Courtesy - Wikipedia

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

13 October  2017

Media’s Mental Disorder

[Veddas, said to be descendants of King Vijaya, are known to be the earliest inhabitants of this land. Referring to themselves as forest-dwellers, the Vedda communities are shrouded in secrecy, mythology and mystery than any other group of people in the country……Also referred to as the Coastal Veddas of Sri Lanka, they speak mainly in Tamil and do fishing as their main occupation. But as of now, their traditions are dying and their culture has been subject to extinction. While on a recent visit to Vakarai, the Daily Mirror sat down to have a chat with AmbalawarigeVelayudham, the Vedda Leader of Vakarai] Daily Mirror Report - Vedda cries from Vakarai lost in the sound of sea

 “Many of us follow Saivite Hinduism and therefore worship God Shiva. But we also worship other deities such as Murugan, Pillayar and Amman. We also worship two other deities known as ‘Kapalpei’ and ‘Kumara Deivam’. In order to worship them with respect and honour, we have a ceremony known as ‘Sadangu’ which is a devil-dancing ceremony. During this ceremony many local Tamil people experience being possessed by spirit, going into a state of trance and speaking a different dialect of Tamil altogether. Since we don’t very much understand it people believe that they are speaking something similar to the original Vedda language.” – Mr. AmbalawarigeVelayudham - Vedda Leader of Vakarai

It was just last night that I was explaining to an interested member of Australian Tamil Diaspora, that we as a policy refrained from giving handouts including to those in Vakarai area which was also serviced by us. When I first met them I was in for a shock. Somehow I could not connect to them immediately. The place was different to even the remotest areas in North that I had been to. Later when I submitted the Tsunami Reconstruction proposal to then then President, Madam Chandrika Kumaratunga I was asked whether I was from that area? I felt that that was in recognition of the difficulties that would be faced by outsiders to serve that area.

I was appalled therefore to read the introduction : ‘Veddas, said to be descendants of King Vijaya’

Later, I brought to my mind the incident in which one of my grandchildren ‘changed’ the rules when she drew the number that required her to sleep on the floor-mattress instead of on the bed! I demoted the above reporter to grandchild status.

We have gone through a war on the claim that Sinhala Buddhists were the first owners of Sri Lanka with Tamils claiming that that they were the first owners in Northern part of the land known as Sri Lanka. As per my knowledge Tamils never claimed that they were descendants of King Vijaya and it is my understanding that a good proportion of Sinhalese claim that they are descendants of King Vijaya. Wikipedia confirms this as follows:

[Prince Vijaya was a legendary king of Sri Lanka, mentioned in the Pali chronicles, including Mahavamsa. He is the first recorded King of Sri Lanka. His reign is traditionally dated to 543–505 BCE. According to the legends, he and several hundred of his followers came to Lanka after being expelled from an Indian kingdom. In Lanka, they displaced the island's original inhabitants (Yakkhas), established a kingdom and became ancestors of the modern Sinhalese people.]

As per the above mentioned Veddha Leader – they are Tamil Hindus. His declaration is the parallel of Vaddukoddai Resolution 1976, to prevent ‘takeover’ similar to the above claim that Veddhas were Descendants of King Vijaya. If that were taken as correct – then one could legitimately conclude that the rulers of first Sinhalese were Tamils.

If not for the current cultural differences leading to Sinhala Only legislation and Buddhism Foremost provision in the Constitution, the outer form differences do not matter. Given that both aspects have been given form during my generation we have to respect the diversity and keep away from those areas when we are not able to naturally merge with the other group, but remain as observers at Equal level.

The Lion in the National flag of Sri Lanka indicates the connection to Beast in the Beauty and the Beast legend of Vijaya ancestry:

[The king of Vanga (present-day Bengal) married a princess (named Mayavati in some versions) of the neighbouring Kalinga (present-day Odisha). The couple had a daughter named Suppadevi, who was prophesied to copulate with the king of beasts. As an adult, Princess Suppadevi left Vanga to seek an independent life. She joined a caravan headed for Magadha, but it was attacked by Sinha ("lion") in a forest of the Lala (or Lada) region. The Mahavamsa mentions the "Sinha" as an animal, but some modern interpreters state that Sinha was the name of a beastly outlaw man living in the jungle. Lala is variously identified as an area in the Vanga-Kalinga region, or as Lata (a part of the present-day Gujarat).

Suppadevi fled during the attack, but encountered Sinha again. Sinha was attracted to her, and she also caressed him, thinking of the prophecy. Sinha kept Suppadevi locked in a cave, and had two children with her: a son named Sinhabahu (or Sihabahu; "lion-armed") and a daughter named Sinhasivali (or Sihasivali). When the children grew up, Sinhabahu asked his mother why she and Sinha looked so different. After his mother told him about her royal ancestry, he decided to go to Vanga. One day, when Sinha had gone out, Sinhabahu escaped from the cave along with Suppadevi and Sinhasivali. The three reached a village, where they met a general of the Vanga Kingdom. The general happened to be a cousin of Suppadevi, and later married her. Meanwhile, Sinha started ravaging villages in an attempt to find his missing family. The King of Vanga announced a reward for anyone who could kill Sinha. Sinhabahu killed his own father to claim the reward. By the time Sinhabahu returned to the capital, the King of Vanga had died. Sinhabahu was made the new king, but he later handed over the kingship to his mother's husband, the general. He went back to his birthplace in Lala, and founded a city called Sinhapura (or Sihapura). He married his sister Sinhasivali, and the couple had 32 sons in form of 16 pairs of twins. Vijaya ("victor") was their eldest son, followed by his twin Sumitta.

The location of Sinhapura is uncertain. It is variously identified with Sinhapura, Odisha or Singur, West Bengal. Those who identify the Lala kingdom with present-day Gujarat place it in present-day Sihor. Yet another theory identifies it with the Singupuram village near Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh.]

The above legend could be related to as the parallel of the Hindu tradition of animals being the vehicles of gods in the altar. As per my realisation the animal is the opposite of the deity within the altar. Lord Muruga for example is least conscious of His outer beauty whereas His vehicle the peacock is consciously proud of its beauty. Likewise Pillayar (Ganesh) has deep memory (like the computer software) and His vehicle the mouse has surface memory which renders speed to its movements. In terms of media - the former is wisdom and the latter is surface information.

The LTTE matched the Lion with the Tiger and took the animal into the altar. Mother Kali’s vehicle is the Tiger. Mother Kali personifies Courage  which means Mother Kali fights face to face. The Tiger however crouches and attacks – as guerrilla forces do. The same form of force is Energy at the highest level and is physical power used secretively on the other. Mother Durgha’s vehicle is the Lion. Mother Durgha kills to Defend (Independence). The Lion kills to attack and consume(Takeover after Invasion/Stalking).  

Like our DNA these hidden values would surface when the form is abused for selfish reasons. The above article written without depth for example, surfaced the stalking lion – in Vijaya – the son of two siblings – a system quite natural in animal kingdom. 

Those who believe that Veddas are the indigenous owners of Sri Lanka, then all migrants must pay their respects to Veddas when using their land for current purposes – especially Public lands. The Common DNA system would then empower them from within.