MULKIRIGALA
Cave temple, which is 2300 years old
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Traveling through the south of Sri Lanka, we could not miss the most significant attraction of this region - the Mulkirigala cave temple. It is located twenty kilometers north of the city of Tangalle. But don't be fooled by "only 20 kilometers", the terrain there is mountainous and we took a taxi from the coast for more than an hour. The nature of Sri Lanka, as usual, was pleasing to the eye. For example, we are passing the lotus lake.
First, let's tell you what a cave temple in a rock is. First of all, these are endless stairs up. The first ten minutes, you cheerfully climb up, proudly introducing yourself as Indiana Jones. For the next ten minutes, you walk slowly up the steps, trying to enjoy the nature around you. Then you understand - there is no guarantee that a temple or at least a terrace with a view will appear after the next flight of the airplane. And indeed, the next one appears behind the conquered flight, only from a different angle ... And you sit on the railing, and if there are none, then on the steps and just think about the meaning of life and the eternal: a) Why did I come here? b) Will I not crawl up forever? Catching your breath, you try to convince yourself that visiting the upper terraces has some value, you get up and walk. At the same time, the cunning staircases begin to "zigzag" and suddenly go to the side (as in the next photo on the left), but you do not care and charged with spiritual motivation, you climb up (as in the next photo on the right).
Well, now about our visit to Mulkirigala in order: before entering the temple, all visitors are met by flower sellers. Flowers in Buddhism are a donation that must be brought with you to the temple. We purchased a bouquet of multi-colored lotuses and went to the entrance.
When you get to the territory, you still do not fully understand that the temple itself is already at the top of that rock on the right. In the meantime, we pass by a white building, which is a monastery school for boys. Where the small windows of the school are ajar, one can hear children's noise and din, familiar to us from school breaks.
We were surprised by the entrance gate - there was a frivolous figure with a drum on it. The monk boys, who happened to be "on duty today", looked serious and cleaned the surrounding area.
But to be honest, they constantly had to be distracted by watching tourists and talking.
Having purchased a ticket to visit the temple for 500 rupees, we began our long climb up. Long or short, but the first terrace was reached. The expression on my face could tell a lot about the vicissitudes of the ascent, but it is better to look at the jungle - they are always beautiful!
After conquering all levels of the Mulkirigala cave temple, we can say with all responsibility that you will receive the brightest and most colorful impressions on the lowest terrace. After all, it is there that there are several small cave rooms with figures of deities. These rooms are simply amazing. Just imagine how unnamed masters in the 9-10th centuries AD carved this beauty right into the rock. And then they also painted them in such bright colors.
A couple more photos from the caves of the lower terrace. Look at the shape of the ceiling in one of the rooms. How much effort had to be made to knock out these rooms in the rock using only a simple hand tool. And the meanings that the stories on the walls convey to us are beyond counting.
As beautiful as the caves of the lower terrace at Mulkirigala are, our goal is much higher. We gather our will "into a fist" and continue our ascent. Through weariness and the coming rain we went upstairs. The camera got wet, but tried and photographed everything around. Let's be honest, not all members of our group reached the top where the upper terrace is located. Some sat on the steps just above the middle and just waited for the others to return. Unfortunately, they could not see with their own eyes the panorama that opened up to us at the very top ...
And now you can see what is happening on the uppermost terrace of the Mulkirigala temple and why the locals climb here. Everyone who climbs should do this:
Having completed the obligatory ritual at the top of the temple, we began our slow journey downward. Gradually, we went down to the expedition members, who boycotted the ascent and sat tiredly on the stairs :-)
After the whole team was assembled again, they were waiting for us:
1. Long stairs down.
2. Incense.
3. The owners of local trees are monkeys.
Slowly going downstairs, we completed our visit to the temple. We were downstairs, when the evening twilight was already enveloping the local jungle. We are sure that having visited this cave temple, each of us has become a little different, because it is not without reason that the ancient Sri Lankans put their Buddhist stupa and altar here, at the very top of the rock.
