Way of Nirvana A Journey Towards Wisdom, Peace and Liberation
Temples · Practice · Dhamma

Buddhist life in Sri Lanka, as I live it

I write about the temples I visit, how I keep Poya days, what happens when I sit to meditate, and the teachings that help me most. The photos here are my own.

Temple visits Who writes this

Sabbe sattā bhavantu sukhitattā — May all beings be happy.

Inside an image house: a painted seated Buddha under a carved dragon arch, with standing Buddhas and wall paintings on both sides
Inside the image house

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Photographed on my visits

From my camera

A round bed of blue water lilies, pink and white lotus, marigolds and cannonball-tree flowers offered on the stone terrace of a stupa
Flowers left by pilgrims on the stupa terrace
Face of a yellow reclining Buddha statue resting on his hand, under a ceiling painted with lotus flowers
The reclining Buddha, with a lotus-painted ceiling above
Old wall painting with rows of seated Buddhas in arches, each with a kneeling figure beside him, on a red background
Rows of Buddhas painted on the image-house wall
A huge ancient brick stupa against a blue sky, with ropes hanging down from the square top
An ancient brick stupa, seen from the terrace
Painted seated Buddha in meditation with a blue water lily placed in his hands, flowers on the altar below
Someone had placed a water lily in the Buddha’s hands
An old gilded seated Buddha with wave-patterned robes in a dim shrine, with two standing Buddhas beside him
An older shrine with a gilded seated Buddha
New to the teaching?

Where to start

Tiratana

The Three Jewels

The Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha: what we mean when we chant the refuges.

 Cattāri ariyasaccāni

The Four Noble Truths

Suffering, its cause, its ending, and the path that leads to its ending.

 Ariya aṭṭhaṅgika magga

The Noble Eightfold Path

Eight factors that are practised together, like the strands of one rope.
Next Poya day
Il Poya
ඉල් පොහොය
Tuesday, 24 November 2026 · in 18 days
  • Unduvap24 Dec 2026
  • Duruthu22 Jan 2027
  • Navam21 Feb 2027

Tonight: Waning Crescent. Dates in Sri Lanka time; official holidays may differ by a day. Full calendar →

Bhāvanā

Meditation, honestly

How I sit with the breath and practise mettā at home: what helps, and what still goes wrong.

Meditation notes