Sri Dalada Maligawa, where Kandy’s royal palace guards a sacred tooth
Published on 09/04/2026 at 09:32 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Sri Dalada Maligawa in Kandy is the Buddhist temple known in English as the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, set inside the former royal palace complex of the Kingdom of Kandy and closely linked to Sri Lanka’s royal and religious history.Temple of the Tooth in Kandy The complex is built beside Kandy Lake and is dedicated to housing a single relic: a tooth of the Buddha.
A royal palace turned sacred shrine
Sri Dalada Maligawa stands within the old royal palace grounds of Kandy, the last capital of Sri Lanka’s independent monarchy before British rule.royal palace complex in Kandy The temple forms part of a wider ensemble of palace buildings and courtyards laid out near the shores of Kandy Lake, bordered by a moat and defensive walls.
The shrine’s significance rests on the presence of the Sacred Tooth Relic, described as a left canine tooth of Gautama Buddha that was retrieved from his funeral pyre at Kushinagar and brought to Sri Lanka in the fourth century CE.arrival of the tooth relic For centuries the relic was carried between royal capitals such as Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, and it reached Kandy in 1595, where a temple was built to enshrine it.
Kandyan architecture in stone, timber and lacquer
The present temple complex largely dates from the Kandyan Kingdom period between the late sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, when kings such as Vimaladharmasuriya I and Kirti Sri Rajasinha expanded and rebuilt the shrine buildings.Kandyan-era construction of Sri Dalada Maligawa The architecture follows Kandyan traditions, with whitewashed outer walls, red clay-tiled roofs and richly carved timber columns.
Inside the main shrine building a sequence of halls leads towards the inner chamber where the relic is kept in nested reliquaries rather than being openly displayed, with walls and ceilings covered in painted floral motifs, narrative panels and decorative patterns.painted ceilings and carvings Around the central shrine sit subsidiary structures of the complex, including the Pattirippuwa, an octagonal pavilion added by King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe in the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century, and palace ranges that once housed royal apartments.Pattirippuwa octagonal pavilion
A relic bound up with political power
The Sacred Tooth Relic carried political weight as well as religious meaning: possession of the relic was historically treated as a symbol of legitimate rule over the island, so the shrine at Sri Dalada Maligawa stood close to the centre of royal authority in Kandy.relic and royal power The temple’s role as guardian of the relic made it a focus of ceremonies, processions and pledges of loyalty under successive Kandyan kings.
The wider setting reinforces this status: Kandy Lake curves around the southern edge of the complex, and palace buildings, audience halls and the temple itself form a compact group of religious and secular structures that mark the former royal capital.location beside Kandy Lake Sri Dalada Maligawa is recognised as one of Sri Lanka’s foremost Buddhist shrines and forms part of the World Heritage inscription for the Sacred City of Kandy.
Visiting Sri Dalada Maligawa: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- Sri Dalada Maligawa stands in central Kandy in Sri Lanka’s hill country, on the northern side of Kandy Lake, and can be reached by road from Kandy railway station.
- The temple complex incorporates staircases, terraces and interior halls, with polished stone and tiled floors and a sequence of covered passages between the outer gates and the main shrine.
- The official language is Sinhala and the currency is the Sri Lankan rupee.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
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Frequently asked questions about Sri Dalada Maligawa
Where is Sri Dalada Maligawa located?
Sri Dalada Maligawa is in Kandy in central Sri Lanka, within the former royal palace complex on the edge of Kandy Lake.
What can visitors expect inside the temple complex?
Visitors pass through gateways, courtyards and halls with Kandyan-style roofs, carved wooden columns and richly painted ceilings before reaching the inner shrine areas.
What makes Sri Dalada Maligawa distinctive among Buddhist sites?
The temple’s distinctiveness lies in its role as guardian of the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha and its setting inside the historic royal palace of Kandy.
