A visit to Anuradhapura Abhayagiriya Stupa

Hello all,
It is great to participate again in the Steemit Atlas challenge in Steem Sri Lanka, which is organized by @damithudaya.
This post is about my visit to the Anuradhapura sacred city, and I would like to mention the special place, "Abhayagiriya Stupa." It is a great and very large monument located in the middle of the Anuradhapura sacred city, Sri Lanka.
This Stupa was built during the 2nd reign of King Valagamba in the 1st century BCE. Abayagiriya was more than just a stupa—it was the heart of a vibrant Buddhist monastery known as Abhayagiri Vihāra. The construction of the Abhayagiri Stupa has a great story. During the 1st reign of King Valagamba, there was a foreign invasion from South India. Seven Tamil leaders led this invasion. The great king didn't have the strength to face this invasion during that time, and his only choice was to flee with his family. During his escape, he had to pass a monastery of a Jain monk, whose name was "Giri". This Jain monk insulted the great king during his escape. As a form of revenge, he later built the great Abahayagiri Stupa in the same location during the 2nd reign of King Valagamba.

Abayagiri Stupa is a very large monument built with bricks and is considered one of the largest brick constructions in the ancient world. Like most of the stupas in the sacred city, this one is located on a very large flat area. It is very difficult to worship the Stupa during the daytime because of the sunlight and the unbearable heat. So, it is recommended to make your visit during the early morning or the evening.

Also, if you can visit the museum, which has a lot of details about the construction of the Abahayagiriya. It is a temple not only for "Theravada" Buddhism, but also for "Mahayana."
So, at the end of the post, I have attached the location in Steemit Atlas as well as the Google Map location.

Steemit Atlas: [//]:# (!steematlas 8.37097747 lat 80.3952772 long Abahayagiriya Stupa d3scr)
Google Map: 99CW+94C, Watawandana Road, Anuradhapura

Device: iPhone 12 | Vivo V20
Location: Abhayagiri Stupa, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka