一座引人注目的岩石寺庙寺院，坐落在高耸的花岗岩露头上，其梯田洞穴神殿内供奉着卧佛和生动的壁画。

概述

Mulkirigala 是斯里兰卡南部最好的石窟寺庙之一，建在坦加勒内陆 200 米高的花岗岩岩石中。岩石切割的楼梯爬过五层阶梯，两层排列着洞穴神龛，每层都有卧佛和坐佛像、彩绘天花板和古老的铭文。山顶佛塔享有周围丛林和稻田的全景。它通常被称为“小锡吉里亚”，与岛上更知名的石窟寺庙相比，它是一个有益且不那么拥挤的替代品。

历史

The monastery is traditionally said to be one of the temples founded by King Kavantissa around the 3rd century BCE. Ancient Brahmi inscriptions confirm that monks occupied the caves by the 2nd century BCE, making it among the oldest continuously inhabited monasteries in the world. It fell into neglect for centuries before King Kirti Sri Rajasinha of Kandy sponsored its restoration in the 18th century; palm-leaf manuscripts found here later aided the translation of the Mahavamsa chronicle.