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| Wednesday, 13 October 2004 |
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Focus on Books On building a cultural bridge by Prof. Sunanda Mahendra A few months ago the Sinhala reader happened to read a weekly Sunday column, which contained quite a number of experiences drawn from travels in and around India, with an emphasis on travels, places and people. This interesting and informative column was titled 'Adamge palama' (Adam's bridge) symbolic of the link between the two countries Sri Lanka and India.
Out of the printed material thus produced, Neil Wijeratna has collected thirty six pieces into the present book retitling it as 'Madurasi Koluwa' (Madurasi boy), and published by Sooriya publishers. I kept on reading one column after another in the most stimulating and resourceful manner possible. The writer Wijeratna takes the reader to meet various types of men and women, most of whom are sensitive, hospitable, friendly and sometimes funny. He looks at all of them as if in a frame of nostalgia. Then he takes us to places such as Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi, where he meets sportsmen, shopkeepers, scholars, journalists, musicians and book sellers etc. Being a writer himself, Wijeratna shows a special flair for authors and scholars. Short stories As such at several instances he refers to collections of short stories published in India, for example one by Yasmine Gunaratna. Then he refers to an incident in the life of the well-known Indian writer Kushwant Singh, who is also known to me, while I was working with the BBC, in Bush House, London. The references made to Kushwant Singh, is regarding a particular editorial he had written to a newspaper. The management has misunderstood the mission of Mr. Singh and wanted to fire him, but later on it has been hunted out that the contents may not have been too venomous in the manner they imagined. Mr. Singh, as I know him, is one of the wittiest characters as well as a man of integrity. He dare not stay in a play where he is troubled or goes against his aims and objectives. As I read the column I imagined the writings of Mr. Singh vividly. Hired guides The column, which carries the book title I found is quite interesting as it has similarities to our private bus service. At the bus terminal we may find adolescent guides, who will shout and help you to get into a bus, but they are just hired guides, who know perhaps next to nothing about the places the bus passes. If this happens in a big way a traveller in a foreign country will undoubtedly be stranded or get lost in the way. Such an experience is wittily recorded in the form of a modern day parable. Most of the columns that appear in this collection are written in a dialogue based readable narrative pattern intermixed with information. This I presume is the legacy of new journalism in many countries. An average reader who is accustomed to know more about the neighbouring countries will have the chance of knowing it via an easy readable manner, as against the conventional harangues. In this directive the writer Neil Wijeratna uses his travel material interspersed in dialogue, and a simple narrative pattern. The easy reading and the stimulating source material may help a reader to cultivate a stimulus to better reading. Stories with a sense of Sri Lankan authenticity In my Kingdom of the Sun and the Holy Peak, All three stories of Tissa Abeysekara's "In my Kingdom of the Sun and the Holy Peak" end with a reference to the yellow butterflies that fly to Sri Pada on a pilgrimage of death between December and Vesak during the pilgrim season. This is how Tissa first describes them: "Up above him in the great big cloudless dome of the sky he saw a swarm of black specks moving across. Soon they caught the sunlight and turned a sparkling yellow like delicate petals floating in the wind. The little priest smiled, for those yellow petals were the little butterflies that go on pilgrimage to the Holy Peak. So the pilgrim season had begun and the butterflies were on their way to the peak where it is believed they go to die. He had not been to the Peak but had heard from the elders that one slope of that Holy Peak is thick with dead butterflies. He came down the tree quickly like he was late for something. Now he had to go. The dream had made him strong and had made him want to keep going". In the first story the butterflies are plentiful, inspiring humans to make the same pilgrimage in search of salvation. By the third story, the butterflies have disappeared, no longer to be seen in the sunlight, symbolising death and spiritual release. Their absence is realization that we may be trapped forever with no release, eternally condemned to a life of evil. The three stories contained in this volume are fundamentally about the banality of evil. They take place during three moments in the nation's history - the first during the transition from pre-colonial to colonial times, the second at the moment of independence and the third in contemporary life. Each story is built around an original sin - a murder or murders that have devastating spiritual consequences. They are stories about evil, about revenge, about guilt and destiny. They are woven into the fabric of Sri Lankan life with an in-your-face sensuality that is palpable and real. Political history In some ways the stories are about our political history. All of them are partly true, partly gossip and partly fantasy. The first story is cast in the mould of a historical novel. It brings to life the story of Pilimatalawa and the betrayal of the Kandy Kingdom. Pilimatalawa is cast as a restless, obsessive man following a destiny that has transcended generations. Abeysekara reimagines Pilimatalawa's passionate affair with one of the Malabar queens, the murder of Keerthisri Rajasinghe by her son and the emergence of that son as the Last King of Kandy, paranoid cruel and never relenting. He ultimately executes the ambitious Pilimatalawa, his mentor and guide and sets the stage for the final betrayal. Cast in the mould of historical novel, destiny plays an important role. Sinhala consciousness as articulated by scholars such as K.N.O. Dharmadasa is at the core of Pilimatalawa's restlessness, a sense of being deprived, aggrieved and abused in one's own territory. The recurrent dream of a dark man yoking Sinhala kings to the end of his chariot symbolizes this enslavement. Ancestral memories of revenge and counterpoint torment the protagonist. This consciousness that has rallied thousands throughout the years is portrayed within a story of passion, evil, cruelty and betrayal that could only lead to conquest by the white man. Noone who reads this tale will ever forget Pilimatalawa and his ambitions nor the cruel face of the last king of Kandy. What is extraordinary about these stories is that each is written from a different class and caste vantage point. Abeysekara is not only interested in the ruling classes and their political destinies. The second story is about evil in an impoverished, remote village where people are impoverished by caste and by class. A murder takes place in this village and the murderer serving a long-term sentence is set free on the Independence Day. The wife who had become a sex worker and who gave evidence against her husband commits suicide. The police officer who pursued the case is torn apart by guilt. The murder, the suicide and recurrent evil takes place at a crossing at a dark point where the supernatural overtakes the senses. The description of the lifestyles of these people in the purana village alternate with the symbolism of evil, death and fear. These are the places where caravans stop, where the certainties of civilization are challenged and where sexual boundaries are constantly transgressed. But the poverty breeds a certain innocence and moral power which is ironically captured by Dingiri, the sex worker. In the end she sacrifices herself because of the moral dilemmas that trap her existence. Power and its abuse The three stories are also about power and its abuse. The third story is about ambition, ruthlessness and the supernatural. An original sin casts a cloud over the life of a baby girl. People who just get in the way of a young politician's passion are somehow killed by a gap - toothed cobra. The Junior Minister of Commerce and Trade begins to take over and corrupt everything including the local temple. Evil is so rampant and so pervasive that the butterflies stop flying to Sri Pada. Souls no longer have a means of release. There is only eternal damnation. Abeysekara's recent work is writing in the classical style of death, betrayal and the will of the Gods. This is particularly true in the way he portrays the natural world. Nature is not a passive recipient of man's will in these pages. Nature reflects, interacts and conditions the reactions of men. This organic relationship is best displayed in the sensuous descriptions of the natural world. The description of foliage, terrain, rivers, ponds and the sky are visceral as if one can touch and feel the items of his description. Animals, foliage, flowers and birds get under your skin as if you are walking down the jungle path. This is one of the best parts of this novel - its description and understanding of the natural world. Abeysekara's stories are classical also in the sense that they evoke a very Sri Lankan spiritual and symbolic world. There is a Hindu Buddhist ethos throughout the book with Hindu Gods and Buddhist symbols playing an important part in creating an aura of destiny and betrayal. An all seeing Hindu ascetic begins the book and a righteous and all seeing Buddhist monk closes the final pages. Furthermore, Sri Lankan astrology and the madness attached to its reading fills the pages of the last story. Dreams and very Sri Lankan superstitions also ignite the imagination. In every part of Sri Lanka there is always the story of the apparition of the woman and child, ghosts of the past reminding us of the evil of the present. This is prominent in the second story and is beautifully rendered creating a sense of dread and anticipation. Dreams also are a significant marker in these narratives, dreams that transcend generations and are fulfilled in the way destiny unfolds. This classical evocation of symbols gives the stories a sense of Sri Lankan "authenticity" in quotation marks and it is a rare novel in English, especially since it is so beautifully written. This so-called "authenticity" is questioned today by many writers but Tissa weaves his stories with comfort and the ethos only conditions the passions and drives of men and women. The Hindu Buddhist consciousness is natural and flowing giving extraordinary depth to the narrative. In the context of modern writing where the symbolic world is trumped by a cynical realism, Abeysekara takes us back to classical writing and imagery. He reminds us that modern illusions of freedom must be contained by who we are and where we came from. Common destiny This South Asian civilizations ethos that is reflected in the book is also present in the depiction of different ethnic communities in the stories. As we read through Abeysekara's narratives, we realize that whatever the struggles at the political level our communities have loved each other, fought each other, intermingled and survived together. There is as strong common destiny that yokes us together even while we try to tear each other apart. This comes through in the first story in the historical struggle of Pilimatalawa and is reflected in the murder of Raman in the third story. Our everyday lives together will finally be our salvation when we come to the realization that we really cannot live and prosper without respecting and tolerating each other's sensitivities. As a feminist, I was extremely interested in Abeysekara's depiction of sexuality. The women in his stories are not passive partners but active sexual agents. His depiction of the sex worker Dingiri is particularly powerful. The poverty that drives her to sex work, the nature of that work and the relationships she forms with her clients are all manifestations of sex work even in the modern era. Much of the sexuality in the book is linked to men of power and ambition, a part of the elemental drive that urges them forward. In the last story, Baby Mahattaya, the most evil of them all, is a collector of pornography and has a passionate extramarital affair. Sexuality in his case is about licence and abuse, a part of the lifestyle of a modern, ambitious politician. The ease with which evil lives with respectability is the tour de force of the last story. We tolerate so much that is wrong and are comfortable in our middle class ways, so much so that we cannot even recognize the evil until the all seeing Buddhist monk reminds us of our degeneration. Sexuality then is constructed as an elemental drive for men and women but for the men in this novel it is also an aspect of the licence that comes with power. Abeysekera's stories are a classical oasis in an era of mediocrity and bad writing. At a recent Gratian Award ceremony Tissa was nostalgic for the great writers of the fifties and the sixties who straddled multiple words and delighted audiences with their innovative styles. Unlike Abeysekara I do believe that a modern sensibility with its cynicism and hybridity also has its place. I am, for example, a fan of the modern city where communities, cultures and economies mix creating multiple words of potential expression. I think that city consciousness has a vibrancy that is also exciting. However, like Abeysekara I have a nostalgia and a yearning for that lost generation - the bilingual generations of the Martin Wickremesinghes, the Sarathchandras, the Lester James Peries, the Ena de Silvas, the Chitrasenas, the Kailasapathys. Extraordinary people These were extraordinary people. Today we have an increasingly polarised Sri Lanka. One group of the elite that is totally globalised and westernized, fast losing connection with the rest of Sri Lanka. On the other side, we have different groups locked into parochial, tribal, ethnic and religious struggles losing sight of a common human endeavour. The lost generations were powerful because they were deeply Sri Lankan rooted in their culture, history and practices but also global; in that they were conoisseurs of the latest developments in their field from all over the world. Even today you will find Chitrasena, Vajira and Upekha at every dance performance west or east feasting on the diversity before them. This extraordinary mix produced levels of creativity that have been unsurpassed and that many think is seriously lacking in Sri Lanka today. I do not know enough about the Sri Lanka literary scene - I am after all only a small time lawyer - to come to any conclusion about this assertion but Abeysekera's book reminded me that if we are to survive in the modern world we have to have that sensibility, to be deeply Sri Lankan but also a global citizen. Tissa has that sensibility. His books take us back to a Sri Lankan ethos but his concerns are clearly modern. He combines the best of the east with writing that is impeccable English. He reminds us of the common civilisational ethos that is South Asian but points to the fact that much of what drives us is a common human endeavour that cuts across the globe. If you pick up the book you won't put it down since it becomes part of you and tears at your soul. Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy Nature's gifts to India India I Love, Travelling for days and nights from Chennai to New Delhi in the Ganga-Kavari Electric Express and a casual acquaintance of a fellow Indian traveller too to the same destination Dr. Kumar Thakur passing on to me the book recently written by Ruskin Bond 'The India I Love' (Published by Rupa & Co., New Delhi) emotionally touched me. Bond in his tour of his fields of nostalgia, in very lucid and enchanting prose writes about Bhagirath. He writes, "The Bhagi seems to have everything - a gentle disposition, deep forests, the ultra-vision of an open valley graced with tiers of cultivation leading up by degrees to the peaks and glaciers at its head. At Tehri, the big dam slows down Prince Bhagirath's chariot. But upstream, from Bhatwari to Harsil, there are extensive pine forests. They fill the ravines and plateaus, before giving way to Yew and cypress, oak and chestnut. Above 9,000 feet the deodar (devdar, tree of the gods) is the principal tree. It grows to a little distance above Gangotri, and then gives way to the birch, which is found in patches to within half a mile of the glacier." This description crafted by Ruskin Bond creates in the eye and mind of any reader what nature has gifted to India's Himalayan regions, and ever living without being axed by man. Though this being the present position, how the Britisher axed the deodars is portrayed by him. "It was the valuable timber of the deodar that attracted the adventurer Frederick 'Pahar' Wilson to the valley in the 1850s. He leased from the Raja of Tehari, and within a few years he had made a fortune. From his home an depot at Harsil he would float the logs downstream to Tehari, where they would be sawn and despatched to buyers in the cities. Bridge building was another of Wilson's ventures. The most famous of these 350 feet suspension bridge at Bhaironghat, over 1,200 feet above the young Bhagirsthi where it thunders through a deep defile." The author then takes the reader to the bridge of Wilson. "This ripping contraption was at first a source of terror to travellers and only a few ventured to cross it. To reassure people, Wilson would mount his horse and gallop to and fro across the bridge. It has since collapsed, but local people will tell you that the ghostly hoof beats of Wilson's horse can be heard on full moon nights. The supports of the old bridge were massive deodar trunks, and they can still be seen to one side of the new bridge built by the engineers of the Northern Railway." The vast amount of money Wilson earned by the rape of deodar, were never to be intact. The writer gives the account of the visitation of the vicissitudes that were in store for his descendants. "Wilson married a local girl, Gulabi, the daughter of a drummer from Mukbha, a village few miles above Harsil. He acquired properties in Dehra Dun and Mussoorie, and his wife lived there in some style, giving him three sons. Two died young. The third, Charlie Wilson went through most of his father's fortune. Gulabi is buried in Mussoorie, next to her husband". The avalanche of vengeance never stood still. Charlie Wilson's widow's nephew, Geoffrey Davies had been schooling with Ruskin Bond at Shimla and later had joined the Indian Air Force. But luck went the other way about, not peaceful as was with Wilson's descendants and Geoffrey died in a plane crash. The sizeable town of Uttarka had been devastated by a major earthquake and even now it is landside prone. The author then takes the reader to the point of commencement of the mighty nearly 3,000 kms long Ganges river. "Gangotri, far more secure, is situated just over 10,300 feet. On the right bank of the river is the principal temple (Hindu), a small neat shrine without any ornamentation. It was built by Amar Singh Thapa, a Nepali General, in the early 1800s ... The rock on which it stands is said to be the place where Prince Bhagirath did penance in order that Ganga (Ganges) be brought down from her abode of eternal snow. Here the rocks are carved and polished by ice and water, so smooth that in places they look like rolls of silk. The fast moving waters of this mountain torrent look very different from the huge sluggish river that joins the Yamuna at Allahabad." In this temple in mid-October Diwali is celebrated and after that the temple is closed. The Bhagirathi flows freely. Under all circumstances, in her downward journey in the form of Ganges, it finds a true and harmonious balance. Rohan Jayetilleke Award winning Sinhala novel Sadath Wila Maha Subhadrawo,
This novel portrays the painful life of a beautiful woman who died at a very young age suffering from a malignant cancer. With her death the history of an ancient Kandyan family comes to an end and a matriarchal extended family disintegrates. The author looks at the young woman who died in a state of utmost serenity as he looks at a modern day Therini (A Bikkhuni). He beatifies her by hiding her beside the great banyan tree in the banks of the great lake Saddhanta, magnificently described in Chaddanta Jatakaya, not to be seen by evil eyes. The importance of this novel lies basically in its narrative style. The story unfolds stories narrated by several characters of which the hidden character named as the narrator, intervenes in the greater part of the novel. He is also the historian. The novel and the history end with his death. The novel shows characteristics of realistic and modernist trends and is an example of how these characteristics are effectively blended. A special feature of the novel is the inspiration it has derived from ancient Sinhala classics and their usage of langauge. It is an attempt to create a modern literary work using the classical prose style and language. The beginning and the end of each chapter remind the reader the style of Pujawaliya. In an era where chaos reigns in the contemporary Sinhala literary scene by jaded Western and European mannerisms, the contemporary novel should derive its legitimate inspiration from the classical Sinhala prose tradition, is the message the novel conveys. To be so authentically Sri Lankan in the novel, we should be able to invoke the memory of the ancient dynamism, the novelist says in the preface. Sadath Wila Maha Subhadrawo recently won the National Literary Award for the Best Novel. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star! The Invisible Host
Among the Folk tales of Sri Lanka, we find pleasure in reading various episodes of Andare who finds his foil in Nusreddin from the Middle East. Neville Coghill's comments on Chaucer's Prologue to the Canterbury Tales seem to be relevant here: "In all literature there is nothing that touches or resembles the 'Prologue'. It is the concise portrait of an entire nation, high and low, old and young, male and female, lay and clerical, learned and ignorant, rogue and righteous, land and sea, town and country, but without extremes. Apart from the stunning clarity, touched with nuance of the characters presented, the most noticeable thing about them is their normality. They are the perennial progeny of men and women. Sharply individual, together they make a party." Though not of that depth and high fame, there is a fairly wide variety of interesting and educative characters in R. S. Karunaratne's latest book "The Invisible Host". It is a collection of stories (Tales of Mystery and Suspense as indicated by the title itself) numbering 32, with an eye on children and young adults. It is however, appreciable by the older folk, too. When the subject of children's stories comes up, we cannot ignore the well-known Supplementary Readers like, A. L. Bright Story Readers, Brothers Grimm, Hans Anderson, Lewis Caroll, Enid Blyton, Harry Potter, and so on. A glance at 'The Invisible Host' reveals an array of similar stories representing people of diverse quality. Clarity and levity What is remarkable in R. S. Karunaratne's latest anthology is its clarity as found in Chaucer, Munidasa Cumaratunga, Hemapala Munidasa, etc., levity as evident in Michael West, G. C. Thornley, D. K. Swan, T. B. Illangarathne, etc., brevity obvious in Robert Graves, Aesop, Francois Sagan, etc., superb Anglicising of Sinhala terms such as appearing in A. M. G. Sirimanne's stories, straightforwardness of G. K. Chesterton, adventure as demonstrated by Erid Blyton, humour and poignant satire as seen in Ummagga Jatakaya. Outstanding among them is the author's simple, lucid, vigorous and vivid style tinged with penetrating wise remarks of human wisdom leading to enlightenment, emulation and formation of character in children. The first story, "A Case of Mistaken Identity" keeps the reader in suspense upto the end of it while he is infused with a will to share the spirit of Tall Soldier's bravery, gratitude and honesty. "Cobra's wisdom" promotes the ideal of justice and fairplay. It tends to sow benevolent seeds of good motives in the growing mind of a gentle child particularly in this society muddled with corrupt political and administrative systems infested with bribery. "A Huge Pumpkin for the King" describes how simple actions motivated by good intention are rewarded whereas those with coming designs are foiled. "A Princes as a Reward" reminds me of the main theme of Bertolt Brescht's "Chalk Circle" where the "Land goes to the waterers" which means that the worthy should be rewarded rejecting the crafty. "A talking fish with magical powers" points out the saying that "women are insatiate". Hence their downfall. Happiness in contentment "Close Encounter with a Never, Never, Animal" seems to show the futility of seeking refuge in oracles and to impress the wisdom of finding happiness in contentment. "Grow more food is the key to one's success" seems to be the theme of "Hard work doubles the wealth". "How Murphy got his tail back" implies the amount of humiliation one has to undergo in getting a help. The series of stories, "In search of a friend" from Nos. 9 to 13 is full of adventure. Sorcery of witches and mystery in "Goodbye to one-eyed giant" call up an image of Polyphemus, the Cyclop in Odyssey. The story, "It's all in a day's work for Mr. Red Fox" seems to show that nowadays children are too smart to be outwitted by crafty people. Man's inhuman brutality is suggested in "Mr. Wolf's attempt to befriend a man". You must know your limits appears to be the main idea in the fable, "Mr. Bow Wow and Miss Purr go on a picnic." The next tale, "Mr. Bow Wow shows his muscle" analyses a foible in man and that is, "Even if you do nothing (harmful), some people turn against you". In "Mr. Bramble learns an unforgettable lesson," the writer satirizes man's ill-will and wickedness in killing even those innocent animals which live close to them. And Mr. Bramble is awakened to the absence of good manners and wisdom in him and turns out to be a good man. I think this is the best example of the writer's creative ability. "No smiles from Dr. No" is there to teach that simply talking in a negative approach is no good but it is the positive steps with a will that will produce good results beneficial to society. "Plain living is happy living" is based on the idea that greed of money tends to deny one's happiness as stated in the Pardoner's Prologue-Canterbury Tales: "The curse of avarice and cupidity (Love of money and things in the world is the root of all evil). Mutability of life How innocent people are exploited by the scheming people is portrayed in "Pina ends up with the leaves" reminding the reader of the folk tale of Raigamaya and Gampolaya. "The good friends" brings to light the theme of The Three Rioteers found in Canterbury Tales where three young men driven by avarice destroy themselves. "Tears fall on a Red Rose" poses the mutability of life and everything else and also shows how typical young girls who are waiting for Prince Charming reject prospective partners, grow haggard and die unmarried. The story entitled, "There's no place like home for Thumbson" gives a warning to disobedient children who try to run away from home, the surest shelter for them in the world. Deadly intrigues in Royal Courts all over the world form the theme of "The Prince and Seven Blind Queens". "The Last Journey" is a taunting lesson to children to dissuade from practical jokes which will end up in criminal disaster. "The donkey's advice" offers good counsel to lead one's life as one deems fit. "Torn between duty and friendship" implies that first loyalties win over newly struck friendships. Asking for the impossible The story of "Up comes a horse from Frogland" again shows how greed of wealth paves the way to displeasure. That women conceited with beauty bring about their own dismay is the gist of "When wits go woolgathering". "Who stole the Royal Baby" projects the folly of asking for the impossible and the ensuring frustration. The last tale, "Why Arabina dislikes mirrors," seems to enlighten the reader that it is not the outward appearance that matters but the harbouring of goodwill and love that make you appealing to others. Young readers can witness a short and sweet conglomeration of various types of children's tales in a single book and that is "The Invisible Host" written in a limited vocabulary of plain English. It is useful as a stepping stone to the wider world of literature. Somapala Arandara Musings with a touch of fragrance Memories on life's road,
The book is attractively bound with a hard cover in colour and runs into 140 glossy pages. There are over 80 black and white photographs, a dozen of them in colour accompanying the prose. There are also some drawings. A gloriously delightful forward is written by Chrissie Aloysius, a school chum of Lorna. She sums up by saying 'Lorna is a loving, kind and jolly person. There are many who look forward to reading her articles and poems in the newspapers. She has an optimistic view of life, when she expresses'. "we have one life to live, and we must live it to the fullest". Lorna, in her book traces her beginning from the age of three at Nottinghill Estate to the present day. She is a versatile writer, having contributed numerous articles to the Daily News - Women and Leisure' page from 1982 till the mid 1990s. She has also written to the 'Women' magazine, 'Island' and 'Sun' newspapers. Most of those articles are featured in her book. Her literary skill is revealed in exotic prose form in 'Magic of Forests and Mountains' and in verse to her beloved Mum, to her three sisters, and her four sons. Throughout the book she talks about her life with Shirley, her ever-loving husband, who was a Medical College mate of mine. Their encounters in life, Lorna's driving lessons, driving tests, picnics, pilgrimages thrills in war-time Pussellawa, of their exciting and enjoyable sea voyage to London, and their sojourn for five years in far-away Zambia, are unfolded with feelings of nostalgia. About her sea voyage she writes, "It was mid night on January 27 1962, we were sailing on the 'Orontes' which incidentally was making its last voyage. The port of Colombo gave a rousing farewell with a scintillating fireworks display. All ships docked in harbour trumpeted their sirens in full blast, the sounds and sights were overwhelming painful and touching. On the deck, my husband and I stood watching it all till our dear Isle was out of sight. Achingly aware of the loss we felt of leaving our loved ones, and our Motherland. My childhood and my whole life belonged to it, I mused tearfully." Then, in her article "To Sri Lanka with love" - in her last passage she writes "I have had spells of living in England and Zambia, I did enjoy both spells very much, but for me certainly the best place on earth is Sri Lanka. I feel deeply about my roots, I am also loyal to my Motherland that nourished me, and gave me values in life, which has made me happy and content. I shall always be proud to call it my precious Motherland." These two articles illustrate her love for her country. Lorna's interesting and witty anecdotes are written in her imitable style. They held me in stitches of laughter as I read them several times over. Exceptionally good reading were 'Hobby's Ten Commandments', 'My first Confession' (in verse), 'the day of the Penguins', 'In the Blues', 'Wadei Man', 'Blooming beard that frightened me', 'Beef-smore that purged laughter', 'John are the days', and ' A denture's tale' where my wife and seemed to have figured in this hilarious incident. In her stories she is considerate, that she has not forgotten her house maids who lived with her - Menika, and irreplaceable Lucy, and even her pet dog Mickey. The central theme that pervades throughout the book is Lorna's love for her family. She refers to herself as the 'Cookie that nursed her Cuckoo's Nest', until her last son Amal flew away. She also recalls the joy of giving birth to their only daughter Nishamani after four sons. The only article where there is sadness and pathos is the 'Brand New Widow' written in 1991, six months after Nishamani lost her husband. This article beautifully written sentimentally with deep emotion was a very popular article. I was told that she was inundated with congratulatory messages. Widows appreciated it most of all. Even in this article she ends up with an optimistic note and resignation when she ends the article thus - "I know that my loved ones would want to see me the same 'happy-go-lucky' person I have been in my childhood, girlhood and womanhood. I know, with trust in the Lord, I could accomplish it even in widowhood. so for now, I'll console myself with all that is left behind for me to cherish - little souvenirs, letters, photographs (Faded and worn), haunting melodies, and countless memories and of course my five offsprings and their spouses and three cute grandchildren. This is something to live for. I specially dedicate this article to all widows - brand new, nearly new, rather old, and "JOLLY OLD' - and step by step I am hopefully waiting to join the last brand - Jolly and Old in every sense of the word. Its simply amazing how Lorna has meticulously collected her material and photographs for her book. I give my erstwhile praise to her patience and prowess. What is to be admired most is that Lorna is a really witty person;she can laugh at herself - something that most of us are unable to do. Her articles are so varied- some so rib-tickling, some serious and thought provoking, her musings are delightfully presented. It caters for the young not so young and the old. The book is a must for the housewife. I shall end this, quoting a passage from the article 'Bus load to Love' which she wrote after a weekend trip with her entire family of twenty two to 'Sigiriya Village. "Me, now labelled a 'Senior Citizen' has made my journey to the sunset years of my life. But I can truly say, I enjoy fun and laughter in the same old way; still hold the same view that happiness is within anyone's reach. Still adopt lighthearted attitudes when troubles assail. This being so, I am very much on the "Sunny-side of Life" with my pack of jokers and a bus load to love! Her book is published by Creations Advertising & Promotions (Pvt) Limited. Prof. Merrille Perera Sketches on travelogue, archaeology and radiant people This Other Lanka,
The narration is in three sections. The first is a kind of travelogue, its heading Without Earth's Road Dust and suggests probably - travel without the road dust bothering you. And it leads you to very many distant places like the Veddah country around the historic Soroborawewa, to Meda Maha Nuwara, the place where our last king of Kandy was handed over by a bunch of disgraceful traitors and also to a not so far away place, but still distant enough, when he calls it Puttalam, The Salt City. The second section deals with an area where he is extremely well-informed and also made a name for himself with his knowledge of archaeology. There are a number of places that are listed here that are both of historical and archaeological interest. An interesting remark he makes in this section is that although we in Colombo live within a day's visit to some of the archaeological places of interest close to us we seem to be aware only of the Kelaniya Temple. Hermitage Arankelle, eight miles from Kurunegala, is one such place. It is a hermitage or rather a meditation centre. The aesthetics that have gone into the laying out of this place, when I first saw it, was a model of beauty, surprisingly for a place of ascesis. Devendra who visited the place fifty years or more earlier, visualised its beauty calling it a 'sylvan glade,' but since the preservation of the place had been neglected he gives a lively, poetic description as to who has taken over: "Giant squirrels stare at you with impudent snouts. A porcupine crashes through the bushes. From the hill-tops comes the scurrying of frightened feet, probably of deer, who seek to question your intrusion into their domain. The mingled notes of birds blare across the densely vaulted foliage. "Save these noises there is naught by way of life to remind what was once a busy monastic settlement." The other place of archaeological interest is the Hermitage of Yakkala. Just 20 miles away from Colombo on the Kandy road, the turn off at Yakkala takes you to Pilikuttuva. "Maligatenna the next place of interest is reached by way of the Buthpitiya Government School. It commands a wonderful view of the country, and is strongly reminiscent of Sigiriya." For me this was like visiting home, for it was from here I trace my ancestral roots. Various stories are in circulation about Maligatenna. Some say it was the refuge of King Valagamba. Devendra has heard that it was a retreat for Mayadunne when the Portuguese were looking for him. Flora and fauna The fact that from the top of Maligatenne one gets, as Devendra says, a panoramic view and on clear days, as I saw once, the view stretches as far as the ocean off the Galle Face Green. This may have been the reason why it has been chosen as a refuge of kings on the run when pursued by the enemy. Something Devendra does not report, apart from its archaeological interest, is that the country immediately surrounding it is of great importance because of its rare flora and fauna and that it has now been declared a natural reserve. The third section is named the Radiant People and accordingly deals with the greater majority of them in this country and their 'sequestered lives,' celebrating their festivals, relaxing at Perahera times or working at crafts like the weaving of Dumbara mats. How I wish I had come across this book when I was fortunate enough once, to visit every nook and corner of this island in the course of my official work. It certainly would have helped to fill the gaps in my knowledge of the socio-history of this land. A striking feature of this book is its clear and simple but elegant prose. It is visible everywhere whether the author is narrating an exciting adventure in search of a colossal recumbent Buddha in the wilds of Elahera or delving into the strange architectural puzzle of the lonely ruin known as Nalanda on the Kandy - Dambulla road or describing the splendour that was of the royal city of Hanguranketa, your interest is never allowed to flag. His description of the adjoining village of Ekiriya gives us a picture of a traditional and prosperous village both in agriculture and in the art of pottery, and is memorable for the rare insights we get of village life. A good example of the quality of his writing may be judged by what he has to say about Puttalam,: The Salt City: "Your introduction to the town does not impress you. The iron devil rattles over bridges which span rivers of sand. Deduru Oya is a spate of white sand. Trees of fair girth have made up their minds to pass into the serenity of old age. A narrow channel of anaemic water crawls painfully along the hither side of the river bank. It reminds you of those unhappy European survivors of decimated armies in Kandyan territory struggling their way to the sea coast and safety." S. Pathiravitana **** Back **** |
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The writer Neil Wijeratna, so far was known for his sport writings both
in Sinhala and English. But this happened to be one of his by-products
gathered over the years.
Sadath Wila Maha Subhadrawo is the title of the latest novel written by
Sena Throadeniya, the novelist, short story writer, translator and
literary critic who had earlier written three novels entitled Udumbaragira,
Ekama Nelumaka and Harmattan respectively.
Where stories are concerned, we admire the ancient Buddhist Jataka
stories, Vedic legends, British myths, French narratives like 'Les
Miserables', Greek sagas like Iliad and Odyssey, Russian novels like 'War
and Peace', Biblical anecdotes like King Solomon's wisdom, Arabic tales
from The Thousand and One Nights, Roman tragedies like Julius Caesar.
The book, 'Memories on Life's Road' by Lorna de Mel was launched on
September 4, at her residence at "Tree tops', Madiwela, Kotte among
an audience of her family, friends and distinguished guests. It's a
complication of articles and musings.
The grace and felicity with which D.T. Devendra wrote this book charmed
the critics when it first appeared in 1941. The views of two of them, both
Pieter Keuneman and Lionel Wendt, are reproduced on the back of this book
in its latest re-publication. Over half a century later the book continues
to entertain the reader with quite the same charm and valued information
it diffused first.
