Navam Raja, no more

Tharindu Muthukumarana - Royal Institute

The death of this majestic tusker was a tear jerking story for most Sri Lankans. This is not the first time when a death of an elephant became a story much talked about through out Sri Lanka.

The tusker passed away on Friday 8, 2011, at about 7 am. Navam Raja was an attractive part of the Navam Prerahera. Raja meaning the king in both Sinhala and Tamil languages became the lead elephant to take part in the Gangarama Navam Perahera.

He was a much-celebrated elephant in Sri Lanka that carried the casket in the procession. Navam Raja was usually considered a very obedient elephant. The elephant was mainly attracted to photographers and well as foreigners. There exists an important history behind the elephant. The elephant was gifted by an Indian National to a local Buddhist monk, in the hopes of overcoming a long standing illness.

Then the elephant was donated to Gangaramaya temple, Colombo 2. Recently the tusker was donated to Daladha Maligawa, Kandy. However, all the maintaining was done by the Gangaramaya temple until the death of the elephant. This elephant was known to regularly come into the musth period (to be in heat) in the Month of April. There was one incident in Kandy, were Navam Raja killed Dingiri Mahattaya, its mahout. He was a person from Godakawela in Rakwana. It was the time when Navam Raja was brought to Kandy for Esala Perahera in Daladha Maligawa.

When Dingiri Mahattaya was trying to un-tie the elephant, the elephant suddenly knocked him down with his tusks. Then the tusker has flung him over an electric wire. Dingiri Mathaya fell behind a massive log in the corner. The injured mahout was rushed to the hospital. However in spite of much effort the mahout later died.

This sort of behaviour was not common in Navam Raja. Later few elephant experts predicted that this was due to the elephant being in heat, although the musth behaviour was not distinct in Navam Raja. The mahout Dingiri Mahattaya was said to like the tusker so much that had a great faith on the elephant. On the day of his funeral, near his coffin a photograph of Navam Raja was kept.

Navam Raja’s tusks were crossed near the end. In Kataragama the crossing was changed were the right tusk was placed on top of the left tusk. This sort of tusk formation was considered good luck. In April 2006, the tusker became sick due to the rich food offered to him.

This was due to the fact that visitors attracted to the elephant offered it excessive food. At that time, a veterinarian and the chief of the zoology Department of the Colombo University undertook its treatment. There were two common places where Navam Raja was tied; one place is in the Victoria Park and the other place was in the Gangaramya temple premises near the entrance.

Today he has been buried in Gangaramya temple after several people and first lady Shranthi Rajapakse attended the funeral of Navam Raja. He has been the favourite elephant of several people in high places and it is hard to say goodbye.