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Maha
Saman
Devalaya
or
the
Great
Saman
Temple
(also
called
Sumana
Saman
Devalaya)
is
a
shrine
dedicated
to
deity
Saman,
situated
at
Ratnapura,
Sri
Lanka
who
is
the
presiding
deity
of
the
Sri
Pada
Mountain
which
is
also
called
Samanthakuta
meaning
the
mountain
of
Saman
which
is
believed
to
have
the
left
foot
impression
of
Buddha
which
he
kept
in
his
visit
to
Sri
Lanka.
Saman
Deviyo
Considered
as
one
of
the
guardian
gods
of
Sri
Lanka,
Deity
Saman
is
deeply
venerated
in
the
region
of
Rathnapura
and
related
areas
in
the
province
of
Sabaragamuwa
of
Sri
Lanka,
he
is
recorded
to
have
been
a
district
administrator
of
the
region
contemporary
to
Buddha
who
he
met
on
the
former's
visit
to
Sri
Lanka.
According
to
the
Mahavamsa
the
chronicle
of
ancient
Sri
Lanka,
it
is
mentioned
that
the
Administrator
Saman,
attained
the
first
level
of
enlightenment
Sotapanna
at
the
end
of
the
sermon
of
Buddha.
After
the
demise
of
Saman,
the
administrator
of
Dewa
(people)
he
has
started
to
be
venerated
as
a
God
or
a
deity.
The
Shrine
It
is
believed
after
the
demise
of
Saman,
his
clan
of
Deva
started
to
venerate
him
by
erecting
a
shrine
for
him.
And
it's
believed
there
had
been
a
Temple
called
Saparagama
Viharaya,
in
the
same
premises
in
the
Anuradhapura
era
of
Sri
Lanka,
as
it's
mentioned
in
Mahavamsa
that
monks
from
the
said
temple
attended
to
the
opening
ceremony
of
Ruwanwelisaya
of
King
Dutugamunu.
It
is
mentioned
in
'Saman
Siritha'
that
a
monk
named
Ven.
Seelawansa
on
a
pilgrimage
to
Sri
Pada,
saw
a
dream
about
a
statue
in
the
wild
and
later
brought
it
to
the
above
temple
with
the
help
of
a
minister
named
Pathirajadeva.
Anyway,
the
present
shrine
is
said
to
have
built
by
a
court
minister
in
Dambadeniya
era
of
Sri
Lanka
named
Aryakamadeva,
in
the
patronage
of
King
Parakramabahu
II,
in
1270
AD,
as
a
fulfillment
of
his
vow
to
erect
a
shrine
in
the
name
of
deity
Saman,
if
his
effort
to
find
gems
is
successful.
Later
King
Parakramabahu
IV
of
Kotte
Era
of
Sri
Lanka
patronized
the
shrine
giving
more
resources.
Later
in
the
era
of
Portuguese
colonization
of
Sri
Lanka,
the
said
shrine
have
been
captured
in
1618
then
destroyed
and
a
Portuguese
Church
have
been
built.
But
as
King
Rajasinghe
II
of
Sitawaka
acquired
the
area,
he
has
rebuilt
the
shrine
destroying
the
church
in
17th
century.
The
shrine
due
to
the
lack
of
financial
strength
of
King
Rajasinghe
was
rebuilt
with
much
simpler
architecture
than
it
used
to
be.
And
to
this
day
((when))
the
shrine
is
made
of
clay.
The
Perahara(Procession)
During
the
time
that
Tooth
Relic
of
Buddha
was
transferred
to
Delgamuwa
Raja
Maha
Vihara,
in
a
war
time,
during
King
Parakramabahu
VI's
period
the
Shrine
held
the
Esala
Perahara
or
the
Procession
of
the
Tooth
Relic
for
11
years.
Later
under
King
Rajasinghe,
the
Saman
Perahara
joined
to
the
Esala
Perahara.
Since
then
the
Maha
Saman
Devalaya
hoists
the
Esala
Perahara
in
the
month
of
August–September
annually.
Prior
to
the
festival's
commencement,
age-old
rituals
like
the
Pirith
ceremony
(Chanting
of
Buddhist
Sutras
for
protection,
kap
situveema
(A
symbolical
wooden
tower
being
planted)
are
held
and
the
smaller
processions
called
Kumbal
and
Dewele
Peraheras
are
held.
After
that,
the
Perahara
or
the
main
procession
takes
place,
and
it
concludes
with
Diya
Kapeema
(The
symbolic
water
cutting
ceremony)
all
of
which
are
held
for
13
days
under
the
supervision
of
the
Chief
incumbent(Basnayake
Nilame)
of
the
Shrine.
The
procession
is
filled
with
cultural
items
and
dancing
from
different
regions
of
Sri
Lanka
as
well
as
features
many
elephants
decorated
in
different
garments.
The
Perahara
festival
is
visited
by
thousands
of
people
from
all
over
the
Sri
Lanka
as
well
the
world,
and
while
the
final
perahara
is
telecasted,
all
peraharas
are
online
broascasted
via
YouTube.
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