The Temple of the Tooth Relic

The Sri Dalada Maligaya is located in the Kandy District of the Central Province. The reason why the Sri Dalada Maligaya is venerated by Sri Lankan Buddhists, Buddhists abroad, and even secularists is because it houses the relic of the left tooth of the Buddha. Sri Dalada Maligawa, Dhathusaraya, Daladage Dalada Mandiraya, also known as the Mandiraya where the Tooth Relic resides.

UNESCO has declared the city of Kandy itself a World Heritage Site. The Asgiri and Malwatta chapters of the Siamese Order offer Devotional care to the Tooth Relic in the morning, afternoon and evening. Daily rituals and worship are also held, and on Wednesdays, a special ritual called Nanumore is held. The ritual involves symbolically bathing the Tooth Relic with medicinal water. The ancients believe that the water used for bathing has a powerful ability to cure diseases.

History 

The Sri Dalada Maligawa, built by King Wimaladharma Suriya It was destroyed by the Portuguese invasion, and the two-story building we see today was built by King Sri weera Parakrama Narendra Sinhe. Since then, both the Sinhala kings and the Dravidian kings who came to power have paid homage to the Sri Dalada Maligawa and protected the Sri Dalada Maligawa.

The Four Great Festivals

The Temple of the Tooth Relic holds four main festivals:

1. New Rice Festival.
2. New year Festival.
3. Esala Festival.
4. Karthika Festival.

Among these four great festivals, the Esala Maha Mangala holds a special place because of the procession that begins on the Esala Full Moon Poya Day, attracting people from both local and foreign countries.

Senkadagala procession

The Senkadagala Perahera is organized by the four major temples namely Natha Devalaya, Vishnu Devalaya, Kataragama Devalaya, Pattini Devalaya and the Temple of the Tooth. Here, the Nekethrala prepares all the auspicious signs related to each perahera activity.

Then, the Rala who performs the task informs the Vidhanelas of the ten villages of the dates and times when the perahera will be held and prepares all the perahera activities. The well-planned procession is held as an attraction from the day of Esala Poya to the day of Nikini Poya.

The elephants in the procession are decorated with special costumes, and this feature attracts foreigners. It also consists of fire dancers, whip dancers, drummers, and special dancers such as the Kandian and the lowland Sabaragamuwa.

Things you should consider before worshipping the Temple of Tooth Relic

Although the locals who go to pay homage to the Sri Dalada Maligawa know the appropriate attire to enter the temple, foreigners are not aware of it and therefore come wearing sleeveless and knee-length clothes.

This is because the rules regarding clothing at the Temple of the Tooth are stricter than at other religious places.

It is mandatory for you to wear modest clothing with sleeves and below the knees when going to pay homage to the Temple of the Tooth.

Conclusion 

It is our responsibility to protect the Temple of the Tooth, which houses the Tooth Relic of the Lord Buddha, which is visited by local and foreign tourists.