As a part of these missions, Arhant Mahinda Thera, the son of emperor Asoka arrived in Sri Lanka during the reign of king Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura in 3rd century BC.

King Mahanaga did a great service to improve agriculture and was responsible for raising a peaceful and prosperous civilization in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka.

[6] King Kawan Tissa is regarded as the founder of many Buddhist monasteries located in Southern and Eastern areas of Sri Lanka.

Many ancient kings of Sri Lanka had also offered lands to the Tissamaharama monastery for the welfare of Buddhist monks who lived there.

According to ancient stone inscriptions found, many land donations to the Tissamaharama Vihara were made during the reigns of king Jettha Tissa, Wasabha and Mihindu.

[9] However sources reveal that in 1662 AD, king Veera Parakrama Narendrasinghe donated two lands to the temple for the maintenance purposes, when Kadurupokune Budhdha Rakkhitha Thero was the chief incumbent.

[8] But later in the 18th century Tissmaharama Vihara was abandoned after the state of the temple deteriorated badly, during the Dutch Colonial rule in the coastal areas of Sri Lanka.

The more recent restoration work of this stupa had begun in 1858 due to the efforts of Wepathaira Sumana Thera, who rediscovered Thissmaharama Vihara after making a pilgrimage to the area.

[8] In 1882 the British governor general of Ceylon, Sir James Robert Longden visited Thissamaharama Vihara and appointed Walpita Medhankara Thero as the chief incumbent of the temple.

In 1897 the Tissamaharama Raja Maha Vihara development committee was formed with the leadership of Mudaliyar S. F. Jayawickrama of Matara and N. Amarasingha of Tangalle and the restoration works completed in early 20th century.

The department of Archeology of Sri Lanka and State Engineering Co-operation intervened on the request of chief incumbent of the temple and prevented further cracking of the stupa by using galvanized steel cables tied around the circumference of the dome in the mid section.