I arrived in Sri Lanka in the last days of April. Foreign tourists take advantage of the last days before the rainy season begins in the South. Famous for its long blue coastline, the island nation of Sri Lanka attracts a large number of Western tourists to come here for relaxation or surfing. Compared to countries like Indonesia or the Philippines, which are also famous for their many marine paradises, the number of Asian visitors to Sri Lanka is somewhat smaller.
However, there are still some Asian visitors to Sri Lanka, not necessarily because of the beauty of the ocean and nature but because of the spiritual beauty of Buddhist works.
My flight to Sri Lanka in Malaysia did not meet many Vietnamese tourists. In addition to a few individual customers who "go" like me, there are one or two small groups of pilgrims.
Although I did not intentionally choose Sri Lanka before the Vesak season, I also visited many famous Buddhist places in this country. Buddhism has been present in Sri Lanka since the 3rd century BC, and is one of the earliest countries to convert to Buddhism from India. According to historical records, Buddha Shakyamuni visited Sri Lanka three times during his lifetime. After thousands of years of history, Sri Lanka still preserves important Buddhist historical works to this day.
From Colombo, I took the first half of the trip to explore the sea and the famous national parks of Sri Lanka. The first Buddhist work I visited was the Buddha Pagoda (Sri Dalada Maligawa) in Kandy City, Central Sri Lanka. Kandy is the first point for the world famous train Kandy - Ella but also the place where the relics of Shakyamuni Buddha. After many fluctuations of history, from the Kalinga Kingdom of India about 1,600 years ago, the Buddha's Rang's relics were officially kept in Kandy - the last capital of the Kingdy Kingdom (1469 - 1818).
Most of the time, the relics of the Buddha's tooth is placed in the main hall and visitors can only worship from afar. Only when important events take place, the public can admire the relics of Buddha. In the days near the Buddha's Birthday, local Buddhists came to the pagoda to offer flowers more and more. It is the faint fragrance of the lotus, lilies ... Tourists try not to affect the dignified space and the influx of worshipers.
In the Buddhist temple campus, there is also a Buddhist museum, which stores information about Buddhist imprints in many countries around the world. In addition to the first floor displaying Buddhist history in general, the second floor is divided into many rooms for each country to introduce Buddhist accents in their country. The room of Vietnam also introduced about relics such as one column pagoda, Dau Pagoda ... important Buddhist works bearing the local imprint of Vietnam.
Leaving Kandy, my next destination was Dambulla, located about 70 km north of Kandy. Dambulla is famous for the Hang Pagoda (Cave Temple) with a massive and magnificent system of temples and Buddha statues, along with giant paintings painted on the walls and ceilings of the cave. Not a person who is knowledgeable about Buddhism, I listen to tour guides at Hang Pagoda explain the anecdotes of Buddha Shakyamuni shown in the murals. It is estimated that there are about 153 Buddha statues, 3 statues of the Sri Lankan king and 4 statues of the gods.
Overcoming hundreds of stone steps to reach Hang Pagoda, I felt a great emotion when I entered the cave, admiring the beauty of Buddhist art as well as the mark of history. The temples are said to have existed for more than 2,000 years, as if bringing visitors from all over the world back to history. Not only a World Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO, Hang Pagoda is a testament to the prosperous development of Buddhism in Sri Lanka with special marks that are hard to find anywhere else in the world.
Continuing on the journey to explore famous Buddhist sites in Sri Lanka, the inter-provincial bus took me from Dambulla to Polonnaruwa - one of the famous ancient capitals of Thailand, forming a cultural triangle with Anuradhapura and Kandy.
Unlike the Hagguda or Hangguda, you must spend at least half a day to fully explore the Polonnaruwa relic complex. The hot weather of 35 - 36 degrees Celsius in Sri Lanka in early May did not make us falter. Renting a bicycle at the entrance and paying a ticket to the entrance for 30 USD (about more than 700 thousand VND), I began my journey to explore Polonnaruwa.
Polonnaruwa is the second largest Buddhist center in Sri Lanka, after the ancient capital Anuradhapura. This place was recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage in 1982. Compared to many other Buddhist works in Sri Lanka, Polonnaruwa still preserves many relics quite well, expressing the pinnacle of Buddhist architectural art and sculpture from hundreds of years ago.
It is not difficult for you to find reviews of the monuments you should visit here to avoid straying on the cycling journey. The most impressive for me is the ancient temple of Gal Vihara - almost the end for visitors in the population. With 4 statues engraved on a large rock, visitors admire the famous postures associated with the Buddha in many historical periods, from the statue of Buddha Zen on a 4.6m high lotus, a Buddha statue standing on a 6.9m high lotus, or a statue describing the Buddha Nirvana with a lying position of 14m long. Although the space is crowded with tourists, I still feel an atmosphere of peace and peace when looking at the sophisticated and vividly trimmed statues.
Visiting Buddhist sites in Sri Lanka before the Vesak season - even if not on purpose, brought me many emotions. I realized that, without being a Buddhist convert, the shadow of the authority and compassion from Buddha Shakyamuni still makes each tourist feel as if they are calm when looking into history. More than a religion, Buddhism is Taoism, the path of enlightenment for each person to find the great meanings of this life for themselves.
