03/01/2026
𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐲𝐚 - ථූපාරාමය
Thuparamaya Stupa (built 3rd century BCE onward) (Sinhala: ථුපාරාමය)
Thuparamaya is the oldest of the vatadage-type shrines in Sri Lanka, which are circular relic houses or shrines. Although emblematic of Sri Lankan architecture, there are, according to Ashley De Vos, only ten such buildings surviving across the island, though a few more are recorded in the Mahavamsa and Culavamsa chronicles. Thuparamaya was the first of this lineage, followed by the nearby Lankaramaya. The ultimate inspiration for this design is unknown; it may have been an indigenous development. Bandaranayake calls these vatadage the "...most perfect and exquisite creation" of Sri Lankan builders (p. 342). He connects the development of this design to circular rock-cut shrines on the subcontinent. De Vos, however, suggests that the Yonas (Greek speakers in Anuradhapura) may have been the origin of this form, having taken inspiration from the Greek tholos (round temples). However, she concedes that even the various Vastu Sastras architectural treatises, which are at least as old, mention circular-type temples.
Construction, Abandonment, and Restoration
The original layout of Thuparamaya was vastly different than today. As Chandra Wikramagamage relates, the Mahavamsa notes that it was constructed of clay from the Basawakkulam Tank (reservoir) piled into the shape of a paddy heap and covered with bricks. The monument was sponsored by King Devanampiya Tissa (247-207 BCE) to enshrine a collarbone relic of the Buddha. About three hundred years later, the stupa shrine was added by King Vasabha (67-111 CE) of the Lambakanna dynasty. The shrine remained a potent place of worship through the 7th century when King Aggabodhi II (604-14 CE) initiated repairs and added further embellishments, such as ivory carvings, Buddha statues, shrine platforms, and a variety of murals.
The Thuparamaya was the subject of "focused looting" in the mid-9th century during the Pandyan sack of Anuradhapura. Presumably, it also suffered during the Chola invasions of the 11th century. The historian Keir Magalie Strickland notes that the Culavamsa describes repair efforts by King Parakramabahu in the 12th century, who also renovated the Ruwanwelisaya, Abhayagiri, Jetavana, and Mirisawetiya stupas. He repaired "whatever was decayed or was fallen in" at the Thuparamaya. Further restorations took place under the aegis of King Vijayabahu IV (r. 1270-72), who cleared away dense jungle around the monument, which he described as a "...mighty forest that was like a stronghold created by Mara", implying an abandonment or neglect of the city after Parakramabahu's time. The later history of the monument is uncertain, as it was not appreciably modified again until a renovation in 1862. Nonetheless, its present form is considerably ruined and vastly diminished from how it appeared during its heyday.
Mysterious Pillars
Today, the most eye-catching and curious feature of the Thuparamaya is the forest of (mostly) crooked pillars surrounding the main stupa. The purpose of these pillars was baffling to early European archaeologists, who tied themselves in contortions attempting to explain their purpose. Writing in 1896, the scholar W. Simpson dismissed outhand the notion that the pillars might once have supported a roof, instead averring that they might have supported Buddhist emblems or statues. He even entertained the idea that they were vestigial symbols of the "yupas, or sacrificial posts, to which the victims were tied at an early period, when, as we know, the sacrifice of animals was a part of the Brahminical system" (p. 364).
As it turns out, archaeologists are now in broad agreement that the pillars were used to support a roof; one such example even survives today in Sri Lanka at Attanagalla. The historian Paranavitana proposed the roof form was likely domical, though a conical structure is now considered more likely. The intent was to support a wooden roof that completely sheltered the dagoba from the elements while providing a covered ambulatory for worshippers to conduct pradakshina (ritual circumambulation). As the roof was made of light and perishable materials, no traces have survived, accounting for the confusion by early historians on what exactly the pillars were for. As wood can be used to bridge only a relatively short span, the architects of Thuparamaya installed four concentric rings of pillars. The first, nearest the stupa, comprised 56 closely spaced pillars and would have served to support the crowning conical (or perhaps domed) roof. The following three rings were more loosely spaced, each made of 36, 40, and 48 columns, respectively, allowing for a gently sloping roof surrounding the stupa. Altogether, 176 pillars originally stood here.
Other Notable Structures
Apart from the central stupa, several other interesting structures survive in ruined form. Most notable is the image house to the southeast, which now enshrines a modern image of the seated Buddha. Previously, it was incorrectly identified as one of the many homes of the Tooth Relic over the centuries, but archaeologists now agree the relic was kept elsewhere, including the citadel at Anuradhapura. The surviving ornament—namely the moonstone, guardstone, and balustrades—is all 8th-century works, implying the Image House was not considerably reconstructed or remodeled post that date. Adjacent to the image house (to the north) is the so-called Nagulu well, which was probably the monastery's primary source of drinking water. As water was always a crucial resource in dry-zone Anuradhapura, the well was treated with great respect and was housed within its own chamber, complete with guardian stones flanking the entrance. Finally, to the northeast is the ruined stupa of Saṅghamittā (282 BCE – 203 BCE), who is popularly believed to have introduced Buddhism to Sri Lanka along with her brother Mahinda.
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