President at Ananda College commemorative ceremony today

Rasika Somarathna

Ananda College, Colombo turned 125 years on October 31, 2011.

The main commemorative ceremony of this historical event would be held today at the Kularatne hall, under the patronage of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

An All Night Pirith Chanting was held on the eve of the Founder’s Day, November 1, 2011, followed by Dhana to 125 members of the Maha Sangha.

The premier Buddhist educational institution in the country completed a host of events with many more in the pipeline to celebrate its proud 125 year history in which period it produced erudite and patriotic sons who contributed in numerous ways, to the progress of their motherland.

Ananda College has also been inspirational in bringing forward thousands of heroes for the Armed Forces of Sri Lanka, from the battle for Independence in 1948, until the re-unification of the motherland in 2009.

Ananda began its journey on November 1, 1886 fulfilling a need of the era, for a Buddhist education institution, in the British colonial period.

Ananda College was established by the Buddhist Theosophical Society. Originally it was known as English Buddhist School, describing its stated intention of providing English instructions to Buddhist students who would otherwise have had to go to a missionary school to get an English education.

The school opened on 1 November 1886 with 37 students in a private house at No. 61 Maliban Street, Pettah. C.W. Leadbeater was the principal. In August, 1889, the school moved to a more spacious place at No. 19, Prince Street.

In 1895, it was relocated to Maradana, the period of A.E. Buultjens and was named after Arahant Ananda, the most devoted disciple of the Buddha. Today Ananda College stands to be one of the greatest Buddhist schools in Asia, with a student population exceeding 6,000 in all 13 grades of secondary education, on a land spanning 20 acres.

There is no doubt that Ananda would produce eminent sons who would contribute to the nations progress in the next 125 years and beyond. Wherever in the globe, Anandians respect their Alma mater with undiminished devotion.

They would rise as one when they hear the School Anthem: “Dina dina kitu gosa boovii - Vaejambenu ananda pa maataa?