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What to see (Any Buddhist traveler to the sacred city is strongly advised to dress in white while visiting the temples. Dresses that reveal are discouraged from all travelers. The most simulating experience from the temples comes from their tranquility and behaving in a calm and settled manner will help the traveler to enjoy the Scared city experience to its fullest. This area contains places of worship which are the most sacred among the places of worship of the Buddhists and regardless of religious beliefs, a traveler is expected to respect the religious significance of the place. It is a common mistake to think of such places as ruins. Mirisawetiya encloses the scepter of the great king King Dutugamunu which contains the scared relic of the Buddha and was the meditating ground of many Arahats and is most certainly a “living” place of worship).
The dagaba, which in its present form measures 192 feet in height and 141 feet in diameter is the main attraction. You can ponder the sheer enormity of the structure and it will be hard not to admire the sheer engineering brilliance of the ancient Sinhalese who were able to construct such magnificent work over 2000 years ago ! The Best time to see the dagaba will be in the evening when the heat of the sun is subsiding. You could feel the presence of 2000 years of history staring down at you. You will also feel a sensation of absolute serenity and tranquility. Through a recent sponsorship, the dagaba is now illuminated at night, joining the spectacular sight of the many dagaba in Anuradhapura, illuminated at night. When you finish your tour of the temples, do take a ride in the sacred city at night. You will not regret the experience!
When the Englishman Parker saw Mirisawetiya for the first time he was not impressed. All he saw was a mound of trees and tangled undergrowth. Then why take an interest? well, it was the discovery of the famous western frontpiece (Vahalkada) which motivated them to continue. They say that the Mirisawetiya Vahalkada is the best of them all and is the most beautiful and the most well preserved of all Dagabas.This Vahalkada won the praise and admiration of many art historians and archeologists and is regarded as an earliest display of Sinhala Art.
(The Western Vahalkada, before its collapse in 1987) Unfortunately this most admired , acclaimed and most preserved pieces of art, the Vahalkada (frontpiece) of Mirisawetiya was destroyed during the collapse of the renovation in 1987 (How ironic it is !, surviving for over 2000 years under intense invasion plundering and the assault of the weather and treasure hunters, the vahalkada collapsed in the 20th century with all the modern experts around and with all the latest technology in hand !). But now we have breaking news ! Good news ! In 2006, The Department of Archeology, at great cost, painstakingly resorted the Vahalkada to its former glory. Please make sure that you see this remarkable piece of art
(The newly restored vahalkada, as seen on March 2006. Pic by web team) Click here to see a comprehensive analysis of the vahalkada. Click here see a video clip of the western entrance showing the vahalkada
(Ref: Architectural remains Anuradhapura Sri Lanka: James G Smither) The monastery The monastery is the place where the monks of the temple reside in. Usually monasteries in ancient Anuradhapura temples consist of clusters, each containing five units. A singular feature in the Mirisawetiya is the fact that its monastery consists of clusters, each of which contains three units instead of five. It is believed that thousands of monks who obtained the highest mind state of “Arahat” lived in this monastery and Mirisawetiya . Among these ruins you can also see the earliest appearances of the moonstones in Buddhist Temples.
(Three unit resident cluster unique to Mirisawetiya) This type of monastery belongs to the type known as "Royal Monasteries". Below is the Monastic Plan of the Mirisawetiya Temple. Notice the unique resident clusters , each of which contains three units instead of the traditional five (Panchavasa)
(background image: ref: Buddhist Meditation Monasteries of ancient Sri Lanka : Gamini Wijesuriya)
A “Dana Sala” is the place where the resident monks were offered their meals and this can be seen in the northern side of the Mirissawetiya.
Close to the “Dana Sala”, you can still see an old rice boat in which, rice offered to the monks who were living in the monastery. People in the area used to make rice and porridge in the morning and would then put them into the boat where the monks would partake them from.
The ruins of an image house and a Bodhi Shrine can also be seen in the premises.
A chapter house (also known as "Uposathagara") is an essential building in any monastery. "Patimokka" is recited by the priests there every fortnight and also other acts of "Vinaya" (Discipline) are conducted at the Chapter House. Chapter Houses were also used as residences for monks. Anuradhapura boasts of spectacular Chapter Houses such as the "Lohapasada" which was supposed be nine storeys tall ! (ref:Buddhist Meditation Monasteries of ancient Sri Lanka : Gamini Wijesuriya)
A visit to the Museum is a must for any serious visitor to the sacred city. Among other things, here you can see a “plan” of the Mirisawetiya Dagaba dating back to 8 th Centaury AC.
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