Tisamharama Sri Lanka is a city with one of the oldest histories. The history of Tissamaharama is going back to the pre-Christian era. The foundation of the city is attributed to king Mahanaga, the younger brother of King Devanampiyatissa (260 BC – 210 BC). According to historical information, King Mahanaga had to flee the capital of the country (Anuradhapura), due to an unlawful affair with the queen. When he arrived in Tissamaharama the region was under the control of a south Indian king. Mahanaga and the Indian king fought many times for the supremacy of the region, but later they became relatives through their marriages ending the fighting between the two parties.
Tissamaharama had been the capital of the Ruhunu kingdom in ancient Sri Lanka. Even though it has lost its importance as the capital of the island during the last several centuries, Tissamaharama is still important to the island in many ways. It is a leading part of the country that produces rice, fruits and vegetable. A large amount of fish catch also originated in southern Seri Lankan coast areas like Tissamaharama. Tissamharam is the gateway to Yala national park and therefore it is on the radar of travellers in Sri Lanka.
Tissamaharama offers a number of beaten-track holiday attractions in Sri Lanka such as Yala national park and Kataragama tem[p;e. This remote city is located near the southernmost tip of the country. Today it is important for the tourism industry and a place, which is visited by thousands of tourists every year. Tissamaharama is packed with natural as well as historical attractions such as ancient Buddhists. The city is located near the national park of Yala.
Tisamharama Sri Lanka is a city with one of the oldest histories. The history of Tissamaharama is going back to the pre-Christian era. The foundation of the city is attributed to king Mahanaga, the younger brother of King Devanampiyatissa (260 BC – 210 BC). According to historical information, King Mahanaga had to flee the capital of the country (Anuradhapura), due to an unlawful affair with the queen. When he arrived in Tissamaharama the region was under the control of a south Indian king. Mahanaga and the Indian king fought many times for the supremacy of the region, but later they became relatives through their marriages ending the fighting between the two parties.
Tissamaharama, the once-great ancient southern capital of Ruhuna is renowned as the birthplace of the warrior-hero King Dutugemunu (circa 200 B.C), who united the island for the first time after having conquered the Tamil ruler Elara entrenched in Anuradhapura. The city dates back to his ancestor, Mahanaga (circa 300 B.C) who is believed to have founded a settlement there but tradition traces its founding to the even earlier days of the Aryan colonization of Sri Lanka; at least five centuries earlier.
The most popular king, who ruled the Ruhunu kingdom from Tissamaharama, is King Kavantissa. He was the father of great king Dutugemunu. King Kavantissa is a relative of king Mahanaga. King Kavantissa married the queen Viharamahadevi, daughter of the king, who ruled the country from Kelaniya and had two sons.
King Kavantissa ruled the entire southern region but Anuradhapura, the capital of the country was governed by a south Indian invader (204 BC-161 BC). The son of King Kavantissa organized an army and fought against the south Indian king Elara. King Elara was killed in a decisive battle in Anuradhapura and King Dutugemunu was consecrated as the king of the island.
According to historical information Sri Lanka had become a very prosperous country under the rule of King Dutugemunu. In the latter period, Ruhuna had been the place, where the local kings anchored during the trouble periods in Anuradhapura, due to the South Indian invasions. For instance, King Vijayabahu 1 lived in the Ruhunu kingdom before he comes at the proper age to combat the South Indian invaders.
Ruhunu kingdom had been a breeding ground for Sri Lankan warriors and brave kings. Some of the gigantic constructions achieved in the centuries past (still in very good condition) show the magnitude of force they were having in the past. Sometimes the kings of the Ruhunu kingdom had been a challenge the sovereignty of the Sinhalese kingdom in the northern region. Tissamaharama had been an important city on the island for the last 2000 years and continues to be important for the history, religion and economy of Sri Lanka.
Modern Tissamaharama is named for its famous Stupa and attendant monastic complex, the Maharama, a seat of learning and sanctity for over two thousand years.
What to see in Tissamaharama
Irrigation Network
A remarkable irrigation system that inherits advanced trigonometry and hydraulic principles was a great achievement of the kings in the past. The irrigation network crisscrossing the entire Ruhunu kingdom and consists of a large number of natural and man-made tanks, reservoirs and canals. They were mainly fed by Kirindi Oya and Menik Ganga, the leading rivers in southern Sri Lanka. The system is well functioning even today. The rich soil of Ruhunu kingdom was somewhat useless due to the dry weather in the region.
The canal system was introduced, In order to avert the limitations due to the dry weather. With the construction of the irrigation network, the agricultural productivity of the entire region dramatically increased and had become a very prosperous region of the island by the 2nd century BC.
The irrigation system enabled rice cultivation throughout the year covering the entire region. Later the kingdom was neglected under the administration of the Portuguese, Dutch and British. With the resettlement of farmers in the region at the beginning of the 20th century, it was back to normal its grandeur and has increased the contribution of the region again to the development of Sri Lanka.
The King’s Palace
The old king’s palace is situated on a hillock eastward from the city of Tissamaharama. There are several other ancient constructions at the site with the palace. The number of monolithic granite stone pillars at the site is believed to be the rest of a storied building. Upper stories of the building are believed to be supported by wooden pillars. The construction of the building is believed to be dating back to the 2nd century AD.
Yatala Dagoba
Yatala dagoba is one of the most historical constructions of the city and originated in the 2nd century BC. At the site, archaeologists had been able to discover several stone inscriptions that provide valuable information about the site.
The stone inscriptions are dating back to the pre-Christian era, 7th century and 8th century. Dagoba is named after a son of King Mahanaga. Several important artefacts have been discovered, during the excavations at the site. Ahead of a Buddha statue, a standing Buddha statue, and a figure of a king believed to be King Kawantissa.
Chandragiri Vihara
The ruins of Chandragiri vihara is to be found at the southern borders of Tissamaharama. The stone inscription in the rectangular shape that was discovered at the site provides information about its antiquity. It is believed to be originated between the 1st century BC and the 1st century AD.
Tissamaharama Vihara
This Buddhist temple is believed to be built with the patronage of King Kavantissa in 160 BC. It had been the residential quarters of the monks, who lived southward from Mahaweli Ganga, during the rainy season. There had been facilities for meditation and education for the monks at Tissamaharama Vihara. According to historical information, there had been 363 chambers for the resident monks in the temple by the 9th century AD.
Kirinda
Kirinda is well known as the historic port city, where many seafarers from other countries frequented. In this direction, Kirinda from Tissamaharama is an archaeological site with several historical monuments. But much of the information about the site is yet to be discovered. A large number of devotees headed to Kirinda, where you find a Buddhist temple believed to be originated in the 2nd century BC.
Serine village Nedigama-Villa
The village of Nedigama-villa is picturesquely located between the Kirindi Oya in its southernmost course to the sea, and the Nedigama-villa or tank, a few miles south of the town of Tissamaharama. The cart road leads through waving green fields of flourishing paddy, fringing the road, flowing up to and over it in places. Naturally, the river and the tank dominate the scene.
There is no dearth of water in Nedigama-villa and agriculture is the main occupation of the people. Everywhere you will find fields of grain, fenced-off chena luxuriant with vegetables, green plots of edible leaves, gourds and pulses. There is no season as such for growing and reaping. Where water is available the people sow and harvest all the year round, but as in other parts of the district, it is the north-east monsoon that brings rain and a great burst of agricultural activity.
In the sense that agriculture is the mainstay of the village folk, Nedigama-villa is no different from many other rural hamlets in the ancient province of Ruhuna. A superficial glance around the neighbourhood and a casual visitor to the area would perhaps observe that the village people are more industrious than several other communities in the district and reach the conclusion, quite correctly too, that a measure of their prosperity is due to this same whole-hearted toil, season after season, all through the year, in times of drought as much as in times of abundant rainfall. But there is more to the atmosphere of serenity that prevails in Nedigama-villa than the sheer satisfaction and the reward of toil.
It is not easy to define these things without being accused of sentimentality, of trying to romanticize the idea of village life at the expense of down-to-earth reality. But what is not always visible to the casual observer, what is not assimilated at a superficial glance cannot be ignored when one lives among people for several weeks. When one is forced into an awareness of what motivates them, what inspires and sustains them and lends a many-splendour hue to their existence.
In Nedigama-villa one can find that men still labour for the sheer love of it. They work with dedication because in their work and from its fruits there is sustenance and reward. And there is the tangible satisfaction of dedication also to an ideal. For though few among them would voluntarily launch upon a complicated expression, least of all an explanation of their motives; still less-they might not even be able to find words for it.
Yet there is that conscious awareness they possess, that assurance that there is more to this life than mere labour for material reasons. Perhaps it is there, this ideal they implicitly believe in and cling to, which is symbolized in the shrine-room they proudly point to as a work undertaken by themselves, with their own funds, with their own hands.
The village folk always depend on rice and curry as their staple diet. Mounds of steaming-hot rice with slices of fried river fish, fiery coconut sambal and delicious mixed curry of many different kinds of vegetables – jak and brinjals and tomatoes included though they disclaimed it was the traditional and auspicious hath maluwa (curry of seven vegetables) prepared at New Year. Nedigama –the villa is a village with tranquillity and serene and it could be compared to heaven for the people who are suffering in the major cities that are full of business, stress, hard work, pollution etc.
Undoubtedly, Yala is the most popular natural attraction in Tissamharam and other noteworthy tour attractions are Rekawa beach and Kataragama temple. Tissamharama is the starting point of most Yala national park safaris. The entrance of Yala national park is around 25kilometers away from Ttissamaharama and the drive from Tissa to Yala takes around 300 minutes. The most other popular wildlife reserve near Tissamaharama is Kumana bird sanctuary and most tourists take Kumana national park safari when Yala national park is closed during the drought.
Travel to Tissamaharama
There are four major options with regards to travel options to Tissamaharama taxi, train, bus and air transport. Train travel in Sri Lanka is well developed and it can be used to reach most major cities in Sri Lanka. However, the southern rail track end in Matara, which means that travellers need to travel another 100 km to complete their journey and should resort to a taxi or a bus to venture the rest of the journey. The public buses can be used to travel to Tissamahrama from Colombo and any part of the island, which is cheap but it may suck your time. The public buses in Sri Lanka are considerably slow and they can be very crowded most of the time. As per my knowledge, travel by taxi with a local driver/guide is the most recommended option for travellers on this Sri Lankan travel route. Because the taxi saves a lot of time for you and it is safe and convenient too. Air transport can be used to reach Tissamahara but it is the most expensive transport mode.
Accommodation in Tissamaharama
Tissamaharama is the closest town to Yala national park, hence most tourists, who wish to venture on a safari at Yala national park, opt to stay in Tissamaharama. Tissamahara is the most popular tourist hub in the deep south of Sri Lanka, due to its close proximity to Yala national park as well as to other important historical and natural attractions in the region.
Tissamaharama provides plenty of accommodation options for travellers who wish to explore southern Sri Lanka. Here you can find accommodation facilities from luxury boutique hotels to very affordable homestay accommodations. Even though you do not find large hotels here, many small, middle-class hotels can be found here and they provide very clean, safe accommodation for local as well as foreign travellers. The prices for accommodation, meal and food are affordable here compared to most other tourist places on the island.
It will be difficult to get accommodation in a good property at the last moment during this time, while there is a chance of an unreasonable price hike due to the high demand.
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