This sacred Buddhist site, popularly known as the city of Senkadagalapura, was the last capital of the Sinhala kings whose patronage enabled the Dinahala culture to flourish for more than 2,500 years until the occupation of Sri Lanka by the British in 1815. It is also the site of the Temple of the Tooth Relic (the sacred tooth of the Buddha), which is a famous pilgrimage site.
UNESCO World Heritage listing
Kandy is Sri Lanka’s second largest city after Colombo and was listed by UNESCO in 1988. It has a long and proud history. It was the last stronghold of Sinhalese independence, resisting both Portuguese and Dutch rule long after the rest of the island had been conquered.
The city was inscribed by UNESCO based on two specific criteria. Firstly, it is considered an outstanding example of traditional Sinhalese palatial and religious architecture, juxtaposing the Royal Palace with the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. Secondly, as the final stronghold of the Sinhala kings, the city successfully resisted European colonial rule for over two centuries, allowing indigenous arts, architecture, music, and religious traditions to thrive against the pressures of colonial influence.
We only spent one afternoon and a night in Kandy, just long enough really to visit its most famous sight, the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. But before that we had time for a short walk around some city centre streets. Kandy is a big centre for the sale of gemstones and we saw a lot of stone polishers outside the jewellery shops.
Kandy streets
The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic
This is by far the most visited and most significant sight in Kandy, and the one that absorbed most of our time in the city.
We were pleased to see that the local tour office had arranged for a guide. I’d had a conversation with them a few days previously regarding our concerns about Champi’s lack of experience in that area and they’d offered to provide additional guiding at some key sites. That was the perfect compromise, allowing us to retain Champi’s services as a driver while enhancing our experiences of these sights.
Our guide here proved to be almost too thorough, as he explained more than we could properly take in, but I’d rather that than have no idea what I was looking at. And he was very patient while we took photos, which was permitted throughout (the only restriction is to refrain from posing in front of the statues and shrines).
Before we entered Champi bought some flowers as offerings outside the temple.
Madduma Bandara monument
On the way in we saw several monuments including one to a young boy. A sign explained that he was Madduma Bandara and had been executed at just nine years old, facing his fate with extreme bravery. I later read more about him. His father had wrongly been accused of treachery by the king (supporting the British when in truth he was fighting against them) and the whole family killed as a result. He is consequently one of the country’s national heroes.
The Madduma Bandara monument
Outside the temple
At the entrance to the temple we removed our shoes. Our guide then gave us an introduction to the temple’s history which was built specifically to house the sacred relic. According to Buddhist tradition, when the Buddha was cremated in 543 BC at Kushinagar in North India, various parts of his remains were rescued from the ashes, including several teeth. In the fourth century AD, as Buddhism was declining in India in the face of a Hindu revival, this particular tooth was smuggled into Sri Lanka, hidden in the hair of a princess, Hemmamali. After being held in several parts of the country it found its way to Kandy in the late sixteenth century. While non-believers may (and do) challenge its provenance and authenticity, for Sri Lankan Buddhists it is not only of religious significance but also a symbol of the island’s independence.
Outside the temple
Before we entered our guide pointed out the site of a major Tamil bomb blast in 1998 which badly damaged the adjoining Royal Palace. The latter clearly had a big impact on him personally as well as on the temple, as he mentioned it several times during our tour.
Inside we saw some photos of the annual festival, Esala Perahera, when the tooth relic is paraded around the city on the back of a specially chosen temple elephant, always a male tusker.
The shrine
Then we entered the shrine itself. The golden casket which holds the tooth is for most of the time hidden behind a curtain. It is revealed three times a day, when worshippers and pilgrims throng to the temple. It must be quite an experience but incredibly crowded.
Other areas of the temple
The temple is large with several different rooms. I didn’t catch the significance of everything we saw because of our guide’s strongly accented English, but some things stood out. In front of a white stupa (known as a dagoba in Sri Lanka) we saw coins left as offerings, tied in white cloth. Nearby was a bronze relief depicting Princess Hemmamali with her husband, Prince Dantha, bringing the sacred tooth to Sri Lanka.
The small dagoba, and the bronze relief of Princess Hemmamali and Prince Dantha
Upper floor
On the upper floor was an area where flowers were left as devotions, and Champi gave us one each from his tray to place on the pile. Our guide talked about the significance of flowers for Buddhists. I think I understood him to say that the impermanence of flowers was seen as a reflection of our own life and death. The flowers would quickly wilt and would be removed and thrown away, and indeed we saw men doing just that, almost as quickly as worshippers were leaving them.
Flower offerings
Another room had a collection of Buddha statues from all the major Buddhist countries including Thailand, South Korea and India. I loved the ceiling here with its two lines of golden elephants.
Hall of Buddhas
The final place we visited was a hall containing a stuffed elephant, Raja, the tusker who was the first to serve the temple, which he did for 50 years. I’m not a fan of stuffed animals and as he was behind glass I didn’t even attempt to get a photo of him.
Kandy Lake
We said goodbye to our guide at the exit, where we also retrieved our shoes. Champi then suggested a walk by the lake, as we wouldn’t have time to see it in the morning. This is an artificial lake, constructed on what was once an area of paddy fields.
Kandy Lake
Our walk here was a pleasant way to round off the afternoon, which I’m sharing for Jo’s Monday Walk this week.
I visited Kandy in February 2026
35 Comments
equinoxio21
The Sacred tooth of Buddha… My mother used to say there were probably more than a thousand Buddha teeth across the word.
I also “remember” the lake/pond at Kandy from her movies.
The elephant tusks were very large for Asian elephants weren’t they?
Thanks for the trip.
Sarah Wilkie
I’m not sure about there being a thousand teeth but there may well be an unnaturally large number. You make a good point about the tusks. The temple only employs ‘tuskers’ as temple elephants so maybe these are from past ’employees’?
equinoxio21
Haha. My mother had a tendency to exaggerate for the sake of “a good story”.
Past employees probably. I have an old photo album of Indochina at the turn of the 20th century. There are photos of King Norodom’s sacred elephants in Cambodia with very looooong tusks.
I suspect “Modern” Asian elephants may have been poached a lot for their tusks. Mystery for AI.
equinoxio21
PS. After checking with AI, makes sense: large tusk elephants were systematically hunted down and taken out of the gene pool… Alas.
Sarah Wilkie
Sadly that does make sense. And nature has a way of addressing issues – if large tusks mean that we’re threatened,. let’s evolve to have smaller ones.
equinoxio21
And/or make smart moves. I’ve just seen photos of rhinos in a South Africa park, with their horns sawed off. Smart move from the Park wardens.
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, but sad that they have to do that 😔
Steven and Annie Berger
Appreciated the short tour of Kandy. Would love to return someday and explore a lot more in Sri Lanka, Sarah.
Sarah Wilkie
Glad you enjoyed the tour, thank you 🙂 I hope you do get to make a return visit to Sri Lanka.
wetanddustyroads
From your post, I can gather that you got a lot of value from your informed guide (which is necessary at a place like this, I think). The ceiling with the golden elephants is quite impressive.
Sarah Wilkie
I learned quite a lot from the guide but I had to check somethings afterwards as I couldn’t always follow his explanations. I agree about that ceiling – I loved it!
Monkey's Tale
I missed this post when it was published, but wanted to return to Kandy with you. We did go to the tooth relic reveal. It was packed with pilgrims and tourists, when they opened the doors, the tourists made a mad dash for it, while most of the pilgrims waited in turn. We were appalled at the behaviour of the other tourists. I actually don’t think we got close enough to see it, letting the pilgrims go first. Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, I’d heard it could be a bit of a madhouse at those moments! I was glad to go at a somewhat less manic (but still very busy) time. After all, it’s not as if you see the actual tooth, only the casket! The puja we went to in Jaffna was much calmer and more reverential in atmosphere, with the few tourists there all showing a lot of respect.
Monkey's Tale
We saw a monument in Myanmar with Buddha’s testicle. No one was fighting to see it. 😊
Sarah Wilkie
Really?! You surprise me 😆
Smitha V
Hi Sarah, Thank you for this tour of the temple. I visited it a long time ago, before I began blogging and this brought back memories. In fact, your post makes me want to go back to the pictures I took during our visit to Kandy. I remember seeing Raja, too, and feeling sorry that he hadn’t been given a burial after all the years of service.
Sarah Wilkie
I’m very glad to have brought back memories for you Smitha 🙂 I agree, Raja deserves more dignity than being gawked at by thousands of people!
the eternal traveller
The ban on posing for photos in front of special places is a very good one and should be implemented worldwide. It would stop all those very annoying people who stand for ages taking dozens of photos and videos.
Sarah Wilkie
It would indeed! However I can’t see it happening – the ban here is for religious reasons rather than to make it pleasanter / easier for other visitors. And I bet a lot of people would ignore it and flout the rule!
the eternal traveller
I think you’d be right about that – how sad.
Anonymous
We also visited Kandy several years ago, these shots brought back memories from our trip, great photos
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m glad to have taken you back (but I’m wondering who you are?)
Teresa
Thanks for sharing this walk. It is great to see temples and shrines from another country.
Sarah Wilkie
I’m glad you enjoyed it, thank you Teresa 🙂
restlessjo
I do find the obsession with bits of saints and holy people a little bizarre, Sarah, and can’t imagine feeling reverent about a tooth, but faith is a strange thing. It’s sad that it’s led to so many wars, or rather as an excuse for war. There are obviously many bad memories from recent history. Any monument to peace can only be a good thing. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I’ve linked this and last week’s walk already so I won’t forget xx
Sarah Wilkie
I know what you mean about bits of people Jo! I feel the emphasis should be on what they did rather than venerating random parts of their bodies, but at the same time I guess these things give people a focus for prayer and reflection, and if it works for them I’m not going to knock it too much 😀 Yes, lots of bad memories of recent religious conflict in Sri Lanka but for now they seem to have found a way to live alongside each other and there’s much more recognition of Tamil rights than there was previously despite the country still being predominantly Buddhist. It was interesting to see the high levels of belief in both Hindu and Buddhist regions, with shrines and temples everywhere!
restlessjo
It’s good to know they’ve resolved their issues, Sarah. Long may it last xx
Sarah Wilkie
Indeed!
Anne Sandler
What an amazing tour. Thanks!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Anne, glad you enjoyed it 😊
grandmisadventures
A great compromise to keep your trusted driver but be able to dive deeper into the history here
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, it worked well for us, although by this stage in our trip there weren’t many more sights left to explore, it was more about relaxing and taking things at our own pace 🙂
Sue
An interesting walk, Sarah, glad you got a good guide for this section of your travels.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Sue – it was good to understand a bit of what we were looking at as we went round, as this is such an important site in Sri Lanka 🙂
Sue
Indeed 😊