Sri Padaya - Adem's Peak

Mount Sri Pada is one of the rare places where people of the four major religions in the world worship. The mountain is located in the district of Rathnapura with a height of 7,360 feet (2,243 meters).

Although it is only the second highest mountain, It rises alone with dignity and a conical shape and offers an uninterrupted view over the land and the sea. It is said that the mountain is the symbol of the ancient people of the Arabian sea, who came to Sri Lanka, to trade in stones, spices, ivory, etc. when he brought them safely to the island.

According to the great Sri Lankan epic, Mahawamsa, Buddha visited Sri Lanka three times. The last time he traveled from Kelaniya to Sri Pada, then to Digavaphi. It is said that Buddha left his foot on the rock on the mountain at the invitation of God Saman (Saman Deviyo).

The God Saman is recorded as the Buddha in his first visit to the island when he visited Mahiyangana to expel the Tribe of Yakkas. Saman became a river-enterer (sotapanna) after hearing the Buddha. Then God Saman asked for something to worship, and Buddha gave him a handful of hair which he fixed on a dagaba in Mahiyangana.

The Theravada Buddhists of Sri Lanka later created the Saman God to guard their land and their religion. With the growth of Mahayana Buddhism, Saman developed into Samantabhadra, one of the four principle bodhisattvas of Mahayana. As in her later appearances, Samanta is often depicted crowned and adorned, holding a lotus in her right hand and accompanied by a white elephant. In Weligama, an ancient town on the southern coast of Sri Lanka, there is a 12 ft tall statue that some believe is the image of Samantabhadra carved from a giant moss-covered moss. This statue is now known as Kushtarajagala. It is believed that the Pilgrims from India and northern Sri Lanka coming to Weligama were greeted by this bodhisattva on their long journey to Sri Pada.

The top of the mountain is a small plateau, and according to measurements made by Lieut. Malcolm (the first European to climb the mountain in 1816)," is 74 ft. long and 24 ft. wide "a total of 1,776 sq. ft. On the top of the Peak wide steps lead to a wall. bar containing rock with a tower-like structure.

A similar print in Thailand is believed to contain the imprint of the Buddha's right foot, about five feet long and two feet wide. The actual footprint on Adam's Peak is believed to be embedded in the rocks below the visible rock.

It is said that the soles of the Buddha's feet are flat and all the toes are the same length. On each sole there are one hundred and eight auspicious symbols (mangala lakkhana), with the wheel (chakra) the main symbol in the center while around it are gathered the figures of animals, sitting in different worlds and other types of symbols.

The Buddhists knew that this mysterious footprint was made by the Buddha long ago (up to the 1st century BC) and introduced any other religion in the country. But in later centuries other faiths, Islam, Hinduism and Christianity had to confess to it. Muslims believe that it is the footprint of Adam (hence the name Adam's Peak); Christian, of St. Thomas, the disciple of Jesus; and Hindu, the god Shiva. The Tamil name of the rock is Civan-oli-pata (the mountain path of Siva's light) or Svargarohanam (yes to heaven).

Geography

The mountain is located in the southern part of the Central Highlands in the District of Ratnapura and Nuwara Eliya District of Sabaragamuwa District and Central District.The surrounding region consists of many wooded hills, with no comparable mountain nearby. The region on the mountain is a reserve, home to many different species from elephants to leopards, and includes many endemic species.

Puluga Adam is considered a spring. The districts to the south and east of Mount Adam produce precious stones—emeralds, rubies and sapphires, for which the island became famous, and from which it received the ancient name of Ratnadvipa.

Adam's Peak is the source of three major rivers in Sri Lanka: the Kelani River, the Walawe River, and the Kalu Ganga (river).

Nomenclature

Because of its importance to the different people living in the country, the mountain is called by different names.

The common use of Sri Pada is derived from Sanskrit, used by the Sinhalese in a religious context; This name also has a meaning in the Pāli language, and can be roughly translated as "shallow feet". It refers to the footprint on the summit, which Buddhists believe is the Buddha. According to Christian and Islamic traditions, this is the footprint of Adam, left when he first set foot on the earth after being expelled from paradise, and named "Adam's Peak". , and hence the name Shiva padam (feet of Shiva) in Tamil. Tamils ​​may also use the name Shivanolipatha Malai to refer to the mountain.

Another Sinhala name for the mountain is Samanalakanda, which refers to the god Saman, who is said to live on the mountain, or the baby (samanalayā) who frequents the mountain during their annual pilgrimage. in the region. The name Sri Paada, however, is more commonly used.

Other local and historical names include Ratnagiri ("beautiful mountain"), Samantakuta ("Peak of Saman"), Svargarohanam ("ascent to heaven"), Mount Rohana and other variations on the root of Rohana.

History

The first historical record about Sri Pada comes during the reign of Vijayabahu (1055-1110). First historical information in the history and literature It is recorded that the king saw the difficulties faced by the pilgrims on their way to worship the Sri Pathula (Buddha's Foot Print) on Samanthakuta consecrated the village called 'Gilmale' to provide for their needs. The stone inscriptions of Vijayabahu found in Gilimale and Ambagamuwa confirm the interpretation of the story. But King Nissanka Malla (1187-1196) who reigned from Poona started the journey when he climbed the mountain with his four army with great faith and devotion.

At the beginning of the 16th century the Portuguese conquered the coastal provinces of Sri Lanka and banned the Buddhists living under their rule and those coming from abroad from going to Sri Pada. In contrast, the king of Kandy, where the mountain is located, allowed Christians to enter his territory to make the pilgrimage. When the Dutch took control of the coastal provinces in 1656, they proved to be less powerful than the Portuguese but fearing that the immigrants would become spies for the king of Kandy led to they, if not banned, at least discourage visits by buying a weight. tax on pilgrims .For almost two centuries the Sinhalese Buddhists who lived in the lowlands could see the holy mountain, worshiping it from afar but not there.

In 1581 the crown prince of Kandy killed his father, King Mayadunne of Sitawaka and proclaimed himself King Rajasinghe I. When he asked the Buddhist monks how he could wash away the wrong done The monk replied that he could not get away from this and that he should be responsible for his actions. But the Hindu priests on the other hand were willing to perform a puja to help the king clear his guilty conscience and so he converted to Hinduism. As a result the Buddhist monks were expelled from Sri Pada and handed over to the 'Andis' (a non-braminical Siva sect) from South India who ruled for the next 160 years. Later King Kirti Sri Rajasinha (1747-1781) restored it, and appointed Ven. Welivitiye Saranankara Sangharaja Maha Thera, see the joy of the Buddhist of the holy mountain. He also donated the village, Kuttapitiya and the bronze plate in support of this donation which is still there.

Legends

For Buddhists, the footprint mark is the left foot of the Buddha, left behind when Buddha visited Sri Lanka, as a symbol for worship at the invitation of Buddhist God Saman.

Tamil Hindus consider it as the footprint of Lord Shiva. It is also fabled that the mountain is the legendary mount Trikuta, the capital of Ravana during the Ramayana times from where he ruled Lanka.

A bell lies on top of the temple and tradition goes that pilgrims can ring it as many times as they have achieved the pilgrimage to the top of the peak.

Some Muslims and Christians in Sri Lanka ascribe it to where Adam, the first ancestor, set foot as he was exiled from the Garden of Eden.[citation needed] The legends of Adam are connected to the idea that Sri Lanka was the original Eden,and in the Muslim tradition that Adam was 60 cubits tall.

A shrine to Saman, a Buddhist "deity" (people who have spent spiritual lives during their life on earth and done pacificism service to regions are deified by Sri Lankan Buddhists) charged with protecting the mountain top, can be found near the footprint.

Sripada season

The Sri Pada season starts from full moon of December and end on full moon of April. Generally it takes about five to six hours to climb to the top. During this season many shops pop up on the way to the mountain top offering all sorts of food and refreshments. There are first aid centers manned by volunteers on the way. Most people make the climb by night to reach the mountain top to watch the “Ira Sevaya”, the sun rise over the sea. But this time can be quite crowded specially during the weekend and towards the end of the season. Its not rare were you have spend 5-10 minutes standing on a single step until crowd moves on. The top of the mountain is quite windy and chilly.

Route

There are two historic approaches to the summit of Sri Pada. The oldest is the Ratnapura path (climb start from Erathna), popularly known as the ‘difficult path’. This is a beaten track infested with leaches and very few use this path. This a The ‘Seetagangula’ (the icy water river) which is the parent of Kaluganga is found halfway upon the climb. This route is definitely the path to take for a experienced trekker who wants to avoid crowds.

The other path is the Hatton path (climb start from Nallatanniya) called the ‘Raja Mawatha’ in ancient times because many kings have used this path to reach the mountain top. This is the most common path used by the average pilgrim. There are resting places with small boutiques every few hundred steps during the season. There are several ways to get to Hatton. You can take a bus or the train from the Colombo. From Hatton Once at Hatton take one of the numerous private buses to the foot of the mountain, a distance of about 33 kilometres.