Asgiri Maha Viharaya

Not to be confused with Asgiriya Raja Maha Vihara, Gampaha.
Asgiri Maha Vihara
අස්ගිරි මහා විහාරය
Religion
AffiliationBuddhism
DistrictKandy
ProvinceCentral Province
Location
LocationKandy, Sri Lanka
Geographic coordinates07°17′56.0″N 80°37′58.3″E / 7.298889°N 80.632861°E / 7.298889; 80.632861
Architecture
TypeBuddhist Temple
Completed1302[2]

Asgiri Maha Viharaya (also called Asgiriya temple, Asgiriya Gedige) is a Buddhist monastery located in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is the headquarters of the Asgiriya chapter of Siyam Nikaya,[3] one of the two Buddhist monasteries that holds the custodianship of sacred tooth relic of Buddha kept in Sri Dalada Maligawa, Kandy. The chief incumbent of the Asgiri Maha Viharaya is the Mahanayaka thero of Asgiri chapter of Siyam nikaya, a leading Buddhist monastic fraternity in Sri Lanka. The present chief incumbent of Asgiri Maha Viharaya is Warakagoda Sri Gnanarathana Thero. Asgiri Maha Vihara traces its origin from the Wanavasi sect of the Dimbulagala forest monastery of Polonnaruva.[4] Currently, 565 Buddhist temples in Sri Lanka function under Asgiri Viharaya of Kandy.

  1. ^ "Gazette". The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. 14897. 13 March 1970.
  2. ^ "වසර හත්සිය දහයක්‌ සපිරෙන අස්‌ගිරි මහා විහාරය". Divaina. Upali Newspapers. 6 May 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
  3. ^ "Asgiri Maha Vihara turns 710". Sunday Observer. Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited. 6 May 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
  4. ^ "Two great Monasteries". Sri Dalada maligawa. Retrieved 2018-01-23.