Age of the Demons

 New Vistas On the Early History of Sri Lanka by Wijaya Dissanayake

According to the prevailing myths and legends, as recorded in the chronicles of ancient Sri Lanka and India, Sri Lanka was not an abode where human beings lived before the arrival of North Indian settlers around 500 BCE [1], represented by their leader Vijaya. The indigenous inhabitants of the island are described in the local chronicles variously as non-human yakkas, rakshasas, avaruddakas, pisaches (categories of demons according to the commentaries) and the nagas [2], a group that arrived later-described in terms of that confuse scholars even today and often translated as, ‘snakes, dragons or genii’.

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/a_s_h_pune/5083891002/

Semi-demon Ghatotkacha standing on Karna's chariot during the Karna-Ghatotkacha war. Bali, Indonesia

Buddha settling a dispute between two Naga Kings: Sri Lanka's Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara

The Yakkas [3] are often depicted in Sri Lankan temple paintings [4} as semi-naked, dark-complexioned, barbaric figures with prominent canine teeth protruding down at the angles of their mouths. The Buddha allegedly persuaded them to settle in another ‘island’ peacefully as they were wild uncivilized savages. According to the chronicle Dipavamsa, the island of Lanka at that time; ... had big forests and great horrors; different kinds of yakkas, greatly terrible, cruel, feeding on blood, furious and demons of various forms having different inclinations,…”

Some years later, according to the chronicles, on a subsequent visit to the island, the Buddha settled a dispute between two naga kings who were at war over a jeweled throne made of Lapis Lazuli, available and mined only at a particular location in the sub continent, identified today as region of Afghanistan. According to the archeologists, the mineral was exported along long-distance trade routes many millennia ago.
In their appearance and behavior the nagas appeared human, in comparison to the yakkas. They looked and behaved differently and belonged to a community who were more advanced culturally in behavior and life-styles. After listening to a sermon by the sage, they became converts to Buddhism.

Yakkas or raksasas [5] (demons) are mentioned in the ancient Sanskrit texts of India and in the Buddhist Jataka stories, as well as in the travel-accounts of various foreign visitors to the region. In his Records of Buddhist kingdoms the Chinese traveler-monk Fa-Hien, who visited the island during the early years of the 5th century CE, describes the prevailing opinion on the colonization of Sri Lanka and of its earliest as follows:

“The kingdom was originally uninhabited by man, but only demons and dragons dwelt in it. Merchants of different countries (however) came here to trade. At the time of trade the demons did not appear in person, but only exposed their valuable commodities with the value affixed. Then the merchantmen, according to the prices marked, purchased the goods and took them away. but in consequences of these visits (coming, going and stopping), men of other countries, hearing of the delightful character of the place, flocked there in great numbers and so a great kingdom was formed. The country enjoys an agreeable climate, without any differences in winter or summer. The plants and trees are always verdant. The fields are sown just according to men’s inclination; there are no fixed seasons.”

The chronicles, around 4-6 centuries CE, seem to elaborate the same mythical themes, and duly recorded them. Not having any reliable sources f information other than these enigmatic legends on the shadowy proto-historic period nearly a thousand years before them, they seem to have contributed to the construction of a myth-ridden foundation to the early history of the island. There was no tradition of recording history before the arrival of Buddhism.
References in the chronicles and other texts regarding these strange beings of antiquity appear ambiguous as to whether they refer to human beings or non-human demons and genii. However, according to textual descriptions, these yakkas and nagas from the time of the Buddha did exhibit the emotions and complex social behavior of humans, possessing considerable linguistic abilities.

The nagas in particular, wore excellent clothing, could make many implements and adorned themselves with intricate jeweler. The existence of such fabulous legendary themes in the earliest periods of world history is not unique to Sri Lanka or India. Such legends are encountered in the early histories of other cultures and civilizations referring to the ancient world. Such material requires sensitive interpretation and reflection in order to render them meaningful and intelligible.

Our knowledge of the universe, the world in general and its past history, have increased immensely since the 18th and 19th centuries, along with advances made in scientific knowledge-particulary during the past few decades. Discoveries made in the fields of pre-historic archeology, paleontology, genetics and molecular biology including dating techniques like radio-carbon and thermoluminescence, progress of research in the fields of ancient geography and climatology that help us map the tectonic movements of land, monitor sea levels and study past climates reaching up to millions of years, have contributed to an enormous extension of our knowledge regarding the past.  Such techniques enable us to reconstruct the early history of humankind, on a theoretically more realistic, factual and a believable framework.
Such data help to buildup an evidence-based pre-history of the island on solid and secure foundations than those inspired by myth and legend. Nevertheless, the picture emerging is far from complete and may need emendation or modifications in the due course, based on new discoveries. The account given in the chronicles about the yakkas of Sri Lanka may be skewed and exaggerated, but may not be false. We could indeed accept that ill-clad or naked dark-complexioned, hunter-gatherer communities that could be labeled as primitive or ‘savage’ lived in the caves and forests of the island before the arrival of migrants from Northern India bringing urban civilization and a new language.

The yakkas may have made definite genetic contribution to the Sinhalese and other communities living in the island. They probably survive culturally today as elements of the Veddha community, some of whom obtain a sense of identity, recognition and economic benefits by their claims to be the aborigines of Sri Lanka. Genetic and archeological information, as well as other scientific data available today provide further details on the so called yakkas, their origins, how they migrated, the routes taken, the approximate period of their arrival in the island, their possible lifestyles and even what they looked like. It appears that the new information could supplement the accounts in the chronicle enriching our understanding of this community as a foundational genetic component of the Sinhalese, and Sri Lanka people in general.

                                           A cave in the Neader Valley, Germany

From the evidence available, it seems that the yakksa were indeed ‘Anatomically Modern Humans’ (AMH) belonging to the species of Homo Sapiens, in contrast to alternative human  species that lived in ancient times such as  Homo neanderthalensis that became extinct in Europe around 35,000 BCE. The fossil bones of this particular species were originally discovered at the Neander Valley, Germany in the 19th century. They seem to have coexisted for a while with modern humans living in caves, leading nomadic hunter-gatherer or scavenger life style that included, hunting, fishing and collecting edible plants and fruits in order to subsist. There is archeological evidence that these Neanderthals made fire and used assorted implements made of stones, bone or wood, the artifacts of which researched in detailed by archeological data to identify and study their culture and mode of life.
Above is a gleaning from the book titled “New Vistas On the Early History of Sri Lanka” written by Wijaya Dissanayake, 2012, Colombo. ISBN 978-955-665-164-5
Wijaya Dissanayake is neither a historian nor an archeologist. He is a Professor of Psychiatry at Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo.

Footnotes by bunpeiris
[1] 500 BCE [1]
The arrival of Prince Vijaya and his 700 followers from Vanga (Modern Bengal) took place on the same day of the final extinction of Gautama Buddha in Kusinara or Kusinagar or Kusinara  in the modern state of Uttar Pradesh, India: 543 BC
Following is an extraction  from the  fictional rendition of the Arrival of Prince Vijaya off  "Divine Diary of God Vishnu" that would never be completed since bunpeiris is busy earning his bread without butter.

They close in & kneel at my feet at the beach of Lanka. “May you live long, my lord” the Prince greets me in Sinhala giving birth to the traditional Sri Lanka Holidays greeting of the nation “Ayubowan”. “May you live long too” And may your progeny live long too.” “My lord, what do you call this island?” ‘Prince, this is the land of Lanka, the resplendent island” The prince watches me intently. My answer addressing him with his rank ruffled him to an extent, yet not much. He is a fine specimen of a human being: dashing with a touch of arrogance. I read the mind of the prince: Oh! Lanka, a lovely little name! Of course it is a resplendent island; our palms are already copper colored. My lord, is this island inhabited? “There are no human beings here. Fear not, there will be no danger to you”
The prince watches me closely. He wonders if there aren’t humans, whether there could be non-humans. He also thinks of my blessings on his progeny, assurance. He has not even a faint shadow of a fear of any being. Right over his heart, he sports a huge solid mettle pendent, two human knuckles thick mini shield embossed with well sculpted majestic face of a great lion. The pendent is plated with Teflon providing it a kind of skidding surface: no great spear would pierce it. On his rippling arms and rounded wrists too are smaller versions of the same lion shield. His rear is unprotected: a sure sign he wouldn’t turn tail in the battle. Two crossed swords in leather sheaths hangs over his shoulders giving tell tale signs that he is ambidextrous.

[2] Naga
It is interesting to note that Mahawamsa narrates four kings, who had the suffix naga to their name: Mahallaka Naga (135-141 AD) Cula Naga (193-195 AD), Kuda Naga (195-196 AD); Abhaya Naga (237-245 AD) Siri Naga (245-247 AD). All of them were from the early period of Anuradhapura
[3]Yakkas
Ancient Sinhalese chronicle “Rajavaliya” narrates that King Mahasena (276-302 AD) secured the services of Yakkas to have the vast  Sri Lanka Holidays Minneriya irrigation reservoir constructed. Today Minneriya National Park located in Minneriya is a Sri Lanka Holidays attraction close to Polonnaruwa in the Cultural Triangle of Sri Lanka.
Quote

Minneriya

King Mahasen taking the services of Yakkas, constructed the Minneriya reservoir and dammed up the Karagamga chaneeling its water to Minneriya. Considering the sign indicated by gods, he constructed the Talavatuoua and bringing under cultivation twenty thousand paddy fields and caused to be constructed seventeen reservoirs, namely; Muvagamuva, Suralla, Didora, Mahaminiya, Kokkavava, Puskumbura, Ratalla, Mahaluvava, Suluguruva, Kalavna, Kimbulvana, Vattamodaragalla, Belipitiya Vadunnava, Siruvalaya, Rantisa and Minihiriya, taking the services of yakkas during the night and of men during the day time.

Unquote Rajaavaliya Modern translation by A.V. Suraweera, Colombo, 2000  ISBN 955-599-210-X

[4]
Visit Sri Lanka's Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara (Sinhala: Kelaniya or Kalaniya Royal Temple) at the city of Kelaniya close to Colombo.

[5] Raksasas
Mahabarata narrates of a semi-demonic [semi-raksasa] character called Ghatotkacha (Sanskrit: Bald Pot); son of Pandava warrior, the peerless Bhima and a she-demon called Hidimbi, the sister of demon Hidimba. Ghatotakacha, a character with loyalty being one of his paramount virtues, had given the word to his father that he would appear at a mere thought of him by Bhima. Ghatotkacha was duly summoned by Bhima to close ranks with Pandava in the epic battle of Kurukshetra. As it turned out, the turning point of the epic war, that ended with the Pandava victory, was a result of the life-sacrifice of  Ghatotkacha. After all, semi-demonic Ghatotkacha was a lion-hearted man of bravery, bravery bordering madness as the Alexander the Great that was still to arrive in history: a demi demon

Ghatotkacha was blessed with the ultimate boon from Shri Krishna that nobody in all the worlds, with the exception of Sri Krishna could match his magical capabilities. The mighty armed, Ghatotkacha, whose battle prowess rising up with the sun down, slaughtering thousands in a  single day wreaked havoc in the Kaurava army. Duryodhana, in his haste to have Ghatotkacha killed, persuaded great-hearted Karna to make use of his divine weapon granted by god Indra: Vasavi Shakti, which could be used only once in the lifetime of the beholder, had been kept in reserve by Karana to fight against Arjuna. The death of  Ghatotkacha [ the semi demon transformed into demi-god, at least in the eyes of Pandavs] at the hands of Karna, brought a grin to the Pandava counselor Krishna: Karna no longer was in a possession of divine weapon to use in battle against Arjuna.

                                    http://www.flickr.com/photos/a_s_h_pune/5082431907/

The day before Krishna had summoned Ghatotkacha and revealed the necessity of disarming Karna, who had just begun to take part in the battle, of the divine weapon Vasava Shakti. Ghatotkacha promised to battle with all his ferocity and might to provoke the Karna to use the divine weapon, knowing very well, the use of it could very well bring about his demise.
We are all pawns of the destiny.bunpeiris

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INDIAN WRITERS 1

All imaginative writing in India has had its origin in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, ten-thousand-year old epics of India.  An author picked up an incident or a character out of one of or the other and created a new wok with it, similar to Shakespeare’s transmutation of Holinshed’s Chronicle or Plutarch’s Lives. Kalidasa (1)’s Shakuntala (fifth century AD), one of the world’s masterpieces, was developed out of an incident in the Mahabharata.

Apart from this type of work, many ancient writers dedicated their lives to the rewriting of the Ramayana or the Mahabharata according to their own genius. Tulasidas wrote the Mahabharata in Hindi, Kamban in Tamil, and Kumaravyasa wrote the Ramayanaya in Kannada. Each of these authors devoted his lifetime to the fulfillment of one supreme task, the stylus with which he wrote etching the stanzas on dry palm leaves hour after hour and day after day for thirty, forty or fifty years, before a book came into being. The completion of a literary was marked by ceremony and social rejoicing. Economic or economical considerations had no place in a writer’s life, the little he needed coming to him through royal patronage or voluntary gifts. The work was read out to the public assembled in a temple hall or under the shade of a tree. Men, woman and children listened to the reading with respectful attention for few hours every evening. A literary work lived not so much through the number of copies scattered over the world as in the mind and memory of readers and their listeners, and passed on by word of mouth from generation to generation.

These traditions were modified by historical changes. Let us skip a great deal of intervening history and come down to British times. The English language brought with it not only a new type of literature but all the world’s literature in translation. New forms such as the novel and short story came to be noticed, revealing not only new artistic possibilities for a writer but also stimulating a new social awareness. Our early stories dealt with impossible romance, melodrama and adventure on one side and on the other exposed the evils of certain social customs such as early marriage, the dowry system, suttee, and caste prejudices. Many of the realistic novels of this period are in effect attacks on the orthodoxies of the day. They suffered from didacticism, but there remained in them a residue of artistic quality, and many books of early Victorian years survive as novels and stories although their social criticisms are out of date.

Between then and now we might note a middle period when all that a writer could write about became inescapably political. There came a time when all the nation’s energies were directed to the freeing of the country from foreign rule. Under this stress and preoccupation the mood of comedy, the sensitivity to atmosphere, the probing by psychological factors, the crisis in the individual souls and its resolution, and above all the detached observation, which constitute the stuff of growing fiction went into the background. It seemed to be more a time for polemics and tract-writing than for story-telling.
Since the attainment of independence in 1947 this preoccupation has gone, and the writer can now pick his material out of the great events that are shaping before his eyes. Every writer now hopes to express, through his novels and stories, the way of life of the group of people with whose psychology and background he is most familiar, and he hopes it will not only appeal to his own circle but also to a larger audience outside.

Above is a gleaning from the book titled Story Teller’s World by R. K Narayan. ISBN  0-14-012844-1

Footnotes by bunpeiris
Kalidasa (1)
It is believed Kalidasa (of India) Raghuwamsa inspired King Kumaradasa of Sri Lanka (515- 524 AD) to compose his masterpiece Janakiharanaya.  Having received a copy of the classic literary work from King Kumaradasa of Sri Lanka (then called Lanka), King Bhojo of India was so delighted, he had it exhibited around the capital, in procession, upon a caparisoned elephant.
It was not only to the King Bhojo of India that a copy was sent. A copy was sent to the greatest Sanskrit poet and scholar of the era, Kalidasa too. King Kumaradasa, the son of king Mugalan, who defeated King Sigiri Kassapa, the builder of Sri Lanka Holidays  Lion Rock Citadel City  Sigiriya , during his eighteen years in India, had developed a hand-in-glove friendship with Kalidasda, who had authored Shakunthalaya, Rithu Sangharaya, Raghuwamsaya and Kumarasambhawaya. Having read Janakiharanaya and elated Kalidasa visited King Kumaradasa at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. The king had the royal credentials issued so that his friend Kalidasa could enjoy his Sri Lanka Holidays with or without royal escort. During his sojourn the poet Kalidasa ended up at a courtesan in Matara, Ruhuna and found two lines of an incomplete poem inscribed on a wall of her bedroom.
The bee settled to draw the nectar
From the lotus with tender care
Kalidasa at once, having recognized the handwriting of King Kumaradasa, to take the King by surprise, that he hadn’t been intimated of the courtesan by his friend, completed the verse poking pun at him.
Bursting the ensnaring petals it escaped
Like ensnared here the whole night awake
The courtesan, having remembered that the king had promised a chest of treasure to the one who completed the verse, intimated the Indian stranger that he could claim it from the king. Kalidasa would have none and asked the courtesan to claim it herself.  The courtesan was overwhelmed with greed; Kalidasa was poisoned and killed. It was not long that King Kumaradasa too turned up at the courtesan’s.  Having seen the verse completed, the king had the truth revealed by the courtesan: an Indian stranger had completed it. At the royal funeral ceremony accorded to his friend, King Kumaradasa, unable to bear the grief, the king threw himself upon roaring flames of the sandalwood pyre. Having seen their beloved is no more with them, five consorts too threw themselves upon the pyre.

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LI: ACCOMMODATE ALL LIVING BEINGS AND ALL THINGS

Awake at Work by Michael Carroll

In ancient China around 500 BCE, thousands of burdensome social rituals dominated people’s lives. When to bow, what brocade to wear, how to address a government official, what ceremony to conduct, even what ornament to rest by the fireplace, and much, much more were all dictated by a rigid social code called li.
Through the centuries many Chinese citizens had learned to perform these rituals mechanically, turning ancient custom into worthless and often oppressive ceremony. Confucius, the great Chinese philosopher from that time, found such mindless rituals deeply damaging to Chinese society.

LI: ORIGINALLY IT WAS A WAY TO INSPIRE PEOPLE TO BE RESPONSIBLE TOWARDS ONE ANOTHER

According to Confucius, Chinese ancestors had originally shaped the rituals as a way to inspire people to be responsible toward one another and respectful of their world. But with such purpose lost, many found themselves behaving like puppets, following empty rules rather than living as dignified citizens of a great culture. In Confucius’s view, the original intent of li had been lost, with disastrous effects.

LI: GO WITH THE GRAIN OF JADE

Some historians believe the term li was first used by artists of ancient China who mined and cut jade, a gemstone cherished to this day throughout China. One of the enduring difficulties in carving jade into figures and decorative designs is its tendency to crack along natural contours. Some historians speculate that these lines along which the stone would gracefully and naturally crack were once called the li of the stone. The craver’s great challenge was to incorporate this tendency to break along elegant lines into a work of art, thus producing a work of beauty that relied inherently on the stone’s natural li. This original carver’s skill of bringing forth the natural beauty of the jade evolved over many centuries into a collection of techniques for sawing, cutting, sanding, and polishing jade. These techniques were handed down from teacher to student over the centuries as a body of wisdom also called li.
Eventually the term li came to signify any social ritual intended to reveal the natural decency and goodness of being human. So it is from these –the carver’s hand, the natural elegance of jade, and Confucius’s love of humanity that we can learn to be decent by cultivating li.

LI: NATURAL HUMAN INSTINCT

Just as jade has a natural tendency to break along elegant lines, Confucius observed that human being have a natural instinct to behave decently towards one another. A kind gesture, a passing smile, a desire to help others, all spontaneously arise out of a basic human goodness or tendency to be decent. According to Confucius, this tendency, li was the source of all proper and decent human behavior. Cultivating profound respect for his human goodness, he thought, is it at the very heart of leading a worthy life.
Just as jade cutter respect the li of the stone, cultivating li in society is central to promoting integrity and human dignity, requiring commitment and discipline. By cultivating li, human decency is never taken for granted but is acknowledged, respected, and preserved throughout all human activity-especially at work. Otherwise, when li is ignored, men and women can find themselves following pointless ritual, obeying the letter but not the spirit of accounting rules, remaining loyal out of fear, and avoiding rather than shouldering responsibility. Confucius considered a leader’s central task in shaping human culture to be like that of jade cutter; to inspire and nourish li, thereby promoting the health, wisdom, and spiritual well-being of all citizens.

LI: GIVE THE RIGHT OF WAY; OPEN THE DOOR; MAKE ROOM; EXPRESS WARMTH

It is one thing to say that li is our instinct to be decent and humane, but how do we access this inner ‘moral compass” of integrity? Recognizing li within ourselves can be quite simple and straightforward. One way to acknowledge li is to try to deny it. For example, the next time someone extends his or he hand to you in a greeting, imagine for a moment how it would feel if you did not extend your hand in return, leaving the other person’s gesture of friendship denied. Most of us would feel very uncomfortable. Try not shaking a person’s extended hand and see. Or the next time you are entering a crowded store or restaurant, don’t hold the door for the person exiting but simply enter first, squeeze past the person, and don’t look back-just keep walking. Try it. It is almost impossible to do- it feels so improper and awkward. These small instances demonstrate the irritation of going against or corrupting li, the natural grain of our basic decency.

There are countless simple examples of how li in its utter humanness pervades our lives: giving directions to a disoriented Sri Lanka Holidays tourist, returning a lost wallet, offering a seat to an elderly person, holding the elevator door for a colleague. Rather than being some grand philosophical notion from ancient from ancient China, li actually is our humanity at its most basic level –an instinct that guides us to be helpful, honorable, and gracious toward one another. No rule book can teach us to extend such respect toward our fellow human and our world. It is our li, our nature, to extend such simple and noble gestures.
Cultivating li at work starts with extending these simple courtesies toward our colleagues, not in the sense of being overly polite or contrived, but naturally respectful and accommodating. Over time, by calculating such respect for others, we develop a kind of ‘relaxed diplomacy” that becomes part of our work style. Because we are considerate, we no longer need to always make the safe decision or imagine the worst about workplace difficulties. We develop the confidence to sense when to be tactful and restrained and when to be forthcoming and direct. By cultivating li, ethics emerge as a natural expression of the mind free from fear and aggression, not something we learn from a rule book. As our commitment of li develops, so does our trust in ourselves that we will be decent, that we will ‘do our jobs rightly, with eyes open.” We discover that our inner moral compass is made of jade and that being authentic is nothing other than following the natural contours of who we are.

LI: TAKE THE RIGHT COURSE OF ACTION WHEN CAUGHT BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA

In January 2003 Time magazine chose Cynthia Cooper, former vice president of internal audit for WorldCom; Coleen Rowley, special agent with FBI; and Sherron Watkins, former vice president of corporate development for Enron, as Persons of the year. They were recognized as people who most affected world event s during 2002- not because they found the cure for cancer or negotiated the end to a war but rather, in the words of Time magazine’s editor: ‘They were people who did the right by just doing their jobs rightly-which means ferociously, with eyes open and with the bravery the rest of us always hope we have.”

Above is a gleaning from the book titled Awake at Work: 35 practical Buddhist principals for discovering clarity and balance in the midst of work’s chaos by Michael Carroll.

Footnotes by My Sri Lanka Holidays bunpeiris
Confucius (551 – 479 BC) was a Chinese politician, teacher, editor, and social philosopher of the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history.
Confucius "What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others."
Zi Gong [a disciple] asked: "Is there any one word that could guide a person throughout life?"
Confucius: "How about 'reciprocity'! Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself."
Analects XV.24, tr. David Hinton

The Chinese love jade because of not only its beauty, but also more importantly its culture, meaning and humanity, as Confucius (551 BC - 479 BC) said there are 11 De (virtue) in jade.

'The wise have likened jade to virtue. For them, its polish and brilliancy represent the whole of purity; its perfect compactness and extreme hardness represent the sureness of intelligence; its angles, which do not cut, although they seem sharp, represent justice; the pure and prolonged sound, which it gives forth when one strikes it, represents music. Its color represents loyalty; its interior flaws, always showing themselves through the transparency, call to mind sincerity; its iridescent brightness represents heaven; its admirable substance, born of mountain and of water, represents the earth. Used alone without ornamentation it represents chastity. The price that the entire world attaches to it represents the truth. To support these comparisons, the Book of Verse says: "When I think of a wise man, his merits appear to be like jade."

Incidentally, the only ancient traveler to have ever recorded of an existence of a large Buddha statue carved out of Jade in Sri Lanka was a Chinese: Fa-Hien (Fa Xian), a Chinese Buddhist Scholar monk. Fa-Hien spent two years in Sri Lanka copying the Vinaya Pitakaya (Sinhala: Book of Discipline) of Theravada Buddhism and returned to China by sea. Fa-Hien narrated:

By the side of the top he further built a monastery, called the Abhayagiri where there are (now) five thousand monks. There is in it a hall of Buddha, adorned with carved and inlaid works of gold and silver, and rich in the seven precious substances, in which there is an image (of Buddha) in green jade, more than twenty cubits in height, glittering all over with those substances, and having an appearance of solemn dignity which words cannot express. In the palm of the right hand there is a priceless pearl

.A Record Of Buddhistic Kingdoms Being An Account By The Chinese Monk Fa-Hien Of His Travels in India And Ceylon (A. D. 399-414) In Seacrh Of The Buddhist Books Of Discipline.

Subtitles are introduced by bunpeiris for easy reading.
In an attempt to deny li,My Sri Lanka Holidays bunpeiris, quite improperly, introduced a couple of words [ Sri Lanka Holidays ] precede the word “tourist” in this extraction  off  "Awake at Work" by Michael Carroll. He [bunpeiris] now feels very awkward of misdeed. He should practice what he preach: li

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CIA, FREE CEYLON & SWRD

CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] of U.S. A. part 1

AN ACCIDENTAL SPY
by Phillip Knightley

                           Who assassinated President  John F. Kennedy?

Twenty years later I was in Washington working on a documentary film about the exploits of the notorious British traitor Kim Philby, the British Secret Intelligence Service officer who was, all along, an agent of the KGB. The film crew and I had traveled to Virginia to have lunch with Harry Rositzke, former head of the Soviet Bloc division of the CIA. Rositzke was sitting at the head of the table, and I was on his right. I became aware that down at the other end of the table, Mrs.Rositzke was talking about India with the production assistant.

I said casually to Rositzke, ‘Were you and Mrs. Rosizke in India at some stage?” He said, ‘1960 to 1964. I was at the embassy.’ I said, ‘Oh, What were you doing?” He looked at me, a bit puzzled, presumably because he thought I would have researched his carrier before coming to see him. ‘CIA station chief,’ he said. ‘We were very interested in India in those days. Delhi was friendly but in bed with Moscow, and that made India one of the few places in the world where we had any interface with the Soviets.’ I told him that I too had been in India in the early Sixties.

‘Yes?’ Rositzke said. “And what were you doing?’ I said, ‘I was with a little magazine in Bombay, a literary magazine called Imprint.’ Rositzke grinned. “I knew it well, ‘the said. ‘It was one of my little operations. Shake hands with your ex-boss.’ I must have turned pale, because he added with some concern, ‘Didn’t you know?’ And then he explained it all to me.

The CIA had become concerned about Soviet influence in India in the early 1960s. Not only was the government friendly with Moscow, but the bazaars of India were being flooded with cheap but beautifully produced and lavishly illustrated children’s books about Soviet folk heroes, published not only in English but in many of the regional languages. ‘A whole generation of Indian kids was growing up to believe that the only heroes in the world were Russian ones.’ Rositzke said, ‘We had to get in there with some American folk heroes.’ The obvious answer would have been to have published the books in America and then shipped them to India. But the CIA did not work like that. Since-as is usually the case with intelligence operations-money did not matter, the CIA decided to set up a whole publishing operation in India to produce the books. Once that was agreed, the idea just grew. Why not also publish a magazine with a subtle pro-American slant?

The spin-offs from having a genuine publishing house in Bombay clinched it- a legitimate bank account which could provide funds for covert activities; a safe house for visiting officers and agents; a listening post for all the snippets of political and social gossip that go to make up raw intelligence. I suppose that, as intelligence operations go, it was one of the more benign ones, but it was still something of a shock to learn that, however unwittingly, I had been employed by the CIA.

Now Igor’s attempt to recruit me made sense. He was not after an Australian itinerant journalist who was passing through Bombay; he was after an employee of the CIA front. He must have known. It could not have been coincidence that the KGB’s front operation in Bombay. Sovexport Film, was right next door to the CIA’s front operation in Bombay: Imprint

What a joke it all was. What a waste of time, money and talent. Or was it? Indian film-goers got to see some Russian masterpieces thanks to Sovexport Film. Thirty thousand Indian subscribers got to read a few good books that they could not otherwise have afforded thanks to Imprint. And I got to spend two years in Bombay, one of the great cities of the world.

Above is a gleaning from the article titled Imprint” written by Phillip Knightly to the Spring 1997 issue of the literary periodical GRANTA. Granta 57: India, the Golden Jubilee.

Phillip Knightley’s work for the London Sunday Times, for which he was twice named Journalist of the Year In the British press Awards, included investigations of Kim Philby, Robert Maxwell and the Thalidomide affair. His books include The First Casualty, on war correspondents, and The Second Oldest Profession, about intelligence agencies. ‘The Accidental Spy’ is an extract from his autobiography, a hack’s Progress.

Footnotes by My Sri Lanka Holidays bunpeiris

Who assassinated the supreme leader of Free Ceylon, the nationalist Prime Minister S.W.R.D Bandaranaike?

ABOVE IMAGE: Indian President Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan paid a courtesy visit to Sri Palee College. He is seen with the distinguished visitors participating in the special Upasana (Assembly) to mark his visit. From left to right Sagara Palansuriya, poet and MP for Horana, Minister A.P. Jayasuriya, Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, Wilmot A. Perera (Founder) and Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, President of India. (He visited Sri Palee)

While I was studying in grade 7, I collected a whole heap of American books for the kids on History, geography, science and astronomy from a pavement vender at Bambalapitiya, Colombo. That was while going to Meteorological Department at Buller’s Road, where my father worked. All the lovely colorful books were stamped with “Asia Foundation”. When I asked my father what was Asia Foundation, he simply said it was a front organization for CIA. He knew I had already begun to read the past issues of Readers Digest, hundreds of them that belonged to him: during those long cold war years, the issues of Readers Digest carried espionage stories, of course, in a western perspective, of KGB spymasters in USA and Europe. However, since My father had already told me who was the real assassin and who gave the timing for the assassination of the supreme leader of Free Ceylon, the nationalist Prime Minister S.W.R.D Bandaranaike, in spite of the pro-western stance of the narrations, it wasn’t much difficult for me stay straight. There was no doubt, that not all of the Indian subscribers would get swayed by the pro-western breeze of the “Imprint”.

1956 Silver bell of Asia, Oxford educated S.W.R.D Bandaranaike, stormed into office of Prime Minister promising administration in Sinhala. Sinhalese had been disappointed that in spite of the independence, in spite of being relieved from the suffering under the jack boot of colonialist masters, still being administrated in English language by the English educated Ceylonese elite. Leonard Wolfe, a British civil servant of Ceylon (husband of Virgina Wolf) vividly depicted the suffering of natives under English language administration in his famous book "A village in the Jungle" True to his promises, Sinhala, language of 72% of population was made the official language of Ceylon, by Bandaranaike.

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