Flooding of sea in Lanka 2000 years ago

Sirisaman Wijetunge

The first flooding of the sea in Sri Lanka is recorded in chapter 22 of ‘Mahavamsa’ written in the 5th century AD. However most of us dismissed this piece of history as just folklore, refusing to believe our much loved sea would ever bring upon us such sorrow and destruction. The tsunamis which crashed on our shores that fateful day, December 26, 2004 proved us wrong.

The incident as recorded in the ‘Mahavamsa’ the ancient chronicle of the Sinhalese is fascinating. In the 2nd c B. C. during the reign of King Uttiya, his son Kelanitissa ruled in Kelaniya. Kelanistissa had a brother also called Uttiya who was having a romantic liaison with the Queen. When Uttiya learnt with the King was aware of his affair with the Queen, fearing his brother’s wrath, fled the area.

King Kelanitissa had a habit of offering alms everyday to an Arahant Thera. Uttiya who knew about this made a plan to convey the feelings he was still harbouring in his heart, to the Queen. He sent a person dressed in monk’s robes to accompany the Arahant Thera to the palace, who carried a letter to be delivered to the Queen. After partaking of the meal when they were about to leave, the rogue monk dropped the letter near the Queen.

This action did not go unnoticed by the King. He was furious. He ordered both, the Arahant Thera and the rogue monk to be killed and thrown into the sea. The Gods were angered by this heinous deed and made the ocean flow into the land.

The King who was shocked and overwhelmed with remorse consulted his ministers and decided to sacrifice his beautiful daughter to the sea to appease the Gods. She was set afloat in a gilded canoe and the sea subsided.

The boat drifted to the south of Sri Lanka and the princess came ashore at Lanka Vihare. Since she disembarked near the Vihara (shrine), she was called Vihara Devi or Viharamaha Devi. the king of ‘Ruhunu Rata’ the kingdom in the south who came to greet her made her his consort. She was the mother of one of Sri Lanka’s greatest kings, King Dutugemunu who united Sri Lanka in the 2nd c. B.C. The flooding of the sea is mentioned also in ancient literature written after ‘Mahavamsa’ namely, Thupavansaya, Rasavahiniya, Sadharamalankaraya and Rajavaliya.

In Rajavaliya it is mentioned that King Kelanitissa who went inspecting the damage caused by the flood was swept into the sea as a retribution for the crime of killing an Arahant.

In the ‘Mahavamsa’ it is stated that the Arahant was killed by immersing him in a cauldron of hot oil. However this is not mentioned in the Rajavaliya. It also records that there was mass devastation and nearly hundred thousand villagers perished. According to ‘Rajavaliya’ only Mannar was not damaged. Incidentally 2000 years ago Kelaniya was 28 miles from the sea.

Two thousand years later history repeated itself bringing alive the chapter 22 of the ‘Mahavamsa’ with chilling clarity.

The writer is former Archaeological Asst. Director of Dept. of Archaeology