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
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
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
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
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
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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