Srimulavasa Vihara
Lost Buddhist temple in Kerala
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Srimulavasa Vihara, also known as Tirumulavata,[1] was a Buddhist temple and centre of pilgrimage in present-day Kerala on the Malabar Coast of India.[2][3] Scholars believe it was situated somewhere between Ambalappuzha and Thrikkunnappuzha, along the sea-coast in the Alappuzha region of central Kerala.[3][1] The Srimulavasa Vihara was located in the medieval Chera kingdom of Kerala.[4]
According to the Paliyam copper plates, dated to 898 AD[5][1] and issued by the Ay ruler of southern Kerala, Vikramaditya Varaguna, a vast tract of land was donated to the Srimulavasa Vihara.[1][6] The record notably opens with three Sanskrit slokas in praise of Soudhodani (Buddha), Dharmasangha (Dharma) and Avalokitesvara.[1]
The shrine is also mentioned in the Mushika Vamsa Kavya of Athula (c. 11th century AD), a medieval dynastic chronicle from northern Kerala associated with the rulers of Ezhimala.[7][1] The kavya states that the Ezhimala prince Vikrama Rama protected the shrine from encroachment by the sea by throwing large blocks of stone (Sarga XII).[1] Another Ezhimala prince, Valabha, visited the shrine on his return to the Ezhimala country from a military campaign in support of the Chera ruler against an invading Chola force (Sarga XIV).[1][7]
The discovery of a Buddha image in Gandhara by M. Foucher, bearing the Sanskrit legend "Dakshinapathe Mulavasa Lokanathah", suggests that Srimulavasa was a famous Buddhist centre in southern India.[1]
