The Dambulla Cave Temple, is the largest and most well-preserved ancient cave complexes in Sri Lanka, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in the country’s central region, regarded as the “cultural triangle”, the temple, which is also commonly known as the Golden Temple of Dambulla, is situated at the top of a massive rock that towers 600 ft. up over the surrounding lands, and dates back to the 1st century BCE.
The temple and caves are open to the public from 7am onward, and attract large crowds of both tourists and locals alike, as well as pilgrims. If you are lucky enough to be staying at a Dambulla hotel that is nearby, like Jetwing Lake, for example, then do head to the temple as early as possible to avoid getting caught to the crowds.
The temple has five main caves located under a tremendous overhanging rock, and the interior of each cave is covered with intricate and colourful paintings, created with indigenous paints; some of the paintings have been traced back to the 2nd century BC while others are more recent. The murals depict scenes of the Buddha’s life as well as several deities.
Apart from the wonderful paintings, there are around 157 statues of the Buddha in different postures along with stone and wooden statues of Sri Lankan kings and deities, including the Hindu gods, Vishnu and Ganesha. The temple cave monastery dates from the 2nd century BC and is one of the most significant monasteries in the country, and is still in use today.
The caves are also the home of Sri Lanka’s prehistoric men. Several burial sites and skeletons have been discovered nearby, which according to studies, are over 2700 years old. However, it was only after the start of Buddhisms in the island, did the cave temple grow to be what it is today.
Roland Lefevre is a travel writer who specializes in creating features on leisure as well as business travel destinations across the globe.
