URI-INDIAN TEAM VISITED KANDY
HILL CITY AND KANDY LAKE IN SRI LANKA
U.R.I
Indian team visited Kandy Hill City and Kandi Lake on24th March,2014. The team
includes Dr. Abraham Karickom,Executive Secretary of U.R.I Asia Region,
Prof. John Kurakar, Chairman of the South Asia Region, Prof. P.K Varghese,
Co-ordinator of Amar Jyothi C.C, Prof. Molly Kurakar, Mrs Susan Abraham, Mr.
Abey Abraham.Kandy Lake is a lake in the heart of the
hill city of Kandy, Sri Lanka, built in 1807 by King Sri Vikrama Rajasinha of
Sri Lanka next to the Temple of the Tooth. Over the years, it was reduced in
size. It is a protected lake, with fishing banned. There are many legends and
folklore regarding the lake. One such is that the small island at its center
was used by the king's helm for bathing and was connected to the palace by
secret tunnel.Kandy Lake, the main body of water in the city of Kandy in
central Sri Lanka, is a man-made lake created in 1807 by the last Sinhalese
king of Kandy, using forced labor. The king used land which was a paddy field
to create the lake. It stands as an indictment[according to whom?] of the
excesses of the Kandyan monarchy for wasting away national resources to build
an ornamental lake at a time when the kingdom was under serious threat. When a
hundred of his advisors advised King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe against building
the lake, he had them impaled on the reservoir bund of the paddy field which he
was converting into the ornamental lake. It was not long before the British
captured him, with help from his own noblemen disgruntled by his irrational
policies.
Kandy Lake has a perimeter of 2.1 miles
and a maximum depth of 60 feet. A decorative wall, called Walakulu wall, runs
for 2060 feet along the banks of the Kandy Lake. In the middle of the lake is
an island housing the Royal Summer House. Sri Dalada Maligawa, or Temple of the
Tooth Relic, is located beside the lake across the road. On the opposite side
of the road from the Temple of the Tooth Relic is the Royal Bathhouse, which is
used by the king's wives and concubines as a bathhouse. The British added one more
story to the structure to house a library.The Kandy Lake offers a place for a
stroll or a jog. The shady path surrounding the lake provides a view of the
hills and the town. The lake was created in 1807 by the last Sinhalese King. It
is situated by the side of the Temple of the tooth relic. The Malwatte temple,
one of the two head temples of the Siyam Nikaya sect of Theravada Buddhism, is
also located overlooking the lake. Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe, the last king of
Kandy, decorated the lake with the "walakulu" (clouds) wall.
One of the prettiest objects of the lake
is the island. It is decorated with palm trees and bamboo thickets. King Sri
Wickrama Rajasinghe built a dam for the purpose of reaching the opposite side
of the lake. Then as the dam was not sufficient for him, the King removed the
soil from both the palace end and the Malwatte Vihare end, leaving the island
behind. At first this island was supposed to be the bathing place of the Queen
and the ladies of the court.The Walakulu wall was built to increase the beauty
of the Kandy Lake. It extends around half of the Lake and has taken one skilled
architect to build it. The king who built the Walakulu wall couldn’t finish it
because he lost the war and was forced to relinquish the Kandian kingdom. The
Walakulu wall still lies unfinished. The triangular shaped holes in the
Walakulu wall were used in the past for lighting oil lamps on festival days.The
queen’s bath is situated partly in the waters of the Kandy Lake. The wives of
Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe used the queen’s bath. The British added another storey
which was used as a library.
Prof. John Kurakar
No comments:
Post a Comment