MY SRI LANKAHe discovered a vase stored in the royal treasury, which contained a golden plate inscribed with the prophecy. The inscription mentioned that after one hundred and forty years, a king named Dutta Gamini, the son of King Kavan Tissa, would construct certain structures in a specific manner. Upon reading the inscription, the king learned that Lova Prasada and Swarnamali Chethiya (Ruwanweli Seya) were specifically mentioned. He then informed the monks of his intention to build a magnificent multi-storied monastery and requested them to provide him with the plan for a celestial palace. The monks promptly supplied the plan, and construction began under the supervision of skilled architects. The palace took the form of a quadrilateral, with each side measuring two hundred feet in length and height. The palace consisted of nine stories, each containing one hundred windows and a total of 1,000 rooms. A grand hall was constructed at the center of the palace, supported by golden pillars. Within this hall, a splendid ivory throne was placed, adorned with the emblem of the sun in gold on one side, the moon in silver on another side, and stars made of pearls. Above the throne, a magnificent imperial canopy shimmered. The roof of this remarkable palace was covered with brazen tiles, earning it the name Loha Maha Prasadaya, meaning "great brazen palace". It is said that the value of this extraordinary building amounted to three hundred million gold pieces.
The stories were all equipped with couches, chairs, and other valuable necessities. Even the basins placed at the entrance for washing the hands and feet of monks were crafted from gold. The monks who had not yet achieved any level of sanctification or the highest attainments resided on the first floor; those who had mastered the Tripitaka on the second floor; those who had attained Sotapatti on the third floor; those who had attained Sakadagami on the fourth floor; those who had attained Anagami on the fifth floor; and the Arahats, who had reached the highest state of sanctification, occupied the remaining four stories. While this description may seem somewhat exaggerated, the building would have been quite impressive during that era, judging by what remains today. In the time of King Saddhatissa (137-119 BC), the brother of King Dutugemunu, the monastery was destroyed by fire caused by a lamp. The king reconstructed it as a seven-storied structure, valued at nine million gold pieces. A hundred years later, King Bhatika Abhaya (20BC – 9AC) is said to have restored the building, and King Amanda-Gamini Abhaya (22-31AC) added an inner courtyard and a pavilion adorned with precious stones. King Sirinaga I (195-214 AC) reconstructed the Prasadaya, reducing it to five stories. King Gothabhaya (253-266 AC) repaired the pillars, while his son King Jettatissa I (266-276 AC) increased the height of Lovamahapaya to seven stories.
During the rule of King Gothabhaya (253-266 AC), a dispute arose between the monks of Maha Vihara Monastery and the Abhayagiri Monastery over a Vetulya doctrine. King Gothabhaya supported the Maha Vihara and exiled 60 monks who followed the Vetulya doctrine from the Abhayagiri Monastery. One of the followers of the banished monks, Sangamitta Thero, sought revenge against the monks of Maha Viharaya. Upon returning to Sri Lanka, he gained the favor of King Gothabhaya (253-266 AC) and was tasked with educating his two sons, Prince Mahasena and Prince Jettatissa. Following their father's passing, Prince Jettatissa, a supporter of the Mahavihara monks, ascended the throne and ruled for a decade (266-276 AC). He completed the construction of the Lohamahapaya to a height of 7 stories, a project left unfinished by his father. In 276, Mahasena (276-303) became king and Sangamitta Thero promptly returned to the island. He convinced the king that the Mahaviharians had become lax in discipline and that the monks of Abhayagiri vihara preached the true teachings of the Buddha. The king then ordered a ban on providing alms to the Mahaviharians, leading them to retreat to the hills and Rohana. Subsequently, Sangamittha Thero persuaded the king to demolish the Maha Vihara structures, including the grand Lovamahapradaya, and utilize the materials to construct Jethawanaramaya, a new competing institution within the confines of Maha Viharaya itself. His son Sirimeghavanna (Kithsiri Mevan) (303-311) oversaw the reconstruction of the palace. This palace was once again destroyed by the Pandayns from South India during their invasion of the city in the 9th century, only to be rebuilt in the same century by King Sena II (853-887). The final restoration of the palace took place during the Polonnaruwa kingdom era under the reign of King Prakramabahu I (1153-1186).
The ancient structure, which has endured multiple cycles of destruction and reconstruction, now stands as a mere shadow of its former grandeur, with only the stone columns remaining to hint at its past magnificence. The array of monolithic granite columns, totaling 1,600 in number and arranged in 40 rows of 40 pillars, signifies the location of the most extraordinary palatial monastery in history. These columns are square in shape, with the largest measuring 8 feet 3 inches in width and standing at a height of 10 feet. The area covered by these columns spans 200 square feet. Originally, these rugged columns were enclosed within massive walls that formed the foundation of the palace, which once stood at five stories tall. In the 10th century, invaders from India pillaged the city, stripping it of all its treasures, leading to the eventual downfall of Anuradhapura as the capital of Sri Lanka after a reign of over 1400 years. However, the renowned King Parakramabhu I, who ruled from Polonnaruwa between 1153 and 1186 AD, undertook the task of resurrecting the 1600 pillars and partially restoring the structure. This is the sight that greets visitors today.
