There are many places of worship in and around the city. Buddhist places of worship are more in number, which is to be expected since Buddhists constitute the great majority in the area. Nevertheless, there are plenty of places of worship in the town related to other religions. The following are some important examples:
Maha Saman Dewalaya
It is a shrine dedicated to the god Saman. The god Saman is (a Buddhist deity) considered to be the guardian of Ratnapura. When the Portuguese captured Ratnapura, the ancient shrine that stood at this location was destroyed and a Portuguese church was constructed on top of it. When the Kandyan kingdom recaptured Ratnapura, the Portuguese church was destroyed and the shrine was rebuilt. Although there is no direct evidence to support the existence of the old shrine, indirect evidence supports the existence of a shrine that looked like a Hindu temple at the current location before Portuguese times. Currently this shrine is a very important place of worship for Buddhists.
The mountain Sri Pada ( Adam's Peak )
Ratnapura is situated at the foot of the 2243 metre high Adam's Peak. All four major religions claim Adam's Peak as a holy mountain. Buddhists call the mountain Sri Pada (the sacred footprint), or Samanalakande (Butterfly Mountain) and believe the Lord Buddha has visited the mountain and set his sacred footprint. This place also known as a place where many miracles happened. All people who go to worship should talk gently and behave gently.Ratnapura is also the starting point for the 'Classic' Hard route up Adam's Peak, via Gilimale and Carney estate. The Pilgrimage season starts on Poya (full moon) day in December and runs until the start of the South-West Monsoon in April. It has been a pilgrimage centre for over 1000 years. King Parakramabahu and King Nissanka Malla of Polonnaruwa provided ambalamas or 'resting places' for weary pilgrims along the mountain route. The other more popular route is through Dalhousie (pronounced 'Del-house') close to Dickoya. Other routes to Adam's Peak.
The Udawalawe National Park
The Udawalawe National Park situated in the dry zone of the country and belonging to Sabaragamuwa and Uva provinces. The park area is 30,821 ha in area and was established in 1972.The park consists of dry lowland forest, riverine forest, thorny scrublands and grasslands. One special attraction of the park is the Udawalawe reservoir and the Walawe River which flows through the park.Udawalawe National Park is world famous for its large elephant population. In this park elephants can be seen at any time of the day. Crocodiles, water buffalo, spotted and barking deer, wild boar, sambur, jackal and ruddy, grey and striped necked mongoose are also found in this park. Though the leopard, jungle and fishing cats have recorded in the park sightings are very rare.The park is also famous for birdlife. Crested serpent eagle, changeable hawk eagle, white-bellied sea eagle and grey-headed fishing eagle are the main raptors found in the park. Painted stork, open bill, little and Indian cormorant, Indian darter, many species of waders are also found within the park. Among the forest birds are the warblers, Sri Lanka Jungle fowl, Malabar pied hornbill, Sikir Malkoha, Blue face Malkoha, common Caucal, and grey hornbill..
