Sigiriya (Lion Rock) Fortress

Location: Matale District, Central Province
Date of visit: 15th December 2010

One of Sri Lanka’s most popular tourist destinations is ‘Sigiriya’ – A 5th century rock fortress shaped like a crouching lion and its name aptly derived from the Sinhalese “Singha Giri” or “Lion Rock”. Sigiriya has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1982 and is today a tourist favorite, featuring everything from history, culture, art as well as some breathtaking views of nature.

Getting There & Entrance Fees

This album doesn't have photosThe 180 m tall rock is situated about 15 km from the Dambulla Caves or 10 km from the popular Heritance Kandalama Hotel. If you a looking for a place to stay, I do recommend the hotel which is one of the country’s premier five-star properties.

It is possible to get to Sigiriya using public transportation, although not the most convenient. The best bus route is from the Dambulla station and departs every half hour. An hour long journey costs LKR 30 and takes you to the Sigiriya main street from which the rock is a short walk. I unfortunately got off a little too early at a wrong stop when I saw a sign to Sigiriya turning off the main road. Later I learned this was a shorter route for autos but on foot was 2 km walk to the Sigiriya ticketing stand and from there another 1 km hike to the Rock itself. An alternative to the bus is a tuk-tuk to and from Dambulla, which I opted for on my return journey. A single trip should cost about LKR 600 – 700.

Sigiriya is open to visitors between 7:00 am to 5:00 pm but best to get there at the earliest to enjoy the views at daybreak. Entrance fee is LKR 50 for locals and USD 25 for foreigners, and also be accessed by the Cultural Triangle round-trip ticket costing USD 50.

King Kassapa the Patricide

This album doesn't have photosSigiriya, according to Sri Lankan legend, was built by King Kassapa I (reigned 477 – 495 AD) or sometimes spelled King Kashyapa. Kassapa was the son of King Dhatusena who ruled the capital Anuradhapura between 459 to 477 AD. Although older, Kassapa was not heir to the throne as he was not born to a royal consort, unlike his brother Mugalan I (sometimes spelled Moggallana). Over the years, his mind was poisoned by his brother-in-law, Migra, who was also a general in King Dhatusena’s army. Migra had developed a grudge against the King who had killed his mother over a dispute and now sought revenge.

In 477 Kassapa, assisted by Migra, led a successful coup against his father, King Dhatusena. When the reigning King was captured, Kassapa’s brother and the true heir to the throne, Mugalan fled to Southern India. Kassapa, under the impression that the King had hidden treasures of great wealth, was enraged when his father showed him the Kalaweva Lake as his “only treasure” and had him executed by burying him alive along that lake.

Having murdered his father, Kassapa was shunned by the public and Buddhist monks who began calling him “Pithru Ghathaka Kassapa”, meaning “Kassapa the Patricide”. Disgraced and fearing an attack by his brother Mugalan, King Kassapa moved his residence from the traditional capital in Anuradhapura to nearby Sigiriya that used to be an ancient monastery. There, on top of a large rock rising above a plain, he constructed a fortified citadel and elaborate city surrounded by a moat and decorated with fountains and gardens.

I have narrated here the most common account of King Kassapa I recorded in the Sri Lankan chronicle Mahavansa, but there are several other versions circulated. Another version, documented on stone slabs by the Buddhist monk Ananda-Sthavira in the 15th century portrays Kashayapa as a national hero who unknowingly killed his father in battle.

Post-Kassapa: Fortress to Monastery

This album doesn't have photosIn 495 AD Mugalan raised a South Indian army and returned to fight his brother and take back his crown. A battle ensued in the plains surrounding Sigiriya and it is said that King Kassapa’s army abandoned him having misread his actions for a treat. Too proud to surrender, the King reached for his dagger, slit his throat, and then raised it proudly before  sheathing it and falling dead. Mugalan I became King of Sri Lanka in 495 AD and continued to rule the country till 512 AD.

After capturing the Rock Fortress, King Mugalan relocated the capital back to its traditional seat in Anuradhapura and donated Sigiriya for use as a monastery by Buddhist monks. It flourished as monastery complex for centuries until it was later abandoned around the 14th century.

An Ancient Engineering Marvel

This album doesn't have photosSigiriya is widely accepted as an architectural marvel and the best known example of ancient Sri Lankan civil engineering. Design architects of this ancient complex of parks, ponds, and pavilions had an excellent grasp of eco-design and took into account the elements of nature to complement the placement of man-made structures. Examples of these are the pathways zig-zagging through the natural terrain of the ‘Boulder Garden’ or the geometrically symmetric ‘Water Gardens’.

Ancient irrigation engineers had designed a network of underwater conduits to feed its many pools, ponds and fountains as well as to irrigate its agricultural district. Water was sourced from a man-made rainwater reservoir built east of the Sigiriya. An inner and outer moat surrounding the Rock also served as a means of  fortification.

Sigiriya is believed to be a symbolic reconstruction of Alakamanda – the mythical home of Kuvera, the Hindu God of wealth. Built to resemble a crouching lion, a gigantic brick lion’s head is thought to have been constructed at its Northern end. It is said that King Kassapa ascended to the top of his palace through a staircase between lion’s paws and entered into its mouth. Today however much of this is gone and all that remains are the two enormous lion’s paws marking its entranceway.

Sigiriya Frescoes

This album doesn't have photosThe most popular aspect of the Sigiriya Rock is its art — the famed Frescoes portraying what is believed to be images bare breasted “Apsaras” (celestial nymphs). Another theory suggests that they depict Tara, a bodhisattva (enlightened being) said to be one of the most important in Tantric Buddhism, as they are believed to be of the same artistic tradition as those found at the Ajanta caves in Maharashtra, India.

It is believed that over a hundred of these painted figures once covered an area 14o m x 40 m along the entire Western face of the Rock. Medieval graffiti found at Sigiriya referred to “500 heavenly ladies” and the British explorer John Still, who excavated the site in 1907, said that “the whole face of the hill appears to have been a gigantic picture gallery… the largest picture in the world perhaps”. Today sadly only 22 have survived the ages, protected in a natural pocket of the rock and shielded from sun and rain.

The exact origins and date of the frescoes are disputed. Although commonly believed to be from the Anuradhapura period, the line and style of application of the paintings differ from other Anuradhapura paintings. The lines are painted in a form which enhances the sense of voluminousness of the figures and the paint has been applied in sweeping strokes, using more pressure on one side and giving an effect of a deeper color tone towards the edges. Although some Anuradhapura paintings are using similar approaches, they do not have the sketchy lines of the Sigiriya Frescoes.

Mirror Wall & Graffiti

This album doesn't have photosThe 3 m tall Mirror Wall along the Western surface of the Rock is made of a porcelain like material and was once polished to a smooth glaze that the King could see himself as he walked alongside it. Many years after King Kassapa, visitors to Sigiriya have inscribed their impressions on the wall. Writing on the wall dates back to the 6th century and covers topics ranging from poetry, love, irony and experiences of all sorts. One describes the frescoes, reading “The ladies who wear golden chains on their breasts beckon me. As I have seen the resplendent ladies, heaven appears to me as not good.” Another in Sinhalese reads “I am Badul. Came with all my family to see Sigiriya. Since all the others wrote poems, I did not!”

The graffiti is dated between the 6th and 14th centuries and are of great interest to scholars since they show the development of the Sinhalese language and script.

References: 
1. “Visitor tickets”, Central Cultural Fund
2. “Sigiriya”, Wikipedia
3. “Kashyapa I of Sri Lanka”, Wikipedia
4. “The Story of Sigiriya”, ayoubovan.net