The cave monastery is a well-preserved cave-temple complex of five caves, each with beautiful and extensive Buddhist mural paintings on the walls and ceilings.
Dambulla’s caves are historic and truly impressive. Besides the ancient cave paintings, there are 157 statues.
The five caves house a treasure trove of religious art. It’s mind-boggling to think that the first of these statues and drawings were created over 2000 years ago.
According to the history books, the ruler of Anuradhapura took refuge in these caves during a war. After regaining his throne, the king decided to pay homage to his place of refuge and turned them into rock temples.
Its evident from the different artistic styles that subsequent rulers continued to maintain these caves. The are from different periods.
Dambulla Cave Temple is in southern Dambulla in Sri Lanka, about 20km from Sigiriya (which is another famous landmark).
Cave I (Devaraja Viharaya), also known as the Temple of the King of the Gods, has a giant reclining Buddha.
Cave II (Maharaja Viharaya) or the Temple of the Great King is big and spectacular. There are two statues of kings, Hindu deities and a Buddha statue under an archway decorated with dragons.
Cave III (Maha Alut Viharaya) is called the New Great Temple and was converted from a storeroom in the 18th century by the King of Kandy.
Sri Lanka is a magnet for travellers who love history and nature.
The Dambulla Cave Temples are a popular stop on most Sri Lanka itineraries.
Find out more about travelling around Sri Lanka by road and don’t miss visiting the ancient city of Anuradhapura.
Other places to visit in Sri Lanka include Polonnaruwa, Galle and Sirigaya
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