The Footprint on Adam's Peak
On the summit of a Sri Lankan mountain is a footprint in the rock. Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians each say whose it is.
What was reported
Adam's Peak, or Sri Pada, is a steep cone-shaped mountain in central Sri Lanka. At the top, under a shrine, is a hollow in the rock shaped like a giant footprint, about 1.8 metres long.
Buddhists say it's the footprint of the Buddha, Hindus say Shiva, and Muslims and many Christians say Adam, who stood here on first coming to Earth after leaving paradise; some Christians say Saint Thomas. Pilgrims climb through the night to see sunrise from the top, when the mountain casts a perfect triangle of shadow over the land.
Explanations offered
The footprint is a matter of faith for each religion. The shadow is a known effect: any tall peak casts a shadow that looks triangular at sunrise, because of perspective. The peak is a rare place shared peacefully by many faiths.
- When
- A pilgrimage for more than a thousand years
- Where
- Adam's Peak, Sabaragamuwa, Sri Lanka
- Witnesses
- Pilgrims of four religions
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
More from Sri Lanka