An octagonal image house, a small Devalaya shrine, and a bell tower give Hokandara Purana Viharaya a distinctive cultural focus for planning your trip. The temple is located in the village of Hokandara. The image house is divided into an inner shrine and an outer area. Anyone interested in religious architecture can distinguish several aspects here: the image house’s ground plan, its internal layout, and the features of both areas. The protected status of the image house and bell tower is also part of the history of these structures. This connects a specific feature of the place with a closer look at its architectural and religious details.

The Image House: Octagonal Shape, Two Areas

The octagonal shape is a geometric feature of the image house; its division into an inner shrine and an outer area describes a different aspect. Together, these give the structure a clear layout. To orient yourself, you can first consider its shape and then the two areas. This keeps the architecture and features distinct: the octagonal shape describes the image house as a whole, while its division indicates where the individual religious details are located. If you look beyond a cultural site’s name to its architectural form, this combination offers a tangible starting point for exploring Hokandara Purana Viharaya.

Figures in the Inner Shrine

A large seated Buddha statue stands in the inner shrine. Sariputta is also depicted there on the left and Moggallana on the right. They are described as Gautama Buddha’s two chief disciples. Their names and positions make the imagery more specific than a general description of religious figures. For travelers interested in Buddhist depictions, this offers a precise look at the image house’s particular arrangement: one large seated statue and two named figures whose positions are clearly distinguished. The figures are therefore not merely part of a list; each is identified by name and assigned a specific side.

Outer Area and Protected Status

A small Devalaya shrine is located in the outer area of the image house. This means that different religious features are located in different parts of the building: the large seated Buddha statue and the depictions of Sariputta and Moggallana belong to the inner shrine, while the small Devalaya shrine is in the outer area. This distinction helps organize the listed features by location rather than treating them as identical elements.

The image house and the bell tower are protected archaeological monuments. Both structures were granted protected status on June 20, 2014. This date refers to their protected status, not to when they were built. Anyone choosing cultural sites based on both religious architecture and monument history will find two distinct points of interest here: the image house’s octagonal form and features on the one hand, and the shared, dated protected status of the image house and bell tower on the other. This offers a closer understanding of Hokandara through a specific temple and its named structures.

Discover More Destinations

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Go to the broader travel overview: Western Province.