Situlpawwa temple, rock and the Monastry

It is situated in Hambanthota District 18km away from Kataragama. We had to take Kirinda Situlpawwa road which runs through the Yala national park to reach Situlpawwa where the road is famous for elephant attacks. More than elephants, people are now scared of leopards. We found that the two dogs were missing from the Situlpawwa temple due to leopard attacks few days before our arrival. We were surprised by a huge wild pig at the car park which looked like a tamed one.

This is an  ancient monastery with a history over 2200 years. It was built by the king kawantissa as a center of Buddhist education for Buddhist monks. Paintings of the Anuradhapura era and the ruins of stone Buddha statues, Bodhisattva statues and many other ruins can be found within the monastery premises.

Situlpawwa rock

Situlpawwa Dagaba

Ruins of the Monastry

Situlpawwa temple

Statues of the Bhodhi sathwa

Statues of the saptha mudra (the seven gestures of the lord Buddha)