Abhayagiri Vihāra
Historically it was a great monastic center as well as a royal capital, with magnificent monasteries rising to many stories, roofed with gilt bronze or tiles of burnt clay glazed in brilliant colours.To the north of the city, encircled by great walls and containing elaborate bathing ponds, carved balustrades and moonstones, stood "Abhayagiri", one of seventeen such religious units in Anuradhapura and the largest of its five major viharas.The term "Abhayagiri Vihara" refers not only to the complex of monastic buildings, but also to a fraternity of Buddhist monks, or Sangha, which maintained its own historical records, traditions and way of life.Thus, the Abhayagiri Vihara developed as a great institution vis‑a‑vis the Mahavihara and the Jetavanavihara Buddhist monastic sects in the ancient Sri Lankan capital of Anuradhapura."[2] During the Beminitiya Seya or period of famine and south Indian rule which followed, Vattagamani Abhaya took refuge in the mountain region amassing troops until, after more than fourteen years of exile, he marched on Anuradhapura in 89 BC and defeated the last Tamil king, Bhatiya.By the 7th century, Abhayagiri Vihara consisted of four mulas (literally "families", fraternities or grouped institutions for religious teaching): All of these have been located and identified through archaeological excavations, research and epigraphical evidence.Despite efforts by Vijayabahu I and Parakramabahu I in the 13th century to renovate and resurrect the temple, its gradual destruction in the course of time could not be averted, particularly after the final transfer of the capital from Polonnaruwa in the Rajarata, or King's Country, to an alternative location in 1215 as a result of repeated Maga invasions.[citation needed] A dark era of eight hundred years engulfed Abhayagiri Vihara until its rediscovery in the 1880s awoke scientific and scholarly interest in the abandoned and vandalized ruins.It is clear from sculptural evidence alone that the Mahāyāna was fairly widespread throughout [Sri Lanka], although the modern account of the history of Buddhism on the island presents an unbroken and pure lineage of Theravāda.Relics of an extensive cult of Avalokiteśvara can be seen in the present-day figure of Nātha.Early reports by Europeans from the 18th century describe the Buddhist monks of Sri Lanka as being engaged in the recitation of mantras, and using mālā beads for counting, as practiced in Mahāyāna Buddhism.Although Buddhism was the state religion and the principal doctrine followed by the majority of the population, the influence of other local beliefs, particularly Hinduism, was considerable, and is expressed in the architecture of the period.Representing Sanka and Padma, the two principal treasure houses of Kuvera, they are believed to have been erected to ward off any evil or danger that might threaten the stupa or its precinct.Even at present, they are commonly believed to be endowed with mystic powers, and courts of law in Anuradhapura accept swearing before the statues as evidence in the settlement of minor disputes between litigants.
AnuradhapuraSamadhi StatueKuttam PokunamoonstoneTheravadaMahayanaVajrayanaBuddhismSri LankaBuddhistmonasticmonasteriesviharasTooth relicSanghaMahaviharaJetavanaviharaValagambaBrahminBhikkhuMahindaJain monkPandukabhayaviharaBeminitiya SeyaAvalokiteśvaraBodhisattvaGajabahu IMahasenaBuddha's Tooth RelicFaxianDhammaKashmirBiqiunibhikkhuniUpasampadaNanjingLiu Song dynastyMahāyānaVajrayānaXuanzangHīnayānaMahāvihāravāsinsTripiṭakaVimuttimaggaAryadevaVajrabodhiAmoghavajraParakkamabāhu IsāmaṇeraRichard GombrichSangharajaSena IPolonnaruwaRajarataMaitreyaAmitābhamantrasmālā beadsHinduismMuragalaNagarajaAbhayagiriyasamsaranirvanaAnuradhapura Maha ViharayaAtamasthanaSandakada pahanaStatue of TaraList of tallest structures built before the 20th centurySujato, BhanteWoodward, HiramAnuradhapura periodAnuradhapura kingdomBackgroundOutlineBibliographyTimelinePre-Anuradhapura periodBattle of VijithapuraThe Five DravidiansFourth Buddhist councilRelic of the tooth of the BuddhaDipavamsaThe Six DravidiansMahavamsaSigiriyaAnuradhapura invasion of PandyaChola conquest of AnuradhapuraMonarchyMonarchsVijayaLambakanna ITamil mercenariesCapital cityPoliticsForeign relationsAshokaSanghamittaGeographyAdministrative divisionsMalaya RataMaya RataRuhunaCitiesAbhayagiri vihāraJaya Sri Maha BodhiMahamevnāwa GardensMapagala fortressIrrigation networkTank cascade systemPearlsKahavanuPort of JambukolaRajakariyaArchitectureCaste systemConstructionsImmigrationin Paliin SinhalesePeraheraBrahmanismTantric Buddhism