සිරිපා කරුණාව | Deraniyagala-Uda Maliboda Sripada Trail | Peak Wilderness Sanctuary

The mountain of Sri Pada is one of the rare places that people of four major religions in the world worship. The mountain is situated in the Rathnapura district with a height of 7,360 feet (2,243 meters). Sripada Mountain rises majestically with a conical shape and offers an unobstructed view over land and sea. It is said that the mountain was the landmark of the ancient sea-faring Arabs, who came to Sri Lanka, to trade in gems, spices, ivory, etc., and they, having sighted the conical mountain miles offshore, prayed to God for having brought them safely to the island. According to Sri Lanka’s great chronicle, Mahawamsa, Buddha visited Sri Lanka three times. The last time he traveled from Kelaniya to Sri Pada, and then to Digavaphi thus consisted in the Solosmasthana of Sri Lanka. It is said that Buddha left his footprint on the rock at the peak of the mountain at the invitation of the Deity Saman (Saman Deviyo). The Sri Pada season starts from the full moon of December and ends on the full moon of April. Generally, it takes about five to six hours to climb to the top from Hatton-Nallathanni route. During this season many shops pop up on the way to the mountain top offering all sorts of food and refreshments. There are first aid centers manned by volunteers on the way. Most people climb by night to reach the mountain top to watch the “Ira Sevaya”, the sunrise over the sea. But this time can be quite crowded, especially during the weekend and towards the end of the season. It’s not rare were you have to spend 5-10 minutes standing on a single step until the crowd moves on. The top of the mountain is quite windy and chilly.