The
Gal Vihara is a rock temple of the Buddha situated in the ancient city of Polonnaruwa in north-central Sri Lanka. It was constructed in the 12th century by Parakramabahu I. The central feature of the shrine are four images
of the Buddha, which have been carved into the face of a large granite
rock. The images consist of a large seated figure, another, smaller
seated figure inside an artificial cavern, and standing figure and a
reclining figure. These are considered to be some of the best examples
of ancient Sinhalese sculpting and carving arts, and have made the Gal
Vihara one of the most visited monuments in Polonnaruwa.
The images of Gal Vihara follow a different style than the images of the previous Anuradhapura period,
and show some significant differences. The identity of the standing
image is subject to a certain amount of dispute among historians and
archaeologists, some of whom argue that it depicts the monk Ananda
rather than the Buddha. Each of the images have been carved in a way
that uses a maximum possible area of the rock, and their heights seem to
have been decided based on the height of the rock itself. Each statue
appears to have had its own image house, as indicated by the remains of
brick walls at the site. The Gal Vihara, or Uttararama as it was known
during that period, was where Parakramabahu I held a congregation of
monks to purify the Buddhist priesthood, and later drew up a code of
conduct for them. This code of conduct has been recorded in an
inscription on the same rock face containing the images of the Buddha.
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