Andhra-Sri Lanka Buddhist relations date back to 5th century CE

Vijayawada: Dr E Sivanagireddy, Buddhist expert consultant and CEO, Pleach India Foundation and historian, along with Mallepalli Laxmaiah, Special Officer, Buddhavanam, Hyderabad, visited 3rd century BCE Buddhist rock cut caves at Mathale located on Colombo-Kandy route in Sri Lanka on Sunday where the teachings of Lord Buddha were scribbled for the first time on palm leaves.

Dr Reddy in a press release said that the Buddha’s teachings called Tripitaka viz., Sutra, Vinaya and Abhidhamma which were transmitted orally until that time were written on palm leaves under the auspices of Sri Lankan King Devanampiya Tissa, contemporary of Asoka the Great and after that event only we got the Buddhist literature in India.

Dr Reddy said that Acharya Buddhaghosha, the famous Theravada Buddhist Philosopher who hailed from Kotanemalipuri near Piduguralla in Palnadu district of Andhra Pradesh lived in these caves for some time and wrote Visuddhimagga in the 5th Century Common Era (AD).

He appreciated the Mathale Buddha Vihara for running a school in the name of Acharya Buddhaghosha even today as a token of respect to his erudite scholarship.

Dr Sivanagireddy, during his visit to Sri Lanka on Sunday thoroughly studied the rock-cut cave architecture, the monastery and the antiquities recovered from the surroundings dating to the period between the 3rd century BCE and 5th century CE and the Buddhist connection between Andhra and Sri Lanka. He said Andhra Pradesh Buddhist connections to Sri Lanka were dated back to several hundred years ago.

Prof Gamini Ranasinghe, Director General, Central Cultural Fund, Sri Lanka participated in both the

programmes.