You are here: Home / Destinations / NGADEEPA RAJA MAHA VIHARAYA
Nagadeepa Rajamaha Viharaya
It is believed that the Buddha resided in Nagadeepa Vihara, which is located less than half a kilometer down the road from the temple, when he visited the little island. The Bodhi Tree and the silver-painted stupa stand on opposite sides of the road. There are also two temples, one of which houses a bronze Buddha figure gifted from the government of Burma in 1956.
The history of Nagadeepa Purana Viharaya dates back to only five years following the Buddha’s enlightenment, as has already been established. It was discovered that Maniakkika, Chulodara, and Mahodara were the three Naga monarchs. After Chulodara wed his uncle’s daughter, Mahodara’s, he was given the jeweled throne as a present. The princess had a very early death. After her passing, Chulodara was requested by his uncle to give up the throne, but he declined. As a result, they had a huge argument.
Lord Buddha’s arrival in Sri Lanka was a turning point in the conflict. At an effort to broker a truce, he landed in Nagadeepa (then known as Mahodara’s realm). The two monarchs were so placated by his Dhammas and sermons on unity and peace that they converted to Buddhism. The two rival monarchs brought Lord Buddha an offer of peace by presenting him with their contested throne. The Naga Kings accepted it as a gift from Buddha and enshrined it in the stupa at the Nagadeepa temple. The Nagadeepa Vihara was initially built by King Devanampiyatissa and then enlarged by King Dutugemunu. For Buddhists, it quickly rose to the status of a holy site.
 "11th April 2014 01 week tour around Sri Lanka A fantastic week was had by all with Cyril, exploring Kandy, Nuwaraeliya and Bentota. Your meaningful insights & excellent explanations of the Sri Lanka’s culture, nature and traditions were invaluable. Your smile and charm helped is feel related and comfortable. Not getting stressed once. With your guidance & tips, the holiday flew by with only one problem: it was very short! Your comprehensive list of talents ranges from findin..." Ian Price and family from UK
 " Our Tour in Sri Lanka Traveling through the beautiful Sri Lanka has been great. Cyril warmly welcomed us at the airport and drove us with his always clean car in every part of the country. He provided daily information about the history and the different sites of Sri Lanka. Also, he taught us a lot about Sri Lankan culture, starting from food, traditions, animals and nature, and suggested authentic and less known places we c..." FILIPPO MASI FROM ITALY
 "Cyril is one of the best experienced person in the industry" Ahamed Anver
 "We had an excellent and memorable trip and all credits to Cyril. In-depth knowledge about the places, roads and history and culture. From the airport assistance - Food, accommodation provided and the vehicle was excellent. Very matured and patient, We being on safe hands. Thanks for making it a memorable experience for all of us. " Aubry De Souza and group from Dubai
 "Thank you so much for your great service and making our honeymoon in Sri Lanka, so special and joyful. Best regards from Yuffa and Elad Abbo – Israel- 10 July 2008 " Yuffa and Elad Abbo - Israel
 "We had a trip planned with Cyril just when international travel closed down due to Covid. Cyril was great in planning a trip with me that had a great deal of flexibility and tailored to visit the places we wanted to seeUnfortunately we were unable to take the trip. Cyril's response to that was great, he dealt with everything for us in terms of cancellationsHe has kept in touch with us since then and has already contacted me with a revised plan for our trip to Sri Lanka. Which we will book with h..." Brian O: Keefe - Perth - Australia
 "Thank you Cyril for making our Christmas holiday fun so smoothly and easy. We loved Sri Lanka and look forward to retuning again. Cyril, your knowledge and service was outstanding and it was so refreshing to have such a very highlevel of service. We will be sure to recomond your service and travel agency to our friends. Please feel free to use us as a reference, you can use my email or phone number to clients." Bruce Larson & family from USA
 "Hello, We had 2 weeks exploring Sri Lanka and for most of that time Cyril drove for usto various towns, sites of interest. Cyril wsa a very pleasant chauffeur. Always prompt and greeted us with a smile. He was well informed about the sites we visited and pointed out many interesting historical buildings en-route. We had a great 2 weeks in Sri Lanka and Cyril's plesant and helpful nature contributed to this briliant holiday. Thank Cyril Sara and Steve from Birmingham, England" Sara and Steve
 "CyrilWe are now back at home after the lovely time with you in Sri Lanka, andvisiting Hong Kong.Thank you for driving for us while we were in Sri Lanka.In particular, we appreciated - your smooth, calm and efficient driving through varied traffic conditions - your calmness when things did not go quite as expected - your being available at all times of day - I'm remembering our late arrival at the airport, and our late departure - your information about all sorts of ..." Cliff Hooker and Jean from Australia
 "Dear Cyril, We want to thank you so much for making our trip so unforgetable and delightful. We received your name from our friends lives in Geneva who travelled with you in January 2009 and they gave you such a high recommendation that we decided to conbtact you for our two weeks trip this year. Although we have been to Sri Lanka a few times already. We have never found such an excellent driver and guide. It has been a great pleasure to visit Colombo with you and then to Koggala for two day tr..." Mr.Gabor Kato & Mrs.Ann Kato