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HISTORY OF SIGIRIYA

Sigiriya, in fact, should have been classed as one of the Wonders of the Ancient World, long ago, and there is now a proposal to name it as the Eighth Wonder of the world.Sigiriya dates back from over 7,000 years ago, through Pre-Historic to Proto-Historic to Early Historic times, then as a rock-shelter mountain monastery from about the 3^rd century BC, with caves prepared and donated by devotees to the sangha.The garden city and the palace was built by Kasyapa 477 - 495 AD. Then after Kasyapa's death it was a monastery complex upto about the 14^th century.Sigiriya grew from a series of rock shelters into an urban center in the 5th century A.D., during the reign of King Kasyapa, the man who transformed the mountain into a spectacular kingdom. There seem to be three distinct theories about Kasyapa's life, his aspirations, and his role in the development of the Sigiriya complex.

The Mahavamsa, the ancient historical record of Sri Lanka, describes King Kasyapa as a parricide, who murdered his father King Dhatusena by walling him up alive and then usurping the throne which rightfully belonged to his brother Mogallana. To escape from the armies of Mogallana, Kasyapa is said to have built his palace on the summit of Sigiriya, but Mogallana finally managed to get to Kasyapa and he committed suicide

The most-oft told story paints Kasyapa as a parricidal monster. Kasyapa, the son of the king by a consort, killed his father, Dhatusena I (459-477), by imprisoning him and entombing his behind a wall while he was still alive in order to gain the throne. Driven into exile, his half-brother, the crown prince Moggallana, retreated to India and assembled an army to avenge his father's death. Kasyapa prepared for this eventuality by transforming the Sigiriya into a impenetrable complex. It was all for naught for, according to the legend,  Kasyapa was lured from the rock by Moggallana.The traditional telling of Sigiriya's rise and the King Kasyapa who built the city was described by our guide. Dark deeds led to the establishment of Sigiriya as the center of the ancient Sinhalese Kingdom for a period of 18 years.

Sri Lanka's ancient architectural tradition is well portrayed at Sigiriya, the best preserved city centre in Asia from the first millennium, with its combination of buildings and gardens with their trees, pathways, water gardens, the fusion of symmetrical and asymmetrical elements, use of varying levels and of axial and radial planning. Sophisticated city planning was at the heart of Sigiriya, this royal citadel of ancient fame from the days of Sri Lanka's memorable past.