About 2 hours north of Kandy is the town of Dambulla wherein lies the Dambulla Caves. The cave temple is said to have been a place of refuge in the 1st century BC by King Valagamba who was hiding away from the invading army at the time. The site has been undergoing renovations since then as is apparent by the brand new gargantuan Buddha that greets visitors upon entry.
It is quite a climb to the top especially in the sweltering Sri Lankan heat. But, alas, we finally made it and saw before us the striking colonnaded structure built out of the large boulder.
The site consists of 5 caves and a few smaller niches for the devales (this one is to the god Kataragama who can be recognized by his signature peacock).
Each cave is elaborately painted from ceiling to floor and is filled with sitting Buddhas, lying Buddhas, meditating Buddhas, well over 2,000 images of Buddhas in total.
Next stop on the Ancient Cities tour, Sigiriya
Comments