Anuradhapura was Sri Lanka’s first capital, founded in the 4th century BCE by King Pandukabhaya. It is considered the first city in the country to have embraced Buddhism. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage site, home to massive ancient stupas, vast archaeological ruins, and a sacred tree.
Anuradhapura deserves more time than (for several reasons) we were able to give it. We’d planned a morning here before catching a train to Jaffna, but just a couple of days before we learned that the train line was completely closed for major works, so we would have to travel by road instead. Our driver/guide Champi wanted to allow plenty of time for the long drive so our time in Anuradhapura was curtailed.
In addition, it was a hot and humid morning, so in one way I wasn’t too sorry that after visiting two of the sights here, and taking a brief look at a third, we returned to our air-conditioned car and hit the road. The heat also limited the amount of walking around that we did here, but I hope this will nevertheless pass muster as a Monday Walk!
Isurumuniya Rock Temple
This complex dates back to around 300 BCE and was built by King Devanampiya as a residence for about 500 high caste children who had recently been ordained. The cave holds a large reclining Buddha, carved directly from the rock, and many small ones. The walls are painted with scenes from Buddhist religious stories and teachings, especially the Buddha’s life. Permission is needed to take photos, which Champi was quick to secure for me.
Inside the cave temple
A small museum at the site has a number of bas-reliefs from the Anuradhapura period, though precisely where they were discovered is uncertain, as they were moved here some time ago. One of the most famous is the so-called Lovers which a sign dated to the 4th-6th centuries AD. This:
depicts a seated woman (foreground) in front of a man seated behind her who is carrying a sword on his back and a ‘sacred thread’ (yagnopavita) across his left shoulder. Early scholars identified the duo as Saliya and Asokamala.
Source: https://www.orientalarchitecture.com/sid/1877/sri-lanka/anuradhapura/isurumuniya-viharaya
Prince Saliya was the son of King Dutugemunu who fell in love with a low caste maiden, Asokamala, and gave up the throne for her. However the same source continues:
However, as the hilt of the sword, which is the only visible part, is surrounded by a nimbus of flame, the male figure is almost certainly Manjusri, a Bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. Still, it is strange that the Bodhisattva is shown in the company of a woman.
Source: https://www.orientalarchitecture.com/sid/1877/sri-lanka/anuradhapura/isurumuniya-viharaya
To the right of the entrance to the temple is another carving, showing a seated man with the head of a horse behind him. This is thought to be Parjanya, the god of rain, and the horse Agni, the lightning that accompanies the rains. Below it at the water’s edge is a carving depicting four bathing elephants, dating from the 7th century AD (just visible in my feature image).
Carving of Parjanya with visiting monks
We also climbed the rock above the temple which although not high I found a challenge as we’d had to remove our shoes to visit and the ground was painfully gritty. The stupa here is much newer than the temple below but there are good views of some of the other sites in Anuradhapura.
Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi
The Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi is more than 2,300 years old and said to be the oldest human-planted tree in the world with a known planting date and a recorded history. It was grown from a cutting of the Bo tree under which the Buddha received enlightenment. The cutting was brought to Sri Lanka from India in 236 BC by a Buddhist nun, Sangamitta Maha Theri. Later in our trip we were to see the spot, at the northern tip of the island near Jaffna, where the cutting is believed to have come ashore.
The tree sits on a high terrace, surrounded by other Bo trees for protection. It isn’t permitted to climb to this top terrace as the tree has suffered from vandalism in the past. There was also a horrific terrorist attack by a Tamil group in 1985 in which 146 people were killed.
Today it is a more peaceful but very busy shrine. As it was a Saturday when we visited it was crowded with local pilgrims, far outnumbering tourists. Champi bought lotus flowers for us to offer inside the temple, which was a nice gesture. We went barefoot on the hot and sometimes stony ground, as is required at all Sri Lanka temples (both Buddhist and Hindu).
Pilgrims and offerings at Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi
By this point in our trip we were realising that Champi, while a lovely guy and excellent driver, was not properly equipped to be a guide, in this part of the country at least. We were to raise this a few days later with our tour company and get more thorough guiding at subsequent sites. I’m conscious that as a result we missed seeing several significant sights here, and also saw some whose significance I didn’t appreciate until later and therefore omitted to photograph.
Thuparamaya Dagoba
Dagoba is the word used in Sri Lanka for a stupa although I heard the latter term used a lot too. This particular dagoba is rather special, but we only had time for a brief look from the road while Champi fetched the car.
Thuparamaya is revered as the oldest dagoba in Sri Lanka, built in the 3rd century BCE. It is believed that a monk, Mahinda, visited the country from India, met the king, King Devanampiyatissa, at nearby Mihintale and converted him. At Mahinda’s request King Devanampiyatissa built Thuparamaya in which was enshrined the right collarbone of the Buddha.
What we see today however is not that 3rd century BCE original as it has been destroyed several times. The current dagoba dates from 1862 AD.
On another of our days in this area we visited the complex at Mihintale, where Buddhism was very first introduced to Sri Lanka, but I’ll save that for a future post.
I visited Sri Lanka in February 2026
40 Comments
Marie
We loved it there – got bikes and cycled between the sites. And I’ve always remembered the name – mainly because it took an effort to get right – don’t ask me to remember places with with just a few letters!
Sarah Wilkie
Gosh, there’s no way I would have wanted to cycle in the temperatures we had there – I was melting just walking around! I know what you mean about the name though 😀
grandmisadventures
beautiful pictures- I especially love the cave temple with all the color
Sarah Wilkie
Many thanks Meg 😊 We were to visit much larger and older cave temples later in the trip, which I’ll share some time soon, but this one was one of the most colourful.
Teresa
So many interesting spots. Where to mext?
Sarah Wilkie
Budapest for a long weekend later this month 🙂 I know you’ve been and liked it!
equinoxio21
You have been around. Did you go to Sigirya?
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, and an account will come in due course (I’m working through the trip in rough order). I didn’t attempt the rock climb, given the state of my knees, but my husband did 🙂
equinoxio21
Oh. Sorry about your knees. Is it quite a bother?
Sarah Wilkie
No, not for normal daily life. But they would protest at that many steps, especially coming down – Dambulla was more than enough!
equinoxio21
Going down is always harder than up. Ask my Mont-Blanc friends…
the eternal traveller
We find there are always compromises when we’re travelling with a guide or in a group instead of our preferred independent travel. But there are occasions when guided touring is the best way to go and we just have to accept that, as you did. I think you did well to see as much as you did under the circumstances of a very interesting location. The history is quite fascinating.
Sarah Wilkie
We don’t really like group tours and only do them when there’s no alternative, as in North Korea. But we do like to have a guide when visiting historic sites. A good one can really bring a place to life in a way that reading a guidebook just can’t do imho 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the history here!
the eternal traveller
Absolutely. We had an excellent guide for a walking tour in Split last year. She gave us a great morning.
rkrontheroad
I haven’t been to Sri Lanka but I find myself thinking about Buddhist sites I’ve visited in Thailand and India. So fascinating. You were able to see a lot in that short time. And hiking in bare feet?!
Sarah Wilkie
It was fascinating, though would have been even more so with more detailed guiding. And no, not hiking – more strolling around and (in my case) going ‘ooh, ouch’ at regular intervals 😆
Brenda's Thoughts
After ten years in India, I understand the kind of heat you are talking about. I enjoyed your tour! Your photos are interesting and beautiful. I do enjoy photos of the people in a place but am always hesitant to take them. Gorgeous flowers!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Brenda 😊 In some places I hesitate to take candid shots (though it’s rare that I don’t take any as I feel it adds so much to build a picture of a country) but in Sri Lanka, like India, I found people very happy to be photographed.
Rose
This an interesting, bright, and brilliant gallery. The lotus flower offering is lovely.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Rose 😊 Those purple lotus flowers are everywhere in Sri Lanka – we were told it’s their national flower.
EgÃdio
Wow! Beautiful gallery!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Egidio 🙂
margaret21
Oh my goodness, you somehow crammed a lot in. I guess it’s on the ‘must re-visit’ list if possible?
Sarah Wilkie
It didn’t feel as if we’d crammed a lot in here, given how much we didn’t see! No, I doubt we’ll go back – we enjoyed this trip but left feeling that we’d seen enough of Sri Lanka even if we hadn’t seen everything.
margaret21
It’s funny how some places get you that way, even if you’ve enjoyed the visit. And others, it’s hard to get enough of. Just as well you feel the way you do, given how many places you still have to cram in!
Sarah Wilkie
So true!
Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter
Looks lovely – but heat and bare feet? I’d be struggling too!
Sarah Wilkie
It was definitely worth seeing, but I learned to keep my socks on at similar sites later in the trip even though they got so dirty in the process!
maristravelsMa
Maybe 2nd time lucky. I left a comment earlier after I’d read this piece (hot-footing it over from Jo’s Monday Walk where I saw your link). But, once again WP won’t print my comments. It did, however, print my comment on your Postcard post which I clicked on as the Monitor Lizard photograph was so intriguing. I only got to visit Galle, Kandy and Colombo in Sri Lanka but we enjoyed all three places immensely. We also had a couple of weeks on a beach not far from Colombo which was fun and restful. What I remember most are the dazzling colours, the kindness of the people, the smells in the Botanic Gardens and being stared at in Kandy, and a particularly obnoxious Evangelical preacher in the Tea Plantation area who insisted on leading the dining-room of our hotel in Grace before meals. I have no objection to anyone’s prayers but his insistence got my back up, and that of my husband, and we refused. I look back with pleasure on that enjoyable standoff – it was fun!
Sarah Wilkie
Wow, that preacher sounds a real pain! I hate when people force their beliefs on others who may not share them. I totally agree about the kindness of the Sri Lankan people and the colours, but we didn’t visit the Botanical Garden and I don’t recall being stared at anywhere. Maybe they get more visitors these days?
I’m glad you persisted and left both your comments Mari as they are so different from each other 😀 As I said below, I think you just need to be patient when commenting on my posts as I seem to always need to approve them – please rest assured that they will appear eventually and that I am very appreciative of them. However I’m surprised you think your monitor lizard comment was printed as I had to approve that one too! All very odd 😕
Monkey's Tale
Too bad you didn’t get to see more in Anuradhapura. Although the city isn’t great, the sites were. Although as I read this, I realize I have forgotten more that I thought. Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
Indeed – on reflection we should at least have had an overnight stay here!
wetanddustyroads
Not only are the buildings and statues very old, but there’s a tree too! No wonder this area is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Love the beautiful lotus flowers.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 🙂 For the local Buddhists the tree is the most significant of all the sights here, but for UNESCO the whole complex is important.
Anonymous
I found you again, on Jo’s Azore post. I know I can go into The Reader, is it? and find people but everything seems to take such a long time and as WP no longer recognises me as a regular member making me sign in for every comment i wish to make, I’m inclined to give up as life’s too short!
However, this was worth finding, what an interesting, in fact enthralling, piece you’ve given us here Sarah. The photographs are wonderful, as always, and as it’s a place I’ve never visited I found it especially interesting. We didn’t get beyond Galle, Kandy and Colombo I’m afraid, apart from spending two weeks on the coast as my husband needed a rest before being dragged around the country by me – and a lovely driver we had. Now, seeing the illustration of the Monitor Lizard on one of your posts above, I’m about to drift over there to have a read. Best.
Sarah Wilkie
I’m sorry you’re having such issues with WP – I think it’s because you need to sign in each time that my site isn’t recognising you as a previous commenter and is requiring me to approve your comments, leaving you to assume they haven’t worked. In future, please assume that they HAVE and I’m just being a bit slow to approve them 😕
That said, I’m so pleased you found this so interesting once you managed to get here, and that it showed you a part of Sri Lanka you didn’t get to visit. We went to Galle and loved it but didn’t see anything of Colombo beyond the airport and only had one night in Kandy. There’s never time for everything, is there?!
restlessjo
Sourcing a good guide must be difficult sometimes, Sarah. Knowing your dislike of heat, I’m not surprised that you limited your visits. I know very little of the history of Sri Lanka other than those troubled Tamil times. It’s good that the problems have been resolved. Thank you for taking me there xx
Sarah Wilkie
Glad you enjoyed your virtual visit Jo, thank you 🙂 We’re usually very happy with the guides we get and have had some real stars in the past which is why we were a bit disappointed on this occasion. But I have to say our tour company, Selective Asia, responded in a very helpful and also tactful way and we had some great tours later in the trip as you will see!
Anne Sandler
Sarah, thanks for another great tour!
Sarah Wilkie
Glad you enjoyed it Anne, thank you 🙂