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JOURNA) ROYAL ASIA SRI LANK
Mey Series
The object of the Society is f. into the History, Religions, Seciferice arid Socials Cay forrrier peoples ዐf the ] L'EPFIFIETF
PLEBLISHED
YAL ASIATIC SOCIETY
COLO
 
 
 

1980/81 is
L OF THE
ATIC SOCIETY
A BRANCH
ు تنظی:۔ Polume XXY at:
曹 嗣= لاكو
institute and Er 7 inuirsey
| Language Li. ture, Arts, Trdir for y *". rid sland of Sri Lanka and
crres
BY THE ,* (SRI LANKA BRANCH) " ... .
OMBO --

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C O N T ENTS
Page
M. B. ARIYAPALA - Cultural Renaissance - A lessor
known pioneer, Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Maha Thera i ... : 01 TIKIRI ABEYASINGHE - History ás Polemics and Propaganda: An Examination of Fernao de Queiros,
History of Ceylon' w . . . 28 T. B. KARUNARATNA - The Auspicious Symbols that adorned the Octagonal Moument in the Permises of the Pacinatissa-Pabbata Vihara at Anuradhapura ... f. , ... ... 69 PINNA INDORF– Mysterious, and Elegant Urinal
Stones p 79 N. D. WIJESEKERA - Beliefs and Observances of the
Sinhalese associated with birth ... 85 THILO W. HOFFMANN-External House decoration
at Kathiraveli, Eastern Province A 9 J. B. DISANAYAKA - Suba-Asuba Symbolism in
* Sinhala Culture 8 ... 101 S. BERUGODA - Some aspects of Records pertaining to land ownership in Sri Lanka from 1800 A.D. onwards . . . . o ... 122 MERLIN PERIS — Greek Motifs in the Jatakas ... 136
' ' . . . . . Book Review w o a a ... 184 Annual Report for 1979 ... 186 Report to the Council on the Balance Sheet as at 31.12.79 188 Honorary Treasurer's Report for 1979 ... ... 190 Balance Sheet as at Dec. 1979 8 to ... 191 Report of the Quditior as a a 0 ... 192 General Expenses and Government Accounts ... 193 Annual Report 1980-82 ... 196
Publications added to the Library 1.1.80 - 31.12.81 Members Admitted in 1980/81. Abstracts of Proceedings

JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY SRI LANKA BRANCH
New Series Volume XXV
PUBLISHED BY THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY (SRI LANKA BRANCH)
COLOMBO

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OFFICE
Patrom :
President :
Past Presidents :
Vice Presidents :
Members of the Council :
Hony. Joint Secretaries :
Hony. Treasurer :
BEARERS – 1980/81.
His Excellency J. R. JAYEWARDENE, (President of Sri Lanka)
Prof. M. B. ARIYAPALA, B.A., Ph.D. (Lond.)
His Lordship Rt. Rev. Dr. EDMUND PEIRIS, O.M.I., D.D., Emeritus Bishop of Chiaw.
Dr. N. D. WJESEKERA, B.A. (Hons.), (Lond.), B.A. Cantab.).M.A. (Cantab.), Ph.D.(Cal.).
Prof. H. W. TAMBIAH, Q.C., B.Sc., LL.D.,
Ph.D. (Lond.).
Prof. D. E. HETTIARATCHI, B.A., Ph.D.,
(Lond.), M.A., Ph.D. (Cal.).
Mr. M. St. S. CASIE CHETTY, J.P.U.P.M.
Prof. K. W. GooNEWARDENA, B.A.
(Cey.), Ph.D. (Lond.).
Prof. T. NADARAJA, Ph.D. (Cantab.).
Mr. SoMAPALA JAYAWARDHENA Dr. V.ʻ VITHARANA Dr. C. G. URAGODA Dr. JAMES T. RUTNAM Dr. (Mrs.) SwARNA JAYAWEERA Prof. K. INDRAPALA Mr. ROLAND SILVA Mr. WALTER WIMALACHANDRA Dr. H. N. S. KARUNATILAKE Mr. F. B. de S. A. J. WIJAYANAYAKE Mr. L. A. AITHIYA
Mr. G. P. S. H. de SILVA Mr. WILFRED M. GUNASEKARA
Mr. A. DENIS N. FERNANDO
Mr. LAKSHMAN JAYAKODY

OFFICE BEARERS - 1981/82
Patron :
President :
Past Presidents :
Vice Presidents :
Hony. Joint Secretaries :
Hony. Treasurer :
Members of the Council :
His Excellency J. R. Jayewardene.
Prof. M. B. ARIYAPALA, B.A., Ph.D. (Lond.)
His Lordship Rt. Rev. Dr. EDMUND
PEIRIS, O.M.T., D.D., Emeritus Bishop of Chilaw.
Dr. N. D. WIJ ESEKERA, B. A., (Hons.) (Lond.), B.A., M.A., (Cantab.), Ph.D. (Cal.)
Prof. H. W. TAMBIAH, Q.C., B.Sc., LL.D,
Ph.D. (Lond.)
Prof. D. E. Hettiarachchi, B.A., Ph.D.
(Lond.), M.A., Ph.D., (Cal.)
Mr. M. St. S. CASIE CHETTY, J.P.U.P.M.
Prof. K. W. GooNEwARDENA, B.A. (Cey.)
Ph.D. (Lond.)
Prof. T. NADARAJA, B.A. (Hon.), M.A.,
Ph.D. (Cantab.)
Mr. G. P. S. H. DE SILVA
Mr. WILFRED M. GUNASEKARA
Mr. A. DEN IS N. FERNANDO
Mr. LAKSHMAN JAYAKODY
Mr. TH. W. HoFFMAN, M.S.: Agri.
(Zurich) Mr. RoLAND SILVA, A.R.I.R.A., F.C.I.A.
Mr. SOMAPAILA JAYAWARDHANA
Dr. V. VITHARANA Dr. C. G. URAGCDA Dr. JAMES T. R. JTNAM Mr. D. J. MOLDRICH Dr. (Mrs.) SWARNA JAYAWEERA Prof. K. 'NDRAPALA Ven. SASANARATANA THERO Dr. H. N. S. KARUNATILAKE Mr. WALTER WIMALACHANI). A Mr. C. S. G. FERNAND Mr. F. B. DE S. A. J. WIJAYANAYAKA

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Cultural Renaissance - A lesser - known pioneer Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Maha Thera
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS Professor M. B. Ariyapala
Tremors of a cultural set-back were felt as far back as the early part of the 12th century A. C. Though Parakramabahu I united the whole island under his sceptre, internal strife began once again and the next ruler Vijayabahu II was hardly successful in establishing a lasting peace. His successor Nissanka Malla, boasts of his campaigns within and outside the Island, and has laid down in his inscriptions that he stamped out lawlessness and established peace. On his death the Kalinga and anti-Kalinga factions fought for the throne and Magha, the last of the Kalingas, a bigoted Hindu, rav-, aged the country, destroyed temples, ill-treated the monks thus ruining our cultural heritage. Vijayabahu III now succeeded him, did all within his power to restore peace and revive our culture, literature and religion; but it cannot be said that he was able to undo what Magha had done during the 21 years of his reign. The setback under Magha was so great that our culture and civilization nuver regained the lost glory of the past. The gradual decline' continued in spite of the valiant efforts by successive rulers until the advent in the island of the Westerners under whose domination our culture and civilization declined rapidly so much so that it was almost wiped out.
(* . . . . . . . The Portuguese arrived in 1505, and were followed by the Dutch and the British. Within a few years of their arrival, the Portuguese commenced their proselytizing activities through their missionaries, and soon the people were turning Catholic for material gain and advancement. It was most unfortunate that these activities coincided with the anti-Buddhist activities of Rajasinghe I of Sitawaka who embraced Hinduism. Thus the hostile activities of both these parties thoroughly weakened and denationalised the Buddhists. In 1656, the Portuguese were thrown out by the Dutchwho established their own Church (Dutch Reformed Church) here. Through educational and other missionary activities they propaga-" ted their religion. Some Dutch Governors advised their men to pro.' mote God's glory and root out heathenism. The Dutch capitulated.

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JOURNA. R.A.S. SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-st
to the British, in February, 1796, who though adopting a more conciliatory policy had the same objective-the religious and moral improvement of the people and the propagation of the Gospel".
Subtly and cleverly the British carried out their policy which altimately denationalised the Sinhalese and almost completely we aned them from their culture and religion, so much so it is said, that the “disappearance of Buddhism from Ceylon was imminent'
In the words of Rev. J. D. Palm, their objective is amply brotight out: '...but no less to endeavour, in obedience to certain offcial instructions to the clergy, to propagate Christianity among the aborigines, in order, as one of the Classes expresses it, that God may make instrumental the conquests of Netherlands' arms to the extension of His name and kingdom among benighted nations'.
Thus it is seen that the conversion of the heathe ' to Christianity was the main aim of all the missionaries that arrived in the island under the Western Powers. The medium through which they proposed to achieve this end was education. The ancient system of Pirivena Education had almost died out. Only a few Pansala Schools, mainly in the hill country, remaind. The Dutch had their Parish Schools and the British, to begin with, revived this system. They continued their interest in this medium and by the 1840's had 325 schools - 21 English, 15 bilingual and the rest Swabasha'. There were also over a hundred Roman Catholic Schools.
The “heathens' of course though in a majority in the country had no place in this exclusive Christian Club. They could seek entry to government schools, but must be prepared to get “civilized' in the process. So any “heathen' who dared to get an English education ended
. T. Vimalananda in Return to Righteousness, Ed. Ananda Guruge, p. xxix.
S. Return to Righteousness, ibid., p. xxix.
8. An Account of the Dutch Church in Ceylon, Rev. J. D. Palm, JRAS (CB), Vol. II, No. 3, p.5.
C. K. H. M. Sumathipala. History of Education in Ceylon, p.2.

VEN PAYARATANA TISSA
necessarily as an enlightened" Christian as well'.
Education was still (1850) entirely in the hands of the Christians and the Commission gave no encouragement to the non-Christians to enter this exclusive field. The temple schools which still functioned in the villages received no grant and in fact according to the regulations framed on February 5, 1861 by the Commission, schools that taught the Bible alone were eligible for a government grant'.
The educational facilites for Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims still continued to be bleak. For nearly six decades Christian missionary activities were penetrating to almost every nook and corner of the country. In fact the Christian missionaries maintained by the Ecclesiastical Department of the government were guiding the rulers. They were the power behind the administration. But by 1865 for the first time Buddhists and Hindus alike had tegun to realise the danger'."
It should row be clear as to how the foreign powers completely denationalised the Sinhalese nation, so much so that the Sinha lese were ashamed to call themselves Buddhist. They embraced all the western ideals, customs and manners and gave up their relie gon for material gain. They discarded their language and took to Eglish - in fact talking in Sinhalese at school was an offence - came to be married in Church, their children were baptized and grew up to be Christians. Thus the culture and religion of our people were airmost stamped out
Literary activity was at its lowest ebb. Religion had sunk to the depths of degeneration that the Upasampada (Higher Ordination) itself was rooted out.
S. ibid. p. 13.
6. ibid. p. 5. ... ibid. p. 23.

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JOURNAL, R.A.S. (SRI LANIKA) WùI, XXw. (ኦሃ.5.) Iኞቓù-3|
Amidst all this denationalising, demoralising activities of the Western Powers that were, there appelred a Sayer, Welivita Saranankara (later Welivita Saranankara Sangaraja, 18th century) in the hills of Kandy who was destined to revive the culture and religion of our people. It was through his untiring and devoted efforts that the Higher Ordination was re-established in the Kandyan kingdom and learning and literary activity began to spread again. This torch of learning lighted by this noble 5HTgHTaja, was kept burning by men of learning especially in the Low Country right through the years that followed. These revival is and resuractivities seen also to have inspired the learned in the small hamlet called Dodanduwa, which felt the impact of the Christian
activity directed from one of its early strongholds, na Imely, Badde
ill-El.
The Upasanpada was revived as mentioned c; rlier by the efforts of the Wen. Welivita Saranankara Sangarija with the assistance of King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe of Kandy (1747-1782). But unfortunately this higher ordination was denied, and it continues to be so even today, to certain sections of the Maha SiFiglia, and as a result a number of monks representing those aggrieved sections went over to Burma, received the Upasanpada, and callic back fully qualified to confer it on others who deserved to receive it. Foremost annong them was the Wen. Ambagahapitiye Gnanawimala Tissa Thera, who established the Amarapura Nikaya (1803) włoch later came to be called the Amarapura Mula Nikaya.
Another who followed in his footsteps was the Wen. Kataluwe Gunaratana Tissa who left for Burma in the year 1808 Tril the little harbour of Dodanduwa. With his return to Dodati duwa, was established the Kalyaniwans: Nikaya with its principal cat at Sailabimbaramaya, Dodanduwa. Several Lith T3, oft in. Welt thither to Burma also seeking Higher Ordination, Ild on their return established various sects.
Contemporary to these events, there was also seen the emergence of a band of spirited monks who took the forefront of the cultural revival that was gathering momenturn-some of lilti were Wen. Bulat gama Dharmalankara Sri Sumalaltissa, Werl, Hikk, duwe Sri Sumangala, Wen. Waskaduwc. Subhuti, Wen, Wii:ligilinii Sri

WEN, PIYARATANA TISSA
Sumangala, Wen. Miget Luwatte Gunananda and Wen. Doda nduwe Piyaratana Tissa.
This band of theras were later joined by Colonel Henry Steel Olcott, President of the Theosophical Society of New York. One other personage, who, a little later on carried the entire nationalist movement on his shoulders, was Anagarika Dharmapala. He, as a boy of 16, met Colonel Olcott in 1880 and carried on the nationalist Inovement from where Olcott and his band left it.
This paper is intended as a tribute to a Maha Thera who, from the background, worked silently and steadily, with great couTage and zeal. The Marc There I Tefer to, is the above retioid Dodanduwe Sri Piyaratana Tissa on whom was conferred the title Ariyalian sa larakra Sasanadhaja "inaracariral in recognition of his services to the Sasaua and the society.
Little or nothing is heard or recorded of this Maha There who spear-headed the national movement in its very carly stages. The annals and records that are available say nothing about him. Hence this attempt to bring to light the inestimable role played by him in the national struggle. The Theras mentioned above worked in close association with one another and everybody in the field alWays valued Wen. Piyaratana Tissa's advice and guidance as will be shown later,
This Wen. Thera was born to the Weerasuriya family of Dodanduwa, on 12th December, 1826, and was ordained at the age of nine at Sailabimbaramaya under Wen. Koggala Susanilala Dhammasiira, the Chief Incumbent of the vihara. The young Sarlalera received his education at thic sect of Wen, Mirisse Dhamminanda, Head of the Aggarama Wihara at Polwa Lla Ambalangoda, and received his Highcr Ordination in June, 1846, with Dhammananda Maha Thera, as his Preceptor.
In course of tinc, Wen. Piyaratana Tissa, the young monk, turned out to be an able exponent of the Dhamma and soon achieved famc and recognition as such. Hic is said to have carried the message of the Buddha even to far off places in the island such as Kandy, Ratnapura, Pelma dulla and Tissa mahara Elna. Records of a redaction of the Buddhist Texts in Sabaragaliluwa, under the

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s JeURNAL, R.A.S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (NAS.) 1980-8
Dayakaship (patranage) of Iddamalgoda Disava and organised under the able guidance of Wen, Bulatgama Sri Sumanatissa, who the records available at the Dodanduwa Sailabimbarama show, always sought the advice and counsel of Piyaratana Tissa. Thera's teacher (then chief incumbent of Sailabimbaramaya), Jdugalpitiye Siri Sumanatissa, and also of Ven. Piyaratama Tissa himself. The correspondence between Bulatgama Thera, Iddamalgoda Disawa and Piyaratana Tissa Thera at the Colombo National Archives bear ample testimony to this.
A letter (1869 August 4 - No. 53), addressed to Ven. Piyaratana TissaThera from Bulat gama Thera who was spending the vas season at Kataluva, shows the friendship that existed between them. The letter also informs him of the various activities he proposed to launch to revive Buddhism and its culture. A 1. otice released by the Dayakas organising the Sabaragamuwa Redaction shows that Ven. Piyaratana Tissa was amongst the scholars who were invited to participate in the Redaction at Pelmadulla, the scholars invited being
For the 1st book of the Vinaya Pitaka
Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala
Puwakdandawe Sunangala Pandit Batuwantudawe.
For the 2nd book
Lankagoda Siri Saddhamma Vansapala Dhirananda Welitara Dharmalankara Vaskaduwe Subhuti Kodagoda Pannasekera
For the 3rd book
Sipkaduwe Sumangala Mulleriyawe Gumaratana
For the 4th book
Welligama Sumangala Dodanduwe Piyaratana
8. sinahala Purvatpat sangara tihasaya, vea. K. Paekera, May, 1963 d. 251; :ce abso pp. 239-254.

VEN.PIYARATANATISSA W
For the 5th book
Walane Siddharta.
This is ample evidence to prove that the Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera was one of the leading, recognised scholars of his day. The Theras above named formed a band of patriots, working's for the up'if' ment of Religion and Culture during this dark era. It is most fortunate tnat Ven. Kalukondayawe Pannasekera Maha Nayake Thera included the above press release' in his History of the Daily papers, Journals and Magazines of this country, deeming it of such importance. The most valuable literary work produced by Wen. Piyaratana Tissa was an exposition of the Vinaya rules (Vinaya Neetiya) which exposition of the Discipline, no doubt, filled a great need of the day. He also edited the Polonnaruwa and Dambadeni Katikavatas, Heranasikha and the Dina Cariyava all of which works were distributed amongst the Sangha on the day of the festival held to celebrate the Maha Thera's 80th birthday and his completion of seventy years as a bhikkhu.
That a few places like Panadura, Kalutara and Dodanduwa were hives of revivalist activity could be gathered from the letters, communications, periodicals and past Daily papers that have been preserved at the KumaraMahaVihara, Sailabimbaramaya and the National Archives. It was noted in the foregoing pages that Baddegama was a centre of Christian missionary activity. At Dodanduwa too there was much activity by the Christians. Here they had established a church and four schools, awo for boys and two for girls which actively carried on proselitization. Colonel Arnold Weerasuriya, who later became the Head of the Salvation Army in Asia, was a native of Dodanduwa and in fact, a first cousin of Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera. Hence there is no doubt that Dodanduwa reacted most naturally and zealously to these and that ven? Piyaratana Tissa was at the vanguard of this counter-movement.
The records at Dodanduwa and the National Archives showthat the Buddhists of the village called Horetuduwa in Raigam
Kerale formed themselves into an informal Samaj (society) promo ising on their words of honour to follow the tenets of Buddhism. and also to refuse to be baptised or marry in the church etc. and

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JOURNAL, R.A.S (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-8
also not to embrace a different faith even if one were to COmtract a marriage with a woman who was not a Buddhist9.
That a similar society had been formed by the people of Dodanduwa and its outskirts as early as the middle of the 19th century (i.e. about 1848), is brought to light by another document in the , same collection.
It is evident that the leading figure behind this religio- cultural movement was no other than Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Maha Thera. The objectives of a Society known as the Samak Dri Sedhu Samagama are set forth in a document available amongst the above mentioned papers 0.
Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera seems to have organised his counter-offensive through another associatian which seems to have been known as Dharmaratha Siddhi Samagama. It was through this organisation and its membership that the Ven. Maha Thera appealed to the Buddhists not to abandon their faith and culture for material benefit and personal gain. The Maha Thera exhorted the people to follow the path declared by the Buddha and appealed to them not to marry in church or get their children baptized. He admonished the people to lead the Buddist life and impressed on them the value of Pancha Sila. Handbooks and pamphlest were published. These were handed out and distributed amongst the people to wean them away from non-Buddhist and anti-national behavior and actions and thus creating in them an aWareness Of their own culture and religion. Such was the leading role played by
the Thera in the cultural renaissance of the recent past. 1
Reference is also made to a religious debate at the Sailabimbaramaya, Dodanduwa, about 1869 - a discussion on Buddhism and Christianity between the Buddhist monks and two English Christian missionaries and the padre of the Church at Baddegama. A report of this debate appeared in the Lak-riviktrana Supplement on 9th October, 1869. The report of the debate seems to have been
9. National Archives, Historical Documents 2, 4515163/1, a Document dated 1860, Sept. 17
10. Ibid. No. V., pp. 48-50.
11. Appendix I for contents of one such pamphlet

VEN. PIYARATANA TISSA 9
sent by an onlooker who was present on the occasion. Hence it carried first-hand information thus placing on record news regarding an event of historical significance. The Lak-rivi-kirana also carried a report sent by one of its correspondents on 28th May, 1869, of a conversion to Buddhism effected at the Sailabimbaramaya by Ven. Piyaratana Tissa. This report relates the story of a christian teacher, Cornelis Alwis by name, who debated with Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera for a number of days and embraced Buddhism at the end, on 10th May, in the presence of a large gathering, by taking refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and the Sangha.
According to Dr. Ananda Guruge, the Buddhist-Christian controversies seemed to have started about 1863.8, Reference was made in the foregoing pages to the formation of informal societies in which the members undertook to lead the righteous life and agreed by signing a document to abide by Buddhit principles of righteousness. A document 13 purporting to be a reply to a Christian publication in 1849 called “Krisiyani Pragnapti' is available for reference. This being incomplete, one is unable to trace the author and its date. Another similar fairly long pamphlet signed by a person of Dodanduwai4 seems to have been published in May 1862. Many more pamphlets urging the Buddhists and admonishing them not to retract from the path of righteousness seem to have been published by the Buddhists at various times in reply to Christian propaganda. These publications were, no doubt, the forerunner of face-to-face debates of later years.
Referring to the religious debates, one cannot help referring to Migettuwatte Gunananda Thera, the orator par excellence on account of which ability he earned the title Vadibhasimha and who played the leading role in the combats against the Christians. He spearheaded the cause of Buddhism in debate,with Christian missionaries on public platforms. What is important to be recorded here is the fact that he was a contemporary of Wen. Piyaratana Tissa and
12. Return to Righteousness, p. xxxi.
13. See National Archives, Historical manuscripts, 2, 24. 14. National Archives, 5/63/1/45/68; also at Kumara-maha-vihara, Dodan
duwa.

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both of whom, along with a few others, carried on the battle' on many fronts. It also must be mentioned here that the Ven. Migettuwatte Gunananda Thera had his connections with Dodanduwa and as such there is no doubt that both Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera and himself, both being more or less of the same age met each other and discussed their plans and compared their notes for counter action. Both were inspired by the same love and devotion to their religion and culture.
Ven. Migettuwatte Gunananda was born on 9th February, 1823, and received his early education at the Sri Subhadrarama Viharaya, Balapitiya, Irom Ven. Balapitiye Gunaratane, who later ordained the boy. This teacher of his is also acclaimed as a vigorous preacher and there is little doubt that the young Saman era (novice) followed in the footsteps of his teacher, who himself had started to whip up Buddhist public opinion against the missionaries who were making preparations to build a Catholic church at Balapitiya. After the death of both his father and teacher he disrobed and is said to have been admited to Wesley College, 15. where he, it is said, learnt Christianity and English which stood him in good stead in his later battles. On hearing from Ven. Seenigama Dhirakkhanda of his mother's great desire to see him, he set forth to come home, by which time his mother too had died. At this time there was being held at Kumara Maha Vihara, Dodan duwa, a festival for the writing down of the books of the Tripitaka. The young Migettuwaite went to Dodanduwa to see this festival and having laot only a good tongue, but also a good fist, undertook the task of copying some of the texts, which he completed admirably. The patrons of the temple started on a series of sermons, expositions of the Dhamma, which at the time was no doubt a grave necessity. Suddenly, being inspired, so to say, the young man got himself ordained again under the incumbent of the Vihara, who was known as Telikada Hamuduruvo (Ven. Telikada Sonuttara). Ven. Polwatte Buddhadatta in his "Kalyani-SasanaVamsaya records that Sipkaduwe Ratanapala Thera was a pupil of Telikada Sonuttara (Hamuduruvo) and that Mohottiwatte
I5. Wesley College is said to have been started in 1874 - Education in Ceylon -
Centenary Publication, Vol. II, p. 475.
16. 1935, pp. 61, 62.

VEN. PIYARATANA I TISSA . 11
Gunananda Thera is seen from the record to be a pupil of Sipkaduwe Ratanapala. Soon aftter he received the ordination he is said to have expounded the Mangala Sutta, which exposition won for him the praise and recognition of all assembled at the time, thus auguring as it were of things to come. The Ven. Thera Saddhammavansa Vinayalamkara Nana loka who wrote in the book on Velitota on the life of the Ven. Migettuvatte Gunananda mentions at this point that the young priest gave up the idea of disrobing (it is said that he was harbouring such a thought again) and went back to Dhirakkhandha Thera under whom he is said to have entered the order again and received his Ordination (may be Higher Ordination) in 1844 under the preceptorship of Ven. Bopagoda Gnanalankara. He met his opponents in public debate for the first time in 1865 at Waragoda. These debates culminated in the Panadura Vada' in August, 1873, an account of which was published in America. Colonel Olcott, who read this book, says Vinayalankara Gnanaloka, being pleased to the utmost came to Ceylon to meet Ven. Migettuwatte Gunananda and to embrace Buddhism.
Commencement of a Buddhist Educational Movement:
It is well known that the denationalisation movement by the Christian rulers and missionaries was carried forward through a well-organised system of Christian and Government schools. The counter-offensive to this campaign, it was wisely and farsightedly thought, too had to come through a similar movement. Therefore a Buddhist Educational Movement, to meet the Christian challenge was soon set afoot. Ven. Thera Piyaratana Tissa who inaugurated the Lokartha Sadhaka Samagama established through it the first Buddhist School in the island, at Dodanduwa in the area known as Degalle, in the year 1869. This, it should be noted, was before Colonel Olcott set foot in this Island. The School, Jinalabdhi Visodhaka Pathasalava, was registered as a grant-in-aid School under the Government in 1872, after much effort and agitation. The delay in registration seems to have created doubts in the minds of educationists whether this school was actually the first
17. See: Velitota, Edited: D. D. M. Seneviratne and P. D. A. Jayatilleke,
197, pp. 1 12 - 133.

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Buddhist school to be started in the Island. K. H. M. Sumathipala. in his “History of Education in Ceylon, 1796 - 1965' questions this position:
The Diamond Jubilee of the Buddhist Theosophical Society souvenir issued in 1940 says. “In 1880 when the society started there were only two Buddhist schools in the island - one at Dodanduwa, conducted under the supervision of Piyaratana Nayake Thero and the other at Panadura under the supervision of Gunaratane Nayake Thero.' This statement stands questioned as the Administration Report for this year classifies four schools as Buddhist, none of which were at either Panadura or Dodanduwa. To the above four a few privately managed Buddhist schools also have to be added. Thus the number of grant-in-aid Buddhist schools in 1880 may have been anything between 4 and 11. As the two schools at Panadura are referred to as Buddhist schools in several sources - the girls' schools which received its first grant in 1872 can be deduced as the oldest Buddhist school'18.
He continues:
The B. T. S. Souvenir also says that the Dodanduwa Buddhist Boys' school started by Ven. Dodanduwa Piyaratana, 1869 was the first of its kind. This school however does not appear in the grant-in-aid lists of the seventies. But the Anglo-Vernacular School at Dodanduwa managed by Mudaliar J. Peiris had received a grant from the Department in 1872. It has however ceased to appear in the grant-in-aid list after 1874. If this is the school started by Ven. Piyaratana (which looks un-likely) then the claim that Panadura and Dodanduwa built the first grant-in-aid Buddhist school may be accepted. The other possibility is that the Dodanduwa Buddhist school remained an unaided school for at least a decade or two'.
Though Sumathipala says that this school at Dodanduwa does not appear in the grant-in-aid lists of the seventies, he admits
1. p. 26.

VEN. PIYARATANA TTSSA 13
that an Anglo-Vernacular School at Dodanduwa managed by Mudaliar J. Peiris had received a grant from the Government in i872, and says that this school ceased to appear in the grant-inaid lists after 1874. If it is proved, states Sumathipala, that the School managed by Mudaliar Peiris was the same as the school started by Ven. Piyaratana Tissa. Thera, he accepts the claim that Panadura and Dodanduwa built the first grant-in-aid Buddhist schools in the island. Sumathipala does not of course say as a certainty which school was established first, What is important in this connection is not whether this school received a grant from the Government, but whether this was the first Buddhist school to be established in the Island. It is most illogical to say that the Girls' School at Panadura which received its first Government grant in 1872 is the oldest Buddhist school. The fact that Dodanduwa established the first Buddhist school, does not seem to be disputed.
Even Sumathipala’s conten “ion that the Pamadura Girls” school received a grant from Government before any other Buddhist school in the Island cannot be maintained because both Dodanduwa Boys' school under Mudaliar J. Peiris and the Panadura Girls' school received their first grants in 1872.
The reports from the correspondents of the Lakrivikirana published on 4th June, 1869, and 17th December, 1869, establish beyond doubt the dates of commencement of the two schools, the one at Dodanduwa and the other at Panadura. The Lakrivikirana of the 2nd July, 1870, also reports that the Head Teacher of the school at Dodanduwa was Palliye Gurunanselage Don. Carolis Alwis, the very same person who was once a Christian but had embraced Buddhism later.
The Lokartha Sadhaka Samagama, also established a girls' school named Yasodhara Balika Pasala at Dodanduwa and a report on this school published in 1902 states that the Jinal abdhi Visodhaka school was established 32 years before and that the patron of the said society was Ven. Piyaratana Tissa. Thera. The report also recounts briefly the attempts made by the said society to get this school registered and how it was ultimately registered

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as an 'A' grade school. It says that grants were paid on the appointment of Mudaliyar Peiris (the Mudaliyar in chnrge of the Wellabada Pattu) as Manager of the School and of Messrs. Don Johanis Weerasuriya, Patabendi Arachchi of Dodanduwa and Bastian Mendis Rajakaruna Wijsekera of Ratgame as Trustees of the society on a security of Rs. 3000/- This reference to the receipt of a grant by Mudaliyar Peiris should remove the doubt that arose in Sumathipala's mind as to whether the Anglo - Vernacular school managed by Mudaliyar J. Peiris, that received a grant in 1872, was the same as Jinalabdhi Visodhaka. The Yasodhara Report itself is sufficient evidence to clear this doubt. Sumathip la also says that this school that received the grant in 872 under J. Peiris's management ceased to appear in the grant-in-aid list after 1874. This is true, for the grant to this School ceased to be paid on the transfer from Galle of Mudaliyar J. Peiris. The school being thus deprived of the grant was reduced to its original state This fact is indeed additional evidence to convince us of the identity of the school. The Arachchi above referred to who was an active and energetic member of the Society, approached Mr. Gunatille ke, then Kachcheri Mudaliyar of Galle, and intimated to him the sad plight the school had fallen into. Being impressed with the activities and objectives of the society, especially their efforts in conducting a Buddhist schoo; he agreed to help. The grant was restored on the appointment of De uty Colonel (the Sarasavi Sandaresa' says Coroner) Isaac de Silva Weerasuriya of Dodanduwa as the Manager of the school.9.
This fact is established by the Administratien Report of the Department of Public Instruction for the year 1893. It is here recorded that there were two grant-in-aid Anglo-Vernacular schools at Dodanduwa during this year. Both are termed Dodanduwa Boys' and the management of one is given as C. M. S. (Christian Missionary Society) and the other as Private.
The practice of the Department of Public Instruction regarding the recognition of private schools upto about 1879 had been to classify them as boys' or girls' and as Vernacular, Anglo-Vernacular or English, and not as Christian, Hindu, Muslim or Buddhist.
Appendix II for Yasodhra Report reference.

VEN. PIYARATANA TISSA 5
However, from about 1879, when a school happened to be managed by a recognised body like the C. M. S., the name of the managing body was given in place of the name of the Manager and when the name of a private individual appeared as the Manager, the management seems to have been given as private', to whatever denomination the school may have belonged. It was several years later that private schools were recognised as Buddhist, Hindu Mu, in or Christian. Hence there is no doubt as to the identity of this schol managed by Mud. J. Peiris, as the one established by Ven. Piyaratana Tissa in 1869. It may be noted here that in the years 1872 - 74 the Managers of the two Anglo-Vernacular boys' Schools at Dodanduwa were given as Rev. J. Allcock and Rev. R. T. Dowbiggin (1874) for one school and Mudaliyar J. Peiris for the Cther. Between the years 1875 - 1882 the Administration Reports mention only one Dodanduwa Boys' school - this is undoubtedly the Missionary School, the management of which is recorded as C. M. S. in 1879. In 1880 this Anglo-Vernacular school disappears from the Administration Reports and in its place comes a C. M. S. English school under the same management. This English school seems to have existed till about 1925 when it had to be closed down, unable perhaps to compete with a Buddhist English School which came into being at Dodanduwa in 1915 by the name Piyaratana English School.
This is ample evidence regarding the restoration of the Government grant to the Dodanduwa Budhihist Boys' school, Jinal abdhi Visodhaka. However, it is worthwhile noting here that the Sinhalese Journal Sarasavi Sandaresa of 17th March, 1882, carries a letter from a reader of Dodanduwa, giving a brief account of this School, to ups and downs and its ultimate revival during this period 20.
The Lak-rivi-kirana records the establishment of three other Buddhist schools which followed the establishment of the Jinalabdhi Visodraka. The news report of a subscriber from Kehelwatte, Panadura, was published on 17th December, 1869. This news item refers to the establishment of two schools, a girls' school and a boys' school at Pattiyagama, near the Gal vala Viharaya
20. see Appendix III for this news item.

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at Panadura, by the Dharamaneethi Society of Panadura with Mailenthina Coory and Johannes Peiris as their Heads respectively. (It is this Girls' school that Sumathipala deduces to be the oldest Buddhist school).
Ven. Polwatte Buddhadatta Maha Thera, in his book above referred to 21 states that th; boy's school at Panadura known as Upadhyaya Pathasalawa was established through the efforts of Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera. The Ven. Buddhadatta also refers to the fact that the Galwala Viharaya is identical with the present Rankot Viharaya. The Viharaya vas founded by W. H. Francisku Soysa and six others and handed over to Ven. Batapola Kalyanatissa in 1824 22, who was, the chief pupil of28 Ven. Kaaluwe Gunaratana Tissa, the founder of the Kalyanivamsa Sect, with whom he proceeded to Burma. Ven. Koggala Dhammasara, the third pupil of Ven. Kataluwe Gunaratana Tissa, was the teachir of Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera.24
The Lak-rivi-kirana of 11th January, 1870, also reports the establishment on January 1st, 1870, of the sister school of the Jinalabdhi Visodhaka School at Dodanduwa. It is fortunate that the Lak-rivi-kirana has kept on record these important historical events which otherwise would have been lost to posterity.
The Yasodhara Balika report refered to above was published in 1902, only 33 years after the establishment of the Jinalabdhi Visodhaka school and we have no reason to doubt the veracity of what the report states. In this connection, it must be borne in mind that Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera, who passed away only on 20th May, 1907, was the person who was responsible for the establishment of this school, as much as he was the moving spirit behind the school celebrations, in connection of which the report was issued. If connot be said that the people connected with the establishment of the Yasodhara Balika Pasala and its activities
21. p. 129 last lines,
22. ibid. p. 76-77
23. p. 74 24. p. 28

VEN. PIYARATANA TISSA 17
were ignorant of or did not remember the events that preceded it. It must be accepted that they had a knowledge of what they were talking about and Surely there must have been at that time, quite a number of people (other than the Maha Thera himself) who were connected with the Lokartha Sadhaka Society from its inception and who lived not only to see the establishment of the Jinalabdhi Visodhaka Pasala but also its progress. Hence, one cannot but accept the statements recorded in this Report as correct. Thus there cannot be any doubt that Jinalabdhi Visodhaka was the first Buddhist School ever to be established in the Island, nay, the first Buddhist school, according to Professor Malalasekera him. self, to be established in the world. Professor Malalasekera made this statement from the Chair when he addressed those assembeld to celebrate the centenary of the school in 1969, which I myself had the opportunity of attending.
We noted above that the B. T. S. in its Diamond Jubilee Souvenir said that there were only two Buddhist schools in the Island in 1880 when the Society itself was started. May be that
the B. T. S. inadvertently referred to the two schools at Dodanduwa as one school and the two schools at Panadura too as one school. But Sumathipaia says that none of the Buddhist schools at this time were at either Dodanduwa or Panadura. Perhaps the Buddhist schools at Dodanduwa and Panadura were not referred to as Buddhist schools at the time. Even in the earliest Government records (1872) they are not referred to as Buddhist schools. No schools were then referred to as Buddhist, Christian, Hindu etc. but as “boys' or girls' and as English, Vernacular or Anglo - Vernacular, and the Dodanduwa and Panadura schools continued to be so named even after the classification as Buddhist, Hindu etc. started
The Lak-rivi-kirana of 7th June, 1873, reports the establishment of a Buddhist school at Koggala, Malalagama in September, 1872, as a rival institution to a Christian school which was put up there by the missionaries of Bouna Vista near Galle. This school, the report says, was inspired by the Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera and it was under his direction and guidance that it was put up. The establishment of this school is evidence that the

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devoted national-minded Buddhists in the country took up the challenge of the Christian schools and followed the example set by this Venerable Thera. Hence there is no doubt that Ven. Dodanduwe Piyaratana Tissa. Thera was the Father of Buddhist Education' in Sri Lanka. It must now be said that it was under the guidance and counsel of Ven. Piyaratana Tissa that Colonel Olcott himself took up the cause of Buddhist education after his arrival in the island in 1880.
Now, having launched on a system of Buddhist education, these enthusiasts, next faced the problem of providing some form of text books to be used in their schools. To meet this need, the Ven. Piyaratana Tissa prepared two Readers - Neyyartha Dipanti and the Jina Dharma Vikasini. dealing with the life of the Buddha and Buddhist ideals and principles of the lay life respectively25.
He also prepared a reader, Buddhist Thoughts prhaps the first of its kind, to be used by the beginners.
Dodanduwa was also the cradle of a literary revival at this time. The two viharas, Kumara Maha Viharaya and Sailabimbaramaya were the centres of this revival. The Pirivena at Kumara Maha Viharaya seems to have been established by Ven. Tuduwewatte Pannasiha under the patronage of Ven. Hikkaduwe Ratanapala, the Chief Incumbent of the vihara. It is at this Pirivena that the famous Ven. Migetuwatte Gunananda Thera studied for sometime. The Pirivena at Sailabimbaramaya was presided over by Ven. Udugalptiye Siri Sumantissa Thera and was assisted by Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera, who later assumed its principalship. The latter pirivena was later greatly improved and enlarged under the name Sarasvati Mandapa Pirivena by Ven. Bauddha Siddhantacarya Candrakirti Sri Seelaskandha Thera, who even surpassed his Guru, Ven. Piyaratana Tissa, as a great Sanskrit scholar and earned much fame and recognition within as well as outside the island. Among Ven. Piyaratana Tissa's other puplis who won recognition in the field of learning and scholarship were two other Samskritists, Telwatte Sri Ariyawansa and Siri Amarawansa and his chief lay pupil was Pandit Sri Dharmasena Vidyasagara of
25. see p.2, Report of the Yasodhara Balika Pasala - 1902, published by P. J. Kalupahana of Dodanduwa and printed at the Vidyaprakasa Press, Ambalangoda.

VEN. PIYARATANA TISSA 19
Dodanduwa. Amongst the other reputed alumni of this Pirivena were Ven. Pitiwelle Medhankara, Ven. Batapola Dhammapala and Ven. Welipatanwilla Deepankara.
Associations with Colonel Olcott
The first letter that I could lay hands on as coming from Col. H. S. Olcott to the Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera is dated, New York, 29th August, 1878. Reference, however, is made in this fairly long letter26 to previous correspondence between them.
In this letter, Colonel Olcott gives an account of the work he was engaged in, and of the objectives and aims of the Theosophical Society. This letter shows that they had been for sometime “adittha sahayas” (pen friends). The Ven. Piyaratana. Tissa, in his letter, seems to have extended an invitation to Colonel Olcott to visit Ceylon, for the latter says: “the hand of welcome you extend to us is most cordially and warmly grasped'. He also informs the Thera of his unanimous election as a Fellow of the Theosophical Society and states that time Fellowship Diploma28. was enclosed. The Colonel also makes mention of the fact that Buddhism and Christianity face to face' which is an account of the Panadura Vada of 1873, had gone into a second edition. It was this account which when first published that brought to the notice of Col. Olcott the vigorous nature of Buddhist activities in Ceylon.
It was on the 7th of May, 1880, when the Colonel landed at Galle, the two friends met for the first time. The party of visitors, including Colonel Olcott, Madam Blavatskey and others, were first taken to the Vijayananda Temple in Weliwatta, Galle and it was here that they observed the Five Precepts for the first time. The Colonel himself, in his Diary (P. 170) records his very first visit to Ven. Piyaratana's temple “Our first stage was to Dodanduwa over five miles, the seat, the grand vihara and Pansala of our friend Piyaratana Tissa Terunnanse - a Monk of erudition, energy and high character... at Dodanduwa we were greeted with such a downpour of monsoon rain as had not been seen in years. During a full we were conducted to an immense shed, the Piyaratana Tissa had erected and I gave the expected address to 2000 people. After that
26. parts are reproduced in Appendix iv. 27. Appendix v.

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we visited his temple, which we found scrupulously tidy and well kept, an unusual circumstance in the island. We saw a huge standing image of the Budiha, more than a century old. We passed
the night in a bungalow provided for us by Mr. Weerasuriya and friends.
It is un necessary here to recount the services rendered by Colonel Olcott in reviving our religious culture as these are too well known; but it has to be stated that the Maha Thera, Ven. Piyaraana Tissa was always associated with all the activities launched by Colonel Olcott and with the Colombo Theosophical Society and its affairs since its inc ption. Correspondence (preserved at the National Archives and also at the Dodanduwa Temples) between Colonel Olcott, the Secretaries and others connected with the Bui hist Theosophical Society and the great Thera, provides ample evidence of these associations. Ven. Piyaratama Tissa Thera, it is brought out in these letters, was always consulted, not only by the Buddhist Theosophical Society, but also by the great Anagarika Dharmapala (who joined the group in 1880 as a boy of 16) himself.
As the contribution of Ven. Piyaratana Tissa in the culturai renaisance of this period has often gone unrecorded, it will be pertinent to include a few references to this monk’s continuous associations and connections with the fellow workers in the field:
(1) A letter written by Mr. D. J. Subasinghe (dated 1902 Aug. 25, Galle) to Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera imploring his help in reviving the Theosophical Society of Galle and also in taking steps to put Mahinda College on a sound footing. The lefter also states that the Galle Theosophical Society was inaugurated by
Colonel Olcott on the advice of Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera, 23 years before.
(2) Mr. D. S. Wickremaratne, Buddhist Theosophical:Society,
Colombo, writes to the Ven. Thera on 11. 9. 1902. The English version of the letter is as follows:

VEN. PIYARATTANA TISSA 21
•No. 15.
Buddhist Theosophical Society, Colombo, 11. 9, 1902.
Salutations to you Ven. Sir,
It is our intention to hold a meeting at Karagampitiya of both the lay and the ecclesiastical to establish unity amongst the Buddhists and to consider the formulation of a way of rejecting the four-fold requisites from those who, not heeding the rightious advice of the monks, send their children to Christian schools, thus harming the Buddhist schools. This meeting will be held on Sunday the 21st instant.
I gather that, by launching of a similar movement you have been able to render much service to your area. I, therefore, humbly request you to be present on the said day to help us to launch a movement in this area as well.
Yours obediently,
sgd. D. S. S. Wickremaratna. A reply is solicited.
(3) Om 10th August, 1895, Anagarika Dharmapala wrote to the Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera from the Mahabodhi Office asking him to send any letters that Gunananda Thera who had
died in India had, presumably pertaining to the activities of the Society.
(4) On 8th March, 1894, Anagarika Dharmapala wrote to the Ven. Thera seeking his blessings and looking forward to a meeting to discuss the affairs of the Mahabodhi Society.88
(5) On 20th August, 1894, A. Uluwita, Secretary, Ceylon Mahabodhi Society invited the Maha Thera to a meeting of leading Buddhist monks to discuss certain important affairs of the Society.
28. National Archives 51631150; 41170

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(6) He was also invited by the same Secretary to attend a meeting, on 14th September, 1895, to discuss what steps should be taken to restore Buddha Gaya to the Buddhists.
(7) The Theosophist (Vol. I. Aug. 1880) refers to a few Maha Theras who will be gratefully remembered for their services: “But there are certain priests whose names will ever be held in grateful recollection in the Society since it is to them that the magnificent fruits that crown our mission is mainly due. These are the Rev. Hikkaduwe Sumangala, Mohottiwatte Gunananda, Potu wila Indrajoti, Bullatgama D. Sumanatissa and
yaratana Tissa.*9
In addition to all this correspondence, many are the letters and communications available at the Dodanduwa Temples and at the National Archives themselves, to establish the contributions made to the varied religious, cultural and national movements of this and the 19th centuries by the Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera and also to establish his associations with the leading national leaders both lay and clerical who were in the fore-front of the revivalist movement during this period.
All these and the foregoing facts are ample testimony to the leading pioneering role the noble Ven. Piyaratana Tissa Thera played in resurrecting the dying culture and religion in this island.
29. p. 262

APPENDIX i ・ 。 23
ශ්‍රී බුද්ධ වරුසයෙන් 2394 ක් වූ අවුරුද්දෙන් මේස රවී විසි භාගයට පැමිණි රිවී දින දී දොඩන්දු මෝදර ගමෙත් බොරලැස්ස ද සීමාවේ අතර වසන බුද්ධාගන්කාර ඇදහිලිවන්ත අපි ශාම දෙනා විසින් ආගම ඇදහීම වෙනුවෙන් කරණ ලද අළුත් සම්මුති පත්‍රයෙහි කරුනු නම්:-
අප මහ දීර්ඝ කාලයකිනුත් ලැබිය නොහැකි මේ සුනිමල බුද්ධ ශාසනය සහිත කෂන සමාපත්ති සංඛායාත මනුෂාපාත්මය ලැබුවා වූ පිනෑති වූ අප සමූහයා මේ ලබාගත් ආත්මය රෑ දාවල් දෙක්හීම නිරයග(මී වූ ප්‍රාණඝාතාදී පවු කොට තද රවුද්‍ර වූ ඉවසිය නොහැකි අතිභයානක වූ දුක්කම් කෙටාල් ඇති නරකාදී සතර අපායට දෙවනු පැමිණීම අපගේ මේ යහපත් ආත්මයට සෑහෙන ක්‍රියාවක් නොවේය. එහෙයින් බුද්ධාදී උත්තමයන් වහන්සේලා විසයෙහි වසන බුද්ධාගම්කාර අප විසින් පැවැත්විය යුතු නිතාප පංච සීලය ද පොහොය අෂ්ටාකාංග සීලය ද සමාදන් වීමෙන්ද එලෙස නොපොහොසත් අය එහෙයින් දුක් වන්නේ නැතිව රට නොරට නොගොස් ගම්වල ඉන්නා අතර රත්නතුය පවත්නා උත්තම ස්ථානයට නොහොත් විහාරස්ථානයට සුමානයට වරක් නොහොත් හැම පොහොය දවස්වලම පැමිණ මල් පුදා පන්සිල් සමාදන්ව එදවසට ප්‍රාණඝාතාදී පස් පවින් ද ප්‍රාණඝාත කිරීම පිනිස ආවුධ භාණඩාදී තැනීමෙන්ද වැලක තම තමන්ගේ ආත්ම සුද්ධිය කල
380టి.
මෙහී නියම කල මෙසේදකාරණයෙන් එකකටවත් නොපැමිණ වැලකීම බුද්ධාගම්කාර අපට ශාහෙන්නා වූ කියාවක් නොවේමය, එබැවින් මෙහි සඳහන් වූ මේ දෙකාරණයට ඇතුලත් වූ බුද්ධාගම්කාරයෙ0 වනු කැමති ශාම දෙනා විසින් මෙහි පහත අත්සන් කල යුතුය. මෙහි අත්සන් කරන බුද්ධාගම්කාරයෙ0 වන අපි ශාම දෙනා විසින් අපගේ මේ සත් පුරුස සමාගමට මැදහත් නොව මීට නොහික්මෙන අය හික්මෙන තුරු ආගමෙන් පිටත් අනායාගන් කාරයෝයි එම ගැන දැන්වීම් වසයෙන් අපේ සම්මුතියෙන් ඊට ශාහෙන දඩුවම් පත් කරනවාට බාධා නැත. 1
1. Nataional Archives 57 63 f 1,4s 68; pp. 42-43

Page 16
24 APPENDIX if
මෙසේ කූමයෙන් ඔව්හු දොඩන්දුවට ද පැමිණ මිථසා පාඨශාලා නමැති පාශ දෙකක්ම තබා බෙ0ද්ධ දරුවන් රවටා තම ලබ්ධිය ගන්වන්ට නැතක් පරිශුම දැරුවෝය. මේ දුටු ගොලබීම්බාරාමාධිපති අමරපුර ගණපුධාන පියරතන තිස්සාහිධාන නායකස්ථවීර ස්වාමිපාදයන් වහන්සේ බලවත් සංවේගයට පැමිණ උන් මාර්ගගාමී වන බෙදේධ දරුවන් කෙරේ දයාවෙන් මෙහෙයනු ලැබ සම්බුද්ධශාසනයාගේ චිරස්ථිතියත්, මීථ පාලබ්ධිකයින්ගේ මානභ•ගයත්, කාලෝචිත ක්‍රියාවන්හි යෙදීම ෙයදවීමත්, සත්පුරුෂ උත්තම යන්ට අයත් විශිෂ්ඨ ගුණධර්මයන් බැව් මේනෙහි කොට ඒ ප්‍රතිබාහනයට අදහස් කොට යරෝපාක්ථ ලොකාර්ථසාධක සමිතිය පිහිටුවා මිථාපාලබ්ධිකයන් විසින් කරණ වශචාවත් ඊට රැවටීමෙන් වන මහත් හානියත් ඒ හානිය දැක උදාසීනවීම තුනුරුවන් සරණ ගියවුන්ගේ ඒ පාසක ධර්මයට අයෝගාස බවත් හඟවා රුපියල් 850 ක පමණ වියදමින් ස්කෝල ගෙයක් ගොඩ නගවා බුද්ධධර්මය හා ගණිතමිනිතාදිය සහිත තරමක දුර ඉංග්‍රීසි ද දත් පුධාන ගුරුවරයෙක්ද උප ගුරුවරයන් දෙදෙනෙක් ද මසකට රුපියල් 35 බැගින් ගෙවීමට ගිවිසගෙන පත් කරවා ජිනලබ්ධිවිශේෂාධක නමින් පාඨ ශාලාව විවෘතකොට ශී බුද්ධ වර්ෂ 2412 ට පැමිණි ක්‍රිස්තු වර්ෂයෙන් 1869 වැන්නෙහි ඉගැන්වීම පටන්ගණු ලැබීය. 11[39ܘ ܐܘܼܵܘܘܘ
සම්බුද්ධසමයානුගත ස්කෝල පොත්.
යරේඛාක්ත පාඨශාලාවේ ස්වසමය.ධානුකූල වචනයන්ගෙන් හා අක්‍ෂරොව්චාරණය දැනගැණීමට පහසුගේමසද ගලපන ලද පළමුවෙනි පොතක්ද සංකේෂප සම්බුද්ධ චරිතය සහිත ගිහිගෙයි පිළිපැදිය යුතු ධර්මප්‍රකාශිත කොඳයාසත්ථදීපනී නම් ග්‍රන්ථයක්ද එසේම පුතිපත්ති ඉගණිමව ජිනධර්මවිකාශිනි නම් කුඩා පොතක්ද යන පොත් තුනක් උභයාර්ථසාධක සමාගමේ නිලධාරීන් වන දොඩන්දුව දොන් දිනෙස් ද සිල්වා වීරසූරිය උපාසක මහතාද එම දොන් ජුවානිස් වීමලසූරිය කොන්ස්තාපල් ආරච්චි මහතාද යන ලොකාර්ථකාමි මහතුන් වීසින් රුපියල් 800 ක වියදමින් මුද්‍රණය කරවා ස්වකීය පාඨශාලාවේ ඉගැන්වීම පිණිස පරිතන්‍යාග කරන ලදින් ඉතිරි පොත් අවශේෂ ලෝකයාගේ අභිවෘද්ධිය පිණිස විසුරුවා හරින ලදී
ආධාර මුදල් ලැබීම.
ඉන්පසු පාඩම් විභාගයක් පවත්වා ඒවු පරිදි එම වර්ෂයට ලැබිය යුතු රුපියල් 400 ගණන ලොකාර්ථසාධක සමාගමේ නිලධාරින්වන දොඩන්දුව දොන් ජෝහානිස් වීරසූරියපටබැඳි ආරච්චි මහතා ද රත්ගම බස්තියන් මැන්දිස් රජකරුණා විජේසේකර කොට්ඨාස මහතා ද රුපියල් 3000 ක ඇප පිට පත්කරවනු ලැබ එවකට ගාල්ලේ වැල්ලබඩ පත්තුව කරවූ සත්ගුණවත් කැලණියේ පීරිස් මුදලිතුමා මැනේජර් ධුරයට පත්කරවීමෙන් භාරගෙණ එයින් ගුරුපඩිය ගෙවන්ට විය. මෙසේ අවුරුද්දක් පාසා ලැබෙන්නට වූ ආධාර මුදල මුල්ව පාඨශාලාව සමාගමට වැඩි බරක් නොමැතිව ක්‍රමයෙන් දියුණුවන්ට විය.

APPENDIX ii * 2s නැවතත් ආධාර මූදල අවහිරවීම
මෙසේ පාඨශාලාව ලමයි 200 ට අඩු නොවන තරම් පැමිණීමෙන් මනා දියුණුවකට වීත් තිබෙනාතර මැනේජර් ධුරය දැරූ පීරිස් මුදලි තුමාට හදිස්සියෙන් වෙන පලාතකට යන්ට වීමෙන් ආධාර මුදල අවහිරවී ඉගැන්වීම නවතින තැනට පැමිණියේ මුත් ඊට ඉඩ නොදී උත්සාහ කිරීමෙන් නැවතත් ප්‍රකෘති අඩියට පමුණුවනු ලැබීය. මේ වතාවේ ලෝකාර්ථ සාධක සමිතියේ හැම අතින් පොත් සාහිව ක්‍රියා කළ කෙනෙක් වන යශෝරාක්ථ කොන්ස්තාපල් ආරච්චි මහතා ගාල්ලේ ගුණතිලක කව්වේරියේ මුදලිතුමානන් වෙත පැමිණ මතක්කර සිටීමෙන් ඒ තුමා මේ උතුම් අදහස ගැන ඉතා පුසන්නව මෙබන්දකට ලක්දිව බෙෂද්ධයන් කල්පනා කළ පුථම වාරය නිසා විශේමයට පැමිණ, මේ වෙනුවෙන් ඕනෑ කරන කොයි වේලාවක නමුත් තහනමක් නැතිව තමන් කරා එළඹ කථා බස් ආදිය පවා කර ගැණීමට අවශර දීමාදියෙන් උනන්දුව කටයුතු කිරීමෙන් නොබෝ කලකින් ආධාර අරන්දෙවූ බවත්
Extracts from Yasodhara Balika School report.

Page 17
APPENDIX iii
*සරසවි සඳරැස'
1888 මාර්තු මස 17 වෙනි සිකුරාදා කොළඹදීය. 2 වෙනි කාණඩය - 16 වෙනි පත්‍රය
දොඩන්දුව : පාඨසාලාව
1869 යේ අගෝස්තු මාසේදී දොඩන්දුවේ ලොකාර්ථ සාධක සමාගම විසින් ජෛශලබිම්බාරාමය අසල රුපියල් 500 ක් පමණ වියදමෙන් ගොඩනග• පිහිටවන්ට යෙදුනු ජිනලබ්ධිවිශේෂාධක පාඨසමාලාව එම සමාගමේ වියදමෙන් තුන් අවුරුද්දක් පමණ පවත්වා නැවත ආණඩුවට අයදුම් පතු දීමෙන් රොබසන් උතුමාණන් වහන්සේගේ කාලේදී ඒ අකුඹුරයට රෙජෙස්ට්‍රඩාර් කර උදව් පඩිදීමේ පාඨයාලාවක්ව ඒත්තු ගනිමින් තුන් අවුරුද්දක්ම ආණඩු වෙන් උදව් පඩි ලැබෙන අතර මැනේජරකමට පත්ව සිටිය වැල්ලබඩ පත්තුව කෙරෙව් පීරිස් මුදියන්සේ රාලහාමින්නාන්සේ තමන් පිට තිබී ගිය මැනේජරකමට කෙනෙකුට පත් නොකර හේවාගම් කෝරෙෂ් මුදලිකමට පත්වී ගිය නිසත්, එම පාඨසාලාවේ සියළු කටයුතුවල යෙදී සිටිය දොඩන්දුව ශෛලබිම්බාරාමාධිවාසී ගොරවනීය පියරතනතිස්ස ස්ථවීර සාමීන් වහන්සේත් එම කාලේදීම වස්විසීම පිණිස මාතර දිසාවට වැඩමෙව් නිසාත් මෙකී දෙපලම නැති කාලේදී ඉස්කෝලය විභාගයට පැමිණි මහත්තඇන් විසින් එහි කලමනාකාර අය නැතැයි ආණඩුවට කරන ලද රජෝර්තුව පිට උදව්පඩි නොලබී නැවතුනාය. මින්පසු අවුරුදුවලත් වරින්වර මෙම ඉස්කෝලය පවත්වමින් අවුත් පසුගිය අවුරුද්දේ ඔක්තෝබු මාසේ හද්‍යයේදී දෙවනුත් පටන් ගත්තාය.
මේ වරත් මුලකී ස්ථවිර සාමි ෆ් වහන්සේගේ ම ආධාර මුල්ව ප්‍රාන්සිස්කු ද සිල්වා වීරසූරිය ගුණවර්ධන දොඩන්දුව පටබැඳි ආරච්චි මයාද, අයිසාක් ද සිල්වා වීරසූරිය වැල්ලබඩ පත්තුවේ දෙපිටිනෝකාර්නර් මහත්මයාද පුධාන කොට තවත් බොහෝ ශුද්ධාවන්ත සමූහයාගේත් ආධාරොපකාර පිටය පටන්ගන්ට යෙදුනේ, දැනට මෙහි පත්ව සිටින පළමුවෙනි ගුරුවරයා මාපලගම පදිංචි ඇල්. පිරිදියස් අභයසුන්දර මහත්මයාය. මෙම ඉස්කෝලේ මහත්මයා වායාකරණ සහිත සිංහල භාෂාව ද එසේම ඉංග්‍රීසි භාෂාව ද පමණක් දුර යහපත්ව ඉගැන්වීමට පුළුවන් ශක්තිමත් සමර්ථ කෙනෙක.
දැනට මෙහි කලමනාකාර මහතුන් සහිත මෙම ඉස්කෝලේ මහත්මයාත් යහපත් ගුණාගවලින් යුක්ත අය නිසා මෙම පාඨසාලාවෙන් පළමු පරිද්දෙන්ම ලෝවැඩ සිදුවේයයි අපි සතුටින් බලාපොරොත්තු වෙමු.
තවද මෙම ලක්දිව පිහිටි බුද්ධාගමේ ඉස්කෝලවලින් පළමුවෙන් ආණඩුවෙන් උදව්පඩි ලැබූ ඉස්කෝලය, මෙම ඉස්කෝලය බව නො මසුරුවම කියයුත්ය. ඒ කාලය තුල මෙකී ඉස්කෝලේ ඉගණගත් තරුණයින්ට “කොඳයාසාර්ථදීපනී' නමැති ප්‍රකරණයෙන් අප බුදුරජාණන්වහන්සේ

APPENDIX, iii 27
ගේ ජීවිත කථාව ඉතා මනොහර ලෙස ඉගැන්වීමෙන් භාවිතා කරගෙන ආබව එම ඉස්කෝලය පවතින කාලේදි පොහොදිනවල එම විහාරස්ථානයට පැමිණ දෙන පාඩමේදි බොහෝ සමූහයා අහබලා සිටීමෙන් ඉතාමත් විස්ම පත්වී සතුටු වූවෝය. ඒ කාලය තුල මෙම ඉස්කෝලේ ඉගෙනගත් ළමයි ගණනක්ම ගාල්ලේ කොටුව තුල මහ ඉස්කෝලේ තුන්වෙනි පංතියට ද ඇතුල් වූවෝය. මෙසේ යහපත්ව කාලයක් පැවත ආ මෙම ඉස්කෝලය නටබුන්වේගණ යන බව දුටු අපි බොහෝ කනගාටුවෙන් පසුවන අතර යරෝක්ත මහතුන්ගේ ආධාරය මුල්ව ඉගැන්වීමෙහි දකෂවූ ගුරුවර කෙනෙක් මේවර පත්කරගත් බැවින්ද දැනටම ළමයි 80 ක් පමණ දවස් පතා පැමීණෙන බැවින්ද මලානිකව හැකිලී තිබුනු අපේ සිත් නමැති පද්ම සමූහය මීට ගුරූපදේස දෙන සාමින් වහන්සේ සහිත ආධාර දෙන මහතුන් ගේද ඤණනාලෝකයෙන් මෙවර පුබෝධ වේයයි ප්‍රීතියෙමු. මෙවැනි ලොකාර්ථසාධක වැඩවල යෙදෙන උතුමෝ විරකාලයක් ආයුරාරොගාසාදි සැපතට පැමිනෙත්වා. මෙම පාඨශාලාව පළමුවෙන් අවුරුදු ගණනක්ම හොද අන්දමෙන් පැවති බව සහ දෙවනු කාලයක් අඳුරේ තිබී ගිය බව ද බොහෝ සමූහයා දන්නා නිසා ඔබ අනගි පත් මගීන් ඒ අඳුර දුරලූ බව ලක් වැසියන්ට දැන ගැනීම පිණිස මෙම ලියුම ලබන සුමානය තුල නොපමාවම පසිදු කරවන මෙන් ඉල්ලා සිටින්නේ, මෙම පාඨශාලාවේ තත්වය දන්නා
මමය.
1892 ජනවාරි මස 12 වෙනි දින දිය. දැනට බුද්ධාගම දියුණු කරණ පිණිසත් බෙභෟද්ධයින් විසින් කළයුතු වැඩේ බෙසද්ධ පාඨශාලා තැබීමයි. කර්නල් ඕල්කොට් මහත්මයා ගමින් ගමට ගොස් කියන්නේත් මේක තමයි අප විසිනුත් නොයෙක්. විට ෆම් කටයුත්ත ගැන කියන ලදී. නුමුත් අපේ බෙදේධයන් විසින් තවම මේක හොඳ හැටි පිළිනොගත් බව දැකීම බෙදයකි. දොඩන්දුවේ මෙකී පාඨශාලාව වරක් අඳුරෙ වැටුනෙත් අපේ බෙදාද්ධයින් බෙදේධ පාඨශාලා තැබීමේ පුයෝජනය නොදැන සිටි නිසාමයි - නුමුත් මෙබඳු දෙයෙහි උතුම් භාවය දත් පියරතන සාමින්නාන්සේ තවත් වැදගත් කීපදෙනෙකු ගේ උපකාර ඇතුව මේ පාඨශාලාව නැවත පීහිටෙව් බව පෙනේ.

Page 18
APPENDIX iii
ගමය සමaද්ධකර ගැනීම බෙgද්ධයින්ගේ යුතුකමකි. - මේ පාඨශාලාවේ උගන්වන තරුණ ගුරුවරයා අපි අඳුනමු-සිංහල භාෂාව ව්‍යායාකරණ සමඟ දැනගත් යහපත් හික්මීමකින් යුත් තැනැත්තෙකිපරම විඥානාර්ථ බෙණුද්ධ සමාගම් විසින් ලක්දිව් වැස්සන්ගෙන් සම්මාදම් කරණ මුදලට බෙභෟද්ධයින් විසින් නොමසුරුව මුදල් පරිතාපෘග කරණු ලැබේ නම් මෙබඳු පාඨශාලා දහස් ගණනක් ලක්දිව තබා වර්ධනය කරගැණීම් වැඩි බරක් නොවේ, ස - ස - ක.

Appendix IV - 1
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Page 19

Appendix IV - 2
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Page 20

Appendix IW - 3
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Page 21

Appendix IV - 4
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Page 22

Appendix IV – 5
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Page 23
28 JOURNAL, R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-81
History as Polemics and Propaganda : An Examination of Fernao de Queiros, "History of Ceylon'
Tikiri Abeyasinghe Dept. of History and Political Science
University of Colombo
The massive chronicle on the Portuguese in Sri Lanka by the Jesuit priest Fernao de Queiros, commonly called The Temporal and Spiritual Conquest of Ceylon, was completed in 1687. The Portuguese text of this work was published in 1916 and a full English translation came out in 1930s, but up to now there has been no serious attempt to evaluate this work as a source for the study of the history of Sri Lanka in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Such evaluation should have begun with the publication of the text or the translation, but neither Paul E. Pieris, who edited the Portuguese text, nor Father S. G. Perera who translated it into English, made a detailed critical study of the work. Of the value of the work, Dr. Pieris said little beyond the general statement that is was ”............... perhaps, no exaggeration to say that...... the “Conquista” is surpassed in value only by...... the Mahawansa'. Rev. Father S. G. Perera made a study only of the sources utilized by Queiros. For the rest, he noted that the second, third, fourth and the fifth
1. The title “Conquista Temporal e Espiritual de Ceylao” is the one given in the Rio de Janeiro copy of the manuscript of this work. (It was this text which was published in 1916.) But that the author (or his copyists) used other titles is clear from another manuscript available in the Biblioteca de Ajuda in Lisbon (call mark: 51-VIII-40), on the first folio of which is given the title “Livro Primeiro Da Historia de Ceylao Pello Padre Fernao de Queiros.' Also, in a document listing scholarly works by Jesuits, (Biblioteca Nacional, Lisboa, Fundo Geral - BNL FG176 f. 76v.) Queiros is referred to as the author of a “Historia de Ceilao.” History of Ceylon, therefore, seems to have been the commoner title of this work
2. edited by Paul E. Pieris and published by the Government Printer.
Colombo, Sri Lanka.
3. translated by Rew. Father S. G. Perera S. J. and published by the
Government Printer, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
4. Introduction to the Portuguese text of Queiros' work, (Colombo 1916)
p. 111.

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 29
books of the work contain “a minute and circumstantial account of the temporal and spiritual conquest of Ceylon . . . . described with self-restraint and impartiality'. The present writer, on the basis of his knowledge of Portuguese archival material relating to Sri Lanka, would like to offer some comments on the subject in the hope that a debate on the value of Queiros' work will thereby be initiated.
The basic facts about Fernao de Queiros' life are well-known. Born in north Portugal in 1617, he entered the novitiate of the Society of Jesus in 1631, at age 14. Leaving Lisbon in April 1635, he arrived in Goa in December the same year, where he completed his higher education. During the next 53 years he held several responsible posts in the religious establishments, including that of the Provincial of the Jesuit order. He died in Goa in 1688, just six months after completing the manuscript of the History of Ceylon.6 Besides this work there are several references to other works from Queiros” pen, but only some letters and the Historia da Vida do Veneravel Irmao Pedro de Basto seem to have survived.
It would be convenient to discuss Queiros' History of Ceylon under six heads: (A) influences (B) sources (C) objectives (D) author's education and attitudes (E) author's craft and (F) conclusions.
(A) influences
Queiros' work bears the deep imprint of several influences, In the first place, he seems to have drawn sustenance from the Portuguese historiographical tradition. It taught him what questions to ask and what elements to stress in his narrative. Historical writing in Portugal began in the twelfth century with the compilation of Annals in Latin, and during the next two centuries,
ങ്ങ
5. Queiros, The Temporal and Spiritual Conquest of Ceylon, translated by Fr. S. G. Perera (Colombo 1930) p. 20' (unless otherwise stated, all references in this paper will be to this edition of Queiros).
6. For details on Queiros' life, see Rev. Father Perera's Introduction to his
translation of Queiros and the sources quoted there. (pp. 5 ff.)
7. Published in Lisbon in 1689.

Page 24
30 JOURNAL, R. A.'s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) i 980-81
Portuguese historical writing, properly so called, began-with the compilation of chronicles of kings and of noble families. These works always stressed the epic element in the story. The virtues at a premium were those of the feudal nobility. Glowing descriptions of the prowess that individuals displayed in the use of arms and their courage on the field of battle were the stuff of these narratives. Y
With the dawn of the age of Iberian expansion, came an explosion of material for chroniclers, but the enduring values they sought to stress remained the same. This was basically for the reason that often in colonial situations a few Portuguese were pitted against numerically superior non-European forces and in these circumstances the critical factors were often those that the older chronicles had stressed. Gomes Eanes de Zurara (? - 1474) was the chronicler par - excellence of this phase of Portuguese historiography and his “Cronica dos Feitos de Guinea” was just what its title indicated, a chronicle of deeds (feitos") by a few outstanding and brave warriors. Chronicles thus became strings of "feitos”: indeed Joao de Barros” Da Asia had the sub-title, “Dos feitos que os portugueses fizeram no descobrimento e conquista dos mares e terras do Oriente” (“Of the deeds which the Portuguese performed in the discovery and conquest of the seas and the lands of the Orient'). Subsequent works of this genre were filled with stories of individual heroism in battles, sieges and shipwrecks and during this period no fewer that five books were written on sieges alone (one of them in verse).
As the excitement of voyages of exploration and conquest grew, a second element began to enter into Portuguese historical writing. Portugal was seen as a land of crusading knights whose mission was to bring the blessings of Christian civilization to pagan people.
In Queiros” History, the epic element and a sense of Portugal's imperial mission are both conspicuously present. In his
8. Dicionario de Literatura, 3rd Edition. (Porto 1973) pp. 404 - 410)
J. B. Harrison, “Five Portuguese Historians” in Historians of India, Pakistan and Ceyion, edited by C. H. Philips (London' 1962) pp. 56-157.

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 31.
work soldiers show off their battle - scars as if these were medals and heroic death almost always confers a sort of quasi-sainthood." Among the figures who earn the five-star heroic rating from Queiros are Dom Jeronimo de Azevedo (captain - general 1594 - 1612), Filipe de Oliveira (captain, dissave, and captain - major of Jaffna during 1619-1627) and Dom Constantino de Sa de Noronha (captain-general 1618 - 1621 and 1623 - 1630). Azevedo's eighteenyear period is described in 124 pages, Filipe de Oliveira's eightyear period in Jaffna in 25 pages, while Constantino de Sa's two periods of office occupy some 95 pages. 10 Azevedo is shown off as a well-read, and University-educated man. Education and culture did not dilute his generalship, however, for at one stage, he fought with almost the whole might of Ceylon.” His military exploits in Sri Lanka are said to have been enough for a glorious, memorial. Faria e Sousa who showed up Azevedo as a callous and blood-thirsty villain is censured by Queiros who adds that the authorities should not have allowed Faria e Sousa's book to be published. 11 Queiros describes Oliveira's courage and his contribution for promoting Christianity in Jaffna in glowing terms. In personal life, he is shown as a model Christian, 12 In comparison. to him, other Portuguese captains are “born cowards'.13 To the captain of Mannar who fell foul of Oliveira or to Changali Kumara, the administrator of Jaffna who accused Oliveira of having accepted a payment of money, Queiros shows no mercy, though on Oliveira's own admission Changali stands vindicated.' Queiros” super-star was, however, Constantino de Sa. He had everything that a hero should have-he had courage and daring he was a gentleman; he was a father to his subjects and was well. beloved by them. He also put the interests of the king of Portugal
9. For example, see Queiros, pp. 408-409, 412-43, 49-420, 777-778. See also Diffie and Winius, Foundations of the Portuguese Empire 4.5-1580 (Minnesota 1977) pp. 212-214.
10. Queiros pp. 494-618, 629-654, 621-666, 727-780.
11. Queiros, pp. 493, 499, 513. 588, 6I 6, 703, 793.
12. Queiros, pp. 650-651, 659.
13. Queiros, pp. 628-631.
14. Queiros, 628-629, 632.
Assentos do Conselho do Estado, edited by Panduronga S. S. Pissurencar, vol. II (Goa 1953) p. 35.

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32 JOURNAL, R.A.S (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-8
above those of any private individual, including himself. His last stand at Randeniwela was a saga of courage and honour in disasterhe killed sixteen enemy soldiers with his own hands, and though wounded by an enemy arrow, refused to die except when a shot from a Portuguese gun pierced his breast, on which he breathed his last with the words “I rejoice that mine kill me.' But his body did not decay, for six months later, the head was found to
be “fresh and pure.' To cap it all, Queiros produces evidence to prove that de Sa was deified by the Kandyans.lb
Besides these three major figures, there are many minor heroes in Queiros' work. In fact, virtually every battle produced its crop of heroes. His favourite heroic figure in descriptions of battles is the soldier who, though seriously wounded, insists on remaining fighting and gives a good account of himsetf, killing many enemies. In his work, good soldiers never talk of surrender,
however hopeless the situation is. On those who do, Quciros pours withering scorn and contempt 6.
In writing his History Queiros found on many occasions that the behaviour of the Portuguese had been less than heroic. To pour scorn on the cowardly and to produce a hero in the same scenario to redress the balance often solved his problem. But what would he do when the conduct of a whole expedition - and not of a few individuals--was discreditable? This problem arose in regard to viceroy D. Affonco de Noronha's visit to Sri Lanka in 1551, soon after Bhuvanekabahu was killed. The ostensible purpose of the viceroy's visit was to punish the late king's killers, and to secure the new king Dharmapala's position on the throne of Kotte. Its only noteworthy accomplishment was, however, to plunder the late king's wealth (during which even the palace-grounds were dug up in the search for hidden treasures) and to torture the king's subjects. To this disgraceful episode, which we might well dub Parangi Kollaya (on the analogy of Vijayaba Kollaya of 1521) Queiros responded by blacking out the names of the captains.
15. Queiros, pp. 738, 757, 759, 760-761, 773, 777-779
16. Queiros, pp. 408-409, 412-413. 418-420, 434-435, 505. Y
17. Queiros, pp. 300-305
Queiros says that his documents omit the names of the captains. But Couto gives a list and Couto was one of Queiros' sources. Hence the omission was deliberate and was Queiros'.

QUEIROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 33
The imperial mission is a recurring theme in the literature of Portugal and occurs in writers as varied and drawn from as different epochs as Gil Vicente, Joao de Barros, Luis de Camoes, Serafim de Freitas, Armando Cortesao and Antonio Spinola. It comes out loud and clear in Queiros too. In the words that he addresses to his Portuguese readers right at the beginning of his work, he stresses the moral obligation of the Portuguese to recover the lost Eastern possessions of Portugal. This is because of the wealth of these territories, for it “is not a question of herrings and codfish, but of diamonds, pearls, seed pearls, rubies, gold, . . . .
white and black cloves, cinnamon, pepper . . . .''. It is also a religious obligation of the Portuguese. “Shall we thus abandon and lose the actual Christianities of Solo, . . . Maluco, Malacca,
Ceylon, Jafanapatao ....?' Queiros rhetorically asks. Again, he suddenly breaks off a staid description of missionary activities and church - buildings in the Kotte kingdom to exhort: “To arms, To arms, and let not Catholic hearts bear to see Heresy reigning in Ceylon.' The recovery of their lost possessions is, above all, a question of a nation's honour and its debt to the “ . . . Portuguese blood shed in that enterprise combined with the merits of the blood of Christ' - a debt “...which our Princes never forgot.'18
The second source of influence in Queiros was the Catholic historiographical tradition, the founder of which was the fourth century monk named Eusebius. From it, he learned to regard all history as the unfolding of the divine will. In line with this tradition, he believed that God’s will is made known to men through many agencies, including human ones. To Queiros, it was divine will which led a Portuguese naval expedition to Sri Lanka in 1505, when the leader of the expedition himself willed otherwise. Divine assistance was made repeatedly available to the Portuguese in their military campaigns against the local rulers. But the Portuguese in the island did not live up to the divine wishes: they gave low priority to their Christianizing mission and their rule was extremely oppressive. God therefore decided to chastise them by
18. Queiros, pp. ix-xviii, 720
C. R. Boxer, “Faith and Empire; The Cross and the Crown in Portuguese Expansion, Fifteenth-Eighteenth Centuries” in Terrae Incognitae vol. VIII (Amsterdam 1976) pp. 73-89.

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34 JOURNAL, R. A. S (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N. S.) 1980-8
expelling them from the island and chose the heretical Dutch as his instrument. Before their expulsion, however, God appeared to the Jesuit lay-brother Pedro de Basto in numerous visions and warned him of the impending chastisement.19 The withdrawal of divine support was, Queiros firmly believed, not permanent. When the Portuguese had learnt their lesson, God's blessings would be restored to them. With that they would recover the island. It was the classic, Christian theme of crime, atonement and reward. Divine will was thus the moving finger in Queiros' story.
In Queiros” mind, the two historiographical traditions did not remain distinct and separate entities - they were fused into a peculiarly Portuguese brand of millennianism and messianism. Such messianic beliefs were widespread among all classes in 16th century Portugal, perhaps on account of that country's “sixty years captivity" under Spain. One form these beliefs took was in Sebastianism, the belief in the re-appearance of the Crusader King Dom Sebastiao, who had died in 1578. The propensity to belief in prophesies led also to the popularity of Trovas de Bandarra “obscurely-worded doggerel rhymed prophesies' whose origins are attributed to a cobbler. Though frowned upon by the Catholic hierarchy, such messianic beliefs drew inspiration from the Books of Daniel and Revelation. Together, these beliefs prophesied the appearance (or re-appearance) of a heroic figure who would establish a world-empire of righteousness, and in this transformation, Portugal would play the leading role. Queiros and his contemporary Antonio Vieira were both firm believers in these prophesies. Queiros in fact went further-he believed that the emergence of the fifth monarchy foretold by Old Testament prophets was close at hand and fixed an approximate date for it. He also believed that this cataclysmic event would take place under Portugal's auspices20.
In addition to the two historical traditions, Queiros was also strongly influenced by several other factors, including certain issues
19. Queiros. pp. 176-177, 194, 278, 417, 426, 427, 614, 1002-1004. 20. C. R. Boxer, “Faith and Empire: The Cross and the Crown in Portuguese Expansion, Fifteenth-Eighteenth Centuries” in Terrae Incognitae vol. VIII (Amsterdam 1'76) pp. 79-82. C. R. Boxer, Portuguese Seaborne Empire
415-1825 (London 1969) pp. 367-371.

QUEIRos’ HISTORY OF CEYLON 35
specific to Portuguese territories in Asia in the seventeenth century. His life and work spanned over half a century in India and he could not help but react to some of the problems and be influenced by the prevalent attitudes. The three strong antipathies easily traceable in his work-those against the Moors, against the Dutch and against the Portuguese officials-are attributable to these factors.
To Queiros, the Moors were “the enemies of the human race'- a statement he makes on no fewer than three occasions. The Moslem religion is described as “shameful.' Queiros even disapproved of individual Portuguese maintaining good neighbour relations with Moors. He was outraged that some Portuguese residents in Colombo in the 1620s should have illuminated their houses in celebration of the wedding of a Moslem neighbour.21 Behind such sentiments might be found enmities generated during some 400 years of the Moorish occupation of Portugal and during Portugal's drive to take over the spice empire of the Arabs. Among Portuguese chroniclers, Queiros was not alone in holding such sentiments. In the previous century, Joao de Barros had expressed anti-Moorish sentiments in even stronger language.82
Queiros' antipathy to the Dutch was, if anything, stronger. The passions of Joan of Arc and the eloquence of Peter the Hermit seem to combine in him when he writes of them. With the Dutch, e says, “heresy is no less obstinate than . . . . . with Mahometans... ' To Queiros, the Netherlands were “a sink of all the heresies rejected in other Provinces . . ." and the Dutch people were “. . . heretical in religion, . . . atheistic in politics' and had “no other law than convenience . . . and no other god than gain.' Forgetting that the Netherlands were or had been the home of Erasmus, Grotius, Rembrandt, Vermeer, and van Eyck, Queiros raises the rhetorical question-what have the Dutch done for Europe?83 Colonial rivalry and religious schism obviously coloured Queiros' view of the Netherlands and its people.
2I. Queiros, pp. 530, 742, 744. 1128, 1143. 22. Da Asia, tomo I (Lisbon 1945) p. 7.
23. Queiros, pp. xi-xiii See also p. 81

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Of Queiros' aversions, the most surprising is that towards the officials in the service of the Portuguese crown. Three times in his book he accuses the “captains and merchants' of having lost India, adding in another place, “were it not for them, we should still have India'24. In fact the theme that corruption and violence by royal officials eroded support for the Portuguese power in Sri Lanka and was a contributory factor in its loss is harped on so frequently that one has to conclude that the unstated sub-title to Queiros' work was “How captains and merchants lost Ceylon.'
Queiros’ anti-Dutch feeling is understandable. But what gave rise to the anti-official sentiment? One obvious reason was his honest conviction that by and large the officials in the service of the Portuguese crown were extremely corrupt and cruel. This picture of a venal and corrupt body of officials is borne out by other sources, inci uding official documents. In - drawing attention to official corruption, Queiros, like many other Portuguese chroniclers, represents the conscience of the Portuguese people and deserves our respect for not trying to sweep unpatatable facts. under the carpet.
There were, however, less lofty reasons for Queiros' stand. He had arrived in Goa in 1635, at a time when anti-clerical feelings were common in official circles. Spokesmen for these views included three viceroys, the Conde de Linhares (1629-1635), Pero da Silva (1635-1639) and Dom Felipe Mascarenhas (1645-1651). Anticlericalism of the period focussed on three specific issues; (1) the growing wealth of the religious orders (2) the high-handed behaviour of the clergy towards the local populations and (3) the high drain-off of Portuguese manpower to the religious orders. - - -
The wealth of the Catholic religious orders in Portuguese Asia was growing in the seventeenth century. Much of their wealth consisted in land. These orders had received land by private donation and official, but informal, grant. Sometimes they had bought land, and occasionally, it was complained, they had even seized it. Already in 1609 Lisbon had sent out orders. prohibiting the clergy from acquiring crown land by grant or by
24. Queiros, pp. vii. 1 i 34, 1169.

QUEIROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 37
purchase.25 In the early 1630s, inquiries had been instituted to determine what properties the clerical orders held and by what title. From these inquiries, it transpired that the Jesuit order held much land in Goa, Bassein, Tanna, Bandora, Japan and Sri Lanka. The list of their properties ran to five folios while the total value of these was assessed at 216,500 pardaos. Even this list, it was stated, was possibly incomplete. In Sri Lanka the Jesuits held over 100 villages, many of them with no valid title other than the verbal orders of a captain-general like Dom Jeronimo de Azevedo or a provincial governor like Simao Correa26.
The Viceroy the Conde de Linhares, on hearing of the immense temporalities of the Jesuits, commented “estando os religiosos ricos, estavao os vassalos pobres” (where the clergyis rich, the subjects are poor). A succeeding viceroy, Dom Felipe Mascarenhas (1645-1651) was equally outspoken. Referring to the Jesuits in Sri Lanka, where he had been captain-general for five years, he said that “they put more effort into the cultivation of land than into winning souls, which ought to be their principal object” (em cuio grangeamento se divertem muito da cultivacao das almas que ouvera de seu principal fundamento”). He suggested that clerical temporalities should be taken away altogether, and the clergy paid an allowance in cash.88
In the 1630s, complaints began to pour into Goa about the high handed manner in which the members of the religious orders treated the local populations, such complaints coming in specifically from Tuticorin, Macao and Japan. Again the Jesuits came in for a major share of the blame. The complainants were all responsible people, such as bishops, municipal councillors, captains and members of other religious orders.29. In Jaffna, complaints against the clergy-Jesuits as well as the Franciscans-led to the
2 6. BNL, FG 1983 f. 15
26. Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo (ANTT), Documentos Remetidos
da India (Doc. Rem), vol. 35 ff. 356 - 368.
27. ANTT, Doc. Rem. 35 f. 356 28. ANIT, Doc. Rem, vol. 60 f. 281-2, 395 29.ANTT, Doc. Rem. Vol. 53 ff. 28-29; Vol. 34 f. 37

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appointment of a commission of inquiry in 1645. The testimony laid before this body ran to some 130 pages, and contains specific charges against named clergy, of unauthorized and unfair demands for produce, labour or cash from the inhabitants of Jaffna and of infliction of bodily punishment with cane and stock.30
The religious orders in Asia were also accused of offering a softer alternative to the hardships of a common soldier's life in the 17th century and attracting too many Portuguese to their fold, thus depriving the State of part of its manpower resources. In January 1636, the Council of State in Goa discussed the question whether restrictions ought to be placed on soldiers taking to holy orders.3 Anti-clerical attitudes, it would be clear from this discussion, were strong in the 1630s and 1640s. Important Portuguese officials like viceroys took a leading role in advocating the abolition of clerical temporalities or reducing them and in readily instituting inquiries into complaints against clerical misconduct. It was not even unlikely that in official discussions as well as in private conversations among governing circles in Goa, Portuguese territorial losses in the mid-seventeenth century were attributed to clerical exactions and the high - handed manner in which the members of the religious orders treated the local population,
This atmosphere of hostility to the clerical orders, particularly the Jesuits, seems to have deeply affected the young Jesuit Fernao de Queiros, who was only 18 when he arrived in India in 1635. He probably concluded that the royal officials were bent on a witch-hunt, and that the men in uniform were ganging up on the men in cassock. It is likely that he regarded the accusations against the clergy the result of a well-orchestrated conspiracy engineered by royal officials. Writing the history of the island gave him an opportunity of defending the religious orders and
30. The testimony laid before the commission is available in ANTT Doc.
Rem. Vol. 56, ff. 283-348
31. Assentos do Conselho do Estado ed. Pissurlencar vol. II (Goa 1954)
pp 30-41 In ANTT, Doc. Rem. Vol. 35 ff. 170-190 is gathered a large number of papers relating to the religious orders in India-their membership, the number of convents they maintained and whether these were adequate, their wealth etc.

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 39
making counter-accusations against the officials. His work therefore takes on the colour and disputatious tone of a polemic. Into it he injected quite a lot of venom.
Defence or the clerical orders and accusations against the officials are themes that run throughout Queiros’ work. But this is specially well-brought out in chapter 8 of Book VI. which carries the title “Véxations and Machinations against the Religious'.32 In this chapter Queiros' principal argument is that the complaints and accusations againts the clergy were instigated by the royal officers and were without substance. He also makes a spirited defence of the clergy-denying the charges that they made compulsory purchase of the villagers' produce in Sri Lanka, or that they resorted to corporal punishment unjustly. Finally he asks a number of rhetorical questions “ . . . Now I ask did the Religious . . . . tyrannize over the Natives by seizing their paravenias and villages and service-lands, taking their cows and bulls in punishment? Did they cut their Jak trees? Did they make them pay for areca at higher prices, and commit other robberies related? Did they wound? Did they kill? . . . They did nothing of this, to be sure'38.
(B) Sources
Rev. Father S. G. Perera, in his introduction to the translation of Queiros' work, has gone into the question of the sources. He points out from inter hall evidence that Queiros had used the works by Joao de Barros, Diogo do Couto, Joao Rodrigues de Sa e Meneses, Manoel Faria e Souza, and manuscripts from the pens of Affonso Dias da Lomba, Antonio Barboza Pinheiro, Bento da Silva, Friar Francisco Negrao and Friar Paulo da Trinidade. He also had access to a Chinese work on the life of the Buddha. In addition, Queiros had also gathered oral information from many persons familiar with the island and its inhabitants34. Fr. Perera has missed a few sources and I wish to add them to his list. I would also like to offer some comments on Queiros' sources, pointing out where they are strong and where they are weak.
32. Queiros, pp. 1050-1059 33. Queiros, p. 1052 34. Queiros, pp. 10*-17*

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Among the manuscripts used by Queiros was the Jaffna foral or dues-register prepared (or completed) by Dom Felipe Mascarenhas in 1645. The revenues of Jaffna, Mannar and Mantota givet on pages 1193 - 194 of his work (in the English translation) are from the Jaffna foral, now available as codex 220 of the Arquivo Historico Ultramarino in Lisbon. The information that Queiros gives on the revenues of south Sri Lanka (pages 1192 - 1193) also seems to come from a revenue list, (called folha in Portuguese documents). There is also no doubt that Queiros has had access to the survey of Portuguese possessions in the East, completed by Pedro Barreto de Resende and Antonio Bocarro in the 1630s. A paragraph on Jaffna in Queiros' work is very close to the description of Jaffna in the Resende-Bocarro work and this cannot be accidental.35 Queiros also admits to having consulted a Dutch pilot, and the particulars he gives on the naval strength, manpower resources and fire-power of the Dutch stations in the East including Sri Lanka obviously comes from this source36.
One valid comment on Queiros' oral sources is that some of these seem to have been very close to life at grass-root level. His description of the Social System (including castes), the administrative and judicial systems, astrology,and the marriage customs among the Sinhalese could have come only from oral sources. How close some of Queiros' informants were to life comes out clearly from one piece of information given in the History: “... when the women in their houses are dressing their victuals (at which they are skilful) they will not put anything into the pots unless everything is quiet and not a word is spoken in the house ...'.37 This is a custom which is even now observed at Sinhalese New Year in some parts of the island38. One can confidently assert that no other seventeenth-century work on Sri Lanka, except Robert
35. Cf. Queiros, p. 52 with Resende - Bocarro’s work, edited as tomo IV
vol. II parte I of Arquivo Portugues Oriental by A. B. de Braganca Pereira (Bastora 1937).
36, Queiros, pp. 1189-1191, 1195-196
37. Queiros, p. 99
38. I have seen this custom observed at the Sinhalese New Year in the
village of Gokarella in the North Western Province.

(QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 4.
Knox's Historical Relatin, contains as much anthropological
material as Queiros' History. This is a point greatly in favour of Queiros' work.
A second important point about Queiros' sources is that they were almost entirely from the Portuguese side. He has had no access to any Sinhala or Tamil sources on the political and military history of the period from 1500 to 1658. That Diogo do Couto,
one of Queiros' sources, had used the Sinhala chronicle Rajavaliya does not adequately compensate this shortcoming.
It was not of course Queiros' fault that no Sinhala or Tamil sources were available to him. (Not much more is available to us today than was to him then). The result of the unavailability of these sources was, however, serious on his work. For 70 years
(1526 - 1593) the Portuguese were pitted against the Sitawaka kings. For the next 45 years (1593 - 1638) their energies were
absorbed against periodic rebellions in the lowlands or in attempts to Subjugate the kingdom of Kandy. For the last twenty years (1638-58) they tried to withstand the advancing tide of the Dutch
Kandy analliance. To describe this complex story, Queiros had little or no material except on the Portuguese side.
A careful reading of the History highlights the disadvantaged position in which Queiros had been placed. King Rajasinha's conquest of Kandy in 1580 occupies only some 15 lines in Queiros'
work. Likewise the long drawn-out succession quarrel in Kandy on the death of Vimaladharmasuriya I in 1604 is dismissed in one
paragraph99. In both events the Portuguese took no direct part
and obviously Queiros' sources were silent. In his descriptions of naval or military action in which the Portuguese స్ట్రో directly
involved, however, we find a different situation. ಟಿ re Queiros gives detailed information on the numerical strength of the Portu
guese forces, their arms, and the number of casualties- both dead.
and wounded40. In some instances he, sụpếties even therames of the common soldiers, and more notably the : villages they came from 41. Descriptions the battle 9. effiyawa, the two sieges of Colombo (1579C8 and ಟ್ವಿಟ್ಲಿ early military campaigns in 1594 - 1603 and tirtuguese campaigns 39. Queiros, pp. 438-439, 606-607
40. For examples see Queiros, pp. 250, 351-352,399, 438, 442, 450, 479 41. Queiros pp. 400, 407, 408, 409, 417, 564

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against the Dutch and the Kardyans during the years 1638 - 1656 other are good examples of the wealth of the materiai that Queiros had access to. -
On the Sinhalese or the Jaffna sides, however, Queiros is never able to match these details. In his work, no names of coinmon soldiers on the Sinhalese or Tamil sides are mentioned, and even of their officers, very rarely. Statistics on the strength of the Sinhalese forces are given, but there is an element of doubt on how reliable these are. Rajasinha of Sitawaka attacked Kandy in 1580 with 30,000 men, while Karalliyadde Bandara defended that kingdom with 60,000. The Kandyan forces sent against the Portuguese at Puttalam in 1598 consisted of 1000 lascarins while those sent against the Seven Korales about the same time numbered 3000. In 1599 a Kandyan army of 5000 marched against the Udapola Korale2. The reader will note that all these figures are in multiples of 1000.
The war casualty figures on the Sinhalese side tell a similar tale. In the course of the siege that he laid to the Portuguese fort in Colombo in 1579 - 81, king Rajasinha of Sitawaka is reported to have lost nearly 9000 men. In an encounter between the Sitawaka forces and the Portuguese in February 1581, the Portuguese lost eight men and “not a few lascarins', while the Sinhalese losses amounted to 1000 men'3. In a battle between the troops of the Prince of Uva and those led by D. Fernando Samarakone and Simao Pinhao in September/October 1597, the Portuguese casualties were one soldier, while on the other side, the “flower of the troops of Candea and the principal modeliares' died 44. In another encounter between the Kandyans and the Portuguese in 1599-1600, the former are said to have lost “more than 300 men', while the Portuguese lost only three soldiers and some 20 lascarins45. In a clash between the Portuguese and Mayadunne's troops is Sabaragamuwa in 1619, 8000 heads were cut off among the Sinhalese without the loss of a single Portuguese soldier 46. In Jaffna in 1629, the Portuguese cut off 5000 heads of a Sinhalese force commanded by the Atapattu Mudaliyar, but their own casualties numbered a
42. Queires, pp. 438, 535, 538 43. Queiros, p. 438 44. Queiros, pp. 521-522 45. Queiros, p. 547 46. Queiros, p. 625

QUEROS HSTORY OF CEYLON. 43
few wounded Portuguese47. In a clash between the Sinhalese and the Portugueses in 1655, on the Sinhalese side the casualties were 700 heads cut off and 320 taken prisoner, while the Portuguese losses were as low as five Portuguese wounded, four lascarins killed and over 20 lascarins wounded 48.
Several things emerge from these figures:- (i) Where Queiros gives the namerical strength of Sinhalese forces, his figures are, more often than not, in round hundreds or thousands. One therefore suspects that these are “guesstimates', with no more evidence than that of mere hearsay for support. (ii) In Queiros, casualty rates of 100 Sinhalese to one Portuguese is a fair average49. I concede that European soldiers in the 16th and 17th centuries had several advantages over the Sri Lankan troops. They were professionals and were better-trained, better-armed and perhaps better-fed than their opposite numbers. But the odds were not so great as to produce the casualty figures that Queiros gives. The local soldiers were better acclimatized to the heat and the humidity, and the leeches bothered them less. They also made excellent use of the terrain, thus neutralizing some of the advantages enjoyed by
the Europeans. One therefore suspects that even these figures are 'guesstimates”.
Another factor against accepting Queiros' figures on war casualties is that where information in Queiros can be checked against other, more reliable, sources, Queiros' is found to be wildly erroneous. In the battle of Gurubewila (1593) for example, deaths on the Sinhalese side numbered 1622, according to Queiros. (This is an occasion where the numbers are not round). But documents at the Biblioteca Nacional in Lisbon and at the Department of
Western Manuscripts of the British Library put the death toll lower - at about 900.0 As the latter documents are more reliable,
the figures given by Queiros have to be rejected. (iii) Not only
are the casualty figures among the Portuguese soldiers very low, but we note that those among the Sinhalese lascarins on the Portu
guese side are also low. This is improbable, because the Sinhalese
47. Queiros, p. 655 48. Queiros, p. 928
49. In addition to the instances given previously, see also Queiros, pp. 398,
403, 406, 407,547
50. Queiros, p. 475
B. N. L. FG 482 ff. 62-63 BL Addl. Ms. 28, 432 ff. 128-129

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lascarins on the Portuguese side enjoyed no significant advantages. over the opposing forces.
How did Queiros come to be a purveyor of “guesstimates'
and unreliable statistics 2 The impression one forms from a careful reading of the History is that Queiros had developed the true
historian's instinct for evaluating and judging his sources and that
me was careful to keep close to thicse sourceso. In giving the casu
alty figures on the Sinhalese side, however, he seems to have departed from this course and contented himself with hearsay.
Why? I venture to say that the picture of Sinhalese military
ineptness suggested by these figures was useful to Queiros in
advocating his thesis that the island could be taken and held with
only 1700 Portuguese soldiers. When he came to the business of casualty figures, Queiros the propagandist took over from Queiros the historian. The absence of reliable information helped rather than hindered him.
A third point about Queiros' sources is that he does not appear to have read through the official correspodence between Goa and the home authorities with any degree of care, if at all. In this, he is different from other Portuguese chroniclers on Asia such as Barros, Couto, Bocarro, Castanheda, and Correa, all of whom were officials in the service of the Portuguese crown, while three of them (Barros, Couto and Bocarro) were strategically placed in the service to have direct access to official documents. Some serious errors in his work could have been avoided if he had access to official correspondence between Europe and Goa. He blames the royal officials and 'schemers' for taking away the temporalities of the Jesuits in Sri Lanka, accusing them also of meannes and cussedness.52 But the “Livros das Moncoes” (as the letters exchanged between Goa and Europe are called) telt a different story: contrary to royal prohibitions, the Jesuit order had gone on acquiring land, mostly on informal grants made by captains-general and dissavas, and the authorities in Lisbon had
51. Some instances of Queiros' selectivity and care in handling his sources are given by Rev. Fr. Perera. See Queiros pp. 14*, 16*. For instances of Queiros specifically mentioning the inadequacies of his sources, see pp. 604, 609, 611-612
52. Queiros, pp. 331-332, 740-741, 1053-1056

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 45
been reluctantly renewing such grants from time to time, for example in 1621, 1628, 1632 and 1641. Between such renewals, however, these properties reverted to the crown and this had happened in 1618, 1630 and 1638.93 It is thus clear that to pin responsibility on individual officials for dispossession or'seizure' of land was unfair.
Queiros gives Constantino de Sa the credit for creating the royal monopoly in cinnamon and for setting up two strategic urban communities to house the families of the Sinhalese lascarin troops, to ensure the loyalty of their menfolk. But the decision on the cinnamon monopoly was one made by the Goa authorities, and was implemented some three years before Noronha's arrival in Colombo. As for setting up the two communities, the scheme had been mooted some ten years earlier, in the regimento issued to the vedor da fazenda in 1608, though of course Noronha deserves the credit for implementing it.
(C) Objectives
One of Queiros' objectives in writing the History, as has been explained, was to rebut the charge that the religious orders ought to bear responsibility for the plight of the Portuguese estado da India. He sought to argue that if any group was to be held responsible, it was the body of officials. To argue either case was, however, not the principal objective of Queiros' work. His main purpose was do propaganda for the recovery of Sri Lanka, which the Portuguese had lost to the Dutch in 1638-1658. In Queiros' own words, “of all the great and lamentable losses and ruins of the Portuguese State in the East Indies, the greatest and the most painful . . . . was the loss of the island of Ceylon...'56
53. ANTT Doc. Rem. Vol. 18 f, 320; Vol. 26 f. 284; Vol. 38 f. 528
See also BNL F G 1983 f. 5 AHU Caixa 15 doc. 70; caixa 20, doc. 105 Goa codex 14 f. 106
54. Queiros pp. 728-729 55. Tikiri Abeyasinghe, Portuguese Rule in Ceylon 594-1612 (Colombo 1956)
p. 149 Portuguese Regimentos on Sri Lanka (Colombo 1974), p. 40 56. Queiros, p. ix

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The practical purpose of his work was then to persuadic and encourage the Portuguese authorities in India and Portugal to recover the island from the Dutch. The fervent appeal he makes to the viceroy the Conde de Alvor (1681-1686) - “one of the greatest services your Excellency can render to the Divine and human Majesty is to persuade Portugal to recover India and especially Ceylon, the only object for which I gathered this information'57 makes this very clear. So does his appeal to his Portuguese readers, where he states that “the purpose which led me to this work' was to stress the importance of recovering Ceylon.68
For several reasons, Queiros concluded that a Portuguese attempt to recapture Sri Lanka was bound to succeed. For one thing, such was God’s will. Queiros believed in the inevitability of success of such a mission with the same fervour with which 19th century Marxists believed in the inevitability of world revolution. Catholic historiographical tradition had taught him that history was the manifestation on earth of the divine will. Under the influence of messianic and millennial ideas, he also believed that God's will is revealed through human agencies. Queiros was convinced that God had revealed his designs for Sri Lanka through many agents, including the Jesuit lay-brother Pedro de Basto. Basto seemed to have possessed many unusual gifts. A magnetic personality was one of them; a gift for prophesy was possibly another. One of Basto's prophesies was that the Portuguese would lose Sri Lanka to the Dutch and then recover it.59 Queiros, at an impressionable stage of his youth, came into brief contact with Basto and the meeting coloured his entire life. From the reports of visions seen and prophesies made by Basto, Queiros concluded that the Portuguese would recover Sri Lanka and that this would be in accordance with divine will.
Support for Queiros’ conviction came from some unexpected quarters. Several sources in Sri Lanka, including a Yogi in Jaffna and a Sinhalese man from Matara, reported the presence of a folk-belief that the Portuguese would be driven out of Sri Lanka
57. Queiros, p. vii 58, Queiros, p. xviii
59. Queiros, pp. 1003-1004

QUEIROS HISTORY OF CEYLON , 47
by a blue-eycd people but that they would later recover the island.60 Queiros, who usually had no patience with Yogis or soothsayers and dismissed them as “infernal ministers', was, however, willing to give credit to these statements of theirs on the ground that “grace is not denied to a heathen'.61. In fact all these prophesies (including Basto's) were, like the Delphic oracles, ambiguous and lent themselves to different interpretations. But Queiros, with a compulsive psychological need to believe, brushed aside any reservations and committed himself to total belief.
Since the recovery of the island was thus foreordained, Queiros' task was merely to give it a helping hand. In doing so, he thought of himself as an instrument of the divine will. He therefore set out in his work to prove that the reconquest of Sri Lanka was desirable, that the means were available and that the time was propitious.
To prove the desirability of the re-conquest of Sri Lanka was perhaps the easiest task. In this Queiros was immensely helped by the prevalent Portuguese historiographical tradition that to savour history, it must be served up with a generous garnishing of geographical and anthropological information, not to say some details of natural history. Some twenty chapters in the work are devoted exclusively to a description of the physical features of the isiand, its economic resources, and its inhabitants. He makes ample use of opportunities to describe the salubrity of the climate, the fertility of the soil and the agricultural, mineral and animal wealth of the island. “. . . . There is no better climate anywhere in India, nor greater convenience for the health and increase of the Portuguese nation . . . . For navigation there is no place in these seas better suited than Ceylon', Queiros concludes, adding finally to clinch the argument “ . . . nor will there easily be found in the whole universe an Island or Kingdom of that size in which are the wealth and commodities of the Island of Ceylon.'62 Queiros' work was thus conceived in sorrow-at the loss of so delectable a piece of real estate and written in hope-that it would Soon be recovered.
60. Queiros, pp. 746. 1004 61. Queiros, pp. 747, 1085 3 62. Queiros, pp. 1 144-45, 70-71. 1.

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In view of the economic and manpower difficulties of the Portuguese in Asia in the latter part of the 17th century, it was not easy to prove that the Portuguese had the resources to launch an assault on the Dutch in Sri Lanka. To meet any arguments, Queiros had painstakingly gathered information from many Sources, including a Dutch pilot, on the strength of the Dutch garrisons in the East, paying particular attention to their forces in Sri Lanka.63
He concluded that with 700 Portuguese soldiers the lowlands of Sri Lanka could be held and that a further 1000 Would be needed to take and hold the Kandyan kingdom:54, taking care, however, to attribute thes estimates to others. These forces would of course, be supplemented by the Sinhalese lascarin troops. He was firmly of the opinion that the Portuguese authorities in India could raise this number many times over. The conclusion drawn from these estimates was that the Portuguese had the means to launch an offensive against the Dutch in Sri Lanka without delay.
It was Queiros' view that the time was propitious for such an offensive. He seems to have based this conclusion on the problems faced by the United Provinces in Europe as well as on the Dutch East India Company's difficulties in Sri Lanka. In the second half of the 17th century, the Dutch Republic was bestt by an increasingly hostile international situation. During the twenty years from 1652 to 1672 England fought three wars against the Netherlands and in 1670, conclu led the Treaty of Dover with France against the same enemy. As a result of this treaty French troops invaded Dutch soil in 1672. In the 1680s when Queiros waS writing his History the French thr at to the Netherlando loomed larger. Queiros read the situation correctly. European difficulties were likely to erode the Dutch East India Company's position in the East, and Queiros concluded that the time Was opportune for a showdown. Dutch defeats at the hands of Oliver Cromwell, and at the hands of the Portuguese in Angola an Brazil, are cited to show that Dutch were not invincible. 65 :
63. Queiros, pp. 1189-1 i 91, 1195-96 64. Queirof, pp. i 147-1148 65. Queiros, p. 1168

QUEIROS' HISTORY OF CEYLON 49 ۔۔۔۔
In the 1670s, the Dutch were facing difficulties in Sri Lanka too. From 1659 they had assumed the offensive against the king of Kandy and had annexed his territory almost at will 66, pushing back the Kandyan forces. In the 1670s the tide turned against them. It was now the Dutch who began to retreat in the face of advancing forces of the king of Kandy, and many Dutch gains of the 1660s were lost 67. Queiros seems to have been well-aware of these developments and also of the warmth of Kandy's reception of the representatives of the French East India Company in 1672. He concluded that the king of Kandy, having seen through the Dutch, would in a future Luso-Dutch conflict, join with the Portuguese or at least observe a benevolent neutrality, particularly if the Dutch were defeat -ed in a naval engagement. Many other Asian nations, Queiros also asserts confidently, would be eager to “drink their (i. e. Dutch) blood'68. For these reasons Queiros concluded that the time was ripe for the Portuguese to undertake the conquest of Sri Lanka. His History is thus dominated by the need to argue the case for the early re-capture of Sri Lanka.
(D) Author's education and attitudes
Queiros' higher education was completed largely in Goa. As far as could be judged from his writings, this education seems to have consisted of theology, including the writings of the Church Fathers, and some classical writers like Aristotle, Plutarch and Pliny. He was also well - read in Greek and Roman history 69. It is also certain that he had not had the benefit of a humanistic education of the Renaissance type even at second hand, for the Renaissance touched Portugal only for a brief half-century in the 16th century, and then the Inquisition was definitively established 70. Queiros was thus not a product of his time, but of a period two centuries before. He was essentially a scholar in the mediaeval scholastic tradition 7.
66. S. Arasaratnam, Dutch Power in Ceylon 1658 - 1687
(Amsterdam 1958) pp. 8, 10, 11 ff., 33-34
67. Arasaratnam, op. cit. pp. 55-56, 66 - 68
68. Queiros, p. XIII
69. Queiros, pp. ii-vi, 2, 4,59, 170, 196, 238, 281, 409, 463, 626-627, 656
70, Saraiva and Lopes, Historia da Literatura Portuguesa
7th edicao (Porto - Lisboa), pp. 131 - I86
71. This comes out clearly in Book I chapters 20-23 of his History.
These chapters are classic examples of scholastic disquisitions.

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Queiros” mediaeval attitudes show very clearly in some of the stands he takes. He introduces divine intervention as a factor contributing to Portuguese successes in arms. In Portuguese historiographical tradition, the attribution of specific victories to the interveniion of the supernatural went out of fashion in the mid-sixteenth century. Of even 16th century writers only Castanheda relied heavily on god's hand and the priest with the crucifix to explain Portuguese victories. Queiros, in re-introducing this element into history, was out of step with the changing fashions of historical writing.
Queiros’ book also has many references to supernatural powers attributed to images. Three chapters (chapters 8 - 10 of Book IV) are exclusively devoted to a description of the miraculous powers or events associated with an image in Jaffna. Contemporary Jesuit letters are also full of reports of wonder - workings and healing powers of images. For clerics writing on missionary activities, references to miracles was as obligatory then as references to Marxism - Leninism would be for Russian historians today.
It was probably his scholastic education which made Queiros uphold universal papal monarchy and its sequel - the right of the Pope to “distribute to the faithful of the Catholic church the lands which are under the power of those who are not subject to her yoke' (the words are from Joao de Barros). Queiros accepts the rights of the Portuguese crown to the lands inhabited by “Idolaters, Pagans, and Mahometans' because they were “unjust possessors since they refuse the Glory due to their Creator and Redeemer'72. Such doctrines were under increasing pressure in the seventeenth century, and were being abandoned even by Catholic jurists. In espousing them wholesale, Queiros puts himself among a dwindling minority of obscurantists.
Once the rights of the “Idolaters, Pagans and Mahometans' to their lands were denied, several consequences followed. To Queiros, the Samorin of Calicut was a traitor, and Kunji Ali Marcar, his hereditary admiral, was a pirate78. Non - Christian
72. Queiros, pp. 1138-1144, and especially, pp, 1141-1142 73. Queiros, pp. 197, 217, 447, 534

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 51
rulers like those of Jaffna, Sitawaka and Kandy were rebels, usurpers or tyrants'4. Such name - calling cannot be dismissed lightly as harmless eccentricities of a chronicler, for Catholic political theory of the time as propounded by thinkers like the Jesuit Juan de Mariana approved tyrannicide. Queiros shared the Same attitude: he found it strange that some Franciscan friars should have tried to dissuade a band of Catholics from attempting to assassinate King Vimaladharamasuriya I, who in his view was a “tyrant', 'an excommunicate', “a declared enemy of Christianity' and one “who had rebelled against the rightful king of the islands.
Though he lived over 50 years in India, Queiros' knowledge of Asian languages does not seem to have extended beyond a few common words. He certainly knew less Sinhala than another chronicler on Sri Lanka, friar Paulo da Trinidade. To Queiros, Harasiyapattuwa means five hundred villages and Pansiyapattuwa means four hundred villages. Matale, according to him, means "my blood”, vhile Menikkadavara means "come hither my preciOus stone'76. Though without much knowledge of Asian languages, Queiros was not incapable of making pontiffical statements: to him, Eastern languages “abound in nouns' but “are very poor in verbs” and are “barbarous in orthography and pronunciation”. Such blanket condemnations are not limited to Asian languages. “Pagan government he asserts, especially in civil matters, is the most tyrannical and barbarous that can be imagined''. The early Jesuits have deservedly acquired a reputation as pioneer orientalists. Not Queiros, who seems to have been totally impervious to oriental learning.
In one respect, Queiros and Mahanama, the author of the Mahawansa, had remarkable similarity of view: both wrote "for the serene joy and emotion of the pious. In Queiros this neart
74 Queiros, pp. 243, 250, 445, 482, 566, 571, 572
75. Queiros, pp. 572-573
The Franciscans had opposed the plan on the ground that the prospective assassins were endangering the salvation of their souls by courting a voluntary death. On Mariana's acceptance of tyrannicide, see G. H. Sabine, A History of Political Theory (Secoid lindian Reprint 1971) p. 389
76. Queiros, pp. 45, 62, 64
77. Quciros, p. 116

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using every available opportunity to moralize and preach, Good Christians die happily and Christians martyred for their faith achicvc incorruptibility of body'78. Traitors and apostates suffer LLLLLLLL LL LLLLLLLLS LLLLtL0LaL HLHt LLLLL LL LLLLLaLLLL LLLLL LGa S treat clergymel suffer likewise. Those who refuse to give up their property for a religious cil use lose such property. Cathlolics who communicate and confess before going into battle increas: their chances of success and also enhance their chances of booty.
A 11coteWortlny feature abou L QLIcircos is the ' :abscIncc of :LTıy LLLLLL LLLLaaLS L LLLLLLLLSLLLL LL 0aLaLaL L LL LLLLLLLLLLLL LLL LLaaa Portuguese who believed that inly the "northern people are to be csl.ccInc.d because they arc while' and those who act as if the possession of a white skin turned a man into gods 3.
Queiros" attit L1 de to w:arcls the Sinha lese was more complic::It ccli. On the onc hand, he makes the general statement that in Sir Lanka “the people are noble, cultured' and "extremely gentle." On the other hand, every page in his work bristles with adjectives like IInconstant, perfidious, fickle, Lintrustworthy, faithlc55 OT deccitful in his references to the Sinhalese: 4. These pejoratives, a close reading of his book will show, occur only in his references to the political behaviour of the Sinhalese, who refused to accept the Portuguese domination and Carried on 1 løng and bitter struggle against it. But like al good historialin, Queiros c: m somictimes sec the other man's point of view. He points out that rebellions broke out among the Sinhalese because of Portuguest: GHHHHL00LLLLL LL LlaLLLaa LLLL LLLLLL aLLL LLaLLL GLLLLLLS OlLLLaLLS LLLHL0 LHHC LaL CCLCLHL LLLLC LL LLLLLLLLe LLL LLLLLLLLH LLL LLL LLLLLLLlLLaHaLl0 LH the Sinhillesc is a brave and Testless Inition and to their clictermination to rid thcIlselves's of their foreign yoke.
78. Queiros, pp. 505, 522
79. Queiros, pp. 604, f2, 812
80. Quciros, pp. 443, 1084
81. Quiciro3, pp. 1058-1059
82. Queiros, pp., 815, 856
83. Queiros, pp. 298, 738 84. Queiros, pp. 1813, 284, 298, 477, 489, 577, 579, 580, 5C03, 753 85, Ouciго4, pp. 100, 478, 540, 1033

QUEROS' HISTORY OF CE. YLN 5.
Queiros" seaking admiration for the Sinhalese did not strech CLI to include their religion. "Let Europeans realize that these LLLCCLa CCLaL LLC LLLLLL LLLLLLLLLLS eHESLlaa L aaaLL LLLLLLLLmaaLLS LL gld no lishes. The exception is the oile Illajor blind spot in Queiros. Though he went to great lengths to get informatic I on easter LaaLCLCS LLCaaLa 00L LL LLLLL La LLL aLaLHLHHH LLLLLL LLLL C LLLLLCLaL a LL LLL Buddha, these, for him rein-Lincd:l 1: L Ler of demons venerated is gods, “with sno. Its of pigs, monkeys, dogs and clephants' 57. SLLLLS HLLL LLLLL S LLLL LLCCLLLCHa LL aLLLLLLL GLCLaL LLLLLLLLS LHCCCLLL LLL LLLLS LGGGLCLHHSLLLL LLL LLHHLHaLLLLL S a LLL LLLLLaLLS
Thus the author as he emerges from the pages of his History S C LmmL LL LLLLLLLTaLLL LLaaaaLLLL E LLLLLL LLLLCSSS LL LLLLLL ind set views. (one example: he did not like shaven chins). He condemns racist attitudes and has a good word for the Sinhalese. But With little unders tarı (ling of Orientill |carning, caster'ın religiç'in r Asian culture, he had no proper basis for a true appreciation of ^ sian civilization, Living in El Portuguese enclawe () n the southWest coast of India, he had no access to the filler aspects of indian civilization, whose centres were Delhi, Agra and Bengal, F1 tille absence of suci i basis, one Imus L col clude thi Llıis si v Lira ble views on Asians flowycil fra 11 politicall niccessity.
(E) Author's Craft
Wfter ex: Illining the Litllor's education ald attitudes we should tai ke a look at the author's craft.
Reading through the History, one gets the in pression that the author got more material than he knew what to do with, and like the average Ph. D. student, he tried to push it all in, r: ther th:An Select or evuluilte such materii. As al Tc5 Lulit, hic sometimes gives two versions of the sanc cwent and thc two contradict each other. Thus there are Lwo versions - derived from
riar Negrao and Bento da Silva - of the abortive expedition undertaken by Antonio Moniz Barreto in 1547 to take Kandy.
85, QLleiros, p. 440
Though the reference is to "oric Ital peoples", the context nakes it 'clica tı alt hic la, gil the Silahlı le:3-e in lı indi,
87. Q LLeiros, p. Õ() 38. Queiros, pp, 273 - 279

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At one point in his narrative, he dates a clash between the Portuguese and the Prince of Uva to October 1597, but a few lines later, the same encountcr is suid to hawe taken place in SeptembCT the same year. Again, Queiros says that king Rajasinha of Sitawaka dict at age 59 having reigned for 16 years and two months, while later in the same work he says that the king died Ell the age of 63, after a reign of 40 years 99. For the famous battle of Danture, hic gives two dates -- 6th and 8th — of OctobCr 1594. There arc two accounts of how Aritthil Kivendo came by his death 0. Two dates are given for the accession of Yamasinhil Balldara of Kandy, and between the Ill there is a gap of five years'. At one point in his work, Queiro's states quite clearly that Prince Nikapitiye Bandara of Sitawaka was captured by the Portugucsc at Denawaka, but elsewhere he says that he is not sure where this event took place and surmises it to have happened at the grand stockadc.99.
In fairness to Queiros, it has to be slated that in certain cases where he gives two versions of the same event, this is the only Course open to an honest chronicler. Many historians are familiar with the dilemma and the helplessness they feel when their sources give contradictory versions of the same event and there is no means of judging which version is the correct onc. To take a particular stand in such a situation is to believe that truth can emerge on the toss of a coin. To set down the several versions faithfully is an honest course in such cases, and this is what Queiros has opted for3. In regard to other contradictions in his work, however, no such excuse is available. They have to be set down to the author's carelessness and failure to Tewise the manuscript.
Besides the contradictions regarding historical facts, Queiros' work contains glaring examples of contradictory attitudes. In the course of the narrative of events, he makes a spirited defence of the ruthless measures that the captain - general Dom Jeronimo de
89. Queiros, pp. 459, 521 - 522, 707 90. Queiros, pp. 485, 487 - 489, 493
91. Queiros, pp. 444 - 445, 707 92. Quiros, pp. 476, 708 93. Queiros, pp, 274 - 275, 428, 435
33131.

QUEIROS' HISTORY OF CEYLON 55
Azevedo adopted to stamp out rebellion in the Kotte lands. He censures Faria e Sousa, an earlier chronicler, for having condemned them. But in Book WI he adopts a complicicly different stance: he is very critical of these measuTcs and concludes that Christian piety dictates that the Portuguese should not have
"exceeded the heathen in tyranny'. Which Queiros are we to Էյ:It wը:
One cxplanation for some of these contradictions - of cycnts as well as of attitudes - is that the History of Ceylon was, like the author's Vida de Venerave Irmao Basto, hurriedly dictated
Lo scribics and the author had not had the time for a leisurely and careful revision.
In Queiros' work, one finds a number of lengthy specches made by various personae in the narrative, and students of history are likely to wonder how seriously these should be taken. Among those whose speeches are reported are Lopo Soarcs de Albergaria", hikku from Kotteo friar Joao de Vila Condeo, he ambassador of Kotte to the Sitawaka court,1o Edirille Rala,ol king Wimalacharmasuriya II 104 and en udali yrar Dom Cosmc. 103. No one today would argue seriously that Queiros had verbatim records of these specches, any more than one would arguc that Plato's Republic contains verbatim records of Socrates' discourses. The invented speech was a literary device widely used in Portuguese historical
writings of the period - it occurs in Zurara and Faria e Sousa as
4. Queiros, pp. 493,495, 601, 616 - 617 95. Queiros, pp. 1 CD05 - 1006
Queiros here does not refer to Azevedo by name, but it is clear that he is the subject of discussion.
96. The Wida had also been dictated and the author had not had the time for revision. Sec Rev. Fathcr Perera's Introduction to Queiros, p. 18"
7. Queiros, pp. 186 - 187
18, Queiros, pp. 238 - 240
'99. Queiros, pp. 240 - 241
I (). Queiros; pp. 283 - 284
1 i 11. Queiros, pp. 514 - 51 5
| * 12. Queiros, pp. 551 - 5s2
| () 3. Queiros, pp. 762 - 754
14. Faria e Sousa, Asia Portuguesa (Porto 1945 - 1948), vol. II pp. 180ff;
vol. III p. 300; vol. W. pp. 221 ff.
B, Diffic and G. D. Winius, four dations of the Portuguese Empire F45-1580 (Minnesota. I977) pp. 50 ff.
岔

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In Queiros' hands, the invented speech served several purposes. Modern historians speculate lengthily on the reasons for a public figure's actions. Chroniclers used the more dramatic - and more readable -- device of the invented speech for the same purpose. It also served to heighten the epic element in history. What is more electrifying to Portuguese ears than a patriotic speeeh made by a Portuguese captive condemned to death in a far - off land? The speeeh made by Edirille served a different purpose - in it Edirille admits that treason does not pay. The speech is therefore the last and most edifying act in a morality play. The speeches of Vimaladharmasuriya and mudaliyar Dom Cosme with declamations like '' see the total destruction . . . of the . . . . Chingala name and nation . . . . If your arms have not lost the strength . . . now is the time to defend your honour' and “who does not see that our Religion is fallen, our nobility extinct, our riches drained?' are more difficult to place. Their purpose seems to have been to bring out the opponent's point of view and ensure that such views are treated with dignity and respect. 105 Certain enduring values of the mediaeval chivalric code such as respect for a fallen foe may also have led Queiros to think up these speeches.
Quite clearly Queiros invented the Speeches of his personae. What of the records and documents he quotes? Among these are an inscription from Gadaladeniya, a papal brief of about the year 1558 said to be from the Franciscan Archives at Goa, a letter dated 24th September 1623 from king Senarat of Kandy to Philip III of Portugal and an undated royal letter granting to the Jesuit College of Cochin, the lands “from the bar of Chilao to Cardiva . . , as an emphyteutic gift, for ever, free from duty and any tax whatever'06. As for the inscription quoted by Queiros, Father S. G. Perera points out that not a word of what Queiros reproduces is found at Gadaladeniya, though there are several inscriptions there. Fr. Perera has also commented that the papal brief of 1558 is really the Pope's reply to a letter dated 1574 from
105 This paragraph owes much to a long and instructive conversation I had with Dr. Luis de Sousa Rebelo of King's College, University of London, in his quinta in Sao Joao de Estoril in Portugal in the summer of 1978. He is of course not responsible for any erros,
106. Queiros. pp. 274, 329, 711, 1055

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 57
the king of Kottel". As for the undated royal letter granting land for the College at Cochin, it is really part of a "'provizao" dated Malvana, 30th April 1609 issued by Dom Jeronimo de Azevedo in the name of the king of Portugal and granting to that institution the lands in question, and not a document emanating from the king himself.08 The position about Senarat's letter is more complicated. No such letter is known to exist. The tone and the phraseology of the letter, where expressions like “my duty as the vassal of your Majesty', 'service to your majesty' and “though we are Heathen occur, are not in accordance with those in the letters written by the rulers of Kandy, Sitawaka and Kotte, to the kings of Portugal. 109 Nor was there anything in the political situation in Kandy in 1623 which justified the almost cringing tone. On the contrary Kandyan sovereignty had been acknowledged by the Portuguese in 1617, and in the 1620s Kandy's power and strength were growing. Correspondence between the two rulers, if any took place, would be that between equals. In fact in one surviving letter which Senarat wrote to the captain - general Diogo de Mello de Castro on 16th December 1633, the king of Portugal is referred to simply as “El rey de Portugal'110. If Senarat adopted the style suggested by Queiros, then surely expressions like “meu senhor” and “Sua Majestade" (My Lord, His Majesty) would have been the appropriate ones. This in effect means that Queiros' letter is unlikely to be genuine. Does it mean that he forged it? Hardly likely. What seems to have happened is that Queiros has invented the letter, modelling it on the letters written by prince Vijayapala of Matale to the king of Portugal in the 1640s and early 1650s, where phrases like “Altissimo Rey” and “Senhor Nosso” (Most High King, Our Lord) occur. Vijayapala was then a virtual prisoner of the
107. Queiros, pp. 274, 329 n. 108. A later copy (dated 24th November 1635) of Azevedo's provizao is
given in ANTT Doc. Rem. vol. 35 f. 364. 109. Many such letters from the 16th century are reproduced in G. Schurhammer and E. A. Voretszch, Ceylon zur des Konigs Bhuvaneka Bahu und Franz Xavers 1539 - 1552 Vols. I & II (Leipzig 1928) 1 10. BNL, F. G. 939 f. 7
11i. Vijayapala’s letters are reproduced in P. E. Pieris, Prince Viyaya Palla of Ceylon, 1634 - 654 (Colombo 1928), There is also an unpublished letter in ANTT, Manuscritos de Livraria, codex 731 ff. 357 - 358.

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Portuguese; hence the deferential tone. But there was no reason for Senarat to have adopted the same style in 1623.
The invented document, like its cousin, the invented speech, seems to have been a literary device adopted by Queiros. But unlike the speeches, invented documents were not pure flights of imagination. In inventing them, certain criteria had been observed. One of these was plausibility. To carry plausibility, the documents had to be invented out of known facts or associated with them. Thus Senarat’s letter of 1623 was invented out of Vijayapala's letters. The king of Portugal's letter granting land to the Jesuits was invented out of Azevedo's provizao of 1609. Queiros' invention of the Gadaladeniya rock inscription is even more interesting. According to him, it records a Kandyan victory over a Portuguese invasion led by D. Jorge de Castro in March 1548.112 in inventing the contents of the inscription, Queiros was helped by two facts: he obviously knew that there was a rock inscription at Gadaladeniya and also that a Kandyan victory over the Portuguese was recorded in an inscription. 113 He put this information together and came up with something plausible, though he referred to the wrong inscription and the wrong invasion.
One document Queiros did not invent was the ratification (dated 4/12 November 1583) of king Dharmapala's donation of the kingdom of Kotte to the Portuguese.114 The original of this document is available in a Lisbon archives and has now been published. 115 Though there are several discrepancies between the original and the version that Queiros gives, on all material points except one, Queiros' version is in agreement with the original. The exception is
1 12. Queiros, pp. 272 - 274
113. There are several inscriptions at Gadaladeniya. They are given in
Epigraphia Zeylanica Vol. IV (London 1943) pp. 8 - 27 The Kandyan victory over the Portuguese indited on stone was that referred to in the Natha Dewale inscription in Kandy. See Epigraphia Zeylanica IV pp. 27 - 33
114. The document is reproduced on pp. 524 - 527 of his work.
11.S. ANTT, Gaveta 13. Maco 7, document no. 16
Published in As Gavetas da Torre do Tombo vol. III (Lisboa 1963) pp. 49 - 54

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 59
important: the document as given in Queiros contains, after the royal seal, a schedule of territories purporting to be those donated by Dharmapala to the Portuguese crown. 116 This schedule contains no direct information as to its date and follows the main document as if it were an integral part of it, and one drawn up at the same time as the principal docuument. This schedule is not found in the original document at Lisbon and must therefore be regarded as a later interpolation. References in it to the “tyrant D. Joao', that is king Vimaladharmasuriya who came to the throne of Kandy about 1592, and to “our i. e. Portuguese fortalice and garrison of Balane' confirm this and enable us to date it to the period from 1611 to 1617, when the Portuguese held the Balana fort.11 Since the schedule lists the kingdoms of Sitawaka, the Seven Korales and Kandy among those donated, one must conclude that it is a crude and naive attempt to pass off a later interpolation as a part of a document of 1583, for the fraudulent purpose of adding to the territories donated by Dharmapala.
The conclusion from this case study of five documents reproduced in Queiros” History is that unlike modern historians who treat documents as if these are sacred objects, to take the slightest liberties with which would be a crime, Queiros felt free to modify them, ascribe them to other sources, add to them or even to re-write parts of these documents in the interests of his argument. One has to be extremely cautious, therefore, in accepting at face value the documents that he quotes.
Another literary device that Queiros employs is what might be called “strategic interpolation’. Basically this consists in introducing a phrase here, or a sentence there, prior to and in preparation for a critical argument or to reinforce one, after the point has been made. The most obvious use of this device was to prove Portugal's territorial claims to Sri Lanka. Portugal's claims rested on the quasilegal document embodying king Dharmapala's donation in 1580. But could Dharmapala donate his kingdom? And did the donation cover the whole island, or only the kingdom of Kotte? Queiros set
116. Queiros, p. 527
117. Abeyasinghe, Tikiri, Portuguese Rule in Ceylon 594 - 1672 (Colombo
1966) p. 67 De Silva, C. R. The Portuguese in Ceylon 617 - 1638 (Colombo 1972) p. 33 Y w

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out to answer both questions on terms advantageous to the Portuguese. For this he employs strategic interpolations' repeatedly. Thus, according to Queiros, in 1517 the king of Kotte, Parakramabahu IX, declared to a visiting Portuguese governor that he could dispose of the country as if it were his own"Il B. Queiros refers to Dharmapala as the "legitimate king of the whole of the island of Ceylon'll (emphasis added). He found it necessary to make such an assrtion because Dharmapala's claims to the throne of Kotte were suspcct and, in any case, for a long part of his reign, he did not have an inch of territory to call his own, let alone the 'whole of the island of Ceylon'. The latter statement is true particularly of the period when the documents of the donation and the confirmation were drawn up. Elscwhere in his History Queiros asserts that throughout Asia, kings have direct dominion over their kingdoms, the subjects having only usufructuary rights, and could therefore donate their kingdoms in a way that no European ruler could.'" Thus we find Queiros making "strategic interpolations", essentially for the purpose of asserting Portugal's territorial rights to Sri Lanka.
A third literary device that Quciros adopted was, in his description of a battle, to focus the spot-light on acts of individual heroism and courage, leaving the rest of the field in semi-darkness This device served to stress the epic-element in history, but there were other advantages as well. These come out clearly in Queiros' description of the battle of Mulleriyawa in August 1562/63, celebrated in legend and as well as in the chronicle Raja'aliya as a great victory for the Sitawaka forces. Queiros describes the final stages of the battle wholly in terms of the courage and bravado of exactly a dozen Portuguese, who laugh and joke in the thick of the battle12. Of the fate of thousands of others who took part in the sa Inc battle and of the result of the battle itself, little is said directly. He concludes the description with the statement that at battle's end, the enemy was so demoralized and broken in spirit
118. Ошеiros, p. 190 119. Queiros, p. 522, See also p. 523, where Dharmapal is said to have donated "the Kingdom of Ceylon." In the 16th century, there was no single kingdom of Ceylon. 20. Queiros, p. 323 121. QLIGiros, pp. 408 - 409

QUEROS' HISTORY OF CEY LON bill
that he did not dare to follow the Portuguese. 132 Translation: tlh: Portuguese were routed and the remainder of the army dragged therselves away. Thus did Queiros by a literary device turn : Sitwalika victory into a Portuguese cinc, Tluch as Dunkirk is rcprc:- sented as a victory for the British.
A variant of the same device was to tread lightly over Portuguese reverses. In the lengthy account that Queiros gives of wiceroy Don Constantino di Braganca's expedition to Jaffna in 1560, the result - a humiliating one for Portugu.cse arms - is buried away in it heap of dull prose and irrelevancies. 12. Even the Inost determined reader will have difficulty in getting at the result. AI1 it birtive attempt by the Portuguese against the Sit: Waka forces in 15582 and the surrender of the Portuguese garrisons at
Hatalispahuwa to the Kandyans in 1602 I2 are similarly passed Վ11":T,
I pointed oli tearlier that Queiros' work was propagandist in intent. An Cssential condition for successful written propaganda is in easy and readable style. Queiros is surely the least attractive in Ong 17th century Writers on the Portuguese in Asia. He c3minanded neither the majestic prose of Joao de Barros nor the esy expository skills of Diogo do Couto and Antonio Bocarro. In the Words of his translator, Queiros was “heavy, pedantic and hSCLIfe, with intricate and incxtricable sentences of interminable length." 3. The Work is a nightmare to read. The lack of an Ett tractive and Teadable writing style was decidedly a handicap for Queiros' propaganda.
(F) Conclusions
Before we attempt any assessment of Queiros' History, it would be helpful to summarize the arguments that I have so far put forward about his work. Queiros' objective in writing was clearly propagandist, but the book also took on the character.g. a polemic since the author was a Illember of an embattled religious order. Contemporary historical writing dictated the
1. Leiros , 409 t 23. Queiros, p. 351 - 380 :ڈاجي* ! 24. Quliciros, pp. 340 - 343 لأهم t,! 125. Queiros, p. 564 (్యరీ" ، )أغنيتي lf. Lleiros, p. 25 , , ,

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stress on thc cpic element. From previous Writers, Queiros derived certain literary devices. In his work, God is the master - mover. God also sometimes moves in to help the Portugu.csc on critical occasions. In the absence of sources from native kingdoms in the island. Queiros had to rely heavily on Portuguese Sources.
Present-day historians do not regard history as the u Infolding of divine will on carth. Though Queiros saw history in that light, he also paid a great deal of attention to human factors-man's pursuit of political power, economic gain and his wish to convert other people to his faith - and conflict and co-operation among men - both as groups and als individuals - in these purs uits - all respectable history in the eyes of present-day historians. Queiros' history will therefore not simply collapse on the removal of the divinc clement; it is solid enough to exist independently. He can therefore be understood on our own terms. Thc dramatic device of invcntcd speech can likewiscbc Temoved without da Image to history.
The question now arises whether the other factors such as Queiros' propagandist and polemical intents influenced the conents or the Ilanner in which he set down the story. The Inswer, as far as these two objectives are concCTIncd, is in the affirmative Queiros tried to minimise the difficulties the Portuguese would face if they tried to take Sri Lank; and this was to help him in his propaganda cffort. As a result, the picture he paints of the military balance as between the Portuguese and the native rulers of Sri Lanka in the 16th and 17th centuries is not a true portrayal.
Queiros sought to convince the decision - makers in Lisbon that Sri Lanka could be taken - and held - with a force of only 1700 Portuguese soldiers. For this he employed two lines of reasoning - (1) that thic relations between the king of Kandy and the Dutch had cooled to a degree that in any future Luso - Dutch conflict for control over Sri Lanka, a Kandyan — Dutch alliance was extremely unlikcly and (2) that even ifan ::Lilliance were is to hic patched up, the Sinhalese could not add significantly to the E)utch side of the equation as they were poor Soldiers. These lines of reasoning pervade the cIntire Work, but it is doubtful whethe they clin stand Lup to serious examination.

QUEROS' HISTORY OF CEYLON
Rajasinha, the king of Kandy (reigned 1628 - 1687) and the Dutch had co-operated in a series of callpaigns against the Portuguese. Rifts had developed quite early in the relations between the two powers, but the alliance held. Soon after the fall of Colombo to the Dutch in 1656, however, their relations first turned Llr and then flared into open antagonism. Queiros' premise that in a future Dutch-Portuguese struggle the Kandyans would observe neutrality, or more hopefully, would support the Portuguese was hased on these detcriorating relations. But Queiros' reading of the situation walls too optimistic. Raja sin hal Lindoubtedly lati reason* to regret calling upon the Dutch to oust the Portuguese. Bu growing differences with the Dutch would not have propelled him towards an alliance or even friendship with the Portuguese. His antagonism towards them was deep-seated. In him, hostility to the Dutch never burnt so fiercely as that towards the Portuguese. In lict, as Queiros was putting the finishing touches to his work (circa 1686-7) there was a dramatic improvement in the relations between the Dutch End Rajasinha, with exchange of in Inbassadors Hild a good-will mission 137. It is therefore clear that Queiros' Assumption about a possible diplomatic revolution in Sri Lanka was ill - founded and based on wishful thinking. His commitment to propaganda was deep: he thercfore saw only what he wanter | 41 Stէ:
Queiros” un critical acceptance of lle:Lrsay reports concerning casualties among the troops of the native kingdoms in their military engagements with the Portuguese was, it was suggested, pilrt of his propaganda drive to show that Sri Lanka could be taken and held with only 1700 Portuguese troops,
It was thic propagandist intent which made Queiros adopt the literary device of strategic interpolation-to show Portugal’s territorial claims on Sri Lanka. The inclusion of a spurious schedule to genuinchistorical dccument-Dharmapala's confirmation of his lonation of 1580-has to be attributed to the same motive. DesCribing a battle in terms of the heroic deeds of a few Portuguese was in appeal to the national fervour of his readers. That appeal, as well as the intemperate language he uses in his references to the Dutch and the Moors, are other weapons in his hands in Waging ргopaganda.
12. S. ATA5 rati: Il Dutch Power іп Ceylon 1658-1637, pp. (), I

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Queiros' polemical intent-to defend thc clergy and place the blame for the decline of the Portuguese power on the shoulders of the officials-mide him over-eager in making the two points. His conviction that the complaints against the clerics Were contrived by hostile officials, though not without a modicult of truth, is certainly not the winole truth. Evidence that in Sri Lanka the clerics. together with thc officials and Ioreiros, for led : roika which orded it over the subject population and ciploited then mercilessly is simply overwhelming. In ignoring this evidence, Quci Tos was refusing to see the truth and believing that the Catholic clergy, like British royalty, can do no wrong.
Queiros makes the general statement that it was the captains and increchants who lost India. But in his attit. Ide to individual officials, he is selective, singling out a few noted anti-clericals like Dom Felipe Mascaren has for attack by name, reserving his venor for the recores for firear and warnly defending Dom Jeonito d Azevedo and Constantino de Sa against their accusers. As for his harsh words that the vedores were all rogues and thieves, it can be stated that two of thcm, Antao Waz Freire and Amauro Roiz, mailtain cd higher standards of integrity than host other Portuguese oficials of the time, while a third, Ambrosio de Freitas de Camar, was described as “WinNyva de #Frato" (clean hands) by three viceroys. (nly one redor, Lancarote de Seixas, possibly descrves Queiros strictures. One gets the secling that in his denunciations, Queiro was only continuing the running battle between the 17th century Jesuits, bent on increasing the properties of their Order, and th feventic officials, trying to implement the Toy: policy of checki that appetite.
Surprisingly, Queiros' desire to portray some illen as hero has had less influence on the contents of his History' than his pro paganda or polemics. This is because Azevedo, Oliveira and de S were well-endowed with those qualities which Port Lugttese Writer looked for in their heroes. All three were tough illel, Welcr: Iso many tough military campaigns in the island it ind abroad arid the achievements in the island, given the resources they could dra upon, were impressive. Azevedo had, during his 18 years in t island, overcoine three major rebellions, pushed back the Kandya
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

EROS HISTORY F (EWON 5
troops to their borders and half T tell years held that kingdoi on the defensive, with no more than 7(M)-800 Portuguese Lroops. Oliveira had captured the kingdom of Jaffn; in under a month an during the next two years had overconic two freign-aided revolts within the kingdom with only 250 Portuguese soldiers. He also drew upon the services of the Sinlese Israiriny). Constantino de Sal had snuffed out the rebcliens of KurLIII wita Rila Lund Mayadunne, built two forts at Trince latee all Batticaloa, initiated a policy of reform and reconstruction and had also hegui to harass Kandy. For this, he had II () murc forces thin Azevedo h: si anc1 he LL LCLC CaaCCLLL LLL LLLLLLL LLLLLLLLS LHHL aLLaaS LHLHS S LLLLLLLLS fore, Queiros called upon to cmbroider upon the achievements of his heroes or perfor Il plastic surgery to improve their image. He Was so confident in their stilure is crics that he did not try to suppress informaticon un favourable L tlıcı 1. Changali K LI Tnh ra’s accusation that Oliveira accepted 2000 partacist from him and the charges of Winto Il crucity against Azevedol 2 are freely recorded, if only to rebut them. Queiros also admits that Constantino de Sa sent home to Portugal an ivory bedstead worth (O.O Trdaos : Ind "Some curiositics of little value'". He also laid something favourable to say about Don Felipe Mascarenhas, no friend of the Jesuits, and about Rajsinha of Sitawaka, Inc.) friend of the Portuguese. He priliscs Masc: ren has handsconnely, for his generalship, Sound judgemeill, generosity and for his iron self-control in not making : public demonstraL tio II of gricfon the death of his brother. Referring to Rajasinha's deployment of troops for the great sicge of Colombo in May 587 - February 1588, Queiros says that the king did this "in such good order that . . . thc best Captain in the world could not hawe surpassel hiTn"". 152 Such candid admiration for encmics and such frank admission of charges against herocs leave us no option but to conclude that in regard to his heroes, Queiros considered flucts is sacred, though hic rcscrwell to himself the right to free comment.
128. Queiros, p. 32 129. * Qucir 15, pp. 493, 61 , 794 130. Queiros, p. 760 131. Queiros, pp. 855 — 366, 385. 88 132. Ouciroя, р, 440

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It is thus seen that essentially the problems concerning Queiros' History of Ceylon are three in number, viz. those arising from his propagandist objective. from polemical intent, and from the sources he did not have. Of the three, the polemical intent is what comes out loudest and clearest, and for that reason, the casiest to guard against. After att, any good historian is presumed to have developed an effective immune System against that sort of bias. The propagand 1st purpose, on the other hand, is subtle, allpervading, and is difficult to detect. The absence of local sources giving the local version of events, in some ways helped Queiros to argue his case, but in other ways it prevented him from making his Hitory as complete as he might have wished.
in a lengthy work of this type, it is inevitable that some errors should creep in To check the mass of information in Queiros against other sources will not be an enjoyable task, even if one can find the time and the patience for the job. In any case, to do so for most of the sixteenth century is not possible as few brinary sources relating to that period have survived. I propose therefore to pick out a few areas where the reader has to be specially om his guard.
One such area is the period f615-1620. The conclusion of ths Luso-Kandyan peace of 167 is attributed to the captain - general Jeronimo de Azevedo, and Balana is said to have been captured by the Kandyans after that, thus violating the peace treaty. 133 The treaty was concluded by and in the time of Nuno Alures Pereira (166-1618). The second statement by Queiros is a reversai of the true order of events. Again Constantino de Sa de Noronha is said to have assumed office as captain - general in September 68, whereas it should be November the same year. 134 Queiros also refers to de Sa de Noronha having visited Jaffna. 35
133. Queiros, pp. 615, 619, 7 0
134. Queiros, p. 732.
- AU Caixa 5 document 67
Assentas do Conselho do Estado ed. Pissurlencar, vol. I (Goa, 1953) p. 10. Note that Dr. C. R. de Silva gives two dates for Noronha's assumption of office - September 1618 and November 1618. Portuguese in Ceylon 1677 - 163) pp. 37, 39. The latter is the correct date.
135. Queires, p. 757

OJEROS HISTORY OF GEYLON : . 67
but in the absence of any references in documents, this must be rejected. It has earlier been pointed out that the attribution of the cinnamon monoply to the same captain-genera is erroneous.
A second area where Queiros is rather shaky, is Jaffna in the 1560s, and this in spite of the wealth of his information on Constantino de Braganca's expedition to that kingdom in the beginning of the decade. Quite early in his work, Queiros states that the people in Jaffna were commonly held to be Malavares... and neither in language nor in religion are they at all like the Chingalas'.136 But in the chapters describing the expedition to Jaffna in 1560, he writes under the assumption that the Jaffna peninsula was inhabited by the Sinhalese and he does his repeatedly.137 The error is probably in his sources, but Queiros has carelessly allowed it to stand. One can only hope that notwithstanding this major error, the rest of the information given in these chapters is reliable.
The publication of two volumes of correspondence between
Sri Lanka, Goa and Portugal in the years 1539 to 1552 by Schurhammer and Voretszch also necessitates the revision of Queiros’ version of events and dates for the period, particularly in chapters 15 and 16 of his Book II. Queiros himself had not been satisfied with the accounts he had given, as has been pointed out. With the help of this correspondence, it should now be possible to work out the definitive course of events.
It is perhaps inevitable in evaluating a historical source to pay more attention to the failings of the author and the shortcomings of the work. This is because the historian's purpose in examining such a work is to develop the criteria to separate historical facts from the rest. Some of the counts on which Queiros’ work scores heavily have already been mantioned. In the best traditions of chronicle-writing on the continent of Europe, the author carefully describes the geographical and social settings in which the story is s t. In the wealth of material he provides about Society in Sri flanka in the 17th century, his work takes second place only to
136. Queiros, p. 50 137. Queiros, pp. 357, 361, 366, 37 374, 35, 377, 383, 387

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Knox's Historical Relation. A third point about his work is the sheer volume and wealth of detail. At over 1000 pages of printed text for 150 years, it has a claim to be considered the most detailed work for any period in the history of the island. No other Portuguese chronicles covered quite the same ground as Queiros did. Joao de Barros took the story down only to 1526; Couto's Decadas stop short at 1600 and Bocarro's main interest was the viceroyalty of Dom Jeronimo de Azevedo 1612-1617. And all three writers, of course, covered the whole Estado da India and to them, Sri Lanka was just a speck on a wide canvas. Only Joao Ribeiro in his Historical Tragedy of the Island of Ceylon tried to cover the same ground as Queiros, but, as Prof. C. R. Boxer has observed, “his accounts of the battles and sieges . . . contain many errors of detail, while is dates are seldom reliable'. 138 He has the edge over Queiros only in his descriptions of the Portuguese military organisation in the island and the great sieges of Colombo (October 1655-May 1656) and of Jaffnapatnam (March - June 1658), on all of which he had first-hand experience. His observations on the social system and customs among:the low - country Sinhalese, derived from his sixteen year period of residence among them, are also of great value. In other respects, however, Joao Ribeiro's work is no match for Queiros'. Queiros' History of Ceylon is therefore an unrivalled source - literally and metaphorically - for the study of the Portuguese presence in the island.
The preliminary draft of this paper was prepared during the tenure in Lisbon of a Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation fellowship. To the Servico Internacional of that Foundation, I offer my sincere thanks.
Some parts of this paper were presented before the Second International Seminar on Indo-Portuguese History in Lisbon in October 1980.
138. C. R. Boxer, “An Introduction to Joao Ribeiros “Historical Tragedy of the Island of Ceylon 1685’ in The Ceylon Historical Journal vol. III nos. 3 & 4 p. 242.

QUEIRos’ HISTORY OF CEYLON 65
troops to their borders and had for ten years held that kingdom on the defensive, with no more than 700-800 Portuguese troops. Oliveira had captured the kingdom of Jaffna in under a month and during the next two years had overcome two foreign-aided revolts within the kingdom with only 250 Portuguese soldiers. (He also drew upon the services of the Sinaalese lascarins). Constantino de Sa had snuffed out the rebellions of Kuruwita Rala and Mayadunne, built two forts at Trincomalee and Batticaloa, initiated a policy of reform and reconstruction and had also begun to harass Kandy. For this, he had no more forces than Azevedo had and he was also plagued by financial difficulties. In no case, was, therefore, Queiros called upon to embroider upon the achievements of his heroes or perform plastic surgery to improve their image. He was so confident in their stature as heroes that he did not try to Suppress information unfavourable to them. Changali Kumara's accusation that Oliveira accepted 2000 patacas 28 from him and the charges of wanton cruelty against Azevedol 29 are freely recorded, if only to rebut them. Queiros also admits that Constantino de Sa sent home to Portugal an ivory bedstead worth 4000 pardaos and “some curiosities of little value'.130 He also had something favourable to say about Dom Felipe Mascarenhas, no friend of the Jesuits, and about Rajasinha of Sitawaka, no friend of the Portuguese. He praises Mascaren has handsomely, for his generalship, Sound judgement, generosity and for his iron Self-control in not making a public demonstration of grief on the death of his brother. 131 Referring to Rajasinha's deployment of troops for the great siege of Colombo in May 1587 - February 1588, Queiros says that the king did this “in such good order that . . . the best captain in the world could not have surpassed him'.32 Such candid admiration for enemies and such frank admission of charges against heroes leave us no option but to conclude that in regard to his heroes, Queiros considered facts as sacred, though he reserved to himself the right to free comment.
128. Queiros, p. 632 129. Queiros, pp. 493, 616, 793 130. Queiros, p. 760 i 31. Queiros, pp. 865 - 866, 885, 88S 132. Queiros, p. 440

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It is thus seen that essentially the problems concerning Queiros' History of Ceylon are three in number, viz. those arising from his propagandist objective. from polemical intent, and from the sources he did not have. Of the three, the polemical intent is what comes out loudest and clearest, and for that reason, the easiest to guard against. After all, any good historian is presumed to have developed an effective immune system against that sort of bias. The propagandist purpose, on the other hand, is subtle, allpervading, and is difficult to detect. The absence of local sources giving the local version of events, in some ways helped Queiros to argue his case, but in other ways it prevented him from making his Hitory as complete as he might have wished.
In a lengthy work of this type, it is inevitable that some errors should creep in To check the mass of information in Quciros against other sources will not be an enjoyable task, even if one can find the time and the patience for the job. In any case, to do so for most of the sixteenth century is not possible as few primary sources relating to that period have survived. I propose therefore to pick out a few areas where the reader has to be specially on his guard.
One such area is the period 1615-1620. The conclusion of ths Luso-Kandyan peace of 617 is attributed to the captain - general Jeronimo de Azevedo, and Balana is said to have been captured by the Kandyans after that, thus violating the peace treaty. 133 The treaty was concluded by and in the time of Nuno Aiures Pereira (1616-1618). The second statement by Queiros is a reversal of the true order of events. Again Constantino de Sa de Noronha is said to have assumed office as captain - general in September 1618, whereas it should be November the same year.134 Queiros also refers to de Sa de Noronha having visited Jaffna. 35
33. Queiros, pp. 615, 619, 719
134. Queiros, p. 732.
A HU Caixa 5 document 167 Assentos do Conselho do Estado ed. Pissurlencar, vol. I (Goa, 1953) p. 10. Note that Dr. C. R. de Silva gives two dates for Noronha's assumption of office - September 1618 and November 1618. Portuguese in Ceylon 6/7 - 63 pp. 37, 39. The latter is the correct diate. −
35. Queiros, p. 757

QUEROS HISTORY OF CEYLON 6.
but in the absence of any references in documents, this must be rejected. It has earlier been pointed out that the attribution of the cinnamon monoply to the same captain-general is erroneous.
A second area where Queiros is rather shaky is Jaffna in the 1560s, and this in spite of the wealth of his information on Constantino de Braganca's expedition to that kingdom in the beginning of the decade. Quite early in his work, Queiros states that the people in Jaffna were "commonly held to be Malavares... and neither in language nor in religion are they at all like the Chingalas'.138 But in the chapters describing the expedition to Jaffna in 1560, he writes under the assumption that the Jaffna peninsula was inhabited by the Sinhalese and he does this repeatedly. 37 The error is probably in his sources, but Queiros has carelessly allowed it to stand. One can only hope that notwithStanding this major error, the rest of the information given in these chapters is reliable.
The publication of two volumes of correspondence between Sri Lanka, Goa and Portugal in the years 1539 to lS52 by Schurhammer and Voretszch also necessitates the revision of Queiros' version of events and dates for the period, particularly in chapters 5 and 16 of his Book II. Queiros himself had not been satisfied with the accounts he had given, as has been pointed out. With the . help of this correspondence, it should now be possible to work out the definitive course of events.
It is perhaps inevitable in evaluating a historical source to pay more attention to the failings of the author and the shortcomings of the work. This is because the historian's purpose in examining such a work is to develop the criteria to separate historical facts from the rest. Some of the counts on which Queiros' work scores heavily have already been mentioned. In the best traditions of chronicle-writing on the continent of Europe, the author carefully describes the geographical and social settings in which the story is st. In the wealth of material he provides about society in Sri Lanka in the 17th century, his work takes second place only to
136. Queiros, p. 50 137. Queiros, pp. 357, 361, 366, 37 374, 35, 377, 383, 387

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JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANIKA Wol. XX W. N. S.) I 730-3
Knox's Historical Relation. A third point about his work is the sheer volume and wealth of detail. At over 1000 pages of printed text for 50 years, it has a claim to be considered the most detailed work for any period in the history of the island. No other Portuguese chronicles covered quite the same ground as Queiros did. Joao dic Barros took the story down only to 1526; Couto's Decadas stop short ut 1 600 and Boca Tro’s Irlaluim intcrest was the wiceroyalty of Dom Jeronino de Azevedo (12-1617. And all three Writers, of course, covered the whole Ewffrado di India and to them, Sri LL nk: was just a speck on a wide canvas. Only Joao Ribeiro in his Historical Tragedy of the Island of Ceylon tried to cover the same ground as Queiros, but, as Prof. C. R. Boxer has observed, "his accounts of the battles and sieges... contain many errors of detail, while is dates are seldon reliable". 33 He has the edge over Queiros only in his descriptions of the Portuguese military organisation in the island and the great sieges of Colombo (October 1655-May 1656) and of Jaffnapatnam (March - Junt: 1658), con all of which he had first-hand experience. His observations on the social system and customs among the low - country Sinhalese, derived from his sixteen year period of residence among them, arc also of great value. In other respects, however, oil Ribeiro's work is no match for Queiros'. Queiros' History of Ceylon is therefore an unrivalled source - literally and metaphorically - for the study of the Portuguese presence in the island.
The preliminary draft of this paper was prepared
during the tenurc in Lisbon of a Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation fellowship. To the Servico Internacional of
that Foundition, I offer my sincere thanks.
Some parts of this paper were presented before the
Second International Seminar on Indo-Portuguese History in Lisbon in October 1980.
18. C. R. Boxer, "An Introduction to Joao Ribeiro's "Historical Tragedy of the Island of Ceylon 1685" in The Ceylon Historicas Jormal wol. III nos. 3 & 4 p, 242.

The Auspicious Symbols that Adorned the Octagonal Monument in the Premises of the Pacinatissa-Pabbata Wihara at Amuradhapura
By T. B. Karunaratna, B. A., Dip. Ed.
The ruins of the Pacinatissa-pabbata Wihara, popularly knows is the palacc of Prince Saliya, are situated beside the high level stice of Nuwaraveva tank. At thc four corners of the roughly Ladrangular platform, enclosed by a large moat, are the remains Tour shrines. In C45 when the late Dr. Semarat Paranavitana was carrying out excavations at this site he canic across the Westiges of an octagonal structure to the south-east corner of the architecit ral complex. Commenting on the findings of this monument Pala navitana says, " .. , lying on the platform and debris close by were three stone car wings in relief of auspicious objects. One had il representation of a chank, another of the double fish, and a third fill object like a stool. Perhaps on the platform Wee placed basrelief carvings of the eight auspicious objects (in Skt. as rarfargala; in Sinhalese at arrangala). Apart from this brief note he has not recorded any other information pertaining to this discovery.
Dr. Parana wittina's observation that the thrcc symbols, chank, dubic fish and the stool are part of thc cight auspicious objects asraniagala) is acceptable. However, he had not mentioned what the remaining symbols of this a starrangala are. Nor has he recorded the exact positions and the directions these objects were
I. Archaeological Survey of Ceylon, Annual Report A. S. C., A.R.), 1945, p. 123. University of Ceyron History of Ceylon (U. C. H. C.), vol. I, pt. 1. pp. 753 - ճ4,
S CLLL HLHHL LLL LLLLL LllL LLLLL aLLLLL tHLLLLLLL L LLaaLLLL LLLLHH LLLLLLtLLLLLLL L0 symbols constituting thc as tamangala (atamangala), see the following references - Wijesinha, L, C, The Mahavamsa, I837, p. xx, Geiger, W. The Maha yansa, (Tr). Colombo, p. 185, n, ; Sinhala Sabda Kosaya, Published by the Cultural Department of Ceylon, s. v. Atdmanifold. Coomaraswamy, A. K., Mediaevo Sinhalese Art, Broad Compdon, Gloucestershire, 1908, (Second Edition, New York, 1956), pp. 271 - 272, See als p. 4, n“.; 5fkhawasanda ha Srkhawalanda Winisa, ed. D. B. Jaya Lilaka, 1924, p. 75; Sikha walanda, ed. Wcn Medaluya ngoda Wimalakirthi Thero, 1955, pp. 95 and 163; The Etymological-Dictionary of the, Sinhalese language, Published by the Oultural Departinent of Sri Lanka. 0S CS CCMTTTS T TTMOKL LTLLtLLCCCCC CS S LaCLaaaS S 00LS0S C atamangala; Wijesekera, N, Early Sinhalese Sculpture, Colombo, 1962, p. 170.

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discovered in relation to the octagonal structure. In the opinion of the present writer this information is vital for a proper evaluation of this discovery.
The three auspicious objects under consideration are carved on rectangular slabs of stone. Although these slabs are not uniform in their dimensions, there in no doubt of the fact that they form a homogeneous group. Along the four sides of each of these rectangular stone slabs there is a border roughly 2 1/2 inches in breadth, framing the symbol represented in low relief in the centre (Figs. l. 2 and 3).
The most important feature about these three symbols is their location in relation to the remains of the octagonal structure with which they are associated. The eight sides of the platform, it must be noted,are facing the eight directions-the four cardinal points and the four intermediate points of the compass. Leading to the four sides facing the directions, north, east, south and west of the monument, there are four flights of steps, thus one could approach the shrine from any one of these directions. The stone slab showing the chank is presently lying in the northern side within the octagonal platform. The remaining two slabs showing the double fish and the stool (tripod), on the other hand, lie on the ground in close proximity to the platform in the directions south-east and north-east respectively (Fig. 5). Dr. Paranavitana, under whose expert guidance the excavations as well as the conservation of this monument has been carried out, must have seen to it that the stone slabs were allowed to remain where they were found. Moreover, it is certain that these heavy stone slabs have not been moved out ever since they were unearthed. On the assumption that these symbols are lying in the directions they were originally installed by those who planned and constructed this monument (which is very likely), the order they occupy in the respective directions is very significant as it will be shown in the sequel.
The astamangala of the Sinhalese, as I have pointed out elsewhere, are srivatsa (Sinh. Sirivasa), camara (fly whisk), ankusa (elephant goad), matsyayugala (double fish), svastika, bhadrapitha (auspicious seat) usually represented as a tripod, sankha (chank)

AUSPCIOUS SYMEBOLS 71
and purnaghata (brimming vessel)3 (See Fig. 6). This group of astamangala, it must be mentioned, is different from that of the Hindus, Jains and the Mahayana Buddhists of Nepal and Tibet.4 It is also different from the groups of symbols the Sinhalese of recent times have generally regarded as a stamangala. The eight auspicious symbols referred to above are representative of the eight directions, east, south-east, south, South-west, west, northwest, north and north-east respectively. The three symbols, the double fish, stool (tripod) and the chank recovered from Pacinatissa-pabbata Vihara, it will be seen, are identical with the matsya - yugala, bhadrapitha and the sankha of the astamangala of the ancient Sinhalese. Morcover, they are represented in the appropriate directions according to the Sinhalese reckoning, a fact that is very important in understanding the significance of this monument. With the assistance of the available information it is possible to arrive at the conclusion that the three symbols under consideration are what remains of a group of astamangala symbols similar to those depicted on the stone slabs recovered from Anuradhapura and other ancient sites (Fig. 6." If this assumption is correct, stone slabs of similar design depicting the remaining symbols, namely srivatsa, camara, ankusa, svastika anu purnaghata must have adorned the appropriate sides of the octagonal platform. In this connetion it is appropriate to draw the attention of the reader to a slab of stone (17' x 15') similar in design to those already discussed. representing a swastika found among the ruins of another shrine exactly to west of the octagonal platform. As the syastika
3. Karunaratne, T. B., Astamangala (The Eight Auspicious Symbols) Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, New Series (J. C. B. R. A. S., N. S.), vol. XV, pp. 48 - 75.
4. Ibid, pp. 48 - 49; see also Coomaraswamy, A. K., Notes on Indian Coins and Symbols, Ostasiestische Zeitschrift, N. E. IV, 1927-28
explanation of plates (Tafel) 23 and 25. See also text Fig. A; Wayman, A., The Buddhist Tantras, New York, 1973, p. 108.
See note 2.
J. C. B. R. A. S., N. S., vol. XV, p. 58. , Ibid, vol. XV, pp. 48 - 75 and vol. XVII, pp. 46 - 5.
Uduwara, J., A.Guide to the Ancient Monuments of Anuradhapura,Published by the Anuradhapura PreservationBoard, 1972.S.V.Pacinatissa-Pabbata Vihara.

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is the symbol that should be represented in the west, this slab of stone must have in all probability adorned the western side of the octagonal structure. After the collapse of the shrine some one must have removed it to the present site. In like manner slabs of Stone representing other symbols too had been removed elsewhere and are not traceable. Thus originally the eight sides of the octagonal platform of this monument must have displayed the stone slabs depicting eight auspicious symbols srivatsa, (E}, camara (S. E), ankusa (S), matsyayugala (S. W), svastika(W), bhadrapitha (N.W), sankha (N) and purnaghata (N, E).
The representation of the eight auspicious symbols on the eight sides of this monument is important, for this is the only instance so far discovered where the astamangala are represented in the appropriate directions. It is true that we have arrived at the same conclusion earlier as well. But that was not SQ much on archaeological evidence as on literary evidence of a very late period in time. The astamangala under consideration was prevalent in Sri Lanka during the latter half of the Anuradhapura period (6th to 10th cent. A. C.).9 There is no evidence to show that this particular group of astamangala symbols was in vogue after the Polonnaruva period. However, texts on Bali ritual giving the iconographical details of planetary deities, written during the late medieval period (16th to 18th cent. A. C.), show that the very same symbols, sirivatsa, (sirivasa), camara (valvidunava), anikusa (henduva), matsya-yugala (remasa), svastika ornandyavarta (nandavata), bhadrapitha (bhadada pitha (badavelu), sankha (saka) and purnaghata (kalasa) were considered as the emblems of the eight main planetary divinities of the Sinhalese namely, Riyi - Sun (E), Sikuru - Venus (S. E), Kuja - Mars (S), Rahu - Accending node of the moon (S.W.), Sani - Saturn (W), Sandu - Moon (N. E.), Buda - Mercury (N) and Guru Jupiter (N. E.) respectively.10 It is on this evidence that the eight auspicious symbols were considered as representing the eight directions. Of the astamangala figures and groups so far discovered,
9. Karunaratne, T. B. The Astamangala Figure on an Attani Pillar of Sena II from Kivulekada, Sri Lanka, Senarat Paron yaitana . Commamoretion Volume (S. P. C. V.), Studies in South Asian Culture, vol. VF, Leiden. 1978, p. 111.
10. J. C. B. R. A. S,. N., S.. vol. XV p. 58; see also Pl. V, Fig, 34,

AUSPCIOUS SYMBOLS 73
except one, the rest are in various museums or in private collections dislodged from their original situations. Looking at them in their present resting places one cannot possibly determine the exact directions a particular symbol was facing originally. It is indeed very unfortunate that none of those who discovered these objects thought of recording the directions the symbols in them were facing at the time of their discovery. The Kivulekada astajnangala figure which is reproduced on the top most portion of an attani pillar bearing an inscription of Sena I alone provides us with the important clue that when the astamangala is represented on a flat vertical surface the srivatsa symbol should be shown in the middle of the top row of symbols. Here too, however, there is no indication of the direction in which it is facing.
The garbhapatra (so called yantragal), the compartmented stone vessels containing ritual objects, buried below the lotus pedestals of the Buddha images and in the relic chambers of ancient stupas, are the other archaeological objects that could have shed a flood of light on this problem. There is evidence that along with other ritual objects the eight auspicious symbols of the astamangala group under consideration, were deposited in these vessels.12 In one instance, that is at Bunnehapola in Udabaddava in Kurunegala District, a garbhapatra containing only the eight auspicious symbols arranged in the appropriate order was discovered. Unfortunately, those who discovered this unique object had not thought it necessary to record the directions in which the symbols were deposited in the respective holes of the garbhapatra before the vessel was removed from the original site for safe - keeping. Thus we have lost a rare opportunity of ascertaining the directional relationship of these symbols on purely archaeological evidence. 13. It is in this respect that the Pacinatissa - pabbata Vihara findings, although in a fragmentary condition, come to our help. Here is an octagonal monument on the eight sides of
11. S. P. C. W. pp. 104 - 115. 12. J. C. R. A. S., N. S. vol. XV, pp. 55 - 58, see also P1. II, Figs. 3 - 13
13. Karunaratne, T. B., “Garbhapatra (Yantraga) - The Ritual Deposit Vessels of Ancient Shrines in Sri Lanka' - Paper accepted for publication in Ancient Ceylon, Bulletin of the Archaeological Survey of Sri Lanka. No. 5.

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74 JoURNAL, R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) vol. XXV. (N.S) 1980-8
which the astamangala symbols were represented and of which at least three are still found in the directions they were originally displayed. Basing ourselves on this evidence we can arrive at the conclusion that Pacina-tissa-pabbata Vihara findings provide us with concrete evidence that the eight auspicious symbols of the ancient Sinhalese were associated with the eight directions of the compass in the following order: Srivatsa - east, camara - southeast, ankusa - south, matsya yugala - south-west, swastika - west, bhadrapitha - north-west, Sankha - north and purnaghata - northeast.
Now it is quite clear that the octagonal form of the monument and the stone slabs representing the eight auspicious symbols (of which only four now remain) are interrelated. The astamangala, it must be remembered, is a composite symbol of which the significance is equally complex. It is a symbol of good luck, prosperity, fertility and power, and iconographically it is related to Sridevi in her manifestation of emerging from the Milky Ocean or the Lake Anavatapta.14 The astamangala as an abstract and elaborate version of Sridevi motif is associated with kingly or even divine splendour. A consecrated king is usually described as associated with Raja Laksmi-kingly splendour. Manasara mentions that it should be depicted on the crowns of kings and the Sinhalese kings had it engraved along with royal edicts. The astamangala is also a cosmic mandala, a replica of the world.17. It is a graphic representation of the magic lake Anavatapta, the centre, the nave (nabhi) of the world. Moreover, this mythical lake represents the primordial waters from which the world evolved in the guise of a cosmic lotus at the beginning of a world cycle (kalpa).8
A study of the astamangala figures discovered so far shows that they are representative of the mythical lake Anavatapta. The lotus
14. S. P. C. V., p. 2.
15. Acharya, P. K., The Architecture of Manasara, Allahabad. 1933, ch.XLIX,
vv. 151 - í54.
16. S. P. C. V., pp. 1 17 ff. 17. J. C. B. R. A. S., N. S., vol. XV, p. - 69.
18. Coomaraswamy, A. K., Elements of Buddhist lconography, Cambridge
1935, p. 7 n. 40.

AUSPICIOUS SYMEBOLS - 75
or lotus derivatives, or a shallow depression around which the eight auspicious symbols are arranged confirms this assumption.9 But in this instance the eight auspicious symbols have been associated with a monument identified as a stupa.20 Now the question arises as to what connection a stupa, an arcitectural monument has with the concept of the mythical lake Anavatapta? In this respect it must be mentioned that the world mountain Mahameru is considered as arising from the centre of the MilkyOcean represented in art as a lotus lake. The four beasts, the elephant, bull, horse and the lion, which, as is well known, are associated with the mythical lake Anavatapta and have been considered as adjuncts of the mountain Mahameru as well. The same four animals, it must be mentioned, are associated with a unique astamangala relief recovered from a building in the premises of Ruvanveli Dagoba at Anuradhapura, 21 It is said that at the investitur ceremony of thế nineteenth century monarch of Siam, king Chulalongkorn, a replica of the world mountain Meru complete with the four animal head gargoyles- i. e. that of the elephant, bull, horse and the lion-at the four cardinal points of the campass, was constructed. The monarch, it is said, was anointed at these four animal head gargoyles. Commenting on this edifice Benjamin Rowland says, “The artificial hill in Bangkok was the world mountain Meru, according to ancient mythology towering like a pillar between earth and
19. See J. C. B. R. A. S. N., S. vol., XV pp. 71 - 72, Figs. 1 and 2, vol. XVII
pp. 53 and 54 Figs. 1 & 2. ・
20. Prematilleke, P. L. and Roland Silva, Artibus Asiae. vol. III No. 1, 1968, p. 61. Bandaranayake, S., Sinhalese Monastic Architecture. (Studies in South Asian Culture),, vol. IV, Leiden, 1974. p. 73.
21. J. C. B. R. A. S., N. S. vol. XV, pp. 52 - 53, and PT. I. At the time of writing this paper was not aware of the exact provenance of this stone slab. But now it can with certainty be said that it is this piece of sculpture that Beli found in 1900 inside a building in the south - east corner of the inner enclosure of Ruwanvalisaya in Anuradhapura; see A. S. C., A. R., 1900, p. 3. He says. “Inside this building was found a unique slab 3ft. 2 inches Square with suggestive carvings. At the centre is cut a full blown lotus and around the margin of the top surfaee a band containing the swastika and other Buddhist emblems beside a pair of the four animals familiar on elaborate moonstones, facing each other at the middle of each side'. Since we are now awar of the exact provenance of this magnificent piece sculpture, here after it will be referred to as "Ruvanvalisaya astamangala'.

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heaven; the four beasts stood for four quarters and the four rivers of the world, so that the whole structure was a kind of replica of the world system. . . Various early legends identify these creatures with the four great rivers that flow from the four openings of a magic lake situated at the world's navel in the Himalayas.'22 It is evident here that the world mountain Meru has been considered as arising from the centre of the mythical lake Anavatapta, which is equated with the Milky Ocean, and the premordial waters.
The amalgamation of the two concepts associated with the world mountain Meru and the magic lake Anavatapta is reflected in a number of architectural monuments in ancient Sri Lanka and in the countries of the South-east Asia. The four beasts adorn the four vahalkadas of ancient stupas in Sri Lanka. According to Paranavitana the figures of elephants, bulls, horses and lions, a pair of each kind, adorn the four vahalkadas of Kanthaka cetiya at Mihintale23. Figurines of the same four animals were found deposited at the four porches of a monument in the premises of Vijayarama in Anuradhapura. 24 At Neak Pean in Cambodia there is a well preserved monument representing the mythical lake Anavatapta, complete with the four animal head gargoyles in the four cardinal points of the compass. One special feature of this monument is the towering structure constructed on a seven stepped platform surmounted by a fully opened lotus right in the middle of the lake.2. This monument clearly displays the consummation of the syncretistic tendency that had been at work in respect of the two concepts, the world mountain Meru and the magic lake Anavatapta.
On the basis of the evidence cited above, we can arrive at the conclusion that the stupa that stood on the octagonal platform adorned with the eight auspicious symbols was conceived as the world mountain Meru, the axis of the world arising from the mythical lake Anavatapta, the latter representing the primeval
22. Rowland, B., The Art and Architecture of India, Penguin Books (2nd ed.)
1956, p. 4). 23. Paranavitana, S., The Stupa in Ceylon. A. S. C. Mem. vol. V, Colombo,
pp. 54 - 55. s 24. A. S. C., A. R., 1891 (Sessional Paper xxxvi - 1904), p. 4. see foot note 25. Rowland, op. cit, pp. 229 - 230, see also Pl. 152 B.

ו 7
waters from which the world originated. This reminds us of the Mahavansa ccount of the model Bodhi Tree that was placed in the centre of the relic chamber of the Maha Thupa. The trunk of the Bodhi Tree, it is said, was adorned with the eight auspicious symbols (Atthamangalaika), 26 Here again the Bodhi Tree under which the Buddha attained Enlighteninent, has been considered as standing in the eentre of the world (cf. Bodhi Mandala). In the account of the construction of the Lohapasada, it is said the silver staff of the umbrella that shaded the Buddha image was placed in the central chamber, too was embellished with the eight auspicious symbols. 27. In this instance too the umbrella, like the Bodhi Tree to which mention has been already made, has been conceived as standing in the centre of the world.
Apart from the literary evidence of the use of astainangalaon various objects, there is concrete evidence to show that this group of symbols had been a popular mede of decoration in ancient Sri Lanka. For instance bronze and terra cotta vessels have been adorned with the astamangala in a meaningful manner. 2 A potsherd recovered from Abhayagiri (Jetavanarama according to Paranavitana) ruins, showing a svastika incorporated into a decorative border, is in all probability all that rennains of an astamangla that adorned the rim of a basin-like vessel:9. Now that an architectural monument too has been adorned with this group of symbols, it can be surmised that a good many of our ancient monuments, particularly those of the latter half of the Anuradhapura period, must have been embellished with them. A stucco sankha from Pankuliya Building No. 21 also could be a remanant of an astamangala representation on a building.80
In conclusion it can be said that whenever the Sinhalese depicted the astamangala figure they considcred it as representing
27. Ibid., 27.37.
28. Karunaratne, T. B., “A Bronze Vessel Adorned with the Eight Auspicious Symbols in the Colombo Museum, P. E. P. Deraniyagola Commemoration Volume, (Sri Lanka, 1980), pp. 230 - 236.
29. A. S. C. A. R., 1893, pp. 4 and 5; see also A. S. C. A. R., Plans and Plates for Annual Report, 1893 (Eleventh Report). Pi. XII, Fig. 6.
30. A. S. C. A. R., 1892, p. 5 see also Plans and Plates for A. S. C. A. R.
1892 (Tenth Report), Pl XXXVIII, Fig 15.

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78
the centre of the world. Thus any object, be it a stupa as in the case of the monument under consideration at Pacinatissa-Pabbata Vinara, a shrine housing a Buddha image, a Bodhi Tree, or even a pillar (indakhila) when adorned with the astamangala figure, it was considered as standing in the very centre of the world, nay the universe itself. In the rituals associated with the popular cults of the Sinhalese in later times the astamangala (atamangala) assumed a the form of a highly stylised geometrical diagram. Even there this concept of the centre, the nave (nabi) of the world
associated with this symbol has been perpetuated.3
According to Mahavamsa the Paci natissa-Pabbta Vihara was built by King Jetthatissa I, who reigned from 263 to 273 A. C. 32. This however, does not mean that the octagonal structure under considerations is a work of the 3rd or 4th century A. C. Aceording to Senaka Bandaranayake the constructions, of which the ruins now remaing. belong to the period 5th century A. C. 33 The astamangala that embellished the octagonal monument at this site too may be considered as belonging to the same period of
time.
31. Coomaraswamy, op. cit.", p. 72. 32. U. H. C. H., vol, II, pt. , p. 92. 33 Bandaranayake, op. cit. pp. 212 n. änd p. 213.

PLATE
.
EXPLANATON OF FIGURES
Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 4.
Sankha - conch shell, (24' x 23'). Found on the platform of the octagonal monument on the northern side.
Bhadrapitha - the auspicious seat, (32’x 24''). Found in the north-western
side in close proximity to the octagonal Structure.
Matsya-yugala-the double fish, (24'x22') Found on the south - western side in close proximity to the octagonal monument.
Svastika - (17' x 15'), Found among the ruins of another building to the west of
the octagonal monument.
(Figures over leaf) -

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《
 

PLATE. I.
EXPLANATION OF FIGURES
Fig. 5.
Fig. 6.
A sketch of the octagonal monument at Pacinatissa-pabbata Vihara showing the positions in which the three stone slabs depicting (A) sankha, (B) bhadrapitha, and (C) matsya yugala were lying. After a sketch by me on my visit to the site on 29th Sept. 1974.
A stone trough showing the eight auspi
cious symbols of the ancient Sinhalese.
Compare the placement of the symbols sankha, bhadrapitha and the matsya-yugala (in this instance a single fish) with the corresponding symbols found in association with the octagonal structure in the Pacinatissa - pabbata Vihara premises. The identification of the symbols in clock
wise order of is as follows :- sankha
punrnaghata, sirivatsa, camara (highly stylised), ankusa, matsya-yugala, svastika and bhadrapitha. This object is now in the Archaeological Museum at Anuradhapura.
(Figures over leaf)

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}, 60× žộ 乡
 

Mysterious and Elegant Urinal Stones by Pinna Indorf School of Architecture, University of Singapore
In the seresae setting of a Buddhist monastery at Kelaniya, famous for its historic stapa and dominated by a truly majestic Bodhi Tree, my attention was directed to a collection of decorated stones, some carved more elaborately, some more simply but all rather elegant. The surprising explanation coming from the venerable bhikkhu acting as our host and guide was that these were urinal stones from ancient monasteries in the island of Sri Lanka. He was unable to tell us more than that and the puzzle of why they were so decorative remained. What was even more puzzling was the fact that many were decorated with shrines carved in basrelief, the door of the shrine being the very functional hole without which these stones could not have served as urinals. It seemed quite sacrilegious. The mystery remained as I travelled around the island and saw more examples and later read various books on the art and architecture of Sri Lanka. If attention was given to these urinal stones at all, it was usually passed over quickly. Rahula went so far as to say 'no satisfactory explanation regarding these urinal stones has yet been offered." Recently while reading the very excellent work Sinhalese Monastic Architecture by Senake Bandaranayake, I came across his remarks, with reference to the padhanaghara pariyenas,4 on
1. For example Paranavitana, Senerat, Sinhalayo, Lake House investments'
Ltd., Colombo, 1967, p. 35. 2. Rahula, Walpola, History of Buddhism in Ceylon, M. D. Gunasena and Co., Ltd., Colombo, 1956. p. 134 n. 3. He also refers to the Archaeological Survey of Ceylon, Vol. I, p. 56. 3. Vol. IV of Studies in South Asian Culture edited for the Institute of South Asian Archaeology, University of Amsterdam by J. E. van Lohuizen-de Leeuw, Amsterdam, 1974, hereafter referred to as Bandaranayake. 4. The term is applied by Bandaranayake to a Sinhalese monastic compound in which the central building is made up of two parts, i. e. a pasada (rectangular residential structure which may also have served some ceremonial function as well) or a kuti (which in Sinhalese architecture is a square. strictly residential structure) and a malaka (terrace or platform) thought to have been open to the sky or covered with only the lightest of structures. The two parts were connected by a kind of stone bridge. This central structure was encircled by a will which formed a rectangular court. Outside this court were various structures thought to have been both houses, dining halls, etc. Attached to the inner face was a cankamana, an elevated walkway.

Page 53
LIFRINA SIONES
"::: curious featurc. . . uri hal stones in variably placed in a positiori of some importance in the Hortheast sector of the courtyard. . ."
This was my first introduction to the urinal stones in their original context, Their location in the main courtyard, het wcem the steps of the malaka and thc car karmara, implies that this Feature ılıight lia ve hid Some ritual significance. Bandar;Lnayake goes in to review wirious speculative explanations for the presence of decorative LIrinal stonics in an otherwise austere architectural setting. These theories range from ascribing to The Irinal som cs, il simple lecorative function to ascribing them i ritual function.“ Hc states that Hocart saw them Eis cvidcncc that in; tural functions by the monks must have been regarded in the light of I holy rite", comparable to excretory practices prevalent in Tibet and somewhat weakly supported by an incident Fecorded in the Mfalla var FF 2.Sd7. * The stones hawe also been explained is an expression of cynicism. The possibility of decorative urinal stones serving as : symbolic rejection of elaboratic irchitectural form for El Intre a listere ascetic life was mentioned is well. Banda Tanayake's own explanation is that it could be in expression of, and expurgation of, guilt by an order aware s : contradiction betwern its ascetic aspirations and the extravagant, formal layout of its monastic facilities. He also mikts, cference Lo Silva's suggestion im a thcsis in preparation at these urinal stones functioned as "instruments of meditative ritists." He did not explain Silva's theory further and, thus, I lo mot know if my own thoughts on this subject CorTespond with Silva's or not. The location of thic urinal stones in the filia aghara pariyenas as described by Bandaranayake and shown in the plans immediately convinced me that this was the key to inderstanding Lheir existence and elaborate decoration as it implies use during meditation practice,
3. Bandaranayake, p. 122.
. pp. 132-133 S LLLLLLGLCKLLLSLLL aaaLLLLLS LlHHHH LLLLLS LLLLLLLLeTLkLk K LLkTCCTT TTLkCC
of Ceylon, vol. i. p. 56
3. Bandari F1 yake, p. 133
է", Ibiderll r. Thc lucation was not really clear from the plans alonic due to insufficient labels or a key. A subscquent visit to the Western Monasteries in Anuradhapura has confirmed my interpretation of the plans,

H „JfbljNAL. R. A. S. SIR E. ANKA) Wal", XXW (rN. 5) / 780-F !
The Pariharings are a rive as have been fairly conclusively Associated with the Paisakulikas, an ascetic sect which practiced meditation. The elaborate urinal stones have been found primarily in connection with the Farlalaghar Parivers, cither as isolated Imonastic units (T incorporated in other monasteries know it have becil associated with the Pamsakulikas, 2 The layout of the padhar fagli era per riverzas appear as the ultimate expression of a very strict and intensive meditation practice, developed perhaps to the point that it qualifies as a ritual.
Based oil a certain interprelation of various canonical texts ald Commentaries, a systeil of Ileditatic Il practice has evolved, and is in popular use today in Sri Lanka, Burma and Thailand. Given the traditional nature of the religion, it seems possible that it could have been in Lise in ancient Sri Lanka as well. The practice Centers around the activities of alternately sitting in a particular posture for a period of time while concentrating on an object of meditation and then walking back and forth, being aware of the body's position, notion etc. while Walking. This practice draws support from various texts such as the Satipatthana Sutta (Majfirra Nikaya, Sutta No. 10) and the nullcrus references in oth: suttas and thc commentaries to the activities of the monks, They are often referred to as going to the foot of a tree and sitting, with crossed legs, in meditation or walking back and forth mindfully. In the SatipatthaLIna Suttal there js reference te being mindsul of the body in all four positions, viz. sitting, walking, standing and lying down. The overall objective of such practice is to develop alwareness of all realities, lo and I'll edital lors participating in a sessioni of intensive practice are instructed not to limit the development of awareness to just the period of formal sitting and walking only. but to be aware at all times no matter what they are doing, whether it is eating, getting rcady for bed, lying down just before going to
11. Вапdягапяyяke, p. p. IIб-ІІ8
11. Tbilem
1. The right practice of Buddhist Ineditation (bhavano) is a mental develop. ment aimed at cleansing the mind of all impurities (Rahula, Walpol. What the Buddhd Tought, Gordon Fraser, Bedford, 1972, p. 67). This - achieved by right understanding of realitics (the five aggregates it khandhas) as they arisc moment by Toment (van Gorkon, Nini, Abhidhammd in Daily Life, Dhamma Study Group, Bangkok, 1975, ch , p. 12-20), not by a fixed routine practice or ritual.

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URNAL STONES 82
sleep, bathing or even answering the call of nature. It is reasonable to think that such a routine, or ritualized practice, could have developed very early, as has been explained by Acharn Sujin Boriharnwanaket.14 Before the days when the written texts were readily available for study and it was not yet necessary for monks to study Pali, there was relatively little for monks to do once they had gone on their alms round (pindapata) and attended to their daily chores. It was not always possible for them to find a good teacher or listen to a discourse or discussion. Those monks whose understanding of the teaching regarding right practice was weak would then simply imitate the action of others without understanding the reason for what they were doing. Thus, a regimented system of sitting and walking practice could have arisen and become ritualized, emphasizing the posture and the posture and the pattern of the practice. 15 The padhanaghara parivena seems to be extremely well-suited to such a practice, with the kuti or pasada for sleeping and the malaka for sitting meditation conveniently, symbolically located in the centre and surrounded by the cankamana for walking meditation. -
The majority of the meditators' waking hours would be spent alternately sitting on the malaka and walking on the cankamana. The calmness and regularity of this practice provides a rhythmic pattern of activity very conducive to a certain level of concentration.6 From my own experience with this practice, I know that
14. Well known Dhamma teacher in Bangkok (Acharn meaning teacher) who currently gives regular lectures at Wat Bovoraneves, Bangkok and whose talks are broadcast daily over the radio.
15. As has been pointed out by Rahula (op. cit., 1972, p. 67), "it is unfortunate that hardly any other section of the Buddha's teachings is so much misunderstood as “meditation', both by Buddhists and non-Buddhists.' He further states that “this subject was so wrongly, or so little understood that in later times the way of “meditation' deteriorated and degener, ated into a kind of ritual or ceremony almost technical in its routine. citing the 18th century Ceylonese text The Yogavacara's Manual as proof It is significant to note that in the Satipatthana Sutta', it is only for meditating with breath as an object tmat any position is mentioned (Rahula, Ibidem, p. 69). Acharn Sujin Boriharnwanaket has explained this as reference to already existing practices rather than instructions to the Buddha's followers on a new practice.
16. "A level of concentration' is not to be confused with the aim of right practice of Satipatihana nor to be understood as the means to that end

83 JOURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) vol. XXV. (N.S.) 1980-81
to be forced to break the pattern and rhythm of activity by leaving the compound to answer the call of nature is disruptive to the period of concentration. What could be more logical than to include a urinal inside the courtyard very conveniently located between the steps leading down from the malaka and the end so to speak, of the cankamana?" This would allow the meditator to answer the call of nature within the rhythmical pattern of his sitting - walking practice. To decorate the urinal stone with bas reliefs of shrines would serve as a reminder that he should be developing awareness at all times.
One may ask why, then, were not bathing and eating facilities also treated as part of the main courtyard? There were, in fact, some pools included in some of the main couryards of padhanaghara parivenas's which could perhaps have been used for bathing, but there is not exactly the same necessity as with urinals. The activities of bathing and eating can be easily regulated; a period of sitting-walking meditation ends and is followed by the activity of going to the dining hall, eating and then returning to the court yard to begin another period of sitting-walking practice. That is, a period of eating or bathing can be treated as a unified period of practice, with its own pattern or rhythm, but the unpredictable call of nature is very likely to interrupt a period of sitting-walking practice. The location and design of the urinal seems aimed at minimizing this interruption.
Whether or not the urinal stunes were actually more decorated than were the structures, now vanished, which rested on the bases which remain or whether those structures were plain or decorated with fragile materials is not really known, but many of the urinal srones show what is in fact a very simple shrine and others show more elaborate shrines. Their varying degrees of elaborateness could be a clue to the varying degrees of decorativeness of the now vanished buildings of the compound. In keeping with the role of
17. Where the cankamana is interrupted by the doorway and porch, also a
logical place to begin or end the period of walking.
18. Westem Monastery D, fig. 34; E, fig. 35; H, fig. 38, etc., Bandaranayake
p. p. 103-115.

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LEN.A. I. STL jNHS
he decoration as a reminder to the meditator th:Ll even such Fowly activity was part of the practice, it would seeii1 necessat for a urinal stone to be aut lcast aus decorative, perh:1ps a bit M14 Tso, than the rest of the compould.
While this explanation, like the others, cannot clain ll be anything more than speculation, it secrlis illuch more in keeping with Theravadin doctrine and practice than Tost of those mentioned above. Hocart's support of his theory of excrclo's ritual related to the urinal stones by citing Tibet:LT practic's could imply that decorated urinal stones were associated only with padhanaghara pariyenas with Mahayana influence. While it is not possible on the evidence given by Bandariinayake" to
completely rule out that possibility, the Pamsakulikas, definitely
associated with the padhalaghara Pari velas", were also definitely associated with the Mahavihara, El monastcry recognized as thc stronghold of orthodox Therevadin doctrine. Cynicisill, disrespect, guilt, expressed or implicit in various other explanal
tions, have no real place in Theravadin practice. These
characteristics are recognized by Theravadin teachings as simply unwholesome aku sala) states of mind which should not be encouraged, much less knowingly, purposefully ritualized. Central to Theravadin doctrine and practicc is the development of awareness of all realities, i.e., the development of Saffraffriars, which can occur at any time, even when using one of these mysterious elegant stoncs,
19. Bandaranayak does not state that all padhanaghara parivena had
dcorsted urinlsto: Ordo all illustrated plan5 cm) halve thm though this may only mean that ruins of urinal stones were not found in situ.
20, See abOY p. E4.
2. Banda Tunayak, p. 116

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Page 56

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Page 57

Beliefs and Observances of the Sinhalese
Associated With Birth
By Dr. N. D. Wijesekera. B. A. (Hons) LOND., B. A. (Tripos) Cantab., M. A. (Cantab), Ph. D. (Cal).
Birth is a natural biological process accepted by the community as a matter of course. Various reasons are given by the people for having children. Women of more developed societies adduce a host of reasons for not having children or limiting their number. But among the less advanced people birth is a phenomenon of considerable wonder and importance. The folk tales preserve Some information regarding the lack of real understanding in regard to conception and birth. It may be that this subject was purposely avoided as being inappropriate. A few explanations are given when the question of how children are born is posed by children or adults. The children are told that the babies are brought from elsewhere either picked up or given. In the West the stork is said to bring babies. The elders say it is the work of gods. In the less developed societies addition of children to a family was welcome and even desired. Manpower was considered an asset. That is why in primitive societies head hunters captured women because they were bearers of children and a potential source of wealth.
It may be interesting to consider some primitive beliefs regarding birth, These differ from area to area and ethnic group to ethnic group.
Homeopathic or imitative magic is employed to destroy people. It is used to make men or women sterile or fertile. The Services of magicians (Kattadiyas) are commissioned to facilitate delivery of babies and even to procure offspring for barren women.3
Among the Bataks of Sumatra a barren woman who would desire to become a mother will get a wooden image
1. according to the traditional beliefs found among the rural folk of
Sri Lanka.
2. J. G. Frazer, Golden Bough 1933 p. 14

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86 JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N.S.) 1980-8
made and hold it in her lap believing that this will lead to the fulfilment of her wish.
In the Bahar Archipelago when a woman desires to have a child she invites a father of a large family to pray to Upulero, the spirit of the Sun. Prayer and sacrifice are added to the ceremony. That means magic and religion combine to fulfil one's objective. In Sri Lanka a man or woman desiring to have a child offers an image of a child at a Devale and beseeches gods direct or through a Kapurala to bestow a child 3
Among the Dyaks of Borneo when a woman is in hard labour a wizard is called who essays to manipulate the body of the suffering woman to facilitate delivery in a rational manner. Meantime another wizard outside the labour room exerts himself to attain the same and in an irrational manner, thus: a large stone attached to his stomach by a cloth wrapt around his body represents the child in the womb. He follows the directions shouted to him by his colleague inside the room. He moves the make - believe baby in exact imitation of the movement of the baby in the womb until the infant is born. The same principle of simulation of birth is adopted as a mode of restoring a dead person to life for legal and other purposes. If one pretends to give birth to a boy or even a bearded man in such a case, then in the eyes of primitive law and philosophy that boy or man is one's son.4
When Zeus persuaded his jealous wife Hera to adopt Hercules, the goddess got into bed, and clasping the baby hero to her bosom pushed him through her robes and let him fall to the ground in imitation of a real birth.5 The same method of adopting children was practised by barbarians. At the present time it is said to be in use in Bulgaria, among the Bosnian Turks and the Beranans of Sarawak. In ancient Greece a man who was supposed to be erroneously
3. Selalihini Sandesaya, Verse 103.
4. J. G. Frazer, Golden Bough p. 15. 5. ibid.

BELIEFS ASSOCATED WITH BRTH 87.
dead was treated likewise. The man had to pass through a woman's lap, crawl from behind between her legs and be pushed through her robes etc. In ancient India the supposed dead man had to pass the night in a tub filled with a mixture of fat and water. He remained silent while over him were poured all the sacraments that were spread over a pregnant woman. Next morning he got out of the tub.
Apart from these, imitative magic is used to annul an unlucky hour or day of a new born. In some lands (Madagascar) this form of cheating is reduced to a regular system. If the day of birth is unlucky a man's house will be burnt when he comes of age. To avoid such a catastrophe his friends will erect a shed and burn it. If the new born is destined to be poor it can be averted by purchasing a couple of pearls and burying them, If one is born to sorrow such a fate can be avoided by taking the lid of a boiling pot and wearing it.
In folk tales it is believed that the life of a person is bound up with the life of a plant. If the plant withers the life of this person will fade out. In western Africa when two children are born on the same day two trees of the same kind are planted. In Russia, Germany, England and France there are families who still plant a tree at the birth of a child. This practice is sometimes observed in Lanka. It is customary to plant a tree on a grave of a person or animal. It is also believed that a bond of sympathy unites man and animals. So the welfare of the one depends on the other i.e. an external soul incarnate in animals. Among the Sinhalese a calf is branded with the letters of the name of the child, acting as it were a dummy to receive any illness or misfortune that may befall the child.
Literary references to ceremonies associated with birth are found in Lanka and these are based on the information given in the classical texts. Actual birth itself is treated with reserve. In the Manusnuriti" (Laws of Manu) detailed mention is made of líne days when husband and wife should have intercourse and the days to avoid union. This presupposes a certain knowledge of the
6, J. G. Frazer, Golden Bough pp. 681 - 2 7. Manusmriti part VI

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rhythm method recommended by modern family planners. A male child was deemed essential to perform the family rites and continue the family line. So naturally a male was preferred. But during Buddha's times no distinction was made between male and female children. In Sinhalese literature this subject is not mentioned. However, among the Sinhalese a preference for males seems evident. This may be due to economic and other factors.
රන් යහනේ සැතපෙන කල බිසවුන්ට පුන් සඳ මඩල- අහසින් ඒ යහන Ea) රන් කඳ ලෙසින් වැඩීයා සුදොවුන් ලඟට තුන් ජාමෙට පෙණුන කල සඳ මඩල මට
Yasodharavata (verse 0) mentions the dreams seen by Mahamaya when sleeping alone in the early hours of the morning. These are many, such as full moon coming down to her couch, a gem entering her womb, silver mountain on the bed guarded by a 1000 maidens, Anotatta lake, a white elephant rubbing the belly, a gold chain put on her neck, a golden star being picked up and it quickly entering the womb and both breasts being full of milk. All these are auspicious signs forecasting an illustrious birth.
When Mahamaya became pregnant, longings arose for giving alms to beggars and to go to the sal grove. Morever she did not feel the weight of the child at all.
කල් දැනුනේ දස කඩ මස පිරුණු තැනේ -
රැල් පුලිනේ බරකුත් බඩට නොදනු නේ මල්පවනේ එන ලෙස සොඳ සිසිල් දැනෙන් -
සල් උයනේදී වද කුමරු බිහි උනේ (Yasodaravata verse 31)
It is believed according to Demonology that certain evil spirits cause barrenness. Among them are the devils of the Kadavara group. Kalukumara too causes barreness in women. He is associated with Rata yaku and is invoked for favours to women.
Huniam yaka causes sterility or illness in pregnancy.
It is also possible to make a barren woman conceive by appeasing the Rata yaku.

BELIEFS ASSOCIATED WITH BRTH 89
Strangely enough the Mahakola Sanniyaka as the apparition of a beautiful woman appears and later assumes the guise of a pregnant woman and then a woman with child. The Kolam Dance has an episode of a pregnant woman and describes her condition, mental disposition etc. Later she appears with a baby and shows, how happy she is. All these indicate the significance and importance of pregnancy and the need to protect the embryo until safe delivery.
Wata Sanniya too affects women.
Kaiukumara makes women childless, causes menstrual disorders and also illness during pregnancy. He torments girls with erotic dreams in which he sleeps with them
In the Ganadevi halle verses 2, 3, 4 given below the descrip
tion of the gestation period of Prince Skanda is vividly recorded thus:
2. ගැබ කුමරු හට ග s
දිනෙන් දින මොjර 25)3 දොළ උපත හට ග 2°)3 රස මියුරු ගෙන දෙ } 3. එ අදාළ සන් සිඳුව 公3
එසත් මස පිරි ග 2s) දෙතන පූඩු කළු වෙ as: කිරි බරින් සිඹ ග 2s)
4. නව සදෙව් රුවි නි ක3 දස එකඩ මස වෙ 恋)3 විලි රදය පහ රී s ගුරු දි නේ බිහි වෙ 公3
To say it in brief; it means the embryo matures daily, longings arise, delicacies are supplied to fulfil them, seven months are completed, nipples become dark and erect, full of milk. Like the beauty of the new moon nine months are completed. Labour pains begin and the child is born. Likewise the birth of a child to Vihara Mahadevi is recorded in the Sinhala Thupai'ansa.9 The story is somewhat exceptional. Vihara Mahadevi had no children
8. P. Wirz, Exorcism and the Art of Healing of the Sinhalese - pp. 34 - 36
9. W. A. Samarasekera (ed.) Thupawansa 1924, pp. 110 - l'11

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for a considerable time. She informed the chief monk who directed her to go to a certain temple and ask an ailing salariera to be born as her child. He refused on two occasions. At the time of the third visit the monk agreed and was conceived in the womb of Wihara Mahadevi. Was there a custom where barren women got ailing Inonks (samaneras) to be born after death as a child in such circumstances? and remain anonymous as a spiritual act of blessing. There was a custom in India where women rubbed their organs on holy stoncs until they had an orgasm in order to get a child.
Several reasons were given by unsophisticated rural parents for having large families. They scencd to be uninformed about the scientific explanation of paternity but they were aware of how birth resulted. We want children to look after us in our old age. All may not survive. All may not look after thic parents. At least a few out of many will survive to provide for us. A male child is necessary to offer to the Sasana and also to attend to fallily ritual. These reasons appcar rational and practical at a time when the death toll from malnutrition, disease and distress was high and poverty was at every door step. Out of a family of 7 - 10 children not more than 50% survived in carly Ceylon,
Successful performance of the scxual act resulting in the birth of a normal baby is the upper most desire of a rural Inan and wife. Inability to realize this expectation earns for both the ignoliny of Sinhala society as being due to misfortune or black magic. Whatever may bc the real reasons for barTenness both are branded as cursed unfortunates whose very sight should be avoided Wows are made by barren folk for obtaining a son, and the child is dedicated to Pattini from the date of a child's birth,
Anxiety begins to develop with first signs of conception. The girl informs her mother or a friend and then the husband. From now on the mother or an aunt acts as confidante and adviser giwing hints from experience and tradition. These vary slightly from family to family. Certain taboos are prescribed and foods are avoided. During the pregnancy the woman spends the early months with her mother under her care and direction.

External House Decoration at Kathiraveli
Eastern Province
Thilo W. Hoffmann Introduction
Some years ago I discovered that each year in Wipril during the New Year period, people at Kathiraveli decorate the exterior of their modest thatched mud and wattle houses in a manner which is as acsthetically pleasing as it is surprising, reflecting a raditional sense of colour and form. Year after year at this time I have visited the village, taking many photographs and speaking to these peoplc. Of late I have noted a considerable deterioration in the quality of the designs. The purpose of this note is firstly to record this unique folk art practised in Sri Lanka only in El Small part of the remote east coast by a tiny group of Tamil - speaking people, and secondly to stimulate study and research by others who would be competent not only to record as I do, but to explain
the origin, the meaning and possible future of this art and րractice.
In April 1975 as I passed in my car through Kathiraveli, I policed a rather strikingly decorated house along the main road and a few more on my return passage. For some days the thought of these houses and their aesthetic impact remained with me and eventually Imade me go back in order to ascertain whct her this was just the impulsive effort of an individual, or whether I had stumbled on a traditional folk art, I soon found out that the latter was indeed the casc. As I drove and walked into the lanes and side lanes of Kathiraveli village onc house after another, altogether perhaps 20, revealed its surprising decorative features
Mud and wattle
These houses are of simple construction and basically of two types. The first is nearly a square (about 22 x 21 ft.) mud and Wattle building with thc thatchel roof extending over the longer front side, thus forming a low open verandah; at its lower CIA di the roof is only 2-3 ft. off the ground (Fig. 1/1). Mostly the house is orientated towards the cast and entrance is normally obtained from the sides at cither end of the verandah. Kitchens are usually separate small buildings in the compound. The typical kitchen is a small shed about 8 x 11 with a clay floor: the room
கொ ழும். 97 "A) ყo கம்
п If ينتشر 上

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92 JOURNAL, R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N.S.) 1980-81
has a very low ceiling, sometimes it is only 4 ft. in height. Cooking and eating take place in it. Above it, under the roof, is room for the storage of tools, firewood, bottlegourds and similar items, empty bottles, tins, kitchen utensils and so on. In one case the kitchen is a 14 x 14 ft. building of similar type, but with a 5 ft. wide low verandah (roof extension) for eating.
The verandah serves for sleeping and as day quarters, the room on the left for the storage of dry foodstuffs such as rice, corn, chillies, etc. The right half is rather uncharacteristically sub - divided into 2 rooms, with the rear a store for pots, pans and utensils (usually W. {RZEZ :Z ά: the entire area serves V this purpose), and
the front half in this Vملتعلمعالجمعج /Sہیصلpبے شم
case for sleeping.
Text Fig. A
Ground plan of house of the first type, 22 x 21 ft. roof extending over verandah with half wall.
The other type consists of two equal - sized mud and wattle rectangles built together, making a similar square (about 22 x 22 ft.) with a valley gutter in the middle between the two roofs. The valley gutter may be a hollowed - out coconut or palmyrah trunk, but is now mostly made of galvanized iron sheets. In this second type the verandah is enclosed, sometimes there is a trellis along the upper portion of the front wall which has the entrance typically in the middle. There is a third type which is essentially the front half of the twin house, with the verandah and entrance taking up a quarter of the area covered by the roof (Fig. III/10). This type of verandah may also be found in the twin houses; sometimes it is extended by a flat, trellis type porch covered with
 

EXTERNAL HOUSE DECORATION 93
coconut leaves for shade. The double house seems to be owned by the more affluent villagers, although this is not necessarily so. Mostly the kitchen and tool shed are housed in separate Sinall buildings nearby in the neatly swept and fenced compound, Winich typically also contains a chicken roost raised high on stilts, and perhaps a g at shed. Windows are rare in any of the houses, only the doors leading from the verandah into the dark two - roce med interior provide some light when open.
Text Fig. B
Ground plan of house of the second type, 21 x 2 ft. whareby the front half serves as verandah and sleeping area. The second half is typically sub-divided into equal halves, one for the storage of dry foodstuffs, the other for pots, pans and utensils,
Front and side view of house,
The interior of the houses is impeccably clean without a piece of furniture, except for the occasional wooden chest (pettaham) for the safe-keeping of valued articles. There is a raised platform

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第4 JOURNAL, R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N. S.) 1980-8f
with reed or palmyrah leaf mats for sleeping and also for sitting during the daytime; this is usually in the verandah, with neatly rolled mats and cushions hung up for the day. About half of the roofed - over area is devoted to stores where rice, kurakkan, Indian corn, pots, pans and utensils are kept. The kitchen, whether it is within the main house (rare) or in a separate little building, is extremely nea and ciean; the pots and utensils are shiny and well kept. All floors are treated with the usual liquid mixture of clay and cowdung and are raised by about 1 ft. from the general level of the ground.
It may be noted that the dwelling space required hy a family of these independent and contented people is about 200 sq. ft.; a similar area in the house is reserved for stores. It would be simple for them to build larger houses. The rural people of Sri Lanka spend their lives outdoors and need only the most basic accommodation as shelter for the night and bad weather. Western observers mostly fail to appreciate this when passing judgement on rural housing in Sri Lanka. A well-kept and thickly thatched mud and wattle house built cheaply by the owner and his family, is the
driest, coolest, most pleasant and healthiest dwelling in the tropics.
Decorative Patterns
Each year just before the New Year the woman of the house sets about decorating the outside and verandah walls. The mud plaster is usually grounded in ochre. The minimum decoration consists of a broad dark grey or dark brown band (rarely white) along the bottom of the wall, lifted at the four corners and around the doors (Fig. I11 & III/10). This band is not of equal width on all sides of the house and is usually broader in the front, i. e., the verandah side. The dividing line is not always straight; it may be toothed and broken by Symmetrically placed simple patterns which may look like false doors (Fig. I/4), most often triangles or halfcircles (Fig. I/3, III./18, IV/20). Out of it may also grow some of the simple decorative patterns such as the one which looks a cactus (Fig. II/9 & III/10). Often the dividing line is accentuated by a white edge or by white spots (sometimes black or red) or decorative

EXTERNAL HOUSE OECORATION 95
patterns resembling a bird's foot (Fig, I/2 & IV/20). The corners and areas around the doors are usually more intricately treated (Fig. I/I, II, 9 & IV/20).
The more carefully decorated houses will have a second colour band, usually white (lime) over the basic dark one (Fig. If 1, 1/3 & II/ 10). In a few cases the bottom band is white, or dark and white alternate on different walls. The remaining portions of the wall may carry well spaced stylized decorations. The most common is what ook like a cactus or a branch of coral (Fig. II/5 II/9 & III/10). This simple branch is found practically on every house. Occasionally it is modified (Fig. II/7, III/13, II/14 & IV/19), and looks more like a stylized plant with buds or flowers. When asked about the meaning of the basic design, neither the old men nor the painting women could give a plausible explanation; they allowed the suggestion of a cactus (there is only one Asiatic species of cactus, quite different in form). The coral was emphatically rejected. These Tamil people of Kathiraveli are all cultivators and have nothing to do with the sea, although they live on the coast.
Another common and stylized symbol found on almost every house is the Hindu temple - offering (Kalanchi) of a pot, topped with a coconut and betel leaves and flowers (Fig. 11, II/6&IV/20). A popular motif is the flower vase or flower pot (Fig. II/8), and occasionally a large leaf or twig, equally stylized (Fig. IIlfl5). The different designs, colour bands, patterns, are emphasized and contrasted either by white dividing lines and dots or the bird - foot pattern (Fig. II/9, IV19 & IV 20). The latter effect is achieved with the aid of the stem and the basal parts of the ribs of the tenderu or the eraba au leaf; the green parts are removed and the pliable tool is dipped into white-washing lime and pressed against the wall (Fig. 1/2, IV/20). This method and decorative pattern is used in many of the houses, but may be replaced by simple white dots. In 1980 saw a new pattern which is obtained by means of the ribs of the nuga leaf. Very traditional motifs, now no longer seen, are the sun or noon as well as the foot and the hand (Fig. II/5). Decorative designs which appear to be less traditional (as only one of each was seen in 6 years of observation) are outlines of plants (Fig. IV/18, III/12), the elephant (Fig IV/7), the

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{ JC (RNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANIKA) Wol. XXW (N.S) 1980-8
peacock (Fig. IW6), wines with tendrils (Fig. l IFI 1 }). The few traditional and common designs are simple, but their arrangement and the matching of warm colours on walls and around doors is of a high aesthetic order. The stark binds look pleasing and
it.
Decline
Of late (since 1979) new Inotifs have appeared on the house walls I Kathiraveli: very few of them look acsthetically right. An exception was a twin house photographed by Ine during the New Year of 1978 with a very balanced pattern of white and ochre and a pleas; nt frontage where the traditional bands were combined with a large stylized flower, obviously of western origin (Fig. IW 8). This house was unfortunately damaged during the cyclone im November 1978“ and the pattern has not been repeated; the building c: Il now no longer rille as good even in the traditional scIlse. For the first time this year (1980) a whole Fange of new notifs las turned Lup and it is obvio Luis that the inspiration for these is brought hole from School. The new motifs are mostly flowers and vases with flowers of a non-traditional typic, also oil Hamps. For the first time a new and non - natural colour has appeared, namely the jarring Washing blue. Ey changing colours, patterns and motifs, most of the meaning of the decoration is being lost aid there is a gencil loss of balance, beauty and purpose. Some of the houses seen this year could be described as gaulily decorated, which earlic had never been the case.
Colours
All the colours used in the traditional New Year decoration (which, of course, lasts throughout the year with a good overhang of thatch, and is either rencwed or replaccd with a fresh design in the following year when the plaster is renowatcd) are na ural colours obtained from different clays which people collect in well
known places, and line. As mentioned, the predominant colour
" Kathiraveli did not suffer much damage as the main thrust of it
cyclone passed many Tiles south of it.

EXTER AL HOUSE DECCATION ர
is yellowish och Tc. Basal bands are darkgrey or reddish - brown, sometimes white, and the same colours arc used for the decorative motifs, the most common being white and brown. There arc five natural colours used: white, two browns, black, grey and yellowish-och Te.
Origins
The 20 or so fallilies it. Killhirawcli who decorate their houses in the Innan mer described il re Tanhills and say that they belong to |he Wellala castic. They alll 21 Te cultiwa tors by tradition and though they live near the sea, have no connection with it. They arc self-contained and self-supporting (except for textiles). The typical family owns a compound or homestead in thc village and 3 acres of paddy land some distance away, as well as two or acres of highland. They are very frugal, hard-working farmers who manage to cljoy an obviously high quality of life. They secm to be happy, content and healthy and almost completely independent of the rest of the world. They state that their forebears came to Sri La Inkl from South India nimalny (20) gcnocrations ago. They (two families only, Elccording to my first informant) landed at Ilangaturali, mea T lichchilla Empat tai Where now stands the Hindu temple of Sembagenilchi Amma (a mother Goddess). Two brothers, both over 80 years old. told mc that the present villagers airc the descendants of two Chiefs, one Pupalan Wannia and the other Kathira Wannia, to whom Kathiraveli no doubt owes its name. The first ruled north of Wcrugai, thic othcr south of Werugal. This happened "before the Portuguese came". They say that the descendants of the original immigrants live in 3 villages today, namcly Kathira Welli, Werugal and Ichcluilampat tai. Only at Kathraveli has the tradition of the innual house decoration bicen properly maintained, although I saw remnants of it at Ichchilampattai and in an old settlement called Poonager near the 51st mile post on the Batticaloa-Trincomalee Road. Further away the people have mixed with other Tamils and probably coast Weddahs, and have lost the art and tradition of decorating their houses, Typical names in the 20 families at Kathiraveli are: Navaratnarasil Pushparasa, Annam Luthu, Wallippillai, Arasumani, Secnitha mby, WeeTakutty, Kadiraman, Kawadiraman, Kanavathippillai, PonIna mbalam, Mahcswaran, Kumarasa niny, Kadirawanian.

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98 JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) vol. XXV. (N.S.) 1980-81
The old people remember when there were many elephants in the area and Muslims came from Kinniya to catch them. The villagers celebrate the mysterious Kappal Deivam (God of the Ship) Festival in May every two years (see Seligmann, Spolia Zeylanica, Vol. V, Part 20, page 156). Some 50 or 60 years ago the English GA from Batticaloa came to watch the ceremony. At the time of the GA's visit (he stayed at the Kathiraveli Resthouse - long since gone), there was smallpox all around but not at Kathiraveli: the GA asked why and was told that they were protected by their powerful God. At the time of the festival loud 'shots' are heard from the sea. A possible explanation. seasonal migration of Manta rays, 17 ft. harmless sea monsters which sometimes jump high into the air and cause a loud shot - like bang when they fall back flat on the water. The “God of the Ship' is also venerated by the Coast Veddahs at Kayankerni who are fishermen; there too the 'shots' from the sea are heard during the Kappal Deivam festival, which centres around a tall pole with the wooden replica of a sailing ship on top. There is only a small Hindu temple at Kathiraveli on the main road, under a large nuga tree, where Lord Ganeshan (Kanavadi or Pulleyar) is venerated. a new larger temple has been abuilding for several years.
The people
The village of Kathiraveli is said to consist of 300 families, all Tamils, of whom only about 20 belong to our artistic people. They cultivate all the food they need and vegetables, including chillies and tobacco. Most have some chicken and a goat or two; few are cattle breeders. It is typical of the people's frugality and the high traditional values which they still hold, that fence posts, for instance, which are required to protect the paddy fields sown in the North - East Monsoon, are used over and over again, and during the fallow season are taken to the homestead where they are neatly stacked on an elevated platform and kept for re - use the following year; barbed wire too is used over and over again and stored in neat rolls at home. The same strands last for decades. Our people weave their own baskets and bags (with strips of young palmyrah and coconut leaves and also reeds), produce most tools themselves. Dried bottlegourds serve as receptacles not only

EXTERNAL HOUSE DECORATION 99
for liquids, but also for food - grain and bran, The digging plough is all of wood, with only an iron top. Sticks bent and pointed at one end are used as hoes. There are fine bullock carts with wooden axles. The wells in the compounds are usually enclosed with cadjan screens and often fitted with a well sweep; occasionally one is still lined with a hollow pallu log. In one compound I saw interesting use being made of the long runners with the spiny leaves of the water-pink (Spinifex littoreus) which are wound around the high legs of the chicken roost to prevent squirrels and perhaps snakes from climbing up.
All that nature provides is used most carefully and in moderation, in marked contrast to the massive wastage of resources practised elsewhere. There are many sturdy children, all happy, friendly and healthy. The people of Kathiraveli celebrate the New Year extensively for days, chiefly in the family and amongst neighbours. The children in particular enjoy kiribath and games in the verandahs; swings are put up, doors and verandahs are decorated with mango leaves and flowers.
Not far away, a few hundred yards from the Tamil village, is the settlement of fishermen from the west coast, noisy, extroyert migrants. The contrast could not be greater, with the tile-covered brick houses of the mudalalis, the untidiness and dirt, the tractors, lorries, cars, boats, fishing gear and refuse scattered all over the beautiful landscape.
Horiwilla
In May 1977 on my return from a trip to Yakure I came through the village of Horiwila at the foot of Gunners Quoin. To my great astonishment I noticed one house which was decorated in a similar way as the houses in Kathiraveli with the same motif of the 3 - ended branch (similar to Fig. III/13). Naturally I inquired from the villagers and found them all to be Tamils. They say that they came to Polonnaruwa with Elara and Dutugemunu, and have been settled here ever since. They are chiefly cattle breeders and cultivate a little paddy. Their houses and compounds are neat and tidy. The tradition of decorating the houses for the New Year is obviously on the verge of being altogether lost in Horiwila, but the vestige of it which I found points to a relationship between these people and the Vellala families at Kathiraveli. spoke to

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100 JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) vol. XXV. (N.S) 1980-81
the old man who owns the house; he also mentioned Sembagenachchi Amma, under whose guidance and protection his ancestors and their Chief had come to Sri Lanka, where they landed at langaituraimugam near Ichchilampattai. These are obviously the same people with the same origins as those at Kathiraveli, though they are probably not aware of each other. There are other old Tamil villages in the Polonnaruwa District, and I was told that before the bridge at Manampitiya was opened to road traffic, all villages on the eastern side of the Mahaweli were Tamil.
Post Scriptum 1981
This paper was written after my visit in 1980. In the meantime another New Year has come and gone and a further deterioration in the quality of designs was noted. On the other hand more houses are now being decorated than before. I had noticed this trend towards a quantitative revival earlier and attributed it to my frequent visits and interest. Obviously housewives used to take great pride in having neat and beautiful homes not only inside but outside as well, especially during the New Year. As I had discussed the topic with friends and acquaintances over the years, other visitors did of late also come to Kathiraveli. This may have initiated renewed activity and strengthened the motivation of the villagers, a positive achievement if it were possible to direct their efforts in the good traditional sense. Unfortunately the trend towards innovation with new non - natural colours and non - traditional motifs has also been accentuated. Whilst there may be a quantitative revival of the art, the regrettable qualitative decline continues
Acknowledgements
I am grearly indebted to my friend Guido Baumann for the lins drewings and sketches reproduced with this paper. My grateful thanks ars also due to Hans Auer, Proprietor of Auer Druck, 8122 Binz, Switzerland for the printing of Plates I to IV.

Alate I House decorations Kathiraveli
Fig. 1
i
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Fig. 2
Fig.3

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P
ك----سانشناسائسسسسسسس\
fa. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 7
Fig. 8 Fig. 9
 
 
 
 
 
 

Plate
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12
At ダ I
y?
- ثم ؟؟ ཡ༤༣ ܐ * メ ? */ / \ ܐܠܠܠܠ
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Fig. 13 Fig. 14

Page 67
Plate IV
Fig. 18 Fig. 19
Fig. 20
 
 

SUBA-ASUBA SYMBOLSM IN SINHALA CULTURE
by
PROF. J. B. DISANAYAKA Department of Sinhala, University of Colombo
Communication, in the broadest sense, involves the transference of information by means of codes. The codes may be verbal or non-verbal. Verbal communication is achieved by means of human language, either spoken or written. All other aspects of culture constitute the non-verbal code by which cultural information is communicated. In short, every element of culture communicates and how this communication is precisely achieved has been of interest both to communicators and anthropologists.
Edmund Leach in his "Culture and Communication' holds that
'all the various non-verbal dimensions of culture, such as styles of clothing, village lay-out, architecture, furniture, food, cooking, music, physical gestures, postural attitudes and so on are organised in patterned sets so as to incorporate coded information in a manner analogous to the sounds and words and sentences of a natural language'
Leach insists that :
'a sign or symbol only acquires meaning when it is discriminated from some other contrary sign or symbol'
The central argument of Leach's principle is that a sign or symbol does not occur in isolation but only as a member of a set of contrasted signs which function within a specific cultural context. To put it differently, a sign or symbol
1. Leach, Edmund, Culture and Communication, Cambridge University Press
(1976) p. 10.
2. ibid, p. 49.

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102 SUBA-ASUBA SYMBOLISM IN SINHALA CULTURE
'only conveys information when it is combined with other signs and symbols from the same context''.3
The colour spectrum for instance, consists of an infinite variety of shades, hues and tints of which 'white' and "black' are two members. As an isolate, white is just another element of nature. It does not "mean' anything. It communicates nothing. It is, thus, devoid of any cultural significance. So is the colour 'black, as an isolate. It is also another element of the colour spectrum which communicates nothing.
However, if in some culture, white is contrasted with black, on the basis of some specific symbolism, then both begin to acquire meanings. In the Sinhala culture, for example, white is considered 'suba’ or auspicious. It is considered a good omen, an auspicious sign. White acquires this meaning only because it is contrasted with black, which is considered 'asuba', inauspicious. Thus we observe that white and black, which by themselves are not more than mere elements of nature, are now made to communicate coded information in a given cultural context.
The present paper is an attempt to examine the validity of Leach's principle in explaining some of the ethnographic facts of Sinhala culture.
The parameters on which symbols may be contrasted are many and varied but they may be drawn from a set of universals, such as those of colour, quantity, form, texture, direction and so on. The metaphysical abstractions that are symbolised in terms of these parameters are potentially binary. Among the metaphysical discriminations that Leach enumerates are : this world/other world, secular/sacred, low status/high status, normal/abnormal, living/dead, important/potent.
For the presentanalysis, the specific metaphysical discrimination that is chosen is that which involves the binary contrast between suba and asuba. The category suba relates to metaphysical abstractions that are considered not only auspicious but also sacred, positive, fertile, lucky and potent. Asuba on the other hand, relates
3. ibid, p. 13.
4. ibid, p. 52.

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N.S.) 1983 103
to discriminations that are profane, negative, infertile, unlucky and impotent.
. The subalasuba symbolism in Sinhala culture may be studied on diverse dimensions. The dimensions of culture from which the present study draws its material are mainly those of (a) dreams (b) omens and (c) physical features of women.
Dreams (Sinhala, sihina, Sanskrit. Svapna) play a significant role in Sinhala symbolism. A dream is interpreted as suba or asuba on the basis of the event it is supposed to foretell. A dream that foretells the birth of a child, for instance, is considered suba while a dream that foretells death is asuba. The symbols that Sinhala culture uses to encode this information in dreams form an inventory that has found its way into folk literature. The special treatises on the interpretation of dreams are usually in verse and bear titles such as 'Svapnamalaya' (Garland of Dreams) and 'Supindlankaraya's (Description of Dreams) and Satya Sihina Sastraya (Science of Dreams)"
Omens (Sin. nimiti), like dreams, are things or happenings that are supposed to foretell future events. Omens may be either visual or auditory. The most important of the visual omens are those that one meets on the road as one sets out on a journey, particularly an important one (pera maga nimiti). Auditory omens are those sounds that animals make as one is about to undertake Some work or about to leave one's house.
Omens are either suba or asuba in terms of their capacity to foretell something positive or negative. An omen that foretells success is considered suba while an omen that foretells disappointment is asuba.
In fact, it is not altogether uncommon for Sinhalese to return or give up the journey if an ill-omen is met at the very outset of the journey. Sometimes good omens are made to appear at the right moment by prior arrangement. Both literature and folklore have inventories of suba and asuba symbols that transmit this kind of information.
5. Svapnaamlaya (SM) compiled by Don Philip de Silva, Colombo : Ratna
kara Press (undated).
6. Supinalankaraya (of unknown authoriship ھpنہیaہو(عام
7. Satya Sihina Sastraya (SSS) compiled by Wilson Јауаwickrama, Matara :
Martenis Press (undated).

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104 SUBA-ASUBA SYMBOLISM IN SINHALA CULTURE
Physical features of women have also been organised into patterned sets so as to embody the subalasuba symbolism. A given feature is interpreted as suba or asuba on the basis of its potential to predict the future condition of things. A feature that predicts motherhood, for example, is considered suba and the feature that predicts its opposite, namely, barrenness, is considered asuba. The different physical features that are incorporated into this code are enumerated in treatises, usually composed in verse, bearing titles such as 'Stri Laksana varuna's (Description of Feminine Features) and 'Stri Laksana malaya'9 (Garland of Feminine Features).
A. Colour Symbolism
In terms of colour, the binary contrast that manifests the subalasuba symbolism in Sinhala culture is that between "white, and 'non-white'. In Sinhala white is designated sudu and the nonwhite could be either kalu (black) or ratu (red). Symbolically, sudu is considered suba and kalu and ratu, asuba.
Svapna Malaya sums up this colour contrast thus :
'Seeing all white things is good Bad is seeing ash, cotton seeds and butter milk All red things are dangerous Blood, flesh, sandalwood and red corals All black things are evil Kings and cuckoos are good Knowing these suba and asuba I disclose for the benefit of all “10 (SM. v. 58)
'Satya Sihina Sastraya expresses the same discriminations in terms of flowers and clothes :
8, Stri Laksana Varuna (LVS) (of unknown authorship and date).
9. Stri Laksana Mālāvā (SLM) compiled by A. Do So Perera edited by D. P.
Wettasingha Colombo : Anula Press. (2nd ed. 1979).
10. සියලු සුදු දෙය දැක්ම යහපති අළුද කපු ඇට මොටෝරු සසු බා සියලු ගුතු දෙය නපුරු, ලේ මස් සඳුන් පබළු ද මොjරුඑසු බ0 සියලු කළු දෙය අයහපත් වෙයි නිරිඳු පුරවැසි කොවුල් සසු Әр සියලු මෙම සුබ අසුබ දැන පවසනුය දනමන කර ලො C3(ס

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N.S.) 1983 105
“If you see a white flower Comforts you will have, If you see a red flower Conflicts there'll be, If you see a black flower Your life will be destroyed, If you see a vada flower A nuisance it will be' 11 (SSS v. 3)
"If you see yourself dressed in white The work at hand will prosper If you dress yourself in red and black Parents and relatives will die for sure' 12(SSS v. 33)
'A handkerchief in white Foretells a wedding In any other colour it tells Of an impending calamity' 18(SSS v. 62).
Of the diverse colours of the spectrum, the most 'suba’ colour
n Sinhala culture, thus, seems to be sudu (white). Folk literature is full of auspicious dreams in which white or something in white appear.
'Victorious is he who dreams
Of white cow and calf, garlands of white flowers
Women dressed in white ornaments and white women...'
14 (SM v. 50).
3.
14.
සුදු මලක් දුටෙඩාත් සිහිනෙන් සැප සද රතු මලක් දුටොත් කොළහලයක් කර කළු මලක් දුටෙරාත් තම දිවි වැනසෙන් වද මලක් දුටෙඩාත් වදයක් වෙයි දරු ඇඳ ගෙන සුදු ඇඳම් යනවා දුටුවාන කරමින් ගිය වැඩේ දියුණුව වනවා ඉ රතු කළු වස්තූ ඇඳ ගත්තොත් රැ සිහිනෙන මවුපිය නෑයෝ, සේරම මරණ වේ කිය ලේන්සුව සුදට දුටුවොත් මඟුලක් ලේන්සුව වෙනින් පාටක විපතක් සුදු දෙන වසු සහ සුදු මල් මාල සැදි සුදු බරණින් ඇඳ සිටි කතව
සුදු ලිය සුරගුරු සහ රජ බමුණු නදකර දුටුහට වේ ජය ලාබ
i
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"He will prosper who dreams Of white flowers, white rice and clear water'. 1 (SMv.38) "He who dreams of a white serpent Biting his right hand
Will receive infinite wealth
Within ten days, believe me' (16 (SM v. 33).
In the wonderful dream that Queen Maya, the mother of the Bodhisatva, dreamt on the night of His conception, white appears quite prominently. Her dreams are described in detail by the folk poet who composed Yasodaravata 7 (The Story of Yasodara).
"A young tusker, as white as a white conch-shell came to
my bed, It touched my belly tenderly, with its white trunk, Something in white happened in the dream I dreamt What does this signify, O Lord, Suddodana' 18(YV.v.15).
Among the other white things she sees in dream are a silver rock (ridi parvatayak) the white banks of the Neranjana River (Neranjanan gangāvā sudu välle) and the moon (pun sanda madala). The white tusker that entered her womb was none other than the Bodhisatva himself.
On the night before the Buddha's Enlightenment. He is said to have seen five dreams, all of which reassure that He will attain Enlightenment the next morning. In one of these, He dreams of 'white worms' covering his body from the feet to the knees. The
15. සුදු මල් සුදු බත් පහන් දියත් සො
මේදේ දුටු සතහට වේ ලාබ
16. නයෙක් ඉතා සුදු නගමින් පෙනප
නොයෙක් දරණ ලා කැව දුටු දකුණ ඉමක් නොවන ලෙස ලැබගෙන සම්ප ජයක් වේය දස දින තුළ බොරු නැ
17. Yasõdarāyata, Colombo : Vidyodaya Press.
18. සුදු සක ලෙසට ඇත් පැටවෙක් විත් යහ නේ සුදු සොඬ ටිකෙන් මගෙ බඩ පිරිමදිති අ G25) සුදු යම් දෙයක් සිදු වෙයි මම දුටු සී නෙන් සුදසුන් නිරිඳුනේ මොකදයි ඔය සී නොවී

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vo. XXV, (N.S.) 1983 107
white worms are meant to symbolise his followers. In another dream, four birds of different colours flew from the four quarters and as they fell at the feet of the Master, they all turned white, symbolising that they entered Nibbana, the highest state of purity.
White birds, in dreams, are said to bring good tidings :
"If you see a white bird flying towards you You will beget a child, like a divine being' 19 (SS v.26).
If white symbolises the idea of suba, then, its loss or removal necessarily implies the idea of asuba. Teeth, for instance, are white and hence the loss of teeth in dreams is considered asuba :
"If one wakes up in dream Having seen the loss of the four teeth It foretells separation from loved ones And the loss of wealth in no time' 20 (SM v. 61)
The colour white is made to symbolise the idea of suba in Sinhala culture only because red and black are made to symbolise the idea of asuba.
"If you see a woman Wearing black dresses, smeared in black The body covered in black ornaments
You will be carried away by death' 21 (SM v. 62)
19. සුදු පක්ෂියෙක් දුටුවොත් පියඹල එන &o
දෙවියෙක් වගේ දරුවෙක් ලඟදී ලැබෙන
20. මුක තුළ සිව් දත් ගලවා වැටුම දැක පිබිදුන නම් සීනෙන් යමකු එකතුව උන් අයගෙන් වෙන් වීම නෙක සම්පත් නැතිවීමක් වේ සෙ
21. කළු වතකුත් ඇඳ කළු ගල්වා ඇ
කළු ආබරණින් සැරසී සියොල වෙළුනා අඟනෝක් දුටුවොත් තම ඇ දිලෙනා මරු ගෙනයයි නිවරදි ල

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108 LLESZLLLLLLLEE LLLGLGLLLLL LL LLLLLLLLSLLLLS LLLLLLLL
"If you scc. black teeth in one's mouth All your wealth you will lose" 22 (SM w. 73)
Red (rail) is an equally astha colour in Sinhall culture. It may perhaps be due to its association with blood, which is, by it self, an Irba symbol.
"If you sce young Women Their bodies covered in golden red soot
Bedecked with golden red ornaments Kissing your body You will, then, be always sick' * 3 (SM v. 63)
Blood, which is red in colour, also appears repeatedly in dreams which forcicll misfort Line.
"If in dream you see yourself bleeding Your wealth will be taken away by thieves' ' (SSS v. 42)
Fire, like blood, is both TCl ELIld 75 :
"If you see your seat, your bcd, Your vehicle and the dress you wear Caught in fire, burning bright All your wealth will disappear" 2 Di (SM w. 59)
The "Wessertiara Ki'a describes the dream that the quccin Mandri saw on the night before her two children were given away to an old man :
22. තඹ කළු පෑ අත් දුටුවන් මුක තු
ලැබ තිබු සම්පත් යයි සිදුවා මු
23. රන් වින් රතු කලලින් ඇහ තව රන් වන් රතු බිරණ ද ඇඳ පැති සොයාන් ෆින් පිනවන සිත තම සිරු ర උන්නන් දුටුවේ).Jත් පව් ලෙඩ් නිකේතා d
24. පොල් යනවා සිහිනෙන් දුටුවනන් ඇ g
සොරු ගන්නවා විස්තුව ඇති තමන් gif
35. හිඳිනා අස්නත් හෝනා යහන
නැහෙනා විද්‍යුහනවත් ඇඳිවත ව දිලෙනා, ගින්නෙන් දනවා දුටුවෝ යනවා ඉසිරී නියතලු සමීප
 
 
 

JoURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N.S.) 1983 109
"A black man Wearing red flowers Taking a sword in his hand Pulling me by my tresses, reillowing my eyes Such is the dream I saw, she told the king' (WK. v. 446)
Visual omens (pera naga nimiri) also maintain the white/nonwhite contrast in the symbolic coding of sillasuba discriminations. The 'Silalihini Sandesa", a classical poem of the sixteenth century, Illentions a number of suha initi which are even more auspicious than the lucky hour sula faikat. Among the suhi initi that the
poem mentions are many objects in white : "pula hala kusui' (full blown white flowers), 'still serrara' (white chowries) and sésar" (white para sols). 27 (w. 1 6).
On the other hand, things that are black or red are considered a suba initi. Black cloth (kalu pili) and fire (ginalara) are ill omens which, if sighted, one should return home immediately: 'y'arraf ofori perti nixiger du kali]'ri'.
Physical features of women form another dimension on which the white/non-white symbolism is manifested. On this basis, | clinic features that are considered 5the are white while those that are considered as Ilha are either black or red.
The folk poem 'Siri Laksara Mali'a repeatedly stresses the la white correlation :
"If the cyes a Tc white in colo Lur Good mannered she is, they say" 98 (SLM w. 89)
!, Prāta Vessaara Kāpa, Ratna kara Press, (cd. I979)
කලු මිනිසෙක් රත් මල් කනලා ගෙ והאל තදකර කඩුවක් සුරතට අරගෙන "◌" ඉස ඇද බිම ලා නෙත් දෙක උදුර ୪', කිව් දුටු සීනය රජුහට මෙලෙසි
Selalihili Saldēs Varā, (ed. V. A. F. Dharmawardhana, Colombo. Guna sena & Co. 1954,
නල මුදු සුවඳ පිරිකුඹු මියුරු අඹ ගෙ පුල හෙළ කුසුම් ලිය පියළිතපල රන් කෙ සල සුදු ජෙසුමර සේසත් ගිජිඳුනොදී වැ 5 බල සුඩ් නිමිති පෙරමග නැකතටත් වැ සී |8. සුදුවන් පාට නම් ඇස් දෙක" යහපත් է:

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"If the tecth are white and equal Wirtuous she is, they say" 29 (SLM v. 84)
"If the twenty finger nails arc white and round The husbend will give her much comfort' 30 (SLM v. 80)
Black, on the other hand, is a colour that makes certain feminin features unlucky :
"If the lips are black and fat And evil mind she has, they say" 31 (SLM v. 82)
"If the tongue is a little black Qua Triclis she will hawe, they say" 32 (SLM v. 85)
"If the palm is black and full of lines She will become a widow, thcy say" 33 (SLM v. 79
Red is an cqually asuha colour in relation to women's features
'If the tip of the mosc is red She will bear no children, they say" 34 (SLM v. 86)
"If the cyes are dark red Death will befall the husband' 55 (SLM v. 88)
In folk religion, white occupies a place that is denied to the other colours of the spectrum. A Buddhist devotee who visits the temp dresses himself in white and so do lay priests kaputrala who take par in certain religious performances. The white cloth worn by devotes and lay priests is designated by the special term piruvala. Th pilgrim who cnters the sacred area in Siri Pada or Kataragam changes into a white cloth after purifying himself at the banks of the Siffa Garngular or Mērnik Garga,
29. සමව සුදුව දත් ඇති නම් යහපත් 30. විසි නිය සුදුව උස වටනම් හිමි සැප 31. ෙදෙත:Jල කළුව ලොකු වී නම් පව් සිත 32. කළුව මදක් දිව ඇත් නම් කොලහල 33. කළුවට අල්ල ඉරි වැඩි නම් වැන්දඹු 3.1. නැඹුරු අගින් රතු නම් නාසය විඳ 35. තදින් රතු වි නම් ඇස් දෙක හිමි මර
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N.S.) 1983
Folk speech itself accords a spccial place to the word "'sudu" (white). It is not a term that just designates a colour category but a term of endearment, loaded with cultural information. W. person who is loved is referred to by the epithet slidu as insudakka (akka, clder sister) sudu yrialli (nialli younger brother) or studu nénda (renda, aunt) even if they are dark-complexioned. A lover, even in modern urban society, is addressed by the term slidu or slida, literally, the 'white one'.
Milk (kiri), the source of life, is white and white itself is somctimes TcfcTired to in folk idiom as kiri pāfa (milk-colour). The milky liquid in certain trees and plants, owing to its link with milk and whitehess, has also acquired ritualistic significance. Such trees are called "kiri gas" (milk-trees) and arc considerecil suba. Kos or jak is one of the commonest milk-trees that play a ritualistic role in Sinhala culture.
In the new year rituals of the Sinhalesc, the new year comInences by "touching work' (Para alarava) symbolically. This is performed by cutting a branch of a jak tree by a knife or axe. A Sinhala girl who comes of age is taken, after her first bath, to the presence of a milk tree, usually a jak trec, where shc is made to see the milky liquid, which is white, before she sees anything else. In the ritual called kala elli nadu'a at which the traditional headgear of the Kandyan dancer is placed on the novitiate for the first time, jak trees and milk comes into prominence again. It is believed that the dancer who wears the new head dress which Tcsembles the crown of a king exposes himself to ritual danger or vas dos. In order to counteract this was dos, the dancer is lead, completcly covered with a white cloth, to the presence, firstly, of a jak trec and then of a cow, the animal most closely associated with milk. As the white cloth (kalai tird) is removed, the novitiatic is made to sce the milky liquid of the jak tree,
To see a milky tree, even in dream, brings beneficial results :
"If you see yourself climbing a milky tree You will have wealth and comfort soon' 33 (SM w.32)
36. කිරි ඇති යස තුරු මුදුන නැගිම
සිරි සැප ලබනුය යුහුවම නොව ම

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The colour spectrum, in a physical sense, may consist of an infinite variety of shades, hues and tints but culture organiscs these colours into different pattcrns so that they a Te made to transmi codcd cultui Tall information.
B. Quantity-size symbolism
A second parameter on which Sinhala suhalasuba symbols are organised is that of 'quantity-size whose binary contrast will be termed full/empty. Things that are full (puri, piiria) will be consi dered St Alba and those that are empty (his) (T.shar,
Thc animal Lihat is full in size is the elcphant and hoc appear repeatedly in dreams and omens of the Sinhalese as a still symbol A tusker or a white elephant is thus doubly auspicious : the Lusker because he has, in addition to his size, tusks that are white and the whiteclephant because he is white. On many occasions the Buddhi himself has been symbolised by the white elephant, as in Maya Dream. A white flower, it was noted earlier, is suba and a ful||||||| blown one (pular Vëlla kusi Irra) is twice sco.
A pot (ktribu) that is full either because of its Size cor beCaLLIS of its contents is considered suba. Filled potspiri kirihu are good omens to be met on the road and full vessels (puri kalas) are auspl cious symbols to be placed at the entrance to buildings. A water pot (kala geli) which is full is suba on two counts : firstly, because it is full and secondly because it is full of water, which is, in itsel a suba symbol. With most of the Sinhalese, it is customary to Wall for the appearance of a young woman with a pot full of Water, El previously arranged, before one sets out on an important mission 'Rankeridi, the traditional water container, is also a good symbol
Milk, it was observed earlier, is a sha symbol and therefor anything that is full of milk is equally suba. A woman who h breasts full of milk is a good omen to be met on the road. A Woman who is pregnant is siha because it implies that her Womb is su which is, in turn, a symbol of fertility. A woman carrying an infan is suha because it implies that her breasts are full of milk.
To dream of borcasts full of milk, according to 'Si'ap ra Mālayar is a good omen :
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1983 113
"If you touch the breasts, full of milk With your mouth and suck with pleasure You will reccivic in abundance Fortune and glory in royal comfort" *7 (SM w. 52)
The dream in which one is fed by the mother's breast also promises fortune :
"Know ye that if you arc fed With milk by your mother
A maiden you will have Who brings fortune and riches' 98 (SSS v. 48).
Things that are empty (his), on the other hand, fall into the category of asuha symbols. Empty vessels (his bandu) are supposed to bring ill-luck if they are met at the outset of a journcy. Both barren Women and old Women are a suba omens becausc they are considered 'empty", the former because of her infertility, and the latter because of her age.
Physical features of Women also carry coded information on the fullyempty axis. Features that arc full (piri) are among the ihrt symbols.
A young Woman who has full grown breasts is not only a good (men but also, in the eyes of the Sinhall poet, an ideal woman The folk idiom and potti garaiyadda' (Is the Woman with skinny bircasts a Woman 2) shows the place breasts occupy in the folk III i Id.
There are many other features that arc "full' and therefore, Ilha :
"If the checks are full Loyal she remains to her husband' 39 (SLM v. 81)
|", කිරි දෙන තන නම් මුකයෙන් අල්
පිරියෙනි දෝනා දුටු නම් ෙසාල් පරසිඳු රජ සිරි සැප ලැබ තුල් මනහර කරවයි දියතුළ දුල්
|}||, අම්මා කෙනෙක් කිරී දුන්නොත් දැන ගන්
එනවා ලියක් සිරි සම්පත් සමගින්
|, මදක් කොපුල් පිරිලානම් සැමී' හිත

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1 14 SUBA-ASUW SYMBOLIBM IN SINHALA, CULTURE
"If thc shoulders are large and full Sexual pleasure she brings, they say" 5.0 (SLM w. 77)
"If the hips are raised and full She brings much sexual pleasure" 44 (SLM v. 76
Physical features that are devoid of fullness are supposed to bring misfortune :
"If the shoulders are high and lean Widowhood it brings, they say" 49 (SLM w. 77
A head, to be considered either sula or a suba must be wie from the quantity of hair it has, hair being a symbol of life an growth. Thus, a head, full of hair is an auspicious symbol where a shaven head is not. The Sinhalese, though predominently Bud dhist, consider Buddhist monks ill-omens to be met on the way because they have, firstly, shaven heads and sccondly, robes that are not white in colour. Immoral monks are specifically men tioned (clusil ridharitar) as ill omens. Some Muslims (or dara have shaven heads and, on that account, they are also consider la suba omens by the Sinhalese.
The ideal Sinhala Woman has long hair and thus anyone who falls short of the ideal is considered a suba. Even the hair on he
eye-lids matter ;
"If the hair on the eye-lids is sparse Paramours she will enter Lain, they say" 44 (SLM v. 90
In the traditional Sinhala village, even males grow their hal As noted by Robert Knox in his "An Historical Relations of Ceylo even "these boyes go bare-headed with long hair hanging dow their backs'. ** (p. 56)
40. උර හිස් ලොකුව පිරිලා නම් කම් සැප 41, උකුල උස්ව පිරිලා නම් කම් සැප 42. උරහිස් උස්ව නොපිරී නම් වැන්දඹු 43. ලොමීන් හීන් නම් ඇසිපිය සොර හිමි
44. Knox, Robert. An Historical Relation of Ceylon, Sa
Press 1958.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV (N.S.) 1983 5
If the presence of hair is symbolically suha, then, its removal, even in dreams, implies something astha :
"If you see your hair being removed A suffering or death is near' Mi (SM v. 74)
C. Form Symbolism
Objects in nature take diverse forms but culture brings into them organisation by assigning them into contrastive sets so as to convey information. In terms of "form' the binary contrast that his implications for Sinhala culture is that between 'round' and "non-round'. The category "round' is designated "vata' and 'nonround" may be either 'flat' (pitali) or "broad' (palal). Thus, things thal are round will be regarded suba while things thal are flat or broad (Isuha, The round non-round contrast is most conspicuous ill regard to bodily features of women,
"If the neck is Tound With three stripes around She will receive praise' 4s (SLM w. 78)
"If thc thumb is round She will give you comfort' it (SLM 75).
A maiden with full brcasts is considered a good omen because kill breasts are, at the same time, round.
Bodily features that are flat or broad in form are considered | sila :
"If the lips are broad Comical she'll look they say", 4. (SLM v. 82)
"If a flat neck has she No husband there'll be"' 49 (SLM v. 78)
|l), ඉස කෙස් දැලි උගුලනවා වත් බි
දුටුවෝබාත් සිනෙන් මේ දේ තදව විඳුමක් වත් මරවත් වේ නිවර
||(}, බෙල්ල වටව ඉරි තුනු නම් පැසසුම්
|", මහපටගිල්ල උස වට නම් සැප දේ
|}, දෙතොල පලල් ඇති වී නම් කෝලම් |", බෙල්ල පැතලි ඇති වී නම් හිමි නැති

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s SUBA-ASURA SYMBOLISM IN SINHALA CULTURE
"If her nose is flat at its tip Fortune and riches, she certainly will skip" " (SLM v. 86)
"If big and broad her tongue will be No wealth no riches she will sec ill (SLM. W. 85
"If the hips are flat and bent As a widow her life will be spent" G2 (SLM v. 76).
'If the heel is broad Fortune she cannot afford' 53 (SLM w. 74
Sinhala culture has thus assigned symbolic meanings to th 'form of physical things.
D, Texture Symbolisill
Texture forms still another pel raTincter oT which symbols Ca be organised into patterined scts cal Trying cultural informatic in terms of texture, things are eitherniolok (smooth, fine) or 'ral (rough, coarse). Suba is that which is molok, and a suba that whic is not. Women's features offer the best material fot this symbolis,
"If the sole is smooth and fine She'll bring good luck, they say B4 (SLM v. 7)
If fleshy and smooth are one's jaws They say that fortune will favour those Bi (SLM w. 8
"If the palm is as smooth as a lo We" Om her husband many a pleasure will shower" (SLM. W. "
"If smooth and shiny is her hip Royal splendour she will gгір” 57 (SLM v. 70
50, නැබුරු පොතලි අග නම් නාසය 51. ලොකුව පලල් දිව ඇත් නට් දුප්ප්පත් 55, උකුල පොතලි නැවි දිග නම් වඳ EE) 53. විලුඹ පලල් ඇති වී නම් 8: ಸೌ* 54. පතුල මේධාලෝක සම වී නම් සුබ ජීව් 55. මොලොක් හනුව ගන වී නම් යහපත්
පියුමව සමව අත් තල త్రి లే చిర 57, c.c. 55) o con శ్రీ రత සැප
i
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

| COURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Wol XXV (N.S.) 1980-81 117
Coarse and rough features, on the other hand, are loaded with (Isuha implications :
"If coarse and bent are hCT finger nails To enjoy pleasures of life she fails' B (SLM w. 80)
"If coarsc and thin is her hair In her old age, no husband will care' 69 (SLM w.91
E. Directional Symbolism
In terms of spatial orientation, things arc cither on one's right (dak IIIa) or one's left (varia). The rightleft contrast forms the basis of another symbolic discrimination in Sinhala culture, which a Llaches silba" connotations to the former, and a suba connotations to the latter.
In the dream of Queen Maya, the white tusker enters her womb by piercing it on its right by means of his right tusk. Before doing so, the tusker, so the dream goes, circumambulated the queen thrice. Circumambulation (praalaksiid), in religious parlance, Incans walking around some sacred object with one's right arril towards it. The Buddhist pilgrim who visits the temple will always circumambula Lc the stupa and the Bodhi tree, which are considered sacred. Even when he cnters the Shrine Room, which houses the image of the Buddha, he enters it through the right door so that his right arTT is towards the image as he moves along towards the exit,
Mention has already been made of the silla dream in which a white serpent bites one's arm. This dream insists that the arm so hitten must be the right arm. A Sinhalese who sets out on an important journey will lift, first, his righl foot and only then his |cfʼL.
The right hand (claki Yu at a) is also culturally superior to his left one. The right hand is used not only to eat but also to Writic : Ind give. What is given with the right hand is that given well. In conducting monetary transactions, either during the Sinhala
{}8, අත් නිය රළුව වකුටුව නම් සැප නැති {10. සිහින් රළුව, හියෙක් නම් වැන්දඹු

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8 SUBA-ASUFA, SYMBOLISM IN SINHALA, CULTURE
New Year, or at the beginning of each day, it is important to use the right hand in giving and receiving this money.
he right|left distinction appears in Imany other dimensions of Sinhala cultural life. In selecting a suitable place to build a house astrologers employ a ritual in which a coconut, with a man standin on it, is made to turn to the right by means of incantations. the coconut turns to the left, it Imells that the site is a silla.
Clittle that are used on the threshing floor (karpata) arc nadc Lo, circumambulate emphasising the belief that the karnata is a sacre էlTէ:1:
This contrast becomes important in certain man : woman relations in Sinhala culture. On the ceremonial occasion when the bride and the groom are placed on the port va, it is interesting to note that the groom, who is for all symbolic purposes 'superior stands on the right side of the bride. A traditional wife was also expected to sleep on the left side of her husband. 'Siri Gir
Varia Iiva," a folk pocil, says
"Do Ilot go to sleep before thc husband Prepare well his pillow and mat After the husband falls asleep Go and sleep, on his left, a little lower" °" (w. 49).
Sinhalese sculptors and painters also emphasise thc rightle contrast. When the two hands of the Buddha image arc placed one above the other, it is the right hand that is always above. If He is depicted with one arm raised, as in the abaya IIIdri, or with on arm touching the Earth, as in the briiniisparsa Indra, it is alway the right one. In seated images, the right leg is always placed ove the left one. In Tecumbent images, the head is placed on the righ palm. The 'irral rônia, a symbolic tuft of hair that appears to thc forchead of the Buddha inages, is something that is curled towards the right.
60. Siri Guna Varnard va, Compiled by U. D. Johanis Appuham
Colombo: Laksilumina Press, 1908
හිමිවී පළමුවෙන් නින්දට නොම යන් සංඝට්‍රදට ඇදුරු කොට්ටිත් ලා දීපන් සතුට සිතින් හිමි නිදිගත් පසු ගෙ.සි විමට ෙවලා පාතින් නිදියාගන්
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

jo URNAL. R. A. S. (5RI LAN KA) IVol. XXIY, (N. S.) 1980-81 19
Of the bodily relics of the Buddha, the ones on His right side are considered more sacred than those on His left. It is believed tlıat the Thrāpārārna in Anu radhapura is built enshrining the right collarbone of the Buddha. Even the sapling of the Bodhi Trce thal was brought to the Island happened to be from the right branch (if the original tree.
The Sinhala word for the right, clakIIIa, is rather coincidentally, the word for the south as well. Thus the Sitha connotations altached to thic right are sometimes extended to the south too. Since the south is considered suba it implies that its opposite "nerth' (trillra) cannot be so. The contrast south/north is, however, less prominent |hall that between east West.
The east is considered culturally sitha perhaps because it is associated with the "rising sun'. In fact the Sinhala language designates both the 'east and the 'rising sun' by the identical phrase "nageria hira. When a Sinhalese sleeps, he does so with his head pointing towards the east. Only a corpse is placed with its head | WELT.ds the WCSt.
A building will also have its main door facing east. Robert Knox has noted that the King's palace stands on the east corner of the city of Kandy ;
"The Kings Palace stands on the East corner of the City, Els is customary in this land for the Kings Palaces to stand"
The Sinhalese also believe that medicines must be taken, facing west, so that the ailment will disappear like the 'setting sun' (basid hira), a term that means both the 'west and the 'setting sun'.
Space is thus organised not only oil a physical SCIlse but also on a cultural sense. Each culture attaches different meanings to these spatial orientations such that in some cultures, "it is righl to |rive On the left".
Looking at symbols and their relations from Leach's perspeclive, Sinhala symbolism begins to assume new meanings. For his central principle that "a sign or symbol only acquires meaning wh[:Im
451. Knox, Robert. op, ci. p. 7.

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120 0LLLESLLLLLS 0LLLLLLLLLL LL LLLLLLLLS LLLLLLL
it is discriminated from some other contrary sign or symbol' succeeds in explaining with great insight the large volume of ethnographic facts that constitute Sinhala symbolism. His principle also brings into focus a few apparent contradictions that need further Cxpla Elation.
Firstly, the use of white as a symbol of death and Ilouring in Inder Sinhala culture. It was observed earlier that in Sinhala. culture the colour that is considered sihr symbolically is white. It is associated with some of the auspicious occasions of Sinhala life, such as birth and marriage. Onc would then logically expect that death, the antithesis of birth, would be symbolished not by white but by black or red.
The study of Sinhala symbols fron an historical pct spective reveals that the use of white as a symbol of death is indecd a recent innovation. It appears that this innovation was triggered off by the use of black as a symbol of death and mourning by the newlyconverted Christian Sinhalesc. The use of while by the Sinhala Buddhists to signify death seems to emphasisc the Buddhist/Christi contrast in the Sinhala society,
That the use of white as a symbol of death is an innovation is substantiated by history, which records that the colour that symbolised death in early traditional socicly was actually black. Dolapihilla, in his accounts of the last days of the Kandyan kingdom, SEYS :
"Black was the Inourning colour of the Sinhalese. Black sória worn at funerals are still found. The box of rice sent by relatives to a bereaved house was covered not with white as usual, but a piece of black cloth., and old men of the early twentieth century found a black piece of cloth to wrap round the head on a sad occasion. No man may wear a full white dress during Sinhala times, It was the targala colour of the monarch'd
A Second contradiction a rises when black, the Isuha colour is associated with hair. It was noted earlier that the head full of hair is considered suba both because the head is full and that hair signifies growth. However, hair is also, black which is considered a suba. How can this contradiction be reconciled ?
62. Dolapihila, P. B. In the Days of Sri Wickrania Rajasingha
Saman Press 1959 p. 10.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JoLIRNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. YXV (N.S.) 1980-81
One possible solution Tests on the explanation that the relation between symbols and things is, by definition, one-way. A suba symbol, for example, may contain some specific category (white, full, smooth etc.) but all things that contain this category need not necessarily be sha, Thus, a suba symbols in Sinhala are black in colour but it does not necessarily follow that all black things arc Sitha,
Leach's principle, however, unearths soline symbolic material that cannot be adequal cly explained at the present state of my knowledge. Firstly, the association of waste matte such as feces with 'suba' categories. Siapia Malaya specifically mentions that if One Scc5 in drea II).
"Feces smeared on one's body Will be for the good of all" 3:3 (SM w. 31)
It is also believed that if a crow excretes on the body, particullarly on the head, as one sets out on a journey, it will bring good fortune. I am unable to find, althc moment, the specific parall.cter in which waste matter functions as one of the members of a binary Citrils,
Secondly, it is interesting to note that among the sua symbols are those associated with taboo and incest. Sexual relations with a sister, for example, is considered "incest in Sinhala society but to drc:im of that act is however colsidered sija,
"If pleasure is sought from onc's sister. It will be for the good of all" di (SM w. 31).
The existence of material of this kind, however, docs not question the Walidity of Leach's principle. It only brings them i rito sharper focus.
|13. වැකුනා අසූචි ද තම සිය බිඳ පි
|4. සෙවුනා තම බුහුනානියන් පහස
දකිනා සුපිනත් යහපති සතහ

Page 78
soME ASPECTS OF RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND
OWNERSHIP IN SRI LANKA
FROM ISO A.D. ONWARDS
தி)
S. BERUGOD, M.Sc. (T & C Plairling), F.R.I.C.S.
An attempt was made by Governor North to introduce a syste matic land recording system which would have solved some of the land ownership problems that were caused by the legal system followed in the country. He was mainly concerned with the illeffects of the ownership of land in undivided shares. Hence the attempt was aimed at partitioning such lands and maintainin records of same. This attempt failed,
The vast land development activities of the early nineteen Century have not sufficiently taken into account the need for syster matic records and this aspect has been neglected during that period.
The desirability of having such systematic land records had been pointed out by different quarters from about 1840, This hadi resulted in bringing legislation for this purpose in 1863. According a system of registration of deeds was commenced throughout the country under this legislation and subsequently registration of title was introduced in a pilot area around Colombo. This latter attempt was abandoned after a few years of operation.
Legislation covering various aspects of land ownership hadi been introduced during the last 180 years. It had been imperative that the land recording system too should have been improved to serve the needs of the contemporary society. Proposals had been made on several occasions to introduce a system of registration () title which would hawe scrived such purposes. However, the
proposals had not received official sanction and some of the lar ownership problems that existed in 1800 A.D. continue to exist,
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JoURNAL. R. A. S. (SRI LANEKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-81 123
Systematic records of land ownership should aim at unambiguous definition of the individual plots of land, and should spell out without any ambiguity the rights and interests therein together with the details of partics having such rights and interests.
Una mbiguous definition of a land includes any dcscriptions or other aids that help in the identification of the land without any ambiguity. Survey plans play a vital role in such identification; hence thcy form part of the system of land records,
Rights and interests in land wary depending upon the sociocconomic and legal environment of the society, and the nature of records to be maintained, too, will wary depending upon such necds of the society.
Land Records prior to 1800 A.D.
The development of the maintenance of land information will he clearly seen if we consider the nature of Tccords maintained during various ages. Thus We see the laid grants which would have been oral proclamations in the earliest times being recorded as rock and cave inscriptions during the early periods and as grants on copper or other media during subsequent times.
The development of this system into a maintenance of registers of land ownership is also significant. The earliest such available records, namely, the Lekam Initi of the Kandyan period, contain much information relevant to the study of thc socio-economic conditions of that society in addition to serving as land registers. The Portuguese Tombos and Forals, and the Dutch Tombos similarly contain land information which could be used for several րլIrրtises.
It is interesting to note that the Dutch Tombos had been intended to be compiled after a survcy by a land surveyor at which stage any minor boundary disputics could hawe been arbitrated upon by the Mudaliyars who had accompanied the surveyors; but all lands had not been surveyed... The rules for land surveyors issued by the Dutch Political Council in 1758 indicated the existence
I. R. L. Brohier, LAND, MAPS AND SURWEYS. Wol. l. C. G. P. 1950
pp. 15, 1б,

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124 RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND OWNERSHIP N SRI LANKA
of land surveys at the request of land owners. This reflects the interest in this direction shown by the Dutch authorities as well as the private land owners. The procedure that was to be follow by the Dutch Tombo Commissioners in taking over the preliminar Schedules and plans and thereafter completing the inquiries also indicates a systematic approach to the compilation.
Land Records since 1800 A.D.
Governor Fredrick North's decision in February, 1799 to prepare a Register showing the "persons attached to that service by the possession of Ninda Paraveni lands, and the nature of their service" appear to be the first step taken by the British in compiling a register pertaining to lands.
The Land Proclamation of 1800 shows thc interest taken by the British in the early stages in solving some of the problems that adversely affected the land ownership system. The provisions of
this Proclamation had the following objectives:
(a) To end the undivided ownership of land. The division or sale was to be done as agreed upon by all the co-owners or as approved by two-thirds of such owners in the event of there not being an agreement among all the co-owners
(b) To grant title to those who occupied land without title or
grant.
(c) To grant title to those who occupied land on servic
til LTE.
(d) To grant uncultivated land "in full and perpetual property"
to applicants for agricultural purposes.
(e) To compile a Register of Lands.
The establishment of the Survey Department in 1800 had been initially to support this procedure. The Proclamation of 180 required lands to be surveyed and plans issued by the Survey Depar
Ibid. Appendix B. Colvin R. de Silva, Ceylon under the British Occupation. Wol II. p.34) Proclamation of Governor Fredrick North of 3rd May, 1800, Colombo,
- do - 2nd Aug, 1800, Gallic. - d - Is Mar. 1801, Colombo,
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JoURNAL. R. A. s. (SRI LAN KA) Wall. YYY, (N. S.) 1980-81 125
Illent. Thereafter deeds pertaining to such lands could be registered in the district registers by presidents of Landraads who were appoinled registrars for that purpose. These provisions had been withtrawl in 1802 due to sevcial problems.
The Survey Department now functions under the provisions cinacted in 1865. It maitauins systemmatic records of Ell SL I'W CY'S carried out by its staff. These include Ficld Books and originals of all plans. Copies of such plans are issued to the relevant authorities for suit ble action,
An important change in the land policy adopted by the British had taken place in 1812 when restrictions that previously applied to European settlers obtaining grants of land were relaxed. The regulations which were advertised that year permitted Europeans getting grants in perpetuity of land up to a ceiling of 4000 acres per individual. This allowed expanded activity in the planting industry which could not wait proper surveys and as a result some of the Title Plans issued with these Grants were mere sketches. This expanded activity and the unsystematic land sales were carried Further after the changes introduced in 1832 on the recommendations of the Colebrooke Commission. This has resulted in the continual. tion of such inadequate Surveys.
The presumption of title in favour of Crown, to "all forests, waste, unoccupied or uncultivated lands'was introduced in 1840,"- und has been ret;lined in the subsequent legislation pertaining to land settlement 5-14. The systematic land scttlement procedure which was introduced after 1897, was designed to arrive at the limits of State land. This provided for the Survey Department to produce hic Tcquired plans and for the Land Settlement DepartmlCrnt t0 conduct the investigations into any claims put forward by claimants
7, Proclamation of Gwernor Fredrick North of 14th July, 1802, Colombo 8, Land SLIrwicy's Ordinance (Cap 458) L. E. 1956. Ed. Colombo. 9. G. K. Thornhill, Discussion on paper "Registration of Title to Land" by
I. F. Wilson. The Engineering Association of Ceylon. Transactions for 1933 p. 5(), II). Ordince N, 5 T 18),
1. Crown Lands Encroachinent Ordinance, No. 12 of 1830. 2. Ordinance No. 9 of 841. 3. Waste Lands Ordinance, I of 1897. 4. Land Settlement Ordinance. (Cap 463) L. E. 1956. Ed. Colombo.

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RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND ownERSHIP IN SRI LANKA
At the end of the investigations, a Final Report is published in the Government Gazette, with reference to survey plans outlining the lands that are declared Crown, those that are admitted private and those that are settled on individuals, This report does not deal with ill dividual claims inside the areas that are admitted private.
The plans prepared for this purpose are based on rigorous surveys. Those that are prepared after 1910 show boundaries tha. have been defined on ground by statutory landmarks's. Copi of these (containing the plan, tenement list indicating details of the land and the Final Report) arc prepared as Final Pians (Final Willage Plans, Final Topographical Plans, etc.) and are issued to the Kachcheries by the Survey Department,
On receipt of these, the Government Agents are able to carry out the land administration functions expected of them under the different statutes. Any disposals of State lands for long periods are effected only after porper surveys and they are very systematically recorded in the relevant Final Plans.
Mention was made earlier of Governor North's attempts to resolve the problems due to ownership of land in undivided shares and his failure at these attempts. The system of ownership of undivided shares in land Wils caused partly due to the legal systems applicable in the country (viz. the Roman Dutch Law, § Law, Tesawalamai, Muslim Law, Mukkuvar Law, clic.) none of whic recognize a system of unitary intestate succession and partly due to the sociological conditions where the majority of thc p: Tents wish to leave their property to all the children's. Even after the failure of the 1800 A.D. attempt, an individual co-owner who wished to get his share properly partitioned could avail of the provisions of thc Roman-Dutch Law for this purpose". Several statutory provisions had been brought forward, commencing in 1844, for the
partition or sale of these lands-4. This involvesd a protracted
15. Crown Landmarks Ordinance. (Cap 456). L., E, 1956 Ed. Colombo lf. C. W. Brayne, Discussion on paper "Registration of Title to Land' by I.
Wilson. (p. ciL, pp. 42, 43. 17. Walter Perera, LAWS OF CEYLON. Colombo. p. 304. 18. Ordinance No. 2 of 1844. 1). (C) Tidic: N. || || Cf || 352, 0H0S LLLLLLaL LLLLaLLGLHHLHlLHl LLtS S L LL LrrS KS LaLLLaLL LLLK LELS L LL0S OH0KS S S S LELLLLLLaLH LL LLLLLLH LSLLaaLS LtS TK LL 0L00S 23. Administratiom of Justicc (Armendment) La W No. 25 of 1975. 24. Pari in Law No. 2 of 1977,
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

IOURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. Y.Y. (N. S.) 1980-81 27
Courts procedure which had been generally found to take a number of years. At the end of the proceedings a Final Decree of Partition or Certificate of Sale with reference to a survey plan was issued by the relevant Cours. These documents arc available for reference at the particular Courts.
Governor North's measures intended, in addition to solving some of the then current land ownership problems, to compile a systematic land register. After the failure of these at leinpts, the illcffects of the absence of such a record had becil felt for some time and proposals for the compilation of a systematic land Register had been put up by several Government officials,2'-'. Legislation was introduced in 1863 for the commencement of registration of title and also registration of deeds...". In view of the time span needed to conduct a Cadastral survey, (i.e. a survey of the individual properties), which was needed for implementing registration of title, registration of deeds was commenced immediately throughout the country. This was implemented by the Registrar General This procedure aimed at maintaining official registers indicating details of deeds affecting land. It did not attempt to investigate into the validity of such deeds.
Cadastral survey of three villages, namely Kirillapone, Wellawat tc and Dichiwala was conductcd by the Survey Department subsequent to the 1863 legislation but no action had been taken for some time to investigate and register title. Further legislation for this purpose had been introduced within the next few years.- Cominencing from the year 1881 the plans of the three villages IlleItioned earlier had been revised and the Cadastral survey extended to two other villages, namely Talangama and Kalubowila.
The procedure followed in the definition of boundaries had not been very rigid. Registration of title was commenced about the year 1890 and continued for about 3 years. The Commissioner appointed for the purpose conducted a rigorous investigation of
25. R. L. Brothic". Op, cit.: D. 25. 26. A. B. Colin de Soysa LAWSOFCEYLON Wol. III Colombo, 1964, p. 156. 27. Land Registration Ordinalnice, No. 8 If I 8s53. 28. Ordinance No. 3 of 1865,
2"P.- ()ri:Le Nb, 5 T 1877,
3C). Ordinance No. 4 of 1889.
I. Ordinal N. 14 in 1891,

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28 RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND OWNERSHIP IN SRI LANKA
title. Certain statutory periods were allowed for appeals. At the conclusion of the investigations, one of two classes of title was granted, namely, first class title in cases where the Commissione was of opinion that he title was acceptable to a willing purchaser and second class title in instances where the title did not appear to qualify upto that degree of acceptance but where the claiman was in possession. There was provision for the conversion of second class title to first class title after a period of years. A certifi cate of title was issued to the party concerned and the title deeds retained at the registry. The certificate of title could be one of three categories depending on the claim, namely certificate of owner
After about 3 1/2 years of operation, this scheme had been abando ned owing to the heavy expenditure involved. During this period total of 1708 lands amounting to 1548 acres had been registeres under this scheme at a cost to Government of Rs. 74,098, i.e. about Rs. 43 per land or about Rs. 48 pr acre 89. The registers which were introduced by the Registrar General for the registration of title continued to be used under the registration of deeds procedure after the title registration scheme was abandoned. A further Act that was passed in 1907 for conducting legistration of title3 has not bjecil ei lifo i'cccd.
The present system ofland registration in the country is one ol registration of deeds governed by the Registration of Documen Ordinance. The deeds pertaining to land transactions attest by Notaries's are extracted in thc Land Regist cris Imaintained in th respective Land Registries. In addition, copies of deeds are als filed therein. All instruments affecting title properly execut before public officers are also registrable in a similar manner
The records required under the Condominium Property la are maintained in separate registers, other than the Land Registe at the Land Registries".
32. E. G. Eastman. Discussion on paper "Registration of Title to Land" by
I. F. Wilson, p. cit. p. 4).
3. () ridiric N, 3 T 1907.
L0S lTLLLaH L LLaaHHLHHL SLLLaLLLHLaLLS LLLLaLSS 00 LL LLL0KS
35. Nolarics Ordinance (Cap 107). L. E. 1956 Ed. Colombo.
36. Deeds and DocLiments (Execution before Public Officers) Ordinance
(Cap 58) L. E. 1956 Ed. Colombo.
37. Apartment Ownership Law No. 1 of 1973.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

|URNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Wol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-81 9
The records thus maintained at the Land Registrics serve to indicatic some of thic do Cui Ilıcı Lis that affect title to land but do not indicate the position of title. It is left to a person versed in the subject to study these and for in an opinion about the title. Such opinions are private opinions and hence are not binding on others. Ns a result these documents have to be studied over and over again by different parties needing information about title. This will Lontinue until a land beLUmes the subject of a Court lction as in P:Litition, where, after an authoritative investigation, Court passes judgement on title.
Outright sale of Crown land under the policies followed by the British ended in 1916 and thereafter, upto about 1930, a different form of teilure called the "Peasant Proprictor System" has been tricid Ll in allocating Crown land. With the introduction of the Land De velopment Ordinance il 1935, a new type of ten Lu Te, a perpetual le: se with certain TeslTictions, was introduced59. In addition, this also introduced a unitary form of succession. The Crown Lands Ordinance passed in 1947 is of great significance from the point of view of the management of land. There is provision for (lispositions of various types. Subsequently, further legislation was brought in for thc disposition of lands which are at the disposal of the State 4-4. All these required quick sketch surveys, if the land Wils to be alienated initially in undeveloped form or rigorous surveys With properly defined boundaries, if Grants were to be issued. The required Surveys had been carried out by the Survey Department Irid copies of plans issued to the Government Agcts for suitable Action. Information regarding these alienated lands are being Intaintained in Land Ledgers and similar registers at the District Kilchcheries. Information collected in 1981 indicated that nearly 1.5 million allotments of land had been alienated up-to-date 4. Hence information regarding this large number of lands, excepting
|ւյr չլիtյլIt TՈ[] [] for which Grants have been issued, call be obtained inly from the District Kitchchcrics,
LSS S LLLHaaHL LL aLLLL LLLL LLLLHHLHHLLLLlLLLLLLLLHS 0SLSS LL 00E LSLLL LS S S 0S
SS LLLL LCHLLLLHHLLH LLLaGHa SaLa 0LLL0 S LLS 000 LLSS LaaHHaaS S S TLLLtHHH LLLLLL LLLLCHaakS LLLS S LLL KS | Sale of State Lands (Sp. Provisions) Law. No. 43 of 1973.
Land Grant: (Special Provisions) Act. No. 43 of 1979. l, Amendments to the Land Development Ordinance, 1981.
1. Files in the Lind Commissioner's DeparLIlhen. 15, Administration Report of the Land Commissioner for 1969, Parl I Civil
(G) 1976. Schedule A. P. G. 30.

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130 RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND OWNERSHIP IN SRI LANKA
Grain Tax Registers maintained under the Grain Tax Ordinance of 187846 also serve a very useful purpose in tracing details regarding ownership of land. Some of these are still kept at the District Kachcheries and some are available at the National Archives Service Tenure Registers too serve a similar purpose.
Legislation introduced in 1889 and amended subsequently at various stages' provided for the functioning of the private sector surveyors. These surveyors carry out surveys on the requests of individual landowners or on the orders of Courts of Law. The original drawings pertaining to these surveys are kept with the indi vidual surveyors and copies arc issued to the parties concerned These records are very vital for locating boundaries and properti bs There is no authority empowcred to take over these documents at the termination of a surveyor's carrier,
of any built up areas within their limits) maintain several records which arc very important from a point of view of land ownership
(which indicate location of property, cxtent, assessments payable, names of persons liable to pay assessment rates and the rates paid) and plans showing street lines, building limits and other planning proposals.48
The legislation introduced, commencing from 1958, for the management of paddy lands introduced an entirely new form of tenure... The tenurial rights of the tenant cultivators were made Secure, disposable by the tenant cultivator and inheritable. The landlord continued with the ownership rights, which too, Wer
46. G. Obeyesek cre LAND TENURE IN WILLAGE CEYLON, 1967
C, LJ.P. pp. II (I)8 — II (), 120. 47. Surveyor's Ordinarice (Cap 108) L. E.1956 Ed. Colombo, 48. Municipal Councils Ordinance, (Cap 252) L. E. 1956. Ed. Colombo. 49. Urbail Councils Ordinance (Cap 265). L. E. 1956 Ed. Coljbo. 50. Town Councils Ordinance Cap 256). L. E. 1956. Ed, Colombo. 51. Willage Councils Ordinance (Cap 257). L. E., 1956. Ed. Colombo. 52. Housing and Town Improvement Ordinance. (Cap 265). L. E. 1956, Ed 53. Town and Country Planning Ordinance (Cap 269) L. E. 1956. Ed. Col 54. Paddy Lands Act. No. 1 of 1958. 55. Paddy Lands Antendment Ordinance, No. 61 of 1961. 56. Agricultural Lands Law No. 42 of 1973. 57. Agrarian Services Act No. 58 of 1979,
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. Y.Y. (N. S.) 1980-81. 131
disposable and inheritable. Under these provisions the Agrarian Services Committees are expected to maintain Registers of Agricul|tral Lands. The information contained in these registers include name and extent of land, and nailles of landlord and ticnant or Cwncr cultiva Lor. The infor Tulation regelirding tenant cultivators can be obtained only from this source.
The Rent Registers maintained by the Rent Boards under the Rent Act 58 also contain valuable information affecting title to such properties. The information contained in these registers include the names of claint and laidlord and situation, boundaries ill extent of the properties,
With the introduction of Lilld Refor in Laws commencing in |'729-6, and Ceiling on Housing Property Laws in 1973, a large nu Tıber of propertics had been wested in State organisations by the operation of these statutory provisions. However, the information pertaining to thic majority of these properties is not reflected in the Land Registry documents as the determinations in respect of then Ihre not yet complete. Hence, um til such time that thic determinations are completed, the details pertaining to them can be obtained ily from the Lald Reform Commission or the Colinissioner of National Housing as the case may be. In fact, action, on such determinations has been delayed due to the lack of a systernatic land record system.
The above account shows that the information pertaining to land ownership is now being maintained in several organisations Illd that a person needing information regarding title to a land has Lo study tihe information 1 wailable in these different organisltions. Even after such study the information may not be complete ILs such information may not satisfy the requirements mentioned In para I. This will be especially so in the case of inherited properties which will not have documents to be registered at the Land Registrics.
58, Rent Act No. 7 of 1972. 5). Land Reform Lliw No. 1 of 1972. (sl), Land Ricfort (Amendment) Law No. 39 of 1975, II, Ceiling on Housing Property Law No. 1 of 1973

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32 RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND OWNERSHIP. IN SRI LANKA
This situation will point out to the need for the improvemen of the system of the maintenance of land records under a system of registration of title whereby title to properties will be investigated by an official authority and decisions made, thus giving finality avoiding the need for individual repeated cxaminations. It will also point the need for better co-ordination of the activities of the relevant organisations,
" This aspect has been officially studied by several committees and individuals, ever since the title registration attempt was abandoned during the closing years of the last century. These official studies and activities can be cInumerated as follows :-
(a) A comprehensive Ordinance drafted for commenci
registration of title was passed in 1907, as mentione earlier 83, but it has not becn brought into effect,
(l) Between 1912 and 1914 a proposal to start a Cadast al survey of the country with a vicw to commencing registra tion of title received the attention of the Government However, it has not been implemented mainly due to the difficulty anticipated in dealing with the individed share and due to the difficulties centering around the existing law" It is one of these ills, namely that of the problem of undivi ded shares, that this system is expccted to remedy Part of the problems envisaged in the existing law, namely that of fidei com Tissa umdict thic Romam Dutch Lil W. helt been solved with tle albolition of fidei commissa.
(c) The Land Commission appointed in 1927 studied this
aspect and recommended a small expert committee investigate into the subject.
(d) The expert committee, appointed in 1929, under the Chairmanship of the Attorney General reported in 1931, that it would be of benefit to introduce title registratio provided the expense was not too great, applicable at the stage of dealings in land.
62. R. L. Brohier, Op. cit. p. 26. (53. Abolition of Fidci Commissil and Entails Act, No. 2) of 1972. 64. Sessional Papers II and XLV of 1928, 16 and 35 of 1929. 65. Sessional Paper X of 1958 p. 29.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XV, (N.S.) 1980-81 133
(e) The Banking Commission dealt with the urgent need for registration of title with a view to providing sufficient credit facilities.
(f) A Committee appointed in 1934, under the chairmanship of the Land Commissioner and having thc assistance of two of the World's authorities on the subject, recommended the introduction of registration of title on a trial basis adopting two diffecnt approaches 7.
(g) The Judicial Service Commission, in 1936, referred to the same subject and expressed "its respectful surprise that this necessary feature of a civilized administration has been so delayed' is,
(h) The Mortgage Commission appointed in 1943 also recommended a system of registration of titles. Based on these recommendations, a Bill was presented in the Senatc in 1953, but aliction has mot been followed therefter.
(f) The Land Com Inission appointed in 1955 recoil mended giving high prior tiy in the framing of legislation to introduce registration of titleTo.
(j) This subject was further studied L's part of a UN DP
(SF) project for a few years commencing 1967."-7
(k) A further committee of officials appointed in 1967, sub
mitted recommendations in this direction.
(I) Introduction of registration of title was again recommended in 1979 by an advisor commissioned by the Government to advise on land management.
f6. Sessional Paper No. 22 of 1934, (57. Scssional Paper 5 of 1935. 58. Sessional Papert No. 3 of 1946 p. II. 69. Sessional Papers 13 of 1944, 5 of 1945, 8 of 1945, 3 of 1946, 70. Sessional Paper 10 of 1958 pp. 168, 69.
71. G. La TsSOT1, N. K. Wijewardenal, R. A. Gonewartlenih. LAND) REGIS
TRATION IN CEYLON. Preliminary Report 1968 U. N. D. P. (SF).
72. G. LarssCan, N. K. Wijcwardena, R. A. (Goolewardena, LAND REGIS
TRATION IN CEYLON II Report III 1970 U.N.
73. H. W. West. Report to the Ministry of Lands and Land Development,
1979, Colombo.

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134 RECORDS PERTAINING TO LAND OWNERSHIP IN SRI LANKA
(n) This subject was further studied, during the period 19791980 by a committee of officials who also recommended the introduction of registration of title74.
Although all these studics have indicatcd thc advantages of the system of registration of title, it has still not received official sanction. One reason for the delay in the Government's acceptance of this system may be the lack of a demand for it from the land owners, which in turn may be due to the lack of a knowledge of the advantages of Such a system.
It should be mentioned that some of the countries which showcd an interest in an improved system of land records after Sri Lanka took steps for this purpose, have progressed considerably in this direction and somc countries have achieved complete cover under this scheme. England introduced registration of title in certain areas in 1862, i.e. about the same time the Land Registration Ordinance was passed in Sri Lanka. It has been gradually extended in stages and is now nearing complete coverage of the entire country.7-7. This system was introduced in Australia in 1858. The work in this direction has been successfully extended to cover the entirety of several States and is nearing completion in the others 7-7, Many other countrics which introduced this system during the latter half of the 19th century have been successful in the completion of land records under title registration procedure. Kenya had number of systells of registration from the beginning of this century. These have now been replaced by a successful title registration system with the passing of Kenya Registered Land Act in 19637. The tendency now is to design such systems to serve modern day multipurpose necds. One such system, which has now been in operation for over a decade is the Swedish Land Data Bank, წწt has integrated land information with several other types of
Elt.
74. Report of the sub-committee on Registration of Title submitted to the
Ministry of Lands and Land Development, 1980.
5. S. 瑟 Simpson. LAND LAW AND REGISTRATION. C. U. P. 1976
. A.
76. Ernest Dowson and W. L. O. Sheppard. LAND REGISTRATIC)
1956 H. M. S. O. pp., 37-39.
77, S. R. Simpson. up, cit. p. 68.
78. ETT est Dowson and W. L. 0, Sheppard op. cit. p. 98.
79. S. R. Simpson. op, cit, p. 443.
80. Ibid. pp. 433 - 437.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JoURNAL. R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) IVol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-81 || 35
Thus it will be seen that from the beginning of the eighteenth century attempts have becn made to solve certain land ownership problems and produce a systematic land record system. A series of legislation aimed at the development of land have been brought in during this period. But the problems that have been spotlighted in 1800 A. D. still appear to remain. Although certain other countries which directed their attention to solving such problems have becn successful in their attempts, Sri Lanka still lags behind in this respect.

Page 85
GREEK MOTIFS IN THE JATAKAS
岛y
MERLIN PERS
In this article, the result of a review of the Jatakas, or Birth Stories of the Buddha, in the light of my own wider acquaintanc with the fables and myths of the Greeks, I wish to do two things Firstly, I shall show by parallel summaries what appear to mc to be the Grcck storics to which several of the Jātakas may have ow their motifs - and consequently, that the number of such, on my own re-counting, far exceeds the number so far recognized by Scholars; secondly, that this suggests that, even if the greater par of the story-motifs of the Jaitakas may be of diverse other origins the clement of correspondence with the Greek that is manifested in such a number of them must be accepted as evidence of a wider and more intimate acquaintance that the one had with the other than could hitherto have been suspected. On the grounds of chronolo and historical opportunity the probability is strengthened that was the Indians who received from the Greeks rather than, as some scholars, including Rhys Davids, used to think, wice-versa.
without prejudice to the immensely waster quantity of the rest of the story-material of this great compendium of narratives - that those Jatakas or portions of Jaitakas, which reflect motifs found in the Greek, had their origin in India after the considerable presence of the Greeks there following Alexander's invasion. Brought there by
1. Birdlist Birth Stories tr. T. W. Rhys Davids vol. 1. London (1880 introd. p. iii. Also see p. xxx w and xliw. This controwersy has becn | i horough, considering the cwidence, Els it has been inconclusive, an almo cqual number of eminent scholars ranging themselves on either sld Opinion has not infrequently been biassed from cultural and religi partiality, often intensified by colonial rule in India and leading at least in writer (see W. T. Rutherford Babriris London (I883) introd. p. xxiv) | welcome Orientals to their childsh fables as krnes pros enefon. On l other hand, to overcstimate the Greek contribution to the ocean of Ind story is to think like thic jackal in the old Semitic proverb, who, urin At into the sea, declared that the whole sca was his urine. However, it woul indeed be surprising if the advent and long stay of the Greeks in Ind WeenLi Lotally Lin registcrcd in Indian literature.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Wol. XXV, (N.S.) 1980-81 137
his soldiers and subsequent immigrants from Greece, the numerous fables, myths and historical anecdotes of the Greeks shed their IIlotifs upon the cultural soil of India, which, fertilized by the imagination of a nation no less mythopoeic than their racial cousins of the West, burgeoncidin Lo stories concc again, but now with a distinctly Indian flavour. Participants, situations, social and religious hilckground reappear in them so thoroughly localized as to make them indistinguishable from those Jatakas whose substance and complexion were of entirely indigenous origin or which had derived their motifs from yet other lands and similarly assimilated them. The very motifs themselves, upon which the narratives werc dressed, did not always retain their original form but often underwent modification in transposition, sometimes reappearing in inversion, as in the Arita Jataka (No. 294), where it is the jackal who is praised by the crow and not wice-versa, or in the Variara Jaitaka (No. 342), where the monkey, riding on the back of a water-beast, is saved, not drowned, by his lying. For all that, they do not fail to ring a hell, when read by anyone sufficiently familiar with the stories of the Greeks, and evoke a recollection of what may well have been the Greek prototypes to which they owed their individual eidos.
How much of the stories of other peoples found their way into India to collect ultimately in such compendia as the Jaitaka Book, the Paicatanfra, Somadeva's Kathåsaritsågara, and the Tirapadesa we may never know, But a great quantum of this may have flowed in with the Greeks in their influx into India through these lands, both with the non-Greek constitucints of thc vast army of Alexander as well as Greeks themselves, whose fondness for stories was no less than that of the Indians and who would surcly have accumulated a great store of them in their passage through Asia, depositing them ultimately in the regions in which Buddhism had already begun to gain a firm and widespread footing.
Thus the Jaitakas, if the sources of their matcrial become any better known in time, may prove to be weritable literary counterparts of the sculptural friezes of Gandhira, in which are fused, blended ind transformed these clcments of story, brought to Buddhist
2. Notably the judgement of Solomon in Kings 3, 18-28. The details may differ slightly from local rchandling, but the result is cffected by the same psychology and the decision made by the same order of judgment. Rhys Davids (ibid, p. xvi and xliv, f.), who admits that the Pauk of Rings is at least a century older than the time of Gotama, Ilakes a desperate case for the possibility that this story may have gone to the Jews from India.

Page 86
38 GREE TF TE JT.
India, to cxpress in rich and imaginative imagery a new mythology, dramatizing in and through Buddhist rebirth (punabbhava) Buddhist ideals as the Buddha's own experiences in previous lives and purporting to be his recollections through his remarkable power of birth. гепсmbering (pubbentivásány sati).
The majority of the Jātaka storics are simply folk-tales with nothing specifically Buddhist about them and the attempt to bend them to the task of purveying Buddhist teaching to a lay Buddhist audience is often enough rather evident. They are part of a common story-bank, to which diverse nations of the world have contributed and from which diverse nations were subsequently to draw upon even up to present times. Naturally some of them had already been told in India in non-Buddhist contexts. But there could well have been others which were directly adopted into a Buddhist framework, not through any folk medium but by a more sophist cated and conscious rehandling. This must certainly be true of the long-sustained and episodic narratives but also of some that betray
individualistic creative ingenuity in their plots.
The five hundred and forty seven Jātakas, which constitute our Jaitaka Book, Were, then, a body of stories drawn from diverse source receiving modification where necessary to gain acceptance as Jataka, and growing steadily in number through at least threr centuries after the passing-away of the Master. It may be that the Buddha himself used stories as a technique of exposition of his doctrines, much as Jesus used the parable and Aesop the beast fable, and it may be that he narrated those that the did in the form of Jatakas, that is, experiences of his own past lives, with thc Saffocal (in which he effected the identification of characters) meant to by taken as an artistic rather than realistic equation to illustrate || situation in the present life (the atit tha vathit). If indeed the for
3. See M. Winternity d History of Indian Literature vol. 2. Calcutta (19. p. 113-114. As hic observes, “One had only to make a Bodhisatta CILI I somchuman, animal or divine bcing, which occurred in the story, and story, however worldly and however far removed from the sphere Buddhist thought, could become a "Buddhist" story." See also J, Jones Tales arid Teachings of the Biddha London (1979) introd. p. xiii
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Journ AL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-81. 139
mula, "Long ago, when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares', is anything to go by and owed its origin to him, there cannot be much doubt that he was putting the story into a fabulous reference and that, at least among the knowledgeable, it was meant to be taken as an analogy. Distance in time, like the use of animal characters, helps to objectify the situation and its consequent lesson, just as is done by the fables of Aesop. In the latter, however, the equation is left yet to be made ; in the Jatakas the final identification, always made by the Buddha, brings the lesson home to its context in the present (in his life as Götama), which itself had been laid out in the paccuppanna'atthu as the occasion for the narration of the particular Jātaka.
In favour of such a view is the existence of some Jātakas in the four Nikayas, certain of which have been recognized in the JaitakalIha vagrari but certain others not included in it. These canonical Jātaka stories may stem from Gotama himself and thus have set the precedent for the mass accumulation of stories which were re-rendcred in Buddhist mode and which ultimately went to constitute the Jirakartha Tatari. It has been observed that in Ilonic of the instances of the earliest compositions which were designated Jātakas was the Buddha identified in his previous birth with an animal; he is either a famous sage or a teacher. But these early Jātakas confirm the possibility that the Buddha used stories in which he identified himself with one character or another. They also account for the fact that 'Jatakam' was recognized as a category of Buddhist literature already in the Nikāyas and for the proliferation of such stories, which ultimately built up their considerable total.
4. No fewer than 395 are sct in this context. In 24 stories thc Bodhisatta himself becomes Brahmadatta. See Jones op. cir, p. 24. The Brahmadatta formula performs the same function as the "Once upon a time' in European literature. Many of thic stories are so palpably naive, many fantastic, still others so trivial, that it would have been quite out of character with the Buddha to have put them forward as true of his past livics rather than as "artistic sermons.
5, Sce. Rhys Davids Buddhist India 6th cd. Calcutta (1955) table on p. 7 and
Jones op. cit., p. 196 n. 11.
6. Rhys Davids (p. cir. p. 108, reiterated in p. 115. But scC. fr. Pr. iv. 5-6, where thc Buddha identifics himself with the bull, Nandivisila (cf. Mardivisita J. (No. 28). How.cver, it is admitted that some portions of this text a Tç Of El llalter date,

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These original Jaitakas had gained entry into Buddhist canonical literature during the period following the Buddha's demise, but, in view of the archaeological evidence, perhaps not more than a century later. On the other hand, the verse stanzas, which intersperse the Jaitakas of the Jataka Book and of which the prose is supposed to be commentarial, were admitted into the canon as one of the "minor discourses of the fifteen such which constitute the Kudlaka Nikaya. This is the fifth and last Nikāya of the Sutta Pitaka and is generally agreed to be a later and less reliable compilation than the other four Nikāyas.
The prose stories, which are our concern here, belong to the commentarial period in the history of Theravada Buddhism. Geiger thought they were compiled by a monk in Sri Lanka, Buddhaghosa or a close contemporary. This late date for their compilation does not, however, preclude him from tying up thcir composition with thic verse stanzas, for, as he says and rightly, the verse stanzas could not have stood by themselves without the storics. But while the verses, being canonized, remained fixed and unalterable, the story element may have undergone much change in the long oral tradition in which they were relayed through the centuries.
If a terrain its affe quer is to be looked for for the stories of the Jātakas of the Jātakat tha vaganā, it would appear that many of them were well known by the middle of the third century B.C., since they figure in many of the bas-reliefs at Amarivati and Bharhut.
-
S S LLLS SLLLL SLLCLLLLL LLETTLL T CLTLLTL CLLL LLu TTtTtTSs GT HHS LLL and wii) and H. Buhler (India, Sri dies No. 5. Wienna (1895) express the opinion that thic social conditions in the Jātakas Iclate to the fifth century B.C. Once the early Jatakas had establishcal these conditions, they could very well have been simulated in the later ones. Besidics, many stories ar. set against a natural background or in conditions that arc not restricted to any particular period. Generalization from the cvidence of some will not hold good for all, unless, that is, we beg the question and assume hill they all date back to the same cra See Winterritz op. cir. p. 119-12 He says that only "smic of the pocms and a few of the pro5c narrative may perhaps reach back to such great antiquity," and concludes that "no only cwery large scetic and cvery single narrative, but often also every single Gatha, will hawe to be tcsted independently as rega Tids its agic."
8. W. Geiger Fali Lifera frre (Frał Largerage (tr. 1937) 2nd ed. Delhi (1968) | 31. Sce: G. P. Mallasickera The Pali Literature of Ceylor Colomb) (1928). Hic agrees that it could bc a Ceylon monk, not Buddhagoshi himself but possibly a lesser namesake, who lived soon afterward See also E. W. Burlingame Buddhist Legerials Harvard (1921) p. 60.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

four NAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N.S.) 1980-81 141
This narrows down the effective period during which the stories, which underwent transmutation into Jatakas, were accepted into Buddhism to the fourth and third centuries B.C., which, it must be admitted, remarkably coincides with the arrival of the Greeks in India and the period of fervid cultural excitement which must surcly have been consequent upon the event.
By far the greater part of the motifs of the Jatakas, which compare with the Greek, compares with those of the Aesopic fables. I would give a specific number if it were possible to pin down others, in which Greek motifs appeared less definitely or in part, with the same degree of assurance with which I identify those which I have accepted. There are cases where a fable-motif found in Aesop is split between two Jātakas, just as much as there are instances where two Aesopic fable motifs are run into each other in a single Jātaka plot. A mosquito settles on the bald head of a cer
enter and stings him with a dart-like sting ; his son, hitting at the mosquito with an axe, splits the father's head as well. This is in the Makasa Jataka (No. 44). In the Anusasika Jataka (No. 115) а hird is crushed to death under the wheel of a passing carriage. When the two details of an insect stinging the head and a bird rlying under the wheel of a carriage are lodged together they constitute the motifs of Aesop's fable of The Wasp and the Srrake (C331, H393, P216, Hs213), in which a snake, unable to bear the sting of a WSP places his head under the wheel of a passing waggon and perishes with the wasp. You will find two Aesopic fables run togethe (for instance) the Kākajāraka (No. 40), the Kapi.Jātaka (No:") Ild the Gūta Pāri jāraka (No. 227), which I give in the catalogue below. There are many other instances where a Jātaka touches an Mesopic fable or other Greek story tangentially but does not provide enough of the design to cffect a more positivcidentification. These
I have left out, as have done many others where the evocation was Tahiri t.
Even so, the appearance of so many Greck fable motifs in a single genre of literature, even motifs from less familiar Aesop sables, must suggest for Greece that at the time of their transportaltion to India, the fables of Aesop were known in some form tյf compilation or collection, which incorporated even those less popular oncs. Fables of Aesopic mode had appeared even before ACSOP (Lind so also unrelated to his name). It was perhaps becaus of his prolific creation or use of them (or perhaps both) that fables with a moral began to be called after him by the time of Aristotle, But it would appear that the number had grown by the beginning

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of the fourth century B.C. and that they were already being brough together in the minds of people as a sort of collection, even if not already fixed in Writing, and were inducing some to put them in literary for II), to judge from Socrates own attempt to render those he knew by heart in verse, while he was awaiting his death in jail
It docs appear, however, that abstracts of these fables receive compilation around 300 B.C. at the hands of Demetrius of Phale ruin, by which time their number had exceeded three hundred Even so, it is unlikely that the manner in which their motifs worker themselves into the texture of Indian folklore was through such literary source rather than through the broad oral medium provide by the Greek soldiers and settlers, who made their way to India For, their reappearance in the Jaitakas do not betray any exoti origin, as one might cxpect direct derivation from a literary source Would, but suggests the ingestion and regurgitation by a local trad tion, which has successfully Indianized then-indeed so successful that it has led an almost equal number of respected scholars to bclieve that the traffic of these notifs was one of fron, rather thin to, India.
And yet the brevity of the period during which all these nume rous Greek story, forms underwent their sea-change and Teappeared in their Indian metamorphoses-just a century to a century and
9. Plato Paeda 6la-b.
10. Diog. Lacrt. v. 80. It was entitled Aesopia and contained in one bill
scroll. It was still cxtant at the beginning of the tenth century, W. Arcthas had it copied. It muit have bc.cn one of the chicf sources used Babrius and Phaedrus, and in late antiquity Plutarch, Dio Chrisosti Lucian and Themistius would have got their fables of Aesop from it, B. E. Perry "Demetrius of Phalerum and the Aesopic Fables" TAPMI Wol. 93 (1952) p. 287-346.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Jou RNAL R. A. s. (SRI LAN KA) Vol. XXV, (N. S.) 1980-81 143
themselves still further to their new environs. The longer and more episodic of the Jātakas, even if constituted ultimately of folktales and fables, cannot have been woven into their complex form or maintained thus without disintegration without the mediation of a professional tradition as well.
Apart from the terseness and brevity in which Aesopic fables were preserved, which makes a written work unnecessary even for the transmission of so many of them across such a long distance, as from Greece to India, there is another consideration which must be taken into account. This is thc appearance, along with Greek fable-motifs in India, of motifs from Greek mythology and historical anecdote. Among the former are those of the victimization of Hippolytus, the fail of Icarus and the unique punishment of Okinus. Among the latter figure the wedding of Agariste, the choice of Intaphernes' wife and the stories of Arion and Polycrates of Samos. Arc we to explain the appearance of these too in the Jatakas by assuming that a compendium of Greek mythology also had got to India, together with at least a few pages of Herodotus ? Had written accounts been involved, and directly, the quantum of Greek material in Indian literature would surely have been far more than the sporadic manifestations we have.
And yet, what we do have is considerable enough to suggest that the Indian acquaintance with it can have come only from a close and sustained encounter with Greek culture. Such a phenomenon is not to be found in history prior to the advent of Alexander and his men in India and the Greek presence in those regions in the centuries following. The one occasion when there was a mass confrontation of Greeks and Indians before this, and one which in different circumstances would have lent support to the rival probability of a Greek "borrowing from the Indians, is the appearance of an Indian contingent with the army of Xerxes upon the mainland of
1. Thc Bishop of Colombo writes (op. cir. p. 115), "When these tales were taking shape in Buddhist hands, Greck influence was powerful at the court of Magadha. As it uniquestionably a Tected art which still remains to Lis, so it may well hawe affected the litcrature ; and the further this study is proscicuted, the more clear, I believe, it will appear that Greek culture had something to do with stimulating the wonderful and sudden burst of art and invention and writing, which gawe shape to Buddhism, and culminated in the sculpture of Bharhut and Amravati." On the non-Buddhist origin of more than one half of the Jātakas and the explanation of this as possibly being the recruitment of monks from all classes, see Winternitz. op. cir. p. 125-126. He does not mention the likelihood of thesic including Grcck monks; but see Malta varr sa xxix. 39-40, for thic possibility of Greck Buddhist monks.

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Greece. 13. The cvent, nearly contemporary with the death of the Buddha (c. 483 B.C.) and the Council of Rajagalha, which followed immediately upon his death, preceded the appearance of all but a few of the Aesopic fables in Greece : it even antidates the literary reference to some of the Greek myths and historical anecdotes which we find reflected in the Jaitakas. For India it would have served to suggest a greater antiquity for at least those J takas which share these common motifs, and just for that wery reason which Ilow leads us to our dating them after the arrival of the Greeks in India. Unfortunately, however, the encounter was as brief as it was hostile, and the only Indians who may have been left on Greek soil after that short duration would have been dead Indians. There was absolutely no opportunity for such peaceful commerce as included thc tclling of stories to cach oth,CT.
Again, the quantum of Greek motifs found in the stories of this single compendium, the Jataka Book, must refute Prof. Cowell's notion of them as "the stray waifs of literature" that had found their way to India from Greece along the ancient trade routes. There would of course be a few such. It is difficult to think how else the Old Testament's story of the judgement of Solomon made its Way to India to provide the basis of one of the prasna which were solved by the sage, Mahosadha, in the Unirriagga Jataka (No. 547). But it would have been a diabolical coincidence if so many story - motifs, coming down the centuries from Greece to India, were to accumulate in silence before they burst into literature just when those very peoples, from whose ancestors they had emanated, made their physical presence in that land.
That Greeks and Indians had in many fields displayed teachings and ideas of striking similarity used to be explained by reference to their common Aryan ancestry; they possessed them in germina form in their language, folklore or religious beliefs. Such specula
12. " For Indians in Xerxes' army, see Herodotus vii. 65-66 and 86. Indians, Bactrians and Gandharians are mentioned. See viii. 113 and ix. 31 ; il Mardonius' army were Indians and Bactrians. These people were already included in the tribute lists of Darius; see iii. 91-92 and 94, PCTsiri relations with India in thc sixth ccntury B.C. are witnessed by the inscriptions of Darius, especially one at Persepolis, which mentions Indush (the Indus district) and Gandhara among the people who brought hit in tribut
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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tion, without supportive cvidence in the case of the commonstory. motifs we are dealing with, is less than useless. More recently ill tention has been dra Wil to the Wisdom Books of the Semitic Orient Els the possible source of origin of the Greek fables 14. These deserwe consideration, especially because they are a challenge to those who thought India was the source of the Greek inspiration in this line. These oriental wisdom books, written in cuneiform script on clay lablets, belong in a continuous literary tradition which extends from Old Babylonian times down to the fall of the Assyrian empire, that is, from around 1800 B.C. or earlier, to the end of the seventh century B.C., in Sumerian texts at first, then later in Akkadian, Assyrian and Aramaic texts, including the Book of Achigar. In thc present state of their study it would appear that some of the proverbs and fables found in them could have given rise to some of the fables of Aesop. Little lore than this can be said. On the other hand, no one has ventured to suggest their impact on India, so that any possibility of the similarity of story motifs in Greece and India being duc Lo their derivation from this rich. and more ancient source of proverb and fable, which lies between the two countries, must be put by,
However, it is not as easy to put by the probability of a foreign origin for the Greek fable. The nature of many of the animals, who tire introduced in them with great familiarity, would be slrange to the Greeks-the lion, the monkey, the callel, the elephalt-whereas some of the in arc better known in the Semitic lands, and nearly all of them in India. Add to this the evidence that makes Acsop him
13, Keith cxplains similar ideals in long the Greeks and Indians as the result of
LLLLaaLLLL LLLLtttLLaaCHaaHLL aLLa LLL LL LLLLLL LLaHLLLaLLLL LL LLLLLL aLLLLLLLLH HaaLS LllL LL LL LLLCLCH T CTTLlLLL TTGLLLGLLLLSLL LLLLHaaaa 000 S 00Y LLLL 355, for example, and see his cxplanation of the doctrine of transmigration in the two countries in "Pythagoras and the Doctrine of Transmigration, J.R.M.S. (Gr. Brit. and Irc) vol. 41 p. 610. Even if such a thing is likely in the case of broad beliefs and obscrwances, it is too much to Test to it to explain the similarity of fable, which is the product of fantasy rather than LLCaLLLHS LLL LS LS LLLLLLCCC MkkMSTTLLCCkHLH CTTLSLTTkk kkTk LLkLL Legerras Cambridge (1933) p. 46. Hic says, "It is difficult to believe that any one particular fable is likely to have been invents more thin once independently in different areas'.
KS LllL S LLS LLCC LLTLLLLLT LLLLL LGLLLLLLL LlLlLa LLLS LLLLLLLLS LLLLLCLLLLLLLH S000 CS
xxWiii f.

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of animals who figure in the Jatakas outdoes that of the Aesopica. The Buddha himself undergoes birth in over thirty five different kinds of sub-human creatures, from elephant and peacock down to pig, lizard and rat, including cleven lives as a monkey. It woul thus not be beyond probability that the man who made his appear ance in the Greek island of Samos just off the coast of Asia Minor making his way there from Phrygia, and drew the attention of everyone with his fables built around exotic animals who talke like mel, made his way there ultimately from India. This, however, is the kind of speculation that establishes everything and nothing. What the evidence of antiquity that we do have says is that Aesop was a Phrygian or a Thracian, and for want of anythin beyond this, I would like to hold on to it with as much resignation as the evidence that Thales, the Milesian and first Greek philosopher
was a Phoenician.
The foregoing cursory review of the possible non-Greek origin of the Greek fable, as Would have been seen, proves of no help as solution to what we hLwe continued accepting as a GTcek elemen in the Indian stories, the Jātakas. At any rate, as pointed ou. earlier, an examination of the fable alone will not suffice either onc has need to explain also the presence in the Jilakas of Gree myth-motifs and motifs of historical anecdotes- all of which spea strongly for Greece. We may therefore accept the 'Greek element'ay itself of Greek origin and continue. At the conclusion of the catt logue of summaries of the Jātakas with thc parallels from Greek story I shall comment on a few of them to show that the antiqui of the Greek puts them beyond derivation from the Jatakas and thu strengthens the reverse probability.
15. Halliday op.cit. p. 47-48 thinks that even some of the earlics L. fables reach Greecc from the East and suggests an Anatolian centre for their distribLitit Archilochus' The Ape and fire Fox, for instance, could hardly have be invented, he says, by people to whom monkeys Were unfamiliar. Lion. some kind scen to have been abundant in the region between the M Nestus and Achelous in Nartlı (Grecce (Hdt. wii. 125 ; PALIS. wi, 4-5), III Aristotle, who was brought up in the north, IncIntions then twicz. T jackal is more naturally associated as servant of the lion than is the The familiarity with these animals displayed in the fables of Aesop can have been among peoples to whom they were present in large nullibi and known intimately. See H. T. Francis and E.J. Thomas Jataka (Jaico Books) Bombay (1947) introd, by Thomas p. v.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JoURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV, (N.S.) 1980-81 147
Already attention has been drawn by Writers and commentators to a few of the Jātakas as having striking parallels in the fables of Aesop and in other Greek stories. Rhys Davids, who describes he Vātaktfli var arī as "the Oldest, most complcLC, and nost important collection of folk-lore extant", observed the similarity of the Shacarina Jataka (No. 189) to Aesop's The Ass in the LionSkin, the Kacchapa Jaitaka (No. 215) to his The Tortoise and the Eagle, and the Jambu-Khidaka Jaitaka (No. 294) to his The Crow and the Fox'7. Footnotes and the General Index (s.v. Parallels) in the Cowell translation of the Jātakas show awareness of a few more and there is discussion of others in other Writers, including A.B. Keith9. For the sake of comprehensiveness I shall include these already recognized cases as well in the descriptions I give below.
Nalapana J. (No. 20)
Thirsty monkeys canne to drink at a poolhaunted by an ogre. Their leader observed that the footprints of other animals all led to the water but did not come back. To help his fellows drink without falling into the ogre's power he blew the knots off some cane stalks ;Lild had them drink through them. See also the Tayodharina J. (No. 58). One of the plots used by the king of the monkeys to have his son killed involved sending him to pick flowers from a lake h;Lunted by an ogre. Here too the monkey is saved by observing that footprints which led to the water never returned. In the Dera(shalfirma I. (No. 6) the Cleverness of the hero (i prince) is shifted from the clue of the footprints to the solution of a riddle asked by the ogre, "What is truly godlike "?", all who fail to answer which he devours. In the Vanarinda J. (No. 57) it is a crocodile who lurks upon a rock to catch a monkey vaulting across a river with the aid of the rock. The monkey makes the crocodile open its mouth, which makes it shut its mouth - and then leaps across its back kafely.
I(l. Buddhisi Birth Stories introd. p. iw.
|7, ibid. p. W-xiii,
| K. Tre „Vasaka tir. by wario Lus hands, ed. E. B. (Cowell, London (1957) reprint
vol. É5 : Gen. Indlex p. 34.
S kCCS LS CS 000S000SSSS LS CLLLCLL LLLLLGLCCH LTC LLL ALkLGTS TLL LLLLLLLHHLH S000SS cites Jaitakas 30, 32, 44 (with 45), 136, 143, 146,189,215, 294, 308, 374, 383 and 426, but thinks this dozen or so story parallels inadequate to derive one sct of stories from the other. See Francis and Thomas loc. cit. p.
W.

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| 4 GREK MOTIFS IN THE JA TAWA KWF
Details from two Aesopic fables and a Greek myth figure in the cluster of Jātakas here. That of one-way footprints Warnin a wary observer of danger recalls the fable of The Lion and Fox (C196, H246, P142, Hs 147), in which an ageing lion, who is unable to hunt, pretends to be ill and eats up all who visit him but fails with a fox, who happened to notice that there were footprint leading into his cave but none returning. (See also the myth Hercules and Cacus). Drinking without being seized by El Water monster by resort to a ruse has its parallel in the fable of Dogs ar. Crocodiles (Ph. ii.25): They say that dogs, when they drink from the Nile, do so on the run for fear of being seized by crocodile So, when a dog began drinking in this way, a crocodile said to him Take your time lapping it up; don't be afraid". To which the dog replied, "And, by God, that's what I would do, if didn't know how greedy you are for my flesh!" As for the Devadian Fra riddling ogre, compare the Sphinx of the Oedipus legend and his Tirldle of ML 1.
Bhojajaniya J. (No. 23)
A noble steed (in the Ajafia J. (No. 24) yoked with anoths noble steed) helps a cavalryman vanquish and capture six kin but is injured and being replaced by a hack to capture the sevent and last king, when he requests that he be rearmed to complete the task for fear of it being botched, succeeds and dies.
These Jātakas invert the motif of Acsop's The Soldier aid the Horse (C142 HI78, P320). where an old war-horse, which after battle had been put to menial work and carrying heavy loads and fed on chaft, is rearmed and keeps falling and charges his master with having used him for a donkey and now Wainting him to be horse once more. Compare the war-elephant, old and weary and reduced to transporting cow-dung in the Dalhadhanana J. (No.409).
Munika J. (No. 30) llldll Saluki J. (No. 286)
A hard-working ox, fed on grass and straw, envies a pig Who fattened on rice. His elder brother explains that it is for death that the pig is being so indulged. Later, when the young ox Sec the pig slaughtered and cooked, he is reconciled to his humble fare as a thousand times better than the food of death.
Rhys Davids, refers to a fable of Aesop (The Ox and the in James' Aesop No. 150) in connection with this Jaitaka, in which a calf laughs at a draught ox for bearing his drudgery patient
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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The ox says nothing. Soon afterwards there is a feast and the ox gets a holiday, while the calf is led off to be sacrificed. (Fore this fable, sce C92, H13, P300, B37, Avian. 36) Compare, howcver, Aesop's fable of The Wild Ass (C264, H32, P183, Hs 194), who congratulates a tame one on his sleek body and his cnjoyment of rich food, but later, seeing him carrying burdens and his driver beating him with sticks, says he does not congratulate him any Ilore; for he sces that it is not without great suffering that he has his good living. Compare also The Sheep aid the Pig (C94, Hl 15, P85, Hs&7), where a pig is caught for slaughter and the sheep make comment oil it.
Nacca J. (No. 32)
The golden mallard, king of the birds, granted his daughter the boon of selecting a husband for herself. All the birds were summoned to one place and she chose the peacock. The peacock was so carried away by joy that he wished to display his agility in addition to his handsomeness and began to dance. In doing so he spread his wings and thus exposed his person. The king of birds, shocked at his conduct, refused him his daughter and instead betrothed her to a young mallard, a nephew of his.
A si riikingly similar story appears in Herodotus vi. 129, but with the roles of the birds taken by historical personalities. Cleisthenes, despot of Sicyon, wishing to marry his daughter, Agariste, to the best man in all Greece, invited all those who thought themsclves cligible on one count or another to reside with him, so that he could observic and judge them. At the end of all year’s testing, hic was most impressed by the two from Athens, Megacles and Hippocleides, the lat ter being more favoured als between the two. But in the final round Hippocleides got drunk and was carried away by his own dancing to thc extent that he danced on his hands upon a table, beating time with his legs in the air. Cleisthenes, loathing the disgraceful behaviour of Hippocleides, gave his daughter to Megacles"
20. Hippoclcides rejoinder, "Hippocleides docsn't care" (or phruriris HippacleiaF) was already proverbial wheri Herodot LIS wrotc. The detail of the mallard giving this daughter the buon of sclecting her husband herself هلاك reflects a similar award Inade by an Athenian to his thre: daught స్టో) Hicrodotus (wi. 122). Hippocleides had been preferred due to his killip with a noble Corinthian family; the bird, to whom the bri iwen, in the Jataka, was a nephew of thc Imallard. The relief * Bharhu a rails show the mallard choosing the peacock for her d. See J. F. Dickson "The Popular Acceptance of the ဟိုးမျိုဋ် shown in Pictur AS> Stories and Sculptures' in "The First Fifty !!! R.A.S (Ceyl yol. 8 (1884), p, 130, Rhys Davids apparenti"Wıs unaware of
Parallel (sec op. cir, p. 294 n. 1), SÅ தி

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Sammodamana J. (No. 33).
Quails caught with a net by a fowler are advised by their leader to actin unison and fly off with the inct, and thereafter, alighting on a thorn brake, to disentangle themselves. They do this repeatedly with success. Soon however wrangling broke out among them after one of them had accidently trod on the head of another, and the fowler caught them all. In the Rukkhadharina J. (No. 74) tree deities are advised by a wise one to shun trees that stood Singly Orl open ground and to occupy thosc that stood in a cluster. Some take the advice, others, out of greed for offerings and worship from men, do not. But when a tempest blows, these trees are flattened to the ground, while those in the groves hold together and are saved. "United forest-like, should kinsfolk stand," says the wise deity. "The storm over throws the solitary tree".
This idea of the strength of unity, especially when illustrated
with trees, recalls Aesop's fable of The Children of the Farmer (C86, H103, P53, His53). Here a farmer, whose sons used to quarrel, offers them a bundle of sticks to break, and when they fail, offers then the sticks one by one, whereupon they easily break the lot. As for the image of birds caught in a net, Aesop has it, though with a differentlesson, in a fable of a stork caught in a farmer's net along with cranes. See The Farner and the Stork (Bab. 13).
Weluka J. (No. 43).
A hermit, picking up a young poisonous viper, cherishes it, keeping it in the joint of a bamboo (despite being warned by his teacher that "a viper can never be trusted"). One day, however, the viper, angered by hunger, stings his benefactor and kills him. Compare Aesop's The Farner and the Snake (C82, H97, P176, Hs62), where a farmer, finding a snake stiff with cold, is moved by compassion and puts it in his bosom. But with the warmth the natural instinct of the snake also returned and it gave its benefactor a fatal bite. The dying far inct declared, "I got what I deserved for taking pity on an evil creature'. See also The Hen and the Swallow (C286, H342, P192, Hs206), where a swallow warns a hen found hatching Snake's eggs of the danger of being the first victim. "Even the kindest treatment cannot tame a savage nature".
Makasa J. (No. 44)
A mosquito settled on the head of a bald man and stung him with a dart-like sting. The son, to kill the mosquito, hit at it with a
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sharp axe, cleaving his father's head as well. In the Rohirlf J. (No. 45) it is a mother, flies, a daughter and a pestle respectively.
Phaedrus (v. 3) has the fable of The Bald Man and the Fly, from which perhaps the Makasa got the bald man and the Rohiyal the flies. A fly bit the head of a bald Inan, and in trying to crush it the man gave himself a hard slap. When the fly commented that he had merely added insult to injury, the Inan replicd that he could easily get back into his own good graces but would undergo worse to kill such a creature as the fly.
Ucchanga J. (No. 67)
A woman's husband, soil and brother are wrongfully arrested for robbery. The king agrees to release one of thern only and asks the woman to make her choice. She chooses her brother, saying, "The two former I can readily replace, but a brother newer', and recites a stanza as follows: "A son's an easy find ; of husbands too/An ample choice throngs public ways, But where/Will all Illy pains another brother find "?" The king, impressed by her reply, releases all three.
Compare Antigone upon her defiance of the law against burying her brother in Sophocles' play, Antigone (909-912); "I could have had another husband/And by him sons, if one were lost ; But, father and mother dead, where could I get|Another brother ?" The same choice is made by Intaphernes" wife in Herodotus (iii. II 8-120). She chooses her brother and explains that, God willing, she can get another husband and other children, but since her parents are dead, not another brother. The king, impressed by her reply, grants her the life of her eldest son as well.
Mlahasupina J. (No. 77)
(1) In the seventh dream of the sixteen a king dreamt, he saw a man weaving a rope, while a hungry she-jackal,lying under his bench and without the man's knowledge, kept eating what he had Woven. The interpretation given to this dream was that a day would come when Women would become lustful and proligate and plunder the hard earnings of their husbands.
In the so-called Club House (esche) of the Cnidians at Delphi, which was painted by the famed artist, Polygnotus, was a detail which depicted Okinus plaiting a rope, while a she-donkey stood

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beside him eating whatever he made, This Okinus was an industric man with an extravagant wife.
(2) In the cighth dream the king saw a big pitcher full to the brim and standing in the middle of a number of empty ones. People kept carrying water in pipkins and pouring into the full pitcher, which overflowed. But they continued to do so.
The vision is immediately reminiscent of the pullishment u those who, according to Pausanias at least, despised the ritCS 4 Eleusis and were depicted doing ill similar thing in no less a place than this same famous painting of Hades by Polygnotus For it showed a greatjar, an old man and some women, a young one under a rock and an old one beside the old man. Most of them Were carrying water, the old woman in a broken pot, and pouring it into the jar.24
Wissasabhojana J. (No. 93)
A lion so frightened a herdsman's cows that they yield little milk. His master, learning that the lion was enamoured of El doe, advised that the doe be anointed with poison mixed with sugar. The lion, showing affection, licked her and died, thus illustrating that even the king of beasts can fall due to the passion of low.
21. Paus, x. 29, There was another painting by Nicopha les (Pliny N.H. 35
137). The Topc-plaiter in Hades is linentioned by Cratin LIS (probab c. 484-c. 48 B.C.) and by Aristophanes' Frogs 186. The story is illustral by at least six monuments of ancient art. See J. G. Frazer Palsar Descriprian ay Greece vol. 5. London (1913) p. 376-378. The paral was first pointed out by A. Grunwedel Original-Mfrfhefsinger afrs sor erhologische Abteilung der kongs. Museen zu Berlin, I (1885) p.o. Sce also W. H. D. Rouse "A Jataka in Pausanias' Folklore vol. 1. (1890) p. 409.
22. Paus. x. 31. Below these people are two other woTT) en Carrying water in broken pots and described as uninitiated in the mysteries. A round marble well-head, so Inclinics described as an altar, now in the Watical depicts in relief sculpture women puring water into a greatjar alongside relief of Okinus himself, who sits plaiting his rope, while his ass eats it An amphora in Munich, depicting an underWorld scenc. shows four wi humans (souls) pouring water from small pitchers into a large half-bur pitcher. See W. K. C. Guthric Orpheus aerd Greek Religio Lond (1935) p. Is 1-1 s3 und sig. 15.
 
 
 
 

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Something similar happens to the same kind of animal, a lion, and through the same passion, love, in the Aesopic fable, The Lion and the Farrier (C198, H.249, P140. Hs 145). Thc farmer, whose daughter the lion wished to marry, required the beast to cxtract his teeth and pare his claws, saying that they frightened the girl. But when the lion did so and presented himself, the farmer treated him with contempt and drove him off with a beating.
Waarawi J. (No. 1 l9)
Some scholars find a cock in a cemetery and bring it to their lodgings. But because it was bred among the dead, it keeps no time but crows both night and day, disturbing both their studies and their sleep. So they Wring its neck.
A cock comes to a bad end because of its crowing in Aesop's The Robbers arid the Cock (C158, H95, P122, Hs 124). Robbers, burgling a house, found nothing in it but a cock. They took it away and were about to sacrifice it, when it pleaded for mercy on the ground that it served men by waking them up before daybreak, "All the more reason for killing you", say the robbers, "for, by walking them up, you stop us from our robbing" -ind with that they killed it. For people resenting a cock's crowing and therefore killing it see also The Mistress and her Maids (C82, H10, P55, IHs 55).
Suwannah Luisa J. (No. 36)
A man dies and is reborn as a golden mallard and visits the house of his former wife and family. On each occasion that hic does so, he gives them a feather of gold to sell and live in comfort. But the wife, fearing that he may stop coming, finally seizes him and plucks his feathers all at once. But, since they are taken against the mallard's wish, they cease to be gold.
23. Rhys Davids loc. cir, thought that we have here "a truc myth born of a word-puzzle, invented to explain an expression which had lost its meaning through the progress of linguistic growth". The epithet 'golden (stralia) applied to the mallard (harsa) for its beauty, he thinks, led to the idea of its yielding gold. If he is right, the fable originated in India and made its way to Greece. It could very well be that what the epithet of the Indian bird did was to substitute feathers for eggs. In the Greck story it is a hen; in the alternate version it becomes a goose (chirr). Buddhist rebirth is a
sine qua non of the hamsa's benevolence in "' irrá |

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It is the same motive of greed, which makes the devotee of Hermes kill the goose that the god gave him, which laid golder eggs in Aesop's well-known fable, The Gold-Bearing Goose (C287 H343, P87, Hs89). He could not wait for the wealth to come to him bit by bit and so he killed the bird, thinking that its inside were of solid gold-only to find there flesh and blood.
Babbu J. (No. 37)
A mouse, falling in love with a stone-cutter, brings him a coll from a hidden hoard every day. In return he gives her a piece of meat. She is caught by four cats in turn and buys her life at the price of a share of the meat she receives. The stone-cutter, learni this to be the cause of her growing leanness, makes her a cryst crypt. Protected inside this, the mouse defies the cats, who jump at her, burst their chests and die. In the Sigala J. (No. 52) is lions suffer the same fate, when they leap at a jackal in a cave crystal to kill him for having insulted their sister by his advance
The mouse, who fell in Jowe with the stone-cutter was, in het former birth, a human being, the wife of a rich merchant. In Aesop's fable, The Cat and Aphrodite (C76. H88, P50, Hss0), is a cat who falls in love with a youth and is metamorphosed into maiden (by the goddess of Lowe). She becomes his wife; but when she suddenly sees a mouse, she forgets who she is and chaic after it. As for the inaccessible animal behind the crystal, who destroys those who jump at her (or him), we may have a modi cation of the story of the dog who jump cd at his own reflection in the (crystal-like) water to get at what he thought was a bigger piece of meat it was carrying, and thus killed himself. See Aesop's Well known fable of The Dag with the Piece of Meat (C185, H233, P.I. Hs136).
Godha J. (No. 138)
A hcrimit develops a craving for lizard-flesh. A lizard, W. used to visit him, suspects this and avoids him. He throws a mill at it and only hits the tip of its tail, whereupon the lizard rebuilt him, asking what such as he has to do with the garb of a hern
A man hitting at a reptile with a weapon and missing appel in the Acsopic fable of The Snake and the Farrier (C81, H96, His31), where a farmer hits at a snake, which had killed his ch with an axe and misses, only chipping the rock in which it hall holc. Then he tries to make peace with it, The nature of
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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retort derives from quite a different sort of fable from that from which the detail is derived, for example, The Ass and the Wolf (C28, H334, P187. Hs 198), in which the wolf, requested to extract a thorn from the ass's hoof before cating him, has his face kicked in and thinks hic deserved it for playing doctor, when he was really a butcher. Or thc fable of The Kid and the Wolf (C107, H134, P97, Hs99), in which a Wolf, about to eat a young goat, is persuaded to play the flute for it to dance a while. The music brings the dogs to the scenc and savcs the kid, making the wolf say to himself what business hic, a butchCr, had to do playing flutist.
Kaka J. (No. 140)
A crow befouls the head of the king's chaplain and he conceives a hatred against all crows. A palace slave, to punish a goat, which kept eating the rice she put out to dry, hits him with a torch and sets his flecce ablaze. The goat runs to the barn and rolls in the hay and sets alight the elephant-stables as well, causing burns to the elephants. When the brahmin is asked for a cure, he recommends crow's fat, Crows are immediately killed in numbers, until one crow explains things to the king. (The same story is told, but of monkeys, in the Kapi W (No. 404).
In Aesop there is a fable, The Mari and the Fox (C58, H61, P283), in which a man, furious with a fox for the damage it had caused, ties tow on its tail and sets it alight. The fox, however, ran into the captor's own corn-ficids and set them ablaze. As for thc mode in which the brahmin took revenge from crows, see the fable of The Lion, the Wolf aid the Fox (C205, H255, P258, Hs269). All the animals visit a sick lion, except the fox. The wolf takes the opportunity to malign him, but the fox, coming late, overhears him doing so. He thereupon tells the lion that he was delayed because he alone had gone to find a cure for the lion's illness. Upon being asked what it was, he said that the doctors had prescribed the application of the skin of a Wolf, while it was still warm after flaying. Immediately the wolf was dead. Doctors prescribe a broth of goat's lung for an ass who falls and injures himself on the advice of a goat in the fable of The Goat and the Ass (C16, H18, P279), giving a slightly different twist to the plot.

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Wirocana J. (No. 143) and Jambuka J. (No. 335)
A jackal became servant of a lion and (in the former Jātaka, serving as his scout) received a share of the prey, whenever thc lion killed. Growing fat on the good food, however, hic soon wanted to kill elephants himself. So, despite the lion's warning that jackals were not sprung from the stock that that killed elephants (here cp. Viraka J. (No. 204), he made a leap at one, only to be trampled to death.
In Aesop's The Fox Trid the Lion (H41, Aphth. 20), it is the jackal's cousin, the fox, who likewise tries to play hunter instead of scout for the lion, and ends up being the hunted. In all these stories, Indian as well as Greek, presumption is the result of pride.
Nanguttha J. (No. 144)
Hunters kill and eat the ox a Wotary had decided to sacrific to the god of Fire, when he went to fetch salt; only the tail and hide were left. Thereupon he reviles the god, asking him how he would look after his wotary, if he cannot look after what is his own. With that he throws to the god the leavings and bids him fare on them.
Compare the Aesopic fable of The Farrier Who Lost Fis Mat rock (H91, B2). He was taking his servants to town to swear their innocence of the theft before thc god, when he heard a crier offering a reward to anyone who could give information concerning certain property lost from the Lemple. Thercathc asks how the god CEl know about others when he doesn't know who stole his own property and is cv.cn offering money to a Fiar who could give him information about the matter. As for the offering of rejects to the god, a parallel will be found in the story of the votary of Hermes, who, promising the god half of anything he should find, and finding a Wallet full of almonds and dates, made him an offering of the shells of the almonds and the sceds of the dates, saying that he was givin him his share of both the outsides and the insides of what he ha found, See Aesop's The Wayfarer and Hernes (C260, H35. P178, Hs188).
Kaka J. (No. 146)
Crows try to empty the sea in order to save the wife of one of then, who had drowned. Their toil is of no avail, so they console themselves that it was because of her beauty and her voice that the
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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sea desired her. While they keep extolling her beauty and her voice, they are shooed off by a bogey sent from the sea.
Aesop has a fable similar to this in The Hungry Dogs (C176, H218), who sought to drink up the water of a river in order to get at some hides put to soakin it. They only burst themselves doing so.
Sigala J. (No. 148)
A jackal, finding the carcass of an elephant, ate his way into it from the rear and used it as both food and lodging. But when the sun dried the hide and the aperture shrank, he found himself inprisoned in it. Later, however, a downpour moistened the skin and he was able to squeeze out, though not without losing all his hair. For the same story, see also the Paic-Upósatha J. (No. 490).
An all-Loo-obvious comparison is offered by Aesop's The Fox with the Distended Stomach (C30, H31, P24, Hs24). A halfstarved fox saw some food left by shepherds in the hollow of a tree and ate it and could not get out. Another fox adviscd him to Wait LIntil hic got lean again. As against the Jātakas it will be observed that it is the animal who cxpands and not the aperture which colltracts. The creature who adopts the Tusc of growing lean to silve his life in the Jātakas is rather a quail : see the Pahlaka J. (No.
58).
Alinacitta J. (No. 156).
An elephant trod on a splinter of wood and went to some sil spenters working in the woods, who drew it out for him. So, in gratitude for this, the elephant served them by uprooting trees, hal tuling logs and doing other such tasks,
Phaedrus gives the story of The Lion and the Shepherd (Ph.563), in which a lion, who had trod on EL thorn and had it cxtract.cd by a shepherd, showed his gratitude when the shepherd was thrown to wild beasts on a false charge. In Ph.563a the man is identified Lis Androcles.
In the same Jaitaka is the observation that no noble animal or man will dung or stale in water. Cowell ad loc. compares this with Hesiod ... and D. 753: "Don't urinate in springs nor in the mouths

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of streams which flow to the sea". In the Udapina J. (No. 271) || jackal fouls a well after drinking from it and claims that this is the law with jack Ells.
Suhanu J. (No. 158).
A king has a horse with a brutish nature, which he uses injure horses brought by dealers for sale, and thereafter bid cheap for them. The horse-dealers, on request, bring another 5uçlı bc{15. But no sooner than they met they stood licking each other all over.
A similar story of "birds of a feather' in Aesop inylwes assi of a lazy disposition. See Buying an Ass (C263, H320, P237 Hs200). A man, intending to buy an ass, takes one on trial and puts it among his own. It turns its back on all the others and got and stands beside the laziest and greediest of the lot. Thc LN returns it, saying he can do without a trial.
Kacchapa J. (No. 178)
A tortoise, inhabiting a lake connected to a river, refuses II swim into the river, when a drought sets in, which would separa and dry up the lake. Later it is forced to dig into the mud and sily, this is where it was born and grew and where its parents had the home. Soon a potter son, digging for clay, injures its shell and II dies, lamenting asil does So, "Here I am dying, all because I Wast fond of my home to lewe it”.
This story finds a parallel in Aesop in the fable of The trial and Zeus (C125, Hi54, P106, Hs 108). All the animals, save only the tortoise, turn up at Zeus' wedding-feast. Afterwards, when Zeus asked the tortoise why it had not come it replied, "I like II.
e; home is best". Whereupon Zeus, in anger, made it cIII its home where WCT it Went.
Giridanta J. (No. 8).
A horse, who limped, was found to be perfectly sound plly" cally. It was, however, discovered that his trainer was lame III that was why the horse limped - he was emulating him.
In Aesop's The Crab and its Mother (C151, H187, P322, H. a mother-crab tells her son not to walk sideways and rub its

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on the wet rock. To which the son replies, "Alright, since you want to teach me, walk straight yourself. I'll watch and emulate
yol.
Sihalkotthuka J. (No. 88)
A lion has a cub by a she-jackal, which is like him in all other respects, but in his voice like his mother. One day all the other lions were gamballing and roaring, when the cub too tried to roar and succeeded only to yelp. On hearing this all the lions grew silent. Whereupon his sire advised him never again to attempt to roar, lest he betray himself as much a jackal. In the Daddara J. (No. 172) the cry, which silences the lions, is that of a jackal itself.
The creature of mixed parentage, which is ashamed of one of its parents in the Greek, is The Mule (C128, H157) in Aesop. Full of oats it gambols, shouting that its father is a swift-footed horse and that it is every bit like him. But suddenly it stops and hangs its head in shame -- for it remembers that its mother is but an ass.
Note. In the Crilla 'agga (i.18.3) is a story turning on a similar point. A hen has a chick by a crow, which, when it would cry like a cock, cawed, and vice-versa. This may again compare with Aesop's fable of The Kites (C136, H170, P396. His315). Kites once had singing voices, but envying the neighing of horses, they did their best to imitate them. They ended by neither knowing how to neigh nor remembering how to sing.
Sihacamma J. (No. 189)
Voice and identity come up in this story too. A merchant hawked goods, carrying them upon the back of a donkey. Wherever he Went, he used to drape a lion-skin on the donkey's back and turn him into the fields to feed. Watchmen, thinking it was a lion, kept their distance. But one day the villagers armed themselves and attacked it, whereupon the frightened animal brayed. Thereat they discovered it was only an ass and belaboured it to death.
Aesop has two versions of this, The Ass in the Lion-Skirl (C267, H336, P188, Hs 199) and The Ass and the Lion-Skin (C279, H333, P358, Hs93). In the first the ass, putting on a lion-skin, goes about frightening all the beasts but fails to frighten a fox, who had heard him bray. In the second the ass frightens both men and animals, until a puff of wind blows the lion-skin off his back; whereupon everyone runs up and beats him with cudgels.

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Ruh aka J. (No. 91)
A man takes a horse with finc trappings for a ride and all the people admire it as he passes by. His wife tells him it is not the beauty of the horse that they admire but its trappings. The main is persuaded to put them on himself and go prancing down the street, and so becomes a laughing-stock of everybody.
In the same way a cil mel makes an absurdity of himself in The Ape and the Cannel of Aesop, (C306, H365, P83, Hs85) when he trics to dance before an assembly of animals, which had just admired the performance of an apc. It was so ridiculous that they drove
her off with a thrashing.
Manicora J. (No. 194)
The husband of a beautiful woman is falsely incriminated by the king, who conceives a desire for the man's wife, by having his jewelled crest dropped into the man's Waggon and then discovered by his guards. The man is taken to be executed but saved by being miraculously exchanged in position with the king, who is beheaded,
The parallel in this case is with a detail in the life of the fabulist Aesop himself. According to Aristophanes (Wasps 1446 —- I 449) Aesop was charged by the Delphians with having stolen a gold cup from the temple of Apollo. The scholiast on this statics that the cup was planted in ACsop's baggage by the Delphians themselves, as in the Bible story of Joseph and Benjamin (Ger. 44, 1,12). From Herodotus (ii. 135) it would appear that Aesop was killed by them, and wrongfully, and that the god required them to make recompense for the murder. The last-minute substitution of the king for the innocent man in the Jātaka is reminiscent of the stag for Iphigenin in the Greek myth. Cpl. Genesis 22.1.13
Walahassa J. (No. 196)
Female goblins dwelling in a town in Sri Lanka used to lur ship-Wrecked men to consort with them, saying that their husband had gone to sea a long time back and may have perished. Later they would bind them with magic chains and cast them into a house of torment. Five hundred traders cast ashore consort with them but in the night the female goblins leave their new Inc not fell upon their earlier captives. The chief of the traders suspects the
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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truth and calls his fellows to escape. Half of them refuse to leave, the rest obey. A flying horse appears and transports them from the island.
Elements from the adventures of Odysseus may be detected in the Jataka, all imposed upon the single island of Sri Lanka-of ship-Wrecked sailors in a strange land saved by their astute leader, of Sirens, who lure men and destroy them through sex, of Poly. phemian cannibalism, of Lotus-eater-like refusal to abandon pleasure even at the prospect of death, of Circean magic, and in addition to all this, a Pegasus-like flying horse with the carrying capacity of the Trojan. In the women without husbands, who invite a band of sea-farers to be their men, there may be something of the Lemnian Women, islanders who had killed their husbands, who invited Jason and the Argonauts to live with them, Hypsipyle (their quicen) taking Jason for herself. See Odyssey passim and Apollonius Agostica i. 607-912.
Viraka J. (No. 204).
A crow, who comes to serve a marsh-crow in return for food, tries to emulate the marsh-crow out of pride. He dives into the Water for fish, gets entangled in the weeds and perishcs.
We have a parallel of this in Aesop's fable, The Eagle, the Jackdaw and the Shepherd (C5, H8, P2, Hs2). A jackdaw, seeing in eagle swoop down and seize a lamb and carry it off, tries to do the same with a ram. But his claws get entangled in the ram's fleece and he is captured by the shepherd, who clips his wings alld gives him to his children to play. When they ask the shepherd what bird it is, he says, "I know he is a jackdaw, but he tries to pass off Els an eagle”.
Gangeyya J. (No. 205)
Two fish dispute which of them is the more beautiful and request a tortoise to judge. The tortoise declares that both of them are good-looking but that he himself is more beautiful than
them bo Lh.
Compare Aescop's The Ape and Zeus (B56, HI364). Zeus held ill beauty contest for babies and all the animals brought their young. An ape brought her pug too, which made all the gods laugh. But the ape replied, "Zeus knows who will get the prize, but in my Leyes my baby is prettier than them all’”.

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Kurunga-Miga J. (No. 206).
A stag, a tortoise and a woodpecker became friends. When the stag was caught in a leather noose, the tortoise gnawed it, while the woodpecker delayed the hunter's return by providing him with bad omens. When he did return and found the trap cut, he collected the tortoise and put it in a bag. At this point the stag revealed himself and led the hunter off, thereafter doubled back and with his horns ripped the bag and released the tortoise.
See Aesop's fable of The Lion and the Mouse (C206, H256, P150, Hs 155), where a lion frees a mouse he had caught and the mouse in return gnaws the trap and frees the lion, who had been caught in it. Two or three animals forming a bond of friendship is fairly common as the basis of Aesopic fable-plots.
Sumnsunnara J. (No. 208) and Wanara J. (No. 342).
A crocodile, whose wife desired to cat the hcart of a monkey, gets the monkey on his back with an offer to carry him across to the further bank of a river, where were good and plentiful fruits to eat. But in mid-stream he tries to drown the monkey. The monkey escapes by lying to him that he had left his heart on a tree and gets the crocodile to take him back to fetch it - and thus escapes.
This is palpably an inversion of Aesop's fable of The Monkey and the Dolphin (C305, H363, P73, Hs75), in which a dolphin, mistaking a monkey, who was drowning, for a man, Wils E. him to the shore, when he caught the monkey lying. So he tipped him over into the water and left him to drown,
Kacchapa J. (No. 215)
Two wild geese befriend a tortoise and invite it to their home. They make it bite onto a stick in their beaks and transport it through the air. When children below admire the sight, the tortoise opens its mouth to reply and falls to its death.
In Aesop's fable, The Tortoise and the Eagle (C35, H419, P2) Hs259), the tortoise asks an eagle to teach it to fly. The eagle take it to a great height and drops it on the rocks, killing it.
The detail of the tortose opening its mouth and so falling appear in the fable of The Crow and the Fox, though in inversion; for this is what caused the meat to fall from the crow's beak (see No. 29.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Jarabu-Khadaka J. below), whereas it is not utilized in that Jātaka, which corresponds to it. The detail of a flightless creature being transported through the air reappears in the Baka J. (No. 38), where a crab is taken on the back of a crane from one pond to another and it is the bird who is killed This in turn reflects a detail of Aesop's The Snake and the Crab (C290, H346), where a crab clips the neck of a snake and kills it for failing to be straight. and then, seeing it stretched out in death, exclaims that it should hawe been SC before.
Culla-Nandiya J. (No. 222)
TWO IIlonkeys, brothers, are devoted to their nother, who is disabled by blindness. A hunter is about to shoot her, when the brothers offer themselves to his a Trows, one after the other. The man however kills the mother also. But when he gets home he finds that his own two sons have been killed by a thunderbolt, and also his wife,
When the independent details of two sons devoted to a disabled mother and two sons killed as a consequence are collated, they point to thc story of Cleobis and Biton in Herodotus (i. 31), who substituted for the oxen to drag their mother in a cart to Hera's Festival, and upon the mother praying for a blessing from heaven for their love, died in their sleep. The Jataka has rehandled the details by transposition, together with the introduction of the hunter and the clement of wickcdness.
Kosiya J. (No. 226)
All owl, surrounded by crows in a bamboo thicket, Wentures out before darkness and falls a victim to them and is pecked to leath.
It is a bat in what appears to be the corresponding Greek fable Warning against acting out of season. But here the bat is the adviser. A bird in a cage sings only at night. When a bat asks why she does (), she says it is because singing in the daytime was the cause of her capture. The bat advises her that there is no use taking precautions low : , she should have been careful before getting caught. The Wird and the Bat (C75, H85, P4.8, Hs48).

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Gutha Paula J. (No. 227)
A dung-beetle, drunk on some spilt liquor, alighted on a clod of moist du ng—which yielded under his weight. Hic thought the world could not bear him, he was so heavy. Then, seeing an elephant run away in disgust at the si nell of thic dung, hic presume it was out of fear of him and challenged him to a fight. Thereup the elephant, dropping dung on him and making water, immedi killed the beetle and went away.
The Jaitaka seems to be in reply (out of respect for elephants' to a fable of Aesop titled The Lion, Prometheus and the Elepha (C210, H.261, P259, Hs292), where a lion, fleeing in unreasonab fear of the crowing of a cock, meets an elephant, whom he fin wagging his cars incessantly. When asked why, the elephan shows him a gnat and says that, if it were to get into his ear, would be all up with him. The lion is reconcilcd to his fear. For dung-beetle in association with moist dung, see The Two Beetle (C149, H185), and for a creature whose conceit, grown from a delu sion, leads to his destruction at the hands of a truly mighty animal see The Wolf and his Shadow (H280, P260). A wolf, wanderin in a lonely place at sun-set, saw his shadow elongated and though why such a big fellow as himself should not make himself king 0 the beasts. But, for all his big thoughts, a lion caught and at
him up.
Mula-Pariyayu J. (No. 245)
Students, Wanting to mock their master, tap at the tree under which he is seated and say, "A worthless tree " Thereupon the master puts to them a riddle, "Time all consumes, even time itsell as well. Who is't consumes the all-consumer ? - tell!" They fail to answer alını d cra ve his pardon.
The Jataka is obviously put together from two Aesopic fable one The Vayfarers and the Plane Tree? (C2:57, H313) Lind the other Concerning Relaxation and Tension (Ph. iii. 14). In the form two w:yfarers, scated in the Shade of a planc trec in the hea || midday, accuse that very tree of being worthless: in the latter Aesop, laughed at by a man for playing with children, poses him riddle with an unstrung bow-which the man fails to answer.-P. ning on the Greek for "bow" (which also meant "life'), Aesop Will implying the need for relaxation.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Uluka J. (No. 270)
The birds, desiring a king, selected thc owl. But when the proclamation was being made, a crow objected, saying that if this was how the owl looked when being consecrated king, what would
he look like when angry Since then owls and crows have been enemies.
Compare the Aesopic fable of The Frogs (IFrdrhe Sur (C127, H77, P314). Frogs rejoice at the wedding of the Sun along with all the other animals, when one of them rebukes his fellows, saying that if a single Sun is enough to dry all the mud pools, how much Worse would it be if he married and begot a son like himself
Note: The threat or fear of an intensification of El condition is also the point of the Udiparia J. (No. 271) and the Kokalika J. (No. 331).
Lola J. (No. 274) and thc two Kapota J. (Nos. 42 and 375).
A crow befriends a pigeon, who has a basket hung up for him in a kitchen. The cook hangs up one for the crow loo, One day the Crow, making an excuse of indigestion, does not go out foraging With the pigeon but, which thic cook's back is turncid, alights on a dish of fish he had all along craved. The cook, hearing the click of his claws, catches him, plucks his feathers, smears his body with spices and hurls him into his basket, looking quite absurd.
The Acscopic fable which compares with this is Trezo: Ma777 77 Ido his Dog (CI78, H62, P328, Hs 283). A man was making ready to entertain a friend, when his dog invited another dog to dinner on the sly. But the interloper was so thrilled with the prospect of food that he began Wagging his tail. The cook spotted it, caught him by his legs and threw him out.
Romaka J. (No. 277) and Godha J. (No. 325)
A sham ascetic is visited by a flock of pigeons, as they used to visit his predecessor. Conceiving a taste for pigeon meat, one day hic th Tows his staff at them. But he misses and says, "Get away ! I've missed you l' To which a pigeon says, "You have Illissed us, but you shall not miss the four hells'
Here is an inversion of the fable of The Golf Id fire Gorer ( H17, P280, Bab. 3, Pcrot. Ap. 24), in which a goatherd, hawing

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thrown a stone and broken the horn of a goat, pleads with the animal not to betray him to the master; to which the goat says, "Foolish herdsman, even if I keep quiet, my (broken) horn will cry the deed ''
Manisukara J. (No. 285).
Boars, seeing a prowling lion reflected in the crystal cave they inhabit, attempt to smear it by rubbing mud. But their bristles, brushing, only make the surface shine the more. A hermit tells them that nothing can take the brilliance off the crystal ; they had better go elsewhere.
See Aesop The Ethiopian (C11, H13, Aphth. 6). A man bought an Ethiopian slave and, thinking he was black from neglect by his former owner, set to scrubbing and washing him. But all he succeeded in doing was making himself sick with the effort.
Macch-Uddana J. (No. 288)
A younger brother, to cheat his elder brother of a parcel of money, makes a parcel of gravel just like it and, on board a ship, kicks the money overboard (as if by accident and himself mistaking it for the gravel). The parcel of money is swallowed by a fish, which is subsequently caught by a fisherman and sold to the elder brother. When his wife cuts open the fish, the parcel is found and restored to him. w
This story appears to have been built up of two historical anecdotes from Herodotus, that of Arion (i. 21), in which the poet, travelling on board a ship, is plundered of his money, while he himself leaps into the sea and is rescued by a dolphin, and that of Polycrates of Samos (iii. 40—45), in which the tyrant is advised to cast away what he values most to break his run of good fortune, throws his ring into the sea and has it come back to him in the belly of a fish, caught and presented to him. Compare Sakuntala for a ring itself swallowed by a fish and restored in like manner.
Jambu-Khadaka J. (No. 294)
A jackal praises a crow, who is eating fruit on a jambu trec, The crow in return praises the jackal and shakes down fruit for him too. A tree-sprite, seeing a carrion crow and a corpse-eating jackal flatter each other so, takes on a fearful aspect and shoos them off. In the Anta J. (No. 295) it is the jackal who is praised by the crow,

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when he is eating the corpse of a bull, and invites it to come down from the tree on which it is perched and eat with him.
In the Aesop version of The Crow and the Fox (C165, H204, P124, Hs 126) the fox sees the crow eating a piece of meat upon a
tree and begins to praise it and says it is fit to be king, if only it had a Voice as well. To show it had one, the crow caws, letting the meat
fall. The fox snatches it up and says the crow has everything, if it had brains as well.
vaka J. (No. 300)
A hungry fox decides to make a virtue of his lack of food by observing a sabbath, when he sees a wild goat. So, putting away his fast, he leaps at the creature. But the goat keeps jumping about so that he cannot catch it. Finally he gives up, observing that he had not broken his fast after all.
Compare the well-known fable, The Fox and the Grapes (C32, H33, P15, Hs 15). A hungry fox tries to get at a cluster of grapes
he sees hanging from a vine trained onto a tree, fails and declares that they are bitter.
Javasakuna j. (No. 308).
A lion had a bone stuck in his throat. A woodpecker volunteered to push it down his throat, and then did so. Later he asked the lion for a boon. To which the lion asked whether it was not goodwill enough that he let the bird thrust its head into his jaws and withdraw it unscathed.
The fable of The Wolf and the Heron (C224, H276, P156, Hs 161) of Aesop is the Greek of this. A wolf, who had swallowed a bone, offered a heron a fee to have it pulled out. The heron put his head down the wolf's throat and pulled the bone out. But when he asked for the fee, the wolf asked him whether it was not enough that he had got his head out of a wolf's mouth that he asked for a fee as well.
Pucimanda J. (No. 311)
A robber hid his stolen goods at the foot of a nimb tree. The (diety of the) nimb tree, for fear that it might be destroyed, if the robber was caught near itself and its branch used as a stake to impale him, frightened the man away. Truly enough the king's men had

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the intention of doing so or hanging him from the trce. Only they could not find him,
Compare Aesop's fable, The Robber and Mulberry Tree (C214. H264, P152, Hs 157). A robber killed a man on the highway and fled. When some people met him and asked him how his hands came to be stained, he replied that he had just climbed down a mulberry tree. While he was speaking, his pursuers caught up with him and impaled him and hanged him on a mulberry tree. Said the mulberry tree, "I don't mind helping to put you to death. You committed murder yourself, and then tried to wipe off the blood ."m Tmeט
Kuntani J. (No. 343).
A heron lived with a king as his messenger. One day the king's sons, in her absence, squeezed her offspring to death. The heron took her chance for revenge when the boys came to see a fierce tiger chained in the palace. She carried them up and pull them at the fect of the beast and had them killed,
See Aesop's The Eagle and the Fox (C3, H5, P1, Hs). An eagle and a vixen became friends. The eagle made her nest upon a trce, the vixen had her cubs at the foot of it. One day the eagle snatched the vixen's cubs and made a meal of them. Soon, however, the cagle's nest caught fire, when she carried some burning sacrificial mcat to it, and when her fledglings fell from it, the vixen had her revenge, running up and eating them.
Sandhibheda J. (No. 349) and Wannaroha J. (No. 361).
Two big animals are friends. In the first the jackal sets them at variance, and when they have killed each other, eats their flesh in the second, they talk it out with each other and the jackal's designs fail.
Compare Aesop's fables The Lion and the Bear (C200, H247, P47, Hs 152) and The Lion and the Boar (C203, H253, P338). In the former the two beasts fight over a fawn that they had killed, and when they lie unconscious, EL fox steals their prey. In the latter the two animals fighting see Vultures await their death and put an end to their quarrel.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Jour NAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV (N.S.) 1980-81 169 Culladha nuggaha J. (No. 374).
Ajackal drops a piece of meat to grab a fish, which had jumped ashore. The fish jumps back into the river, while a bird carries off the meat. So the jackal loses both.
A lion, about to devour a sleeping hare in Aesop's fable of The Lion and the Hare (C204, H254, P158, Hs 153), sees a deer go by ; so, leaving the hare he chases after it. The hare, awakened by the noise, makes its escape and the lion fails to catch the deer as well. So he loses both hare and dicer.
Migalopa J. (No. 381) and Gijjha J. (No. 427).
A vulture, accustomed to high flying, is warned by his father that if he soars too high, he will meet his death, struck down by the furious winds up there. He disregards the warning, and rising very high, is struck by a dreadful blast and disintegrates.
Here we have in fable - form the Grcek myth of Icarus and Dacdalus. When father and son made their escape from imprisonment in Minoan Crete on wings made by Daedalus out of birdfeathers and bee-wax, he warned his son against flying too high for fear that the sun would melt the wax. The son did not heed the father's warning; his wings melted and he fell to his death. (See R. Graves Greek Myths (Pelican) vol. 1, sec. 92e).
Kukkuta J. (No. 383)
A she-cat had eaten up all the cocks in a roost, save one. To get at him, she went up to the tree in which he roosted, and flattering him, volunteered to be his wife if he would come down to her.
The cock, not deceived, said it was wrong for two-footed to marry four-footed creatures. When she persevered, promising beauty and pleasure, the cock told her off with her killings.
In Aesop's The Dog and the Cock (C180, H225, P252, Hs268) a dog and cock become friends, the cock roosting in a tree and the dog sleeping at its roots. A vixen, attracted by the crowing of the cock, invites him to come down to her so that she may embrace the possessor of such a voice. The cock asks her to get the porter to open the door for him. When she looks for the porter, the dog jumps at her and tears her to pieces.

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Dabbhapuppha J. (No. 400).
Two otters quarrelled over the division of a fish they had landed and called a jackal to make an equitable division. The jackal gave the head to one and the tail to the other, and claiming the middle for his services as arbiter, ran off with it.
More than one fable of Aesop involves a division of prey, in which an unfairness is perpetrated, for example, The Lior and the Wild Ass (C207, H258, P339) and The Lion, the Ass arid the Fox (C209, H260, P149, Hs 154). In the former the lion takes all three lots in a division between himself and l wild ass, the first as king of beasts, the second as partner, and the third by sheer intimidation. In the second fable, the ass, asked to divide, divides equally and is killed by the lion. When the fox is asked to divide, he leaves the lion the lion's share and takes just a bit, and when asked who taught him division, remarks, "What happened to the ass". The Cowell ed. refers to an Aesopic fable, The Monkey and the Cats, as a parallel of the above Jātaka, but I do not find itin the recognized collections.
Dhumakari J. (No. 413).
A goatherd kept a flock of goats in a pen in the forest and tended them. But when some decr of golden hue joined them, he disregarded his goats and gave all his attention to the deer. But when autumn came, the deer left him. As for his own goats, they had by then died of hunger. So he lost both and himself died in SCTTOW.
Except in the conclusion, Aesop's fable of The Goatherd and the Wild Goats (C17, H2, P6. Hs6) runs closely parallel with this Jataka. Here a goatherd's flock is joined by some wild goats, to whom he heaps fodder generously, while giving his own animals only enough to subsist. As soon as the weather clears, however, the wild goats take to their heels. When he accuses them of ingratitude, they reply that the same would happen to them as happened to mock, should there be newcomers again. The Babrius version (B45) is, however, the same as the Jataka; the goatherd does not feed his own goats and so they die. Nordo the Wild goats rebuke him; they simply flee.

JoURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKIN) Vol. XXV (N. S.) 1980-81 171 Dipi J. (No. 426).
A panther, intent on killing Elshe-goat and seeking provocation, accuses her of having trod on his tail. She says they met face to face, whereas his tail was behind him. The panther replies that his tail was everywhere. The she-goat then says she came through the air. He replies that by doing so she scared off the deer and spoilt his meal. The she-goat then pleads directly, but the panther kills her.
Similar provocation is sought, but by a Wolf from a lamb, in Aesop's fable, The Wolf and the Laril (C221, H274, P155, Hs 160), The wolf accuscs the lamb, first of having muddied the water of the stream they had both come to drink from, then of having insulted his father. To the lamb's replies he says, "You arc good at finding excuses ; all the same I am going to eat you.” And hic docs so. In Aesop's The Cal and the Cock (C12, H14, P16, Hs 16) the cat accuses the cock of being a nuisance with his crowing, then of conmitting incest, before he eats him up.
Putimasa J. (No. 437).
Ajackal, unable to get at a wise she-goat, bids his wife conduct her to him, saying that he is dead and needs to be lamented over and buried. The she-goat comes along but sees the jackal lift his head and flees. The she-jackal tries to lure her a second time, saying that the jackal recovered at the sight of her, and would she come and chat with him? She agrices to do so-but with some friends, hounds This scares the jackals away.
See Acsop's story of The Lion, the Fox and the Stag (C358 H243, P336, B95). A fox lured a stag to a sick lion, saying that he was dying and intended making the stag king of the beasts. The lion was too hasty with his leap and only tore the stag's ear. The fox thereupon persuaded the stag to come a second time, but unlike the goal in the Jātaka, thc animal did so and became victim of the lion.
Kukkuta J. (No. 448).
A falcon killed all the chicks of a hen, except one, which hid in a bamboo thicket. The falcon, plotting to catch it, invited it to be friends and feed together. To which the chick said that there never could be friendship between them. The falcon promised not to sin again, but to no avail.

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See The Snake aid the Faner, which is cited above with reference to the Godha J. (No. 137). Both farmer and snake here realize that there can be no friendship between them after what
they had done to each other.
Ghata J. (No. 454).
A king has a daughter, of whom it is forctold that if she has a son, he will destroy both the country and the lineage. Her brothers, to prevent her having a child, lock her up in a round tower and watch over her. But she has a baby by a secret lower - in fact quite a number thereafter. See also the Mahavansa story of
Ummäidacittä (ch ix).
Here we have the motif of the birth of Perseus. An oracle declares that if King Acrisius' daughter, Danae, has a son, he will kill his grandfather. She is locked in a bronze tower and guards are placed over her. But Zeus comes to her as a shower of gold and she conceives. As in the Jitaka the oracle finds fulfilment.
Maha Paduna J. (No. 472).
A king's new queen is inflamed by passion for her step-son and in the king's absence wants him to make love to her. When he repudiates her, she has him falsely incriminated as having attempted to rape her. The king believes her and has him condemned to death and cast down from the "thieves' cliff". He is miraculously saved and becomes a hermit. The king learns the truth and the queen is herself hurled down the cliff,
The plot of this Jataka bases itself on the Greek myth of Hippolytus. Herc Phaedra, the wife of King Theseus, falls in love with his son by his former wife, Hippolytus. When rejected, she falsely incriminates him and Theseus destroys him, using a curse. The religious life of Prince Paduma reflects the singular piety of the Grcek youth. There is also the reconciliation of father and son. The difference is that the Greek story ends in tragedy. As for the "thieves' cliff" (corapāta), some such punishment may have been prevalent in India, but it reflects the hurling of condemmed criminals into the bara irror im Athens and the kafadas in
Sparta. Javana-Hamsa J. (No. 476).
Two geese, one after the other, try to fly with the sun; they feel as if their joints are on fire and are rescued by a swift goose.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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This goose is so swift that he traverses the whole world from end to end before the sun has moved to the middle of the sky. He also picks up arrows shot in the four directions and lays them at the feet of the archers so fast that he is himself invisible.
The performances here are strongly reminiscent of Phaethon's effort with the sun and very nearly, in the case of the two geese, its result ; also of the Aesopic fable of the archery contest between Zeus and Apollo (C187, H151, B68), where Apollo shoots an arrow into the Garden of the Hesperides, whereupon Zcus, covering the distance with a single step, is left without space into which to shoot.
Takkariya J. (No. 481),
Among other stories in this Jilaka is one of a goat, whom some thieves wanted to kill and eat but set free because they had forgotten the chopper. The goat, frisking about in his freedom, happened to kick a knife left in the bamboo grove, where they were, by a bamboo-worker. The thicves, hearing the sound, found it and used it to kill the goat,
Zenobius (Prow. Cent. 1.27 : so Suidas) gives the expression "like the goat and the knife', explaining it with a story similar to this. The Corinthians were holding their annual sacrifice to Hera and offering a goat as a victim, when some of the servants hid the knife. But the goat revealed it accidently with his own feet and thus was the cause of his own death.
Mahabodhi J. (No. 528).
Stanzas (at sec. 241) cited as an illustration in this Jaitaka:
A wolf disguised as ram of old Drew unsuspected nigh the fold.
The panic-stricken flock it slew, Then scampered off to pastures new.
See Aesop's fable of The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (H376, P451). A wolf, disguised as a sheep in order to get plenty of food, is led into the fold unknowingly by the shepherd. But when the shepherd feels hungry and kills one of the sheep for a meal, it happens to be ou T wolf.

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Sonaka J. (No. 529).
Stanzas (at sec. 255) give as a parable the following : A crow, alighting on the carcass of an elephant, is borne down the river, eating the flesh from it and drinking water from the river. He is so intcnt on this that he is carried far out to sea, and when hic tries to fly back, falls into the water and becomes victim of crocodiles and
fish.
The image of the crow riding the elephant carcass down-river parallels that of the wiper floating down-river upon a bundle of thistles in Aesop's fable of The Viper and the Fox (H145, B173), sccing which a fox exclaimed, "A skipper right Worthy of his craft For the crow of the Jātaka symbolized the life of sensual pleasure,
Maha-Ummaggin J. (No. 546).
The twelfth prasra of the nineteen, which Mahosadha solved is called "The Gem'and involved the threading of a gem, in which the hole spiralled or zig-zagged eight times. He accomplished this with the aid of ants, whom he induced into the hole with honey. The ants dragged the thread through with them on their passage from one end to the other.
A similar feat was performed in the identical way by Daedalus. Hic threaded a snail-shell with the aid of an ant and a dab of honey. (See Apollod, Ep. 12 - 15 : Zen, Celt, iv, 92.12-15, but it goes back in evidence to Sophocles' lost play, Carnicians). It may be mentioned that the fifth prasna of the same set, called "The Son', reflects the judgements of Solomon in Kings 3.12-28.
醇 肆
All that can be accepted as historically true in the ancient testimony about Aesop is that he was either a Thracian or a Phrygian by birth; that he was at some time a slave in the island of Samos in the service of a certain ladmon, who gave him his freedom afterwards ; that he was a contemporary of the poetess, Sappho, early in the sixth century B.C. : finally, that he was famous as a composer or teller, or both, of stories in prose, a logopoios. An ancient chronological reckoning preserved in Eusibius, and also in an inscription of the year 16 A.D., places his death at Delphi in the year 564 B.C. The information given by Herodotus, whose own stay in Samos preceded the year 454 B.C., and the chronicler
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Eugeon, or Euagon, of Samos, who lived before the Peloponnesian War (432 - 404 B.C.), conforms with this antiquity of the life of
Aesop,
But the beginning of the long history of the Aesopic fable, generically so called, is of even greater antiquity and takes in a fable, The Hawk and the Nightingale (C8, H9, P4, Hs4), which appears in the Works and Days of Hesiod, Boeotian poet of the seventh century B.C. Allusion to another fable, later to be among the Aesopica, is found in Solon (c. 640/635 to soon after 56.1560 B.C.), when he talks of some animal "walking in the footsteps of the fox" (alapeko, ichnesi hairei), thus bringing home to the Athenians the way they fell under the tyranny of Peisist ratus. This must be the fable of The Lion, the Fox and the Stag (H243, C358, B95). which was to provide the motif for the Pittiniaisa Jaitaka.'
These early fables are employed without reference to Aesop, and the same is true of all the writers between the dates of Hesiod and Solon. Archilochus (alive c. 708 B.C.) knew the story of The Eagle and the Fox (C3, H5, PI. Hs 1), who made friends with each other, in which I think we have the original motif of the Kuntani Jataka (No. 343); he also gives the story of The Monkey and the Fox (C38, H44, P81, Hs83). Semonides of Amorgos (c. mid seventh cent. B.C.) does not mention Aesop either, when he refers to a fable of a heron, who, seeing a hawk cating an eel, snatched it off him". There is also a scolion, which appears old, on a crab who strangled a snake for not being straight. The Snake and the Crab (C290, H346)*, which may be part-inspiration of the Baka Jataka (No. 38). Theognis (fl. 544-541 B.C.) knew already the
24. Works and Days 202-212.
25. Quoted by Diog. Laert. i. 5. Cf. Babrius 95. The Jātaka, however, is unable to indulge in the detail of the fox jackal cating the heart of the victim and observing that it did not have any, simply because the creature did not get killed. But see the Paicaiaritra version, which parallels Babrius' (if also Solon's) in these details as well.
26. In Ammonius De voc. dijererttia 6, 27. In Athen, Wii. 2:99c,
( ), Sirench. Prárij Trias, 28. Athen. xv. 695a. Cp. Aristoph. Peace 1083 f. @g', par 4 TE25
E. 5). An

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fable of the man, who found a snake frozen and warmed it at his bosom, only to be stung to death by it.'" The text of the passage is corrupt, but the allusion is clearly to the fable of The Farner and the Snake (C82, H97, P 176, Hs(62), which has a close parallel in the Velika Jaraka (No. 43).
It would appear, then, that the origin and growth of the use of fable in Greece antedated the association of thern with the name of Aesop, even though he himself lived about this time. It is with Aristophanes (c. 450 — c. 385 B.C.) and subscqucnt writers that it becomes almost exceptional if Aesop's name is not mentioned in introducing a fable. Indeed, Aristophanes appears to have been the advocate of this tendency to raise Aesop to the position of high-priest of the Greek fable, a tendency which gradually gathered strength and reached a climax in the literature of Athens about the feeting-point between the fourth and third centuries B.C.,
A ferry in us arte quer for the first appearance of Jātakas seemingly sharing motifs with stories found in Greece, can be the date of the reliefs of the Bhairhut Tope, which depict at least three such. Two of these reflect fables from Aesop (the Sandhibheda (No. 349) and the Kukkuta (No. 383); the Nacca Jataka (No. 32), however, has its parallel in the interesting historical anecdote narrated by Herodotus. The question is whether the Terrorinus post quer of the Jaitakas can, on the evidence, acquire both a chronology and a plausibility for those arguing that these earlicst of Greek fables (some of which do share motifs with the Indian) were also adaptations from the Jaitakas.
R. W. Macan:1 rejects the possibility that the story of Hippocleides told by Herodotus was carried to India in the days of Alexander and there, in course of time, transformed and degraded into a beast- (or bird-)fable. For him such a hypothesis places a severe strain upon the conscience of historian and mythologist ; he says,
29, .. 599 f.
30. A. Cunningham The Srpa y Bharhir Benarcs (1962) p. 14 f. assigns the Lopc to hic Asoka period, somewhere between 250 and 200 B.C. The dating remains undisputed.
31. Herodor IIs wol, 2. London (1895) append. I 4 "Hippokleides — the Peacock p. 304-31. His attention has becn drawn to the Oriental parallel by the Pali scholar, Arnold C. Taylor. See Halliclay ap, cir. p. 49 : "It is difficult, I think, to regard the Greek as other than the secondary version". See also Warren in Herries vol. 29. p. 476.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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"the fable wears upon its very face and front the more primitive stamp; the Herodot can story is transparently imaginative, poetical, pragmatic.' It is "infinitely more probable" for him that this Was an Indian fable, which had reached Greece and become historicized before the days of Herodotus. His attempt to decide a date for its arrival in Grecce leads him to trace the date of the introduction of the peacock there, which, to say the least, proves a veritable wild. goose chase. His ultimatic conclusion, that the fabulous element in the Herodotean story is derived neither directly nor indirectly LCCCL aLa LTGGTTLLGLLLaCaLGTS La LLL aLLLL LLLL LLLLLLLaaLLLL LLLLCCS thus melts into an insubstantial hypothesis that is hardly a challenge to the likelihood that the story was carried to India from Greece in the days of Alexander, if not earlier, and-if it so pleases-degra ded into a bird-fable.
This, however, would not be the sole instance of such a thing either. A conjunction of the stories narrated by Herodotus of Arion and Polycrates of Samos, which I suspect provides the motif of the Macch-Uillaria Jataka (No. 288), shows Greek historical anecdote becoming Indian fairy-tale. But more to the point, the Greek myth of Icarus reappears as a bird-fable in the Migilopa Jiraka (No. 381). It would be too much to call in question the greater antiquity of this latter as well, since it relates to Minoan myth-history and is allied to the fate of Daedalus in his escape from Crete. Remarkably an incident connected with Dacidalus' own escape from Crete provides the motif for onc of the prasia, which the Bodhisatta, as Mahosadha, solved, in yet another Jataka, the Malrā- Ur II Pagga Jātaka (No.546), which involved the threading of a gem of eight bends” (aţțhayarikarii hairatanării) and which he performed with the aid of : Ints. The myth of Minos" seach for Daedalus, which involved a similar test of threading a spiral shell and which Daedalus threaded in a similar way with the aid of an ant, is told by Apollodorus, but its earliest known reference in literature goes back to a lost play of Sophocles, the Carniciaris. 32
Greek Writers dealt with myths already well cstablished in tradition, so that a considerable lapse of time must be assumed in their antiquity before they make their appearance in Written evidence. It should be the same with the Hippolytus myth, dramatized by
32. I have discussed the parallels in an article entitled "The Tunnel-Maker and LC LLLCLSCLLLLLLS La mLLLL LLLLCHGGGLCHHGGO LCLLGLHLHCCCL LLLLLL
Leciden (1978) p. 145 f.

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178 GREEK MOTFS IN THE JATWKWS
Sophocles and Euripides, which brings in the Attic hcro, Theseus, and which is remarkably closely reflected in the plot of the MahaPaalu Fra Jātaka (No. 472).
In quite the opposite sort of way, it is partly the presence of the human element which goes to convince Rhys Davids33 of the antiquity of the Indian story of The Miss in the Lion-Skin (Sildcarnia Jataka (No. 189)) over the Greek, For in thc former the skin is draped over the animal by his owner and not by himself. The Paica faitra the Hitopades, follow the Jataka in this detail, but in their conversion of the lion-skin to a tiger-skin suggest that the former may also have been part of the localization of the story. It would secm that the version in thc Chinesc. A radiina, even though derived from India, left the animal donning the skin himself, and that too a lion-skin. As for the latcr attempt in Greece to locate the incident in Cumac, it must be the result of a confounding of it with a different incident involving an ass; it is quite impossible that an ass actually did such a thing as put a lion-skin upon his own back, in Cumac or anywhere else other than in a fable.
In an article devoted to the consideration of the first fifty Jatakasis the Bishop of Colombo at the time disputed Rhys Davids' opinion that the story of the ass with the lion-skin and the tortoise, who was carried aloft by a bird (or birds) and dropped to its death, was of Indian origin by pointing out that they were irrelevant to Buddhism — as he put it, ouder pro s Dionyson — and simply enlisted into the Jātakas by making the Buddha a witness to the happening in a previous life. Despite his cynicism later on on the delight Rhys Davids appears to have taken in finding the Buddha recognized and honoured under the name of St. Josephal as a Chris tian saint by the whole Catholic Christendom'7, he concedes that we owe him a debt of gratitude for the more important and interes ting observation that the fables of Europe, from Babrius and Phae
33. ibjad. p., wii.
34, Scc my 'The Ass in the Lion Skin' Sri Lanka Jorral of the Hill"
Wol. 7 (1981) p. 29-60.
35. Lucian Piscator. 32. The saying anos para Kinarious ('the ass among, the Cumaeans') was used of pcopi who boasted before those who had no means of judging. In it the discovery of the animal's true nature is made by the simple observation of one who had seen much of lion and ass:
36. The First Fifty Jatakas' p. 103,
37, lbfc- p. 113–114
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JoURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV (N.S.) 1980-81 179
drus onwards, derive more or less directly from the mass of Eastern stories, of which the Jaitaka Book is the most important collection. "Meanwhile", he adds, "some at least of the stories have probably travelled to India from the West', and finds reason for thinking that the hero of the Losaka Jataka (No. 41) is an Indian version of Ulysses. 38
The parallels he points out between the Jātaka and the Odyssey" are in my opinion farfetched, except that Mittavindaka goes from island to island, and once at least on a raft. The island-adventures of Ulysses, however, appear in another Jātaka, the Valahassa (No. 196), with the interesting identification of the island there with Sri Lanka; later the hero's encounter with Circe was to provide the island more specifically with the basis of its foundationTyth-the legend of Wijaya and Kuveni. The episode of the Trojan Horse figures in a schist relief from Gandhira in the first or second century and suggests the likelihood that it has been the inspiration of the ruse of the wooden clephant in the capture of Udayana,39. The priority of the Odyssey in all this is hardly likely to be called in question.
The trickle of fables, which began in Greece in the seventh ind sixth centuries B.C., had already become a broad concourse in the fifth, during which the compilation of the Buddhist canon was being undertaken in India. Yet no extensive contact between the two cultures can be established, which could account for the great Ilumber of Greek motifs discoverable in the Indian Jatakas - or, if you like, Indian motifs in Greek fable and myth. Fable had developed in Greece and Jataka had developed in India - as yet the one had not run into the other in any considerable way as to explain the phenomenon that has manifested itself when we encounter the Jatakas in their compilation later. As mentioned before, Jaitakam formed one of the nine classes in the very ancient division of Buddhist literature found already in the Nikayas. But hardly
38. їћѓd. p. 114-II5
9. See Winternitz, up, cir, p. 31. On the Trojan Horse frieze from Gandhāra and the story of Ulysses, see my "The Ujjain Elephant and the Trojan Horse St. Lark Journal of the Humanities vol. 2 (1976) p. 32–43. Max Müller (Sele'ered Essays for Language, Myrheology d Religion vol. 1 London (1881) p. 512) had agreed with Prof. Wilson (Essays on Sarriskrif Liferal are vol. 1, p. 20) that the similarity was through
Cill Cid CIICC,

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SO GREEK MOTIFS IN THE JATAKAS
any of the Jātaka stories and similes alluding to Jātaka stories found in the Four Nikāyas involve plots or motifs that are common with Greek stories so as to give substance to a theory of adoptio either way up to that point. The whole theory of a Greek "borrow ing from India prior to the congress of cultures following upon Alexander's adventure is insubstantial and rests largely on the presumption of a greater antiquity for the Jatakas as a whole But this is necessarily an ex parte judgement and not the whole
ruth of the matter either.
As far as the evidence goes, the Jatakas which compare with Greek storics and anecdotes surface in the literature of India only after the arrival of the Greeks there. The onus of showing that the did cxist in India before that event, if not before these paralle appeared in Greece, is still with those who contend the theory of the priority of India in the matter.
The Greck fable, up to the time of Babrius at least, had come down in bare and unembellished outline, while myth and historict tradition likewise continued to survive in oral tradition, so that all of them could have been drawn upon and rendered in their own Willy by individual logopoioi and writers. Stories with complexity of plot and plurality of episodes, such as are some of the Jatakas, are less likely to have been the more primitive form than the simple short and crisp na Trative enfolding a single cwent that consitituto N the Aesopica. Many of these fables still betray their proximity to the simile and the proverb and impart lessons more geared to survi wal and success in life than higher moral injunctions,
There are a number of other considerations, which indict. that it was the Greek motifs which inspired, or found their Wily into the Indian Jatakas rather than vice-versa. To cite a few
I. As mentioned before, what is found as a single motif in
Greek story has details which constitute it appearing two or more Jilakas, and conversely, two or more Greel motifs may be found united in a single Jataka, as, so example, in the Kaka Jaitaka (No. 140) or the Nariguill Jātaka (NO. 144).
A motif found in a single Greek story often appears as the motif of a plurality of Jatakas. The idea of one-Wy traffic into a lion's den warning a fox in the Aesopic fall of The Lion and the Fox and referred to in Plato's Alcible (123a) is used over and over again in the Jātakas. So all
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Jour NAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. YYY (N.S.) 1980-81 i 81
is the idea of a creature's cry belraying his imposition or lowly birth. There are cven two crow-and-the-fox. Jiitakas, the Jar:bu-Khādaka (No. 294) and Arta (295), onc an inversion of the other, whereas a Corinthia El Wase is cvidence of the existelce of the faible il Greece als får back als the sixth century B.C.
3. In not a few of the imitative Jātakas the Buddha (as the Bodhisatta) is merely in observer (e.g. Makasa (No. 44) together with the Rohini (No. 45), the Kaika (No. 146), the Sihaca Firra (No. 189), the Ganger (No. 205) and the „Varnabi-Krāda ka and Arfa (Nos. 294 and 295), while the account of the crow floating on an elephalt's carcass (No. 259) and the wolf in sheep's clothing (No. 529) were still to be developed commentarially into Jaitakas proper, Others, like the Kaccharia (No. 215), Ko siya (No. 226) and the Uliska (No. 270) in wolwe the Bodhisattal with the plot only incidentally and Ilot as a primary participant in the Aesopizing motif.
Thc longeT Jāt ELikas, which cingagc a scries of fables a nel other stories, such as the sixteel deals of the Martist frie (No. 77) or thc nineteel para surar of the Mahā-Urr? Tagga (No. 546), are themselves Inimature collections. They bring together motifs from such diverse sources as thc Odyssey of Homer and the Biblic's Book of Kings and even the paintings of Polygnotus in the club-house of the Cnidians at Delphi.
4. The role played by the piccuppiiriria varihi, or 'story of the present, which gives the circumstances in which the BLIddha narrates a Jataka, or 'story of the past (at it for 'at thi), Thay itself derive from the Aesopica, with its stepping outside the central story determincid by the role of the Iraniulia and epirra filia found with these Greek fables. As for the religious flavour, it will be observed that in Europe itself these prorru filia and epirithia of the Aesopic fables WCTC at some time converted to Christianity.
The accumulation of the five hundred and fifty CT so Jilakas, though begun in the centuries immediately following the death of the Buddha and the First Council at Rajagaha, would have continued

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182 GREEK MOTIFS IN THE TAKS
until the time thcy were fixed in writing, that is, around the fifth century A.D. The fact that the Jaitaka Book formed one of the divisions of the Khuddaka Wikāya, whatcwer date that received inclusion in the canon, does not necessarily confirm the completion of the compilation or the number of such stories as having been what it was ultimately. We are still three short of the reputed
number-and not perhaps through loss either.
During this time new stories would have continuously come into the vortex, transforming and solidifying themselves to express Buddhist values in an already well estal bished Buddhist context in the mode of Jatakas. Thus there can appear in the Jataka collect tion motifs of Greek fables, which are not found in the manuscripts purporting to derive from older tradition but turning up in later writers. For example, there is the fable of The Goat and the Knife, paralleled in the Takkariya Jataka (No. 481), which gave rise to a Greek proverb and which Zenobius, our Greek source, traces to an apparently actual happening in Corinth. There is also the fable of The Bald Mari and the Fly in Phaedrus, of which we have two versions in the Jātakas (the Makasa (No. 44) and the Rohini (No. 45)), the former keeping the bald man and the latter the fly (or flies), within both the Bodhisatta playing his non-participant role of casual observicT.
But already one may begin to wonder which way the drift is ; for, by this time the tide was beginning to change and the mass of Eastern stories, of which the Jatakas were the most important collcction, were beginning to permicate into the Near-East and Europe, with one of them ultimately to repay for the enlistment of Solomon in the Tolc of the Bodhisatta, as it were, by providing the Bodhisatta himself in the capacity of a Christian saint, St. Josephal. Both chronology and opportunity placc Phaedrus as much as Babrius in a position to receive into their respective compendia fables from the East, now easily including North-Westcrn India, as well as from Greece, with the former being as successfully Graecized as the Greek stories were Indianized on their advent in India.
With the likelihood existing ( - though it is the Near-East, if any, that they suggest as the source of fable) that the stories in Babrius and Phaedrus included some based on motifs making their way to the West from India, it may not be unlikely that the compendia now treated as originating with Demetrius of Phalerum also drew into themselves some of these. Just as the moralistic sum
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

JOURNAL R. A. S. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV. (N. S.) 1980-81 183
ups, which serve as references to the fables of thc collection, betray markedly Christian influence, there are those who point out that the device of a story-frame itself, which the Life of Aesop seems to provide for many of the Aesopical, has always been held to be specifically characteristic of Oriental story-telling.
With the principal document for arguing the Greek case open to such a possibility, it is difficult to establish the origin of many individual story - motifs with a degrec of dogmalism. This need lot, however, seriously debilitate the general hypothesis based on the quantum of parallels that we have brought to light here.

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BOOK REVIEW
Catalogue of the Sinhalese Manuscripts in the India Office Library. (India Office Library and Records, 1981).
Compiled by D. J. WIJAYARATNE in collaboration with A. S. KULASURIYA. Edited by C. H. B. REYNOLDs.
This publication is a scientific catalogue of Sinhalese manuscripts on palm-leaf and paper available at the India Office Library in London and presents to the reader a wealth of information on all manuscripts in Sinhalese characters deposited in this collection. While the majority of these are Sinhalese works, five manuscripts containing Pali texts are also included and this comprises some Sinhalese exegetical writings on Pali texts as well. These Pali manuscripts are included herein owing to the fact that no separate catalogue for these few manuscripts is likely to be published.
As Sri Lanka did not come within the jurisdiction of the India Office at any stage in her history, records pertaining to Sri Lanka in this particular library are not abundant. As our readers are aware, more extensive collections of Sinhalese manuscripts are to be found in the libraries of the British Museum, the Royal Asiatic Society and the School of Oriental and African Studies. As is evident from the publication under review, the India Office Library collection holds some 45 manuscripts; and as several of these contain more than one work each, the total number of titles included in the collection amounts to 81. However, a good many of these are incomplete or fragmentary and the texts are of varying length, some of them considerably short.
The compilers have taken great pains to describe each manuscript in meticulous detail, and no manuscript however small in size or insignificant in subject matter has escaped their scholarly attention. The material and the dimensions of the manuscripts, the number of pages and the number of lines to a page, the size and type of letters, the traditional pagination and even the appearance of the outer cover (kamba) of each manuscript are clearly described, according to accepted practices of such documentation. The opening and the concluding lines of each manuscript are given in Sinhalese characters written in a fine and clear hand. An attempt has been made to date each manuscript on the basis of orthographical and

JOURNAL R. A. s. (SRI LANKA) Vol. XXV (N.S.) 1980-81 185
other evidence. References are given to published editions of each text where available and to the catalogues of other well-known collections of Sinhalese manuscripts such as the British Museum Library collection, the Colombo Museum Library collection and the collections available in Germany. Compilation of a catalogue of this nature is indeed a challenging task which calls for careful and painstaking study, and Professors Wijayaratne and Kulasuriya have met this challenge quite creditably.
As is evident from the Introduction, this catalogue was first compiled during the years 1950 - 1962, but it was as late as 1981 that it was ultimately published. During the intervening years the Onus of preparing the manuscript for publication had fallen on Mr. C. H. B. Reynolds, and it must be said to his credit that he has done an admirable job of bringing the catalogue up-to-date. He has been able to include several manuscripts which had come to light after the original compilation, and has taken care to give references to printed editions of, the texts published after the original Compilation.
The manuscripts are classified into six categories according to their subject matter, viz. Buddhist Literature, History, Lexical, Grammar, Medicine and Miscellaneous. This provides room for easy reference, and by far the largest number of manuscripts belong to Buddhist Literature. The manuscripts are indexed subjectwise, according to title and also numerically thus facilitating reference. What could interest the scholar most is the description given of the manuscripts containing several unpublished texts. Among them, Maghddeva Jaitaka (p. 7) (distinct from the Makhadeva Jataka of the Jataka collection) and Kusalakriyanusandesa nam Varnandva (p. 48)-an account of religious deeds performed by King Kirti Sri Rajasingha including a detailed account of the two religious missions sent to Siam and Pegu-deserve special mention here. ۔۔۔ ?
This publication with its dedication to accuracy and methodical presentation provides a corpus of useful information for researchers in the field and also for the general reader interested in such studies.
G. D. Wijayawardhana.

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186
ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1979
Meeting :
Four Council Meetings were held during the year 1979.
Lectures :
Two public lectures were delivered under the auspices of the Society during the year 1979. The first lecture was by Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando, M.Sc., Director of Planning, Ministry of Mahaweli Development on Major Ancient Irrigation Works of Sri Lanka' on 16th March, 1979. The second lecture was by His Lordship Mr. Justice P. Colin Thome, M.A., LL.B. (Cantab.), on Governor Van Angelbeek and the Capitulation of the Dutch Settlements in Ceylon to the British 1796, on 4th May, 1979.
Membership:
Twenty new members were admitted in 1979, namely :
Mr. A. D. N. Fernando (Life Member) Mr. S. Duraisingham. Rev. Piyananda Thero. Mr. Chandra Jayawardena. Mrs. Sumana H. Fernando. Indian Institute Library, U.K. Mr. S. Vattala. Mr. S. G. Samarasinghe. Hon. Mr. Justice P. Colin Thome” 10. Mr. M. I. S. Ahamed 11. His Excellency W. H. Wriggins. 12. Mr. H. Wijetunga. 13. Mr. P. Weerasinghe. 14. British Museum-General Library 15. Mr. C. A. de Vos (Life Member) 16. Mr. N. Y. Casie Chetty. 17. Mr. E. R. de Zoysa 18. Capt. I. E. E. Paranavitana. 19. Mr. J. L. C. C. Jayawardena. 20. Mr. Chandra S. Perera.

187
The Society had at the end of 1979 on its roll 450 Members. Of these 5 were Honorary Members and 202 Life Members (Resident and Non-Resident), 215 Ordinary Members and 28 Ordinary Non-Resident Members. There were 99 members who were in arrears of membership subscription for over one year. Repeated reminders calling for payment of arrears of subscription have brought no response. A sum of Rs. 9,9371is due to the Society as arrears of membership subscription up to 31.12.1979.
Publications :
Journal Vol. XXI, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhena's Sinhala translation of the 'Historical Topography of Ancient & Medieval Ceylon' by C. W. Nicholas has been printed and published. The publication cost Rs. 8,325/-, Rs. 7,500/- was paid by the Department of Cultural Affairs and Rs. 825/- out of the Society's Funds realised by the sale of the journal. The sale of this Journal is very slow although it has been advertised at much
coSt.
Library :
49 Miscellaneous journals and periodicals were received in exchange for the Society's Journal and 5 donations of books.
Library Books :
Several members who borrow books from the Society's Library do not return the books within the time specified in Rule 43 to 48. This has caused considerable inconvenience to other members and visitors.
On 29th January 1979, on the instructions of the Honourable Minister of Local Government, Housing and Construction, the Government Agent, Colombo, delivered possession of a block of land in extent 25 perches situated along Wijerama Mawatha, Colombo 7, to the Society for the purpose of constructing on it a building to accommodate the Library, Office and Meeting Hall of the Society.
We thank the University Authorities for allowing the Society the use of its Hall free of charge for our Public Lectures and Council Meetings.
P. R. Sittampalam - K. M. W. Kuruppu.
Hon. Joint Secretaries.

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188
REPORT TO THE COUNCIL, ON THE
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1979
Name of the Client :
Royal Asiatic Society - Sri Lanka Branch.
Name and Address of Person Carrying on Business
The President, Royal Asiatic Society, Reid Avenue, Colombo.
Place Where Society is Carried on :
Ried Avenue, Colombo.
Accounting Period :
1st January, 1979 to 31st December, 1979.
Books Examined
Cash Book, Ledger, Petty Cash Book, Stamp Book, Members Register.
Name of Work Done :
1. Memos of Credite were Test Checked. 2. Payment Vouchers were Test Checked. 3. Bank Balances Reconciled. 4. Posting and Cashing Test Checked. 5. Members Ledger Test Checked.
Further Comments :
Arrears of Subscriptions
We would like to suggest that the society should identify the members those who are not the members at present and write off as bad doebts the unrecoverable subscriptions.

189.
Members Ledger
As we were unable to reconcile the Member's Ledger with the Cash Book, we suggest that an up to date Members Ledger be maintained and this should be agreed with the controlling Account in the Main Ledger.
Current Assets :
Bank Balance—State Bank of Indi
We have not seen direct confirmation from the Bank.
Ceylon Savings Bank - No. 226282.
Society Medal Funda.
The accrued interest for the year was not brought into account as the pass book was forwarded to the Bank for entering in the interest earned.
Bank Reconcilation
Date Receipt No. Amount
28.6.78 7485 20.00
28.6.78 7488 20.00
27.1.79 7548 15.00
27.1.79 7549 15.00 RS. 10.00
The above amounts were appearing in the reconciliation as unrealized deposits till the date of the Balance Sheet. We suggest that immediate steps be taken to collect the source.
Current Liabilities.
Ancient Irrigation Works Rs. 12,000/-.
As this amount was received from Mahawelli Development Board being the printing cost of the Lectures given by Mr. Dennis Fernando, this amount has been shown under Sundry Creditors.
Sgd. Pope & Co.

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HONORARY TREASURERS REPORT FOR 1979
The Balance Sheet for the year ended 31st December 1979 discloses an excess of Income over Expenditure of a sum of Rs. Rs. 1,80862.
The Bank Balances were : RS. cts.
1. State Bank of India 56,871.45 2. Ceylon Savings Bank 7.359.43 3. Chalmer's Oriental Text Fund 7,209.97 4. Society's Medal Fund 4,103.05 5. Chinese Records Translation Fund 10,324.83
RS. ctS.
Receipts by way of Annual Subscriptions amounted to 1,459.75
Arrears of subscriptions amounted to 685.25 Entrance fees 270.00 Life Membership fees 600.00 Sale of Journals 4,991.02
A sum of Rs. 9,937.00 is due as arrears of subscription for 1979 and earlier.
Please see my comments for arrears of subscriptions due in my reports for 1977 and 1978.
The Society would be greatly obliged if members would pay their Annual Subscription regularly and promptly and thus avoid the need for unnecessary expenditure on postage and reminders.
A. H. M. Ismail Colombo, 18th May 1980. Honorary Treasurer.

191
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192
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SHOLGIQV GIHL HO LHOåIGÐI

193
ROYAL ASATIC SOCIETY - Sri Lanka Branch
GENERAL, EXPENSES
Audit Fees
Salaries Cycle Allowance & Maintenance Printing & Stationery Lectures & Meetings
Postage
Bank Charges
Debit Tax
Bonus Commission on Sale of Journals Travelling Miscellaneous Expenses Maintenance of typewriter
GOVERNMENT
w
Printing of Journal 5,000.00
Excess of Income over
Expenditure 1,000.00
Rs. 6.000.00
Schedule 1
350.00
6,815.00
130.00 170.40
1,159.50
546.60 7.23 .62 15,00 715.73 148.40 69.50
70.00
Rs... 10,207.98
ACCOUNT
Govt. Grant Received
Schedule 1.
RS.
6,000.00
6,000.00

Page 114
194
Receipts & Payments Account for the Year ended 31st
RS. ctS. RS. cts.
Cash & Bank Balances on 1.1.1979
December 1979
State Bank of India 17,515.21 Ceylon Savings Bank 6,789.90 Cash in Hand i.22 Stamps in Hand 3.35 24,309.68
General Account
Govt. Grant 6,000.00 Life Membership 600.00 Arrears of subscriptions 685.25 Current subscriptions 1459.75 Entrance fees 270.00 Sale of Journals - 4,991.02 Sale of Journal Vol. VI 285.00 Interest from Ceylon Savings Bank 569.52 Subscription received in Advance 100.00 Donations Building Fund 31,777.20 Loan Refund 320.00 Fines - Library Books 31.20 Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony 800.00
Printing Cost of Major Ancient Irrigation Works of Sri Lanka 12,000.00 Suspense a/c 85.00 59,973.94
RS. 84,283.62

195
RS. cts. RS. cts.
General Account
Staff Loans 700.00 Salaries 6,815.00 Cycle Allowance 130.00 Printing & Stationery 170.40 Lectures & Meetings 1, 59.50 Postage 546.60 Bank Charges 17.23 Debit Tax .62 Bonus 15.00 Commission on sale of Journals 715.73 Audit Fees 350.00 Printing of Journals 7,500.00 Travelling 148.40 Miscellaneous Expenses 69.50 Maintenance of Typewriter 70.00
Fencing expenses levelling ground and erection of board on the land granted by Government 1,586.10 19,994.08
Cash & Bank Balances on 31.12.1979
State Bank of India 56,871.45 Ceylon Savings Bank 7,359.42 Cash in hand 52.92 Stamps in hand 5.75 64.289.54
RS. 84283.62

Page 115
ANNUAL REPORT 1980-82
Meetings :
Twelve Council meetings and fourteen General meetings were held during the period September 1980 to 19th March 1982.
The Council was also able to plan ahead for a series of monthly Lectures for the latter half of the year 1981 and a folder containing a list of the scheduled lectures was circulated in July to all members and was also distributed to the public. The Council would like to place on record its thanks to Mr. S. D. Saparamadu, Proprietor, of Tisara Prakasakayo, Dutugemunu Street, Dehiwala for printing the folders for 1981 and 1982 free of charge.
Lectures :
The following public lectures were held during the period under review :
13th January, 1981 : "Origin of the Buddha Image' by Prof. J. E. Van Lohuizen ; 25th March 1981 : 'An Examination of Ferno de Queiros History of Ceylon' by Prof. T. B. H. Abeyasinghe ; 24th June 1981 : "Subha ASubha Symbolism in Sinhalese Culture' by Prof. J. B. Dissanayake. 31st July, 1981 ; "Rain and Drought : Weather Lore of Sri Lanka,' by Dr. Anuradha Seneviratne; 21st August, 1981 : "Reminiscences of H. C. P. Bell' by Miss H. Bell ; 31st August, 1981: "Some Aspects of Records pertaining to Land Ownership in Sri Lanka' by Mr. S. Berugoda; 28th September, 1981: "Saradiel the Social Bandit," by Dr. W. M. K. Wijetunge; 23rd October, 1981: “Governor Gideon Loten, FRS (1752 - 1757)' by Mr. Ismeth Raheem ; 30th November 1981 : “History of Asgiriya Vihara” by Mr. Walter Wimalachandra; 14th December 1981 : “Can the Mediaeval. Sinhalese Kingdom be described as Feudal ?” by Dr. Michael Roberts : 25th January, 1982 : "The Maligned Monarch and the Nayakkar Accession to the Kandyan Throne' by Prof. K. W. Goonewardene ; 26th February, 1982 : "The Ancient Hydraulic Civilization of Sri Lanka in Relation to its Natural Resources," by Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando; 5th March, 1982 : "Photogrammetry in the use of Archaeology in Sri Lanka', by Mr. M. Saint Aubin.

197
Membership:
During the period under review 34 Ordinary Members, 10 Life Members, and one Honorary Member were admitted to the Society.
As at 19th March, 1982 the Society had 440 members on its roll. Of these 6 were Honorary Members, 195 Life Members, (Resident and non-Resident), 209 Ordinary Resident Members and 30 Ordinary Non-Resident Members.
Office Bearers of the Society :
The following Office-bearers were elected at its 134th Annual General Meeting held on 29th August, 1980 :
Patron :
H. E. Mr. J. R. Jayewardene, President of Sri Lanka.
President :
Prof. M. B. Ariyapala, B.A., Ph.D. (Lond.).
Past Presidents :
His Lordship Rt. Rev. Dr. Edmund Peiris, O.M.I., D.D., Emeritus Bishop of Chilaw.
Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, B.A. (Hons.) (Lond.), B.A. (Tripos) (Cantab), M.A. (Cantab), Ph.D. (Cal.).
Prof. H. W. Thambiah, Q.C., B.Sc., LL.D., M.A., Ph.D. (Cal.).
Prof. D. E. Hettiarachchi, Ph.D. (Lond.), M.A., Ph.D. (Cal.).
Vice-Presidents :
Mr. M. St. S. Casie Chetty, J.P.U.P.M.
Prof. K. W. Goonewardene, B.A. (Cey.), Ph.D. (Lond.).
Prof. T. Nadaraja, Ph.D. (Cantab.).
Members of the Council :
Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Dr. James T. Ratnum, Dr. (Mıs.) Swarna Jayaweera, Prof. K. Indrapala, Mr. L. A. Adithiya, Mr. Roland Silva, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. F. B.

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Jagath Wijayanayaka and Rev. M. Sasanaratana Thera. Mr. R. C. de S. Manukulasuriya was subsequently elected to fill the vacancy caused by the death of the last named
Hony. Jt. Secretaries :
Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva
Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara
Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando
Hony. Treasurer :
Mr. Lakshman Jayakody
Hony. Auditor :
Messrs Pope & Co., Chartered Accountants.
New Constitution :
On 31st July 1981, a New Constitution for the Society was adopted by its General Body. This Constitution replaced the old Constitution which was in existence since 1967.
Donations :
The Council records with gratitude the following donations made by the undermentioned :
Messrs M. S. Habtulabhoy & Co., Ltd. Rs. 110,000/-
Messrs Aitken Spence & Co., Ltd. Rs. 400/- (an
annual donation)
Messrs Aitken Spence & Co., Ltd. Rs... 200/-
(Building Fund)
It has also to be recorded that a donation of Rs. 10,000/- to the Building Fund, made in 1979 by Mr. S. F. Moosajee was requested to be refunded to the donor as the said sum according to him had not been utilized for the new building. Accordingly the sum of Rs. 10,000/- was refunded to him in 1981.

199
Library :
It should be recorded that the present accommodation for the Library is in a very poor state. During the period under review, the Library roof was repaired, but the condition remains unsatisfactory.
During this period an attempt was made to check the holdings of the Library, and about 5000 volumes were checked. This work which was done on a good-will basis could not be continued due to the existing working hours of the library. Although the Council agreed to make a change in the working hours during which the Library was to be kept open, it could not be effected, as the Army Unit in occupation of the Grandstand Building raised objections to the suggested new working hours. Now, it is hoped, that it would be possible to continue this work once the Library is shifted to the New premises.
Eleven books, miscellaneous journals and periodicals were received as donations from local and foreign institutions and individuals and sixty-three journals and periodicals in exchange for the Society's Journal. A list of all such donations and exchanges is published annually in the Society's Journal.
Publications :
A special issue of the Journal, Volume XXI-Special Number, 1980 entitled, "Major Ancient Irrigation Works of Sri Lanka' by Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando was published during the year under review. Out of the cost of this publication amounting to Rs. 12,750/-, Rs. 12,000/- was paid by the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and the balance of Rs. 750/- was met by the Society's Funds. The sale of this Journal has been satisfactory. The Journal for 1978 which had been given to the printers in 1979 has been long delayed in print. The printers have now promised to hand over the printed copies during the first half of 1982.
Permanent Home for the Society's Library :
The Society is beholden to His Excellency Mr. J. R. Jayawardene its Patron, for having made available accomodation in the building which is being constructed by the Ministry of Mahaweli Development, and the Society also places on record its appreciation of the Hon’ble the Minister of Land, Land Development and Mahaweli Development for making this venture possible.

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200
Franking Facilities :
The Council wish to place on record its appreciation for the facilities granted by the Secretary, Ministry of Cultural Affairs for the use of his official frank for internal postage.
Free use of the University Halls :
We also would like to place on record our sincere thanks to the authorities of the University of Colombo for allowing the Society to use its Hall free of charge for its Council and General Meetings.
G. P. S. H. De Silva Wilfred M. Gunasekara A. Denis N. Fernando Hony. Jt. Secretaries

PUBLICATIONS ADDED TO THE LIBRARY
Donations
Urban Council-Hong Kong
Prof. C. F. Beckingham
S. Arumugam
Flora Project, Peradeniya
University
Anslem de Sliva
W. G. Wickremasinghe
G. P. S. H. de Silva
Director, National Museums
Dr. N. D. Wijesekera
P. Thambimuttu
1.1.80 - 31.12.81
The 4th Festival of Asian Arts.
The Periphes of the Erythraean Sea.
Ancient Hindu Temples of Sri Lanka.
Revised Handbook of the Flora of
Ceylon, Vol. 1.
Annotated Bibiliography of Snakes of
Sri Lanka.
The Story of a Sinhala Family.
A Survey of Archives and Manuscripts Relating to Sri Lanka and located in Major London Repositories.
Spolia Zeylanica Vol. 34, Nos. 1 and 2. Spolia Zeylanica Vol. 35, Nos. 1 and 2.
Deities and Demons - Magic and
Masks in Sri Lanka.
Europe and the Dravidians.
PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED IN EXCHANGE
Period 1.1.80 - 31.12.81.
America
Smithsonian Institute
England
Royal Asiatic Society of Great
Britain & Ireland
Institute of Historical Research
School of African & Oriental
Studies
John Rylands Library
France
Journal Asiatique
Smithsonian Year - 1980. Smithsonian Contribution to Anthro
pology - No. 26.
Journal 1979 - No. 2. Journal 1980 - Nos. 1 & 2.
Bulletin No. 126 to 129 inc.
Bulletin - Vol. 43, Parts 1 & 2 (1980).
Vol. 62, Nos. 1 & 2.
Vol. 63, No. 2.
Tome CCLXVII - 1979. CCLXVII - 1980.
CCLXIX - 1981.

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ii
Germany
Bacssler Archiv
Holland
Library of Riyksherbarium
India
Asiatic Society of Bengal
The Maha Bodhi
Indian Council for Cultural
Relations
Malaysia
Sarawak Journal
Sri Lanka
Ceylon Historical Journal
University of Peradeniya
Publications De''Lecole Francnis Vols.
CXIX & C.I. - 1980.
Neu Folge Band Nos. 1 & 2 (1978/79).
Blumea Vol. 25 NoS. 1 & 2
姆努 Vol. 26 Nos. 1 & 2. iss Vol. 27 No. 1.
Jls. Vol. 19, 20, & 21 (1977-1979).
Vol. 87, Nos. 6 - 9.
Cultural News--Vol. XX, No. 3 (1979)
Vols. 25, 26 & 27 (News Series).
New Series - Jan - Dec, 1977, No. 1. Vol. VIII, No. 1, 1978.
Modern Ceylon Studies
Vol. 1 NoS. 1 & 2. Vol. 6 No. 1.

iii
MEMBERS ADMITTED DURING THE YEAR 1980/81
NON-RESIDENT LIFE MEMBERS
Miss. Vibeke Dilling Tortzen Librari an, Ved Skovgoerdet 39, 3400 Hillerod,
Denmark. Miss Yoshiko Ashiwa, 2-26-52, Higashichiyoda, Shizuoka City, Japan.
ORDINARY NON-RESIDENT MEMBER
Mr. Ivan Rene Mazanti, Social Anthropologist, Rolfsvej 28. DJ-2000, CPH.
F. Denmark.
RESIDENT LIFE MEMBERS
Mrs. Edith Fernando, 185/2, Dharmapala Mawatha, Colombo 7. Mr. L. Piyasena, 22, Shady Grove Avenue, Colombo 8. Mrs. S. Rockwood, 31, Buller's Lane, Colombo 7. Mr. H. C. Peiris, Managing Director, Yahala House Companies, 74, Flower
Road, Colombo 7. Mr. D. H. Peiris, Company Director, 74, Flower Road, Colombo 7. Mr. J. C. Peiris, Company Director, 74 Flower Road, Colombo 7. Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, 37, Alfred Place, Colomobo 3. Mr. Douglas D. Ranasinghe, 14/8, Galpotha Road, Nawala, Rajagiriya. Mr. M. L. M. Aboosally, Lankabarana Estate, Balangoda. Dr. Linus Silva, 214, High Level Road, Colombo 5.
ORDINARY RESIDENT MEMBERS
Mr. Chandra S. Perera, 437, Pethiyagoda, Kelaniya. Manager, Asoka Trading Co., 183, Galle Road, Colombo 4. Mr. L. S. D. Pieris, 441/7, Thimbirigasyaya Rd., Colombo 5. Mr. Sunial K. Rodrigo, 77, Isipathana Mawatha, Colombo 5. Prof. S. R. Kottegoda, 19, Welikadawatte, Rajagiriya. Mr. M. O. Muhammad, Grandpass Nursing Home, Colombo 14. Mr. Rajah M. Wickremesinhe, 3/2, Melder Place, Nugegoda. Mr. C. de Alwis Edirisinha, 18, De Kretser Place, Colombo 4. Mr. M. Vaithianathan, 1, Charles Circus, Colombo 3. Pref. A. Sathasivam, Dept. of Language & Culture, University of Colombo. Mr. D. A. W. Senanayake, 74, Galle Road, Mount Lavinia. Mr. H. Jayasena, 185, Baseline Road, Colombo 9. Mr. S. Kumarapalan, 5, Sea Avenue, Colombo 3. Dr. G. C. B. Wijesekera, 208, Colombo Road, Kurunegala. Mr. Ridgeway Tillekeratne, 286, Galle Road, Panadura. Mr. S. Berugoda, 1/1, Poorvarama Mawatha, Kirillapone, Colombo 6. Mr. Bandula Jayawardhana, E/1/2 Alvitigala Mawatha, Colombo 8. Mr. B. E. St. J. Bastiampillai, Associate Professor in History, University of
Colombo. Mr. M. H. M. Naina Marrikar, Deputy Minister, Finance & Planning, 53,
Nelson Place, Colombo 6. Mr. L. M. A. Silva, Attorney-at-Law, Wariyapola. Prof. S. Ranawella, Ruhunu University College, Meddawatte, Matara. Mr. D. G. P. Seneviratne, 601/2, Havelock Road, Colombo 6. Mr. J. B. Disanayaka, Associate Professor Universtiy of Colombo, 2A Picters .
Place, Nugegoda. Mr. Kenneth R. Peiris, 84/6, Canal Road, Wattala. Prof. Chitra Wickramasuriya, University of Colombo, 43, Palm Grove Avenue,
Ratmalana.

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Dr. W. M. K. Wijetunga, 76, Kirula Road, Colombo 5. Mr. W. M. Karunadasa, 65A, Jawatta Road, Colombo 5. Mr. S. G. Senaratna, 25, Somadevi Place, Colombo 5. Mr. J. A. D. De Lanerolle, 98/3B, Havelock Road, Colombo 5. Dr. M. H. C. Wijetunge, CSIR, 363, Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 7. Mrs. E. M. Gooneratne, 39, Flower Road, Colombo 7. Prof. S. Wijesundera, Vice-Chancellor, University of Colombo. Mr. D. W. Kannangara, 46, Deanstone Place, Colombo 3. Dr. A. R. Abeyasinghe, 261, High Level Rd., Kirillapone, Colombo 5.
ABSTRACTS OF PROCEEDINGS
Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held on Thursday 18th Septembr 1980 at 5 p. m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other Members of the Council present were : Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, Dr. H. W. Tambiah, Mr. M. St. S. Casie Chetty, Professor K. W. Goonewardene, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Dr. James T. Rutnam, Professor K. Indrapala, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. C. S. G. Fernando, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Mr. Lakshman Jayakody.
1. Minutes - Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Honorary Jt. Secretary read the Minutes of the Council Meeting held on 2nd June 1980. The Council noted that the Minutes were not signed by the then Honorary Jt. Secretary, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, proposed the adoption of the Minutes, but there was no one to second the motion as almost all the members present had not been present at the Meeting on 2nd June 1980. The Council however, agreed to accept the Minutes but decided that the Minutes be sent to the previous Honorary Secretaries for signature.
2. Society's Name Board - The President apprised the Council of the desirability of fixing up the Society's Name Board at the entrance to the Military premises, where the Library is housed at present. The Members were in agreement provided the Military authorities had no objection to the proposal.
3. Membership Cards - The President's proposal to print membership Cards for all the categories of members was approved subject to the suggestion that provision be made in the card for the member's signature. The President also informed the Council that Mr. Walter Wimalachandra has already agreed to get these membership cards printed through Aitken Spence & Company at his expense. The Council expressed its appreciation of his generous gesture.
4. Annual General Meeting Minutes - At this stage the President moved that the draft Minutes of the 134th Annual General Meeting be read by the Honorary Jt. Secretary. The Minutes were accepted subject to a few amendments.

V
The Address of the Society - The President stated that it has been suggested that the existing address of the Society be changed to Grandstand Building (Second Floor), Reid Avenue, Colombo 7, and that all correspondence should be addressed to Honorary Jt. Secretaries, Royal Asiatic Society (Sri Lanka Branch), C/O National Archives, 7, Reid Avenue, Colombo 7, (Sri Lanka). The suggeston was accepted.
Government Grant to the Society - The Honorary Jt. Secretary informed the Council that there had been some correspondence regarding an increase of the Government Grant from Rs. 6,000/- to Rs. 20,000/-. Dr. H. W. Tambiah placed before the House the position regarding the Grant and suggested that a few representatives should meet the Ministers of Finance and Cultural Affairs to explore the possibility of getting the Grant increased. Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra and Mr. Lakshman Jayakody were appointed to interview the ministers. Mr. Walter Wimalachandra informed the Council that he had got Messrs. Aitken Spence & Company to give an annual donation of Rs. 200/- to the Society. This was acknowledged by the Council with thanks.
Checking of the Library - The Honorary Jt. Secretary made a statement regarding the checking of the holdings of the Society's Library. He intimated that Mr. Harischandra de Silva (Honorary Jt. Secretary) arranged for the checking of the Library on a Sramadana' basis and engaged about 20 persons to do this job. He said that this work was done on the 6th and 7th September and that about 5000 books had been checked during the two days. The President was also present when the work was in 黑蕊 He further stated that they had agreed to help during another Week.cc.
Dr. Karunatilake suggested that Heptattaion, a chemical available at Baur & Company be used to preserve the books from decay. Mr. Lakshman Jayakody undertook to have the entire Library dusted and cleaned up before the application of this chemical.
At this stage Professor K. W. Goonewardene brought to the notice of the Council that he was aware that a list of books was available in the Library. Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, the Honorary, Jt. Secretary said that he was not aware of such a list, and that he would instruct the Clerk/Librarian to trace this document in time to be tabled at the next Meeting of the Council.
Revision of the Constitution - The President stated that it was time that the Constitution and Rules of the Society were revised. It was resolved to appoint the following sub-committee to submit draft proposals for consideration by the Council :- The President, the Honorary Jt. Secretary, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Professor T. Nadaraja, Dr. H. W. Tambiah and Mr. Walter Wimalachandra.
Letter from Sheik S. H. Moosajee dated 2.9.1980 - The President read a letter addressed to him by Mr. Moosajee requesting that the sum of Rs. 10,000/- which he had donated to the Society's Building Fund, be refunded, as His Excellency the President of the Republic of Sri Lanka had agreed to give the Society a building for its use. After some discussion, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake and Mr. Lakshman Jayakody undertook to speak to Mr. Moosajee as well as the other donors, regarding their donations to the Building Fund. The Clerk/Librarian was requested to submit a list of the donors with their addresses to Dr. Karunatilake and CMf."rayakodyför their information, to enable them to speak to the donors concerned. ''

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0.
11.
12.
13.
Accounts of the Society - The President proposed that all cheques be signed by the Honorary Treasurer, Mr. Lakshman Jayakody and any of the following office bearers :
Professor M. B. Ariyapala
Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara
Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva.
4. Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando.
Meetings of the Council :- It was resolved unanimously that the Meetings of the Council be fixed for the last Monday of each month until the end of this year, 1980.
Programme of Lectures - The President stated that Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva, presently out of the Island, had arranged a programme of monthly lectures and that the first paper was to be read by Mr. Alex Gunasekera in November or December 1980.
Dr. Tambiah suggested that any papers that are intended to be read before the General Meeting of the Society be referred to a sub-committee appointed by the Council. This was agreed to and the Honorary Jt. Secretary was requested to obtain a copy of Dr. Alex Gunasekera’s paper in time for examination and report.
Salaries to Staff- The President read a letter from the Society's Peon for an increase in salary stating his hardships and adding that he had already served the Society for 28 years. On the recommendation of the Honorary Treasurer, Mr. Lakshman Jayakody, the Council approved an interim increase of Rs. 50/- each to the Clerk/Librarian and the Peon with effect from September 1980.
Any Other Business :-
(a) Under this heading Dr. Tambiah referred to a letter sent by Mr. Sittampalam, one of the past Honorary Jt. Secretaries to the President requesting him to table it at the Meeting. The President intimated that the letter referred to was addressed to him personally and that copies had also been sent to some members and that he did not therefore wish to read it at the Meeting. In the circumstances, the Council saw no objection to his action. سمبر
(b) Areas of work for the Honorary Jt. Secretaries :-
The President suggested that it will be desirable to divide the work of the Society among the three Honorary Joint Secretaries. His suggestion deatiled below met with the approval of the entire Council.
Honorary Joint Secretaries :
(1)
(2)
Mr. Harischandra de Silva : Be entrusted with the issue of the Journals, general administration and supervision of the Library.
Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara : Convening of Meetings, keeping the Minutes and other matters connected with the Meetings.

vii
(3) Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando : All work connected with the Building of the Headquarters of the Society for which the foundation stone was laid by His Excellency the President on 20th March 1980.
The Meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Prof. M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara
President Honorary Jt. Secretary
Minutes of the meeting of the Council of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held on Monday 3rd November, 1980 at 5 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other Members of the Council present were : Dr. H. W. Tambiah, Professor K. W. Goonewardene, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. C. S. G. Fernando, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara.
Excuses - Letters from Dr. James T. Rutnam and Mr. Laksh-man မူဝှိdy (Honoarary Treasurer) initmating their inability to attend were tabled.
1. Minutes - Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Honorary Jt. Secretary read the Minutes of the Council Meeting held on 18th September 1980 which were confirmed.
2. Matters arising out of the Minutes -
(a) It was decided that wording of the Society's Name Board be as follows :- Royal Asiatic Society, (Sri Lanka Branch), Library and Office. (Library for Members only). Grandstand Building (2nd Floor).
(b) Printing of the Membership Cards :- The necessary block and the Seal be given to Mr. Walter Wimalachandrea who undertook to have the cards ready before the end of the year.
(c) Dr. Karunatilake informed the Council that he was unable to meet the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Mahaweli Development. He suggested that the Honorary Jt. Secretary arrange with Mr. Upali Godamune to fix a date for meeting the Minister of Mahaweli Development.
(d) The President intimated that the draft regarding the revision of the Constitution of the Society was almost complete and he hoped to bring it up at the next Meeting of the Council.
(e) Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake who undertook to persuade Mr. Moosajee and other donors regarding their donations to the Building Fund intimated that he had contacted Mr. Moosajee's son. The President informed the meeting that he had a call from Mr. Moosajee requesting the return of the money. It was unanimously decided to refund his donation of Rs. 10,000/-.
(f) Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara initmated that no further progress had been made regarding the checking of the holdings of the Society's Library. His suggestion that a voluntary contribution from the

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members of the Council be made to meet the expenses for lunch and tea for the wo:kers, was accepted. A donation of Rs. 50/- per member was made by some of those present at the Meeting.
3. Electon of New Members --- The following were duly elected members of
the Society:
ܢܠ (a) Mr. C. de Alwis Edirisinghe
(b) Mr. M. Vaithianathan
(c) Professor A. Sathasivam
4. Papers for Publication --- Two papers for publication in the Society's Journal were considered viz. Mr. T. B. Karunaratne's paper on "The Auspicious Symbols that adorned the Octagonal Monument in the premises of the Pacina-tissa-pabbata Vihara at Anuradhapura (with two plates of illustrations) and Professsor Pinna Indorf's (Ms) paper on the "Mysterious and Elegant Urinal Stones. They were referred to Dr. V. Vitharana and Mr. Walter Wimalachandra respectively for report.
5. Loss of a Library Book - The Honorary Jt. Secretary brought to the notice of the members of the Council that Volume I of the Pprtugese Era supposed to have been issued to Dr. R. Amerasinghe for reference had been lost In the absence of any documentary evidence for this loss the Council- decided that no further action was possible in the matter.
6. Major Barois-Halliday Award---The Council considered the action already taken regarding this award. Since the deadline for contributious for this award was 31st December 1980, the Council decided that no further action was necessary.
7. Representative --- University of Jaffna --- It was unanimously decided to nominate Dr. H. W. Tambiah to represent the Society at the Court of the University of Jaffna.
8. Auy other Business ---
(a) The Council agreed to the terms laid down by Kraus-Thomson Organisation, London Ltd. to re-print certain journals of the Royal Asiatic Society, Sri Lanka Branch, which have gone out of print.
(b) It was agreed to return, Mr. A.D. T. E. Perera's article on Isurumuniya Temple' and refer his article on Medirigiriya Shrine' to Dr. (Mrs.) Sirima Kiribamuna for examination and report.
(c) The President intimated the desirability of getting a telephone for the Society. It was agreed to contact the necessary authorities on the subject.
(d) The Council agreed to the President's suggestion that the present overtime of Rs.15/- for the University Peon be increased by Rs. 5/- from November 1980 itself.
The Meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Professor M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara President Honorary Jt. Secretary

ix
Minutes of the meeting of the Council of the Sri Lanka Branch of the
Royal Asiatic Society held on Monday 1st, December 1980 at 5. P. M. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo...
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other members of the Council present were : Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, Dr. H. W. Tambiah, Mr. M. St. S. Casie Chetty, Professor T. Nadaraja, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Dr. James T, Ratnam, Mr. Roland Silva, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr, F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Mr. A. Denis Fernando Mr. Lakshman Jayakody.
1. Minutes - The Minutes of the Council Meeting held on 3rd November
1980 were read and confirmed.
2. Matters arising out of the minutes - Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Honorary Joint Secretary intimated that the Military authorities had no objection to our propose to put up the Society's Name Board at the entrance to the Militaty premises.
3. Grant - Honorary Joint Secretary intimated that it was not possible to arrange a meeting with the Ministers of Finace and Cultural Affairs regarding an increase of the Government Grant from Rs. 6,000/- to Rs. 20,000/- in the abasence of the latter from the Island.
4. Library Books - A list of the books of the Library was tabled at the request of Professor K. W. Goonawardene. The Council requested that arrangements be made to take extra copies of these documents and that the entries
be carefully compared after the checking of the holdings of the Society's Library is over.
5. Revision of Constitution - The President intimated that copies of the subcommittee's report on the revision of the Constitution and Rules of the Society be circulated among the members of the Council in time for the next meeting.
6. Dr. N. D. Wijesekera suggested that the present name of the Society be changed from Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society to Royal Asiatic Society Sri Lanka. After some discussion it was suggested to find out whether the Bengal or Calcutta Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society is presently known as the Royal Asiatic Society of Calcutta. The Honorary Joint Secretary was requested to go into this matter in due course.
7. Any other Business - The Honorary Treasurer brought to the notice of the Council that the Librarian and the peon had requested an allownace to
meet the extra expenditure on travelling in view of the present increase in bus fares.
It was resolved that, as they had already approved a payment of Rs. 50/-
earlier a further sum of Rs. 20/- to each be granted to cover up the extra
allowance of Rs. 70/- granted by the Government.
8. The Meeting ended with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Professor M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara
President Honorary Jt. Secretary

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Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of The Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held on Monday 5th January 1981 at 5. p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair,
Other members of the Council present were : Mr. M. St. S. Casie Chetty, Prof. K. W. Goonewardene, Prof. T. Nadaraja, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Mr. Roland Silva, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva, Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando, Mr. Lakshman Jayakody.
Excuses - Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, Dr. James T. Rutnam.
Vote of Condolence - The Council on being informed of the death of Mr. C. S. G. Fernando. observed two minutes silence and directed the Honorary Secretary to convey the sympathies of the Council to the members of the family of the laste Mr. C. S. G. Fernando. "
1. Minutes - The Minutes of the Council meeting held on 1st December
1980 were read and confirmed.
2. Matters arising out of the minutes - The President informed the Council that steps would be taken to complete the checking of the Library, as the Honorary Joint Secretary, Mr. de Silva had now returned to the Island.
3. Name of the Society - The Council was informed that no information had been obtained so far as to the nomenclature of the Society in India, and hence the question of amending the name of the Society was postponed until the obtaining of such information.
4. Draft Constitution - The draft Constitution, which had already been distributed among the members was examined clause by clause and it was agreed to circulate a fresh draft with the amendments agreed to at the meeting.
5. Any other business - Journal : Professor K. W. Goonewardene was of opinion that the Council should give a guarantee to an author, that when an article is accepted for publication, it would be published within six months. The Council after much discussion on the subject finally agreed that an author should be given the option to get his article published elsewhere if the Royal Asiatic Society is unable to publish it within one year. Dr. Karunatilake then wished to know the position regarding the publication of the Journal and the number of articles in hand. The President agreed to inform the Council of the relevant data at its next meeting.
E.P.F. - The Honorary Jt. Secretary Mr. de Silva read the relevant paras of the letter received from the Commissioner of Labour regarding the outstanding E.P.F. matter of Mr. W. G. Mudali Singho. The Council after discussing the matter, agreed with Dr. Karunatilake that the service particulars of Mr. Mudali Singho should be furnished to them, before a final decision could be taken in the matter.
Lectures - Mr. Roland Silva informed the Secretary that Professor Evan Lohuizen would be available on the 13th. evening for a lecture on the topic

xi
Origin of the Buddha Image'. The Council agreed to accept the offer and to make the usual arrangements to hold the lecture.
Articles for publication - The Honorary Jt. Secretary Mr. de Silva, read out a letter received from Mr. Pinna Indorf regarding the publishing of an article submitted by him on "Mysterious and Elegant Urinal Stones. The President informed the Council that the paper is presumably with Mr. Wilfred Gunasekara and the position should be checked with him.
There being no other business for the day the meeting ended with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Confirmed.
Professor M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara
President Honorary Jt. Secretary
Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held on Thursday 9th April 1981 at 5 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Sri Lanka - Colomobo 3.
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other members of the Council present were : Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, Dr. H. W. Tambiah, Professor K. W. Goonewardene, Professor T. Nadaraja, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake.
Since none of the three Joint Secretaries was present, the Council elected Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake to be Secretary pro tem.
1. Minutes - It was agreed that the minutes of the previous Council Meeting
be taken up at the next Meeting of the Council.
Before the Council got on to the items on the agenda, the President was very happy to announce that Messers. M. S. Hebtulabhoy & Co. had donated a sum of Rs. 110,000/- to the Society. The Council decided to write to the Company thanking them for its very generous gesture.
It was brought to the notice of the Council that a sum of Rs. 38,000/- was on deposit in a current account in the name of the Society. The Council thereupon resolved that Rs. 100,000 should be placed in a fixed deposit at the National Savings Bank initially for at least one year. It was also decided that a further sum of Rs. 40,000/- consisting of the balance money of the donation by Messers Hebtulabhoy and Co. and Rs. 30,000/- from the money in the current account of the Society should also be placed in a fixed deposit under a monthly interest payment schemeat the National Savings Bank or the People's Bank at the interest rate of 22 per cent per KL.
2. Life Members - The following were elected Life Members of the Society :
Mr. L. Piyasena on paying Rs. 150/- after paying subscription for ten years.
Mrs. S. Rockwood on paying Rs. 270/- after paying subscriptions for six years.
Messrs. H. C. Peiris, J. C. Peiris and D. H. Peiris on the payment of Rs. 465/- each.

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3. Ordinary Members - The following were elected ordinary resident
members :-
Mr. D. A. W. Senanayake Mr. H. Jayasena Dr. Chanaka Wijesekera Mr. Ridgeway Tillekeratne Mr. S. Kumarapalan
4. Resignation - The resignation of Mr. E. J. V. Fernando was accepted. The Council decided that the article by Mr. A. D. T. E. Perera on "The Buddhist Shrine at Madirigiriya could not be accepted for publication because it had been previously published elsewhere.
5. Donations - The Council was informed of a donation of Rs. 400/- from Messrs. Aitken Spence & Co. Ltd., Colombo. The Council also acknowledged the donation of two books :
(1) by Mr. S. Arumugam, the author - “Ancient Hindu Temples of
Sri Lanka”
(2) By Dr. M. D. Dassanayake of the Flora Project, Peradeniya Univer
sity : the 'Revised Handbook to the Flora of Ceylon.”
It was decided that an early date should be sought for meeting with the Ministry of Cultural Affairs to get an enhanced grant for the Society and also to get reinbursement of Rs. 750/- from the Ministry for publishing the issue of the Journal of the Society which was devoted to the Mahaweli Development Project.
The Council decided to call for quotations from printers for the issue of the Journal for 1978.
It was decided to fix Friday May 8, 1981 as the date for the General Meeting to consider the draft Constitution. Members were to be given notice as required by the Constitution.
The Meeting terminated at 5.40 p.m.
Professor M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara President Honorary Jt. Secretary
Minutes of the General Meeting of the Royal Asiatic Society (S. L. B.) held on Friday, 8th May 1981, at 4.30 p.m. at the New Biology Lecture Hall, University of Sri Lanka, Colombo.
1. Minutes of the last General Meeting held on 1312/1976 were read and
confirmed.
2. The President read out two letters from Dr. James T. Rutnam and Mr. S.
Sivasubramaniam regretting their inability to attend the meeting.
3. The President announced the receipt of Rs. 110,000/- from Messers. M. S. Hebtulabhoy & Co. Ltd., as a donation to the Society. The members present expressed their great appreciation of the donation, which was the largest single donation received by the Society so far. As a mark of appreciation of this gesture, the House agreed to accept the recom

xiii
mendation made by the Council, that the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Messrs. M. S. Hebtulabhoy & Co. Ltd., be elected an Honorary Member of the Society.
The President announced that according to the existing Rule 52 there was no quorum to adopt the new draft of the Constitution. But the House agreed to discuss the Rules so that the passage of the Constitution may be easier at the next General Meeting. Accordingly, the House discussed the draft Constitution up to Article 23. At this point of time the House adjourned as there were no lights, desiding to meet on the 5th June 1981.
G. P. S. H. de Silva Professor M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara
President . Honorary Jt. Secretaries
5th June. 1981.
Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held on Tuesday 5th June 1981 at 5 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other members of the Council present were : Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana., Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. G, P. S. H. de Silva, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara and Mr. Lakshman Jayakody.
1. Minutes : The Minutes of the last Meeting were read and confirmed.
2. Excuses : A letter from Professor K. W. Goonewardene regretting his inability to attend was read. The Council agreed to continue to fix meetings of the Council for a Friday as far as possible as desired by Prof. Goonewardene.
3. Matters arising out of the Minutes - Nil.
4. Election of new Members : The following were duly elected members of
the Society.
Ordinary Members : Mr. S. Berugoda, Mr. H. M. Naina Marikar, Dr. Sirimal Ranawella, Mr. L. M. A. Silva, Mr. D. G. P. Seneviratne, Mr. Kenneth R. Peiris, Mr. Bandula Jayawardhana, Mr. B. E. St. J. Bastiampillai, Associate Prof. J. B. Dissanayake, Mr. A. R. Abeyasinghe.
Life Member - Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. Douglas D. Ranasinghe, Mr. M. L. M. Aboosally.
Honorary Members : Managing Director, M/s M. S. Hebtulabhoy & Co., Ltd.,
Ordinary Non-Resident : Mr. Ivan R. Mazanti of Denmark.
5. A communique from Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva, Honorary Jt. Secretary regarding the leaking of the roof over the Library premises and checking up the holdings of the Society's Library was tabled.

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It was agreed to use a chemical suggested by Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilaka on the spots where the roof is leaking as an experiment. It was also agreed to make suitable arrangements to open the Library from 11.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. once the new Constitution comes into force.
6. The question of a suitable increase of the salary to the staff was put off
for consideration at the next meeting of the Council.
7. Final proofs of the Society's Journal were tabled. It was desired to have
the Journal isued within a month or two.
8. The Council agreed to meet on Friday 31st July 1981 at 4 p.m. and the
General Meeting to be scheduled at 5 p.m. on the same date.
9. The Meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
G. P. S. H. de Silva
Professor M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara
President Honorary Jt. Secretaries
Minutes of the General Meeting of the Royal Asiatic Society, Sri Lanka Branch, held on Wednesday 24th June 1981 at 5 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
1. The Minutes of the previous Meeting held on 5th June 1981 were read and
confirmed.
2. The draft Constitution which was considered by the General body that met on 18th May and 5th June 1981 respectively was examined. As the quorum was short of one member the adoption of the draft Constitution was deferred for the next General Meeting to be held on Friday 31st July 1981.
3. The Chairman invited. Professor J. B. Dissanayaka to deliver his
lecture on “Suba - A suba symbolism in Sinhalese Culture'.
A discussion followed.
4. The Chairman having expressed his appreciation of Prof. Dissanayaka's
valuable lecture declared the Meeting closed.
G. P. H. S. de Silva
Professor M, B. Ariyapala vn Wilfred M. Gunasekara
President Honorary Jt. Secretaries

XV
Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society, Sri Lanka Branch, held on Friday 31st July 1981 at 4 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present: Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other Members of the Council present were: Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, Prof. D.E. Hettiaratchi, Mr. M. St. S. Casie Chetty, Prof. K.W.Goonewardene, Prof. T. Nadaraja, Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva and Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara.
1. Minutes : The Minutes of the last Meeting were read and confirmed.
2. Business arising out of the Minutes.
(a) As the estimate submitted by the Sri Lanka Army Pioneer Corps was found to be very high it was suggested that a private person be engaged to effect the necessary repairs to the leaking of the roof above the Society's Library.
(b) It was agreed to open the Library from 12 noon to 6 p.m. on week days and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, except on Mondays and Tuesdays which have been declared holidays to the staff.
(c) Payment of Rs. 660/- to the Society's Peon, W. G. Mudali Singho on the extra allowance of Rs. 55/- granted by the Government had not been sanctioned by the previous Council. This payment was also granted to the Librarian/Clerk, Mr. D. J. Daniels.
(d) The question of a suitable increase in salary to the Librarian and the Peon was deferred till the Treasurer tables his report on the financial position of the Society.
3. Donation: It was agreed to thank Dr. W. G. Wickremesinghe for his kind donation to the Library of a copy of the "Story of a Sinhalese Family'.
4. Steel Cabinet : The purchase of a steel cabinet for office use was approved.
5. Register . The Council requested that the Librarian should maintain a
Register of members who consult the Library. It was also resolved :
1. To transfer all the old series of the Society's Journals to the Reference Section and the journals issued under the new series only to be issued to members for removal. s
2. To advertise for missing issues of the Society's Journals.
6. Honorary Jt. Secretary read a letter sent to the other Honorary Jt. Secretary, Mr. G. P. H. de Silva by Mr. P. R. Sittampalam. Mr. de Silva informed the Council, that he took serious objection to the personal remarks contained in the letter sent by Mr. Sittampalam, and he had telephoned and informed Mr. Sittampalam that he would not like to receive any more letters of that type in the future.

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The Council agreed to Mr. de Silvas objection and directed that a reply be sent to Mr. Sittampalam intimating that the Council did not approve the tone of his letter and that he be asked to consider the subject closed.
7. On a motion proposed by Dr. H. W. Tambiah and seconded by Professor Hettiaratchi, the Council unanimously agreed to place on record the services rendered by Mr. Sittampalam as the Society's Honorary Joint Secretary for the past 18 years and that he be informed accordingly.
8. Election of New Members :
The following were duly elected members of the Society.
Ordinary Resident :
... Mr. W. M. Karunadasa
2. Dr. W. M. K. Wijetunge
3. Professor Chitra Wickramasuriya.
9. It was resolved that the papers by Dr. N. D. Wijesekera and Dr. C. G. Uragoda be referred to Professor K. W. Goonewardene, Dr. H. W. Tambiah and Mr. Walter Wimalachandra for report.
The Meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Wilfred M. Gunasekara
Professor M. B. Ariyapala G. P. S. H. de Silva
President Honorary Jt. Secretaries
Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society (Sri Lanka Branch) held on 14th September 1981 at 5 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present : Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other members present were : Professor T. Nadaraja, Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara.
1. Minutes : Minutes of the previous Meeting of the Council held on 31st
July 1981, were read and confirmed.
2. Matters arising out of the Minutes:
The Army authorities have attended to the leak on the Library roof. This was attended to by them as the water was seeping into the Officer's Mess.
3. Election of New Members :
The following were duly elected Members of the Society :
Life Members
1. Miss Yoshiko Ashiwa

χνίί.
Ordinary Resident
1. Mr. S. G. Senaratne 2. Mr. J. A. D. de Lanerole
4. Appointment of Editor . It was unanimously agreed to appoint Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva as the Editor of the Society's Journal in addition to his other duties as Honorary Joint Secretary. It was also agreed that the President should be the Chairman of the Editorial Committee. The following members were elected to be the members of the Editorial Board :
Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake Mr. Walter Wimalachandra Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara Mr. Lakshman Jayakody.
5. Library Hours : The Council directed the Honorary Jt. Secretary to
write to the Army Commander regarding the proposed Library hours.
6. Steel Cabinet . It was agreed to call for quotations for the purchase of a
steel Cabinet.
7. Printing of the Society's Journal: The Honorary Jt. Secretary placed before
the Council the present position of the Journal for 1977 and indicated that
it would be issued before the end of the year. The Council agreed to call
器 quotations for the printing of the 1978/79 Journal from the following
rinters :
Colombo Apothecaries Ltd. Tisara Packaging Industries. H. W. Cave & Co. Ltd., University Press - Katubedda Vidyalankara Pirivena.
On a motion proposed by Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara and seconded by Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. Lala Adithiya was elected as a Member of the Council to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Mr. C. S. G. Fernando.
9. The Meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Wilfred M. Gunasekara Professor M. B. Ariyapala. G. P. S. H. de Silva
President Honorary Jt. Secretaries
Minutes of the Meeting of the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society (Sri Lanka Branch) held on 30th November 1981 at 5 p.m. at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present: Professor M. B. Ariyapala, the President in the Chair.
Other members present were : Dr. N. D. Wijesekera, Professor K. W. Goonewardene, Dr. C. G. Uragoda, Dr. James T. Rutnam, Professor K. Indrapala, Mr. L. A. Adithiya, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayake, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara.

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Excuses: A letter from Prof. T. Nadaraja regretting his inability to attend
the meeting was tabled.
1.
2.
5.
Minutes : Minutes of the last Meeting of the Council held on 14th. September 1981 were read and confirmed.
Business arising out of the Minutes :
(a) The Council approved the purchase of an Alfa for Rowlands Steel
Cabinet for the use of the Society's office.
(b) The Council agreed to accept the quotation of Tisara Trading Co., Ltd., dated 17th November 1981 for the publication of the Society's Journals for the years 1978/79 and 1980/81.
Election of New Members :...
Ordinary Resident : The following were duly elected ordinary Members of the Society :-
Dr. M. H. C. Wijetunge Mrs. E. M. Gooneratine Professor Stanley Wijesundera Mr. D. W. Kannangara
i
Library Hours :-
The Council was informed of the Commanding Officer's inability to accept the suggestion to extend the Library hours up to 5 p.m. but, however, Dr. Karl Goonewardene undertook to discuss this matter and come to an understanding with the Army authorities.
Dr. R. L. Brohier - Felicitation Volume :-
A letter from Miss. Deloraine Brohier requesting the Society to sponsor and finance the publication of a Felicitation Volume on her fathers's 90th birth anniversary was read.
The Council did not approve the suggestion on principle and regretted that the finances of the Society did not permit the Council to undertake such a proposal. The Honorary Joint Secretary was requested to inform Miss Brohier of their decision.
Any other business :
(i) A letter dated 10th October 1981 from Mr. Danton G. Obeyseekere forwarding a copy of a letter addressed by him to the President of Sri Lanka was tabled. The Council agreed to represent matters regarding the registration of survey plans of licensed surveyors to the Surveyor General for early implementation.
(ii) A letter from Miss K. R. Panditaratne requesting the permission of the Council to the compilation of an Index to the Society's journals as part of a course work for the Intermediate Level Examination in Librarianship was tabled. Council found no objection to her request.

xix.
(iii) The President informed the Council that Honorary Treasurer, Mr. Lakshman Jayakody had arranged for Miss. Diana Sansoni to attend our meetings and take down the proceedings at lectures. The Council expressed their thanks to the Honorary Treasurer for his kind gesture.
7. The Meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Wilfred M. Gunasekara
Professor M. B. Ariyapala G. P. S. H. de Silva
President Honorary Jt. Secretaries
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Minutes of the 134th Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held at 5 p.m. on Friday August 29, 1980 at the New Arts Theatre of the University of Colombo.
Present : Professor D. E. Hettiaratchi, President of the Society, presided.
Excuses: Letters from Mr. T. W. Hoffmann, Mr. A. Denis Fernando, Mr. S. Sivasubramaniam and Rt. Rev. Dr. Edmund Peiris, intimating their inability to attend the meeting were tabled.
Vote of Condolence : The President proposed a vote of condolence on the death of the following members of the Society during the years 1977 through 1980 - Dr. C. E. Godakumbura, Messrs. Wilmot A. Perera, K. H. M. Sumathipala, R. D. B. Jayasekera, Professor K. Kularatnam, H. L. Marasinghe, A. D. Baptist, W. J. F. LaBrooy, Dr. D. C. Gunawardena, J. R. Sinnetamby and Dr. R. L. Brohier.
The President spoke a few words on the services rendered by some of them. The vote of condolence was passed in the customary manner.
BUSINESS
1. Minutes : The Chairman called upon Mr. P. R. Sittampalam, Honorary Secretary to read the minutes of the 131st Annual General Meeting held on 22nd December 1977.
2. Business arising out of the Minutes : In the absence of the Honorary Treasurer, the Honorary Secretary noticed the members present that 99 members have failed to pay their subscription. The house resolved to give them time, to pay up their subscriptions within three months. Those who failed to pay up their arrears during this period their names be taken off from the roll of members maintained by the Society. This was agreed to unanimously.
Mr. Casie Chetty proposed the adoption of the Minutes, which was seconded by Mr. W. P. Gunatilake. At this stage Mr. C. S. G. Fernando on a point of order queried as to whether the meeting was valid, for the reason that the Council had failed to convene the Annual General Meeting for the past three years in accordance with the Constitution. A short discussion ensued, wherein the President explained the causes for the inability to hold the said meeting. This was accepted by the House and it was agreed to continue the proceedings.

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3.
Annual Reports for 1977 through 1979: As these reports were printed and circulated among members they were considered as read. The adoption of the reports was proposed by Dr. N. D. Wijesekera and seconded by Mr. Harischandra de Silva.
Audited statement of Accounts and Honorary Treasurer's Reports for 1977 through 1979 - Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana proposed and Mr. Casie Chetty seconded the adoption of the audited statements of accounts and Honorary Treasurer's Reports thereon, which had already been printed and circulated among the members. These were adopted unanimously.
Building Fund. Mr. K. M. W. Kuruppu, Honorary Joint Secretary, read out the list of donors to the Society’s Building Fund.
Book Donations: The Honorary Secretary Mr. P. R. Sittampalam read out the names of donors of books to the Society's Library received during the years under review.
New Members : The Honorary Secretary announced the names of 52 new members who had been admitted during the three years under review. (Vide printed report.)
Election of Office Bearers : When the President read out the list of nominations proposed by the Council of the Society as Office Bearers for 1980. Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake raised a point of order and said that this type of procedure to elect members already proposed by the Council should be withdrawn forthwith and that an opportunity be given to the members present at the Meeting to elect their own Council of the Society. After a brief discussion this was agreed to. The election of office Bearers and existing vacancies created in the Council by those members who retired under section 21 of the Constitution and Rules of the Society were taken up:-
President : The Chairman proposed the election of Professor M. B. Ariyapala as the President of the Society. The House unanimously voted for his election. At this stage the newly elected President of the Society, Professor M. B. Ariyapala took the Chair.
Vice-President : There was one vacancy for Vice-President. On a motion by Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara and seconded by Mr. W. P. Gunatilake, Professor T. Nadarajah was elected a Vice-President.
Members of the Council : Four vacancies in the Council were filled by the following :-
1. Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake
2. Mr. Walter Wimalachandra
3. Mr. C. S. G. Fernando
4. Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijenayaka.
The fourth vacancy occurred as a result of Professor T. Nadaraja's appointment as one of the Vice-Presidents.

ΧΧί
Honorary Joint Secretaries :
1. Mr. Harischandra de Silva, proposed by Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake
and seconded by Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara.
2. Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, proposed by Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake
and seconded by Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijanayaka.
3. Mr. A. Denis Fernando, proposed by Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijanayaka
and seconded by Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara.
All these were elected by a majority of the votes of members present.
Honorary Treasurer: Mr. Lakshman Jayakody was elected Honorary Treasurer of the Society, proposed by Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake and seconded by Mr. W. P. Gunatilake.
Auditors: Messrs. Pope & Co., Chartered Accountants, were reappointed Auditors for the ensuing year.
Presidential Address Professor: M. B. Ariyapala delivered his Presidential Address on "Cultural Renaissance: A Lesser known Pioneer - The Venerable Piyaratana Tissa Maha Thera.”
The outgoing President Professor D. E. Hettiaratchi proposed a vote of thanks to the newly elected President, Office Bearers and members.
Dr. H. W. Thambiah moved a vote of thanks to the outgoing President and the two Honorary Joint Secretaries. Messrs. P. R. Sittampalam and K. M. W. Kuruppu for their servieces to the Society.
With the permission of the Chairman, Mr. Sittampalam made a statement regarding the work done by him to the Society.
The Chairman in winding up the proceedings thanked the members for electing him as President of the Society and also thanked the members and guests for their presence.
Meeting was then declared closed.
M. B. Ariyapala. Wilfred M. Gunasekera
President. Hony. Jt. Secretary
Minutes of a meeting of the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society (Sri Lanka
Branch) held on Friday 12th February, 1982, at 5 P.M., at the Biology Lecture Theatre of the Colombo University.
Present; Prof. M. B. Ariyapala, President in the Chair.
Other members present were : Prof. T. Nadaraja, Dr. V. Vitharana, Dr.
C. G. Uragoda, Mr. L. A. Adithiya, Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijayanayaka, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara and Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando, Hony, Joint Secretaries.
Minutes : Minutes of the last meeting of the Council held on 30th November, 1981 were read and confirmed.

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2.
Business arising out of the Minutes:
(i) Material for the journal for the years 1978/79 and 1980/81 were discussed. It was resolved to include the articles listed by the Editor and also include the New Constitution on one of the issues.
The Council approved the use of the interest accured on the fixed deposit towards the expenses of the journal. It was felt that one thousand copies of the journal should be sufficient for the present.
(ii) Since Dr. Karl Goonewardena was not present, it was resolved to find out the outcome of his attempt to influence the Commanding Officer regarding the Library hours.
(iii) A letter from the Surveyor General in reply to the Society's letter regarding the registration of the survey plans of licensed Surveyors was tabled. It was decided to send a xerox copy of this letter for Mr. Danton Obeyesekera’s information.
Election of New Members:
1. Mr. Albert Edirisinghe - Life Member 2. Dr. H. I. E. Katugaha - Ordinary Resident 3. Dr. Andrew D. W. Forbes- Ordinary Non-Resident
Annual General Meeting :
The Council decided to circulate to all members of the Society its decision to hold the Annual General Meeting under the New Constitution on Monday the 29th March, 1982, at 4.45 P.M. It was also agreed to send copies of the New Constitution while calling for nominations for the posts of Office-bearers and 14 members of the Council. All nominations to reach the Hony. Jt. Secretaries on or before 10th March, 1982.
The Hony. Jt. Secretary was directed to write to Miss. Diana Sansoni
requesting her to be present at the next General Meeting of the Society and thereafter and take down the proceedings of the meetings.
On a motion proposed by Mr. Jagath Wijayanayaka and seconded by Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando, Mr. R. C. de S. Manukulasooriya was elected as a member of the Council to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Rev. M. Sasanaratna Thero.
The Council appreciated the under mentioned donations : 1. Rs. 500/- from Messers Aitken Spence & Co., Ltd. 2. "Europe and the Dravidians by the author Mr. P. Thambimuttu
3. Deities and Demons: Magic and Masks in Sri Lanka' by its author
Pundit Dr. N. D. Wijesekera. -

xxiii
8. Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake kindly consented to have the stencil of the New Constitution free of charge for circulation to members of the Society.
9. Mr. Lala Adithiya undertook to look into the layout for the Library and Office of the Society before we move out to the new premises at Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha.
10. The meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
w Wilfred M. Gunasekara Prof. M. B. Ariyapala G. P. S. H. de Silva.
! President Hony. Joint Secretaries
Minutes of a meeting of the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society (Sri Lanka Branch) held on Friday 19th March, 1982at 5 P.M., at the Biology Lecture Hall of the University of Colombo.
Present : Prof. M. B. Ariyapala, President in the Chair.
Others present were : Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana, Dr. C.G. Uragoda, Mr. L. A. Adithiya, Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilake, Mr. R. C. de S. Manukulasooriya, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva, Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Mr. A. Denis N. Fernando, Hony, Jt. Secretaries and Mr. Lakshman Jayakody, Hony. Treasurer.
1. Minutes of the last meeting of the Council held on 12th February, 1982,
were read and confirmed.
2. The following New Members were elected :
1. Mrs. Theja Gunawardena - Ordinary Resident.
2. Mr. John D. Guyer - Ordinary Resident.
3. Mr. Edgar Fernando - Ordinary Resident. 4. Pundit Talalle Dhammananda Nayake Thero - Ordinary Resident.
3. Nomination papers received in response to the letter dated 23rd February,
1982, issued by the Hony. Jt. Secretaries were tabled.
It was announced that there still existed vacancies for the under-mentioned posts : -
One post of Vice President. Three posts in the Council.
The Council resolved to bring up the existing vacancies before the Annual General Meeting for election.

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xxiv 4. The draft Annual Report for September 1980 - March 1982 was tabled.
After a few amendments it was approved on a motion proposed by Mr. L. A. Adithiya and seconded by Mr. Lakshman Jayakody.
5. The Audited accounts of the Society for 1980/81 were tabled. The Hony. Treasurer announced that the Auditors had to work out the balance sheets without supporting documents which were not available as a result of the absence of the Society's Clerk who had been away without leave since 3rd March, 1982. He also revealed that a certain sum of money had not been deposited by the Clerk and that he was summoned to explain his absence without leave.
At this stage Dr. Karunatilake suggested that an entry be made in the Cinnamon Gardens Police Station regarding the Clerk's inability to produce the relative documents to the Auditors and that the Clerk be dismissed after an inquiry.
The Hony. Treasurer undertook to look into the matter accordingly and request the Clerk to be present to hand over all the necessary documents required by the Auditors.
The Council directed that a Sub-Committee comprized of Messers. Jagath Wijayanayaka, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva and Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara be appointed to check the present stocks of all saleable publications of the Society.
6. The meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the Chair.
Prof. M. B. Ariyapala Wilfred M. Gunasekara/G. P.S. H. de Silva
President. Hony. Joint Secretaries.
Minutes of the 135th Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society held at 5. P.M. on Monday the 29th March, 1982, at the King sGeorge's Hall of the University of Colombo.
Prof. M. B. Ariyapala, President of the Society presided.
The Preident proposed a vote of condolences on the death of the following members of the Society during the period September 1980 - March 1982. Messers Hema H. Basnayaka, H. L. Caldera, P. Decker, S. de D. Lanerollic, R.Y. Deraniyagala, Deva Surya Sena, A. B. Colin de Zoysa, C. S. G. Fernando, P. H. W. Peris, Ridgeway Tillekaratne, T. P. Unamboowa, Dr. M. W. S. de Silva and Rev. Moratuwa Sasanaratne Thero. The President spoke a few words on the services rendered by them.

The vote. of condolence was passed in the customary manner.
The President read a letter from His Excellency the President regretting his inability to accept our invitation owing to prior engagements. Letters and messages from Rt. Rev. Dr. Edmund Peiris, Mr. L. A. Adithiya and Mr. P. Sivasubramaniam intimating their inability to attend the meeting were tabled
BUSINESS
1. The Chairman called upon Mr. Wilfred M. Gunasekara, Hony Joint Secretary to read the minutes of the 134th Annual General Meeting held on 29th August, 1981. They were duly confirmed proposed by Mr. F. B. Jagath Wijayanayaka and seconded by Mr. Justice P. Colin Thome'.
2. The President made a statement regretting the delay in issuing the notices
to the members regarding the Annual General Meeting.
3. A Report for the Council-September, 1980-March, 1982.
As this report was circulated among the members, it was considered as read. The adoption of the report was proposed by Hon. Mr. A. H. M. Naina Marikar and seconded by Mr. Somapala Jayawardhana.
4. The Hony. Treasurer having read his report on the accounts of the Society for 1980-81, regretted that owing to the sudden absence of the Clerk from the Office with effect from 3rd March, 1982, the Auditors were not in a position to submit an accurate statement of accounts of the Society.
At this stage the Hony. Treasurer brought to the notice of the house that the Clerk had, on his own admission made use of a sum of Rs. 1,549/07, on account of Members subscriptions and sale of publications.
Mr. Mervyn Casie Chetty proposed that the acceptance of the statement of the accounts be deferred till such time the Auditors were able to audit the accounts in the usual manner.
The Hony. Treasurer thereupon under took to have the accounts audited up to March, 1982, and submit them at a General Meeting of the Society.
This was proposed and seconded by Dr. H. N. S. Karunatilleke and Mr. A. Sathasivam respectively.
5. On a question raised by Mr. Danton Obeysekera regarding the verification of the stock once a year, Mr. G. P. S. H. de Silva Hony. Jt. Secretary explained how an attempt was made to check the holdings of the Library on a goodwill basis. He added that he had to engage the services of some of his staff after office hours and on certain public holidays to do this work

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xxvi
They were able to check about 5,000 volumes during this period. It was hoped to have a complete survey of the belongings of the Society once the Society is moved into the new premises offered by the Ministry of Mahaweli Development at Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha. Dr. N. D. Wijesekera brought to the notice of the House that His Excellency the President had promised that the second floor of this building would be vested in the Royal Asiatic society (Sri Lanka Branch).
The President read out the names of the following donors to the Society :-
1. M/S M. S. Hebtulabhoy & Co. Ltd. Rs. 110,000.00 2. M/S Aitken Spence & Co. (Annual) 400.00 3. M/S Aitken Spence & Co. (Building Fund) 200.00
Election of Office Bearers.
The Hony. Joint Secretary read out the following list of nominations proposed and seconded by the members of the Society as Office Bearers for 1982. The President announced that the following vacancies still existed in the Council viz :-
1. Vice President.
2. 3 Members to the Council.
On a motion proposed by Dr. H. A. P. Abeywardena and seconded by Mr. Walter Wimalachandra, Dr. K. W. Goonewardena was elected as a Vice President of the Society. The three vacancies of the Council were filled
by :- 1. Dr. H. A. P. Abeywardena Proposed by Mr. S. Jayawardhana
and 2. Prof. N. Mudiyanse Seconded by Mr. S. Devaraja 3. Mr. Ismeth Raheem Proposed by Mr. Justice P. Colin
Thome’ and Seconded by Mr. D. A. W. Senanayaka.
Auditors.
M/S Pope & Co., Chartered Accountants were re-appointed Auditors for the ensuing year. Dr. N. D. Wijesekera raised the question of appointing a Board of Trustecs for the Society. The President undertook to look into the matter and report at the next meeting of the Council.
At this stage the President invited Dr. H. A. P. Abeywardena to deliver his lecture on “Customs and Traditions Associated with Tank Culture'.

XXνii
9. A brief discussion ensued. The Chairman in winding up the proceedings thanked the lecturer for his interesting lecture and themembers for electing
him as President of the Society. He also thanked the members and the visitors for their presence.
10. The meeting was then declared closed.
Wilfred M. Gunasekara/G. P. S. H. de Silva. Hony. Joint Secretaries.
feeded ീ9
/lf. A. /deva roalvana.tra f/ ,(بر گڑھ
,dne / ه هنریک رم به
C¿l-

Page 131
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NOTICE TO CONTRIBUTORS
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Reference to any matter in the text which may have been adverted to in any earlier journal should be specifically mentioned with the relevant details.
A script will be refurned only if return postage has been sent.

Page 132
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