Bahirawakanda Temple

Sri Maha Bodhi Viharaya (Bahirawakanda Temple) is a Theravada Buddhist temple in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is located in Bahirawakanda, about 2 kilometres from the city centre. The temple is famous for its massive Buddha statue. The Buddha statue is depicted in the Dhyana Mudra, the meditation posture associated with his first enlightenment, and can be seen from almost anywhere in Kandy. It is one of the tallest Buddha statues in Sri Lanka, standing at 26.83 m (88.0 ft).

In the early 1970s, the Minister of Lands, Hector Kobbekaduwa, donated land to Ven. Ampitiye Dammarama Thero, an Amarapura Nikaya monk. Dammarama initially lived in a makeshift dwelling while raising funds for the temple’s construction. The senior monks of the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic) were opposed to the temple, claiming it would overshadow the Siyam Nikaya’s centre. In the 1980s, Hinatiyana Dhammaloka, the chief monk of the Amarapura Nikaya, successfully petitioned President Ranasinghe Premadasa to intervene and legally grant Dammarama the land.

Dammarama began construction on a Buddha statue in the late 1980s, and the statue was finished in 1992. President Ranasinghe Premadasa declared it open on January 1, 1993.

Folklore of Bahirawakanda

Many legends surround Bahirawakanda, which translates to “gnome mountain,” and how this statue came to be. Two of these stories stand out.

The first mentions an ancient temple dedicated to the primitive god of protection, Bahiravar, which was built during the reign of the Nayakkar Kings. In the past, the standard methods of worship for this god frequently involved animal sacrifice; however, human sacrifice was never involved. However, for some reason, this practice appears to have become twisted during the localisation process, and the priests of this temple threatened the god’s wrath unless hundreds of virgin women were sacrificed in a timely manner.

The region’s naive people sacrificed a large number of girls and lived in fear of the god’s wrath. This came to an end, however, when the Chief of the Royal Mahouts’ fiance was taken for sacrifice. The man, Dunuwilla Gajanayake Nilame, used his power in the palace and bravery to get her released, causing such a commotion that the sacrificing ritual was broken. This signalled the end of the people’s fear and superstition, and the temple was eventually abandoned.

Another legend tells how the hill came to be known as ‘Gnome Mountain’ or ‘Devil’s Hill.’ According to legend, there was a time when the mountain made strange noises and engulfed the people who lived nearby in terror. They suspected it was the work of an evil gnome and sought a way to appease it. Meanwhile, an actual gnome had infiltrated the palace and taken the place of one of the ministers, unbeknownst to anyone. Recognizing an opportunity, the’minister’ advised the king that if a beautiful virgin was sacrificed every year, the gnome would be appeased, and thus a new superstition was born.

But then, one year, the nominated sacrifice was the fake minister’s own son’s lover. The villagers kidnapped her at night, took her to the hill, and abandoned her there. In the morning, the minister’s son discovered this and immediately set out to rescue her. He defeated the gnome, his father, who had come for his own devious purposes and returned to the village. When the cunning son quickly made a gnome sound, the alarmed and fearful people began to wonder if the rescue of the sacrifice had enraged the gnome (after all he was a gnome too, being the son of the original gnome). The people took this to mean that the sacrifice was accepted, and the couple left the village that night rather than risk being discovered.

It is now a well-known tourist destination. and a very famous Instagrammable place.