Dambulla Stupa

The Golden Temple at Dambulla, twelve miles from Sigirya, ranks among one of the oldest Buddhist shrines in Sri Lanka. With a history that goes back as far as the 3rd century B.C.E., Dambulla itself consists of two areas, a lower portion featuring a stupa, and a temple located 350 feet above. This temple is composed of five caves which have been converted into shrine rooms. Within these rooms is housed a collection of one hundred fifty statues of the Buddhist order and which reflect the countriy's rich religious history. These statues and paintings are representative of many epoch of Sinhala sculpture and art. When we last visited Dambulla in 1998, the lower level consisted simply of the large stupa, shown in the photo to the left. When we returned in 2003, much had changed. For one thing, a large parking lot now stands behind the stupa (photo to the right) and, even more surprising is the huge building that now stands next to the stairs leading up to the Dambulla Caves. As you can tell by the photo at the lower left, it is a huge extravanganza, containing shops, ticket sales and a small museum. The four-story structure is crowned by an enormous Buddha, flanked by two towers. And the volume of tourists has grown tremendously, an encouraging sign that people are returning to visit after years of unrest. It is a strangely disconcerting and incongruous site, with this serene centuries-old stupa utterly dominated by a bewildering theme-park style building. It is also a marked contrast to the experience that awaits visitors 350 feet above.

 

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