Sri Lanka Holidays: Masters versus Commanders.

Sri Lanka Holidays: Masters versus Commanders. bunpeiris

Tour the beautiful island of Sri Lanka, The Land of Delights with Riolta Sri Lanka Holidays. Total Holiday Experience awaits with you in The Land of Delights.

British Colonial Masters Versus Commanders of the herds of Ceylonese Elephants

Following text is extracted from THE BOOK “The Wild Elephant & The Method of Capturing & Taming It In Ceylon by SIR J. EMERSON TENNENT First published in the yea 1867, London, Great Britain.
AES Reprint ISBN 81-206-1666-9
Subtitles in bold letters & foot note in italics are mine, for your entertainment. bunpeiris

Submission to the Commander
Those who have lived much in the jungle in Ceylon, & had constant opportunities of watching the habits of wild elephants, have witnessed instances of the submission of herd to their leaders, that suggests an inquiry of singular interest as to the means adopted by the latter to communicate with distinctness, orders which are observed with the most implicit obedience by their followers.

The following narrative of an adventure in the great central forest toward the north of the island, communicated to me by Major Skinner, who was engaged for some time in surveying & opening roads through the thickly-wooded districts there, will serve better than any abstract description to convey an idea of the conduct of a herd on such occasion:-

Major Skinner, the builder of Colombo – Kandy Road narrates
“The case you refer to struck me as exhibiting something more than ordinary brute instinct, & approached nearer to reasoning powers than any other instances I can now remember. I cannot do justice to the scene, although it appeared to me at the time to be so remarkable that it left a deep impression in my mind.

Dry season
“In the height of the dry season in Neuera-Kalawa, you know the streams are all dried up, & the tanks nearly so. All animals are then sorely pressed for water, & they congregate in the vicinity of those tanks in which there may remain ever so little of the precious element.

“During one of those seasons I was encamped on the bund or embankment of a very small tank, the water in which was so dried that it surface could not have exceeded an area of 500 square yards. It was only pond within many miles, & I knew that of necessity a very large herd of elephants, which had been in the neighbourhood all day, must resort to it at night.

Uneasiness in the jungle at the Presence of the Colonial Master
“On the lower side of the tank, in a line with the embankment, was a thick forest, in which the elephants sheltered themselves during the day. On the upper side & all around the tank there was a considerable margin of open ground. It was one of those beautiful bright, clear, moonlight nights, when objects could be seen almost as distinctly as by day, & I determined to avail myself of the opportunity to observe the movement of the herd, which had already manifested some uneasiness at our presence

Oh! Charlieeee!!! The master is up on an enormous tree over the tank
The locality was very favorable for my purpose, & an enormous tree projecting over the tank afforded me a secure lodgment in its branches. Having ordered the fires of my camp to be extinguished at an early hour, & all my followers to retire to rest, I took up my post of observation on the overhanging bough; but I had to remain for upwards of two hours before anything was to be seen or heard of the elephants, although I knew they were within 500 yards of me.

Discretion is the better part of valor, even if you an elephant
At length, about the distance of 300 yards from water, an unusually large elephant issued from the dense cover, & advanced cautiously across the open ground to within 100 yards from the tank, where he stood perfectly motionless. So quiet had the elephants become (although they had been roaring & breaking the jungle throughout the day & evening), that not a movement was now to be heard. The huge vidette remained in his position, still as a rock, for a few minutes, & then made three successive stealthy advances of several yards (halting for some minutes between each, with ears bent forward to catch the slightest sound), & in this way he moved slowly up to the water’s edge.

Discipline over the compulsion
Still he did not venture to quench his thirst, for though his fore feet were partially in the tank & his vast body was reflected clear in the water, he remained for some minutes listening in perfect stillness. Not a motion could be perceived in himself or his shadow. He returned cautiously & slowly to the position he had at first taken up emerging from the forest. Here in a little while he was joined by five others, with which he again proceeded as cautiously, but less slowly than before, to within a few yards of the tank, & then posted his patrols.

Lead your guys from the front
He then re-entered the forest & collected around him the whole herd, which must have amounted to between 80 to 100 individuals,-led them across the open ground with the most extraordinary composure & quietness, till he joined the advanced guard, when he left them for a moment & repeated his former reconnaissance at the edge of the tank.

Green Light following order & discipline
After which, having apparently satisfied himself that all was safe, he returned & obviously gave the order to advance, for in a moment the whole herd rushed into the water with a degree of unreserved confidence, so opposite to the caution & timidity which had marked their previous movements, that nothing will ever persuade me that there was not rational & preconcerted co-operation throughout the whole party, & a degree of responsible authority exercised by the patriarch leader.

Drink your fill to the content of your heart
When the poor animals (1) had gained possession of the tank (the leader being the last to enter), they seemed to abandon themselves to enjoyment without restraint or apprehension of danger. Such a mass of animal life I had never seen huddled together in so narrow a space. It seemed to me as though they would have nearly drunk the tank dry.

Taking to flight like a herd of frightened deer
I watched then with great interest until they had satisfied themselves as well in bathing as in drinking, when I tried ho small a noise would apprise them of the proximity of unwelcome neighbours. I had but to break a little twig, 7 the solid mass instantly took to flight like a herd of frightened deer, each of the smaller calves being apparently shouldered & carried along between two of the other ones.

The reason for the deep apprehension & extreme caution of the herd of elephant narrated above could be attributed to the continuous savage slaughter of them by the British colonialist during 1815-1948. Elephant, the bulldozer & bulldog of ancient Lanka has been a protected species since the beginning of Aryan Sinhalese civilization in 543 BC to the capitulation of the island to British in the year 1815. Since independence in 1948, Elephant has once again become a protected beast of the island. The last Kraal was held in 1952. Today we have sanctuaries. Please click & read

Uda Walawe National Park, Sri Lanka

Minneriya National Park, Sri Lanka

Kaudulla National Park, Sri Lanka

Ruhuna Yala National Park, Sri Lanka

Wasgomuwa National Park, Sri Lanka

Pinnawela Elephant Orphange

1. Poor animals were killed like flies Quote J. Emerson Tennent once again
Chapter 111 ELEPHANT SHOOTING
As the shooting of an elephant, whatever endurance & adroitness the sport may display in other respects, requires the smallest possible skill as a marksman, the numbers which are annually slain in this way may be regarded less as a test of the expertness of the sportsman, than as evidence of the multitudes of elephants abounding in those parts of Ceylon to which they resort. One officer, Major ROGERS, killed upwards of 1400; another, Captain GALLWEY, has the credit of slaying more than half that number; Major SKINNER, the Commissioner of Roads, almost as many;& less preserving aspirants follow at humbler distances.

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS CHRYSOBERYL CAT’S EYE

CHRYSOBERYL CAT’S EYE FROM SRI LANKA bunpeiris

Ratnapura, Sri Lanka
The name chrysoberyl is from the Greek Chrysos , meaning golden, and beryllos, which refers to beryllium content. Chrysoberyl Cat's eys is found in the company of sapphires in the gem gravels of Ratnapura (City of Gems) of Sri Lanka.

The record for the size
The cat's-eye record for size was long held by Sri Lankan (Ceylonese) specimen. Until the year 1815, the year of capitulation to the British in Kandy, Chrysoberyl was a Jewel in the Crown of the King of Sri Lanka. The weight of the Sri Lanka’s stones ranges from one to one hundred carats

Legendary qualities
Since ancient times, chrysoberyl has been regarded as a gemstone which protects its wearer and keeps disaster at bay. The cat's eye most of all is seen as a particularly effective protective stone and talisman. On account of its golden tones, chrysoberyl is often also associated with wealth. In modern gem therapy, discipline and self-control are the qualities mainly associated with chrysoberyl. Chrysoberyls are also said to promote concentration, far sighted thinking & and the ability to learn.

Chatoyancy.
Chrysoberyl cat’s eye perfectly mimics the ghostly appearance of the eye of a cat caught in a pair of headlights of a car at night. This eerie yet scintillating effect is caused by tiny, hair-like inclusions reflecting in the light. It is called chatoyancy in Gemology. While this characteristic appears in other gems, none has the clarity & beauty of Chrysoberyl cat’s eye.

Two most popular colours
The stone comes in two colors; translucent honey brown or apple green, & is cut into high-domed cabochons. A slit of silken-sheen of silvery white glide across the face of the dome whenever the gem is tilted slightly, widening & narrowing like the iris of a cat’s eye: the gem winks all the time.

Milk & Honey Effect
Chrysoberyl cat’s eye exhibit a quality called Milk & Honey Effect. When a pen light is aimed at the side of the stone, one half will appear milky white, while the other half remains gold.

Following is a description of a rare specimen of exceedingly high quality, large, uncut yet polished Chrisoberyl Cat’s eye in Sri Lanka by Captain Joao Ribeiro (Portuguese) in the year 1685

The stone which is most sought after in Ceilo (1)& held in the highest esteem for its great value is the catseye;most people do not know of this stone nor have they seen it, for it is not used among us, but the Moors & Gentiles (2) value it above all others. I have seen one of the size of a pigeon’s egg & bored through, which the Prince of Uva (3) wore on his arm when he fled to us.
In shape they are spherical like musket balls some large & some small, & in weight they exceed every kind of precious stone. They are not cut but polished; & they show a colour composed of every colour which God has crated. No one colour is seen separated by itself, but they all make a wonderful mixture & appear to be struggling in their anxiety to get first in the race. At a distance the entire stone seems cut across by a straight line such as cat shows in the middle of its eye at a certain hour of the day. This is styled the beta (4) & from its appearance they name the stone the cat’s eye.
When the stone is moved one beta disappears & another & another takes it space & others still follow, so that the sight is doubtful as to which it saw first; for by this movement in the midst of its glitter one line appears & the others disappear. The stones of the greatest value & most prized are these which have most lines; they are found with three, five, sometimes never with an even number.
Above text in italics is extracted from

Chapter XXI : The great abundance of precious stones & other commodities found in the island of the book "The Historic Tragedy of the Island of Ceilao"
Dedicated to His Most Serene Majesty Dom Pedro The Second
Written by Captain Joao Ribeiro
Dedication on 8^th January 1685 at Lisbon, Portugal by Captain Joao Ribeiro
Translated by P. E. Pieres in the year 1909 at Colombo, Sri Lanka
AES Reprint ISBN:81-206-1334-1

1. Ceilo ( Portuguese) , Zeilan (Dutch), Ceylon (British) Sri Lanka (since 1972)
2. Natives of the Island, i.e. Sinhalese
3. Prince Vijayapala, the Prince of Matale, Sri Lanka, brother of King Rajasinha
4. A vein of gold in rock

Sri Lanka Holidays Ruwanweli dagoba

Ruwanweli dagoba (Mahathupa) (Great Thupa), Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka
(Part 1)
Compilation by bunpeiris

Stupa (a Sanskrit word) has its own country names: Chorten (the basis of offering) in Tibet and Bhutan; Chaitya in Nepal; Candi in Indonesia; Chedi (a Pali synonym) in Thailand; Chedey in Cambodia; Tap in Korea; That in Laos; Ta (meanining tower) in China; Pagoda in Japan.

1 Concept of Stupa (Dagoba): symbol of Enlightened mind

“It is through the language of archetypal symbols that we reconnect ourselves with the primordial ground from which all human culture has sprung... Among the oldest of architectural forms, the Stupa is a universal symbol of enlightened mind, a familiar sight in all countries where Buddhism has flourished. In the Stupa we find the ancient reliquary monuments once built for kings and heroes transformed into profound expressions of knowledge. Rightly interpreted and understood by both reason and intuition, it mirrors the harmony and perfection of universal principles and invites the human mind to awaken its full capabilities...” Lama Angarika Govinda (1898- 1985) (a)

2 The monumental size of the dagoba

“….two largest dagobas at Anuradhapura surpass in content, & three dagobas exceeded in height, all but the two enormous pyramids of Khufu & Khafra at Gizeh”
Ancient Ceylon: H. Parker (Colonial British civil servant in Ceylon attached to Irrigation Dept of Ceylon during 1873-1904)
First published in 1909 Reprint ISBN 81-206-0208-0

3 The largest stupas in Sri Lanka
In size a monumental 338 feet high, the Mahathupa covers over an acre & half with a diameter of the circle at the base being 294 feet. It is said that the great stupa at Sanchi, in India, will be dwarfed by the side of the Mahathupa. It was not however, the tallest in Anuradhapura for very long, having this position for 250 years or so. The stupa of the Abhaygirii monastery was built during the reign of King Gajabahu (114-136AD) & towers at 370 feet. The Abhayagiri monastery was founded by King Vattagamini in 88 BC. The Abyagiri stupa too,was overtaken later during King Mahasen stupa which was originally built to 400ft height & at the time surpassed only by two of the larger pyramids of Egypt, making it the 3^rd largest building in the world at the time. The Jetawana stupa now takes credit for being the largest of the stupas lies to the East of the Ruwan weli seya. Archt. Shereen Amendra: Beyoond the Seeing Eye; The Mahathupa of Lanka ISBN 978-955-50098-0-5 (b)

4 The Bulldozer & Bulldog of Lanka, the Elephant leads
With the materials thus obtained, the king (A) commenced the work on the Great Thupa as the Vaiskha constellation (B) appeared on the full-moon day of the month of May. Moving Devanampiatissa’s pillar to the sidelines of the site, the Ruler of the Earth used the former position as the center point of the radius of the majestic new thupa
Mahawmsa, the great chronicle of Sri Lanka - Modern text by Douglas Bullis ISBN 955- 1266-09-9

The lord of the land had the place for the thupa dug out to a depth of even cubits to make it firm in every way. Round stones (C) that he commanded his soldiers to bring hither did he cause to be broken with hammers, & then did he, having knowledge of the right & wrong ways, command that the crushed stone, to make the ground firmer, be stamped down by great elephants whose feet were bound with leather
Mahawamsa, the Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka 1912 translation by Dr. Wilhelm Geiger

5 That’s a hyper reinforced-concrete foundation in 161-137 BC
The clay at the place where the celestial river descends from its source in the heavens, through the air, across the earth into the underworld, being forever washed is exceedingly fine for thirty yojanas all around. On account of its fineness, it is called “butter clay”. Arahant samaneras (D) brought the clay from there. The workers spread the clay over the layers of stone. The king ordered bricks then laid over the clay, rough plaster over the bricks, quartz over the plaster, a network of iron over the clay, & above that, fragrant marimba brought by samaneras from Himalayas
Mahaawmsa , the great chronicle of Sri Lanka - Modern text by Douglas Bullis ISBN 955- 1266-09-9

The lord of the earth had crystal spread over that and, over the crystal, stones. Everywhere in work was the clay called “butter-clay’. With the resin of the wood-apple, mixed in mercury, a bronze plate, eight finger-breadths, was laid over the stones. The lord of the chariots had a silver plate, seven finger-breadths thick, laid over it with arsenic mixed in oil of sesamum
Mahawamsa, The great Chronicle of Sri Lanka New Translation (1989) Revision (2005) by Dr. Ananda W. P.Guruge ISBN 955-20-8963-8

6. Making of the relic-chamber
Thereupon commanding that the drums be beaten he called the master-builders together with all speed; in number they were five hundred. And one of them answered the king, on his asking; “How wilt thou make (the thupa)?” “Taking a hundred workmen I will use one wagon-load of sand in one-day.”

The king rejected him. Thereon they offered (to work with) one half less & yet one half less again (at last with) two ammanas of sand. These four master-builders also did the king reject. Then an experienced & shrewd master-builders said to the king:I shall pound (the sand) in a mortar, & then, when it is shifted, have it crushed in the mill (thus will use) one ammanna (E) (only) of sand. And on these words the lord of the land, whose courage was like to Indra’s consented, with the thought; ’There will be no grass nor any such thing on our cetiya. (F)
Mahawamsa, the Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka 1912 translation by Dr. Wilhelm Geiger

7. The aesthetic design
And he questioned him saying:’ “in what form wilt thou make the cetiya?” At that moment Vissakamma entered into (& possessed) him. When the master-builder had had a golden bowl filled with water, he took water in his hand & let it fall on the surface of the wateer. A great bubble had had a golden bowl filled with water, he took water in his hand & let it fall unto a half-globe of crystal. He said: ‘Thus will I make it.’ And well-pleased the king bestowed on him a pair of garments worth a thousand pieces of money) & ornamented shoes & twelve thousands kahapanas. (G)
Mahawamsa, the Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka 1912 translation by Dr. Wilhelm Geiger

8. Determination of the circumference
Uplifted by the power of pure happiness, the king, intent on the welfare of beings &, determined to trace a great circle for the cetiya, had a minister of noble birth-well attired in ceremonial dress-to hold the pure silver tracing stick fixed to a post of gold & began to trace a circle on the prepared site. A great thera of immense miraculous power, by the name of Siddhantha, being far-sighted, prevented the king from doing it. Seeing to the future &, thinking, ‘If the king were to start a thupa of this size, his death will come even while the thupa is not finished & a gigantic thupa will be difficult to repair,” he restricted the magnitude.

In agreement with the Sangha & from reverence to the thera’s statement & with his advice, had a medium-sized circle drawn for the cetiya so as to lay the bricks.

With unfailing energy, he had eight vases of gold & silver in the center &, around them, a thousand & eight vases & lots of one hundred & eight garments. He also had eight excellent brick placed separately. (H)
Mahawamsa, The great Chronicle of Sri Lanka New Translation (1989) Revision (2005) by Dr. Ananda W. P.Guruge ISBN 955-20-8963-8

Footnotes

(A) Hero of the nation, King Dutugamunu 161-137 BC, Sri Lanka

(B) Taurus

(C) Stones from creeks & rivers. Such stones have no more hidden fissures that will later break under natural pressure. When struck with hammers they shatter instead of cleave.

Foot note from Douglas Bullis

(D)The combination of “Arahant’ with ‘samanera” is not the contradiction in terms it appears to be. A samanera is simply one who has not taken upsampada or higher ordination. An Arhant is one who has eliminated ignorance of the Dhamma & the defilements of the mind, & by the assiduous practice of meditation & wisdom achieves enlightenment & purity of mind under the tutelage of instructors. One need not take higher orders to do this.
Foot note from Douglas Bullis’s modern text of Mahawamsa

(E) Ammanna is a measure of capacity equivalent to 11x 64 handfuls

(F)The use of too much sand would tell against the durability of the thupa. Therefore the Tika makes the king say to the mastebuilder:’Shouldst thou do so the cetiya would be like a heap of pure sand would be covered with grass & bushes.’ Geiger

Tika is the book of commentaries on the great Chronicle of Sri Lanka

On a visit to Mulgirigala in 1826, colonial civil servant George Turnour found in this library Sri Lanka's Rosetta stone, ola leaf (palm leaf manuscripts) containing the key to translate the Mahawamsa (the Great Chronilcle); Tika (commentary) made it possible for the Mahawamsa to be translated into Sinhala. The translation enabled scholars to study the glorious unbroken history of the island of Lanka since 543 BC to comparatively modern times & correlate with the numerous & varied evidence in the form of inscriptions, great living monuments such as rainwater reservoirs, stupas & temples & archeological ruins.
(G) It is refreshing to read of a king who gave such desirable marks of his appreciation on the architect’s intelligence; he resembled in this respect day even the slippers are not given to successful architects in Ceylon
Ancient Ceylon: H. Parker (Colonial British civil servant in Ceylon attached to Irrigation Dept of Ceylon during 1873-1904)
First published in 1909 Reprint 81-206-0208-0
During the period indicated herein by H. Parker, traditional architect master builders of temples & stupas, being villagers didn’t have a pair of slippers on them. Nobody bothered to gift them a pair either. Remark made by bunpeiris.

(H) Mantras are chanted 108 or 1008 or 10008 or 100008 times. Furthermore there is an interesting observation by Archt. Shereen Amendra (b) Quote It is curious that the new vases numbering to 1008, with the eight gold & silver vases add up to 1024. In computer jargon 1024 bytes add upto 1 kiobyte, or 1 K. Was there a possibility for data storage built into Mahatupa, possibly of 1K capacity Unquote

(a) This quotation from Lama Govinda gives us a taste of why Stupas were built and what they signify now and in former times. They are the most fascinating structures on the planet. Their development mirrors that of our cultures, and their transformation stands as a witness to the changes in our philosophical concepts

Lama Anagarika Govinda was born Ernst Lothar Hoffman in Waldheim, Germany (old kingdom of Saxony) in 1898, the son of a German father and a Bolivian mother. Folowing a stint of two years in the German army during World War I he was invalided owing to tuberculosis & discharged from the army. During 1920-1928, most possibly for health reasons, he lived on the island of Capri, an art colonay in Italy and became increasingly interested in Buddhism, including the practice of meditation. In 1928 he took spiritual shelter in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) by becoming a Buddhist monk of the Theravada tradition. Under the guidance of the German monk Nyanatiloka Thera of Ceylon, Govinda took vows and found time in his monastic schedule to master ancient Indian language of Pali, to make a close study of the Abhidharma. In1931 he embraced teachings of Tibetan Buddhism and having founded his order in 1933 he lived for three decades in Almora in northern India. Owing to his German origin, Govinda was interned by the British army during World War II. In 1947 he married a Persian speaking photographer Li Gotami and travelled to Tibet. In the 1960s he began travelling around the world to lecture on Buddhism, and settled in the San Francisco Bay area in his twilight years, where he was hosted for a time by Alan Watts.

(b) Beyond the Seeing Eye: The Mahathupa of Lanka by Archt.Shereen Amendra ISBN 978-955-50098-0-5

Quote Forward Shereen Amendra, through the comprehensive documentation of her multi disciplinary investigation in a hitherto unchanrted subject, has provided us with fascinating thesis surrounding the Ruvanveli Seya, one of the great monuments of Sri Lanka. Unquote. Quote book cover. This book brings to light a new interpretation on an ancient record, which has lain hidden because the world neither understood or realized that such mind boggling technology known to present generations only recently. Unquote

We Reveal for you to Revel. Our Land, Our Nation & Our Faith will Prevail.
bunpeiris


www.rioltalankaholidays.com

Sri Lanka Holidays EPIC BATTLE OF SRI LANKA

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS

Tour Sri Lanka, The Land of Delights with Riolta Sri Lanka Holidays, Sri Lanka. Total Holiday Experience awaits you the beautiful ancient island of Sri Lanka.
The epic battle of Sri Lanka Part 1 by bunpeiris 2008
King Dutthagamini, ten Samson–like commanders & the unmanned, armored & armed beast, Kandula the battle elephant

We Reveal for you to Revel. Our Land, Our Nation & Our Faith will Prevail. bunpeiris

The history is (Mahawamsa) King Dutugamunu's army was commanded by ten mighty warriors, Nandhimitta, Suranimala, Mahasona, Gothaimbara, Theraputtabhaya (formerly a Buddhist monk, he gave up the Buddhist order for the sole purpose of saving the Sinhalese & Buddhism from the marauding Dravidian invaders), Bharana, Velusumana, Khanjadeva, Phussadeva & Labhiyavasaba, all of them of superhuman strength & courage sans Achilles heel. {Click here to read “Kataragama”, Sri Lanka}

Year: 161BC
Battle: Vijithapura, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka {Click here for Anuradhapura}
Supreme Commander: King Dutugamunu, hero of the nation
War: ‘This effort of mine is not for the joy of sovereignty; it’s for the establishment of the Faith of Buddha forever.’ King Dutugamunu
Protoganists: Aryan Sinhalese of Sri Lanka & marauding Dravidian invaders from Southern India

Following extract is from Dr. Ananda P. Guruge’s translation of Mahawamsa, the great Chronicle of Sri Lanka ISBN -955-20-8963-8
By courtesy of Dr. Dr. Ananda P. Guruge
Subtitles in bald font is mine, for you entertainment, that is.
Numbered footnotes are mine too, if you don’t mind.

Testing the strength of his commander
While reconnoitering to capture Vijithapura, the ruler of men let loose Kandula upon Nandhimitta who was approaching. As the elephant came to him, Nandhimitta seized both its tusks with his hands & made it sit on its haunches. (1)

The relentless march of the king & his forces
Having tested both, the king marched to Vijithanagara. At the southern gate, there was fierce encounter of warriors. At the eastern gate, Velusumana on horse-back slew Damilas in great numbers. (2)

The Damilas retreats to the fortress with their tails in the Ass
The Damilas shut the gate & the king sent his warriors. Kandula, Nandhimitta & Suranimala at the southern gate & the three Mahasona, Gotha & Theraputta- at the other three gates-then did their deeds. (3)

Enter Kandula, the royal battle elephant
The city Vijitanagara had three moats & was protected by a high wall. The gate, worked in iron, was difficult to destroy. The elephant Kandula knelt down broke the stones, mortar, & bricks on which the gate was hung with its tusks, then charged the gate. (4) The Damilas, standing on the gate tower, hurled down various weapons, heated balls of iron, & molten pitch.

Kandula dives into water with burning wounds
When the smoking pitch was poured on its back, Kandula, tormented with pain, went to a pool of water & dived there. Gotha-Imbara said, “This is not your drinking party-the battering of the iron gate. Go, batter the gate” bathing time! The noble elephant took pride, trumpeted, got out of the water & stood on land defiantly

Kandula cheered up, wound dressed up & armored
The elephant’s physician then washed away the pitch & applied medicine. The king mounted the elephant & stroking its forehead with his hand, said “Dear Kandula, I give you sovereignty of the entire land of Lanka” Having cheered it on & got it fed with excellent fodder, he had wrapped with a shawl & well-clad in armor. Having had a seven-fold buffalo hide tied on its skin, he mad an oil-soaked hide to be placed above & released the elephant. Roaring like thunder & daring dangers, it went, pierced the gate-panels with its tusks, & struck the threshold with its foot. With an uproar, the gate crashed to the ground with jambs. (5)

Stalwart commanders & their forces break down the walls of the fortress
Nandhimitta struck with his arms & intercepted the debris of the great tower (6), which was falling on the back of the elephant. Seeing this deed, Kandula, with a pleased mind, abandoned the hatred (6) over the seizer by the tusks, which it, had earlier nursed. So that the warrior might enter behind it, Kandula, the best of elephants, turned around & looked at him there. Nandhimitta thought, “I shall not enter by the way opened by the elephant” & struck the wall with his arm.(7) Eight usabhas eighteen cubits high fell down.
It looked at Suranimala. He too did not wish to take that path & leaped over the wall into the city. Gotha & Sona entered, each breaking a gate

Kandula, already armored get armed too
The elephant seized a cartwheel,(8) Mitta a chariot-frame, Gotha a coconut-palm, Nimila an excellent sword, Mahasona a Palmyra-palm, Theraputta his great club, & rushing to the streets separately pulverized the of the Damilas there.

Throughout the 2550 years of unbroken recorded civilization of Sri Lanka, {click here to read} Sinhalese have captured tamed & trained elephants for logging operations, construction works, transportation, ceremonial & military purposes. The first description of the capture of elephants in 40 AD is by the Roman historian Pliny. Here, the information that he gathered was from the Sinhalese ambassador to the court of Emperor Claudius.

(1) The most intelligent & largest terrestrial animal has his own share of Achilles Heel. The Sinhalese catcher-trainer-keepers of elephants have discovered & mastered the science of picking the vital nerve centers of the beast so that it could be controlled & guided to rise to the occasion. It was possible, King Dutugamunu’s foremost commander, Samson-like Nandhimitta, in addition to being endowed with super human strength, was also armed with this science called Hasti Nila Shasthrya in Sinhalese & it would have enabled him to perform the Sandowesque feat of forcing Kandula to his haunches.

Where exactly this episode took place is now not known but the Mahavamsa itself records that in commemoration of this feat of Nandhimitta the locality came to be called Hatthipora i.e. “Elephant-tussle”

(2 & 3) They were not alone. Names of 10 stalwart Samson-like commanders are symbolic of the 10 contingents of King Dutugamunu’s army.

(4 & 5) Kandula was attacking the portal of the gate. While the gate was made of iron, the portal was built of stone, mortar & brick, which could be rammed in, dug into & dislodged by trampling with elephant feet & pushing with tusks. Kandula had weekend the portal to such an extent, on the second attempt, a furious battering on the gate coupled with the thrust on the portal made the great gate to crash on to the ground.

(6) Considering the possible weight of the debris & the height from which it should have fallen, to wound an elephant, one could surmise that Nandhimitta riding another elephant alongside Elephant Kandula was armed with a battering ram of considerable proportions.

(7) Long memory of the elephant is legendary; its faculties well known.

(8) With the long awaited crash of the great gate, the battle had risen to epic proportions. Coconut trees, Palmyra trees which would have been shattered by the rampaging contingent of elephants lead by Kandula appears to have been scattered all over the battle field. The stalwart captains of the king, supported by a couple of warriors in their respective contingents would have picked those scattered remnants of the trees & hurled those up on to the Damilas in the fortress.

ARMING THE BEAST

Quote Kandula the elephant at war ISBN 955-20-7998-5 by Prof. Merlin Peris, Emeritus Professor of Classics at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka

Here the elephant wields only the wheel of a cart (perhaps the very cart the frame of which Nandhimitta was using to smash the Damilas), a weapon which any elephant could easily have swung about. This indeed something new, for in the fighting that preceded the assault on the fortifications, Kandula, without armor & without rider, appears to have gone on a rampage among the Damilas, weaponless as well, frightening them with blood-curdling trumpeting & killing them with bare trunk, tusks & feet.
On the other hand, it would not be surprising if someone had armed Kandual with the wheel, in which case he would have been habituated to use of such supplements to his bare trunk for wreaking havoc among the enemy. …..

In the havoc elephants caused in battle, their trunks did not go unarmed. A display has been witness of a gajakeliya in which war-elephants, charging dummy soldiers stuffed with straw, struck them down with lengths of chain weighted at either end with iron bars; then several elephants carried a palisade of logs chained together which sheltered the infantry following, while riders upon their backs hurled down spears & visu kadu (throwing swords) at the enemy.

The strange contraception of chain & iron bars must have been some kind of lethal flail coming down in uses from antiquity, but clubs (totra) may also have been used for swinging around with trunk; they certainly were in India, if we go by Kautilya- & no doubt with devastating effect, shattering & scattering everyone in the elephant’s path as he plunged like a modern-day mine-destroyer tank into the ranks of the enemy.
There is more definite evidence of the arming of the elephant’s trunk with swords. A 17^th century painting from Degaldoruwa shows a war-elephant with what could be frontalia covering head & ears &, with tusks capped with metal points, holding a short sword in his curled trunk. De Queyroz confirms the uses of both the latter armaments when he says elephants which the Sinhalese deployed against the Portuguese had such metal points on their tusks & were trained to slash the enemy with swords held in their trunks-only, I cannot think that the swords then given to them would have been any ordinary ones but over-large weapons with which they could swathe through the enemy. Likewise the chain with bars may rather have been a bar with chains, a flail of sorts, which swung around by the elephant as he advanced, would have proved a devastating weapon. Only, the elephant needed to be practiced in the use of both sword & flail if he was not to hurt himself in the process.
In context, Kandula’s laying hold of a wheel for lack of the regular weaponry for arming the trunk bespeaks the practice of doing so.
Unquote

Kandula, on whom King Dutugamunu rode to victory over the Damilas, is without doubt, the greatest battle elephant known to history.

End of part 1