Sigiriya and its significance
Review by Desamanya
Dr. Nissanka Wijeyeratne - Sunday Island Oct 20 2002
Over half a century ago I was taken by my "Sigiriya and its significance: A Mahayana Theravada Buddhist monastery"by Raja de Silva. 168pp. 168 ill. Printed by Aitken Spence Printing (Pvt) Ltd. Published by Bibliotheque (Pvt) Ltd., 7, First Lane, Galpotta Road, Nawala.
Over half a century ago I was taken by my "Sigiriya and its significance: A Mahayana Theravada Buddhist monastery"by Raja de Silva. 168pp. 168 ill. Printed by Aitken Spence Printing (Pvt) Ltd. Published by Bibliotheque (Pvt) Ltd., 7, First Lane, Galpotta Road, Nawala.
late father, a Lawyer and Politician,
yet a keen member of the Royal Asiatic Society, to a lecture in the Museum
Lecture Hall delivered by Dr. Senarat Paranavitana, the Archaeological
Commissioner. It was entitled Sigiriya the abode of a God King.
The lecture was well attended, but most
who had come, had it seemed, came in the belief that the secrets of Sigiriya
could scarcely be revealed. Some thought that the great rock was a fortress
developed by a parricide king, fearful of revenge, since he had supplanted his
heroic father, the liberator of the land from alien invaders and the benefactor
of the vast agricultural population around the ancient and populous capital of
Anuradhapura where thirsty fields had benefitted from the joining of the Kala
and Balalu wewas into a gigantic lake which released waters through a unique
irrigation marvel, the Yoda-ala nearly 50 miles long with a gradient of 1 in
600 ft.
It was therefore a
surprise to many present to hear that Kasyapa had abandoned ancient
Anuradhapura, the nerve-centre of the land, and left to build a new capital in
Sigiriya and to reside there. But Sigiriya was to be not merely a refuge and a
fortress; it was also to exemplify a novel feature of the ruler as a celestial
being, a "God King" like Kuvera. The concept of the deification of
the monarch was held to be a growing and a new cult sweeping through Asia.
Sigiriya was conceived by Kasyapa. It was a plan to present himself as a ruler
from on high in accordance with his concept that he, as a living God, resided
on the summit of the massive rock.
Dr. Paranavitana drew on his knowledge
of Indian classical literature to find parallels that buttressed his theory,
and proceeded to weave a magical tale of a celestial ruler on high and its
heavenly environs.
The gorgeous paintings of which only a
fragment remains, were only celestial maidens; the mirror wall a contrived
structure that reflected the red arsenic fields of the God Kuvera’s kingdom,
and the Lion, before the final ascent, part of the plain where the fierce lions
gambolled.
Some critics who
dared to question Dr. Paranavitana were given short shrift. He did not deny
that it was a belief held earlier that Sigiriya was a temple, but he was
encouraged by the Mahavamsa reference written nearly six centuries after
Kasyapa, to declare that Sigriya was more than a fortress; it was a vast
construction planned to deify Kasyapa.
It might have originally been a
monastery but it had become something more; it was the vast regal centre
created with the awareness of classical Indian literature, as a Palace in the
Sky ( a celestial abode. The concept of the divinity of a ruler was not a new
concept. It did not require vast constructions to impress the idea on the minds
of the people. As was once generally believed, Sigiriya had once been the abode
of Yakkha Kings. The idea persisted in the Laggala area once believed to be the
centre of Ravana’s kingdom
"Lankave novada deiyo
vadasitinne"
Elsewhere, for example in Rome, the
Emperor had six centuries earlier been deified following Egyptian and Persian
traditions. Kasyapa in Sri Lanka did not, as elsewhere in Asia and the world,
require a special effort to circulate in his subjects a belief in his deity.
High on the 600 ft rock, buffeted by
regular rains and incessant winds, the construction of a palace and appurtenant
buildings would have given Kasyapa hardly any time during his reign to fulfil
his ambition if he so conceived it. He might have been swept away and the
"God King" metamorphosed into a "Cloud Messenger"
In any case the ledges cut as guard
sites would have endangered military watchers and required replenishments of
soldiers. Moreover, regular visits to his court below would have entailed
painful descents and ascents and brought about rheumatism or gout on the
monarch, who though a refugee needed contact with court and commoner to
effectively rule the kingdom.
That the capital on
the rock was most unsuitable for permanent construction or continued living was
not paid heed to. No wonder Lord Killearn (earlier in Egypt as Sir Miles
Lampson during the last Great War) heaved and panted on a visit to Sigiriya
during our own Independence celebrations "Damn fool of a King to have
lived at that elevation".
Nor was it suitable for defence
strategy. As Chou-en-lai, one of the great leaders of China’s historic Great
March observed ¾ the defenders could have been starved out in 6 months.
But Dr. Paranavitana’s web of Fancies
had to remain until percipient minds assailed his theories. Dr. P. E. P.
Deraniyagala, Acting Archaeological Commissioner, as has been shown by Dr. Raja
de Silva, pointed out that the paintings were spread out over a period of time
( and some date certainly from a time prior to Kasyapa.
&127;De Silva has shown
considerable examples of Mahayana-Theravada worship that arose in India to
spread to Sri Lanka about the period of Sigiriya’s development. Tara Devi, like
Cybele, Diana, Ceres ( and in our own times, Mary ( all reflect a human urge to
seek protective divine maternal care. The worship of Tara, the iconography
connected with her worship, and similarities to the Sigiriya paintings have
been clearly shown by de Silva.
That water and wells played a
significant role in the Mahayana cult has also been shown by de Silva; so too,
residences for monks on elevated land and on hills. The Pacina-tissa-pabbata
vihara below the Nuwara-wewa in Anuradhapura, the Giman-hala above the bund of
Basavak-kulam, the summit of Alagalla, Wakirigala, the hill above
Padavigampola, Kudumbigala, and other such sites testify to this.
Sigiriya might have on some rare
occasions given shelter to refugee soldiers. The safety of the shrine was
resorted to in Europe and even in Sri Lanka after the 1818 rebellion, or
refugee centers built at Nilambe in the Kandyan period or Govinda-hela
centuries earlier. But to foist on Sigiriya a new capital that required
obliteration of ancient shrines is to run in the face of fact and religious
sensibilities. This has been clearly shown by de Silva.
He has gathered much material as
evidence from Sri Lanka and India and copious and relevant references to sites
and traditions elsewhere to strengthen his work. In the field of art,
especially painting, he has percipiently pointed out through Bertrand Russell’s
comments how ancient Romans realized that not only what was visible to the eye
but what excited the mind, made an impact on living humans.
Verily this work of de Silva has
dispelled doubts and vague conjectures on Sigiriya, and built up a coherent and
cogent interpretation of this great centre, which never was "the abode of
a God King", but for a long and significant period the resting place of a
great and noble protectress of humans and a Mother of all Bodhisattvas.
A deep study of all available evidence
( archaeological, literary, religious and cultural from Sri Lanka, India and
further afield ( has made Raja de Silva’s study a work of rare scholarship. He
had first to clear the debris of misinterpretation, fanciful surmises, and
ignorance of many, to get at the core that shows Sigiriya in its glory and Tara
Devi in her protective effulgence.
Sigiriya (සීගිරිය),
Sri Lanka
Sigiriya (Sinhala: සීගිරිය) is a major archeological site in. It was made a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982, under the title "Ancient City of Sigiriya, preserving the ruins of an ancient palace complex built during the reign of King Kasyapa (477 – 495 AD). The most distinctive landmark within the ancient palace grounds is the amazing Sigiriya Rock, also called Lion Rock, a hardened magma plug from a long extinct and eroded volcano. It looms out over the plains.
Standing tall over the surrounding plains, Sigiriya Rock offers splended views for miles in all directions. Sigiriya Rock lies on a steep mound that rises over the otherwise flat plains, and is itself a further 370 meters tall. The rock is sheer on all sides, and in many parts even overhangs the base. From the top, it is elliptical in plan. Its top is flat, and slopes gradually along the elliptical axis.
Members of AsiaExplorers explored Sigiriya Rock as part of our tour of Sri Lanka. We spent about two hours here, as it takes a while to climb the rock right to the top. There is a staircase, but we stopped often to take photographs of the marvellous vista unfolding before us.
Archeological Remains at
Sigiriya
The ancient king's Upper Palace is located at the flat top of
Sigiriya Rock. On the middle terrace is the Lion Gate and the Mirror Wall,
with its frescoes. The king's Lower Palace clings to the slopes below the rock.
The moats, walls and gardens of
the palace extend for a few hundreds meters from the base of the rock.
The king built his residence here to function not only as a palace, but also as fortress. The engineering ingenuity and creativity required to create this landmark still impress today's visitors. On the Upper Palace, for example, one finds cisterns cut into the rock to retain water.
The king built his residence here to function not only as a palace, but also as fortress. The engineering ingenuity and creativity required to create this landmark still impress today's visitors. On the Upper Palace, for example, one finds cisterns cut into the rock to retain water.
The History Of Sigiriya
Sigiriya Rock may have been in use since prehistoric times. It was already a rock-shelter monastery from about the 3rd century BC. The caves within it were prepared and donated by devotees. Later King Kasyapa built the garden and palace around it. After King Kasyapa died, Sigiriya reverted to monastic use up till the 14th century, when it was finally abandoned, and was only rediscovered in 1907 by British Explorer John Still.
The Legend of Sigiriya
According to the Mahavamsa, the ancient historical record of Sri Lanka, there was once a king called, Kasyapa, the son of King Dhatusena. Kasyapa murdered his father by walling him alive and then usurping the throne which rightfully belonged to his elder brother Mogallana. Mogallana escaped Kasyapa's assassination attempt by fleeing to India. In India Mogallana raised an army with the intention of returning and retaking the throne of Sri Lanka. Knowing that Mogallana will return one day, Kasyapa built his palace on the summit of Sigiriya Rock as a fortress as well as a pleasure palace.
In AD 495, eighteen years afer Kasyapa seized power, Mogallana returned and declared war. At the heat of the battle, Kasyapa's elephant turned aside sensing a hidden swamp. His army though he was retreating, so they backed away, leaving him stranded. Rather than be captured, Kasyapa committed suicide by turning his sword on himself (legend said he beheaded himself). Moggallana returned the capital to Anuradapura and Sigiriya reverted into a monastery complex.
The irony of this story is that had King Kassyapa remained within the high walls of Sigiriya Rock, Mogallana would have never been able to defeat him. Some people believe that the years of waiting for an invasion had driven Kassyapa over the edge, or that Kasyapa developed a guilty consoncience over what he had done and wanted to fight his brother on an equal level. Alternative stories have the primary builder of the palace at Sigiriya Rock as King Dhatusena, with Kasyapa finishing the work in honour of his father. Another story have Kasyapa as a playboy king, with Sigiriya Rock being his pleasure palace. Still, Kasyapa's fate was nowhere less tragic. In some versions, he was assassinated by a concubine, in another he cut his own throat when isolated in his final battle.
Touring Sigiriya
We arrive outside the outer moats of Sigiriya on 29 August. Sigiriya Rock rises above the trees in the mid distance. There were paths through the ruins that lead to the foot of the rock. Stone stairways climb the steep slope at the base of the rock. They wind through the remains of the lower parts of the palace, reaching a terrace that traverses along the lower edge of the vertical face of the rock.
The section above this terrace is known as the Mirror Wall. Coated with lime, the wall has been polished to reflect, and some parts of it still does, 1,5000 years after it was built. There are nearly 1,500 pieces of proses on the surface of the Mirror Wall. These poems were written between the 7th and 13th Centuries, and are Sri Lanka's oldest graffiti, for they were composed by ancient visitors
Sigiriya during Kasyapa's reign was not only a fortress but also a haven of pleasure. Among the pictorial art of Sigiriya are frescoes of feminine beauty. Originally these 500-odd paintings cover the precipitous face of Sigiriya rock, forming a huge gallery that covered an area almost twice as large as a football field. Today only 23 survived.
Halfway to the top of Sigiriya Rock is a stopover were visitors can rest and buy refreshments (or in my case, a book or two about Sigiriya). The amazing sight at this stopover point is the Lion's Platform. This is the ruins of two enormous lion's paws - the rest of the giant lion is gone. A flight of stairs leads up between the two paws, originally into the lion's mouth. The surviving paws offer an indication as to the size of the beast. When Kasyapa built this enormous lion statue, he was no doubt claiming his kingship over the Sinhalese - the "lion race".
The stairway continues steeply until it reaches the top of Sigiriya Rock. The top is a flat plateau with a gradual incline. Here, we can explore the remnants of Kasyapa's palace, including this throne room. The layout and ground plan of Kasyapa's unique palace is still visible, though the palace itself is long gone. The outer palace occupies the lower eastern sections of the rock, while the inner palace the high western sections. The palace gardens cover the south section, and they all converge at the rock-cut pool. The views from here is simply breathtaking - that's all I can say, but you must come and explore it yourself to find out.
