Among the trees of verdant Maligawila lie the extensive remains of a 7th-century Buddhist monastery, noted for two, well-preserved giant statues. Linked by a shady avenue of magnificent banyan trees with multiple aerial roots, the statues stand serenely in forest clearings 500m apart.
Standing atop five flights of crumbling steps, the 10m-high Maitreya Bodhisattva (Avalokitesvara) was rebuilt between 1989 and 1991 from over 100 fragments unearthed in the 1950s. Its 11m-tall companion is among the tallest free-standing ancient Buddha statues in Sri Lanka. Both are protected by modern steel canopies but these do not detract unduly from the beauty of the forest setting.
