Mañjuà ÂrëbhÃÂsitacitrakarmaà ÂÃÂstra (Treatise on iconography as spoken by Mañjuà Ârë) is a Sinhalese Buddhist text dealing with construction of monasteries and Buddhist temples.
A single manuscript of this text, written in Sanskrit language in Sinhalese script, was acquired by S. Paranavitana in 1950s from a Buddhist temple in Gampola. After his death, it was acquired by the National Archives of Colombo in 1972. The text appears as a dialogue between Manjushri and Viswakarma. Given the ample references to application of mantras and fire-ceremony in consecration of monasteries and temples, with the invocation of the 5 Buddhas, it is of evidently a Vajrayana nature. Based on its Vajrayana content and application of Sinhala script, the text can be dated to be from 11th century.
Although previously, texts on Buddhist iconography like the Bimbalaká¹£aá¹Âa ascribed to à ÂÃÂriputra had been found in Sri Lanka, this text was larger than the others. It consists of 1,600 slokas divided into seventeen chapters. These discuss
Regarding the procedure of idol construction and consecration rituals, the text heavily borrows much of its content from shilpasastra texts circulating in South India.
In 1989, the text was published in two volumes from New Delhi with the Sanskrit original rendered in Devanagari script and English translation under the name of The VÃÂstuvidyàascribed to Mañjuà Ârë, edited by Dr. E. W. Marasinghe, librarian of the University of Perandeniya. The first volume, covering the first three chapters was titled Mañjuà ÂrëbhÃÂsitavÃÂstuvidyÃÂà ÂÃÂstra (VÃÂstuvidyàas spoken by Mañjuà Ârë).