SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: SAVE OUR PENINSULA

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: SAVE OUR PENINSULA
bunpeiris ( B. UPUL N. PEIRIS), Moratuwa

May all beings everywhere plagued with sufferings of body and mind quickly be freed from their illnesses.
May those frightened cease to be afraid,
and may those bound be free.
May the powerless find power,
and may people think of befriending
one another.
May those who find themselves in trackless,
fearful wilderness--
the children, the aged, the unprotected--
be guarded by beneficent celestials,
and may they swiftly attain Buddhahood.

Buddha

May all terrorists get cured of their common sickness, their common malady

INDIA'S UNILATERAL , ILLEGAL, ANTI-ENVIRONMENT, ANTI-ETHICAL PROJECT TO DREDGE PALK STRAIT TO ITS OWN ADVANTAGE & TO THE KILLER DETRIMENT OF ITS NEIGHBOUR SMALL ISLAND ACROSS THE 30KM PALK STRAIT, SRI LANKA

Once the The Sethu Samudram Canal is completed the Jaffna Peneinsula (99% Tamils, No Sinhalese) of the small (25,000 sq.miles) island of Sri Lanka (75% Sinhalese) is bound to get wiped off the surface of the earth with the very next Tsunami. The man made sea canal would make a deep ocean route for the next Tsunami to sea earthquake sea tidal crash roll with all its devastating fury & might.

Quote Marine Pollution Bulletin
Volume 56, Issue 2, February 2008, Pages 170-186
The Sethu Samudram Canal Project (SSCP), considered as a harbinger of economic growth in India, is a mega engineering project being developed to provide a 260 km long, 300 m wide and 12 m deep shipping channel between the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. This project impacts the unique biota and biodiversity of a 10,500 km² Marine Biosphere Reserve. This man-made link facilitates exchange of water masses between the less saline Bay of Bengal and the more saline Arabian Sea. Initial construction, subsequent dredging for channel maintenance, and the associated ship traffic would result in irreversible changes to the already over-exploited and stressed environment. Additionally, the channel would form a deep ocean route for future tsunamis. However, to provide assurance to the public, particularly the 50,000 fishing folk, in 47 villages in this area, it would be crucial that a long-term environmental monitoring program is instituted. A thorough evaluation of the impending environmental impacts, similar to those addressed by a Before/After and Control/Impact (BACI model) is recommended.
Unquote Marine Pollution Bulletin
Volume 56, Issue 2, February 2008, Pages 170-186

Impending Total destruction of ADAM'S BRIDGE (Ram Setu )

A detail on the location of Rama Setu is relevant. The Rama Setu is 3 to 5 kms. wide and 35 kms. long and links Dhanushkodi and Talaimannar. Rama Setu is seen today as a series of sandbanks (thidal in Tamil) interspersed with incursion of the ocean breaking up the sandbanks in shallow depths from 3 to 9 feet. The tides of the Indian ocean ingress and retreat. During times of low-tides, the entire stretch of the Rama Setu becomes visible as a land connection between Dhanushkodi and Talaimannar as was seen during the tsunami day on Dec. 26, 2004. Thus, the depths of water in the spaces between the sandbanks keep varying. Pilgrims even today stand upto 4 feet deep ocean waters and offer pitrutarpanam in this place. Over 5 lakh pilgrims visit on Ashadha amavasya day to do sankalpam in Agni teertham in Rameshwaram and many also journey to the Rama Setu by boats and stand on the Rama Setu and the 4 feet deep ocean waters. This is the locus of Underwater Cultural Heritage, this is Rama Setu mandiram.

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: SAVE OUR PENINSULA

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: An Introduction to Mihintale

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: An Introduction to Mihintale, Sri Lanka

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Although the ruins, intact or renovated monuments of monasteries consisting of stupas & temples at Mihintale cannot be compared to glorious ancient monuments at Anuradhapura, Mihintale by its own right is a must visit Sri Lanka Holidays attraction. While the shaded village with mango trees is pleasant, the setting of the numerous ancient Buddhist stupas & a multitude of monuments, reached by 1840 steps of amazing stone cut stairway shaded with frangipani trees leading to the rocky hills, is simply gorgeous.

Quote Major C. M. Enriquez, F.R.G.S 2/20 Burma Rifles: Ceylon Past & Present

Mihintale (The age of Mahinda)
Of all ancient sites, Anuradhapura alone has preserved unbroken a Buddhist record from the days of Asoka until our own. So much of romance, such great & beautiful monuments, such intricate history, & above all an antiquity so tremendous, are positively staggering. Its oldest lake, the Basawak Kalama, was constructed five centuries before the birth of Christ. Its oldest pagoda, the Thuparma, built in B.C. 307, is not only the most ancient monument in Ceylon, but the oldest surviving building in the whole of India. And here grows the oldest historic tree in the world, the subject of hoary legends. Yet, thanks to the Mahawansa, a wealth of detail survives. The approximate dates of many ruins, the story of their inception, the history of their construction, are preserved: & in addition to these cold facts, there remain pictures of individuals, & piquant touches of human nature, that make the dead generations live for us again.

The word ‘Anurdhapura does not mean ‘City of Ninety Kings,” as is popularly supposed. It is derived from Anuradha, a certain constellation of stars, under which the city was founded. The site is said to have been chosen by King Pandukabhaya in 457 B.C., though it did not become the seat of Government till a century later. With the exception of a brief interlude in favour of Sigiriya, it remained the capital of Ceylon until finally abandoned in A.D.769.

The early history of Ceylon is so closely connected with its monuments, that it is impossible to tell it without reference to them: & the first to be considered are those at Mahintale, 8 miles distant from Anuradhapura. They come first because they are associated with those earliest events which, in 307 B.C. led immediately to the rise of Sinhalese culture-namely, the advent of Mahinda, the apostle of Buddhism, sent to Ceylon by his father, King Asoka. Mahinda on his arrival at the capital found King Tissa absent, & proceeded to follow him. The meeting took place on the hill that has since been called Mihintale after the illustrious missionary: & it was here that he spoke those memorable words: ‘In compassion for thee, Maharajah, we have repaired hither.”

Tennent considers that Mihintale is the oldest place of mountain pilgrimage in Ceylon- older even than Adam’s Peak. A liter of ruins bespeak the reverence with which the site was regarded from the earliest times….
Unquote

Such is the multitude of tourist attractions of Sri Lanka, Mihintale, a prime cultural site has no place in the traditional 7 nights tour packages of the tour operators in the island of Sri Lanka. However, Mihintale is covered in the 15 nights tour package of Riolta Lanka Holidays.
Look forward for a detailed article on Mihintale during your web visits to Sri Lanka Holidays.

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: LANGUAGE OF SINHALA OF SRI LANKA

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: LANGUAGE OF SINHALA OF SRI LANKA

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SINHALA, THE LANGUAGE OF THE SINHALESE (SINHALA) OF SRI LANKA

An excerpt from Mihintale, Cradle of Sinhala Buddhist Civilization by J. B. Disanayaka. By kind courtesy of author Prof. J. B. Disanayaka of Sri Lanka & the publisher Lake House Investments Ltd., Sri Lanka

Oldest specimens of Sinhala
The Brahmi inscriptions of Mihintale depict not only the earliest form of Sinhala writing but also the earliest phase of the language itself.

The Sinhala language which was introduced into the Island by the first Aryan settlers in the middle of the sixth century B.C. is the southernmost member of Indo-Aryan, the Indian branch of the Indo-European family of languages.
The oldest literary work in Sinhala extant today belongs to the tenth century & hence the Brahmi inscriptions of Mihintale form one of the most important sources for the study of the earliest phase of the Sinhala language.
“The language of these documents” says Paranavitana “is akin to that of the earliest records found in India”. The close affinity between the language spoken in the island & that spoken by the first Buddhist missionaries may have been one of the factors that facilitated the quick conversion of the Islanders to the new faith.
The corpus of Buddhist scriptures, the Tipitaka or Tripitaka is, however, written in a language known as Pali, the language in which were written the Island’s oldest historical poems-Dipavamsa & Mahavamsa.
Scholars regard Sage Mahinda as the father of Sinhala literature. Rahula, for instance, says: “Buddhaghosa says that Mahinda brought to the island of the Sinhalese the commentaries of the Tripitaka, & put them into Sinhalese for the benefit of the people of the island. He thus made Sinhalese a literary language & inaugurated its literature”.
Arsarathnam considers the development of language as the most notable contribution of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. “In India, Buddhism made its appeal through the vernacular of each people it addressed, as opposed to Sanskrit, which was the sole & not universally understood medium of Brahmanism.
The language of early Sinhalese, an Indo-Aryan dialect, was intelligible to the missionaries from India, who thus found it easy to address themselves to the people. From the early beginnings, the task of writing the scriptures in Sinhalese was attempted. This marks the beginning of a literary Sinhalese language of the Buddhist scriptures & was therefore studied by the Sinhalese literati. It influenced deeply the growth of the Sinhalese language.” Prof. J. B. Disanayaka

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS; THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE

USA, THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE DEFENDING THE POL POT THE SECOND

The people who went on rampage, plundered human inhabited lands, pillaged human settlements, engaged in rack & ruin of humanity, committed mass murder, mayhem & crimes against humanity, put a whole race to the fire & sword & vanquished the Red Indians off the planet, are now trying to teach humanity to a nation that has been sustained by unique ancient irrigation engineering & that has been held aloft with the pre-eminent virtue of humanity imparted by the gentle sway of non-violent religion of Buddhism.

The people who have mass murdered in Asia for decades, invaded or interfered with almost all the neighbors, one way or other, to the south of the border in Latin America & even today engaged in mass murdering people of ancient nations in the Middle East , now trying to teach human rights to the nation of Sinhalese with 2550 years great unbroken recorded civilization, an endangered nation.

The new World which is in the business of believing that the business of their country in nothing else under the sun but business (The business of the country is business. Coolidge, Calvin - 1872-1933, Thirtieth President of the USA,) the nation, which has been exploiting the third world for centuries, has now taken up the task of preaching humanity to third world nations.

The one & only nation to have used the endless destructive power of nuclear bomb, the one & only nation to have nuclear bombed a country thereby committing the greatest crime against humanity in the civilized world ever has now taken upon it to preach humanity to the rest of the world

Japan was already defeated in the theater of war. Japan was about to negotiate for its surrender. Japan was only defending their land in their land.

“It is an irony that western countries are attempting to teach human rights and fundamental rights to us. The Sri Lankans learnt non violence, peace and harmony from the Buddha and later from Arahat Mahinda over two thousand years ago. One must not forget that millions of Red Indians were killed and their ancestral habitats were plundered before the modern US was established. The same fate befelled on the Aborigines when Australia came into being. In Sri Lanka we have never resorted to that kind of atrocities on a fellow ethnic group or indigenous communities,”

“Terrorism was introduced to Sri Lanka by Prabhakaran the megalomaniac with an imbalanced mental condition. “It is difficult to find a single psychiatrist who could treat terrorists like Osama Bin Laden and Prabhakaran. They are beyond treatment and the only solution available is to destroy them for the common good.”

Healthcare and Nutrition Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva of Sri Lanka at WHO function led by Dr. Agostino Borra, WHO country Director, in Sri Lanka on ‘National Report on Violence and Health’, the first of its kind in Sri Lanka

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Ancient Inscriptions

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Ancient Inscriptions of Sri Lanka Part 1
bunpeiris
www.rioltalankaholidays.com www.mysrilankaholidays.com www.bunpeiris.com

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The University of Cambridge, England has 274 volumes of 'Epigraphica Zeylanica' with over 3000 inscriptions from Ceylon (that is more inscriptions than the whole of mainland China has, even though Sri Lanka is only 1/2 the size of the state of New York), including one dating back to 6th century BC. Over 2000 of these have been deciphered, indicating the consistent development of the Sinhalese language.

Gold inscriptions

The Vallipuram gold plate inscription found in Vallipuram near Vadamaracchi in Jaffna peninsula has been dated by archaeologists to the reign of king Vasabha (67-111AD). The priceless inscription indicates that the governor of Jaffna peninsula named Isigiriya, a minister of Sinhalese king Vasabha built a vihara, a Buddhist temple named "Piyagukatissa" also known as Nakadiva or in Sanskrit as Nagadipa. This is an archaeological evidence that collaborate with the fact that even in the first and the second centuries of the history of Sri Lanka, Jaffna peninsula of the Resplendent Island was under the rule of Sinhalese kings.

Cave inscriptions
Following extract is by kind courtesy of Mr. Ratna Paranavitana.
Sinhalayo (ISBN 955-9170-20-1) by illustrious scholar archeologist Dr. Senerat Paranavitana (1896-1972), the first Ceylonese Archeological Commissioner of Sri Lanka. He served as the editor of Epigraphia Zeylanica from 1929.
Quote
The earliest archeological remains connected with Sinhalese, which are still preserved without alteration in later times, are the many hundreds of caves with inscriptions engraved on their brows, found in various parts of the Island. These caves, which are hardly more than natural rock shelters, are found among the numerous boulders of gneiss which litter the sides of hills in certain places like Mihintale, Ritigala, Dambulla & Situlpavu of Sri Lanka.

At other sites, there are to be found only a few, in some sites there being only a single cave. The artificial improvements effected to these caves consist mainly of a drip line cut along the brow, so as to prevent rain water flowing into them. Some of these caves were provided with walls which, as well as the face of the rock inside, were covered with a coating of lime plaster, & painted in some instances.

In some of the caves, inscriptions have been incised below the drip line. The shortest among the cave inscriptions comprises of only four letters; the longest of over seventy five. The number of these records, of which copies have been secured so far, exceeds 1200. The brevity of the individual; records is compensated for by their number.

The script of these records is the same as that of the most ancient historical inscriptions in India. The edicts of Emperor Asoka, to which reference has already been made, are in the same script. Closer examination of the script of these records reveals that the forms of the individual letters were imperceptibly undergoing change during the period on which they were being written. A comparison of these records from Ceylon with the forms in the Asoka inscriptions & others in India, to which definite dates can be given, enables us to conclude that these cave inscriptions have been made in dates ranging from approximately the last quarter of the third century B. C. to about the end of the first century A.C.
The art of writing appears to have been practiced by the ancient Sinhala people before the arrival of the Buddhist missionaries from India in the time of Asoka, for the Ceylon inscriptions of early date have given two letters in forms different from their counterparts in the edicts of the Indian emperor.
Among the Brahmi inscriptions of Ceylon, there are also a considerable number written from right to left, which is not the direction of writing in the vast majority of Asoka’s edicts in Brahmi.
Like the script, the language of these documents is akin to that of the earliest records found in India. The various dialects, in which the inscriptions of Asoka were framed, belong to a family of languages-namely the Indo Aryan-of which the most highly cultivated is the Sanskrit, & to which belong the languages spoken today in North India as well as Sinhalese. A study of the language of the records in the caves in Ceylon, enables one to conclude that it has, by gradual changes following natural phonological laws, given rise to the Simhala that is spoken today.

The Aryan languages are spoken today in the North of India. The languages of South India included in a different family, the Dravidian.
These inscriptions thus corroborate the literary tradition according to which the Sinhalese migrated to this Island from Lala, a region in North India. Considering that there is, between Ceylon & the regions in which the Aryan languages are spoken in India, an extensive area in which the languages spoken by the people are non-Aryan, the original Sinhalese, as their traditions testify, must have arrived in this Island by sea-routes.

The oldest Sinhalese inscriptions are found in the north as well as in the south of the island, in its western regions as well as in the east. They are also found at sites in the hilly country, though the majority of sites containing early Sinhalese inscriptions are found on the plains. By the time these inscriptions came to be indited, therefore, the Sinhalese people had occupied practically the whole island. In those days of slow communication & manual agricultural labour, the occupation of entire island by immigrants from abroad must have taken at least two centuries. The traditional date of the arrival of Sinhalese on this Island, in the middle of the sixth century B. C. , is thus not very much wide of the mark.
Unquote
To be continued
Following information is for the benefit of readers who would like to dig deep into the subject refered herein.
'Epigraphica Zeylanica'
Following are details of a reprint of Vol. 4 of 4 vol. publication.
Archeological Survey of Ceylon
Epigraphia Zeylanica
Being Lithic & Other Inscriptions of Ceylon
Edited & translated by
H. W. Codrington Ceylon Civil Service (Retired) &
S. Paranavitana
Epigraphical Assistant to the Archeological Commissioner
Published for the government of Ceylon by Humphrey Milford
Oxford University Press, Amen House, E.C.
Printed in Great Britain 1934
Asian Educational Services reprint of Vol. 4 in 1994
ISBN 81-206 -0930-1

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: ASOKAMALA OF LANKA

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SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: ASOKAMALA OF LANKA

Isurumuniya Rock temple, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka

In the loveliest part of old Anuradhapura, in a group of black granite boulders, there nestles the Isurumuniya Rock temple. The temple built in the 3rd century B.C., was the first repository of the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha. The present repository of the Sacred Tooth relic is Holy Temple of the Tooth at Kandy, Sri Lanka. In the ancient times the Isurumuniya Rock Temple was known as Meghagiri Vihara or the Shrine of the Clouded Mountain. 

The Lovers
Some of the finest sculptures in Aanuradhapura are found at Isurumuniya Rock Temple. The most famous of all is “The Lovers” which represents King Dutugamunu’s son Prince Saliya & his heartthrob Asokamala. “The Lovers” carved in the fifth century is of the artistic tradition of Gupta Art of India.
Asokamala
Discovered adorned with Asoka flowers, plucking Asoka flowers in Asoka gardens , the lissome gypsy damsel of incomparable beauty & matchless grace was named Asokamala by her royal discoverer, Crown Prince Saliya. Such was the divine beauty of the damsel, it is said, she was the one, whom you would have tonight, even at the price of falling into the netherworld in the following night.
“If she wasn’t the light of your life & lust of your loins, I would have made her mine” King Dutugamunu,(161-137 BC) of Lanka , the hero of the nation declaring upon being mesmerized by the beauty of Asokamala, the heartthrob of his son.

Historical romance of enamored Prince Saliya, who forsook his right to crown for Asokamala, has been narrated many a times for a couple of millenniums. Following extract is by courtesy of Sri Lankan writer Lankaputhra illustrious R. L. Brohier, O. B. E., Hon. D. Litt. (Ceylon)

Discovering Ceylon by R. L. Brohier ISBN 955-8425-54-0
It was translated for me many years ago by a pundit. No words in English can adequately convey the terms of simplicity & tenderness, or the feminine charms & graces alluded to in the Sinhalese version of the story.

King Dutugamunu had one some named Sali. Not content to bestow on him the ordinary endowments of a prince, the historiographers have not hesitated to ascribe to him a combination of every manly virtue. Delighted with his accomplishments, his father raised him to the dignity of viceroy, & built him a stately palace at the south-end of Anuradhapura.

On a certain day, Sali together with a number of young chieftains went sporting in the ‘Mahamega’ of pleasure gardens of the city. Attracted by an Asoka tree which was spangled by bunches of beautiful blossoms he walked up to it. Looking up when he got nearer, he spied among the leafy branches a young women who had climbed the tree to pluck some flowers. She was naked from the waist up, but for scanty scarf hanging from her neck which afforded a semblance of propriety, but had got displaced in her efforts to reach out for the flowers.
The beauty of her form in the shade of deep foliage, & her panchakalyana or five feminine graces held Sali enraptured.
Passion was asleep for the while, but his eyes brimming with a sudden devotion reflected a surpassing tenderness & exquisite bliss, she seemed to him as it were, to be an embodiment of lightening, or like a full moon in a dark cloud.
The prince’s retinue & the other courtiers, who were attracted by Prince Sali’s distraction gathered around him. Entranced by what they saw, & seized with desire, they began severally to accost the girl in ribald jests: ‘Golden one, who & whence art thou? ‘Art thou a daughter of a man or goddess-for never in this world was beauty seen like thine?’ ‘Tell us who are thy parents, & whether thou art married or unmarried?”
‘Lords,” replied the maiden, “I am of the low-born of this earth, forbidden to even cover my breasts, the daughter of the chief of Chandalas, a despised & scorned caste. I prey thee, noble lords, let me be gone to my people.”
Sali whose heart was wrung on hearing her sad appeal, beckoned to the girl to alight from the tree. Turning to the company gathered around him he remarked in an undertone: “Precious stones & pearls are not rejected by man even though they may be found in dung–heap. Why then should damsel-who no woman in Lanka equals in beauty, be despised because she was born of the Chandalas?”
Turning to the girl, he said, ‘Fair one! Don’t think of these odd things. Only remember that I am here beside you….” Taking her by the hand he conducted her to a closed palanquin, & escorted her to his palace. “You will in future be named: Asoka mala,’ he said when he received her at the entrance to his palace...”the fragrant flower I picked from the Asoka-tee”
A thousand tongues which had sung Prince Sali’s fame carried the news of his sensational amour with the Chandala women, to every corner of the city of Anuradhapura. It eventfully reached the ears of the King Dutthagamini, displeased & considerably ruffled but outwardly displaying dignified calm, summoned the favourite lady of his court, & said to her: go to my son, & tell him…Lord, thy father will get thee a princess of the royal, or of the Brahmin caste, for wife…& thy royal father will stand down & proclaim thee King…if thou wilt forsake this daughter of chandala, & stain not the royal caste.’
All the forces of nature & emotion seemed to be behind the answer Sali sent his father, declaring his unalterable attachment to the damsel of his choice. Howbeit, the king, on learning of his son’s resolution, thought of another approach. Sending for his Brahmin astrologers, & others skilled in soothsaying, he bade them go to his son’s palace to see Asoka-mala, & to report on the tokens of fortunes she possessed.
As they were bidden, these wise men presented themselves at Sali’s palace. When they saw Asoka-mala, they were so intoxicated by her charms that they tarried no more than a short while; getting back, they presented themselves before the king, exclaiming; “Your Majesty… Asoka-mala is blest with a body the colour of gold, her large eyes resemble the petals of the blue mahanil (4), and the soft soles of her feet the petal of the red tank flowers. Endowed thus she is certainly propitious, & is for to be the chief consort of Sakreya.’
On being told by his astrologers & soothsayers that Asokamala was fit to be the consort of Sakreya, or Indra-the reagent of the gods, & on hearing her beauty described in such immoderate terms, King Dutthagamini was filled with desire to see her himself. He sent world of his intentions to his son.
Sali, glad beyond measure of the opportunity to confront his father with the, Chandala damsel he had made up his mind to wed, sought Asoka-mala, & said: “Beloved one, my father...the king, is this day coming to the palace for the purpose of seeing theee; delay not therefore in due preparation.” Hastening to do the prince’s bidding she set about preparing the most delectable viands, & arrayed herself in the choices of apparel which had been provided for her earlier on the orders of he prince...
Deporting themselves in humble posture Sali & Asoka-mala stood together with great respect & obeisance at the entrance of the place to receive the king & his ministers. The king overwhelmed by the contagion of her beauty, addressed her: “Art thou then that happy maiden my son has named Asoka-mala” In a voice full of rhythmical cadence she replied”’ I am... my lord.”
Dutthagamini, confounded by delight, took his seat, & was served by her in person. Repenting of his intention to deprive his son of this excellent maiden, the king was filled with a wild exaltation to prove his favour. He accordingly lavished upon his son & would-be daughter, every outward expression of his paternal goodwill. Giving both of them advice for the future, he placed them upon a heap of gold, & performed the marriage ceremony. Under the open windows in the courtyard, the musicians continued to play & sing in an air which was full of love & dreams, & in a scene lit by a brilliant moon, the king left the happy pair to return to his palace.
Prince Sali, far from becoming palled with the charms of his wife, continued to enjoy the most perfect happiness; while Asokamala, spending her time in acts of charity, balanced the sufferings of the less fortunate from the super-abundance of her own good fortune. Thus, in an atmosphere of passion & goods deeds, the pair blended life with intoxicating happiness.
The legend is probably the most authentic in Sinhalese tradition since it crystallizes into coherent thought the portrayal of a period-piece passed down by ancestators to posterity on a theme which animates all living souls down the ages, & is current to this day. It has even found a counterpart in monument.
Before his death, Dutthagamini sent for his dashing, romantic son, & is understood to have said to him” Thou may’st succeed to the throne, & reign protecting the world, & our religion.” Sali was well aware of the condition on which he ‘may’st’ do so. In its small scape, every line of the tradition carries a moral. In, his choice between the throne, & Chandala women, Sali opens the windows of his soul that saw the finest in everything...he refused the throne. (5)
End.
Footnotes in italics are mine. bunpeiris
Ancient Sinhalese have defined the ultimate graces of beautiful women -bright red (tone of the tender NA leaf) (1) lips, long blue-black hair (2), doe-eyes (3), swans-like breast , light brown clear complexion, narrow waist & broad hips.

(1) Among the remarkable features of NA is beautiful bright Red Leaves that finally matured in to a deep green. The “Na Tree” (Iron wood), botanically called “Mesua Nagassarium” grows to about 30 m high and indigenous to the lower wet Zone of Sri Lanka. In early times the NA timber was used to make bridges owing to its hardness & durability. Today it is a protected tree. It's believed that the first visit of Buddha was to grove of a NA Tree at Mahiyangana. It is also said the next Buddha Maitreya (Natha) will attain enlightenment under a NA tree. The flower of NA is also used in herbal medicine and preparation of perfumes, cosmetics and soaps. Na tree is named the National Tree of Sri Lanka in 1986.

(2) Ancient & medieval Sinhalese poetry praising the beauty of perfect women emphasize the color of hair as bluish black. Muthiyanga stupa of Sri Lanka enshrines Sacred Kesha Datu, a lock of pure & blue-black hair of Gauthama Buddha. Perhaps such could be the color of the hair of an Asian man of perfect of health & purest of thought.

(3) In ancient Sinhalese poetry long serene eyes of beautiful women are likened to those of a doe.

(4) The Nil Mahanel (Nympheae Stellata) plant which grows in shallow waters is found in all over the island of Sri Lanka. The beautiful purplish flower with a heavy concentration of petals in the centre is also considered a symbol of truth, purity and discipline. This flower also referred to as "Kuvalaya", "Indhewara", "Niluppala", "Nilothpala' and "Nilupul" is narrated in many Sinhala, Pali and Sanskrit Literary works. The flower which occupies a pre-eminent position in Buddhist literature is among the 108 symbols of virtue found in the footprint of Gautama Buddha. The Sigiri Apsaras at Sigiriya Lion Rock Citadel are depicted plucking Nil Mahanel. Traditional Sinhalese poetry of Sri Lanka known as "Sandesa Kavya" likens women's eyes to Nil Mahanel flowers. It was declared the National Flower of Sri Lanka in 1986.

(5) On the death of King Duuthagamini, his brother Saddatissa, Tissa the Pious, was consecrated. He reigned for 18 years during 137-119 BC.

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: CEYLON CINNAMON

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: CEYLON CINNAMON bunpeiris

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Are you sure what you have in your hand is Ceylon Cinnamon from Sri Lanka? The botanical name Cinnamomum zeylanicum is derived from Sri Lanka’s name during 1815-1972, Ceylon.

The finest cinnamon is Ceylon cinnamon from Sri Lanka. Indonesian cinnamon too of similar taste yet with inferior quality & in larger quills. Much of what is sold as cinnamon is not really true Sri Lankan or southern Indian cinnamon, but rather Chinese cassia cinnamon, which is native to that country. That’s not the Right Stuff. In Sri Lanka we reveal the Right Stuff for you to revel.

Cinnamon Rice Pudding by GIGI, Pasadena, California, United States

“Its cinnamon is the best in the world”

Captain Joao Ribeiro in his book on Sri Lanka titled
“The Historic Tragedy of the island of Ceilao”
Lisbon, 8^th January 1685 dedicated to His Most Serene Majesty Dom Pedro The Second

• 1 heaping cup of arborio rice.
• Cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 32 ounces of skim milk (yes, skim)
• 1 cup of heavy cream
• ½ cup of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Sri Lanka’s recorded unbroken civilization runs back to 543 BC. Tthougout the period of 16th-18th centuries, cinnamon was the Holy Grail of Portuguese, & Dutch invaders. Such was the value of Ceylon cinnamon, it became the main article of trade for Dutch East India Company whose main seaports were Colombo & Galle. VOC Galle Dutch Fort of Sri Lanka is the best preserved colonial sea fortress in the whole of Asia.

“The Helen or the Bride in Conteft of this isle is the fineset & purest Cinnamon, which growing only in this island”
Philip Baldaeu: A Description of the Great & Most Famous isle of Ceylon 1671, Amsterdam

Place the rice, cinnamon stick, vanilla seeds, vanilla bean, skim milk, heavy cream, and sugar in a 2-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring often. Next, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 25-30 minutes. Discard the vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. Stir in the 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Divide the pudding into (4-6) ramekins. You can serve it warm if you’re like me or wrap them up tightly and enjoy when cooled.

Well, that’s how rice pudding is cooked in America. In Sri Lanka, you can even steam cook rice pudding on a cone-cupped leaf of a plant called ‘Kanda” by means of a dressed up bamboo steamer set on a clay pot. Moreover, “Pudding spice" which is a compound of nutmeg, clove, cardamom, mace and all spice would serve the purpose much better.

All this stuff are well produced & marketed in Colombo, Sri Lanka. You can buy all these spices in Spice Gardens in the Royal city of Kandy, the gateway to Central Highlands of Sri Lanka

Cinnamon quills
Cinnamon quills are inner bark of a tropical evergreen tree, harvested during the rainy season when pliable and then dried into curls sold as sticks or ground into a powder. With its warm, sweet flavor, cinnamon is a vital ingredient in flavoring baked goods, in cooking stews and & making sauces

Cinnamon Jungles
Captain Joao Ribeiro in his book on Sri Lanka titled
“The Historic Tragedy of the island of Ceilao” narrates of Cinnamon jungles of Ceylon (Sri Lanka)

…these are so dense that a man cannot walk through them a stone’s throw. In shape the leaves of the cinnamon resemble those of the plantane in that they have three ribs, & in texture the laurel; when crushed between the fingers their smell is as of the best cloves of Rochella. The trees are not very tall, for they do not exceed two bracas at the most;& as there is rain here daily they do not shed their leaves,& most of them bear two crops of fruit, which is similar to the laural berry, in the year. When this falls on the ground, it immediately starts growing in consequence of the heat & moisture; & it is for this reason that the inhabitants have a law that they should clear their roads frequently; unless they do so, they would be all thick forest in one year

First cultivation of cinnamon
In the year 1770, Dutch East India Company continued to overhaul the methods of harvesting in the wild, and eventually began to cultivate its own trees.

Cinnamon Today
Today Sri Lanka is a major exporter of cinnamon. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Sri Lanka exported 11,068 metric tons of cinnamon in 2003, comprising most of the world production of true cinnamon.

In Westen & Southwestern coast belt –finest beaches of the world
Sri Lanka's cinnamon groves lie exclusively in its western and southwestern regions, north and south of the country's commercial capital, Colombo. The tropical sunshine and abundant rain of these areas provide an ideal habitat, but even here the quality of the spice varies with soil conditions.

The best of the best Ceylon cinnamon today
The sweetest, most prized variety grows in the "silver sand" coastal belt of the Negombo, close to the one & only International airport (CMB) of the Island. The immediate environs of Colombo itself once comprised large spice plantations - even today its prime residential quarter is known as Cinnamon Gardens.

Government support now
Well-tended trees free of diseases such as leaf blight and white root yield about 100 kilograms of cured bark per acre. Cinnamon trees have a productive life span of about 40-50 years after which they have to be replanted, for which cinnamon growers receive generous subsidies from Department of Minor Export Crops, Matale, Sri Lanka. Matale is located close to cultural heartland of the island, Kandy.