Day 2 begins with Sigriya (World Heritage Site): Sigriya I think, was the highlight of my trip. It is a 200 mts. rock on which King Kasyapa had built his palace – and there is a story to why he built it there. But first my story… I am not much of a climber. Previously I had given up a climb just few mins / meters away from the top - that was in Kerala (Eddakal Caves at Wynaad) and when I was much lighter than what I am now. Climbing is just not my thing although I love to go on the top of a mountain or hill. So this was to be a personal challenge and I wanted to climb on the top for two of my friends Farida and Ebby who I had deserted on my last climb in Kerala. So when I saw this huge mother of a rock right before me I was shaken to say the least but then this time I knew I just had to do it. I owed it to them and this climb up was dedicated to these close friends of mine. Now with so much of an emotional baggage that I placed on myself there was no way I was backing out. The most exhilarating feeling of finishing a climb is reaching the top ( as you are suppose to) and feeling on top of the world.
My first view of this huge monolith rock just took my breath away. To think that thousands of years ago someone actually thought of and then built this amazing piece of architecture without any modern tools is just another testimony of how intelligent our ancestors were and how in comparison we pale out completely. It was a well thought and well planned fortress – it has various levels of distinct precincts that finally lead to the palace on top of 200 mts Rock. Without going too much into details let me just mention the various things that one can get to see on the way to the top. Man made water moats at the outer most walls, followed by water gardens, boulder gardens, terrace gardens, bathing pools. In fact during the summer the King would shift to the inner city, which would work as his summer palace.
One of the most amazing aspects of Sigriya is that it is one of the best preserved and most elaborate surviving urban sites in South Asia from the first millennium. As I moved from the outer walls to the inner city I just felt this overwhelming feeling of being touched by history as I have never felt before. I could actually imagine the queen and her maids have a royal bath is the octagonal pool; I could see the King in close conversation with his courtiers at the “meeting cave”. Indeed the period in which King Kasyapa ruled Sigriya almost 18 years) must have been the Golden Age for this area as assumed by the historians.
The most famous feature of the Sigriya Rock is the Apsara paintings which are found in a depression in the rock some 100 mts above ground level. I had to climb countless steps to reach there and they don’t allow you to take pictures of the painting – ensuring that the flash do not harm the ancient paintings. Anyone who has a problem with heights should not venture here... its sheer drop in case of a misstep. The other interesting feature is the Mirror Wall and it is full of ancient graffiti some say from about 6th to 13th century BC.
The final entrance to palace is through the Lion Paw – it is an amazingly breath-taking piece of architecture. There are numerous steps that finally lead you to the top. It took me about an hour and a half to reach the top. Of course at most places I almost gave up but then I just knew that if I gave up this time I will never be able to climb another mountain or a Rock and I have set my heart at climbing the Adam’s Peak next time round (7 kms of upward hike – all steps)
Oh before I forget, here is the story of why King Kasyapa built his palace as high and as well protected as Sigriya. Sigriya came dramatically into the history of Sri Lanka in the last quarter of the 5th century BC – King Dhatusena ruled Sri Lanka from the ancient city of Anuradhapura (which I didn’t get to see this time round). Prince Kasyapa a non-royal prince, having being born of a consort mother was misled by his own greedy brother-in law against his father and King. He seized the throne, executed his father and banished his younger brother the crown prince Mogallana, who fled to India. Having done this dastardly deed, he was never ever at peace and always feared for his life. He thus established Sigriya as his new capital and gave it its present name of ‘Simha-giri’ or ‘Lion Mountain’. The 18 years he ruled were considered the best years for Sigriya.
It was in the 19th century that antiquarians began to take interest on this site, they were followed by archaeologists who have now been working on restoring this site for the past 100 years!!!
Sigriya to Kandy: After Sigriya, the next halt was Kandy. I was looking forward to Kandy for two reasons, one was because of the famous Tooth Temple and the other was because Kandy is where the Hill Country of Sri Lanka begins. It is also the second most important city in Sri Lanka after Colombo and I have been told that has the most handsome men of Sri Lanka.
The drive was a delight. There are so many spice gardens on the way. These are more for tourist to stop and maybe buy few goods. By no way are they a “must see” and I was ready to give it a miss but Yohan insisted we stopped. I guess he had a commission going on with one of the gardens. I met this young kid with an unusual name – Sachin Rafique. A school kid whose parents I guess where fans of Sachin Tendulkar. The ‘guide’ at the garden tried his best to sell me some oil but I just was not up to it. He however got me to agree for a leg massage and having done the climb at Sigriya I relented. It wasn’t bad at all. I was off on the road again; we reached Kandy at about 3 pm in the afternoon.
I had read it in the Lonely Planet that a single woman traveling would always have people asking about her marital status. I didn’t quiet believe it. But I was proven wrong. Wherever I went and I was seen by myself I was asked the question, “Madam, not married?” It seemed that the oddest thing in the world to do was to be single and it was not considered odd at all that complete strangers were asking me about my marital status and some even going as far as giving advice “Madam you must get married.” So I had trickshaw drivers, waiters, lobby managers, stewards, and restaurant managers all worried about singlehood status. As the trip continued I would begin to be surprised if I was not asked that question. But having said that, I could sense no feeling of trying to get “fresh” in their questioning; Farida said that as a society Sri Lankans believed that everyone must get married and while there was no looking down on affairs whether per marital or even post marital, the wedding bliss is wished upon everyone.
My first view of this huge monolith rock just took my breath away. To think that thousands of years ago someone actually thought of and then built this amazing piece of architecture without any modern tools is just another testimony of how intelligent our ancestors were and how in comparison we pale out completely. It was a well thought and well planned fortress – it has various levels of distinct precincts that finally lead to the palace on top of 200 mts Rock. Without going too much into details let me just mention the various things that one can get to see on the way to the top. Man made water moats at the outer most walls, followed by water gardens, boulder gardens, terrace gardens, bathing pools. In fact during the summer the King would shift to the inner city, which would work as his summer palace.
One of the most amazing aspects of Sigriya is that it is one of the best preserved and most elaborate surviving urban sites in South Asia from the first millennium. As I moved from the outer walls to the inner city I just felt this overwhelming feeling of being touched by history as I have never felt before. I could actually imagine the queen and her maids have a royal bath is the octagonal pool; I could see the King in close conversation with his courtiers at the “meeting cave”. Indeed the period in which King Kasyapa ruled Sigriya almost 18 years) must have been the Golden Age for this area as assumed by the historians.
The most famous feature of the Sigriya Rock is the Apsara paintings which are found in a depression in the rock some 100 mts above ground level. I had to climb countless steps to reach there and they don’t allow you to take pictures of the painting – ensuring that the flash do not harm the ancient paintings. Anyone who has a problem with heights should not venture here... its sheer drop in case of a misstep. The other interesting feature is the Mirror Wall and it is full of ancient graffiti some say from about 6th to 13th century BC.
The final entrance to palace is through the Lion Paw – it is an amazingly breath-taking piece of architecture. There are numerous steps that finally lead you to the top. It took me about an hour and a half to reach the top. Of course at most places I almost gave up but then I just knew that if I gave up this time I will never be able to climb another mountain or a Rock and I have set my heart at climbing the Adam’s Peak next time round (7 kms of upward hike – all steps)
Oh before I forget, here is the story of why King Kasyapa built his palace as high and as well protected as Sigriya. Sigriya came dramatically into the history of Sri Lanka in the last quarter of the 5th century BC – King Dhatusena ruled Sri Lanka from the ancient city of Anuradhapura (which I didn’t get to see this time round). Prince Kasyapa a non-royal prince, having being born of a consort mother was misled by his own greedy brother-in law against his father and King. He seized the throne, executed his father and banished his younger brother the crown prince Mogallana, who fled to India. Having done this dastardly deed, he was never ever at peace and always feared for his life. He thus established Sigriya as his new capital and gave it its present name of ‘Simha-giri’ or ‘Lion Mountain’. The 18 years he ruled were considered the best years for Sigriya.
It was in the 19th century that antiquarians began to take interest on this site, they were followed by archaeologists who have now been working on restoring this site for the past 100 years!!!
Sigriya to Kandy: After Sigriya, the next halt was Kandy. I was looking forward to Kandy for two reasons, one was because of the famous Tooth Temple and the other was because Kandy is where the Hill Country of Sri Lanka begins. It is also the second most important city in Sri Lanka after Colombo and I have been told that has the most handsome men of Sri Lanka.
The drive was a delight. There are so many spice gardens on the way. These are more for tourist to stop and maybe buy few goods. By no way are they a “must see” and I was ready to give it a miss but Yohan insisted we stopped. I guess he had a commission going on with one of the gardens. I met this young kid with an unusual name – Sachin Rafique. A school kid whose parents I guess where fans of Sachin Tendulkar. The ‘guide’ at the garden tried his best to sell me some oil but I just was not up to it. He however got me to agree for a leg massage and having done the climb at Sigriya I relented. It wasn’t bad at all. I was off on the road again; we reached Kandy at about 3 pm in the afternoon.
I had read it in the Lonely Planet that a single woman traveling would always have people asking about her marital status. I didn’t quiet believe it. But I was proven wrong. Wherever I went and I was seen by myself I was asked the question, “Madam, not married?” It seemed that the oddest thing in the world to do was to be single and it was not considered odd at all that complete strangers were asking me about my marital status and some even going as far as giving advice “Madam you must get married.” So I had trickshaw drivers, waiters, lobby managers, stewards, and restaurant managers all worried about singlehood status. As the trip continued I would begin to be surprised if I was not asked that question. But having said that, I could sense no feeling of trying to get “fresh” in their questioning; Farida said that as a society Sri Lankans believed that everyone must get married and while there was no looking down on affairs whether per marital or even post marital, the wedding bliss is wished upon everyone.
November 30, 2007
1 comment:
I don't think it was kashyap's... it was probably hastily assigned to kashyap. That is what the religion and politics does to archeological finds.
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