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King Sirinaga I
Kingdom of Anuradhapura
195 AC - 214 AC
195 AC - 214 AC
King Vijaya
543 BC-505 BC
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King Kudda Naga
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King Sirinaga I
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King Voharika Tissa
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King Sirinaga II
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368 AC-410 AC
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459 AC-477 AC
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477 AC-495 AC
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495 AC-512 AC
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512 AC-520 AC
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521 AC-521 AC
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522 AC-535 AC
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King Aggabodhi IX
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King Kassapa IV
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Rajendra Chola I
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Rajadhiraja Chola
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Rajendra Chola II
1052 AC-1064 AC
Virarajendra Chola
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Athirajendra Chola
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King Wickramabahu I
1029 AC-1040 AC
King General Keerthi
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King Vijayabahu I
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1053 AC-1086 AC
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King Vijayabahu IV
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King Buvanekabahu I
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King Parakramabahu III
1287 AC-1293 AC
King Buvanekabahu II
1293 AC-1302 AC
King Parakramabahu IV
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King Buvanekabahu III (Vanni B
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King Vijayabahu V
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King Buvanekabahu IV
1341 AC-1359 AC
King Parakramabahu V
1344 AC-1359 AC
King Wickramabahu IV
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King Buvanekabahu V
1371 AC-1407 AC
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King Kumara Alakeshwara (Alake
1391 AC-1391 AC
King Weera Alakesvara
1397 AC-1411 AC
King Weerabahu II
1391 AC-1397 AC
King Parakramabahu Epa
1410 AC-1415 AC
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1415 AC-1467 AC
King Jayabahu II
1468 AC-1470 AC
King Buvanekabahu VI
1470 AC-1478 AC
King Panditha Parakramabahu VI
1478 AC-1484 AC
King Weera Parakramabahu VIII
1484 AC-1508 AC
King Darma Parakramabahu IX
1508 AC-1513 AC
King Vijayabahu VI
1513 AC-1521 AC
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1521 AC-1551 AC
King Don Juwan Dharmapala
1551 AC-1597 AC
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1551 AC-1581 AC
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1581 AC-1593 AC
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1593 AC-1593 AC
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1593 AC-1593 AC
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1591 AC-1604 AC
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1604 AC-1635 AC
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1635 AC-1687 AC
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1687 AC-1707 AC
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1707 AC-1739 AC
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1739 AC-1747 AC
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1747 AC-1782 AC
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1782 AC-1798 AC
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1798 AC-1815 AC
Pedro Lopes de Sousa
1594 AC-1594 AC
Joao da Silveira
1518 AC-1518 AC
Lopo de Brito
1518 AC-1522 AC
Fernao Gomes de Lemos
1522 AC-1524 AC
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1551 AC-1552 AC
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Duarte de Eca
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Fernao Carvalho
1553 AC-1555 AC
Willem Jacobszoon Coster
1640 AC-1640 AC
Jan Thyszoon Payart
1640 AC-1646 AC
A person named Sirinaga, who came forward against King Kuddhanaga, advanced with an army close to the city, deposed the king, and seized the throne. The Mahavamsa does not mention that he killed the king. According to records, King Sirinaga was both the commander-in-chief of King Kuddhanaga and also the brother of his queen. His name appears as “Kuda Sirinaga” (Little Sirinaga) in texts such as the Nikaya Sangrahaya, Rajarathnakara, Sulu Rajavaliya, and Saddharma Ratnakaraya, while the Pujavaliya refers to him as “Kuda Sirina” (Little Sirina), describing him as a “brother-in-law.”
The term “brother-in-law” here refers to “the brother-in-law of King Kuddhanaga.” The kinship described in the Mahavamsa—as the queen’s brother—and the kinship described in the Pujavaliya—as brother-in-law—create a certain ambiguity. The word “bēnā” (බෑනා) in Sinhala can also mean “brother,” depending on context. If it is interpreted that way, then Sirinaga could in some sense be considered the king’s brother.
In this matter, we must rely primarily on inscriptional evidence. Although the relationship between King Sirinaga and King Kuddhanaga has been clarified above, historical texts do not record exactly whose son Sirinaga was.
An inscription discovered at the ancient Isurumuniya Vihara—now mistakenly referred to as Vessagiri Vihara—mentions a King Tissa Maharaja, son of Sirinaka Maharaja, who himself was the son of King Tissa Maharaja. From this, it can be inferred that Sirinaka Maharaja refers to the first King Sirinaga discussed here, and that his son, Tissa Maharaja, is the same as Voharatissa Raja mentioned later in history.
As described above, the question arises: Who was the father of King Sirinaga? According to inscriptional evidence, he was none other than King Devanampiya Tissa II (Dutiya Bhāti Tissa), who, as mentioned in the Mahavamsa, was the brother of Kanittatissa, the first to ascend the throne.
If this interpretation holds, then King Cūlābhaya and King Sirinaga were brothers, both sons of Devanampiya Tissa II. By right, the throne should have gone to Prince Cūlābhaya, the son of the elder brother. However, Prince Kuddhanaga, the son of King Kanittatissa, killed him and took the throne. Disagreeing with this wrongful act, Prince Sirinaga, the brother of Commander Cūlanaga, rose up, killed King Kuddhanaga, and seized the throne.
Thus, in this struggle for power between the children of two brothers, two royal lives were lost in vain.
A story about a king named Sirinaga is also found in the Pali Rasavāhinī. According to that account, Sirinaga was of Brahmin lineage. Desiring to become king, he ordered his servants to break the Dakkinacetiya (Southern Stupa) to obtain treasure. But as they could not do so at twilight, he summoned a Chandala (outcaste) named Bahula of Sedolagama to break the stupa.
Bahula replied that “the Stupa of the Buddha, enshrining sacred relics, cannot be broken by anyone while still alive.” Enraged, Sirinaga impaled him on a stake. He then summoned his seven sons and ordered them too to break the stupa. When they refused, he impaled all seven and proceeded to break the Madhupitthika Stupa at Pachinapassaya, took the treasure, gathered an army, came to Anuradhapura, killed the reigning king, and became king himself. After some time, he contracted a severe stomach disease and died.
The Sirinaga mentioned in this story must be the same Sirinaga mentioned in the Mahavamsa. According to the chronicles, there were two kings named Sirinaga. The question arises: which one is referred to here? The chronicles make it clear that the second Sirinaga was the son of King Voharatissa. He does not appear to have engaged in any conflict to seize the throne. The one who did so was the first Sirinaga. Therefore, the Sirinaga mentioned in the Rasavāhinī must indeed be the first Sirinaga.
As we saw earlier in the Mahavamsa, he was the commander of King Kuddhanaga. Considering the breaking of the Southern Stupa near Anuradhapura and the impalement of the outcastes, it shows that these acts took place near the royal palace itself, indicating also the collapse of the administrative system.
The Mahavamsa gives further details about King Sirinaga’s works:
He gilded the umbrella of the Great Stupa (Mahathupa), constructed the five-storeyed Lohamahapaya, and built four flights of steps and a chattraprasada (umbrella pavilion) around the Great Bo-tree terrace (Maha Bodhi Maluwa).
If, as the Rasavāhinī claims, he had once destroyed stupas, then he must later have felt deep remorse and performed many acts of merit in repentance. However, these are not included in the chronicles (Vamsa kathā).
One special act of King Sirinaga mentioned in the Mahavamsa—that “through compassion he removed the kulambana of the island”—has led to various interpretations. The Pali text reads: Kulambanañ ca dīpasmiṁ vissajjesi dayāpāro.
In the translation by the venerable Sri Sumangala Thera and Batwatte Pandiduma, it is rendered: “He relieved the Kulaṁbu people of the island from royal service.” However, this is unclear. The word kulambana cannot simply mean “Kulumbu people.”
From the statement that “King Dāyāpāra removed it,” it appears that this kulambana was a burden or tax upon the people. Hence, it can be understood as referring to a tax known as Kulaamana in inscriptions.
It was a levy of eight droṇas of grain per kula. From the harvested grain, that portion was paid to the king as tax, called Kulaamana. Therefore, the word kulambana in the Pali Mahavamsa corresponds to this Kulaamana tax.
According to the Periyakadu Vihara inscription dated to his tenth regnal year, King Sirinaga’s rule appears to have been stable and peaceful, with no recorded internal unrest or turmoil. His authority seems to have been recognized throughout the island.
The Mahavamsa and Dipavamsa both record his reign as ten years, while the Rajavaliya and Rajarathnakara give twenty-one years. The Mahavamsa does not record any mention of the stomach disease (udarabādha) said to have afflicted him.