A pretty Kandyan-style temple at a road junction north-west of Kurunegala, famous for its carved wooden pillars and huge ornate doorway.

Overview

Padeniya Raja Maha Vihara is an elegant medieval temple standing where the Puttalam and Anuradhapura roads branch north-west of Kurunegala. Its image house is supported by a forest of finely carved wooden pillars and entered through an elaborately worked door said to be among the largest in the country. The complex also holds a clay-image house, a library and a preaching hall with an unusual carved wooden pulpit, all in the graceful Kandyan style.

History

The temple dates from the medieval period and was extended and decorated in the Kandyan era, when its distinctive woodcarving and painted image house took their present form. It has long served as an important local place of worship on the old route between Kurunegala and the ancient cities of the north.