Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v2.c33.155

v2.c33.155

Ratanapāsāda.—A building in the Abhayagiri-vihāra, erected by King Kaṇiṭṭhatissa for Mahānāga Thera.¹ Mahinda II. evidently rebuilt it at a cost of three hundred thousand kahāpaṇas, and installed in it a Buddha-image worth sixty thousand. At the dedication festival, the king offered his whole kingdom to the image.² Mahinda III. gave the revenue from the Geṭhumba Canal for the repairs of the pāsāda.³ In the reign of Sena I. the Pāṇḍiyas, who invaded Ceylon, plundered the pāsāda and removed the jewels from the eyes of the image.⁴ Sena II. found the image itself removed from its pedestal and taken to Madhurā, and, after his victory over the Pāṇḍiyas, he had it restored.⁵ When the people rose in rebellion against Udaya III., he took refuge in the Ratanapāsāda with his colleagues, but the people surrounded the building and they were forced to flee.⁶