvihare

Aluvihare Rock Temple

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aluvihare Rock Temple මාතලේ අලුවිහාරය
The main entrance of the Aluvihare Rock Temple
Basic information
Location	Aluvihare, Sri Lanka
Geographic coordinates	07°29′49.9″N 80°37′18.7″ECoordinates: 07°29′49.9″N 80°37′18.7″E
Affiliation	Buddhism
District	Matale
Province	Central Province
Heritage designation	Archaeological protected monument[1] (11 October 1974)
Architectural description
Architectural type	Buddhist Temple

The Aluvihare Rock Temple (also called Matale Alu Viharaya) is a sacred Buddhist temple located in Aluvihare, Matale District of Sri Lanka.^[2] Surrounded by hills, the Aluvihara cave temple is situated 30 km north of Kandy on the Matale-Dambulla road. The history of Aluvihare Rock Temple is traced back to the 3rd Century B.C to the reign of King Devanampiyatissa. It is believed that the King built the dagoba, planted the Bo sapling and founded the temple after the introduction of Buddhism to the country during his reign.

Aluvihare Rock Temple was the historic location where the Pāli Canon was first written down completely in text on ola (palm) leaves.^[3] Many monastery caves, some of which exhibit frescoes are situated near this temple.^[4]

Contents

  [hide] 

• 1History and significance
• 2Etymology
• 3Images
• 4See also
• 5References

Katugasthota town, Sri Lanka.

The Mahaweli Ganga

Bats sleeping at daytime

Approaching the Katugasthota bridge from Kandy, Sri Lanka

The old bridge - black in color behind the new concrete bridge.