Located 216 kilometers from the capital city of
Colombo on the south east of ancient town Anuradhapura
is the medieval town of Polonaruwa. The island’s
medieval in the ancient city of Polonaruwa and built
in the 12th century A.D by the great King Parakramabahu
the 1st and rose to fame after the decline of Anuradhapura.
You could arrive at this destination by public bus
transport in 5 hours and by hired transport an hour
less. As you enter in to this ancient town you will
notice the mountain ranges, dry land with monkeys
in groups perched on rocks, wandering among the ruins.
Polonaruwa is a land that stands as monument of the
past flourishing historic days of the then Ceylon,
an island so magnificent and enthralling to the west.
The city in its day was fortified with three concentric
walls, beautified with parks and gardens and sanctified
by many a shrine and sacred place. The city itself,
as well as the surrounding plain was watered by a
unique irrigational complex – the Parakrama
Samudra, the largest of the man made reservoirs. Ensemble
planning in building, sculpture and landscape reached
its perfection at Polonaruwa under Parakramabahu.
Furthermore, he created a tank so large it was called
Parakrama Samudra, or The Sea of Parakrama. With a
bund over 14km long and on average 12m high, this
was an astonishing hydraulic accomplishment, and would
be considered a major feat of engineering if undertaken
today. It provided cooling breezes through the city
as well as water for irrigation, and even provided
defense on the western side of the city.
Legend maintains that the Portuguese stumbled on the
monuments in the jungle and looted them several centuries
later. The place certainly remained unknown to the
Dutch. It was only during the early to mid-19th century
that the British found the site and, near the end
of the century, started to excavate it. The seven
storey Royal Palace of King Parakramabahu I was built
in the 11th Century. The massive brick walls of the
main hall stand amidst the ruins of about 40 inter-connecting
rooms. Other site attractions include the Kumara Pokuna,
the handsome royal bath; the Royal pavilion still
found with its lion portals, graceful pillars and
a moonstone; the Audience Hall containing exquisite
stone carvings, and the entrance has two flights of
steps with moonstones flanked by mythical dragons;
the Kumara Pokuna where the ladies of the court is
believed to have taken an evening bath and Dalada
Maluwa, the centerpiece of the ancient city which
was a sacred precinct containing 12 magnificent buildings
and known today as the Quadrangle Vatadage; the Gal
Viharaya consists of four seperate images of different
postures carved and cut from one long slab of granite.
First is a samadhi image in meditation posture, while
the second is inside a cave and the third is a standing
Buddha image which is 23 ft in height and the forth
is a recumbent Buddha image measuring 46 feet, depicting
the passing away. The Potugal Vihara with small dagabas
surrounding a circular brick building on the central
platform; the statue of King Parakramabahu I, a huge
12th Century AD rock sculpture depicting a figure
in barefoot clad only in sarong, with broad face and
serious look holding a sacred manuscript. Inscriptions
suggest that the history of Polonnaruwa dates back
at least to the 2nd century AD, when farmers began
to clear the jungle for cultivation and hermit-monks
established themselves in the rock caves. In the 6th
century it became a military garrison of some importance
to the Sinhalese kings of Anuradhapura. This was because
it guarded the vital crossing point of the Mahaweli
Ganga from the southern province of Ruhuna, where
rebellion was a continuous threat. A century later,
the kings of Anuradhapura started to use Polonnaruwa
as a country residence.
It was the south Indian Cholas who first gave Polonnaruwa
civil and cultural significance, however. After conquering
Anuradhapura in 933AD, the Cholas made Polonnaruwa
their capital, from where they controlled the outer
reaches of the island. When the Sinhalese king Vijayabahu
I (1055 - 1110) eventually drove the Cholas off the
island in 1070, he made Polonnaruwa his capital. Vijayabahu
then devoted his energies to rebuilding the ravaged
country, in particular restoring and improving the
neglected irrigation system and strengthening the
Buddhist faith.
Polonnaruwa, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage
Site in 1982, is probably easier for the non-archaeologist
to appreciate than Anuradhapura. For instance, the
monuments at Polonnaruwa are younger than at Anuradhapura
and therefore in a better state of preservation. Polonnaruwa's
comparatively brief and uncomplicated history makes
it easier to grasp. Furthermore, the layout of the
monuments at Polonnaruwa is more compact. No scene
can be conceived more impressive than this beautiful
city in its pristine splendour, its stately buildings
stretching along the shore of the lake, their gilded
cupolas reflected on its still expanse and embowered
in the dense foliage of the surrounding forests, he
writes. It is by far the most interesting assemblage
of ruins in Ceylon.
