The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.
Kantharodai, Jaffna District, Northern Province · 9.7500°, 80.0167°
A field of small grey coral-stone stupas at Kantharodai in the Jaffna peninsula, the most striking Buddhist archaeological site in northern Sri Lanka. Its history reaches back to the Anuradhapura era, a stone pillar there dates to the reign of Dappula IV, Polonnaruwa-period coins have been recovered, and finds include fragments of Buddha and Bodhisattva statues and Buddha footprint slabs.
What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.
The little stupas are said to hold the remains of sixty arhat monks who died together at the site, by poisoned mushroom curry or by famine, while fleeing persecution.
coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-28 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Anuradhapura
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