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Ancient heritage of ‘Namal Uyana’

When Mahinda Rajapaksa declared Namal Uyana a National Park shortly before he was elected President in 2006, he may have not realized that he was preserving for posterity the refuge of a king who once saved Lanka from foreign domination. King Devanampiyatissa built the Isurumuniya Vihara to accommodate 500 noblemen after they entered the Order under Arahant Mahinda. That is not the place now called Isurumuni Vihara in Anuradhapura. That really was the Meghagiri Vihara, which housed the Tooth Relic when it was first brought here early in the 4th Century.

In the same way, an inscription found at what is now miscalled ‘Vessagiriya’ identifies it as the site of the Isurumuni Vihara. Vessagiri Vihara was built by King Devnampiyatissa to house 500 monks from the Vaisya Clan. It cannot have been at the place now called Vessagiri for two reasons. As mentioned before, an inscription at the site identifies the Vessagiri of today as the Isurumuni Vihara of yore. Second, it is too close to the Capital Anuradhapura (only a walking distance away) for a reigning monarch to choose as his secret hideout while the Capital city was fully occupied by five invading armies.

Vessagiri was the site where King Valagamba sought to hide in after fleeing the enemy in a chariot. The present place so identified may well have been close to where Queen Soma Devi alighted from the overloaded chariot along with the royal regalia, purposefully intending to be caught by the enemy, so that the King and the pregnant Anula, the Queen of his brother the now deceased king, could escape unhurt.

This was about 200 years after King Devanampiyatissa’s time. Vessagiri Vihara was dilapidated and uninhabited by then. It became the hideout of the royal family only for a short time. As no food or water was available there, they had to find sustenance from the begging bowl of a Buddhist monk (Kupikkala Mahatissa Thera). As this place was also far South of Anuradhapura and the enemy would not suspect it as the likely hideout. It was about six miles West of the Dambulla Rock Temple, then called Sagiri (code-named Kupikkala) Vihara.

Prof Senarat Paranavitana thought that Vessagiri was Dambulla Rock, which traditional folklore asserts was King Valagamba’s hideout for fourteen years. Namal Uyana is not so far to the West of the Dambulla Rock, and it was closer to the king’s next sanctuary at Silasobbhakandaka, for five months. Abandoning the ruins at Vessagiri (at Namal Uyana) he moved to Galewela.

In the Sinhala translation of the Mahavamsa (by Sri Sumangala and Batuvantudave,) it is called ‘Gal-heba-kada’, meaning ‘Road Gap at the Rock Pool’. But, the part taken as ‘kada’ is really from ‘akandaka’ meaning ‘sanctuary’ and not the same as Sinhala ‘kada’. Silasobbhakandaka is easily recognizable as present Galewala (the ‘Pool on the Rock’). Galewala is closer to the present Namal Uyana (ancient Vessagiri where the king sought refuge) than to Dambulla Rock to which he went only after Kupikkala thera had enough time to make arrangements for maintenance of the royal refugees now disguised as ordinary refugees from the war torn capital.

So it was from Galewala that the royal family moved on to Kuppikkala (Ku-bik-gala or ‘The Rock where Food is Scarce’) derived from the ancient name for Dambulla Rock. Kupikkala was the code name adopted by the record keepers for the ancient Sagiri (Famine Rock) Vihara. Its Pali name was ‘Chatpabbata’, was the mountain near which King Devanampiyatissa got the wondrous bamboo shafts to be sent as presents to King Asoka. Incidentally, the Mahavamsa Commentary also states that it was King Saddhatissa who first converted the large cave at Chatapabbata (or Dambulla) to a monastery, and called it Chatapappata (or Sagiri) Vihara. ‘Maha Rajha Gamini Tisa’ of the inscription under the drip ledge of Dambulla Rock Cave is therefore King Saddha Tissa and not ‘Devanampiya Tissa’ as Paranavitana had guessed.

The name Valagamba is from the popular epithet Vala-gam Aba or ‘Abhaya the Outlaw’. (He was beyond the Pale of Law for a period in excess of fourteen years). The record of his itinerary goes to provide clear evidence that Dambulla Rock was where he spent 14 years as a fugitive. That itinerary also provides the evidence for locating the long lost site of ancient Vessagiriya at present-day Namal Uyana.

Buddhists may someday come to believe that Mahinda Rajapaksa’s spectacular rise to become almost the King of Sri Lanka today, was a result of the merit he accrued by taking steps to protect Namal Uyana as a ‘National Park’. He had unwittingly selected for that purpose the very site of Vessagiri Vihara built by King Devanampiyatissa, which later became the refuge of King Valagamba in exile. (Remember also, that refugees in their thousands, rescued by Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Army, from the terrorist leader Prabhakaran, referred to Mahinda as their ‘King’. And, more recently, he was presented with a gem-studded crown of gold, by the Russians).

Scholars in search of more facts may find them presented in greater detail in the research paper by this writer published in the Sri Lanka Journal of Humanities Vol. XXVII, of the University of Peradeniya. Godage Publishers have undertaken to print its Sinhala version as ‘Dambulu Puranaya Saha Aluviharaye Dhamma Sangayanava’.

D G A Perera - Maha Nuwara


Deposit account and brand names

Banks in Sri Lanka have introduced various schemes to collect deposits from customers. Marketing experts have invented many brand names for such deposits. Obviously the brand name has some appeal on the prospective depositor.

Out of all the banks, only HDFC Bank, a relatively new entrant has introduced a savings account scheme (Arumpu) for small Tamil speaking children. This brand name carries the meaning ‘bud’ i.e. for growing children. The HDFC Bank stands out among other Sri Lankan banks for having thought about the Tamil children and their parents and introduced a brand with a name that fill their hearts.

A B C - Colombo 6


Proof reading: Directing the young

Since there is a dearth of people with a good knowledge of languages, may I suggest that those students who have passed the GCE AL examination and possessing a good knowledge of Sinhala, Tamil or English or of all three languages be recruited. This suggestion for example is due to the fact that I have had good experience in proof reading in several well-established presses in Colombo after my retirement from the Railways.

I understand, that there is a separate department dealing in proof reading scripts of all three languages in the Government Press. Here the proofs of computerized printout scripts of Sinhala, Tamil and English are read, errors marked and corrected before going for printing. There may be vacancies for proofreaders over there now or in the near future. The jobs are permanent and pensionable.

There are nearly ten or twelve very popular daily and weekly newspaper establishments in Sri Lanka. There are a countless number of printing presses in Colombo and in the outstations. All these require the service of proofreaders.

In all these printing establishments scripts are computerized and printouts taken for reading and correcting. Due to different reasons of shortcomings, errors, can take place in spellings, grammar, ideas, types and omissions. These have to be minutely looked into with a sharp eye and corrected well before it goes to the print, to avoid public criticism and humiliation.

That is where the value and importance of the ability of proofreaders, will be noted, seen, judged and recognized. The public too, often comment on newspaper errors.

My suggestion is, if any of those who are qualified and have passed the GCE Advanced Level examination in any one of the three languages, but unlucky to gain entrance to the university or have not found suitable employment still, according to the qualifications, learn the art of proof reading, the international signs and marks for an interesting job of correcting errors on computerized printouts of newspapers, books, magazines and theses.

I am sure, that they will have permanent pensionable jobs in the Government Press or gain employment with EPF and ETF privileges in the private sector printing trade of Sri Lanka. If they are lucky, they will have a quite satisfactory full time employment with a well paid salary, while improving their own knowledge, than entering the university and having a degree with unsure employment.

At the same time may I suggest the Minister dealing with the printing trade and media services to make arrangements for every registered printing establishment to reserve and have at least one post of a proof reader at their press or company. This idea will definitely increase few vacancies for jobless educated youth of Sri Lanka.

DAVID RANABAHU Kadawatha


Grant monthly pension to elderly artistes

I feel that artistes, writers, poets, authors etc, must be sustained by the Government as the resplendent promoters of art, literature and culture of multi-ethnic country. They are considered to be an asset to Sri Lankan society.

Hence, the best treatment to be meted out to them - at least to those of 50 years and above will be the grant of a monthly pension through the Cultural Affairs Department.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa being the great lover of Arts and Literature can take the initiative in inaugurating a consolidated fund.

According to social justice, this fund will be a guarantee for the economic security of such matured elderly artistes.

We are quite aware of the fact that there are several artistes - musicians, dancers, writers, poets etc. lying in a sick bed without any assistance either from their families or the government.

Therefore, it is the moral obligation of the Cultural Affairs Department to identify such deserted artistes and help them financially to keep their artistic spirit alive.

M Y M Meeadhu Kandy


Embuldeniya Junction an eyesore

For years the Embuldeniya Junction where the Mirihana to Maharagama Road merges with the road leading to Parliament, has been an eyesore.

The roads are full of craters and ridges. As a motorist, I have found it most difficult to drive on this road and I am surprised this has neither drawn the attention of the Road Development Authority nor the Provincial Council authorities.

Why are the authorities so blind to such a public inconvenience and a road hazard?

The Road Development Authority comes under the Highways Secretary, Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda, an officer and a gentleman who has proved his mettle during the war against terrorists. I am sure he is unaware of this.

AJANTHA PALIPANE Embuldeniy


Velupillai Murugesu

Murugesu known to his close friends as Freddy passed away recently.

He was the Founder and Precedent Partner of Murugesu and Neelakandan Attorneys-at-Law, Founder Trustee Sri Aurobindo Centre in Sri Lanka and Founder Chairman of Rajapoopathy Memorial Glaucoma Trust in Colombo.

He was a true Sage who rejected all distinctions of this and that, and took refuge in God placing in himself subjective relation with all things.

He is a man of virtue and remained close to his environment, his original integrity undisturbed. His knowledge transcends the senses. His heart expands to those who come to take refuge therein.

He gave forth without effort and advanced without design, all things following in his way. Such is the man of complete virtue. I humbly join all those who mourn his death. He will be enshrined in my heart as a spiritual Guru at all times.

S Anandarajan Rajapoopathy Memorial Glaucoma Centre in Colombo

 

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