Climbing Sri Lankan holy mountain Adam’s Peak – and four other temple trails in Asia
- Seeing the sunrise from the top of the 2,243-metre peak requires a five-hour night climb up 5,000 steps – it’s not for the faint-hearted
- Adam’s Peak, or Sri Pada, in Sri Lanka has been a pilgrimage site for 1,700 years for Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians
Sunrises are overrated. At least, this is what I told myself as I completed yet another set of 50 wide steps, only to see yet another set above me.
However, with twilight quickly fading, on the steep, narrow and winding steps above me, a few dozen people were about to witness a beautiful dawn from a mountaintop temple. I was exhausted and about to miss the big moment.
Adam’s Peak in Sri Lanka’s central highland region is a mountain 2,243 metres (7,360 feet) high whose summit is reached via a path that features more than 5,000 steps. It is not a place for hikers and climbers, but pilgrims from various faiths.
Buddhists call it Sri Pada and believe that the stone tablet in a shrine at the top contains the footprint of Buddha (sri pada is Sanskrit for “sacred foot”). Hindus think it is Shiva’s footprint, Muslims that of the Prophet Adam, and Christians the Apostle St. Thomas. It is thought to have been a pilgrimage site for over 1,700 years.
The constant strings of Buddhist flags make it obvious which religion Adam’s Peak is predominantly claimed by as a place of worship, but on most mornings the majority of visitors are tourists. They climb to watch the sunrise, and as I completed yet another, even steeper stretch of steps, I could see their faces above me. They were lit up, but not yet by a rising sun.