Matale
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Aluvihara
Aluvihara is set in a chasm in the hills, surrounded by giant boulders, this monastery is an intriguing site. There's a unique series of monastic caves, some spectacular religious paintings and a stupa or two. It's easily accessible (just off the road, 3km north of Matale).
Legend has it that a giant used three of the rocks as a base for his cooking pot, and the name Aluvihara (Ash Monastery) refers to the ashes from the cooking fire.
Reclining Buddha Cave
The first cave you come to contains a 10m reclining Buddha and impressive lotus-pattern murals on the ceiling. Another is filled with cartoon-like murals of the realms of hell – if you’re considering straying from the straight and narrow, you may think twice after seeing the statues of devils meting out an inventive range of punishments to sinners in the afterlife. One scene shows a sexual sinner with his skull cut open and his brains being ladled out by two demons.
Buddhaghosa Cave
Up a flight of rock steps is a cave dedicated to Buddhaghosa, the Indian scholar who is supposed to have spent several years here while working on the Tipitaka. Although histories affirm that Buddhaghosa lived in Anuradhapura in the 6th century AD, there’s no clear evidence he stayed at Aluvihara. Nonetheless the cave walls are painted with scenes showing Buddhaghosa working on ola (palm-leaf) manuscripts.
Summit
Stairs continue to the summit of the rock bluff, where you’ll find a dagoba and sweeping views of the surrounding valley. To the west, atop a rocky outcrop 150m above the monastery, is a seated golden Buddha offering protection and blessings with an abhaya (palm facing-outward) gesture.
Workshop
The Tipitaka was first transcribed from oral and Sinhalese sources into Pali text by a council of monks held at Aluvihara in the 1st century BC. Two thousand years later, in 1848, the monks’ library was destroyed by British troops putting down a revolt. The long process of replacing the ola manuscripts still occupies monks, scribes and craftspeople today. You can see their workshop (a donation includes having your name inscribed on a small length of ola ).
Spice Garden
During Past history Sri Lanka known as Taprobane, was world renowned for its Quality Spices. During ancient times the Greeks, Romans and the Arabic maintained their links with Sri Lanka through the spice trade. In the 16th century Ceylon, as it was then known, was discovered by Portuguese who soon began trading in cinnamon and other spices. The Dutch and British followed bringing with them their own history and influences, forming a strong Western presence which created a history of food expressed with spices which can be tasted in the dishes today.
Spices are an essential element of the cuisine of Sri Lanka and the Ayurvedic tradition and a visit to a garden specializes in the cultivation of these substances and an excellent way for purposes of new uses of certain ingredients that perhaps though they knew well. Find cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, vanilla, cardamom and black pepper, to name a few. Europeans can buy the products in their natural state or in the form of oils and potions that are used by Ayurvedic medicine, during the Dutch, very famous spices of Sri Lanka and we export to different countries. That has earned the country the name of "Island of the spices”.