Saturday, August 2, 2014
Friday, August 1, 2014
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Ancient Hospital, Mihinthale, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.
The entrance to the courtyard. |
A hall with granite pillers. |
A trough carved out of granite used to immerse a patient in medicinal oils. |
Veda Sala ( Hospital Complex)
|
It
was reported by Chinese mahayana buddhist priest "Fa- Hsien" who
visited the cave in the 5th century that Mihinthalawa was home to over 2000
Buddhist monks at that time. To support that number of monks, Mihinthalawa
should have been a complete monastery with all facilities for the resident
monks. The complete Veda Sala or the hospital complex is one of these support
facilities which can be still seen today.
The
ruins of the present hospital is attributed to King Sena II (853-887 AD). But
it is believed that there was a hospital at Mihinthalawa long before this
building. The inner Chamber of the hospital is centred around a Buddha Shrine.
Around it are the rooms for the patients. Each room entrance face the shrine
and is about 10x10 feet in size. The corners have larger rooms and the
medicinal trough is on the North-Eastern eastern room.
The
southern side of the building is the outer court which contain the hot water
and steam bath, a clinic, a medicine stores, the refectory and a grinding stone
for grinding medicine.
Heinz E Müller-Dietz (Historia Hospitalium 1975) describes
Mihintale Hospital as
being perhaps the oldest in the world.(Wikipedia)
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Mihinthale, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.
An old wall made of cut granite. |
A water cistern made of stone. |
A mango grove. |
The story is told in the 'Mahawansa' the Pali Chronicle of the Kings of Sri Lanka, of an IQ test done on King Devanampiya Tissa, at this site which had a mango grove even in the 2nd Century BC. When the King passed the test conducted by the Venerable Thera Mahinda, he was considered fit to hear a preaching of the Buddha Dhamma (Buddhist Doctrine).
‘For the
benefit of our readers, I quote Mahavamsa chapter XIV line 16:-
Arahat Mahinda – What is the
name of this tree ?
King Devanampiyatissa – This
tree is a mango tree.
AM – Is there yet another mango
tree, besides this?
Are there any mango trees?
KD – Sir, there is this Mango
tree
AM – Are there besides the
other mango trees, which are not mango trees, yet other trees?
KD – there is this mango tree.
AM – Thou, has shrewd not Ruler
of men, has thou kingsfolk o' king?
KD – There are many sir,
AM – Are there also some who
are not thy kinsfolk?
KD – There are more of those
than my kinsmen,
AM – Is there anyone besides
the kingsfolk and others?
KD – There is myself
AM – Good, thus has gained
shrewd wit’.
Monday, July 28, 2014
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Isurumuniya, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.
Isurumuniya as seen in the 1960s - Photo by Mr. Jayaratne, Puwakpitiya. See the famous stone carving of the 'Lovers' in its original site. |
Click on the web-links
below to hear the old and then a new version of the song ‘Isurumuniye’ :-
2. http://youtu.be/WpO8YW-ybCc
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