Sri Lanka

I said a while ago that I would post more about the postcards my ex-penpal, Dinushka, has sent me. Well, I thought I'd start with this map card..



This is what Dinushka wrote about the bottom right picture:

"The building is called 'Dargaba'. Normally there's one of each temple. Inside, those Dargabas in old temples they have kept a tooth relic of Lord Buddha. When we go to the temple we worship this 'Dargaba', Lord Buddha's statue & Sacred Bodhi tree."



I really love Sri Lankan stamps, and these are no exception. I couldn't find much info about these, this is what I did find. The one on the left was issued in 1997 and shows Thuparama (a 'dagaba' in Anuradhapura. King Devanampiyatissa built Thuparamaya in which was enshrined the collarbone of the Buddha. It is considered to be the first dagaba built in Sri Lanka following the introduction of Buddhism.) The stamp in the middle was issued in 1998 and commemorates 50 years of Sri Lankan cinema (of which I still know nothing, I have to admit. You can read more about it here.) The stamp on the right shows Solias Mendis paintings in Kaleniya Temple, situated about six miles from Colombo. The Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara is one of the most sacred worshipping places of the Buddhists of Sri Lanka since it is a site made hallowed by the visit of Lord Buddha. In the past Kelaniya itself was a large city and the Kelani Raja Maha Viharaya was one of the largest and one of the most beautiful temples of Sri Lanka.