Sasseruwa Buddha Statue in Rasvehera
Not far from Aukana, just 11 kilometres away as the crow flies, is anotherBuddha statue of almost the same size. It’s called Sasseruwa Buddha. It’s part of an ancient temple called Rasvehera. There are many different spellings for the monastery and its colossal Buddha, for example “Raswehera” or or "Reswehera" or “Ras Vehera“ and “Sesuruwa” or “Saseruva”. “Sasseruwa” in Sinhalese language sounds a little bit like the words for “similar image”. And there would be good reasons for this name.
There is a famous legend, that the two statues are the result of a guru-gola competition, “guru” meaning “teacher, master” and “gola” is “pupil”. This story is an explanation why the Aukana statue is perfected, whereas the similar Sasseruwa statue is almost finalized but not completely. So the story goes: The Guru constructed the Avukana statue, while his Gola made the statue at Sasseruwa. They had agreed that the first one to complete his statue had to notify this to the other by ringing a bell. The Guru managed to complete his statue earlier and then signalled it by the ringing of a bell. When the Gola heard the sound of the bell, he understood to have lost the competition and instantly ceased continuing his work. This is why the Sasseruwa Buddha remained unfinalised. However, there is another explanatory legend that Sasseruwa was a kind prototype of the Aukana statue carved by the same sculptor.
There is a famous legend, that the two statues are the result of a guru-gola competition, “guru” meaning “teacher, master” and “gola” is “pupil”. This story is an explanation why the Aukana statue is perfected, whereas the similar Sasseruwa statue is almost finalized but not completely. So the story goes: The Guru constructed the Avukana statue, while his Gola made the statue at Sasseruwa. They had agreed that the first one to complete his statue had to notify this to the other by ringing a bell. The Guru managed to complete his statue earlier and then signalled it by the ringing of a bell. When the Gola heard the sound of the bell, he understood to have lost the competition and instantly ceased continuing his work. This is why the Sasseruwa Buddha remained unfinalised. However, there is another explanatory legend that Sasseruwa was a kind prototype of the Aukana statue carved by the same sculptor.
Admittedly, the Aukana Buddha is the greater work of art. Nevertheless, many visitors are even more enchanted by the Sasseruwa Buddha. The reason for it is the silence and the beauty of the location, The rock is higher and more secluded, just in the middle of nowhere. The ancient Rasvehera cave monastery and its colossal Sasseruwa Buddha statue, undisturbed by mass tourism, is still an off the beaten track destination, though, as already mentioned, not far from Aukana. But it’s at the remote point of a dead-end road.
Though neighbours and similar in style, the Aukana and Sasseruwa Buddha statues differ in many respects. The statue slightly smaller than the Aukana Buddha, and it is not at all as spatial. The Aukana Buddha is standing three-dimensional in front of the rock, almost completely separated from it. In contrast, the Sasseruwa Buddha statue is a high-relief sculpture, the full height and width of the back and of the head are connected with the rock. The most striking difference is that, unlike the Aukana statue, the Sasseruwa Buddha is placed in an alcove. It is sunken in the stone, framed by the rock. The gesture of the Sasseruwa Buddha statue is the common Abhaya Mudra, whereas the Aukana statue shows the unusual Asisa Mudra. The workmanship of the Sasseruwa Buddha’s garment looks inferior, if compared to the magnificently carved robe of the Aukana Buddha. One of the uncompleted items of the Sasseruwa Buddha is the ear. It also lacks the “Siraspatha” at the top of the head which can be seen at the Aukana statue. Perhapt it had once been replaced by a wooden “Siraspatha”. The pedastal only consists of a square block of stone that remained undecorated. The pedestal of the Aukana Buddha is on ground level, whereas the Sasseruwa Buddha is can only be reached by climbing 300 steps.
Though neighbours and similar in style, the Aukana and Sasseruwa Buddha statues differ in many respects. The statue slightly smaller than the Aukana Buddha, and it is not at all as spatial. The Aukana Buddha is standing three-dimensional in front of the rock, almost completely separated from it. In contrast, the Sasseruwa Buddha statue is a high-relief sculpture, the full height and width of the back and of the head are connected with the rock. The most striking difference is that, unlike the Aukana statue, the Sasseruwa Buddha is placed in an alcove. It is sunken in the stone, framed by the rock. The gesture of the Sasseruwa Buddha statue is the common Abhaya Mudra, whereas the Aukana statue shows the unusual Asisa Mudra. The workmanship of the Sasseruwa Buddha’s garment looks inferior, if compared to the magnificently carved robe of the Aukana Buddha. One of the uncompleted items of the Sasseruwa Buddha is the ear. It also lacks the “Siraspatha” at the top of the head which can be seen at the Aukana statue. Perhapt it had once been replaced by a wooden “Siraspatha”. The pedastal only consists of a square block of stone that remained undecorated. The pedestal of the Aukana Buddha is on ground level, whereas the Sasseruwa Buddha is can only be reached by climbing 300 steps.
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Apart from the rock-cut Sasseruwa Buddha statue, Rasvehera has three more attractions, namely one of the oldest Bo trees of Sri Lanka, painted caves with murals in the Kandyan style, and elephant wildlife. Rasvehera, being a typical Sri Lankan forest monastery from the Anuradhapura period, is still surrounded by wilderness and therefore declared a wildlife conservation area. Some guests of the monastery spend here several days for wildlife observation and excursions. So Rasvehera is actually both a religious and a nature sanctuary.
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