Sri Munneswaram Temple

Ravana was a Shiva devotee Brahmin. After killing him, Rama, while riding back in Ravana's Puspaka Vimana , realizesd that he was being followed by a black shadow (Brahmasthi Dosham). Arriving at a place called Muniswaram near the city of Chilwa,  he felt a very strong tremor.

When Ramchandra got down from the Vimana, he heard the prophecy of lord Shiva . Ram had committed the sin of  killing a Bramhin and ardent Shiva bhakta , Ravana. So as a part of atonement he had to establish 5 Shivlingas or Pancha-Iswaram temples. As per Siva's order, Rama established the first Shiv Linga at Muniswaram. The name Muniswaram means the first temple of Shiva.

He founded the second temple near Jaffna which is called Keerimalai Nageshwaram temple.However , our Buddhist tour operator-cum-guide said, there is another Shiva temple at Manvari, a little away from Muniswaram, on the banks of the Dendura Wa river, which is also believed to have been built by Ramachandra. From Muniswaram we went to Manvari temple. Name of Manvari Shiva Linga is "Ramlinga Sivan". Ramachandra also established another Shivalinga near the Gulf of Mannar called the Thiru Ketheswaram temple. The last temple in Lanka is the Thiru Koneswaram temple in Trinkamalai. All these five places are in Sri Lanka. The last Shivalinga was established in Rameswaram, India. So in my count Ramachandra established 6 Shiva lingas. In another opinion of some scholars, Shivalinga of Thiru Koneswaram temple was brought by Ravana from Himalaya's Kailash parbat.

Each of the 5 temple is very ancient one, at least a thousand years old. We have reached  the first Devalaya or Muniswaram temple established by Ramachandra, located a little away from Chilwa town. Although the year of establishment of the temple is not fixed, at least 1000 years old

several metal coins were discovered

bearing the name of the temple on it.  The Moroccan historian and world traveler Ibn Battuta (1304-1369) also mentioned this place. According to the temple inscriptions, in the 13th century  Sinhalese Buddhist king of Kotta,  Parakram Bahu 6, donated a large amount of  land to the Shiva temple for it's maintenance. Later, in the 14th century, another Buddhist king, Parakramabahu IX, donated huge agricultural  properties, as mentioned in a copperplate issued by the king. I came to know that some local  devotees believe that Sita Devi rested for a while at a place near the temple when the pushpaka biman stopped, hence the name of that place is Sitamadama.

Description of the Temple : Built in  Dravidian style, there are 5 separate temples in the complex , one of which is a Buddha temple  called Pushparamaya Vihar. The rest of the temples are Shiva temple,  Ganesha temple , Buddhist Goddess Aiyanar and Mother Kali temples . Buddhists and Tamil Hindus have been worshiping at this temple for ages.  I heard the name of Lord Shiva here as Sri Munnainathar and Parvati as Sri Vativampika Devi. On top of the Kali temple I can see the statue of Goddess Durga or Mahishasur Mardini. Devotees are mainly Tamil Hindus , Sinhalese Buddhists and Monks . My mind was filled with indescribable joy to see my Buddhist tour operator-cum-guide and  driver , worshiping each temple with such ardent devotion. When the guide was asked about being a buddhist participating in the puja of Hindu goddess  Kali, he replied - Hindu deities like Kali and Skanda have altered the rational nature of Theravada Buddhism towards the Bhakti aspect of Hinduism. Incredible and very wise comment.

The Portuguese destroyed the temple twice, but first with the  help of the Buddhist King Rajasingha (1581-1593) and later King Kirti Sri Rajasingha (1747-1782),

local Hindus and Buddhists rebuilt the temple twice, in 1578 and 1750. A board of trustees was formed to look after the temple in British Ceylon. The temple was modernized in 1875 by the then Board of Trustees. Muniswaram Shiva temple  is one of the most striking example of the peaceful coexistence of  all religions.

Historical land mark.Famous ancient hindu temple in sri lanka.Beautiful tourists attractive place sorrounding beautiful natural environmental backgrounds .There are several hindu kovils with various kinds of worship .perahera you can see by visit here.Most festive season comes on month august most attractive festive occasions

Hindu devotional temple. Sri Ram offered Puja to Bhagwan Shiv here. Ramayana importance place.

Religious place of Hindu's.
Visited during our #roadtrip, last destination

Sri Munnecharam kovil is one of the panchaeechara kovil which is located in between chilaw and kurunegala road.

No charges for parking. It's free of charge. Pooja things can be bought in the near shops for reasonable price.

Peaceful and ancient religious place in chilaw city northwestern province in Sri Lanka 🇱🇰 .❤🥰

Visited on 30.03.23 no crowd at all. People can do their prayers without getting disturbed. In my opinion people should visit more since it will be a massive help for those who live near by doing small shops. Most of the shops are closed due to the lack of visits. My prayers with them.

One of the most Sacred kovil (hindu Temple) in Sri Lanka.
The best place to get the blessings of god. 🙏🙏❤❤❤

Nice place mind relaxing place, sacred ancient kovil. Shops near the kovil sell fruits for extra high price never ever go to the shops to buy fruits.

A must visit historic place of worship. A lot of interesting statues and you can get a good view of the old inner kovil. Ample parking available.

Its a one of the oldest Sivan temple . There are 5 famous Sivan temple one of it was situated in Chilaw . It’s a pride of every Puttalam . The history says that Raman worshipped the Lord Siva when returing to India . It’s a great positive vibe area with more blessing❤❤ of lord siva . Loved a lot 🙏🏻🥺🥺

Another beautiful Hindu temple in Sri lanka. There are lots of dravings and statues inside the temple. If you are interested in hindu culture, this is a must visit place.

Sri munneshwaram kovil is iconic of veneration of srilankan hindusts.in the meantime It has a massive tourists attraction which is one of the place to visit if you are heading towards chilaw.

One of the oldest Hindi temples in Sri Lanka

This Munneswaram temple is so beautiful that you can see most of the prominent god's statues- Lord Ganesh, Lord Shiva and matha, Lord Vishu and many more.. really a place to be visited at least once in a lifetime.
May lord of the Universe (Shiva) shower his blessings on all of us 💫

Bhuvan Rudra 🔱

This is an important Hindu temple complex with an old history. A lot of devotees patronage this temple for religious activities .

Good place to be, free vehicle parking, had a grate time in the Kovil. If you are visiting here make sure visit Chilaw beach not the public beach. Around the Kovil there are water fountains if you drive a little bit. They are not requiring to wear trousers. No photography inside but out side is fine.

An Important religious place in the country. Large car park is available. Keep the place clean if you are going there and please avoid plastics becuase I found few cows and stray dogs eating polythene bags and scatter foods here and there.

Sri Munneshwaram Kovil is situated in Chillaw, which is one of the ancient Panchayat Ishwara temples dedicated to lord Shiva.. its existence back dates to way before Portuguese invaded Ceylon, some literatures say, the temple existed even during the period of King Ravana. In today’s age it’s a temple complex with preservation of few antique remains of the old temple.

Hindu religious place. There are too many drawings and status like items there. Most Sinhala and Hindu people believe that this place gives what they request from the god.