Mihintale

This is the called Mihintale. This is the call that awakened Sri Lanka to lead the path of virtue 260 years BC. This is the call that sends millions of pilgrims from all over the island by bus and rail (anew railway station was built about a decade ago) to Mihintale Rock. During the reign of King Devanampiyatissa .wa — 250 BC, Emperor Ashoka of India sent a delegation of monks led by Maharahat Mahinda to expound the Dhamma to the people of Sri Lanka. Of course, Emperor Ashoka must have informed his friend King Devanampiyatissa of the visit. What King Devanamplyatissa did not expect was the manner in which the meeting took place, Ambatat Rock was a grove of Mango trees spreading over many hillocks and was the royal hunting ground, The King indulged in the sport, when a voice calling him 'Tissa' coming from above made him stop.
There silhou- etted against the clear morning sky on the top most boulder of the rock stood a group of yellow robed monks who introduced them selves to the King as the disciples of the "Dhamma Raja (Load Buddha)". The Dhamma which Maharahath Mahinda brought to Sri Lanka was complex and unique. 'Ignorance makes people crave for sensual pleasure.' These pleasures are impermanent and their impermanence brings sorrow. To release oneself from sorrow, one musC in his inner consciousness realize this truth. That will release him from craving and sorrow. To an agricultural community the idea of im permanence went down well. The wide-open spaces of fields and meadows and the leisure time between the cultivation seasons enabled him to meditate, Thus Buddhism became the religion of Sri Lanka.