The Ceylon Times: Adam's Peak

Friday, April 21, 2017

Adam's Peak

Sri Pada or Adam's Peak. (Lanka's Holy Mountain)

Adam's Peak

Adam's Peak (also Adam's Mount; Sinhalese Samanala kanda - සමනළ කන්ද "butterfly mountain", Tamil Sivanolipatha Malai - சிவனொலி பாதமலை), is a 2,243 metres (7,359 ft) tall conical mountain located in central Sri Lanka. It is well-known for the Sri Pada "sacred footprint", a 1.8 m rock formation near the summit, in Buddhist tradition held to be the footprint of the Buddha, in Hindu tradition that of Shiva, in Christian tradition that of St. Thomas, and in Muslim tradition that of Adam.

Sri Pada is revered as a holy site by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians. It has specific qualities that cause it to stand out and be noticed; including its dominant and outstanding profile, and the boulder at the peak that contains an indentation resembling a footprint.

Sri Pada

Sri Pada is an important pilgrimage site, especially for Hindus and Buddhists. Pilgrims walk up the mountain, following a variety of routes up thousands of steps. The journey takes several hours at least. The peak pilgrimage season is in April, and the goal is to be on top of the mountain at sunrise, when the distinctive shape of the mountain casts a triangular shadow on the surrounding plain and can be seen to move quickly downward as the sun rises.

The mountain is most often scaled from December to May. During other months it is hard to climb the mountain due to very heavy rain, extreme wind, and thick mist. Climbing at night can be a remarkable experience, with the lights of the path leading up and into the stars overhead. There are rest stops along the way. Access to the mountain is possible by six trails (Ratnapura-Palabaddala, Hatton-Nallathanni, Kuruwita-Erathna, Murraywatte, Mookuwatte & Malimboda). Out of these the Nallathanni and Palabaddala routes are the most popular. Kuruwita-Erathna road is somewhat popular as well. Most of the pilgrims use Hatton route as the journey on foot can be reduced by more than five kilometers even though the slope of this route is much greater than other routes.