Vendors selling offerings, as seen from our breakfast spot at the Empire Cafe.

Entrance to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

A statue dedicated to a heroic 9 year old, Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

Devotees lighting lamps at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

Inside the one hall at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic where photography was allowed..

Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic

October 7, 2023 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is the most holy site for Sri Lanka Buddhists. In it is housed a canine tooth reportedly taken from Buddha's funeral pyre. We visited this site and enjoyed watching the devotees. There were also a couple of museums on site; one covers world Buddhism, and the other one tells the story of the tooth. Apparently, it moved locations many times. It is believed that whoever had possession of the tooth also had the divine right to rule Sri Lanka. The British even had possession of the tooth at one point in time.

I first learned about this temple over three decades ago at a Cultural Geography case study which examined how the British deliberately built colonial buildings around the temple, and slightly taller ones at that, to signify who ruled Ceylon. It was nice to see this case study come to life, and to see the actual structures in real life.

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