Padeniya - Kandyan woodcarvings at a lowland temple
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Padeniya is a village temple located half-way between Kurunegala and Yapahuwa. It’s one of the few lowland temples with typical Kandyan woodcarvings. The entire image house is from the Kandyan period. The establishment of the temple dates back to the Anuradhapura period. One of the ten giant warriors of Dutthagamani is said to have settled down here as a Buddhist monk.
Padeniya is pronounced as "Paadeniya" with the first syllable stressed and elongated. The ending "-deniya" is commonly found in place names in Sri Lanka and originally signifies rice farming area or rice land.
Padeniya is located in the Kurunegala District, 25 km northwest of the district capital of the same name. In Padeniya, the A28, leading to via Galgamuwa to Anuradhapura, branches off from the A10, which runs from Kurunegala to Puttalam. Right at the intersection is the temple called Padeniya Rajamaha Vihara. A brief break of the journey to visit the temple is worthwhile.
Padeniya is a monastery, hence the designation "Viharaya." A monastery still inhabited by monks can also be called "Sangha Vasa," meaning "Monastic Residence." Sometimes, this term is specifically used for the part of the monastery where the monks reside.
The local monastery educates novices and in the beginning of our century has taken in underage civil war refugees from Nepal as students.
In the midst of the monastery is the preaching hall, originally called "Dhamma Mandapa" in Pali, meaning "Teaching Hall." The term "Dhamma Sala", however, has become more common. Such a preaching hall serves as a gathering place for monks to deliver teachings and lectures. Particularly on fullmoon days, laypeople also gather here to listen to a sermon, similar to a Sunday sermon in the Christian tradition. Dhammasalas can also be found outside of monasteries. In the center of Padeniya's preaching hall, an elevated area for the seated monk giving the lecture can be identified. Due to Sri Lanka's tropical climate, Dhammasalas are always open pavilion structures, without outer walls, allowing a refreshing air draft. When not used for gatherings, such halls often serve as accommodation for pilgrims. Therefore, in Sinhalese, they are sometimes referred to as "Ambalama," meaning pilgrim lodge.
The building is designed in colonial style. The Padeniya monastery took on its current form during the Kandy period when the lowland area was under Dutch control. Inside, the altar is an unusually elaborate carving from that time.
Padeniya is located in the Kurunegala District, 25 km northwest of the district capital of the same name. In Padeniya, the A28, leading to via Galgamuwa to Anuradhapura, branches off from the A10, which runs from Kurunegala to Puttalam. Right at the intersection is the temple called Padeniya Rajamaha Vihara. A brief break of the journey to visit the temple is worthwhile.
Padeniya is a monastery, hence the designation "Viharaya." A monastery still inhabited by monks can also be called "Sangha Vasa," meaning "Monastic Residence." Sometimes, this term is specifically used for the part of the monastery where the monks reside.
The local monastery educates novices and in the beginning of our century has taken in underage civil war refugees from Nepal as students.
In the midst of the monastery is the preaching hall, originally called "Dhamma Mandapa" in Pali, meaning "Teaching Hall." The term "Dhamma Sala", however, has become more common. Such a preaching hall serves as a gathering place for monks to deliver teachings and lectures. Particularly on fullmoon days, laypeople also gather here to listen to a sermon, similar to a Sunday sermon in the Christian tradition. Dhammasalas can also be found outside of monasteries. In the center of Padeniya's preaching hall, an elevated area for the seated monk giving the lecture can be identified. Due to Sri Lanka's tropical climate, Dhammasalas are always open pavilion structures, without outer walls, allowing a refreshing air draft. When not used for gatherings, such halls often serve as accommodation for pilgrims. Therefore, in Sinhalese, they are sometimes referred to as "Ambalama," meaning pilgrim lodge.
The building is designed in colonial style. The Padeniya monastery took on its current form during the Kandy period when the lowland area was under Dutch control. Inside, the altar is an unusually elaborate carving from that time.
for some historical background information click here...
In the Kandy period, Padeniya was the main center of the order in the province called "Sat Korale," which can be translated as "seven counties." This province of the Kandy kingdom roughly corresponds "Dakkhinadesa," the "South Land," during the Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa eras, when this area was under the control of the heir apparent. In today's Sri Lanka, it roughly corresponds the North West Province and parts of the Gampaha and Kegalle Districts. The Kelani Ganga formed the southern boundary to the so-called "Four Counties," with the province of Matara lying even further south. These three lowland provinces of the Kandy kingdom were the focal point of Portuguese rule, and the Sinhalese kings had little influence there. For the Dutch, the "Seven Counties" were the center of their cinnamon cultivation and therefore of paramount economic importance. The Dutch were less fanatical in religious matters compared to the Portuguese, as they focused more on business. They granted the Kandy kings some influence in matters of the order in the lowland provinces. Hence, the Kandyan kings’ support of the Padeniya temple in an area controlled mainly by a colonial power is not a contradiction in itself.
To the left of the preaching hall, very near the main road and slightly elevated on a flat dark granite ridge, stands the main attraction of Padeniya, namely the statue house. Due to infrequent visits, one must arrange for a key. No entrance fee is charged, but a tip is expected.
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The gabled roof of the old main shrine is supported by three rows of wooden pillars. The outer circle of pillars is located outside the whitewashed outer walls and forms a kind of gallery. Under the eaves, an eye-catching relief band of quite vivid and large lion figures extends around the building. This decorative form is not known from other temples in Sri Lanka. The wooden structure dates back to the Kandy period (early modern era). The wooden pillars still bear carvings that are centuries old.
In the 14th century, the Sinhalese kings from Kurunegala first retreated to the uplands, where a new settlement center had emerged at the upper reaches of the Mahaweli River. The Gampola kings or, more likely, the Kandy kings built the famous wooden-pillared hall of Embekke in the uplands. The image house of Padeniya with its 28 carved wooden pillars is somewhat the counterpart in the lowlands. The pillars bear the typical carving decoration known otherwise only from the highlands, namely octagonal shafts, segmented by cubic bulges, the broader surfaces of which were used for ornamentation, for carvings.
This type of column design also existed in the lowlands and already in the Polonnaruwa era, but then made of stone. Ironically, those stone pillars had their models in turn in wooden structures that are no longer preserved. In the Gampola and Kandy periods, wood was increasingly used again for the supporting elements of buildings. The Padeniya temple now has the most beautiful historical wood carvings in the lowlands, except for the Ambalama of Panavitiya, which is not a sacred building. Unfortunately, the carved panels at the columns in Padeniya are not easy to discern in the dark interior of the statue house.
The interior consists of a vestibule facing south, an almost square sanctuary behind it, and a processional path for circumambulations, which can take place inside the building. This is unusual for more recent temples, but older image houses made of stone, such as those in Polonnaruwa, also had such narrow circumambulatories under the same roof as the main shrine.
The large portal to the main chamber consists of heavy wooden doors, which are themselves adorned with carved ornaments. Next to the door stand the obligatory Dvarapalas, the figures of demon-like doorkeepers. In the central cell, behind a translucent curtain, a large seated Buddha figure can be seen. Three standing Buddhas are placed at each of the two side walls.
The statue house is in its own walled courtyard. In the white walls, there are niches for oil lamps that villagers place on full moon days. On these Poya days, unlike Jews, Christians, or Muslims who celebrate weekly, devout Buddhists visit the village temple, although not always all at once, but usually each family for themselves.
In the 14th century, the Sinhalese kings from Kurunegala first retreated to the uplands, where a new settlement center had emerged at the upper reaches of the Mahaweli River. The Gampola kings or, more likely, the Kandy kings built the famous wooden-pillared hall of Embekke in the uplands. The image house of Padeniya with its 28 carved wooden pillars is somewhat the counterpart in the lowlands. The pillars bear the typical carving decoration known otherwise only from the highlands, namely octagonal shafts, segmented by cubic bulges, the broader surfaces of which were used for ornamentation, for carvings.
This type of column design also existed in the lowlands and already in the Polonnaruwa era, but then made of stone. Ironically, those stone pillars had their models in turn in wooden structures that are no longer preserved. In the Gampola and Kandy periods, wood was increasingly used again for the supporting elements of buildings. The Padeniya temple now has the most beautiful historical wood carvings in the lowlands, except for the Ambalama of Panavitiya, which is not a sacred building. Unfortunately, the carved panels at the columns in Padeniya are not easy to discern in the dark interior of the statue house.
The interior consists of a vestibule facing south, an almost square sanctuary behind it, and a processional path for circumambulations, which can take place inside the building. This is unusual for more recent temples, but older image houses made of stone, such as those in Polonnaruwa, also had such narrow circumambulatories under the same roof as the main shrine.
The large portal to the main chamber consists of heavy wooden doors, which are themselves adorned with carved ornaments. Next to the door stand the obligatory Dvarapalas, the figures of demon-like doorkeepers. In the central cell, behind a translucent curtain, a large seated Buddha figure can be seen. Three standing Buddhas are placed at each of the two side walls.
The statue house is in its own walled courtyard. In the white walls, there are niches for oil lamps that villagers place on full moon days. On these Poya days, unlike Jews, Christians, or Muslims who celebrate weekly, devout Buddhists visit the village temple, although not always all at once, but usually each family for themselves.
If you encounter an adult monk in the monastery grounds and he has time and patience for curious tourists, you can still be shown a particularly interesting little attraction in Padeniya, namely the monastery library, located immediately north of the courtyard with the image house. Such a storage hall for palm-leaf manuscripts is called Pottakalaya in Pali, literally "book dwelling." The library of Padeniya is an old mud building. It also serves as a small museum today. In addition to a remarkable collection of palm-leaf bundles with Buddhist texts, some antique slate tablets used for learning to write are still preserved.
