FRESCOS & THE LONELY TEMPLE

The last kings of Kandy were actually Tamil imports from the Nayak Dynasty of Madurai, India, though this did not nothing to hinder their enthusiastic Buddhism. Kirti Sri Rajasinha was an especially passionate devotee, and it was his reforms that restored Buddhism which had been badly damaged by the unrelenting forces of colonialism, especially – at the time – from the Dutch.

In amongst the many temple restorations, the king also commissioned an impressive number of new temples, Galmaduwa being one of them.

Alas, it was fated to become the loneliest of temples too. Barely anyone goes there today; indeed it is not even a proper temple, its construction being abandoned by the king whose busy mind had moved from temple making to fresco painting. Yet it is an arresting building, the most Hindu of Buddhist shrines with a high tapering gateway exactly like those used to highlight the entrances to temples across Tamil Nadu.

The frescos the king abandoned Galmaduwa Viharaya for can be seen a mile or so up the road at the Degaldoruwa Raja Maha Vihara. With hindsight, the king’s change of priority was bang on for the frescos that cover the walls of this temple are among the very greatest ever commissioned by any of the island’s kings.

Despite being inevitably religious in character, telling with due piety, the story of Lord Buddha, their sub text, as well as their sheer artistry, marks them out as exceptional. Into their scenes are incorporated the images of their times – Portuguses firearms, for example, the uniformed attendants of the kings, processional elephants, fish, trees as stylised as corals, the inside of homes, flowers, furniture, coaches, queens, guest arrivals and dinner parties.