The sacred Temple of the Tooth Relic

                 The temple of the Tooth Relic is considered as one of the prominent places in Srilanka. It was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1998. As same as Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, the temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy is too devoted by the Buddhists with great respect.

According to the historical reports, princess Hemamala, the daughter of King Guhasiva from Kaligupura, India (Bharath) and his nephew prince Dhantha brought tooth relic to Srilanka during the reign of the king Kithsirimewan. 

After having the ceremonial arrival, the custody of the sacred tooth relic was taken by Abhayagiri temple. 

The Tooth Relic was exhibited on a grand scale for the public and venerated by offering flowers, incense sticks in August every year. It had been a tradition of all the Sinhalese kings to hold a pooja ceremony along with a spectacular procession annually. 

Having custody of the tooth relic was also considered as the suitability for ruling the kingdom. Therefore each and every Sinhalese king protected the tooth relic as their lives. 

According to the historical reports, the temple of the tooth relic in Kandy was built by King Wimaladharmasooriya I in order to protect the sacred tooth relic and it was renovated later by King Kirthi Sri Rajasinghe. 

The home of the temple of tooth relic, the cultural city Kandy which is the last royal capital of Srilanka is a major tourist destination in this beautiful island.