Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v2.c31.780

v2.c31.780

Maricavaṭṭi.—A cetiya in Anurādhapura and a monastic building attached to it. The cetiya was built by Duṭṭhagāmaṇi on the spot where the king’s spear, containing the Buddha’s relic given to him by the monks,¹ was planted, when Duṭṭhagāmaṇi went to the Tissavāpi for his ceremonial bathing after his consecration. When the king’s men attempted to remove the spear they found it impossible, and the king, after consultation with the monks, decided to build a cetiya enclosing the spot with a vihāra attached. The work was completed in three years and a great ceremony of dedication was held, the building and the ceremony costing nineteen crores. The vihāra was called Maricavaṭṭi because it was intended by the king as an expiation for having once eaten a pepper-pod (maricavaṭṭi) without sharing it with the monks, thus violating the vow of his childhood.²