A Guest Post by:
P.N. Sampath Kumar,
Cochin Shipyard, Kochi
I heard of Sigiriya, the historical
monument in Srilanka for the first time while surfing internet in 2004 when my
colleague in the office entrusted me with the job of planning his vacation in
Srilanka. Considering the risk of travelling too much deep into that country due
to the turbulent political situation and also the difficulty in climbing the
number of steps for his ailing wife prompted him to opt out that option. But
those inputs initially saw the seeds of curiosity and longing to visit this
place at an opportune time.
 |
| Magestic Sigiriya Rock |
For SriLankans “Sigiriya” is more
than what our Taj Mahal is for us. Derived from the root Sanskrit name Sinha
Giri (meaning Lion Mountain) this city used to be the capital of the
5th century King “Kashyapa”(479 – 497 AD). The Story goes that King
Kashyapa, the son of Dhatusena (King of Anuradhapura – 50 KM north of Sigiriya)
and half brother of Prince Moggallana killed his father fearing that his half
brother would be appointed as the next king. He shifted his capital from
Anuradhapura to Sigiriya and created this beautiful city in a span of, they say,
7 years. Sigiriya provided an ideal place for a fortress as it was in a
difficult-to-approach remote area. His half brother Dhatusena though fled to
India fearing for his life, came back stronger after few years and defeated his
brother Kashyapa in a war. It is said that Kashyapa committed suicide by cutting
himself, not wishing to die at enemy’s hand. The site became a monastic refuge
after his death. In the 16th and 17th centuries, it served as an outpost of the
Kandyan kingdom but later went into ruin and was rediscovered by a British
archaeologist Mr. H.C.P. Bell.
All these in the backdrop of my mind,
we included this site in our itinerary during our vacation to Srilanka in mid
April 2011. We were staying in Kandy, in central Srilanka. It was a Sunday
morning, after breakfast (we came across a couple of south Indian restaurants
run by Tamils in Kandy) we proceeded to Sigiriya by a hired cab on a one day
trip. Our Driver ‘Tamura’ from ‘Kandy Cabs’ was a nice boy who understood little
Tamil and English. As advised by Ms Shakuntala, the owner of the hotel where we
stayed, we got sufficient sandwiches, flavoured milk packets and bottled water
parcelled for the journey. Itinerary included visit to Dambulla cave temples
also en-route.
Kandy has unpredictable weather. We
feared rain en-route as it was playing hide and seek for the last two days in
Kandy. After a few miles (it is all miles and yards in Srilanka) alongside the
Mahaveli River, and later through the reserve forest, we reached Matale town. We
took a break there to have a cup of Srilankan tea and later walk around the big
goddess temple (Muthu Mari Amman) in the middle of the town. I was told that
Mahatma Gandhi has once visited Matale in 1927 and laid foundation stone for one
school here.
 |
| Mariamman Temple at Matale |
We furthered our travel through paddy
fields and coconut plantations. The journey through the unknown land was
pleasant. Paddy fields are getting ready for sowing. Farmers ploughing the land
with buffalows is a usual scene. Air smelled mud. Occasional scenes of houses
resembled the Malabar Coast in India. The tiled houses there are the most
suitable for the rainy whether. On both sides of the road, there were shops
selling bananas, fruits and vegetables and tender coconuts. Tourism is becoming
a serious business. It was nice to see big Banyan trees on both sides of the
road. Thanks to the conscious effort on the part of the government. Banyan trees
are great source of Oxygen and even prevent depletion of ozone layer, they say.
 |
| Huge Buddha at Dambulla base |
 |
| Dambulla Caves - Outside |
 |
| The reclining Buddha |
 |
| Buddha |
 |
| Mural |
 |
| Mural |
Dambulla town is also the home for
the most impressive cave temple in Asia, dedicated to Lord Buddha. Situated on
top of a rock, the five caves are said to have been continuously occupied since
it was established in 3rd Century BC. There is a functioning
monastery. Dambulla is famous for murals, mostly Buddhist themes. They also run
down below a good museum detailing the Jataka and other stories related to the
Tooth Relic.
 |
| A Chaitya |
Though entry for the Sri Lankans is
free, foreigners including Indians are charged SL Rs.2200/- (1 SL Re= In
Rs.0.45). Despite being funded by UNESCO, and liberally supported by Buddhist
countries like Japan and Burma, they charge such huge fee from the foreign
tourists. Elsewhere, in Srilanka, SAARC member country citizens are allowed 50%
discount on entrance fee. (We availed this discount in Sigiriya and in Kandy
Tooth Temple).
Dambulla is a lovers’ paradise too.
Roadside shops selling lotus flowers, incense sticks, souvenirs and eatables are
aplenty. On a whole, this place somehow did not impress me. This was my first
encounter with a Budhist Shrine outside India. They have reduced it to being
only a pilgrim centre, run by a group of ritualists catering to the needs of the
poor locals.
 |
| Sigriya seen from Dambulla rocks |
The view around Dambulla rock is
enchanting. Sigiriya fortress seen at a distance of 13 miles was inviting us. In
the next half an hours travelling through difficult village mud roads (the main
road was under repair) we reached Sigiriya. SL Rs.1650/- was the ticket charge
per person. We hired a certified guide (paid him SL Rs.500/-). We bought a
bottle of cold water and followed our guide Perera. He gave us a very good brief
introduction on the city of Sigiriya beginning from King Kashyap till the
end.
 |
| Main entrance - A moat at the foreground |
 |
| Old brick work |
The city is about three kilometres in
length and one kilometre in width surrounded by huge wall and an outer moat
filled with water for added protection. Creatures like lizard monitors are in
abundance. Their predecessors would have helped the intruders and thieves to
climb the fort those days. A notice board cautioned the visitors against loud
noise which could disturb the wasps on the big trees. Hornets attack is common
here.
 |
| The water gardens |
 |
| Experimenting with a fountain |
The well-organised and landscaped
gardens around Sigiriya consist of pleasure garden, water gardens, fountain
gardens, boulder (stone) gardens and terraced gardens. The water garden, as it
is called, particularly consisting of a number of symmetrical ponds and
countless fountains on both sides of the main pathway welcomed us to the fort.
Some of the fountains in the water gardens are still operable during rainy
seasons. Our friend Perera demonstrated it by exhaling air into one of the holes
to show water gushing out from the other fountain.
The king's summer palace was also
located close to the water gardens, which are amazing constructions for those
early ages. The gardens of Sigiriya are said to be the oldest such constructions
in Asia and one of the first in the world. Excavations (by UNESCO) are still
incomplete and a lot more need to be done.
 |
| Ruins of the Palace |
 |
| The Lion Gate |
 |
| Halfway through lion gate |
The royal palace was built atop the
rock while other buildings and gardens were built around the rock. Only the
foundations of these structures remain now. At one time, a gigantic brick lion
sat at one end of the rock while the climb to the top started with a stairway
that led between the lion's paws and into its mouth. Although the lion is no
longer there, the paws and the first steps are still visible. The stairway built
around the rock leading to the summit is astounding.
The highlight of Sigiriya trip is the
wall paintings (frescoes) of 5th Century AD period. From over 500
paintings only around a dozen paintings only are seen. Rest of it would have
been destroyed by vandals or Budhist monks who would have thought that these
paintings might distract them. These frescoes would remind one of the Ajanta
cave paintings in India. Some believe the women depicted in these paintings to
be ‘apsaras’. On a closer look, one can easily make out that these women were
from different races. These beautiful women resembled, Indian, Chinese and even
African faces. The quality and the bright colours speak volumes about the
artists of bygone era and the techniques they used.
 |
| Graffitti on the mirror wall |
A mirror wall beside the main
stairway to the rock is another wonder. It is coated with a mirror-smooth glaze
and continues to shine despite being exposed to rain, sun and winds for
centuries. The graffiti on the wall is believed to have been written between the
6th and 14th centuries by the many visitors who were delighted by the splendor
of the rock.
 |
| Pool at the summit |
 |
| King's Assembly area |
 |
| A throne at the summit beside the pool |
At the summit an archaeology
enthusiast can spend hours looking at astonishing features of such an
architectural wonder. The remnants of the swimming-pool, pools providing
drinking water and pipes leading off from them are still visible. Meeting
places, stone seats, courts and sentry posts are nearby.
 |
| View from the summit |
 |
| Farm Lands |
We stood there admiring the
surroundings, looking at the dense forest on the one side which would have been
hunting place for the kings in search of wild elephants to be used in wars and
the far reaching fertile paddy fields on the other side which provided them
abundant wealth of grains. Somewhere beyond those fields in the north is
Anuradhapura, King Kashyap’s birth place. Towards East, 80 miles away is the
famous Trincomalee, one of the most beautiful harbours in the world. And in the
south-west about 100 miles away is our temporary base in Srilanka. We had to
leave as it was already 5 pm in the evening. Sayonara Sigiriya ....
