Wilfred P.J. Senewiratne:

Memories remain of him

“In the grave yard the dust settles

In the City of God eternity begins” - Malcolm Muddridge

Therefore eternity has begun for Wilfred. It was indeed a rude shock to his wife Celine, his three children, relatives and to the people of Imbulgoda to hear the passing away of Wilfred P.J. Senewiratne on the 31st of December 2012. It is only when a person dies that we reminiscence his life. His wife Celine and children have lost a devoted husband and a loving father. To the world he was one, to Celine he was the world. Popularly called, ‘Deiya’ by his relatives and ‘Sene’ by his close friends, Wilfred was a gentleman of quiet disposition. He loved his parents and siblings and cared for them. Being a retired ASP he was a strict disciplinarian but had a heart of gold. He was ready to help anyone in need. He was highly respected by the residents of Imbulgoda. His kindness, love and unsung generosity endeared him to every section of the people who came in contact with him. On Sundays, he used to bring the garden produce to church and distribute them among the parishioners.

He initiated the building of the Church of the Infant Jesus at Imbulgoda and helped Rev. Fr. Luigi Hettiarachchi to complete a mammoth task. He also contributed his might to Rev. Fr. Ravin Sandasiri Perera to build the new church. All this he did because he believed in the saying “It’s only the luggage of love that we take to heaven.”

Senewiratne also had great devotion to St. Jude and he made it a point to visit the shrine at St. Jude’s Church, Indigolla on Thursdays and give alms to God’s creations. In the mornings he used to feed the birds and his wife used to say he is like St. Francis of Assissi. Many varieties of birds such as magpies, mynahs, parrots, crows and even squirrels came to enjoy their breakfast from him. They used to hop along the balcony, have their fill and vanish as if to say ‘bye’ to the giver. Although he was a lover of dogs, he did not like to entertain stray dogs and stray cattle as they spoilt his garden and plants.

At the funeral oration the Rev. Fr. Ravin S. Perera praised him immensely for his devoted and loyal service he rendered to the Parish.

Wilfred was a man of noble qualities. He left a memory so beautiful that will not fade away with any passage of time. We look forward to meeting once again in the Kingdom of God. Until then may he rest in peace!

Olga Wanduragala

B. Bandulasena Perera :

His presence was greatly felt at parties

Born on June 16, 1927 Basnayakage Bandulasena Perera, more popularly known by the name B.B. Perera was the eldest son of B. Alwis Perera and Heendeniya Ralalage Asilin. He marked the end of his 85 year long journey of life on April 9, 2013. Being one of his favourite grandchildren, I pen this with a heavy heart.

His father was an engine driver in the Ceylon Government Railway (CGR) which triggered him to take up an interest in trains. The life style of his parents was greatly influenced by imperialism, as then Ceylon was under the British monarchy. He spent his childhood in Galle, where his father worked, and completed his primary education at St. Aloysius’ College. But he had to return to Colombo on the post-retirement of his father, and was admitted to Nalanda College to pursue secondary education. Later in life he told us that after coming to Nalanda College he was stunned to find a Buddha statue in the school premises at which he kept staring intently as Buddha statues were not a common sight in his previous school. He had been a brilliant student in school; most of his colleagues would bear testimony to it. He had been an all-rounder. While excelling in studies he was also involved in stage dramas produced by the school. “Harishchandra” was one such stage drama penned by the renowned poet U.A.S. Perera, popular by the name Siri Aiyya, who taught in the school back then. Siri Aiyya was also one of his cousins. Seeya had played the role of King Harishchandra while the famous veteran actor the late Henry Jayasena played the son of the king.

Completing his studies, he then joined the CGR as an apprentice. He served for 42 years in the Railway where he rendered his utmost with immense dedication and commitment. After his retirement from the Railway, he joined the Holcim Cement Factory in Puttalam where he served for many years. Seeya was much loved by his fellow companions. His biggest attribute was honesty. He was a teetotaller and a man of honesty. Moreover, he was a man of vast knowledge. Though trains were his favourite subject, he had a sound knowledge of history, Buddhism and many other aspects. I remember him accompanying us to visit sites of historical importance where he would relate us stories and legends associated. His wide knowledge amazed us.

He was a man of good thoughts and deeds. It was not his manner to insult or mistreat anyone. He always treated everyone with kindness. He would buy the Budusarana every month and urge us to read the articles in it. He was a true Buddhist and he practiced what was taught in the religion. Two weeks prior to his death, I remember him speaking to the chief monk of the temple who visited him, stating that every single rupee earned by seeya was his hard earned money, with contentment gleaming in his eyes.

My mother is the youngest in the family and was also the favourite child of seeya. She was thoroughly depressed by the critical condition of seeya. She still weeps in secret not being able to bear the loss of her beloved father.

Though an engineer in profession, music played a bigger role in seeya’s life. He was gifted with a good singing voice and the talent to play the keyboard and the piano. Nevertheless he was a great dancer and his presence was greatly felt at parties and similar functions. One year ago, at my cousin’s wedding, seeya grabbed the attention of the onlookers by dancing for a while. Before the nervous disorder struck him, until recently, he would sit by the keyboard in the evenings and play his favourite classics such as Olu pipeela, Siri paade etc while singing.

He was an avid reader. He always encouraged me and my sister to read as much as we can. He bore the opinion that reading makes man wiser. Books of great value, such as David Hyatt’s book on Railway, can still be found stacked in a pile on his book shelf. He was fond of passing his knowledge to anyone interested. He even held lectures at the Ceylon German Technical Training Institute in Ratmalana where he lectured officers. Another great virtue of him was patience. I know not of any other person who practiced patience better than seeya. He was often quoted saying that patience is of much significance to lead a hassle-free life. He never committed sins even in secret. He had done a lot of meritorious deeds throughout his life. He would always tell us to spare lives of mosquitoes even.

He would wake up every day at 5 am, sweep the garden and go for a walk. What he disliked the most was bed resting. He often said that, to be physically healthy one should get ample exercise and adequate food. But later in his life, he was confined to bed owing to his age and illness. He was an innocent, highly respected personality in the neighbourhood.

Writing became his passion during the latter half of his life. He would write to newspapers regularly about his experiences in his career life and also address the timely matters of the country. Even one week prior to his passing away, one of his articles was published in Daily News. His wealth was his virtues. He always wanted the best for me and my sister. Whenever he came across a paper advertisement on an essay competition, he would persuade me to give it a try. When I got selected to a prepared speeches contest in school, he prepared me an extremely good speech that won the acclaim of many of my teachers. Nothing impressed him more than the well-being of a child or a grandchild of his. He would give us a phone call every evening to ask us how the day had been and to inquire whether I attend my classes regularly. Seeya was the best grandfather one could ever have. He had been a loving father as well. He wrote appreciations on many notable personalities in Sri Lanka such as U.A.S. Perera and B.D. Rampala and jokingly said once that he wondered who would write an appreciation on him.

Today I pen this appreciation as a respect to my seeya. What I have written here is merely a handful of memories I share with him. I will never escape the tinge of guilt of not spending enough time being closer to him during the last stage of his life. I always wonder why I couldn’t visit him often. He said on many occasions that even hearing his granddaughters’ voices over the phone made his day. During the last stage, he could only take liquids through a tube due to his illness, not solid food.

Dear Seeya, you will remain in our hearts forever and he remembered often with love. May you attain Nibbana!

Lihini Weerasinghe

Punchi Seeya :

Always with a smile

To some he was Daya, to many he was Thaththa but to me he was Punchi Seeya. I was never fortunate enough to see my own grandfather so it was always Punchi Seeya who filled that blank in my life. Men will come and men will go. That’s the simple truth of life but it is not so often when a great man steps into this world: a great man like Punchi Seeya. His greatness was defined by his actions alone. Born to a family from Matara he arrived in Kandy with his two brothers as a young man. Today he is recognized as one of the most successful businessmen in the hill capital.

His success as an entrepreneur reflected on his strong personality. He was a man with patience and endurance. But more importantly, he was a man who was always with a smile. The simple things in life brought him much joy. He was always fond of family gatherings and made it a point to gather the youngsters around him, teaching them to face life’s challenges. He was an avid listener and a man of few words. Even though he spoke very little, he more than made up of for it because his words were rich with sound advice. Just several weeks before his demise I had a heart-to-heart chat with him at my grandfather’s alms-giving. The very last advice he gave me was ‘Never criticize people in public. Praise them whenever possible’. Such was the influence he had on us. I will always value and cherish his words. Punchi Seeya always thought positively and his personality won many hearts.

After the death of his two brothers, Punchi Seeya became the backbone of the Weeraratne family. He was a pillar of strength, a book of knowledge, a map of guidance and a mountain of trust. His twinkling eyes and warm smile will be remembered by us with much fondness.

We still look up to him, seek his wise words, guidance and support for even though the is not with us physically. Punchi Seeya will always be with us in spirit.

Sakuni Weeraratne

Cecil de Silva :

Epitome of gentility

May 1, 2013 was the 84th birthday of my dear friend Cecil de Silva and had he lived, we would have been at his house at 35/1, Kassapa Road, Colombo 5 to celebrate. Unexpectedly, he left us forever on January 23, and we are unable to bear the loss. I met Cecil in 1965 when I was a Sub-Inspector at the Police station at Badulla. He was the Examiner of Motor Vehicles in the Uva Province. He hailed from Habaraduwa in the Galle District and had his education at Richmond College, Galle and St. Thomas’ College, Mt. Lavinia. He resided at Bandarawela and travelled to Badulla thrice a week to conduct driving tests and to attend to his work at the Kachcheri. Cecil was a role model and strictly practised punctuality. He was always dressed in khaki corduroy trousers and short-sleeved white shirt, particularly for field work.

In 1967 the Uva Police Gymkhana was organized by L.C. Abeysekera. The organising committee comprised of Senior Inspector M.D.S. Peter and Sub-Inspector Chamal Rajapaksa. We had a problem of preparing for the Police Dance in the evening after the event at the prestigious planters Uva Club at Badulla. Our problem was to learn dancing particularly the jive. Cecil came to our rescue, invited us to his home and taught us the jive with his wife and even provided dinner on all those days when dancing classes were held. Cecil was a special guest of S.P. Abeysekera for the dance in the evening at the Uva Club. It was a pleasure to see Cecil on the floor with his wife and everybody at the dance commended his dancing. Cecil and Chamal became very good friends as Cecil’s assistance was sought to examine the vehicles after accidents. Cecil was a very good witness in accident cases and his evidence as the EMV could never be challenged. Cecil was a good friend of Sanath Jayathilake and Marshal Perera, father of Minister Dilan Perera. In 1971 Lalith Gunasekera (Rtd. DIG) was detained by the insurgents when he was O.I.C. Rabukkana which area was a hot bed of insurgency. During an attack on the hideout of the insurgents in that area by the Air Force, Lalith managed to escape and was rescued by Cecil who found him near the Kegalle town. He seemingly did not age as the years went by, never complained of any sickness, was invariably content and happy.

He passed away on 23.01.2003. I was requested by Amara and the two sons Ishan and Dilan to deliver the funeral oration at Kanatta especially to thank all relations and friends who attended the funeral and I considered it as a great honour, albeit, it was a very sad occasion. Chamal Rajapaksa the Speaker, who was a close friend of Cecil since 1965 gave me call from Hambantota and requested me to express his condolences to Amara and the two sons as he was not able to attend the funeral due his official commitments at Hambantota. A few of his school friends at Richmond College, Galle were present to pay their last respects to him. His closest friend and colleague, the late Lucian Peiris’s wife Padma (mother in-law of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa) was present at the parlour for more than two hours to express her condolences to the family. He was very proud of his two sons, Ishan working in Malaysia and Dilan, Attorney-at-Law now domiciled in Australia. He confided to me that he owe a great debt of gratitude to Amara for looking after him since his heart attack in 1990. He was an Epitome of Gentility.

May he attain the Supreme Bliss of Nirvana!

Punya de Silva

Abdulla Ibnu Umar Bradheeb:

A respected person

April 24, 2013 marked the 125th death anniversary of Abdulla Ibnu Umar Badheeb, a scholar of the yesteryear. Badheeb Moulana had a wide circle of Mureedeens and Muhibbeens in Colombo and other parts of Sri Lanka. He was born in Yemen and his ancestry goes back to the first Khalif of Islam Seyidina Abu Bakr Siddique. The family of Badheeb is well known, highly respected and religious. His thirst for knowledge was so great that after finishing his elementary education he proceeded to Al Azhar University in Cairo for higher education. At the university he qualified in Arabic language and Sufism and obtained his doctorate. In 1846 he lectured at the university for a short period of time. After his graduation he proceeded to Mecca to perform Hajj and to pay his respect at the Mausoleum of Holy Prophet Muhammad. In Mecca he commenced his missionary work.

He was privileged to learn and study under the great scholar Imam Ibrahim Al-Bajoori. He is said to have arrived in Ceylon on May 27, 1840 returned back to Yemen in 1850 and was back in Ceylon in 1858 until his demise. When he arrived in Sri Lanka he was welcomed by the then elite of the moor community in Sri Lanka such as A.M. Wapuchi Marikar, M.C. Siddi Lebbe, W.M Hassim and a host of others. He performed missionary work at the Maradana Mosque, Colombo where he also conducted Jumma Prayers. His Mureeds are spread all over in places like Colombo, Kegalle, Kahaowita, Madulbowa, and Hemmathagama. Badheeb Moulana passed away peacefully on the 14 day of Jamad-Ul Akhir in the year 1309 and is interred at Kahatowita.

M. Midhlaj A. Barry