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Temples · Colombo

Gangaramaya: Colombo’s Eclectic City Temple

By Days of Iru and Opa
Gangaramaya: Colombo’s Eclectic City Temple
📷 AKS.9955 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons · source

Gangaramaya, beside Beira Lake in central Colombo, is a working temple and a curiosity cabinet all at once, blending Sri Lankan, Thai, Chinese and Indian styles and packed with donated objects and statues.

What to see

The complex includes shrine halls, a bo tree, a small museum of gifts and antiques, and rows of Buddha images from across Asia.

Seema Malaka

The associated Seema Malaka meditation pavilions, designed by architect Geoffrey Bawa, float on Beira Lake nearby and are especially photogenic at dusk.

Navam Perahera

The temple’s Navam festival, usually in February, is one of Colombo’s biggest processions.

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