I'tate

I{ALO ]SI,ANi)
302

JouRNAL, R.A.s.

(cnvl-ox) [Vor' XXXI

PRE.BUDDHIST RELIGIOUS BELIEFS IN

CEYLON
BY

/', .

PARANAViTANA' Epigraphical Assistant to the Archaeological Commissioner'

The religious beliefs

S.

Sinhalese people be{ore they accepte<1 Buddhism

in the third sturlied' The centurv lr.fo." Clrrist have been very littie materialsal,ailable{orasuclrastudyareveryscanty. subiect; From the chronicles, rve learn verv littie on this they furnish us lvith has and even the meagre information not receivecl the attention that is due' fourtli century B'C" Anuraclhapura by Panqlukabhaya in the
Tne XIaltd,uamsa,

that u'ere prevalent among the

l. Slr(rrn \.r.ris
MALE

Zrv-\nar

tn its account of the {oundation of

ISL.qND

merrtionsanumberofreiigiousarrclpublicinstittrtionsestabli'shecl there b)' that monarch' Anuradhapura' in later times' Buddirists ; and' as becanie the hol1r city of the Sinhaiese authentic tradition about such, the monks must have preserved account in its origin. Therefore, it mav be assumecl that this 'fhe present paper 1s ltre Mah(iuarhsa is based on facts' Pa[rd'ukflbhaya' inainly a stuclv o{ the religious {ounclations of and other supplemented herc and there b-v epigraphical light lit"rary eviclence rvherever such are found throrving on the subject uuclcr discussion'
same order as clo not propose to discuss them in the the other hand' it would the.v are founcl in the chronicle' On convenient if thev are taken in connection

be more In withthe clifferent cults to rvhich thev appertained'

so

o{ a lower level of doing, we shall frrst cJiscuss thosc beUefs culture as the rvorship o{ the yakpas'

2. Gnevn oB Sar,r,(N Munlulran

No.

8z

.-rg2gl

eRE.BUDDHrsr REr-rcrous ts,bLrEFS

30.3

at the lower end of the Abhaya tank. The slave rvoman who had helped in time past ancl r,vas reborn a yakkhiTi, the th<iughtful king settlecl at the south gate of the city. Within the roval precincts, he housed the ;zakkhiqr in the form of a rrrare. Yeerr by year, he had sacrificial offeriirgs made to them and to other yakkhas; but on festival clays he sat rvith Cittarir,ja beside him on a seat of equal hcight, and having ;:ods and men to dance before him, the king took his pieasure. in joyous zr.nd merrv wise.,,1r; In the sarne .hop,"r, vv ro:l_ro5, it is saici :-" With Kdlavela ancl Cittaraja who rvere visible 1in hodily forrn), the prince enjoyed his goocl fortune, he rvho iiad yakkhas and bhlrtas for friencls.,,(r)
parker (s) is of opinion that the two yakkhas :id,lavela and Cittaraja were trl,,o chiefs of the aborigines ..i Ceylon whorn pan{ukabhava treatecl ll,ith
spccial honour,
Sinhalese.

yaksa oults: Cittarija. of the roth chairter of tt X,Iahd,uamsa, " we read :- " He (paldukdbhaya) settlecl the yakkha KaJavela on the east sicle of the city, the yakkha Cittaraja

In Vv.

B4-88

l r. Henry

ris a matter of policv, to reconcile these savages rvlio had i ,.:en dispossessed of their la'c1 by the

i'vacling

i',e two yaksas gainecl anything by sharing an cqual throne Pancl'liabhaya. on the otlier ha'cl, it is cited as an i: r;trDple of the king,s majesty ancl greatness that he sat on r:rir QUel eminence with these supernatural beings. ir aiso otlrer eviclence, outside the XtI ahdaa.drsa, to There prove tii:ti a yaksa namecl Cittar6ja was thc object of a popular r:,.rit in ancient India. In the I{uruclharnma Jdtaka, it is ilr.i,'l 61 Dhanaiijaya, king of the Kurus :_,,Dvery third year, irr lhe month of Kerttika (November) the king usecl to holcl a lL':siival callecl the Kattika Feast. \Vhile keeping this feast tirr kings usecl to decl< thenselves out in great magnificence, 1" Geiger,s transiatir z lbid pp 75-76' 2. A*ci,ent Ceyton" ii'tt.' 'o'

.itir

3o4

JoURNAL,

R.A's'

(cnvlox) [vor' XXXI'

.\o"
oJ

8z

.-rgzgl

pRE_BUDDHrsr nEI-rcrous

BELTDFS

of a goblin and clress up like goils, they stood in the presence shoot to the four (yakkha) ,ra*.a Cittardja, ancl they would florvers' and painted points o{ the compass arrows wreathed in th-e.feast,stood in clivers colours. This king, then, in keeping ff, presence of Cittardja' and shot -,rd* on the bank of a iake, in the t' \ "(1) arrows to the four qtrarters spirits rnentionetL Besicles the identity in names, the trvo have ottrer points in in the Mahd,ttath,sa and in tjne Jataka, was below common. At Anuradhapura, the abode o{ Cittaraja king Dhanaflthe tank Abhayavd,pt (tsasavakkulam)' When stood by the side of jaya of the Kururlhamma Jataka tank k:ahi Cittard,ja, it was on the embankment o{ a that Cittaraja rvas fdliyd). From this, it becomes clear a water spirit' On speciai festival clays' Paq{uLkfr'bhaya pl."r.,te (ratikIS'a) in the presence of Cittarija' enjoyed "roti" by the-side of and-in the Jdtaka story, the Kuru king stoocl and shot flowery this spirit on the day of the Karttika festival

3o5

"rro*rtothe{ourquarters'Inlaterlndianmythology'; god of Love the flowery arrows are a svmbol of Kama' the

Cittara,ja, too, and their occurrence in tlris story shows that out by the story was of a simiiar nature. This is also borne in the clandestine love affairs given in lhe Mahauafnsa,thal

this festival, for tire king to go round the city splendidly attired, stopping at the cloors of the chief houses, wt itstyourlg ivomen came and scattered flowers on him. (r) But the h[ah,a,aanisa r,vouid make us be]ieve that along rvith Kd,lavela, Cittard,ja also was of Ceylon origin. Beforl he was born as a yaksa, rre is saicl to ira,re been a trustecl servant of Pand.ukabhaya,s father; and we have already referred to the part he playecl in that prince,s love intrigue. itories connecteci witli the gods of p.opt. or" .r.ry oit.r, " associated with their heroes. pandukabhaya was the national hero of pre-Bud<lhist Ceylon ancl, it is very likely that many ; :,tories from the current folklore of the clay were graftei tcr the romantic account of his career as given in the chronicle. 1n <1oing this, it is naturar to make ceyio' the scene of these rrtories, and, in this way, Cittardja is clescribecl as a yaksa ',i Ceylon origin; though his cult was prevalent at ilre same lirne, or even eariier, in India" es ar-, analogou.s it rnay be mentioned that to the Hindu colonists instance, of Java, tire heroes of the Mahdbherata were of Javanese origin and tlre battles between the Kauravas ancl paT{avas were"fought {ril Javanese soil.
As the Abliayavfi.pi had its guardian spirit in Cittard,ja, ,"' had the Tissavapi an unnameci genius as its protector. ' .li'ii'r, we are told in an inscription of ihe tentn century, that ii.re fss1111111 .ri Vihera was situatecl .. by the side of the Tissa

olCittaandGama4i,theparentsofPa4{.ukSbhaya,this ancl saved them yakqa took the part of the young lovers i.o* many a periious situation'(') The name Cittaraja mind itself-if we may interpret it as meaning " King of the one of or heart" ( )-has afflnity wttin ilI an obhat a' mindborn" of Karttika' the names o{ the Hindu Cupid' The festival
B

The Genius of the Tisivava

had a saturnalian during which this yaksa was worshipped'

tiris day;(ai character. Much sexuallicense rvas allowed on custom' on the night and, according to one account, it was the
r. Idtaha" translabiun I[' P' 254 2. See Mahduanisa Ch' IX' has ?. Rouse' in ftit'-tti"trtifn of the Kurudhamma Jataka (Skt Citrarail)'e.r1oyea ,."r,a3r"a^ii-'ting ;i *u"" Colours' lestiva ;n tt e '""" i."" iit"na, i, +ls shdrvs that this company of women'

(irrAzrs) who was convertecl by the Saint r ahinda and was tirrele to beof servicetothereligionas welj as to the world.,,4z; 1'lris spirit is here callecl

t;urk the waters of tvhich formecl the clwelling place of a genius

w n.z.r., p. 33ff )i',,,1','0i",#'!:^^Yil,,i!" -,11.a/tahim.iyan uisin uinoyd sasun urida tunn, 'ptr.tngu '"
pon t:" ,,,_.",(u {u(. (.xlreme srmllarity, I tsa uunnisd pihiti Isurmenu, eic. !".i* ,, '.bmbols in rhc tcnth century .r ',,'. lor ha anrl ng.a, ir:. \Vi.kr;;;;i;r,. i script, between P , trtr tor pirinsi. rrr","'"ie, i'ls i;;;;i;r;;':i "' rhis passage,.which ". wronslv read ;dmits
is (lo-ubtful, is far irom

r. ?.

a ro'lt,ls ; but the

word.s

yaksa and

See Umrnadanti JJtaka, Vol. V o, zr{f Vessagiriya Slab inscriptio" or ltSrri#L

;;;;;;i;""

306

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It.A.s' (cEYI-oN) fVor' XXXI

No.

8z

.-'--rg2gl

pRE_BUDDHrsr

rrEt-rcroLrs

BELTEFs

3oT

and rakpasa are appliecl inclilTereutlv to tire same being'(l) genius of thc'lisdvava is mentioned here in dealing
hence the

century u,ith tire yakga cults' As the people in the tenth by X'lahincla' the believet'l that tiris spirit u'as convertetl t1'rat he rvas apostle of lJtLclclhisrl in Ceylon, it is obvious there is k*n.u. in pre-Buclclhist times' As far as I knor'r" of this vaksa by no rnention in li.teratule c'{ the conversion to his brother I'Iahincla ; but sirnilar feats are ascribe{l in r'vho proclairnecl thc message of the Buddha missioners

"

4!

Kastimir ancl ottrer

cor-rntries'

crn gate. proceedecl as far as tire slirine of this traksa rrnd the' returneil to the site of the sacrecl;;_;.I"T" rnore reference to hiil is founcl in later literature ancl it is tirat his shrine rvas .enrorishecr to find room for 'ossible the Bucltlhist mo'astic b*ilcli'gs that sprang u;r arouncl the 'I'hfrpd,ra,ma.

cailed lfahejaqhara.(1) It is stated jn fite Muluuatnsa (()lt. ry \r. 3o) in connection with the founclation of the Thrlpardma, that the rorral elephant bearing the sacrccl relic that was to lre cnshrined in this Slif a carneont of the citr. frorn the south_

Ki,lavela
story His of Pa4qlr,rka,bhaya is not knorvn from other sotlrces' gate of the citv continued shrine which "r-as near ttre eastern later times ; for lahirsena in tlie fourth century Kt1lavela who is associatecl rvith Cittardja

Vaiilavana and other yaksas. in the

lhe king of ail the yakgas is Vaisrava4a rvho is a familiar in Iluclclhist mytirolcgy, U";r.,g.nr.riaerecl one of the four great kings reigning in the jowest c,f the six heavens. He is ;r1so r,vell known in Hindu ,rrytt oiogy Kuvera, the god of r:iches. Naturaily, this imporia"t "; p...**g" r,rra.s not neglected iry tsa!{ukd,b}raya i' his ..h"-.
figr_rre

to It is is said to have constrircted a cetiya at this place'(') yaksa,s not stateil that I'Iahd,sena,s cetiytt' stlpplanted tlre the older r'vorship of the shrine ; therefore, it is likely that the
down

paid to yaksa prevailecl sicie by si<le rvith the honours the cetiya cet'iya. X'loreover, as rvill be seen in the secluel'

cuit ; and' *ur, lrl' pre-Budclhist Inclia' a {eature of the yakpa may have been devoted tfiir'p"rti".tfar one built by l{ah:rsena
trf Anuradhapura to tliat r.vorsirip" The site of the eastern sate is near tlie modern NakS' Vehera'

his abode was fixed a banyan tr". ,r.u. the western gate ,,1 the citt'.{r} About tree worship rve r,vill speak in its ilroper place.
cult lut rvho is connecterl lvith paldukdbhava,s is not mentioned, legencl, was named iutindhara. His haunt was the int ,r"*.a .frimbariyangana Another yakga. of whom
a separate

rvhen le.sserdivinities who were tris subordi.ntes rvere honoured. ,{s

J-r.ir*r"",

founcrations

Maheja

in Par}fluAnother yaksa rvorshipped bv the Sinhaiese His shrine' situated k:ibhava's time was namecl l'{aheja' Thirpariima was a little distance to the rvest o{ the present
proved to For instance, that monster callecl Raktiiksi who to tt p"opil oi";;;i;; i,,"tt " .tit"" of Siri Sanshabodht be a scourgc bnt in the iater tie is callecl a tahhka "uv tf," ^l"ili*'iI "irt"llah.attanisa rahhlnsa' (See ot vol"'n'\'J;;""1":"; Hatthaaanagaltn 'Vatitsa' "pitrt"t Ch' Vl' V: t")' rl XXXV, ,'. o'2

wife was the yaksinr Cetiyd r,vho has already been 'itentioned. (3) Jayasena of Arit6liapabbata rvas another :'rputed yaksa in ancient Ceylon. The Rosardhini has .an
9o. Tr,.". ,];f, _conrains flre readings Maheiii .. rotred.a. 'ilrc Sanzanta attd plri/:fu ircn says rhat this was yaksa n", i)tri'"| Tii, t ,'1b""* comnrenl,,, a i " tr,e colombo , clitioir "}lrin*2. _11a. X. 8q. . 3. Mu. X,5i and 1rhd, p. zor. It is also stated there that jJsa yastilled in the bitric or si.is-variiu*rii,"",i'uiluvu
annirrirarcd
thrs

;rear the river ilIahaviligaiiga in tlie " eastern part of the island. r{is

r.

r. l\[r'. X.

''l.fz.

"nl"Aor-tii'o'''oqotto the Lahhanatdt'a sAt'n,*ii';;;';;;;iii;'"nt1v and ' liing of thc Rriksasrs" 2. ,a/2. XSXVIl' V' 44'

ch.

stvled ' I(ing of Yaksas

308

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(cEYLoN) [Vor. XXXI

No"

82

.-rg2gl

pRE_BUDDHrsr

REr,rcrous BELTEFs

309

interesting story of a fight between him and GofhaImbara, one of the ten warriors of Duffhgemaqi'(t) In the first of the three supposed visits of the Buddha
to Ceyion, he is saicl to have preached his doctrine to Sumana' the cleity who had his abode on the summit of Samantakufa (Adam's Peak). It is, therefore, probable that this deity was known to the Sinhalese before their acceplance of
1

appears amongst the peaks

vaka Jdtaka ; whereas, in others

Malrdor. (r)

of Buddhism. "tn: is.clepicted in early lluddhist at Bhdjd,, Sdnci, Bodh Gayi, and patalputra. sculptures fn some of these she appears in scenes depicting tfr" paaakusala

",*tf

from

.h.""pf."r. alone. She also of Govardhana, in a later stele

Mdna*

Buddhism. In the ilenatiya Sutta of t]ne Dt'gloa l{ikaya, a yakkha namerl Sumana is mentioned. It is possible that 'sumana of Adam's Peak was identical with this yakqa .and was later elevated to the dignity of ailetta' The fact that his abocle was on a mountain and not in one of the six heavens agrees qr.rite well with the epithet of bkutnm'adeua 'the gods of the earth' applied to the yaksas. Elsewhere, I have identified him with the Mahay5,na Bodhisattva Samantabhadra ; guided by the iconographical representation of the deity in later times;('?) Such merging in of local deities with gods o{ a more universal character is a familiar
phenomenon.

Another yaksini was installed at the southern gate of the city. Her name is not given; but it is said that in her previous birth, she was thl slave *o_ur, who rescued Pan{ukdbhaya, in his infancy, f.o_ inl plots laid out by his uncles, to murder him. (f

The Tr lwahaarmsa, lllestern Lile

Yaksinis.
Oi the female spirits worshipped in ancient Anuradhapura, in the fourth century 13.C., the first in importance was Va{avamukhi, the mare faced fairy who seerrr-s to have been specially honoured by Pal{ukdbhaya as she was installed rvithin the

nsal th. prof. Geiger, in the introduction to his edition of tnuilfr.onicle comments on the name as follow-s :_The nu^" porr:himard,jiniseems to mean 'the Western pueens: j it is used for the name of the chapel or sanctrrary of those goddesses" I think, it is not merely (at the Western :!0"t " Gate). We cto not know ."ythirr;: ;l*"r"r, .ro,rt rhe

bhaya instailed a rvestern gate of aucient Anuraclhapura.

chapter X, v. 89, tells us that panflukEgocidess named e"."fl*".U;ini

eue6n"

*?, built

accidental, that the ."rr""to"r1r of the facchimar_ pacchimad.ad,raaisat,iage

royal palace itself. There is hardly any doubt that

Va{avEmrrkhi was the same as the yakpini named Assamukhi, mentionecl in the Padakusaiam5,navaka Jetaka'(3) Inthis

story, she acted as a fairy god-mother to the Bodhisattva then known as Paclakusala. She taughthim a charm by the virtue of which one was able to detect a thief even a{ter the expiry of seven years. Assamukhi seems to have been the .centr-e of a popular cult in North India at the time of the rise

I'rdbhaya.

the accusative singuJar. Therefore, it is evident thut ;;y one .Western [ueen,' and not many of them, was instatted by pan{uChinese

p.accltintard,jinim,if. tak.enas the correct

go".r, ; ;;"):;.r" perhaps death (s) prof. Geiger translates the word p acchimard,j ini ir.s if it were in the plural number. It I singular ; one of the variant forms occ'ri*,f ,ilT"fl:l,1:lJ
godtlesses. "

character of these Western

o.,il, l'

., .Tn" the identity of this . Western

r.
See Coomaraswamy,

pilgrim Hieun Tsiang gives us a clue to go..rr., ifJ glrr., t*o versions
g5. X. ^Histoly

r. Ediiinn of r9o7, P. 87 ff. ;. ee Mahayaii'siin Cfu,Ion C. J. 3. Jataha, III. P. 5oz ff.

Sc'

VoIII' pt' r p'64'

p"

26, ...

11,1y.,

of Ind,ian and Ind,ouesialx Art,

Introduction, p. LIV.

3.

Mahduamsa, Geiger,s

"aitio.r,

3ro

JouRNAL, R.A.s.

(cEYLoN) [Vor' XXXI

'

\o. 82.-1929]

pRE_BUDDHrsl RELrGrous

BELTEFS 3rr

of the legend connected with the origin of the

basecl on the Sanskrit Si11r'h'ald'aadd'na'

Siniialese was what was told him people; one of them, most probably, ty ift" Sinhalese monks whom lie met at Keici' and the other

In the {ormer version' princess with a lion"their living the meeting of the amorous manner together, the birth of a son and claughter to thern' the the lion's in which the rnother an<1 chilclren escapecl from the lion's 'den, their subsequent arrival in a human habitation' the ravages committed by pursuit of his wi{e ancl chilclren, in. Ung of the beasts among the country {olk' the king's pro"I"-ation offering a rich reward to any person rvho would tia fri. couutry o{ this unwelcome visitor and the killing of the lion by his own son agree, in the main' with the version of this legend as tolcl in the Ceylon chronicles' From this point, Hieun Tsiang's narrative differs t'idely from the Ceylonese traclition. According to the latter' the lion's son was cfferecl the kingclom of Vanga by the grate{ui people. He refused this ofier, and rvent to La$a where he founded a city ancl reigned there with his sister as his queen'
His son wasVijaya, the conquerorof Ceylon and the eponymous

came to this Ratnadvrpa. Seeing it abounded gems, he took up his abocie here.,, r:ame

shall be banishecl from the country as the punishment of your crime. Thus, the laws will not be ilfringecl ancl the king,s worcl not vioiated.' On this, he prepared two large shi"ps iboats) in which he storecl much provision (c,rrecl rice or other grain). 'fhe mother he detainecl in the kingclom, and provided her lvith all necessa.ry things as the ,eJurd of the services clone. The son anrl daughter each were placed in a sep&rate boat, and aba'.oned to the chance of the ouot". ancl thewind. The boat in which the son r,vas embarkecl, clriven over the sea,

to assuage, and rvhose hateful tempers are casily arousecl; tiut to kiii your own father, this is a rebeilious (unnatural) tlisposition. I wiil reward your goocl cieed largely; but you

with precious

hero of the Sinhalese race. According

to Hieun Tsiang' it

was the lion's son, and not his granclson, who colonised Ceylon ; ancl the lion's daughter, the sister of Simhala,was tl're a.ncestress

tiasses. They then buiit a city and erectecl towns, and seized on the territory by force; ancl because their original founcier got his name by catching a jion, they cailecl the country lafter his name) Sirhhala,,, boat in which the girl was embarkecl was clriven ,rver the sea till it reacired persia (po-la-sse), the abode of demons who by intercourse wiili her engenclered "l'estern a clan of wcimen chilclren, anci therefore the country is now
" The

" Afterwards, merchants seeking for gems frequently to the island. He then killecl the merchant chief and detained his chilclren. Thus he extencled his race. His sons and grandsons becoming numerous, they proceede<l to elect a king ancl ministers anrl to clivide the people into

of a race of Amazons hnown as the 'Western Women'' That part of the story which is pertinent to the subject under dis-

cussionmaybestbegivenintheChinesepilgrim'sou'rlwotds' " The king then saici, ' Who is this man who has done such a rvonclerful deed ? Allurecl by promises o{ reward tl're c.n the one hand, ancl alarmed by {ear of punishment on he at last revealed the wbole other, if he kept back anything, from beginning to end ancl told tlie touching story without reserve" The king said 'Thou wretch, if thou wouldst kill thy father, how much more those not related to thee ! Your <leserts indee<1 are great for clelivering my people from the savage cruelty of a beast whose (passion) it is difBcuit

r:eputed founrler of the sinharese

;allecl the country of the Western lVomen.,,{r) According to this story, the ancestress of this mythical race of the 'Western Women , rvas the sister o{ Sinihala,
the

that tlieir queen (i.e. the Western Oueen) lvas an object of ;iopular veneration among the primitive Sinhalese. As
:139-240.

race. Therefore, it is natural

r. Beal's

Bud,d.hist Reaord.s

of the Western World,, yol" II. pp.

3rz

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(covroN) [\ror. XXXI"

No.

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pRE-BUDDHrsr RELrGrous BELTEFS

313

these women are said to have had their origin by the intercourse of Sinihala's sister with the western demons (yaksas), the worship of their queen must be considered one phase of

the then widely prevalent yakqa cult.

In his account of Persia, through which country he passed onhisreturn to China, Hieun Tsiang gives some more inform,ation about the 'Western Women.' He says:-" To the southwest of Fo-lin, (1) in an island of the sea, is the kingdom of the Western Women. Here, there are only women, lvith no men ; they possess a large quantity of gems and precious stones, which they exchange in Fo-lin. Therefore, the king of Fo-lin sends certain men to live with them for a time. If they should have male children, they are not allowed to bring them up." 1z;
The existence, to the west of India, of an island inhabited by a race of Amazons has also been believed in by mediaeval travellers. Marco Polo says that 5oo miles to the south of Kesmacoran (identified with Makran in Balrrchistan) there was an island of Males and another of Females. About their location" Colonel Yule, the editor of Marco Polo remarks :" It is not perhaps of much use to seek a serious identification of the locality of these islands or, as Marsden has done, to rationalise the fable. It ran from time immemorial and" as nobody ever found the islands, their locality shifted with the horizon though the legend long hung about Socotra and its vicinity"" (3 ) Yule also gives reference to other mediaeval travellers who had left accounts of these two islands.

The women were ca.st ashore in an island where they founcl h.sbands' The Island was thenceforward knorr'n as Mahitadvipei, (the Island of Females). The ship in which the children sailed was driven to another island which received thename of Nagnadvipa (the Island of Nakerl Men). These
two islandscorrespond to the two mentioned by Marco polo.

According to the Mahauaritsa narrative, the ancestress of the inhabitarrts of the Female Island was the wife and not the sister of the hero of the Sjmhaia legend.. This confusion may be drre to the fact that the clan to which Vijaya belonged
seems

(t)

to have practiced the custorn of sister marriage.

stories about the island of the in t]ne Mahdaaritsa version of the Sinihala legend. When Vijaya, the conqueror of Ceylon, was
reminisence
Amazons is also found

of the

banished with his foilowers from his native land, their wives were sent abroad in one ship and their children in another.

his expedition to south India. Mv informant also tolcl me that Stripura is but another name for Malabar" This Sinhalese tradition about a race o{ women reputed to have livecl some_ where on the west coast of India is supported by persian and Arab travellers of the ninth century A.D. who . reported at Bussora that there dwelt in the kingdom of Thafek on the west coast of India, a race of women very fair and beautiful, ,A.ccorcling to its situation as given by these travellers, J. Kennedy thinks that the land of these fair women was somewhere in the neighbourhoocl of Goa. He also mentions that there is alocal tradition in Goa to the effect ,that there existed not far off to the south-east a race of women noted for their fairness and their beauty, the descendants of a portuguese convent of dissolute nuns who had established a community of free love and were rulerl by an abbess , (z; Ibn Batuta, the uxorious Arah traveller of the fourteenth centurv had
Etymologic_ally, the names Mahilddvrpa and seern to be identical with Maladive and Nicobai, the Nagnadvipa name"s oi groups of jstands ofi rhe u.est coast of Ceylon. ' tw"niiiiiipi:iii. ti,o ^""'

Sinhalese folklore, too, knows of a land, namecl Stripura (the City of \{/omen), peopled by a race of Amazons" I have heard that Gajabahu I, the hero of many a popular ballad of theSinhalese, visited this Land of Women on the occasion of

r, Sup-posed to be the same as the Byzantine empire. 2. Beal, op cit, p. 279. 3. Yule, Traaels oJ Marco Polo,London, tgz6. Vol, II. pp" 4o4405.

Motadiua and Naggadipo:T. N;ii";;ril' 2. J. R. A. S. Ior r9o4. p. 163.

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RELr(;IOUS

BDT.IEFS 3r5

also heard about this land o{ women; and triecl to get definite

information about it

; but without success. (1) From the above, it becomes clear that the mytli of a race of Amazons living somervhere to tire west of India or in the

west of India itself r,vas rvideiy prevalent {rom remote down to modern times" In the time of Hieun Tsiang, it lvas believed that these women had their origin in the sister of Siriihala. The mention of the Female Island in the Mahauarir,sa in this connexion, and the stories still current in Sinhalese folklore about a ' City of Women' points to the fact that the myth of the Arnazons was known in ancient Ceylon. 'lherefore, it is hardiv open to doubt that the 'Western Queen' of PaTqlukebhaya's time was the queen of 'the WesternWomen' rnentioned by the Chinese traveller" Wrat the nature of this godcless's cult rvas, when she ceasecl to be an object of popular devotion, rvhether there are anv traces of her cult in modern Sinhalese folk religion and whether her cult was absorbed in that of any of the female divinities worshipped by the Sinhalese today, are questions, there is not suffrcient evidence to answer rvitir certainty. Genenal Remarks on the Yaks.a Cults, Considering the wide diffusion. in ancient Ceylon, of the cult of the yaksas, some remarks about these heings in general may be appropriate here.(') From what n'e learn in the Buddhist and Jaina writings, the belicf in, and propitiation of the yaksas appear to have been tire principal factor in the reiigion of the middle and lower classes of society in India during the times preceeding and just following the advent of the Budclha. In many a Buddhist legend, we read of yaksas wiro had their abodes in trees,lal<es,mountains, rivers, ,and other striking natural phenomena. As a class,

the yaksas corresponded verv closely to the fairies and elves of European rnythology. The great majority of the early converts to Buddhism in Inclia were from the ciasses of people devoted to 1'aksa cults anci evcn after their adoption of the highcr faith, the1, continued to honour their former gods. .{mong tire sculptures of Barahut, one of the earliest Buddhist sttpas in India, thcre are clepicted a large number o{ yaksas ; ancl the earliest known sculptures in tlie rounci,in India, are figures of these demigods. ('; Several legends narrate how the Buddha converted man]- of these yaksas and thereafter

these beings gave

up their evil ways and became

good

Bucldtrists themselves. Ea"ch of these iegends, it is evident, comlneil]orates the conversion of a yaksa worshipping tribe to the tenets of Buddhisrn. The people, loth to give up their familiar superstitions, convertecl the object of their former veneration to the new faitiithey bad adopted;and, divesting hirn of those features not in keeping with Buddhistic ideas, continued to honour him in a new capacit)'. We have seen above that this has happened in Ceylon in the case of the genius of tire Tissavlpi. Each country and town in ancient India had its tutelary Mah,amdyilrr,,(2) a magical text of theNorthern Buddhists, whicli rvas translated into Chinese in the fourth century A"D., gives a long list of srich yaksas and the piaces rvhere thev had their abode. Among these, three, namely, Vibhisala, (3 ) Kalasodara, (a ) and Dhane(vara(u )are saicl to he the tuteiary yakqas of Ceylon. Of these, the first, Vibhisala, lhe brothcr o{ Rdvana, is still rvorshipped at Kdlaniya and is supposed.tobe one of the four guardian cleities of the isiand.

yaksa. The

Dhane{vara

is another name of Kuvera Vaiiravana

w}ro,

we have seen above, was u'orshipped itt aircient.Anuradhapura

:is r " The Parkham, Patna, [Iathuri and Besnagar figurcs. Jayaswal o{ opinion that the first two a.re portrait statues oI Sisunlga }iings" z"- Edited by M. Sylr'ain Levi, in the J. A. for rgr5. p, 40 fi. 3. l'ibh,saltas Tdutraparnyu)tt.

ilnd Buddhism, Vol. I., p. to3, Archaeologi.cal Swruey of India, Llemoir No. 3o, p. 7 and Ramprasad Chanda int}'e Journalof the Department of Letters, Calcutta University. VoL IV, p. 77 tr.

r. The location of the Amazons in l\{alabar might tre due to the matriarchal organisation of society prevaiiing among the Nayars. 2. About yaksa worship in India, see Sir Chas. Eliot Hind,wism,

4. Laitthdydit. Kalasodarah. 5. Sihhalesu Dlta,nesuarah.

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in the time o{ PaT{ukebhaya. This god was, at a later time, incorporated in theMahdyanaBuddhist pantheon and several images of him have been found in Ceylon. 'lhe second namecl
Kalasoclara ('pot-beltied') may be another name of Vailravana. : The word yahsa is now generally rendered into Iinglish

us that they were dedicatecl to -vaksa worsirip anrl after the advent of the Brrddha, the people converted. thern into Buddhist Viheras.(1)

but the conception of yaksas as evil spirits is of later growth. Though, from the very beginning, the
as 'demons,'

yaksas were more feared than lovecl and were supposed to .cause great calamities unless propitiated in time there r,vas originaily very little difierence betwecn the yaksas and the 'devas. In fact, one o{ the names of the yaksas as a class,
was bhumytatleua ' llte gods of ttie earth.' The goci Sakka thc king of heaven is, in one piar;e, st5'16fl a yakkha ;(r ) ancl in one of tlre earliest Buddhist loots, the Majjhi.tna Nika1,a, the Buddhahimself is given thisepithetin a hymn of praise.( j )

of Buddhism as the national religion, the earlier

The conditions, in pre-Buddhist Ceylon, of the yaksa cults appear to have been exactly similar to those in North India in the time of the Buddha ; ancl, in spite of the adoption
vaksa

In the Mahamoy,urri, already mentionecl, Viqnu, Siva and Karttikeya, tlie most popular of the Puranic Hindu gods
are mentioned as the

worship flourished side by side among the masses and has persisted down to modern times" It has also given rise to a considerable amount of folk literature. Most of these, as ihey exist today, are of late origin ; and, a good. number of the yaksas in vogue at present are either later creations; or as their names imply, introduced from the peoples of a lower culture in South India. Still, a critical study of this literature, comparing them with the evidence furnished about the yaksas in Buddhist, Jain and other Indian literatures would doubtless yield interesting results. Tnee Worship. The banyan tree rvhich was sacred to the king of the Yaksas has been noticed. At Anuradhapura, in paq{ukabhaya's time, there was another sacred tree in a palmyra palm which was the abode of a god named Vyadha or Vyadhi
name

an inscription on

tutelary yaksas of different cities. In statue of Mafribhadra, discovered at

one of the rnost familiar of the epithets of the Buddha as well as of Vislu. The worcl yaksa is clerivecl from the root ya;'i, 'to offer,' and means a 'being worthy of offerings., The degeneration in th e meaningof this worci tinds paralells in

Pawaya in the Gwalior state, that -vaksa is calle d, a bhagaaat,(z)

the history of the word asura,

in

in India, and that of clet:a

of the

yaksa religion recur in the popular aspects of Buddhism. The worship of the caitya, so characteristic of popular Buclclhism in many countries including Ceylon was originally connected with the yaksas. The Pali pitakas mention several cetiyas u,hich existed in the Ruddha's life time at Vesdli, Rajagaha, Alavi and other places. Buddhaehosa in his commentaries informs

Persia. Some

deva.(,) There is some doubt as to the correct form of the ; both forms occuring in the manuscripts. prof.

of the principal

{eatures

Geiger adopts the form Vyadhideva and translates as . go<1 sf disease.' But as PaT{ukabhaya is said to have established

a settlement of hunters (uyad,ha) to the north of the city, it may have been that this god was installed for their benefit;
take the form Vyldhadeva as the correct reacling and translate it a.s' god of hunters.' This is also the view adopted by Sri Sumangala and Ratuvantudave, the learned translators
crf the Mahaaath,sa

and

r9

r5-rgr6.

r. Majjhi.wa Nihaya I.p. 253. 2. Majjhima Nihaya. t. p. 386. 3. 'l-he Annua! Archaeolgi.ocal, Report oJ

into Sinhalese. \\rhatever the interpre_

the

Gualior

Stale,

r. Sec Payanatthaiotihu p. j44. z. Mha" Ch. XV. "89.

3IB

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pRE-BLrDDHrsr REr-rcrolrs

tation of this word may be, we have here two instances of tree worship in pre-Buddhist Ceylon. The palmyra palm seems to have been considered sacred in ancient India during the time of the Buddha. For, we reacl in the Vinaya Pitaka that on one occasion when the clisciples of the Buddha cr"it dor,vn young palmyra palms to rnake sandals out of their leaves, the people made an up-roar and complained that they were destroying 'life with one sense' (ekindriyam iiuaryl. The Buddha in orrler not to hurt the religious susceptibilities of the people forbade the use of sandals made of palmyra leaves, with the remark 'that the peopJe believe that life dwelis in a tree.'(1) This passage would make us believe that the tree itself was considered a spirit. But in the tr,vo instances of tree worship quoted above, and in almost all the other references on the subject we come across in Indian literature, the sanctity of the tree was due to its being regarded as the abocle of a divinity who had an existence quite apart from the place of his temporarv so'journ. The worship of trees seems to have been intimately connected with that of the vaksas and the cult of the caityas. Most of the sacred trees owed their sanctity as the abodes of yaksas. Some of the sliipas mentioned in line pitakas and which are said by Buddhaghosa to have been yaksa sanctuaries were sacred trees or groves. Among the Bardhut sculptures
are several sacred trees which in the inscriptions engraved below them aresaid to be cetiyas. Quite in keeping with this, the cetiga and the tree are intimately connected in popular Buddhism. The tree specially venerated b5z the Buddhists is the asaattha (Sin ^Fo) under which the Buddha received enlightenment. This tree was already an object of popular worship in India before it was appropriated by the Buddhists as a means of honouring their master.

BELTEFS 3rg

There is nothing improbabJe in the story that the Bodhisattva

on that critical night spent his time under an aivatthatree. tsut the fact that this tree was already considererl sacred must certainly have contributed to the wide popularity which

Tire worship of caitya trees is also

its rvorship attained later

Diuyaaad.iina (p" 16+). paid to the Bo-tree, the tree cult of ancient times is still prevaient among the Siniralese. There are many trees in villages which are reputecl as the homes of supernatural

tlie Buddhists. attucled to in the Apart from tire special veneration

among

for fear of oflending the cleitv. Many a calamity

has overtaken
a"

beings and no villager woulcl dare to lay an axe on one of these

which

the village to a membcr of that family havins committecl the offence of deprirring a porverful spirit of his leafy abode.

rustic farnily is traced hy the wise men of

Patron Deities of partiaular Trades. If the cleity who hacl his abocle in the sacred palmyra of Anuradhapura was the hunters, god, it shows us that there were special clivinitics worshipped by the peopie of difierent trades in pre-Buddhist Ceylon. Another such deity was the Kamm:rradeva or 'the god of the blacj<smiths., When Devanampiya Tissa marked out the boundaries of the consecrated ground set aside for the Bnddhist Church, the
houndary line is said to have passecl by the sicie of thc shrine dedicated to this god.( t ) In acldition to these cleities of parti_ cular castes, there was also a guardian cleity of the whole city of Anuradhapura. His slirine is mentionccl in the twenty_ 1i{th chapter (r'. 87) oI the Mahaualltsa.. In that memorable encounter of Dutthagdmarli r,vith Bhaihrka, u,hen the heroic lcing went to face the Tamil invacler on the plain of Kolam_ bahalaka to the north of the cit-r,, the king,s elephant an<l
along r,vith him, the rvhole arrny retreatccl as far as the shrine of the city god near the bounclary of the Mahavihara.

r.

Mahdaaggd. Y. ?.

t.

t.

Xtlaqhod,dhir:anisa,

136

.)-v

26

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lVor. XXXI.

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Personal women reflect the religious beliefs prevailing in a country. 'fherefore, an exarnination of the names occuring in the earliest inscriptions will throrv some light ol our topic. The earliest inscriptions

Cult of the stars. names borne by men and

Cittaraja, contined till very late times, for Knox gives an account of its celebration in the time of RajaSinhaIL(ry The worship of the stars, in the time when Budd.his' was first bcing preachecl in Inclia, is re{erred to in the Tlcerigdthd
(v.

r+:)

are short donative records; ancl are all tsuddhistic. Rut as it takes some time after the introduction of a new religion
names suggestive of the changed religious atmosphere, those found in the earliest Buddhist inscriptions may be taken as evidence for preBuddhist religious conditions. The great majority of the personal names occtrring in these records are astral ones (nakgatranatna). From the Vedic times, the knowledge of the twenty-eigirt lunar mansions "lva.s prevalent in India and each day of the month had its particular nakpatra. These constellations \Mere knolvn to the primitive Sinhalese; and the custom of naming a person a{ter the tt'aksatva in rvhich

The Barahut inscriptions prove that, in the North_West of India, too, the people had a predilection for names
of astral conntellations. The Sungas, a dynasty which ruled at Vidisn about the second century B. C. hacl all such names,
suggestive

where, of course, the practice is condemned as useress.

for the people to adopt personal

he rvas born, was comrnon" The

Rasaaahini expressJv

e.g. Pusy'itra, Pha-igugimitra etc. This custom is stilr practisecl by the Nlaharajas of Travancore, whose personal names are those of their natal stars. The propitiation of heavenly boclies, as many other superstitions nf pre-Buddhist Ceylon, is still in vogue among the Sinhalese. But in the modern practice, more importance is attachcd to the tweive signs of the Zodiac and the planets than to the lunar mansions. The former, of course were unknorvn in India and Ceylon cluring the time that we are
speaking of.

mentions this in the case of Phussadeva, one of the'uvarriors o Du!-thagdmagi.(1) He was so natned because his natal star was Pusya. This was considerecl a particularly lucky one; and its synonymn 'fiqya (P. 'fissa) was aclopted as the name of many o{ the early kings of Ceylon. Other constellations which u'ere in popular fal'our were Klttika, Rohar;a, A{lesa, Phalgu4a, Vidaktra, Anurldha, Asedha and Revata. The constellation Anuradha seems to have been specially favoured bv women, for most of the princesses of ancient Ceylon known to us were named after this nakgatra, (Anuradi, Anu(li, Anula). The public holidays rvere solemnised in connection with these naksatrus; and were consequently called naksatrakriilrl. The clay on which the full moon was in coniunction with one of the luckSr stars was celebrated with great merriment and rejoicing. Of these, the K[rttika

festival, which has been mentioned

r. Colombo
r9o7

in

connection with

Brahmanism in pre-Buddhist Ceylon. Side by side with these reiigious beliefs of a lower level of culture tliat we have so {ar discussed, the Brairmanical reiigion also seems to have had its foilowers in pre_Buddhist Ceylon; and the Brrrhmanas helcl an honourable place in society in those early days. One of the followers in Viiaya,s train, Upatissa, who founcled Upatissaglma which was for some time the capital of the Sinhalese kingdom, and who rvielded the sceptre of Ceylon from the cleath of Vijaya until the arrival of Pa4{uvdsudeva was a BrAhmana and held ; the offrce of domestic chaplain to Vijaya.(r) The young prince tsa.r(luknbhava was entrusted bv his mother to a Brhamana named Paqr{ula to be instructed in royal accomplishments. lhis Brahmana was a man of great rvealth ancl it was ire
wiro

p.

16r.

r- Historical Relation, p. go. z, Lthu. Ch. V. VII. V. 4,1.

'l

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323

furnishecl Pap{ukabhaya rvith the sinews of war in the long struggle between the latter and his uncles' Papdula's son Candra, like many others of his caste in India, served Pa4dukabhaya in the capacity of a military comrnander in addition

to priestly functions.ll) Pa4qlukibhava's buildings in

Anuradhapuraincluded
a

dwelling place for the l3rihmanas.

(')

Another building of Pal{ukabhaya named Sotthisnla is explained by the commentator to lhe ilIahiiuainsn as 'a house set apart for the recital of tnantras by Brahmalas'. But this explanation is doubtful as the alternative meaning of 'hospital' has aiso been given by the commentator. Dcvanampiya Tissa had a Br5hma4a chapiain who was sent in company rvith the king's nephew Arittha on an embassy bearing presents to A!oka.(3) When the branch of the sacred Bodhi tree r'vas brought to Anuradhapura, one of the halts between that city and the sea-port was in the village of a Brahmana named Tivakka or Tavakka.(a) Among the distinguisheci persons present on the occasion o{ the planting of this sacred tree, this Brdhmana is speciallymentioned ;(5 ) ancl one of the eight Bodhi saplings was pianted in his village. (6) In theenumeration of the different places passed by Devenampirra Tissa rvhilst marking the boundaries of the consecrated area in Anuradhapura, the shrine belonging to a Brahmana named Diyavasa is mentioned in the Mahabod.hiasmsa.(7)
presence of BrShmanas

The Brdhmanas mentioned in the chronicles and the inscriptions were naturally those who were in sympathy with the Buddhist movement. There must have been many

was a Brdhma4a named Somadeva son of Vasakani. The owner of a cave at Yingala in the Nuvarakalaviya District is given in the inscription on the brow of the cave as Viritasana the son of the Brahmana Kosika lXaus'ii<a)"(')

others who were indifferent or opposed to the cause o{ Ilucldhism; and, hence were not mentioned in the recorcls of the times. Whether these Brahmanas were versed in Veclic iore and solemnised Vedic sacrifices, we do not know ; but the name Yagadata (Sacrifice given) occurring in one of the ' Vessagiriya' Cave inscriptions shows that even after the introduc"tion of Buddhism, a memory, at least, of the Brahmanical sacrifices was preserved in Ceylon. The llrahmanas are occasionallv mentioned in the Mahaaa,insa till cornparatively recent times and the oflrce of the pwroltita continued down to a. late period.

Jainism in Ceylon. Pa.r{ukabhaya is also said to have built dwelling

for tlre
nigary,lhas named Jotiya,

places

The earliest inscriptions too, bear testimony to the in Ceylon just after the introduction of Buddhism. They must therefore, have been living in pre-Buddhist Ceylon, too. And the presence o{ the Brdhmanas is evidence for the prevalance of their religious beliefs. One of the donors of caves at Sdss6ruva in the Kuruldgala District
r. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Z.
Mhu. Ch. X. V. zo fi.

with the

Giri and Kumbhal{a. (, ) The ward nigantha (Skt. nirgrantha) is applied in the pali writings to the Jainas, the followers of Mahavi,za, (Nigantha N[thaputta of the Buddhist Scriptures) a teacher contemporary
Buddha.
used

It is true that in later Pali writings, the word is

Ibid \r. roz. Ibid C}:.. Xl. V. zo. Mahiiuamsa Ch. 19. V.

V.Sl. V.6r. Mahabodhiuafisa, p. 136. Ibid Ibid

37.

vaguely to denote non-Buddhist sects. For instance, in the Dalhaaarirsa (v. zo9), nigary,tha evidently means a Vaisnava. But in the fifth century, when the Mahauainsa was written, chis word has not yet assumed this uncertainty of meaning for Buddhaghosa always uses it in its original sense. Therefore, it is likely that Mahdnama had the Jainas in his mind

r. 2.

These inscriptions have not yet been published. Mahduathsa Ch. X. VV gZ-gS.

J a'l

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(cnvlox) [Vor. XXXI.

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as

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when he used this word. Is

it

BELTEFS

poss ible thatso

Pag{u-

325

kdbhava's time, the followers of Mahavrra had penetrated so far to the south as Ceylon ? According to Jaina literary tradition, in the reign of Candragupta, the MaurSra, liig foilowers of Mahavrra under Bhadrab,rhu migrated to South India owing to a sevcre famine in the north. The introduction o{ this religion to Mysore, where it prcvails till rrow, is traced to this event. Chandragupta liimself is said to have accompanied Bhaclrabahu on this journel, and endecl his days in South India as a Jaina ascetic.(1) Frorn Tamii iiterature" too, we learn that there were Jainas in the Pagdya country {rom very earlv times. The traditirin of the rrigration of the Jainasto the Southin Chandragupta's reign has been accepted by historians a.s trustworth.v. If the Jainas, on this occasion, travelled from Magadha as far as South lndia, it is not improbable tirat some of tliem crossed over to Ceylon. According to the chronology of th.e MalruuLtrirsa, Pagdukabhaya's reign was earlier than that of Chanclragupta. But the dates of the early kings o{ Ceylon, as given in tha.t clironicle

Ceylon chronicles; and, fainism seems to"have disappearecl from Ceylon about the lteginning of the Christian era.

t'e hear no more of them in the

the throne, he demolished.theJainamonasteryand built the i\bhiryagiri Vihnra in that place. (r ) Accorcling trs the Maltd_ vai.r.sa!6hd,. ilris monastery was the scene of a lragedy time of Khallatandga, predecessor of Vaffagamapi.in the This king, when he discoverecl a plot against his life Uy frir rr"pf,.*r, went to Gir-i,s rqonastery ancl ended his life by fire. At the spot, tvhere this etent occurred, entering th; Khailafanlga,s kinsmen built a cetiy-a called,the Aggipavisaka(r). Votto"galna$i's persecution of the .]ainas _u, p.rtrop. not confined to the destruction oJ the monastery oi Clri. At any rate

have been proved

to be untrustr,vorthy.

PaTqlukebhaya

was the granclfather of Tissa, the younger contersporary of I the great Asoka., the grandson of Chandragupta. Therefore, it stands to reason that Pa4gluknbhaya himself was a contemporary of the hrst Matirya emperor. Then, the rnigration of the Jainas tri the south {al1s within his reign and the statement in lhe Mahavarhsa that Pan{.ukabhaya patronised the Jainas seems to be a historical fact.
One of the Jaina monasteries built by Palduknbhaya, that of lhe niganth,a named Giri, figures later in the history of Ceylon. Valtagdmani Abhaya, when he rvas flying before the Taruil invaders, passed this monastery; and the Jaina abbot cried out 'The great black Sinhalese is running away.' The king kept this affront in mind ; and when he regained

No remains of any Jaina monuments have ever been in Ceylon. The earliest Stupas and, Vihiiras of Jainism tiid not differ from those of Buddhism ; so much so, that ryithout the evidence of the inscriptions or of it would be extremery difficult to iifferentiate iconography bbtween the i"wo. Jaina iconographS, had not yet developed in the times th-at we are d.ealing with" fn the period during which this ri:ligion was prevalent in ceyron thlre were no monuments i,'uilt of durable materials" llloreover, when Jainism c]is_ iippered, their places of worship must have been appropriated b.y the Buddhists_as it happened u,ith regard to the monas_ ieryof Giri-and any traces of the earlierfJith woula certainly lrave been otrliterated in this way. Some of the earliest stii;as of srnait dimensions may, however, be T:,t::_iuo"{ .iatna ln orJgrn.
fr-iund

paribbajakae, Ajivakas etc. wandering ascetics named the paribbajakas ancl the , .- In" rl'jivakas, the sect founded by Makkhali Gosila, a teacher ,:,rntemprary with the Buddha, were known in early
Ceylon.

r. Lewis Rice, Ilysore and Coorg, p.

3 ff"

t, M-uhduayitsa Ch. 34, y. z. Mahduaritsa tiha'p. 444.444.

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The queen of Panqluvasudeva and her attendants came to this island in the guise of Paribhajakas"(1) Par.I{ukabhava built a monastery for the Paribbajakas and another for the Ajlvakas.(?) In addition to thesc sects which are definitely named, it is said there were numerous ascetics who are referred to by the vague epithet of sant'a4za.(:') 'lhisword can be applied to any non-Brahmanical religieux including the Buddhist monks" To the west of Anuradhaptlra, Pandukabhaya is said to havc settled fi.ve hundred families of heretics"(n) \Vhat religious beliefs are intended by this term it is not at all clear.

Phallio Worship. In v. roz of the tcnth chaptcr ol the X[ahauat11sa, it is said that Pan{ukiibhaya built, here and there in ancient
Anuradhapura, houses namecl Sivikfrsala ancl Sotthisala.
The latter name we havc al.ready dealt with. lhat first r'vord has been explained by thc commentator as ' a shrine housing

as he gives the alternative rneaning of iying-in-home ' 1.J; Prof. Geiger, in histranslation adopts the sccold expianation. But as these trvo terms are mentioned in company with other buildings of a religious naturc, the lirst explanation might be possible. If so, in the tirne of Pa+dukdbhaya, phallic u'orship {ormed part of thc religion of thc peoplc of Ceylon" Considering the great antiquity and the ivide cliflusion of this cult,it is notimpossible that it rvasso. Kautilya,in enumerating the deities to whorn shrines shoulcl bc dedicated within a king's capi.ta1, mentions Siva also.(o) It is not sta,ted whether the deity n'as to be represented by an icon or by the li4,ga symbol. At this time, Siva irad not yet risen to the position of the Suprcme Deity as he becamc to one great section of

a Sivalinga'; but he is not confident of this intcrpretation

his orvii tirncs to those of a previctus age but, on the other ; u'lie' 'nve co'sider that pharlic worship lvas thc principal religious faitlr oi thc Tamils, the nearest neighbouis of in" Sinlialese, it is not cliflrcult to bclieve that the iatter people li'ere also attacired to this c*lt beforc they acloptcd B'crtrhism ; and also continuccl to honour thc Sivalinga evcn after this ervent. Propcr names such as Siva, Ilahasiva and Sivaguta rccuring i' tiie earliest inscriptions show trrat this gocr was rvorshipped b1' thc Sinhalese of the earliest perioci.
lLancl,

I-iquor). Tbe IIul.tcrutunsatlkd, ltas anotirer reference to phailic *,orsirip in ancient Ceylon. King Ma.hhsena, aftcr he 'nvas forced to clesist from persecutirg the orthodox l{ahirvih,:rra, clirectecl his rlestruclive energies against nonilucklhist religions. Thc chronicle sa1,s, that he ciemoiishecl several shrines of thc cicvas;(')ancl ihe tika add,s that they rverc slrrines trctusing lingam,s.(2) It is possible that the commentator unconsciously transferrecl the conclitions of

companv u'ith such rninor divinitics as the AJvins (the I)ir-ine Plivsicians) Vaisrava4a and Madira (the Goddess

of

0onclusions. F'rorn the forcgoing clisctr.ssion about the religious r--onditions pre'.iling i' ceylon when the missionaries of Asoka prcacherl the doctrines of thc Englightenecl Onc, it irecomes clear that tlrt_. grcat nrajorit1,of thepcopleworshippcd Liature spirits, callecl thc laksas, r,vho wcre sripposed to clweli in rivers, lakes, mountains, trccs, etc. The worship of ilre sacrecl trees or groves rvas aiso connectecl with this priniitive rr-'1igio'. The hea'enly bocries rcceivccl thc acloration of the ireople, ar-rcl to a great extcnt influcncccl their every clay life. '['he more intellectual among t]rc people, perhaps lollowed
tn.e {Srahmaptcal r'.,iigic." Ascetics of clifferent sects livecl in the collntrv and each musr have hacl his own following utrcng the masse,r. 'Ihese conditions are, on the whole r"ery simitar to the state of reiigious bcliefs prevailing in "\or:th Inclia clurinq the life time of the liudclha.

the Hindus at a latcr age. For Kautilya mentions liim in t" f,[ahd.aaritsa, Ch, 8. V. 24. 2. Ibid Ch^ X. V\r. ror, ro?. 3. ,Iifu. X, \r" 98. (,) Ibid \'-. roo" 5. -1[rthduanisa tiltu p. zo7. 6. l)r. S:rmasa,stry's translation, zncl erlition., p. 59.

t. .\,Iohritarisu Ch. 37 y.4.o. 2" trIahd.tamsaihd, p. 5oz

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JouRNAr-,

n.A.S. (Crl'r-oN)

The Governor said it rvas not in his po$'er to contribute anything o{ value to the discussion on the very interesting paper to rvhich they had ali listened, and it t'as hardly necessary, at tbat late hour, to s'aste thcir time and his by saying things u'hich were not rvorth saying. But he wished those ufio rvere in a position, to do so, and thus shorv their appreciation of the trouble u'hich Mr. Paranavitana had taken in preparing the paper and make any suggestions on the subject matter whith the lecturer had collected by his erudition. Dr. Paul E. Pieris saicl that as one who had had a particularll'long connection rvith the Societt'he u'ished to express his very grcat appreciation of the paper rvhich had been lead. It is of a type n'hich rve are glad to welcome here and which I am alraid is not so cornmon as migiit be and I can oniy expressthe hope that this rvili be the first of a long series of papers which rl'e shall receive from [fr. Paranavitana' I have long had the feeling that our Archaeological Department is more Lkely to produce us best work only *'hen it rvorks in conjunction lvitli the Dcpartment in India and the paper that has beeu iead to us tonight is to my mind not only proof o{ the great intrinsic ability of the lecturer, not onlv proof of the great -pains rvhich he has tiken, but also o{ the excellent training rvhich he has received in India. A number of tluestions rvere asked {rom the lecturer and an interesting discussion ensued. The lecturer, in reply to a question b-v Mr. E. W. Perela rvhether the symbol oJ the God " Ilanddri Deil'o," dug out {rom some part- in Anur6dhapura was still in existence, said that ]re knerv oI no syrnbol associated- u.ith tlrat God. lfe knew o{ a god dulr- 'lvorshipped in villages in connection rvith their harvests, h.eplying to other questions raised, the lecturcr dealt rrith certain criticisms'of-Tarnil and Saivite references. With regar<l to the refernces to " Lanl<a " in the Rfrmayana, the lecturer said emphatically : "' I don't belicve that the Island of Ce,ylon is the same as I-anka. I subscribe to the view that Cevlon is not Lanka, lvhich, perhaps, 1\as a mythical island which never existed." The Governor proposed a cordial I'ote of thanks to the lecturer and expressed great-apfreciation of the.paper. - They l'ere. all.gratelul to him-and for his orvn part he rl'as gratified to feel that in tire,\rchaeological Department there t'as an officer lvho was tahing so -much pains in the studl' of the foundations o{ the religions and other matters connectecl rvith the island. He hopecl that the department to rvhich Mr. Paranavitana belonged would continue to benefit by his erudition in the cause of research, and he lvished to express his thanks to the
lMr. E. W, Perera proposed a hearty vote of thanks to the President. They had been very fortunate in their past Governors in -having them inviriably as their Patrons. His Excellenoy had lot onil- b-een. their Patron but had taken upon himsel{ the onerous duties of Presiclent, and taken those duties not as a sinecure but very seriortsly. He hopecl that other members of their Society would take an example fro'm His Excellency and not only have the same sense o{ lo1'a11u ,,o -Ihe1' all the Society, but a'lso attend its meetings more frequentl.v. knew how-busy a man the Heacl of the Government lvas and thev t'ere Exceilenct. grateful " The to His acknowlcclged the verl' kind l'ords in rvhicir l{r' Governor Perera had proposecl the vote o{ thanks to him and the kind lvay--i1t which the in"etittg receir.ed it. It t'as ahvays a l2leasure for-His Excellency to corne to their rneetings and he had never come there s'ithout learning something l'hich he was able to carry a*'ay *'ith hirn

lectuler in a special sense. The vote was carried rT'ith acclamation.