 |
History |
TAMIL HERITAGE...
The Tamils are an ancient people..
Tamil is the oldest of the Dravidian languages. Along with Chinese, Greek, Sanskrit and others, it is one of the world's classical languages. Tamil literature spans 3500 years. This language was the first to develop a distinct prose form of writing among the classical languages of the world. Tamil is the only language among the old languages that have an history of 2000 and more years which is in practical use. With slight variation in scripts and usage, the language still thrives. The literatures written in 200 BC are still learnt and used in their normal speeches. The Tamil Thirukkural is second only to the Bible in number of published translations.
Local usages of Tamil vary. There are differences in its usage not only among countries but even within Tamil Nadu, a region of India where Tamil is the predominantly spoken language.
Tamil is one of the recognized languages for official correspondence in four countries viz, India, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia. In both Canada and Myanmar, the Tamil speaking population is about one million. There are over 80 million Tamil speakers worldwide.
Tamil is a Dravidian language, like most south Indian languages. Other Dravidian languages include Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Tulu.
"From their earliest origins in Crete, the first Sea People
or Thirai Aavidar (Dravidians) crossed the Mediterranean
Sea, the great Euphrates and Tigris rivers of Mesopotamia,
the Arabian Seas and the Indus Rivers to create the world's
third oldest civilisation of the Dravidian Indus valley
of 3,000 BC. The Tamil Merchant Princes traded with Sumer
and Egypt as verified by their 2,000 famous seals discovered
in the archaeological cites, that continues to the present
day.
It was the Indians (Tamils), in about the 1st century BC,
who discovered and harnessed the trade winds (north east
& south west monsoons), to reach the ports in the Arabian
Gulf and the countries in the Far-East, long before the
Roman sea-captain, Hippalus discovered the secret to sail
to the country of the Indians.
Here again as late as 69 AD, we find affluent ladies in
the Roman empire adorned with pearls fished by the Parava
Tamils of the fishery-coast of Tamil Nadu and Mannar. The
Roman emperor lamented, due to the vanity of the ladies,
the coffers of Rome was running dry as a result of the import
of pearls and diaphanous textiles from South India...
Long before the 'Silk Route' was used, the enterprising
Dravidian merchants were sailing around the Indian coast
and to the Persian Gulf as early as 3500 BC. The Dravidians
of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa had their harbour in the bay
of Cambay and disposed of their merchandise in Mesopotamia."...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kappal Oddiya Thamilan
The Overseas Exploits of the Thamils & the Tragedy of
Sri Lanka - G.K.Rajasuriyar
27 March 2002, Australia
Dedicated to all those who love Freedom and Peace
' These things shall be- a loftier race Than e'er the world
has known shall rise, With flame of freedom in their souls,
And light of knowledge in their eyes'. John Addington Symonds
Contents
Foreword - Ranee Eliezer
Christy Rajasuriar's "Kappal Oddiya Thamilan - is timely
for today's children and people in Eelam, for each of us
who have been dispersed and displaced through out the Diaspora,
when the genocide of Tamils worsened after Black July in
1983. - it is timely for the millions who were forced to
leave the Tamil countries since 1830's in search of jobs
as administrators, railway men and plantation labourers
in the mosquito-ridden equatorial jungles infested with
wild animals, wherever the colonial rulers sent them.
History taught in schools was biased, naturally, depending
on who the conquerors were. Tamils have a continuous 10,000
year old history which will require 20 volumes of research
and scholarship. Some of these have been attempted by the
International Tamil Alliance of Research - new data keeps
pouring in the Internet and electronic mail from 58 Chairs
of Tamil Studies throughout the world.
From their earliest origins in Crete, the first Sea People
or Thirai Aavidar (Dravidians) crossed the Mediterranean
Sea, the great Eupharates and Tigris rivers of Mesopotamia,
the Arabian Seas and the Indus Rivers to create the world's
third oldest civilisation of the Dravidian Indus valley
of 3,000 BC. The Tamil Merchant Princes traded with Sumer
and Egypt as verified by their 2,000 famous seals discovered
in the archaeological cites, that continues to the present
day.
Christy highlights the first Eastern Colonial empire of
Tamil Pandyas, Cheras, Cholas and Pallavas. The first sailors
to cross the unknown perilous Indian ocean in 300 BC and
controlled the shipping lanes of the mighty Indian ocean.
Their role in the Indianization of South East Asia till
1500 AD is well documented by western scholars like George
Coedes, Sir Ananda Cumarasamy and Chinese Buddhist pilgrims
like Fah -Hian. By the 10th century AD the Imperial Cholas
were well established in the 14 Ports of Sumatra, Malaya,
Java, Celebes, Bali, the rest of the East Indies, Philippines,
Indo-China right up to Southern China. Their excellent harbours,
customs and port facilities make fascinating reading in
the Silappadiharam 'The Epic of the Lay of the Anklets'.
The Chola Empire lost out with the arrival of the Portuguese
with their gun-ships and cannons.
Christy follows up the decline of the Chola Empire by the
500 years of colonisation by the Portuguese, Dutch and British
in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). His emphasis on the Portuguese era
in the 15th century is illuminating. The Portuguese were
the first and greatest sailors from the West, in search
for the gold and spices of India, they also took their missionary
zeal of Roman Catholicism to save the "paganism"
of the indigenous inhabitants, wherever they sailed. Some
of their sadism rivalled that of the Spanish Inquisition.
However, their strong faith of a loving, forgiving, personal
God, has remained a bulwark among their converts.
Sailors and fishermen, their wives and children are the
most fearless around the globe. I would like to pay a special
tribute to our Tamil Roman Catholic wives and mothers in
Ceylon who have stood up to any injustices by the Establishment.
One memorable event was outside the Jaffna Kachcheri (Government
Offices) in 1961. There was a weeklong silent vigil (Satyagraha)
against an arrogant Sinhalese Army of Occupation sent by
the Prime Minister Srimavo Bandaranayake. The young, restless
and impulsive among the Tamil victimised began needling
the gun-toting soldiers. A senseless blood-shed was averted
by 20 white-clad Roman Catholic mothers, quietly going in
front, kneeling and saying their rosaries. This inspired
the rest of the terrified assembly to sing their hymns,
lyrics and bajanais, to calm down the seething tempers.
The courage of those white-clad mothers will live in my
memory as long as I live.
The heroines of the Mothers' Front who had the temerity
to stand up to the repressive IPKF (Indian Peace Keeping
Forces) were mostly the Roman Catholic mums who lashed out
at the fearsome IPKF commandos about some of their unspeakable
crimes against defenceless, unarmed civilians. A few of
the Indian hierarchy have remarked that they feared these
mothers more than they did the Guerilla Freedom Fighters!
In the first half of this book, Christy confirms the many
reliable sources of the Tamil population living for millenniums.
Some Karava Tamils on the West coast of the Island through
religious and political expediencies now try to pass off
as Araya Singhalese and Kshatriyas (Warrior cast) from the
North Western State of Rajastan, in India. Sinhalese majority
Governments have deliberately changed those once Tamil areas
into Singhalese Provinces. Christy's research indicates
that the Land Titles of these Provinces are in the Tamil
language.
The second half, deals with the "Tragedy of Sri Lanka".
It is the usual story of intruders and invaders throughout
history who use repressive regimes to stay in power with
programs of genocide. Pretending to be Democratic; they
perpetuate autocratic, dictatorial and repressive feudalism.
The Capitalistic West had aided these corrupt regimes with
profiteering arms deals. A 15% commission on each deal is
the norm that the Presidents to the peons and the Security
Forces share in the trillions of dollars. It is this very
lot, trying to sabotage the current peace process. Who need
peace, when it is more profitable to be at war?
We need to up-date our nautical skills and expertise and
firmly believe in our motto 'Thirai Kadal Odiyum Thiraiviam
Thedu' in the new Eelam being born. The rest of us in the
Diaspora have had to cross many Seas and Oceans for survival.
The Tamil Psyche will cross and re-cross these very waters
but this time over head by the faster air-ships in our efforts
to help in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the
Mother land. We need,too, the support of an enlightened
South who have suffered under self-serving leaders.
Thank you, Christy for your tribute to the 'Kappal Oddiya
Thamilan'.
Ranee Eliezer
Preface
Since publishing 'The History of the Tamils & the Sinhalese
of Sri Lanka' in 1998, I decided to write the history of
the overseas trade exploits undertaken by early Tamils which
earned them the epithet, 'Kappal Oddiya Thamilan'-the Tamils
who sailed ships. With this in view, I collated data to
include the tragedy of the foreign connections with special
reference to the Kingdom of Jaffna.
In the present work is enshrined records of the commercial
exploits of the Tamils, which was captured by the Tamil
poetess Avaiyar who wrote in the 1st century 'Thirai Kadal
Odiyum Theraiviam Therdu'- ride the rough seas in quest
of treasure. Historians agree that there would not have
been a Greater India, if not for the enterprising spirit
of the Tamils.
The greed of the conquerors of India, specially Sri Lanka
and elsewhere in the East and the tragic impact that had
encompassed these countries have been documented in the
archives and libraries in Rome, Lisbon Goa, Hague, Colombo
etc. Material has been taken from relevant publications
and recorded herein with special reference to the tragedy
which overcame the kingdoms of Jaffna , Kotte and Kandy.
A short reflection on the present conflict is also discussed
with reference to the part played by the Maha Sangha to
escalate the ethnic conflict.
I am grateful to Dr.Rajagopal Rajaratnam and S.Ganashemoorthy
for presenting recent works of Fr.V.Pemiola S.J., of The
History of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka during the Portuguese,
Dutch and British periods.(1505 to 1855 AD). These publications
contain translations of original official documents from
the Archives and Libraries of Rome, Lisbon, Hague, Goa and
Colombo, pertaining not only to the Catholic Church but
also historical material hitherto unavailable.
My thanks are due to Mrs. Ranee Eliezer for the foreword
and for her valuable suggestions, to Dr.Thedore Brito Babapulle
for editing the script , to Stanley N. Rajasooriyar for
supplying me with books from various libraries, to Scan
Brito-Babapulle for obtaining a picture of the temple of
Angkor-Vat of Cambodia and to many others who helped me
in this project .
Lastly, my thanks are due to Ms.Shereen Reginald for processing
the material and to my wife Celine, for her support and
encouragement without which ' Kappal OOdiya Thamilan', could
not have sailed.
G.K.Rajasuriar
Chapter 1 - The Tamils and their Trade Exploits
Far from the distant past, long before the sea-route was
discovered by the western mariner, the carriage of goods
for trade between East and West was by long hazardous desert
and mountain routes which is popularly referred to as the
'Silk Route'.
The Silk Route - First Century
AD |
This overland journey entailed confrontation with roaming
bandits who were adept in the art of ambushing the passage
of caravans specially through Central Asia. Although there
was an element of risk the caravans moved freight with armed
escorts. As a result of this, the cost of merchandise began
to rise no sooner it reached it's destination.
Long before the 'Silk Route' was used, the enterprising
Dravidian merchants were sailing around the Indian coast
and to the Persian Gulf as early as 3500 BC. The Dravidians
of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa had their harbour in the bay
of Cambay and disposed of their merchandise in Mesopotamia.
The merchandise in turn was carried in caravans overland
to the port of Tyre and thence to Egypt. After the conquest
of Egypt by Alexander the Great, the port of Alexandria
became the entrepot of the ancient western world. It was
in the Gulf of Aden that the Egyptian, Greek, Arab, Indian
etc., met to exchange their merchandise.
According to Srinivasa Iyengar he states that,
' Indian teak was found in the ruins of Ur (Mugheir), which
was the capital of Sumeria in 4000 BC and the SINDHU or
muslin is mentioned in an ancient Babylonian list of clothing.
The occurrence of ' s' in the word proves that this muslin
did not go to Mesopotamia via Persia, for then 's' would
have become 'h' in Persian months, as the name of this country,
derived from the name of the river Sind, became Hind. I
therefore conclude that muslin went direct by sea from the
Tamil coast to the Persian coast and the Babylonian word
Sindhu for muslin is not derived the river (as supposed
so), but from the old Dravidian word, SINDI, which is still
found in Tulu and Canares, and means a piece of cloth' and
is represented by the Tamil word SINDU, a flag'. (ZHT,pp
39 & 39).
There is some evidence that the trade of south India extended
to Egypt in the 3rd millennium BC. W.H. Schoff says, thousands
of years before the emergence of the Greeks from savagery
Egypt and the nations of Ancient India came into being,
and a commercial system was developed for the interchange
of products within those limits, having its centre of exchange
near the head of the Persian Gulf. The people of that region,
the various Arab tribes and more specially those ancestors
of the Phoenicians, the mysterious Red Men, were active
carriers or intermediaries.
The growth of civilisation in India created an active merchant
marine, trading to the Euphrates and Africa, and eastwards
we know not wither. The Arab merchants, apparently tolerated
the presence of Indian traders in Africa but reserved for
themselves the commerce within the Red Sea, that lucrative
commerce which supplied precious stones and spices and incense
to the ever increasing service of the gods of Egypt. This
was their prerogative, jealously guarded, and upon this
they lived and prospered accordingly to the prosperity of
the Pharaohs. The muslins and spices of India they fetched
themselves or received from Indian traders in their ports
on either side of the gulf of Aden, carrying them in turn
over the highlands to the upper Nile, or through the Red
Sea and across the desert to Tebus or Memphis'. (Periplus,
p 3, ZHT,pp 39 & 39).
Hebrew Scriptures of the Jews have it that during the reign
of King Solomon (970-930 BC), he sent ships which returned
after three years bringing in ' gold from Ophir and from
there they brought great cargoes of almugwood and precious
stones. The king used the algumwood to make supports for
the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to
make harps and lyres for the musicians:( 1 King ch.10,11-12-ZNIV).
Algumwood is identified with sandalwood which is a native
tree of south India and the duration of three years of the
return of king Solomon's ships points to distant lands,
perhaps, on the west coast of south India of present Crananore
(Musiri).
The precious stones would have been of Indian and Ceylon
origin. It is also stated Queen of Sheba presented to King
Solomon, 120 talents of gold large quantities of spices
and precious stones'.(ZNIV-2 chronicles ch:9 verse 9). The
kingdom of Somalia of Queen of Sheba, is identified with
the mercantile kingdom that flourished in southwest Arabia
during 900-450 BC. It profited from the sea trade of India
and east Africa by transporting luxury commodities north
to Damascus and Gaza on caravan routes through the Arabian
desert' (see notes ZNIV, p485).
The Roman Emperor Nero ruled from Rome between 54-29AD.
During the latter part of his reign Paul the apostle was
taken prisoner during his fourth missionary journey. Long
before he was put to death in Rome, St. Paul wrote the 1st
epistle to Timothy. In this epistle he exhorts the church
in charge of Timothy saying; they also want women to dress
modestly, with decency and propriety not with braided hair
or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds
appropriate for women who profess to worship God' (ZNIV-1
Timothy ch;2 verse 9). Here again as late as 69 AD, we find
affluent ladies in the Roman empire adorned with pearls
fished by the Parava Tamils of the fishery-coast of Tamil
Nadu and Mannar. The Roman emperor lamented, due to the
vanity of the ladies, the coffers of Rome was running dry
as a result of the import of pearls and diaphanous textiles
from south India.(ZHT).
It was the Indians (Tamils), in about the 1st century BC,
who discovered and harnessed the trade winds (north east
& south west monsoons), to reach the ports in the Arabian
Gulf and the countries in the Far-East, long before the
Roman sea-captain, Hippalus discovered the secret to sail
to the country of the Indians. This secret was revealed
to the Arabs in due course. This they kept it a secret,
until the Roman mariner learnt of the sea-route to the East..
The Periplus mentions three sea ports from which Kolandia
were accustomed to set sail for Chryse. They were the ports
of Kaveripatinam, Pondichery and Markanum. The Jatakas also
mentions three ports in the west coast of India. They were
Broach, Sopra and Cranganore (Musiri) and Tamluk in connection
with voyages to Suvamabhumi. (ZHS,p 20). The Kolandia was
a sea going vessel of the Tamils with two masts and capable
of carrying large numbers of men and cargo. According to
Hall, it is stated that, The Karo-Bataks of Sumatra have
such names as Cholas, Pandya, Pallava, and Malayala, all
of which come from Dravidian India. The dynastic tradition
of the kings of Funan (Cambodiya), hark back to that of
the Pallavas and Cholas of south India, when they ascribe
their origins to the marriage of the legendary Brahman Kaundinya
with the naga princess'. (ZHS,p 20).
From ancient times, we learn that the fortunes of South
East Asia have been greatly influenced by two of the most
populated countries of the world, India and China. From
ancient times, these two countries living at two extremities
vied to obtain the monopoly in the supply of the trade in
spices, sometimes with clever exchange of embassies and
most of the time with gun-boat diplomacy. The stake of India
in the spice cauldron of the Far East, was more of trade
and adventure than spreading of religion or culture.
Perhaps, they went hand in hand in spreading their popular
religious persuasion of Buddhism to Tibet and eventually
to China. Hence we see that during the last few centuries
before Christ, India and China had a common religion and
this led to cultural and trade links in the era of the Silk
Route' and more so during the discovery of the sea routes.
Along with the Buddhist faith the Indians carried their
art and culture to the lands of Malaya, Burma, Thailand,
Sumatra, Java, Bali, Timor, Borneo, Cambodia etc.
The Great Vaishnavite temple of Angkor-Wat
built by Suryavarman in 12 century Cambodia |
The epics of India of the Ramayana and Mahabharata compiled
in Sanskrit, went hand in hand in the propagation of Buddhism
and its tenets were recorded in Sanskrit, although the said
epics were a legend of Hindu India. According to Hall who
states, 'But notwithstanding the importance of Buddhism,
as demonstrated by the prevalence of its art, it is an inescapable
fact that most of the Indianized states speedily adopted
the Saivite conception of royalty, with Brahmans as masters
of ceremonies presiding over the cult of the royal linga;
Siva, says Coedes, 'became the guardian of the state and
a Brahman the royal chaplain' (ZHS, p19). This was without
doubt the first stage of Indianization.
It consisted of individual or corporate enterprises, peaceful
in nature, without a preconceived plan, rather than massive
immigration which would have resulted in greater modification
of the physical type of the Austro-Asiatic and Indonesian
peoples than has occurred'. In the wake of the merchants
' came the cultivated elements, belonging to the first two
castes.
We must assign a large role to these elements, without
which we could not understand the birth of the civilisations
of Father India, so profoundly impregnated with Indian religion
and Sanskrit literature'. (ZIS, p 23). As in India, the
Brahman successfully infiltrated into palaces of kings and
rulers with their powers of magic. The impact of these powers
on the rulers resulted in the Brahman being 'summoned by
the native chiefs to augment their power and prestige'.(ZIS
p 23). This has been referred to as an 'hypothesis' by Codes.(ZIS
p 23). This hypothesis has no basis in view of the fact,
It will be seen that Buddhism works mentioned above were
all texts on ritual and magic'. (ZCC p 71). This endeared
the Brahman to the rulers of South East Asia to an extent
that Indianization had begun aiding the much needed impetus
in trade. There is a saying in Tamil, `Thirai Kadal Odiyum
Thiraviam Thedu'- ride the mighty sea in quest of treasure.
The Tamil spirit of that age and captured in verse compiled
by Avaiyar reflected the Tamil spirit of adventure that
brought glory to King and country. The huge vessels of the
Pallava Kings of Southern India struck East-Wards on the
monsoon and by 100 BC, Indians met Chinese in the Straits
of Malacca. The Tamils plotted the course to the Straits
of Malacca never to be forgotten. They found it easy thereafter
to bead towards the rising sun from Kanchipuram in a direct
course to the Straits of Malacca. Their return journey with
the change of the monsoon they sailed with the setting sun
on the Bay of Bengal. It is stated by historians, that 'the
Bay of Bengal was a playground of the Tamil sailors'.
a) King Solomon's Mines
The Malay peninsula, referred to as the ' Golden Khersonese'
by Hall, was a prime target for the enterprising Tamil adventurer
specially for its abundant gold from Mt. Ophir thirty miles
from Malacca. Was this then the same 'Ophir' which is recorded
in ancient Biblical Scriptures and which supplied gold to
King Solomon of Israel?( 2 Chronicles,chp:8 verse 17). It
is stated that the two of the most important Indianised
states of Malaya were Langkasuka on the east coast, and
Kedah on the west coast. `Langkasuka is a kingdom whose
memory has been kept green in Malayan folklore as a kind
of fairy country or Never, Never Land, and a traditions
long associated with Kedah'.(HM).
The Sinhalese chronicle Mahavamsa has it that during the
reign of Duttugamani (101-70 BC), about a shipment of silver
which was sent to Malaya from Ceylon. The silver was discovered
by a merchant north-east of Kurunegala where the present
Ridivihare (silver monastery) is located. (MV,p 188). The
Mahavamsa reads as follows: In a southerly direction from
the city, at a distance of eight yojanas, silver appeared
in the Ambatthakola-cave. A merchant from the city, taking
many waggons with him, in order to bring ginger and so forth
from Malaya, he set out to Malaya'.(MV p 188). This attests
to the fact that trade with Malaya was in vogue in the first
century before Christ. Obviously the silver would have been
on its first leg of the voyage to the port on the river
Kaveri in the Coromandel coast, perhaps Puhar, before being
transhipped on boats of the Tamils to Malaya.
During the 3rd century AD Kedah of Malaysia was the most
important port of call of Tamil sailors who soon had a colony
to protect their trade interests, for the collection of
merchandise, storage and export to Tamil country. The find
of Hindu and Buddhist shrines and artefacts prove their
settlements, even long after they have been vandalised by
the Malayans who were converts to Islam. That this was a
great port of call for the Tamils in the 3rd and 4th centuries
is also mentioned in Tamil poem Pattinappalai of the Sangam
Age. That this port was in constant trade with Kaverippumpattinam
of the great Chola Kings cannot be disputed.
Duarte_Barbosa Duarte Barbosa, a Portuguese traveller of
the early 16th century states of Malacca thus, 'Many Moorish
merchants reside in it, and also Gentiles particularly Chetis,
who are natives of Cholmendal (Coromandel) and they are
very rich and have many large ships, which they call jungos'.
He states that merchants from different countries meet at
Malacca with their goods for trade. He refers to the ships
of other countries specially of China, but do not refer
to them as 'large ships' of the Tamils. The Tamils navigated
their ships to the numerous islands which are scattered
around and to Timor for the white sandal and they carry
for them, iron, hatchets, knives, swords, cloth of Palacate
and Cambay, copper, quicksilver, vermilion, tin and lead,
little beads from Cambay of all sorts'.
The foot-prints of the Tamils in far-flung countries of
the East, has been documented by the countries where they
have left indelible marks in the sky-line, of imposing Hindu
and Buddhist temples, culture, religion and in certain places
contributed in the development of their language, from ancient
times. Dr.Hultzch, has published of a Tamil inscription
which was found on a rock at TAKOPA WAT NAMUANG, in the
Malayan peninsula, of present Malaysia at Manigavamam (old
place name), which speaks of a temple of Vishnu built by
the Tamils on the west coast.
This inscription also refers to the presence of a colony
of men and Hindu colonists along with bow-men, apparently
soldiers placed there for the protection of their trade
with Malaysia, (JRAS 1931 p.337;1914 p 397).This was discovered
by Jameslow, a civil officer of Province Wellesley in the
state of Kedah in 1827 AD. This period has been identified
as the 8th century AD and may refer to the present Penang
in Malaysia. An inscription in a temple near Tanjore of
Tamil Nadu records a gift made to a temple in Malacca by
the Queen of the Pallava Nirpalinga confirming that Tanjore
was under the influence of the Pallavas in 855 AD. 'It is
stated that Kamaejra and Sopatama on the Coromandel coast
was important, so is Puhar, the port of the Chola Kings
who during the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD controlled the carrying
trade between the Malaya Peninsula and India:
This inscription found at Takuapa close to a Vishnuite
temple and written in Tamil stating that an artificial lake
named Avaninaranam was constructed by Nangur -Udaiyan an
individual who possessed a fief at Nangur, a village in
Tanjore. The inscription is dated 1088 AD when Tanjore was
the capital of Raja Raja the Cholan. The other inscription
found during the same period was at Laby Tuwa in Sumatra.
These two inscriptions alluding to the commercial activities
of guilds known in Southern India provide an interesting
indication of the nature and geographic origin of the relations
between India and Southeast Asia '.(Z1S, p 107).
b) The Sangam Age
The overseas trade which was in vogue in the 6th century
BC and spilling into the Sangam Age of the Cholas, has been
clearly outlined from a few lines of the Pattinappalai of
the city of Puhar where a large colony of foreign merchants
were present from different parts of the world:-
Like the large crowd gathered in a city of ancient renown
on a festival day when people from many different places
betake -themselves to it with their relatives; persons from
many good countries speaking different tongues, had left
their homes and come to reside (in Puhar) on terms of mutual
friendship'.
From the same source we gather the articles of foreign
trade in the following description:-
Under the guardianship of the gods of enduring glory, horses
of noble gait had come by the sea; bags full of blackpepper
had been brought in carts; gems and gold born of the northern
mountains the pearl of the southern sea, the coral of the
western sea; the products of the Ganges valley; the yield
of the Kaveri, food-stuffs from Ceylon and goods from Kalagam
(Malaysia). All these materials, precious and bulky alike,
were heaped together in the broad streets overflowing with
their riches'.
This was the scene in other ports of the Tamil country
of Sera and Pandya, where guards of 'Yavanas'(Roman and
Greek foreigners) stand guard in the Kings palaces. The
Perumbabarruppadai, a poem of the Sangam Age, has it that
there were tall lighthouses on the coast summoning ships
to their harbours for the night.
The early stages of the Christian era and the Sangam Age
seem so close to each other in time and age in history.
The author of the Periplus says that Roman merchants procured
every year beautiful maidens for the harems of Indian Kings.
The presence of large quantities of Roman coins found in
Tamil lands in Tamil Nadu and in places in Kantherodai and
Mantota of Mannar of Sri Lanka proves the presence of these
Roman merchants and settlers in Tamil country.
As for India a new and possibly dangerous sea power had
arisen in the South, viz., the Cholas who by the middle
of the 9th century had defeated the PaIlavas and made themselves
the masters of Southern India. Friendly relations were established
with this power also, as is proved by the establishment
by a Sri Vijayan King of a Buddhist temple in Nagapatnam,
for the support of which the Chola King granted the revenues
of an entire village'. (HM,p.81).It is stated that the pilot
vessel of the Chola fleet was named `KADEL PURAR', which
spearheaded their exploits into the countries of the near
and far east.
c) The Imperial Cholas
During the reign of Rajaraja the Great, the Chola King
waged war in 1001 AD against Ceylon (Sri Lanka), ruled by
Mahinda V and conquered the island and renamed it, ' Mummadi-Chola-Mandalam'.(HI.p,57).
By this conquest Rajaraja was able to grant Sinhalese villages
to light oil lamps and the upkeep of his temple named Rajarajeswari'
in his capital Tanjore .(TS).
Raja Rajweswari' temple, Tanjore built by Raja Raja
Cholan - 10th Century AD |
It was after this conquest that specially from the Chola
country more Tamils swamped the island of Ceylon. (Sri Lanka).
In the year 1005 AD, the large Leyden grant mentions that
in 21st year of Rajaraja's reign he permitted the Lord of
Kedah in Malaya Peninsula and Palembang, a village near
Nagapatnam for the support of the Buddhist temple at that
place, which had been constructed by former Lord of Kedah,
Srimava Vijayottunga. (VR.ii Tanjore 890-A; I.A. xxii.45,vii.224;
T& S.I.p 204; see HI).
In 1007 AD Rajaraja in an inscription in south Mysore,
mentions his victory over 1200 ancient islands (Maldive
Islands). It was during his reign that trade in the East
intensified in countries in the Bay of Bengal, Sumatra.
Malaya etc. The expansion of the trade in the East was carried
out by his son Rajendra 1,who had taken many ancient islands.
These lands taken over had colonies of Tamil soldiers stationed
for protection of their trade. An important source of pepper
was the ' pepper island' (Pulau Lada ),of Langkawi where
the Cholas capitalised in the trade of spices.
Langkawi (Pulau Lada) Pepper Island - Malaysia,
presently a Tourist Resort |
Most Malay states had a growing Tamil population many of
whom were Tamil Moslem traders from the Coromandel coast..
As recorded in the Misa Melayu, the Tamil trader had one
wife in India and one in Perak. It is stated that in several
states, specially Kedah, the wealthy Indian community formed
a powerful faction whose interests were not always in accord
with those of the ruled.
In the year 1024 AD, Rajendra Chola 1, sent an overseas
expedition to Malaya to strengthen the military occupation
in the garrisons built for the protection of their trade;
. 'In the Leyden grant of Rajaraja Chola 1, speaks that
a village was granted for the support of the Buddhist temple
of Nagapatnam on the east coast of Tanjore district.The
donor owner presumably by purchase, was the 'Lord of Kataha'
also called 'Lord of Sri Vishaya country' Srimara Vijayottunga,
son of Chudamani of the Sailendra family. Sri Vishaya was
the kingdom of Palembang .A inscription of AD 775 found
at Vien-sa in the south bay of Bandon confirms that the
King belonged to the Saliendra family. In Chinese annals
of Song, Palembang is called 'San-to-tsi'. In 1003 and 1008
AD two embassies sent by Chulamani Sri Mara VI (Jayattounga)
to China.(HI).
This shows that the reason Rajendra 1, about 1024 AD-1025
AD, quarreled with the ruler of Kedah and sent an expedition
which defeated Samgrama - Vijayattounga's successor and
perhaps son of Srimara Vijajattounga.He was captured and
his city seized; his treasure the (Vidyadhara) `taranam'
at the Gate of his city and two other doors with jewels
were carried off'. This Chola King extended his trade protectorates
to 'Madamalingam (said to be Jaya in the Malaya Peninsula),
Mappapalam `defended by the water'. Talai-Takkolam on the
isthmus of Kra, Panna watered by the river on the east coast
of Sumatra, Mayirvdingam by the sea a state dependent on
Palembang,llangasokam (Langasuka) a Malaya state tributary
of Kedah. Ilamurideram (Lamuri) called by Marco Polo 'Lambri'
in the far north of Sumatra where there are many places
whose names begin with 'Lam, eg., Lam Djamoe, Lam Baroe
etc., and Mariekkaysurtm the Nicobar Islands and one or
two other places:(4Lp 66 ). The dispute Rajendra Chola 1,
had with the ruler of Kedah, was due to the dispute Of the
carriage of goods by sea through the Malacca straits.
The Maharajah Samgrarna Vijayattounga who styled himself
King of the Ocean Lands, was short circuited by the Tamil
kings expedition where he was captured and lost his kingdom
of Sri Vijaya.(Z/S, pp 142 & 143).George Coedes, akKles
to the raid by Rajentha Chola thus, Perhaps this raid has
(left some traces in the memory of tha Malays of the penkisula,
for their annals tell how the king Raja Chaim (Suran) destroyed
Ganganagara on the Dinding river, as well as a fort on the
Lengiu, a tributary of the Johora River, and finally occupied
Turnasik, the site of the future Singapore'. (ZIS, p 143).
The place Kadaram or Kidram or kt another for Lalagam,
alt refers to the same place and it has been suWeeted by
scholars that it is identified with Keever Mersa In the
east coast of Sumatra not far from the powerful kingdom
of Sri Vijaya at Pakernbang. The Chinese knew of it at that
time by two. names San-fo-Tsi, equivalent of Sri Bhoja and
Santu -Sai, the equivalent of Sri Vijaya. Hence the kingdom
of Palembang has been known by two names viz., Sri Mu* or
Sri Vljayain 1033 A0 Rajendra 1,sent an embassy to China
which is noted in the Chinese tumais where his name is referred
as Lo-ch-into4o.chu4o. By this mission trade ties with the
Chinese were on a firm footing. This mission would have
entailed a convoy of shams carrying Tamil officials and
presents to the Emperor of China in ships with two masts
flying the Twit emblem of the Cholas at it's masthead.
During the reign of Chola King Kullottunga 1, an inscription
belonging to the year 1010 AD in Tamil characters was found
at Loboe Toewa, Baros, in the island of Sumatra. It records
a gift to a temple in that country by a body of persons
who are referred to as `Fifteen-hundred', perhaps a military
garrison of Chola Tamils stationed for protection of trade
interests.)JRAS.1931 April).(ZHS, p55 & TC, pp 318,319).
The Chola King Virarajendra sent an expedition to Kadaram
(Sri Vijaya) in 1068 AD and conquered the country on behalf
of one of its rulers. Having come to the throne he sought
Chola protection. The King of Sri Vijaya sent an embassy
to Kulottunga 1, 1090 AD and requested him to issue a copper-plate
grant containing the names of the villagers granted by the
Chola King as 'pallic-candarn to two vihares built by the
king of Kadaram at SolaKulavalli-pattinam, evidently another
name for Nagapatnam.ln the Smaller Leyden Grant, for it
is by this name that Kulottunga's grant made on this occasion
is generally known, the two vihares are called Rajendra-sola-perumballi
and Rajarajap-perum-balli, Me latter having also Me alternative
of Sri Sailendra-Cudamanivaram-Vihara' (Cholas). The parasasti
of Kulottunga's inscriptions mentions the fact that 'at
the gate of his palace stood rows of elephants showering
jewels sent as tribute from the island kingdom of the wide
ocean'.(TC, p 318).
In the travels of Far-hian and Sung-Yun, Buddhist pilgrims
from China to India in the years 400 AD and 518 AD had this
to say of the country of Java, in this country heretics
and Brahamans flourish, but the law of the Buddha is not
much known'.(TFH). The earliest of the all lndianised settlements
in Java was the kingdom of TARUMA in the west, a place well
situated for the control of the Sunda straits and within
easy reach of the lndianised states of southern Sumatra.
Its ruler was a Brahamanist King Puranvarman of whom little
is known apart from the fact that he built the two canals
named after two Indian rivers, seven miles long in 21 days'.(HM).
This attests to the fact that the said ruler was a Hindu
and a Tamil and had settled in an strategic position on
the shores of TAIRUMA to control the Sunda straits. It is
obvious he built the two canals 7 miles long to anchor all
his merchant vessels as the northern tip of Sunda is affected
by both the North -West and South-West monsoons. The first
kingdom of Java was ruled by a Hindu-Indonesian court, which
was the kingdom of Matram under King Sahjaya in 732 AD.
The Hindu religion adopted by the court was `Sivaistic'.
Hindu temples were built in the central town and commercial
state like Sri Vijaya evolved due to the power wielded by
the Hindu court over the Javanese farmers. From the 7th
century AD, Sri Vijaya developed into the greatest maritime
empire in South East Asia, straddling the cross-roads of
sea traffic between Middle East, the Indian sub-continent
and China. It exerted firm maritime control over the straits
of Malacca and south China sea, the whole western part of
Indonesia, the greater part of Malay Peninsula and West
Java and put claims on Sri Lanka.
Chola Empire at the height of its Power circa 1050
AD |
This maritime power started to wane. King Chandrabhanu
decided to resolve the claims of Sri Vijaya on the island
of Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan chronicle Mahavamsa (MV:83.38
Geiger), states that in 1251 AD the Javanese army under
him landed on the island of Sri Lanka during the reign of
Parakramabahu II, and occupied and plundered the island.
He was however repulsed. A few years later King Chandrabahnu
returned this time with South Indian allies. He established
his headquarters on the Subha and demanded the relics of
the Buddha as well as recognition of his authority. After
a battle he was defeated and had to flee leaving behind
his harem and riches. Records from South India reveal that
the King of Sri Vijaya was killed by one of his own allies,
King Jatavarman Sundara Pandya from South India.(Pandya
- Tamil).After the defeat in Sri Lanka, Sri Vijaya disappeared
from the pages of history in 1273 AD under King Sukhodaya
of Java.
About 1025 AD the Hindu Chola Dynasty of Southern India
took over most of Java. This was the period of the reign
of Rajendra Chola-1012 to 1044 AD. In South Indian inscriptions
by Robert Sewell, Jatavana Sundra Pandya in 1256 AD conquered
Sri Lanka with the aid of Chandrabahnu. It is possible that
he was killed by Sundra Pandya after the conquest.
Hindu India affected the people of Java in various ways.
Brahmanism and Buddhism, the greatest two religions of the
world nurtured in India flourished side by side in Java
due to religious tolerance. Although there are many Hindu
temples especially at Parambanam which were considered to
be the greatest Hindu monuments of Java, the famous monument
is the Buddhist stupa of Borobudur. 'We talk of Sanchi as
one of the most finished architectural achievements of Buddhist
India, but in fact the Sanchi stupas are to be considered
primitive in comparison with the shrine of Borobudur.
The Borobudur is purely a Hindu Buddhist enterprise. It
is amazing to find that away from their native land our
ancestors could give such fine expression to their fancy
and aesthetic culture. This beautiful and huge edifice stands
today as a mark of the highest level of architectural perfection,
reached by Hindu Buddhist genius'. (AC). It is said that
to comprehend Indian art in India alone is half the a story.
To comprehend it fully one must follow in the wake of Buddhism
to Central Asia, China and Japan. It blooms like a lotus
as it spread over Tibet, Burma, Thailand and watch with
awe its creations in Cambodia and Java. As a scholar put
it, 'the Indians started with mountains, but finished off
like jewellers'.
The island of Bali in the far-flung archipelago of the
present country of Indonesia, still carries the indelible
hallmark of Hindu culture to a great extent even to this
day. It is claimed that there are about 2,000 temples on
an island only 87 by 56 miles.
Hindu temple of Bali, Indonesia 'Pura Besakih' of
Mt. Agung |
Bali had become, by fact the most sought out destination
for tourists today. In the conducted tours of the Balinese,
tourists are shown Hindu temples, the drama of the legends
of Rama and Sita and of the epic Mahabaratha war. Although
Indonesia proper came under the sway of Islam, it failed
to take root in the island of Bali.
The writer was surprised to witness the drama of the legends
of the Hindus, dramatised in this small island far away
from the land of its birth. Even the names of the hotels
bear the names of Rama and Sita-legendary names of Hindu
India.
Epic of the Ramayana staged in Bali - Indonesia |
The people are proud of their Hindu connection and worship
in the many Hindu temples in the island, which were built
by the Tamils between 4th and 9th century AD. The caste
system, which is inextricably interwoven into the Hindu
religion, is most profound in the island, where Brahmins
are held in high esteem as next to the gods they worship.
Although Saivaism held sway in Java, its decline came with
the dominance of the Buddhist Sailendras over central Java.
This change caused Saivaism to seek refuge in the eastern
parts of the island with its centre in Malang and which
subsequently formed the kingdom of Singosari. The monuments
erected were dedicated to the cult of Agastya, the sage
who Hinduized South India from about the 4th - 1st century
BC.
A Sanskrit inscription dated 760 AD records the foundation
at Dinaya as a sanctuary of Agastya by a king named Gajayana.
The decline of the Satiendra power over central Java has
been relegated to the return of Saivism. During the rule
of Rajendra the Cholan of South India who crippled the power
of Sri Vijaya and its threat to the East Java kingdom. Siva
temples were built in Matram with its galleries of reliefs
illustrating the stories of the Ramayana of Hindu India.
(ZHS,pp 58,59 &60).During this period the ports in the
bay of Surabaya came into prominence with merchants of the
East and also the resort of merchants from the West-Tamils,
Sinhalese, Malabar, Chams, Mons, Khmers and Achinese.
The Indianisation of Cambodia commenced at the beginning
of the Christian era and the Sangam Age. Elements of Indian
(Tamil) culture was interwoven with Cambodian culture that
lasted for over a 1000 years. Brahamanical Hinduism found
its way into the palace, courts and into the lives of ordinary
people. This resulted in Cambodia to be a Tamil-seeming
country. 'In the 19th century, for example Cambodian peasants
still wore recognisable Indian costumes and in many ways
behaved like Indians than they did like their closest neighbours
the Vietnamese. Cambodians ate with spoons and fingers for-example,
and carried goods on their heads; they wore turbans rather
than straw hats, and skirts rather than trousers. Musical
instruments, jewellery and manuscripts were also Indian
style.
It is possible also that cattle-raising in Cambodia had
been introduced by Indians at a relatively early date. It
is unknown to a great extent in the rest of the mainland
of South East Asia. During the first five hundred years
of the Christian era, India provided Cambodia with a counting
system, a pantheon, meters for poetry, a language (Sanskrit)
to write'.(HC). According to Cambodian inscriptions of the
9th century, there is a smattering of TAMIL words among
the Sanskrit script. In Angkor Wat, there is a 12th century
temple dedicated to Vishnu and said to be the largest religious
building in the world. In the photograph on page 51 of Chandler's
book, hitherto mentioned earlier, are seen a few PALMYRA
trees adjoining the temple, obviously planted by Tamils
for their sustenance.
Trade between prehistoric India and Cambodia probably began
long before India itself was sanskritized. In fact as Paul
Mns has suggested, Cambodia and Southern India, as well
as what is now Bengal, probably shared the culture of 'Moon
Asia', which emphasised the role played by ancestral, tutelary
deities in the agricultural cycle. These were often located
for ritual purposes in stones that naturally resembled phalluses
or carved to look like them. Sacrifice to the stones, it
was thought ensured the fertility of the soil'(HC).
The myth of FUNAN, was found recorded in the first few
centuries of the pre-Sangam Age, which is supplemented by
archaeological findings of an ancient trading city near
the modem Vietnamese village of Oc-Eo in the Mekong delta,
which was excavated in the 20th century by Louis Mallevet.
There were also found Roman coins of the 3rd century, Indian
artifacts, including seals and jewellery. It is said that
this was used by pilgrims and traders travelling between
India and China in the 1st century AD. Hence Oc-Eo may have
been the main gateway through which Indian influence extended
into the heart of Cambodia. The people of Oc-Eo, were essentially
a rice growing nation, who worshipped Siva. According to
Chinese myth, Oc-Eo was governed by a Brahman called Kaundinya,
who was crowned King, who changed all the rules according
to the customs of India. He showed them the way to improve
cultivation by building reservoirs and by sinking wells.
In the chronicles of the Mahavamsa of the Sinhalese in Sri
Lanka, it was the Brahmins too who were responsible in the
irrigation works of the country.
George Coedes says , 'According to a Cambodiyan dynastic
legend preserved in an inscription of the 10th century (Inscription
of Baksei Chamkrong), the origins of the kings of Cambodia
go back to the union of the hermit Kambu Svayambhura, eponymic
ancestor of the Kambujas, with the celestial nymph Mera,
who was given to him by Siva. Her name was perhaps invented
to explain that of the Khmers.
This legend, entirely different from that of the Nagi,
shows a certain kinship with a genealogical myth of the
Pallavas of Kanchi. (ZIS,p 66). According to ancient Tamil
literature the 'Pallavas were originally connected with
Ceylon. A critical study of the Tamil poems, Manimekalai
and Silappathikaram reveals that the destruction of the
Chola capital, Phuar or Kaveipumpattinam by sea must have
occurred before the close of the third quarter of the second
century AD, and Killi Valavan or Nedumkilli the Chola king,
then moved his capital to Uraiyur. According to Mudaliyar
C.Rasanayagam, this Chola king had married a. Naga Princess
daughter of Valaivanam, the Naga king of Manipallavan. Out
of this union a son was born known as Tondaiman Ilantirayan.His
father Killi Valavan, the king of Thondaimandalam had his
capital at Kanchi. The new dynasty founded by him took its
title from the second half of the word Manipallavan, the
home of his Naga mother.
Thus the Pallavas who were a dynasty rather than a tribe
or clan, were descended on one side of the Chola family
and on the other from the Naga rulers of what is now Jaffna
peninsular in Ceylon'.(AC, pp 704 & 705). A later Pallava
Prince married the Naga Princess of Kantharodai of the Jaffna
Peninsular in North Ceylon.There are other theories of the
Telugu origins of the Pallavas. The Mahavamsa has it that
many monks from Pallava Bogga attended the consecration
of king Duttugamani of Ceylon.( MV, p 194). The Pallavas
came into ascendence about the 4th century AD with Kanchi
as their capital and their dominion extended from the river
Krishna to the South Penner.(river).They were master builders
and sculptors of their age and their imprint and influence
still lingers in the countries of the East. The Mahayana
Buddhism they propagated in the East percolated into the
very fabric of the culture and the indigenous religious
beliefs of kings and commoner alike.
During the reign of Bhavarman 1 , in the year 598 AD, he
commanded the erection of a linga of Phnom Bantray Neang
in Borth. He was responsible for a short Sanskrit inscription
engraved telling the erection of other lingams along the
Mekong river. His successor Mahendravarman speaks of erection
of ' lingas of the "mountain" Siva (Girisa), and
erection of the images of the bull Nandin'.(ZIS,pp 67,68,69).
According to Coedes the major Hindu sects co-existed together
in Cambodia as in India. The cult of Siva, especially in
the form of a linga, which enjoyed royal favour and almost
elevated to the position of a state religion.(ZIS,p 73).
By this time Buddhism took a back seat in the 5th and 6th
century. The structure of the social fabric was matriarchal
a system widespread in and around Indonesia. In Cambodia
it may have imported from India where it is apparent in
the Sera kingdom among the Nayars and the Nambutiri Brahamans.
Inscriptions in Cambodia speak eloquently of the irrigated
rice fields in the Mekong delta adjacent to Hindu temples.
Funan's culture however came specially from the Tamil country
of South India. This was formed in the 1st century AD by
Mon-Khmer peoples. OcEo in the gulf of Thailand, was a major
trade link between China and India. In the reign of Jayavarman
ii ( this shows even the kings of Cambodia took on Tamil
names), 802 to 850 AD in Angkor, he rejected Javanese suzerainty
and instituted the cult of god-king. 'He and his successors,
Rudravarman, Bharavarman, lsanavarman, came under the influence
of Tamil Kings of South India. During this period they built
temples known as 'great temples of Angkor era', to house
their royal lingam and phallic emblems of the Hindu god
Shiva. King Suryavarman II was a worshipper of Vishnu. He
built the great Vaisunavite temple of ANGKOR WAT in the
12th century. This temple is the most beautiful of all Khmer
monuments with it's magnificent architecture.
From the 8th to the 12th century there was a surplus wealth
as a result of the bumper harvest in agricultural produce,
This was possible due to the expertise of the Tamils who
were adept in the art of irrigation and building of reservoirs
to supply water to the fields. This was so even in Sri Lanka
where the Tamils built the ' Giant's tank' for irrigation
in the Mannar district. 'However, in the 12th century, due
to the neglect of the irrigation systems, plague, malaria
and internal rebellion and the introduction of Theravada
Buddhism which preached that one could hope for spiritual
development through meditation, made the people to loose
their drive and thereby weakened the Angkor empire'. In
any event, the cultural heritage of the Khmer dynasties
remain intact in contemporary Cambodia. Many buildings like
the royal palace in Phnom Penh, are decorated in the Khmer
architectural style and used motifs as the garuda, a mythical
bird in the Hindu religion. Their classical drama betrays
vestiges of Indian traditional style and reflects the legendary
times of ancient deities of Hinduism.
'There is a popular legend in Cambodia, even to this day,
of Pereak Ko, Preak Kaev', which was first published by
a Frenchman in 1860 AD and a seven volume version in verse
was published in Phnom Penh in 1952 AD. The legend has it
that the town Lovek was so large that no horse could gallop
round it. Inside the town were two statues Preahko' (sacred
cow), and 'Preah Kaev' (sacred precious stones), and inside
the bellies of these statues were sacred texts, in gold,
where one could learn the secrets of knowledge of anything
in the world. It is stated that the King of Siam wanted
the statues. Hence he raised an army and advanced to fight
the Cambodian King. According to legend, the Thai soldiers
fired cannons charged with silver coins into the bamboo
hedges grown as fortifications. Thereafter, the Thai army
retreated and the Cambodians had to cut down the bamboo
hedges to collect the silver coins. The Thai King returned
one year later and as there were no bamboo fortifications
they were able to carry away the statues to Siam. The legend
concluded in attributing superior knowledge of the Thais
after having access to the contents of the books of knowledge
found in the statues. Apart from the legend, the basic fact
lingers that Indian heritage of the 'sacred -cow' and 'precious-stone
lingam', had a lasting impression in the lives and culture
of the Cambodian people'. (MP).
Tamil Sangam literature mentions the names of the earliest
Chola (Cola) Kings. Scholars are now agreed that this literature
belongs to the first centuries of the Christian era. The
Sangam literature reveals the names of Kings, princes and
the poets who extolled them. We also learn about the life
and works of the people. Some of the Kings mentioned were
men of distinction and acquired fame and the poets of that
age were able to capture the truth in the manner of their
expression in poetry. Two names of the Chola Kings stand
out prominently from among them and their memories cherished
in song and legend by posterity, with much reverence. The
names of KARIKALAN and KOCCENGANAN, have been written into
ancient history by the Tamils as the earliest known Kings
who carved out a kingdom for the Cholas in Southern India.
It was during the period of the Sangam Age that rituals
of Brahmanism had percolated into Hindu religion in this
early period and consequent to this intrusion the Chloa
Kings practised costly sacrifices. The daily rituals of
the Brahmans in mentioned in the epic Manimekalai and a
song by Avur Mual-kilar in the 'Purananuru', which eulogises
the Brahman Vinnandayan of Kaundinya-gottra' who lived in
Punjarrur in the Chola country, and gave an idea of the
high position held in society by the prominent Srotriya
families. Puram 166:
' Oh Scion of the celebrated race of wise men who laid
low the strength of those that opposed Siva's ancient lore,
who saw through the sophistry of the false doctrines, and
performing the truth and shunning error, completed the twenty-one
ways of Vedic sacrifices! Worn by you on the occasion of
the sacrifice, the skin of the grass-eating stag of the
forest shines over the sacred cord on your shoulder. Your
wives, suited to the station, gentle and of rare virtue,
wearing the net-like garment laid down in the Sastra, (for
such occasions) sparing of speech, with small foreheads,
large hips, abundant tresses, are carrying out the duties
set for them. From the forest and from the town, having
seven pasus in their proper places, supplying ghee more
freely than water, making offerings which numbers cannot
reckon and spreading your fame to make the whole world jealous,
at the rare culmination of the sacrifice, your exalted station
gains a new splendour. May we ever witness it so. 1, for
my part, shall go, eat, drink, ride and enjoy myself in
my village by the cool Kaveri, which gets it's flowery freshnes
when the thunder clouds roar on the golden peaks of the
western mountains: may you, for your part, stand thus, stable
without change, like the Himalaya which towers above the
clouds and whose sides are covered with bamboo'.
This ode shows the dominance of Vedic ritualism and alludes
to disputes with other religions like Buddhism and Jainism.
It was this Brahamanical Hinduism which was carried with
the Tamils wherever they sailed in quest for treasure, to
enrich king and country. This infusion of Hinduism was complemented
by the stories of the Ramayana, Mahabharata and legendary
episodes to the people of Burma, Thailand Sumatara, Malaysia,
Cambodia and specially to the island of Bali.So much so
these countries even in the 21st century betray vestiges
of Tamil Hindu culture in their drama, names, habits and
the temples built to their Hindu gods.
During the reign of Augustus, the Roman Empire was trading
partners with India in luxury goods.
'The growth of trade, though confined to land routs expanded
to maritime trade of Egypt with Arabia. The Arabian connection
in trade with India, soon led to trade with the Egyptians,
which expanded in process of time to the Far-East. The discovery
of the monsoons by Hipparachus of Alexandria led to the
direct sea routes to India ousting the Arabs in their monopoly.
The trade with India gradually developed into a barter of
different goods between Egypt, Arabia and India. The most
important commodity being cotton, (Periplus -p.59), and
other silk.
It is stated that cotton was first introduced to the then
known world by the Indians, which found its way to the distant
Americas in the West and to the countries of Oceania. Ptolemy's
account shows that the Roman trade reached beyond India
to Indo- China and Sumatra, and that the trade with India
and China was highly developed. It was the Tamil sailors
who taught the Romans the sea route to the East. Southern
India obviously acted intermediary in the trade between
China and the West. The carrying trade between the Malay
peninsula and Sumatra in the East and the Malabar coast
in the West was largely in the hands of the Tamils'. (Warmington
pp,128 to 131).
Carrying of freight in the Indian ocean and the Arabian
sea was carried in sea going vessels of the Cholas and they
held an important share in the movement of goods. They controlled
'the largest and most extensive Indian shipping of the Coromandel
coast. In the harbours of the Chola country, says the author
of the Periplus, are ships of several kinds which could
carry goods to countries beyond the seas. It is stated that
the Chola ship called 'Colandia' of the 1st century was
a two masted ship which was used for the carriage of goods
to distant lands'.
The poet Rudrangannanar described the ships moored in the
harbour of Puhar (Pattinappalai 11.29-34), and larger ships
which carried flags at their mast-heads which compares to
big elephants. Navigation in the high seas and the dangers
attendant on its foul weather are picturesquely described
in the Manimekalai in a forcible simile in which the mad
progress of Udayahumara in search Manimekalai is compared
to that of a ship caught in a storm on the high seas:
'The captain trembling, the tall mast in the centre broken
at its base, the strong knots unloosed and the rope cut
asunder by the wind, the hull damaged and the sails are
noisy, like the ship caught in a great storm and dashed
about in all directions by the surging of the waves of the
ocean'. (TC). 'This coincidence of testimony drawn from
the early literature of the Tamil country and the Periplus
on the conditions of maritime trade in the Indian seas in
the early centuries of the Christian era is indeed very
remarkable in itself. When one considers this in the light
of other evidence from Indo-China and the islands of the
archipelago on the permeation of Indian influence in those
lands from very early times, one can hardly fail to be struck
by the correctness of the conclusions reached'. (Periplus.p.261).
'The numerous migration from India into Indo-China, both
before and after the Christian era, gave ample ground for
the belief that ports of South India and Ceylon were in
truth as the Periplus states, the centre of an active trade
with the Far-East, employing large ships and in great numbers,
than those coming from Egypt'. The Cholas sea-faring instinct's
echoed down the corridors of time from beyond the 1st century
where they attempted voyages more daring in and around the
9th to the 12th century AD. It is stated that, there would
not have been a greater India, if not for the enterprising
spirit of the sailors of the Tamil country of Southern India.
Chapter 2 - The Tragedy of
Sri Lanka
There are historical records gathering dust in the archives
of many countries, where evidence of cruelty, treachery,
torture, rape and slaughter had been perpetrated on a people
and much blood shed on the soil of such a small island which
is known as the 'Island-Paradise' and the 'Pearl of the
Indian Ocean', specially with the advent of the Europeans
to Ceylon.
They came from distant lands from the West in sail boats
by the hundreds, in quest of that elusive commodity called
spices - of pepper and cinnamon - and the lure of pearls,
gold and the gems of Ceylon. They called it adventure, but
the abject greed that overtook their good intentions made
them commit the most heinous crimes against the people they
came in contact with, all in the name of the wealth of the
East and attended with such barbarity contrary to Christian
teachings they set sail to propagate.
`Santiago Gate' of Malacca built by the Portugese
in the 16th century |
Before the 15th century, the supply of these hard-to-get
goods was the absolute monopoly of the Moors and the Tamils,
who dished out gruesome stories of the hazards in obtaining
the goods. The Moors of the Middle-East, as middle-men,
were fabulously wealthy from the trade in the east, as they
were aware of the sea-routes to the very source and supply
of the merchandise, This, they kept a secret.
Parangi Piracy
Vascoda Gama, the Portuguese adventurer, with three sailing
vessels, rounded the Cape in the year 1497 AD and discovered
the open sea-route from Europe to India, Ceylon and subsequently
to the Far-East.
Replica of a Portugese vessel of the 16th century |
On August 26th 1498, he sailed into the port of Calicut
on the West coast of India. This successful intrusion into
the maritime domain of the Tamils and the Moors, triggered
of bloodcurdling battles on the high seas and on land between
the Arabs, Tamils and the Portuguese. The atrocities committed
by the Portuguese were well documented in the 'Tohofut-ul-mujahideen'
written by Sheik Zeen-ud-deen, which gives an account of
the war with the Portuguese from 1498 to 1583 AD. The Portuguese
too had their fair share where hundreds of their countrymen
were slaughtered by the Sinhalese and Tamils, some thrown
to be trampled by elephants, some beheaded, others impaled,
and yet others drowned or tortured to death. Philip Baladaeus,
a Dutch Missionary, records an incident where King Vimaladhrama
I, meted out punishment as follows:
' The Sinhalese having got notice of their flight pursued
them so closely, that many of them fell into their hands,
specially of those detachments sent to Goa,and Halalwia,
for provisions, fifty whereof they sent back with their
ears, noses and privy parts cut-off in revenge for the ravishments
committed upon their wives and daughters'.
Accordingly Faria Y Souza states: 'We had not grown odious
to the Cingelas (Sinhalese) had we not proved them by our
infamous proceedings. Not only the poor soldiers went out
to rob, by those Portuguese, who were Lords of villages,
added rape and adulteries which obliged the people to seek
the company of beasts in the mountains, better than be subject
to the more beastly villainies of men'. And then again the
atrocities of Sri Vickrama Rajasinghe, the last King of
Kandy 'A thrill of horror has been imparted to all who have
read the story of the atrocities perpetrated on the wife
of Ehelapola the minister of the King of Kandy, who, on
the occasion of her husband's revolt in 1814 AD, compelled
her to kill her own children by pounding them in a rice-mortar.
But it ought to be known that this inhuman practice was
taught to the Kandyans by the Portuguese'.
According to. Robert Knox : 'When he got any victory over
the Cingalese, he did exercise great cruelty. He would make
the women beat their own children in mortars wherein they
used to beat their corn'. The Portuguese in times of siege
having drunk wine would partake of the salted-human remains
of their own soldiers, due to the scarcity of food in their
fortresses. Knox further adds: 'His cruelty appear both
in tortures and the painful deaths he inflicts, and in the
extent of his punishments, viz., upon whole families for
the miscarriage of one of them.
And this is done by cutting and pulling away the flesh
by pincers, burning them with hot irons, sometimes he commands
them hang their own hands abut their necks, and to make
them eat their own flesh, and mothers to eat their own children;
and so lead them through the city in public view to terrify
all, to the place of execution, the dogs following to eat
them. For the dogs are so accustomed to it, that they, seeing
a prisoner led away, follow after'. When Don Juan seized
the throne of Kandy, he ascended the throne under the title
of Wimaladharma Suriya I .
To secure the support of the Buddhist priests he abjured
Christianity and produced a tooth-relic alleged to be the
original tooth-relic, and gained the support of the people.
The Portuguese took measures to depose him and sent one
Jerome Azavada who was famous for his cruelty. It is recorded
that: 'He beheaded mothers, after forcing them to cast their
babes betwixt mill-stones punning on the name of the tribe
of Gallas or Chalias, and it's resemblance to the Portuguese
word for cocks, gallos, he caused his soldiers to take up
children on the point of their spears, and bade them hark
how the young cocks crow! He caused many men to be cast
off the bridge at Malwane for the troops to see the crocodiles
devour them, and these creatures grew so used to the food,
that at a whistle they would lift their heads above the
water'.
Whenever the Moors sailed, the Portuguese followed their
course and accidentally put into the port of Galle in 1505,
when Lorenzo de Almeyda was pursuing the vessels of the
Moors off the coast of the islands of the Maldives. The
Moors, to shake off such hot pursuits used alternate sea
routes via the Maldive Islands to Malacca and Sumatra. Twelve
years later, Lopo Soarez Albergario appeared in person before
Colombo in the year 1527 with a convoy of seventeen vessels.
Their entry into the East changed the atmosphere of maritime
commerce and plunged the history of the countries they set
foot with slaughter, torture and misery which the East had
never seen the likes of it before. The instructions from
Lisbon was, `to begin by preaching, but, that failing, to
proceed to the decision of the sword. When the Portuguese
set foot on the island of Ceylon and saw the spices of pepper
and cinnamon, pearls and beautiful gems of all colours,
they were astonished at the magnitude of their discovery
that they soon forgot the crucifix they were Carrying and
used the sword to fill their pockets.
As D.G.Hall Professor Emeritus of the History of South-EastAsia,
University of London had this to say, '...and as the ideas
of commerce and colonisation gained ground, so the medieval
crusading ideal weakened', then again,' Happily it was possible
to serve God and Mammon at the same time, for by striking
at Arab trade in the Indian ocean Portugal aimed a blow
at the Ottoman empire, which drew the major part of its
revenues from the spice monopoly'.( ZHS, p 197).
They filled their pockets, but that was not so easy as
they had to contend with the ruling Kings and the people.
When subtle diplomacy failed, they took to the sword and
the musket as they were determined to exploit the natural
wealth of the island, first for the betterment of themselves
and for their country. History has recorded the fact that
it was the greed of the Portuguese soldiers who siphoned
off much of the wealth into their pockets, so much so, the
finances of Lisbon were ruined and hence they lost the monopoly
of the wealth of the East. It is said,
'Astonished at the magnitude of their enterprise, and the
glory of their discoveries and conquests in India, the rapidity
and success of which secured for Portugal an unprecedented
renown, we are ill-prepared to hear of the rapacity, bigotry
and cruelty which characterised every stage of their progress
in the East'.
The second wave of misfortune to visit the island came
in the year 1602 AD, with the coming of the first Dutch
ship' La Brebis', commanded by Admiral Spillberg who put
into the port of Batticaloa. This intrusion by another European
power led to a triangular battle with the Portuguese on
the one hand and with King Wimaladhrama Suriya I , alias
Kunappo Bandara, alias Don Juan Dharmapala, King of Kandy.
The first casualty was an officer of Spillberg, Sibalt
de Weert, over the release of goods seized from the Portuguese
at Galle and the insult against the Empress Dona Catherina.
The King having resented at this wanted the officer arrested,
but the attendant of the King clove the head of the officer
and massacred the crew of the boat on the beach. The King
proceeded to Kandy and anticipating a breach with the Dutch
sent a message to the ships of de Weert:, ' He who drinks
wine, comes to mischief. God is just. If you seek peace,
let it be peace, if war, war be it'.
Chapter 3 - The Kingdom
of Jaffna
The island of Sri Lanka (Ceylon), was infested with the
influx of foreigners, and the Indian Ocean made a happy
hunting ground to marauding merchants of fortune, missionaries,
swashbuckling pirates and free lance adventurers. These
were the dark clouds hanging over the island in the 16th
century.
Although Ceylon was plunged into protracted wars with the
Tamils of the Cholas, Chera and Pandya dynasties before
the 16th century, the political position of Ceylon at the
time of the first European visitation by the Portuguese
in 1517 AD, was clearly marked and documented by the Portuguese
as recorded by Sir James Emerson Tennent in his book, Ceylon
an account of the island Physical & Topographical- Longmans
& Robertson-1859 AD. Referring to the political condition
of Ceylon he states: 'Seaports on all parts of the country
were virtually in the hands of the Moors.
I. The North was in possession of the Malabars (Tamils),
whose seat of government was at Jaffna-patanam.
II And the great regions (since known as the Vanni), and
Neurerakalawa were formed into petty fiefs, each governed
by a Vanniya, calling himself a vassal but virtually uncontrolled
by any paramount authority.
III In the South, the nominal sovereign, Dharma Parakrama
Bahu IX had his capital at Cotte, near Colombo whilst minor
Kings held mimic courts at Badulla, Gampola, Peradeniya,
Kandy and Mahagama and caused repeated commotions by their
intrigues and insurrections'.
Hence the position Of Ceylon politically when the Portuguese
conquered the island in 1517 AD were as follows:
1. The North, Jaffna-pattanam ruled by King Sangili alias
Segarajasegeram from 1478 to 1519 AD.
2. Kotte ruled by Dharma Parakramabahu IX from 1506 to 1528
AD.
3. Kandian kingdom ruled by King Jayavira from 1511 to 1552
AD.
The Portuguese Captain Joao Riberio came to Ceylon as a
soldier and remained in the island till 1658 AD. In that
year the last of the possessions of Ceylon were surrendered
to the Dutch. Captain Joao Riberio wrote in his book, 'The
Historic Tragedy of the island of CEILAO' and translated
by P E. Pieris thus :
'In his will Don Joao Paria Pandar, he declared that he
had no son to succeed him in his kingdoms, and therefore
he appointed the King of Portugal his universal heir to
all of them and thus he became absolute lord of all the
territories situated within the island, only the kingdom
of Candia and Uva belonging to Dona Catherina, while the
Kingdom of Jaffnapatnam had its own native King .(p 23-
AES-1999 New Delhi.
It is interesting to note that King Senaratne of Kandy
summoned all the rulers of the country to an assembly in
the year 1612 AD, to Kandy, and it is stated that King Edirmanasingha
alias Pararajasekeram of Jaffnapatnam sent his ambassador
on 8th of March 1612 ( EMC,p 687-Philip Baldaeus). This
was repeated in the following year on 18th of August 1613
during the occasion of the death of Queen Dona Catherina,
where an ambassador of the King of Jaffna was present as
recorded by Philip Baldaeus. Further this missionary cum
historian states, 'Mannar derives it's name from the Malabar
(Tamil) language, from the word MAN, ie., SAND, and AARU
a river, signifying as much as a ' sand-river; it being
observable, that both Cingalese and Malabar languages are
spoke in the isle of Ceylon. The first is used beyond Negombo,
viz., at Colombo, Cathure, Barberyn, Alican, Gale, Beligama,
Mature, Dondra. But in all other parts of this island opposite
to the coast of Coromandel, and all along the bay, they
speak the Malabar Tongue (Tamil); whence it seems very probably
that the tract of land ( as the inhabitants of Jafffnapatanam
themselves believe), was first of all peopled by those of
COROMANDEL; who brought their language along with them;
it being certain that in the island countries about Kandy,
Vintane, Ballaney etc.,they speak only Cingalese'(Sinhala).(EMC,
p 792 ).
It was only in the year 1617 AD, that the Portuguese took
forcible possession of Jaffnapatnam having deposed King
Sangili Kumara, as he slaughtered 600 of the new converts
to Christianity. It is stated that his eldest son embraced
the new faith and was put to death and the second fled to
Goa to escape his father's resentment. In consequence of
the slaughter and the subsequent assistance given to the
Sinhalese Chiefs in their opposition to the Portuguese,
the city was sacked and the King Sangili Kumara captured
and carried to Goa and executed. As stated by Tennent:
'True to their hereditary instincts, the Malabars in 1622
AD, fitted out an expedition to recover their ancient possession
of Jaffnapatanam and the peninsula, but the vigour of the
Portuguese governor Oliveria, defeated the attempt'.(p.13).
With the granting of independence , to Ceylon.,(Sri Lanka),
by the British in 1948, the Sinhalese and Tamil politicians
presumed that they had gained freedom from foreign rule
after 431 years. Consequent to the granting of independence
it was seen that freedom was only for the Sinhalese and
not for the Tamils. The majority Sinhalese saw to it at
every turn to suppress the hopes and aspirations of the
Tamils. This finally culminated in ethnic hatred which was
festering in the minds of the Sinhalese, to burst its communal
ranks with the calculated, sinister and pr-meditated communal
riots of July 1983.
Since 1983 over 70,000 lost their lives which culminated
in Tamils being reduced to refugees in their own country.
The cloak and dagger treachery adopted by the Sinhala government
with the advice of the Buddhist clergy, since so-called
independence, forced the Tamils to take up to arms. The
grave error made by the Tamil leaders prior to granting
of Independence, for a utopian dream of a unitary state,
with the Sinhalese politicians and chartered by the sinister
designs of the Maha Sanga will not be made by the Tamils
again, where some have chosen to sell their birthright for
a mess of pottage in sharing with the affairs of state with
the Sinhalese government .
Even as late as 1788 AD, in respect of a demand for a separate
state for the Tamils, Sir Hugh Cleghorn a British administrator
in the Colonial Office said:
"TWO DIFFERENT NATIONS, from the very ancient period
have divided the island, first the Sinhalese, with the SOUTHERN
and WESTERN parts from the river Wallouve to that of CHILLAW;
and secondly the Malabars, (Tamils), in the NORTHERN and
EASTERN districts which extend from the west coast of the
island, from PUTTALAM to MANNAR in the west, southwards
up to the limits of KUMANA or the river KUKBUKKAN OYA, that
separated Batticaloa from the southern Sinhalese districts
of Matara'(p,49-Sri Lanka, the Fractured Island-Mohan Ram)."
In this connection it is interesting to read page 229 of
CCB,Vol:III,containing a report by Roman Catholic Bishop
C.Bonnand dated 20th July 1854 AD addressed to Pope Pius
IX arising of the dispute that had arisen about the boundaries
of the two Vicariates of North and South of Ceylon. This
reads as follows,
'... while the conversion of the inhabitants of the Vicariates
of Jaffnapatnam is difficult because from the Mission of
Chilaw as far as Jaffnapatnam the inhabitants are Tamils
by race and Hindu by religion'.Hence it would be seen that
the division of the country for Catholic administration
was based 'according to people and languages instead according
to territory'.(CCB,p 168,VoLIII). The division was, The
Sacred congregation may propose that Colombo be in one part,
and Kandy and Negombo in the other, that is, drawing the
line of division from Negombo in the West to Batticaloa
in the East, both towns included in the Northern region.
It would be seen according to the above report there were
Tamil Catholics in Marawila, Bolawatte, Katuneriya, Ninamaddama
and Sindatri in the year 1854'.(CCB,p236,Vol:111). This
does not include the Tamil Hindus who were domiciled in
the said area.
' A garden situated at Charlieparmundel in the district
of Calpentyn belonging to the society of the Roman Catholic
Missionaries and surveyed by me on the request of the Reverend
Constancio Gomes.
Bounded on the North by the garden and Wasti(waste) Ground
of Nachemutto Motayen and by the garden of Nayacadoo Police
Vidane Manoel Pille, on the South by the garden wasti ground
and Paddi fulo of Sinnrambi Cangani Thinavepille. On the
east by the lake and on the west the sand wasti ground.
Containing 38 acres, 3 roods and 20 20/25 sq.perches.
Surveyed 15 December 1829
signed R. Vare Gruster, District Surveyor
Surveyor Generals office, Colombo, 20th Jan:1830 ('CCB,p267,
Vol:iii).
The above testifies to the fact that Tamils were domiciled
in the said areas and that the instrument of the title-deeds
of the estate of Charleparmundel is in Tamil and was read
in 27 May 1854'.(CCB,pp 267 & 268, Vol:lll). There is
also proof that properties in Chilaw, Mundel and further
down south at Kalalgoda, north of Hendala, in the western
province have there title-deeds written in Tamil by Tamil
Notaries, which proves that the civil administration of
these areas were by the Kings of Jaffnapattinam.
This is only the tip of the iceberg. There are many such
properties where the title-deeds have been written in Tamil
which proves that these lands were ruled by the Tamils from
ancient times. A diligent search of the Land Registry offices
would unearth this fact much to the embarrassment to the
Government in power. The above known facts justify the position
that these were the lands of the Tamils and their homeland
which have been subsequently colonised by governments on
the west coast from time to time by foisting draconian laws
and forced the Tamils to the Sinhala way of life. These
Tamils now speak Sinhala and have adopted the customs, dress
of the Sinhalese, but nothing has changed the fact that
the title-deeds to their properties and those of the Sinhalese
are in Tamil.
There is no way that the Tamils and Sinhalese could ever
live in harmony. Perhaps, only by levitation! The die has
been cast, the honey-moon has ended, and the twain shall
never meet. What we need today, is the return to the status
quo of the political position of the Tamil kingdom of 1617
AD, when it was ruled by King Sangili Kumara from Jaffnapatnam.
Hence, all that land North of Kelaniya to Anuradhapura to
Polonnaruwa and the to Mahiyangana and further down the
southern coastal belt to Kataragama, is the land of the
Tamils. To this end the struggle would continue to retain
what rightfully belongs to the Tamils.
Chapter 4 - Western Connections of Jaffna Pattinam
The Portuguese
Portugal is like a sparkling gem set upon the western facet
of neighbouring Spain and washed by the blue Atlantic ocean.
Its geographical location is ideal, with 550 klm of coast
line and hemmed between Spain and the ocean. It had no hope
beyond the Pyrenees mountains except the mysterious ocean
for its succour and aspirations. Portugal was the gate-way,
to the new-world of the Americas, the Caribbean and to the
distant lands of Africa, the Malabar and the Coramandel
coasts of India, Ceylon and the countries of the Far-East.
The Portuguese were daring seafarers and explorers nonpareil.
History is replete with the adventures of their sailors
who brought fame to their God and country. In the 15th and
16th centuries they reached the highest pinnacle of world
fame by their skilful navigation. During this period when
the rest of Europe was busy developing their borders, Portugal
was importing spices from Malabar and Coromandel coasts
(India), silver from Japan, pearls from Persia, Kayalpattinam
(South India), pearls and gems from Ceylon.
In 1434 AD, inspired by Henry the Navigator, expedition
of the West Coast of Africa was undertaken, where they were
met by their arch rivals the Moors in bloody battles in
the Atlantic Ocean. These confrontations with the Moors
led the Portuguese to discover many strategic positions
down the west coast of Africa. Vasco da Gama rounded the
Cape of Good Hope and eventually sailed and landed in Calicut
on the West Coast of India in the year 1498. Here too they
found that the Moors held the monopoly of trade in the Indian
Ocean.
In 1505 AD, Lawrence de Almedia set off from Cochin having
heard that the Moors were taking a alternate course via
the Maldive Islands to carry their goods to the Red sea
and Europe, thus avoiding confrontation with the Portuguese.
While heading towards the Maldive Islands, the Portuguese
fleet ran into rough weather and was driven towards Galle
in the island of Ceylon. Having obtained fresh provisions
they sailed up to Colombo and anchored off Colombo on the
15th day of November 1505 AD. Lawrence de Almedia had the
opportunity to be presented before Vira Parakarama Bahu
VIII, the Sinhalese King of Kotte who entertained the foreigners
in a cordial manner. A Catholic chapel was built at the
bay of Colombo and dedicated to St. Lawrence and the arms
of Portugal engraved on a rock close to the chapel.
When Don Lawrence de Almedia returned to Cochin there was
much rejoicing and jubilation at the chance discovery of
the island of Ceylon, which they believed was a veritable
' King Solomon's mines'. This was mildly reflected in a
communication dated 25th September 1507 AD, sent by the
King Manoel of Portugal to Pope Julius ii as follows. '
There was a large hall, at the end of which the king's throne
shaped like an altar, was set in great splendour. On that
throne the king according to the fashion of the country,
sat wearing on his head horns resembling a diadem, and adorned
with most precious stones, as are found in the island....
p5 Vol: i, by Fr.V.Pemiola S.J)
The Sinhalese king, Bhuvenaka Bahu VII, ruled from Kotte
from 1521 to 1550 AD, while his arch rival brother Mayadunne
ruled the kingdom of Sittavaca. In the letter written by
the former to King Joao III, king of Portugal dated `Kotte
1541' refers to a Brahman who he was sending as his ambassador
with a letter explaining his plight as a result of internecine
wars with his brother Mayadunne which precludes him from
sending his yearly tribute of 52,363 kgs of cinnamon. It
is interesting to note that the said Brahman was Sri Radaraksa
Pandita or Panditer, who was a Tamil, and signed in Grantha
Tamil the language in vogue in South India preceding the
arrival of the Portuguese.(CC,p15 Vol:i). According to G.C.Mendis
in his 'The Early History of Ceylon' states at page 73 as
follows.
' The influence of Hinduism also grew at this time. Some
of the Sinhalese kings not only supported Brahman priests,
but also employed a special 'purohita'(priests assistant)
to carry out the various religious rites in the palace'
It is recorded that the said Brahman priest subsequently
came under the influence of the Catholic religion and that
at his baptism in 1551 at the college of St.Paul in Goa,
took the name of the then Viceroy, Dom Alfonso de Noronha.
Chapter 5 - The Tamil Seaports of the West Coast of Sri
Lanka
King Bhuvanaka Bahu VII ruled the kingdom of Kotte. There
were nine ports of call for the import and export trade.
These ports were all situated on the western sea board of
his kingdom. The nine ports of his kingdom were Kalpitiya,
Chilaw, Kammala, Negombo, Colombo, Beruwela, Galle, Weligama
and Matara. During his reign there was smuggling in boys
and girls, among other goods, to the Malabar coast. On a
complaint made by the king, the King of Portugal Joao III,
in a directive dated 13th March 1543 AD made the following
decree.
To all who will see this document of mine, I make known
that I have been informed that many ships and `champanas'(small
boats), which leave Ceilao, carry many boys and girls kidnapped
in the country from their parents, and many slaves snatched
from their owners, and much cinnamon, and other goods smuggled
out. Desirous to remedy this as demanded by the service
of God and mine own, I order that in future all the ships
and `champanas', which are ready to set out from those ports,
shall first notify the King of Ceilao so that he may arrange
to have them searched to see if they are taking any of the
things stated above; and they shall obtain a certificate
from the king or official appointed by him, stating that
the search has taken place. If they do not obtain such certificate,
they shall forfeit all the cargo in favour of the 'Misericordia'
of Cochin'.(CC,p29,Vol:l). This proves that Sinhalese boys
and girls have been kidnapped and smuggled across to Cochin,
a sea port in the Tamil kingdom of Sera.
At the time the Portuguese first visited Ceylon, the north
of Ceylon contained the kingdom of Jaffnapattinam ruled
by Sangili alias Segarajasegaram, illegitimate son of King
Pararajasekeran,and a usurper to the throne. He ruled the
kingdom from 1519 to 1561 AD. According to the Yalpana Vipava
Malai, a Tamil chronicle, the massacre of the Christians
in the village of Pattim, Mannar took place in the month
of Adi (July-August) of the cyclic year Khara which falls
in 1513-1532 AD. This appears to be incorrect. King Manoel
was king of Portugal till about 1539 AD. There after King
Joao III, was king. If the massacre took place during their
reign, it would have been conveyed to them.
According to Father V.Perniola, who had access to original
documents from the archives and libraries of Rome, Lisbon
and Goa, states in his book at the foot note at page 51,
Vol: i of his book The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka-The
Portuguese Period'is as follows:
' King Chekarasa Sekaran or Sangili had put to death the
Christians of Mannar. The inhabitants of Mannar seem to
have been baptised in October 1544 and put to death in November
of the same year. Xavier alludes to this killing in such
a matter of fact way as to imply that by the beginning of
December 1544 every one knew about it'.
St.Francis Xavier, who was responsible for the conversions
of the Kadeas in the village of Pattim, Mannar, by his letter
dated Cochin 18th December 1544 states that he was proceeding
to meet Governor Martin Afonso de Soyza of Goa to urge him
to punish King Sangili of Jaffnapattinam, for the massacre
of the Christians.(CC,p51,Vol: l).
The rightful heir to the throne, Paranirupasingham fled
to the opposite coast of Kayalpattinam of South India with
his retinue for fear of his half brother Sangili who had
murdered two other princes to wrest the throne from his
father.(CC,p 54,Vol: i). In the meantime Sangili had murdered
the first converts to the Catholic religion in Mannar which
was part of his kingdom in the year 1544 AD. Father Francis
Xavier SJ returned to Mannar and thence to Neduntivu (Delft)
and proceeded to Nagapatinam to take an expedition against
King Sangili. In the meantime a Portuguese vessel coming
from Pegu (Burma) laden with rich cargo ran aground off
the coast of Jaffnapattinam. Sangili seized all the cargo
on board.
In a letter written from Sao Thome (Madras) dated 28th
March 1546 AD by Miguel Ferreira to Loao de Castro Governor
of India informing him that he met heir apparent to the
throne of Jaffnapattinam in Kayalpattinam (South India),
and that the prince together with his children, grandchildren
and his kith and kin would be baptised as Catholics if he
was made king.(CC,p 150,vol: i). The prince also stated
that Joao Fernandez Corea, Captain of the fishery-coast
(see map) had invited him to go on board a vessel but had
done nothing even after receiving from him a diamond as
a gift. The prince also informed him that Martin Alfonso
de Souza had also invited him to go on board a ship and
had taken him up to Neduntievu and from there he sent him
back, after taking from him some pearls and that now he
had nothing else to offer. He also alleged that Souza had
taken a tribute of 5000 silver coins from Sangili and this
prevented him from putting him on the throne.(CC,p 147 Vol:
i).
Of Gay Kings & Priests
It is rather a matter of historical fact that King Bhuvanaka
Bahu III of Kotte wrote several letters, which were in Portuguese
ending as follows: Please accept as true this document which
I have written-Svasti Sri'. This last sentence was written
in Tamil. This points to the fact that the language of the
court in Kotte was Tamil.(CC,pp,185,186,251,260,262, Vol:
i) In a letter by the Portuguese of Ceylon to Joao de Casto
dated Ceylon, 27th November 1547 AD the Governor of Goa
speaks of the ' abominable crime' of the king of Ceylon.
The sin of sodomy is so prevalent in this kingdom of Cota
that it almost frightens us to live here. And if one of
the prominent men of the kingdom is reproached for not being
ashamed of such an ugly vice, they reply that they do everything
that-they see their king doing, for this is the custom'.(CC,p
239, Vol: i). A more direct accusation is found against
King Bhunanaka
Bahu viii on page 38, para 3 (CC,p 38,vol: i), which reads
as follows: For, this king was by nature courteous, benign,
affable, dutiful and liberal and endowed with every other
moral virtue, with the exception of chastity, since he was
a slave to the unspeakable and abominable crime which had
been introduced into the island by his predecessors , the
Jangatres.' This according to the foot note is referred
to, elder in the community of the monks'.(CC.p.38,vol: i).
Incidentally, this king was assassinated by his Portuguese
guard and it is alleged that Mayadunne, king of Sitavaka
was responsible for the killing.(CC,p 294 pars 11,vol: i).
After the death of Bhuvanaka Bahu his nephew Dharmapala
came on the throne of Kotte. The triangular struggle for
supremacy among Dharmapala, Mayadunne and Vidiya Bandara
forced the hands of King Dharmapala to seek the assistance
of the Portuguese. Dharmapala and his household received
baptism and embraced the Catholic faith. At the time of
his baptism he took the name of Dom Joao Parea Pandar in
1556 AD.
Chapter 6 - Dispersion of Tamils to the West Coast of Sri
Lanka
The Parava community of the fishery-coast in and around
Punnaikayal, of Tamil Nadu (see map), were baptised by St.
Francis Xavier and subsequently they were shipped to Colombo
and dispersed among the Catholic community of the coastal
regions from Puttalam to Galle. The king of Madampe, Vidiya
Bandara ordered the Parava community living in his kingdom
to ' shave their beards and apply ashes on their foreheads
and become pagans again. They courageously replied that
they were ready to have their heads cut off but that they
would never consent to do what they were asked. Then the
king agreed not to kill them, but imposed on them a fine
of about three hundred `pardaos' as a penalty for their
not complying with his orders'.(CC,p 346,vol: i). The Paravas
(Tamil) community of the fishery-coast of South India and
situated in and around the Punney Kayal , were fishermen
by caste.
They were adept in fishing for pearl oysters and chanks
off the fishery-coast and during the season converged in
and around the village of Murungan, in the Mannar district
of Sri Lanka for the pearl fisheries. The Careas or Karavas
also of the fishing caste community in South India, subsequently
found their way to the coastal regions of the island of
Ceylon and came under the religious spell of the Catholic
priests of the Franciscans, Jesuits etc. In the year 1556
AD no less than 70,000 of these Karavas living in the sea
ports of the island embraced the Catholic faith. These Tamil
Karavas or fishermen were living in Kalpitiya,Chilaw, Kammala,
Negombo, Colombo, Beruwela, Galle, Welligama, and Matara.(CC,p
18 vol: i). ' The first to receive baptism was their Captain,
whom they call Patangati, which means that he is, as it
were their king .(CC,p 347,vol: i). It is interesting to
read the translation of the original Portuguese document
concerning the PARAVAS (TAMILS) in Moratuwa in 1613 AD.
13. The Fathers left Colombo for Moroto, which is a town
in the direction of Galle, three Chingala leagues, which
are six Portuguese leagues, from the city. There we have
a church, which stands among cool and dense woods. They
arrived on a Saturday , and on a Sunday they said mass,
all the people coming to it with great devotion.
14. All here are Pareas (Paravas), which is the same as
fishermen, among whom I saw a wedding, the ceremonies of
which being novel, I shall describe them. The company consists
of all the friends and relations, and to decline is the
greatest affront. The wedded pair come walking on white
cloths, with which the ground is successively carpeted.
The nearest relatives hold above them cloths of the same
kinds in the fashion of a canopy, thus protecting them from
the sun. The bride is carried in the arms of the nearest
relative, and, when this one tires, another takes his place.
The symbols that they carry are the white discs and candles
lighted in the daytime, and certain shell which they keep
playing on in place of bagpipes. All these are royal symbols,
which the former kings conceded to this race of people,
that being strangers they should inhabit the coasts of Ceilao
(Ceylon), and one but they or those to whom they give leave
can use them. They fish only in the ocean, and not in the
river, although it is nearer than the sea. And not even
in winter, inspite of the pressing need in which they maybe,
do they fish in the river as they consider it a degradation.
And certainly , what causes wonder in this and in other
people of this kind is, that however wretched, miserable
and poor they may be, they have some points of honour that
they would rather die than go contrary to'. (CC,p 375 &
376, vol: ii).
They say that comment is free but facts are sacred, is
true in the lives of these Tamil Karavas who were domiciled
by Sinhala kings from the time of Parakramabahu VI (1410
AD), and more so during the Portuguese occupation, where
70,000 Tamil Karawas living on the nine sea ports from Puttalam
to Matara were baptised as Catholics.(CC,p 347 vol: i).
These Karavas who are numerous still carry on the nuptial
ceremonies as described above, with variations, The only
apparent factor that has changed is that they now speak
in Sinhala, their adopted language, instead of their original
mother tongue Tamil. The Karavas (Tamils), who are now a
multitude, and perhaps 20% of the total Scintilla population,
could claim Tamil lineage if by some quirk of fate Tamil
language emerges as a predominant factor in the politics
of the country.(Sir Lanka). It is an accepted fact , that
history repeats itself in the affairs of a country from
age to age and, it appears that the way has been paved by
the power hungry politicians to hasten the process of political
change of musical chairs!
Karavas were also brought into the island by the Singhalese
King Parakramabahu VI, in the year 1410 AD to fight the
Mukuwas in Chilaw over fishing rights. The Karavas hailed
from the eastern sea board of the Tamil kingdom of the Cholas
and reputed to be good fighters. They too were settled by
the said king on the western coast of Ceylon from Puttalam
to Matara. These Karavas hailed from the Coramandel coast
of the south east coast of Tamil Nadu. After defeating the
Mukuvas in the sea port of Puttalam, these Karavas were
settled by the king on the west coast of Ceylon at Puttalam,
Chilaw, Negombo, Mutuwal, Moratuwa, Panadura, Kalutara and
further down south. He gave them gems and married them to
Sinhalese goigama maidens to secure their permanent services.(see
map),(TS, p 108).These Karavas belong to three main classes:
Kurukulasuriyas, Arasa or Mahinda Kurukulasuriya
and Varna Kurukulasuriyas
These are the house-names of the three different classes.
The Sinhalese never mention their house-name (ge-names)
e.g., Kingsley Mendis. It may well be Kurukulasuriya Aratchilage
Kingsley Mendis. This would reveal the true Tamil Hindu
extraction. (Karavas of Ceylon Society & Culture -M.D.Ragahvan,
K.V.G.de Silva, Colombo).
Over the last five centuries these Tamil Karavas living
on the west coast of Sri Lanka would have multiplied into
about three million souls who are now Sinhala, their adopted
language, but carry the 'house-names' surreptitiously which
would otherwise betray their Tamil connections.
a) Sangili, the Valiant
In September 1560 AD an expedition to capture Jaffna and
dethrone King Sangili, left Goa under the command of Dom
Constantino de Braganza, viceroy of Goa and was joined by
bishop D.Jorge Themudo, of Cochin under whose jurisdiction
the Catholics of Ceylon came under. On the 20th of November
of the said year the fleet anchored in front of Jaffna.
An altar was set up on an islet that was there and a very
devout mass to Our Lady was said, and a general absolution
was given to the soldiers before the battle of Jaffna. Having
landed on the mainland the soldiers went on a rampage among
the villagers seeking food and treating them as if they
were a conquered people. On the same day there descended
a huge army of Sangili, King of Jaffnapattinam, and all
the soldiers were put to the sword and five Franciscans
killed while Bishop Don Jorge Temudo miraculously escaped
on foot and boarded a Portuguese vessel. Two of the Fathers
who were preaching in the neighbouring villages were led
before king Sangili who got them stripped and whipped with
canes till they were bathed in blood.
The king, though he acknowledged that they were good men
.Yet he ordered the heads of both of them to be cut off
because they spoke against the pagodas.(Hindu temples).
' The place where these servants of God were martyred and
where formerly stood the royal palace, is called COPAI'
(Kopay).(CC,p 367, vol: i) . All those who escaped the wrath
of Sangili escaped in their boats to the island of Mannar,
where there was already a church dedicated to the mother
of God by the earlier converts. In Mannar they built a strong
fort which housed the priests and soldiers. As the Naique
of Tanjore of South India was constantly attacking the Christian
converts of the fishery-coast they too escaped to the island
of Mannar, which was occupied by the Portuguese, in August
1560 AD. These Christians belonged to the castes of the
Paravas and of the Kadeyars, Both belong to the fishing
community.
A few days later the Viceroy came with a fleet from Mannar
and attacked the capital Jaffnapattinam and captured it
with a loss of about ten Portuguese soldiers. They could
not hold the capital Jaffna as the people turned against
them and Sangili attacked with an army and chased the Portuguese
from their capital.Some fled to their vessels and sailed
back to Mannar. Subsequently, the Portuguese entered Jaffnapattinam
as traders and after some time with the permission of the
king to build some houses they surreptitiously built a fortress
in the jungle. While king Sangili, was hunting in the jungle
he was astonished to see a fortress. This led to all out
war where the inmates of the fort were all massacred. According
to the Yaripana Vipava Malai, the king fell into a trap
sprung by Paranirupasingham the lawful heir to the throne
who sided the Portuguese and entrapped Sangili with the
assistance of Kaka Vannian. The King Sangili was decapitated
at the threshold of the Nallur Kandasamy temple. This battle
was fought in Nallur the capital of the king.(YVM,p 45).
In the fishery-coast of Punniyerkayal the Christians were
constantly attacked by Viswanathan of the Vijayanagar empire,
who burnt the churches and killed the Christians. In retaliation
the Portuguese sacked the Hindu temple at Truchendur a place
holy to the Hindus. Anticipating a massive reprisal, the
Portuguese summoned the Christian Paravas and put to sea
in 400 boats.(CC,p 119 & 120,vol: ii). These refugees
after a difficult sea journey arrived in Mannar. Hardly
as these Christians left the shores of the fisher-coast,
the Vijayanagar army finding the village empty went on a
spree in burning the houses and destroying all Christian
places of worship. The mass exodus to Mannar took place
in September 1591 AD.
After the death of Sangili Kumara, the Portuguese put one
Puviraja Pandaram alias Pararajasekeran on the throne as
their vassal. He, like his predecessor, was scheming to
overthrow the foreign yoke. King Puviraja Pandaram chose
to attack Mannar during the season of the pearl fisheries
where all the Portuguese would be supervising the pearl
fisheries on the mainland from Mantota, Aripu, Ponparepoemalle
all the way to Calpentyn island.
The king came with an army and landed at Erukkilampiddy,
on the east coast of Mannar before sunrise, Seeing the Portuguese
close by, he gave orders to attack the fort, while he was
having his morning meals in a hut. The Portuguese on seeing
the enemy on both flanks attacked them with fury. During
the course of the battle the Tamil soldiers found themselves
in a position where they were attacking their own men from
either sides. The Portuguese started to beat their drums
and reinforcements arrived and the Tamil soldiers were pushed
back towards the coast and they had no other alternative
but to jump into their boats and made their escape inspite
of the high tide. As the sea was rough some of their boats
sank and the men stranded on the shores were killed. They
had even to rescue king Puviraja Pandaram from the coast
of Erukkilampiddy. It is stated that the king lost two thousand
men in the war which they had to abort due to bad planning.(CC,120,121,vol:
ii).
Soon after the attack of Mannar the Portuguese obtained
fresh reinforcements from Goa and Cochin and invaded Jaffna
under the command of Andre Furtado de Medonca. The occupying
Portuguese forces then put on the throne prince Edirmanasinghe
who took on the name of Pararasekeran. Although a stooge
of the Portuguese, he carried on an undercover campaign
against the Catholic missionaries and did not look with
favour on converts. In the days of this king the Portuguese
commenced to build Christian communities and churches. Although
the king was a Hindu he had no other alternative but to
allow conversions as they were responsible in putting him
on the throne.
b) Our Lady of Victory
A native Christian named Antino Fernandez erected a straw
hut on the spot where the invading forces landed when they
conquered the Jaffna kingdom in 1591 AD. This hut became
a church with Father Fra Pedro de Christo in charge. He
dedicated the church in the name of Our Lady of Victory,
as memorial to the conquest of Jaffna. This church was built
about 1553 AD. In 1602 AD with the blessings of the king
the church was burnt to the ground when Father Fra Francisco
de Orient was away in Kayts to build St. John's church.
When the Father complained to the king about the destruction
of the church he showed grief and the day after he accompanied
his men and appeared at the burnt church and supervised
the rebuilding of a new church, fearing reprisals from the
Viceroy of India. After twelve years the Portuguese built
a church of stone and lime and named it Our Lady of Miracles,
on account of the many miracles wrought when the statue
was being made in the house of the craftsman.
The church was erected by Father Fra Pedro Betancor. The
new church was built on the spot where a mosque was situated.
The Portuguese saw that the location of the mosque was an
ideal place for a church and burnt it down. When the Moors
complained to the King he pacified the Moors, who then built
a mosque elsewhere. Father Fra Pedro was friendly with the
king who helped him in his work. The king even gave funds
to their work and promised them assistance when needed.'
In fulfilment of this promise, besides other arms, the
king gave them the island of Tanadiva (Kayts), which he
had donated to Father Fra Niculu de Cruz, for the support
of the same church and for the upkeep of the boys school
we have there. Father Pedro was helped not only by the king
but also by other native chiefs, his friends, such as Sangili
Kumara, who for the same purpose donated the village of
Visavil and Laur (Ilaur), which formed part of his patrimony.The
Naique of Tanjore, gave him another village on the gulf.
With this royal help the church and other buildings were
built with solid enclosures. The foundation stone to this
church of Our Lady of Miracles was laid on the 8th day of
May 1614 AD, on which day was the feast of the glorious
Ascension of Christ . This church is situated down Bankshall
street, Jaffna,(CC,p313 vol: II), even to this day.
c) Betrayal of Portuguese
' On the 2nd of August 1622, two queens, both sisters and
wives of the deceased King Para Raxa Sagra (Pararajasekeran)
were baptised, also one of his daughters about twelve years
old, and a large number of people. They were received at
our church of Our Lady of Miracles when Father Fra Antonio
de S.Maria was rector there . The two queens and daughter
were baptised and were given the names of Dona Clara da
Silva and Don Antonio; the child was called Dona Catherina.
Their godfather was Filipe de Oliveria'.(CC,p 59 vol:lll).
About April 1617 AD, Sangili Kumara a nephew of King Pararajasekeran,
usurphed the throne of Jaffna, by killing the governor and
many other aspirants of the royal house. The rightful heir
to the throne a son of Pararajasekeran became a catholic
in Goa in the year 1633 AD, and took the name of Fra Constantino
de Christo, and he renounced his claims to the kingdom of
Jaffna. King Sangili Kumara did not get the support of the
Portuguese . He then sought the assistance from his kindred
from the Naique of Tanjore,(South India), but this too ended
in failure. Eventually, the Portuguese invaded Jaffna and
annexed it in 1619 AD. With the fall of Jaffna the Portuguese
removed the children of Sangili Kumara and their kinsmen
and sent them to Goa.
The boys are being educated in the seminary of the Three
Kings. One of the daughters is staying in the convent of
Serra (St.Thomas, Madras) and receives a pension. She would
like to become a nun in the convent of Santa Monica (Goa),
for which the king gave his permission and also authorised
that she be given a dowry so that the nuns may receive her.
The same should be done to the second daughter as soon as
she comes of age, for not only is the embracing of this
life more respectable since she is of royal blood, but also
because the King would be free if she were not to marry,
lest her descendants should claim a right to the throne
of Jaffnapatao'. .The above is a letter sent by the Viceroy
of Goa to King Philip iii of Lisbon dated 'Goa, 13 December
1634'.(CC,p 223,224, vol: Ill). Sister Maria da Visitacao,
daughter of the King of Jaffna, was elected the thirty third
prioress of the monastery of St. Monica in Goa in January
1682, she died in April of the same year.
During the reign of king Sangili Kumara all descendants
of the royal families of Jaffna through fear of the king
and the designs of the Portuguese , took refuge in the jungles
of the Vanni.
d) Tamil- Muslims
The anti-Muslim riots of 1915 of Mawanella, the riots of
Hultsdorf, Galle, Beruwela and now a repeat performance
at Mawavnella has been labelled as a 'Muslim ethnic problem'.
This is far from the truth. If one traces the history of
the Muslims in Sri Lanka it would be seen that they all
hailed from Keelaikarai, Kayalpattinam etc., of the 'fishery-coast'
of South India.(Tamil Nadu).They were all Tamils and Hindus
and belonged to the 'Parava' community in the fishing industry
diving for chanks and pearls off the coast of Kayalpattinam
in South India and also involved in the pearl fisheries
in the Gulf of Mannar of Sri Lanka.
' It cannot be denied that the Surfis were responsible
for the spread of Muslim culture among the masses in various
parts of India. The concept of equality and brotherhood
of men preached by the Surfis attracted the lower classes
of the Hindus who were not allowed to read the scriptures
or enter the temples.'(p 423,History of India-V.D.Mahajan).
These Tamil Muslims, subsequently embraced Islam and migrated
as traders to Puttalam, Chilaw, Mannar, Mawavanella etc.,
in quest of greener pastures in Ceylon. The attacks on the
Muslims by the Sinhalese is based on 'the have's and the
have nots' and not that they are Muslims. Like the Jews
who were hounded and massacred by Hitler's Germany as they
had the economy of the country in their hands, so also the
Sinhala government of Sri Lanka continues a systematic attack
on the Tamil-Muslims, from time to time, to de-stabilise
the economy of the Tamil-Muslims with the sinister purpose
of shifting their trade to the Sinhalese.
The Mawanella debacle against the Tamil-Muslims, and often
engineered by the state, should come as a 'wake-up-call'
for the Tamil-Muslims of Sri Lanka. Let there be no mistake
about this. They should realise that they are first Tamils
by nationality and that their ploy by taking shelter under
'Muslims' as a thin veil to save their skins when there
is anti-Tamil riots in the country has been exposed.
The Muslims in Sri Lanka are Tamils both by virtue of their
ethnicity and also by the language they speak. The Muslims
here should realise that they are distinct from the Tamils
only because of their religion and should throw in their
lot with the Tamils wherein their future prosperity and
their survival hinges. There is no salvation for the Muslims
in Sri Lanka outside the pale of Tamil Eelam.
Chapter 7 - Dutch Invasion (1658 - 1795 AD)
Rajasinghe II (1635-1687 AD), King of Kandy by his letter
to the Governor Charles Reynier dated 9th September 1636,
addressed to his headquarters at Paliacotta ,North of modern
Madras, imploring the Dutch to assist him in expelling the
Portuguese out of the island. The King promised in return
to permit the Dutch to erect a fortress either at Kottiar
or Trincomalee. This letter was handed over to a Brahman,
a Tamil Hindu, who lived in secret for six months among
the Portuguese at Jaffna till an opportunity arose to cross
over to the coast on the opposite side of the Coromandel
coast. After crossing by boat he travelled by road to Paliacotta,
where he delivered the letter to the Governor Charles Reyniers.
In reply to the King's letter the governor by his letter
dated 20th October 1637, stated that he was delighted by
the king's letter and that he was prepared to render all
assistance against their common enemy. He requested to allow
the Dutch to export cinnamon for the exchange of muskets,
gunpowder, ammunitions and other arms.
King Rajasinghe by his letter dated 23rd November 1637
and written from Binntenne, in the Uva district, to Adam
Westerworld the Dutch Admiral of the East Indies, promising
the Dutch all the cinnamon that can be had and to hasten
the attack on the Portuguese fort at Batticoloa.
On 2nd of April 1638, commander Koster sailed into Trincomalee
harbour with three vessels, the Texel, Amsterdam and Dolphin
and anchored in the harbour.
On 22nd of April 1638, Admiral Adam Westerworld left Goa
for Batticoloa with the ships Maestricht, Harderwick, Rotterdam,Vere
and the yacht Enchuyfen with 800 men on board. On 10th of
May of the same year, the vessels sailed into Batticoloa
and the day following the men landed ashore and built fortifications
to lay siege on the Portuguese fort. On the 18th of May
1638, the Dutch pounded the Portuguese with their cannons.
The Portuguese finding the attack too much to their liking
hoisted the white flag and sertt two envoys to surrender.
Having surrendered the fort the entire Portuguese force
were all transported in a Dutch vessel to Nagapatnam of
South India. On 23rd May 1638 a treaty was signed between
King Rajasinghe II and Admiral Westerworld of the Dutch
East Indies. Subsequent to signing the treaty the king delivered
400 bales of cinnamon, 87 quintals of wax and 3059 pounds
of pepper to the Admiral. The king also sent two of his
men as ambassadors to Batavia in the company of the Admiral.
On 22nd of February 1658, the island of Mannar was surrendered
to the Dutch. The Dutch army marched through the Vanni and
reached the banks of the river at Elephant Pass. Having
crossed the river they marched through Chavakacheri, Navatkuli
and at a castle near a church at Chundikuli met with resistance
. Having defeated the Portuguese the army advanced towards
the fort, fighting from street to street. The fort was besieged
and due to lack of water and provisions the Portuguese surrendered
after three and a half months with a loss of 1600 men. On
23rd of June, Philip Baladaeus, the Dutch missionary had
a thanksgiving service which was continued every year.
Soon after, while Baladaeus was preaching in the church
in the city of Jaffna the natives ( not without the consent
of king Rajasinghe) plotted the murder of all Dutch officers
in the castle. The Dutch officers who were outside the church
noticed some Portuguese soldiers who had surrendered when
the city was captured, on the other side of the church with
their hands on their swords. The Dutch soldiers suspecting
an insurrection arrested the Portuguese soldiers. The traitors
were all rounded up and confessed to the plot, some were
hanged, others were beheaded and some were laid upon the
wheel. The chief conspirators, a certain inhabitant of Mannar,
one Don Louys and another Portuguese, these three were laid
upon the wheel or cross, and after they had received a stroke
with an axe in the neck and on the breast, had the entrails
taken out and the heart laid upon the mouth'.(EMC,p 798).
The heads of the ringleaders were fixed upon poles and exhibited
in the market place. According to Philip Baladaeus, 'not
long after most of the traitors having confessed their crimes,
some were condemned to be hanged and some to be beheaded'.(EMC,
vol: p 798 & 803).
Manipay and the Madappalis
Some of the conspirators hailed from the village of Manipay
of Jaffna and Baladaeus states,
' This place (Manipay), is inhabited by several of the
family of Madappalis who were concerned in the plot with
Don Louys'.(EMC, vol:iii,p803). These Madappalis are descendants
of the Kings of Jaffna some of whom were baptised into the
Roman Catholic religion by the missionaries and hence owed
allegiance to the Portuguese. According to the Yalpana Vipava
Malai, a Tamil chronicle, the title 'Madappalis' was originally
conferred to the stepbrother of Sangili the usurper, to
appease the disappointed heir to the throne of Jaffna. This
title connotes that they were the rulers of 500 villages,
a settlement enforced on the legitimate aspirant to the
throne, by Sangili.(YVM,p 47).
The seven sons of Prince Paranirupasingham alias Pararajasekeran,
the legitimate heir apparent to the throne of Jaffna, were
given the title of 'Raja' or 'Kumara' Madapallis and made
chiefs of seven districts in Jaffna. During the Dutch period
certain persons purchased the title of `Madappalis' for
large sums of money from the Dutch, and these persons were
known as' Sangu Madapallis'. Mudaliyar C.Rasanayagam in
his book' Ancient Jaffna' states, ' The Vaiyapadel says
that Madapallis were migrants and colonists. As the Kings
of Jaffna were Kalingas, their dscendents too were called
Madapallis and given the epithet 'Raja' or Kumara' in order
to distinguish them from the rest. Although the princes
of Jaffna took their wives from Vellala families and their
daughters too were often married among the Vellalas, the
Madapallis on account of their royal origins considered
themselves higher than the Vellalas'. The Dutch Governor
Van Rhee of Ceylon, had this to say in 1697 of the Madapallis.
' I think it necessary to state that a bitter and irreconcilable
hatred has always existed in Jaffnapattinam between the
caste of the Vellalas and the Madapallis so that they may
not be elevated in rank and the offices of honour one above
the other. For these reasons the two writers of the commander
are taken from these two castes so that one of them is a
Vellala and the other a Madapalli'.(AJ,p 390).
According to J.P.Lewis (ex Ceylon Civil Service), in his
book, A Manual of the Vanni Districts, Ceylon' states, 'It
will be seen from the list that some castes have quite disappeared
since 1817, and others have much diminished in numbers.
The Madapalli people, though they numbered 150 in 1817,
are now only represented by one solitary person'.(MVD,p
83). His computation of the Madapallis is that in 1817 there
were 92 Madapallis while in 1890, only one remained in Vavuniya,
in 1817 there were 60 Madapallis and in 1890 there were
none in Mullaitivu. There is no record to substantiate as
to when and how many of the Madapallis migrated to the Vanni.
But according to the census taken by the British government
there were 152 Madapallis in the Vanni..(see EMC, vol: p
798 & 803).
During the Portuguese occupation the Madapallis fled Manipay
to the Vanni in fear of persecution by the Dutch who were
governing Ceylon at that time, due to their collusion with
the Portuguese to overthrow the Dutch in the kingdom of
Jaffnapattinam, in 1658. However, it would appear in 1890
according to the census there was only one Madapalli in
Vavuniya and none in Muffaitevu. The only logical inference
is that the Dutch government of Ceylon would have softened
its stance where they were concerned and hence the Madapallis
trekked back to their original home in Manipay. During the
Dutch period a few of the Madapallis renounced Hinduism
and embraced the Dutch Reformed religion and became Christians.
The publication of the book, 'Maniampathier Santhathimurai-
A Genealogy of the Residents of Manipay & Related Inhabitancies'
by Srimath T.Vinasithamby, (MS), compiled in 1902 AD, contains
the genealogy of over seventy families some of whom were
the descendents of the Kings of Jaffna, known as Madappali,
and referred to by Philip Baladaeus, the Dutch missionary
of 1672 AD.(EMC).
Chapter 8 - Vanni: the Adanka Pattu
The chequered history of the Vanni during the ancient Kings
of Ceylon and the period of foreign occupation could be
better understood in the words of Tennent. Of its history
no satisfactory record survives, beyond the ascertained
fact that, after the withdrawal of the Sinhalese sovereigns
from their Northern Capitals in the fourteenth century,
and the abandonment of their deserted country to the Malabars,
the latter disorganised and distracted in turn by the ruin
they themselves had made, were broken up into small principalities
under semi-independent chiefs, and of these the Vanni was
one of the last that survived the general decay.'
Be that as it may, the wilds of the Vanni were never tamed
by either the Tamil or Sinhalese Kings. It was a buffer-state
to both these kingdoms from time immemorial and it was referred
to as the ' ADANKAPATTU', the rebellious state. The Vanni
was colonised by Tamil colonists from Southern India by
the Kings of Jaffnapattinam. They consisted of all castes
from Vellalas. During times of war, whether caused by internal
dissension or external threats, the Kings of Jaffna found
the Vanni as a safe haven of refuge. They hid their crown
jewels in the wilds of the Vanni when there were any signs
of war. A relic of the past has been recorded by Lewis as
follows:
The division of" Cheddikulam' is said to have been
colonised previous to this in Kaliyuga 3348 by a Chetty
from Madura, who with some Parava pearl fishers had been
wrecked on the coast of Ceylon'.(MVD,p 12). It is also stated
that the Portuguese occupied Cheddikulam and that some of
the old maps has-the place marked as 'Parangicheddikulam'.
According to the Yalpana Vaipava Malai, Kulakkodan Maharajah
of Kaveri came to Ceylon in 436 AD, on a pilgrimage to Trincomalee
and Tampalakaman and repaired the temple at the latter place.
He then cultivated seven large tracts of land and planted
all kinds of fruits and established fertile fields. Having
done this he got down Vanniyas from the coast of South India
and placed them in charge of these cultivations to upkeep
the temples from the income from these fields and the fruit
groves. As waring Turkey was the 'sick-man of Europe',so
too were the Vanniyars a thorn on the side of the Kings
of Jaffna and Kandy. During the reign of Varotaya Singhai
Ariyan alias Segarajasegaren (1302 AD), as the Vanniyars
were inciting the Sinhalese subjects in the Jaffnapattinam
to rise in revolt, the Tamil King Segarajasekeran succeeded
in reducing them to subjection 'rapine and plunder'.The
Sinhalese King declined to assist the Vanniyars in their
campaign against the King of Jaffnapattinam. The Vannis
then made peace with their neighbours but had to pay tribute
to the King of Jaffnapattinam.
With the capture of the kingdom by the Portuguese, the
Vanni was under their control and 'Parangichetticulam' of
the Vanni may have been the fort of the Portuguese. With
the arrival of the Dutch on the scene they were only able
to exact yearly tribute of 42 elephants. About the year
1782 the continued conflicts came to an end when the Dutch
once and for all defeated the Vanniyars. Every foreign power
found the Vanniyars a formidable foe and this could be explained
in the words of Lewi, It is characteristic of the spirit
of this people that the Dutch met nowhere a more determined
resistance than from one of the native princesses, the Vannichi
Maria Sembatte, whom they were obliged to carry away as
prisoner, and to detain in captivity in the fort of Co/ombo'.(MVD,p
17 & 18 ).
The Vanniyars, thence commenced to live a wild and marauding
life and carried on a predatory warfare against the Dutch
in Mannar and Trincomalee and even penetrated to the Jaffna
Peninsula. The Dutch had to build forts along the river
to keep them at bay. Even with the advent of the British
Pandara Vanniyan started a revolt to expel them from his
district with the assistance of the Kandyans. He attacked
the government house in Mullaitevu and drove out the garrison
which was under the command of one Captain Drieberg and
seized the fort. The victory of the Vanniyars was short
lived. Three detachments from Jaffna , Mannar and Trincomalee
were despatched and the Vanniyars were defeated in the Mannar
district.. Although Pandara Vanniyan was active again his
grandiose scheme to rule the Vanni faded away.
Even today the spirit of the Vanniyars is more apparent
in the fight for freedom of the Tamil people. Here again
one sees that the Vanni has answered the call of the Tamil
people in their quest for liberty and freedom from the Sinhalese.
It is also stated that the Vanniyars had sent some of their
people to the French at Pondichery in South India promising
to assist their missionaries and the Christians to overthrow
the Dutch.
Chapter 9 - Fall of Colombo and Dutch Plakkart
The Dutch forces captured Colombo on the 12th of May 1656
and consolidated their positions on the maritime provinces
of the western sea board of Ceylon. The fort of Jaffna fell
to the Dutch when the Portuguese were virtually starved
into submission on the 22nd of May 1658.
With the fall of Jaffna, the Catholic priests fled to Puttalam
which was in the territory of the King of Kandy, Rajasinghe
II. During this period the Catholics were without priests
and the practice of the rituals of the church was unheard
of and there was a proclivity of the faithful to fall to
the inroads of the new Dutch Reformed religion It was during
this period Father Joseph Vaz fired with religious zeal
left Mangalore to Jaffna. His journey was fraught with many
a mishap.
He eventually landed in Mannar and dressed like a beggar
entered Jaffna, where he was fed by devout Catholics. Sick
unto death due to lack of food and the inherent danger of
falling into the hands of the Dutch, he was secretly shifted
to the village of Sillalai, 10 miles from Jaffna where in
a chapel built by the Portuguese he instructed the villagers
in the Christian doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church..
To counter the work of the Catholics, the Dutch appointed
one Hendrick Adrian ven Rheede as High Commissioner of Bengal,
Coromandel, Ceylon etc.
He ordered all Catholics priests to leave his domain, but
this fell on deaf ears. Infuriated by the temerity of the
priests , Rheede ordered all Catholics attending Christmas
mass to be dealt severely. 'Those infernal wolves, divided
into three squads, made for the houses where the flock of
Christ was gathered in adoration before the Lamb in the
cave called Bethlehem. They came upon them by surprise and
gave vent to their greed and anger. Without any consideration
they stripped naked all, even the women who had put on their
best dresses for the feast. They seized and flogged them
without regard to age or sex'.(CCD, p 56, vol: i). Father
Vaz escaped the onslaught and fled to Puttalam in 1692.
He was followed by Father Braganza ,who too, could not withstand
the persecution by the Dutch.
They both began to do mission work with renewed zeal among
the inhabitants of whom the majority were 'Mukuvas' who
were of low caste and hailed from South India.(Malabar).
With the issue of the 'Plakkaat' by Ryclof van Goens in
1659 enforcing that the Dutch language be used instead of
Portuguese, and the subsequent order of 1682 prohibiting
the practice and preaching of the Catholic religion Father
Vaz entered Kandy to perform his missionary work. Here he
was captured and put into prison. An influential person
in the court of Kandy saw to it that he was released from
prison and allowed to practice his religion south of the
Mahaveli ganga, on the orders of King Rajasinhe II. Father
Joseph Vaz, (Brahmin), was appointed Vicar General for Ceylon
for his devoted work in propagating the faith for ten years
in the realm of the Kandyan kingdom that included Trincomalee,
Batticolao. Kottiar, Vanny and Puttalam. Sixty years later
the Dutch predators put a stop to the Portuguese missionary
work.
' During the reign of Sri Vijaya Rajasinghe of Kandy in
1746 he seized the missionaries, confiscated their property,
ill-treated them in various ways, and finally expelled them
from his realms with orders under pain of death not to return
to his domains'.(CCD, p 4 vol: III). The Dutch were behind
the actions of the King having bribed his ministers and
the Buddhist clergy. The missionaries sought shelter in
the land of the Vanny. With the death of the King, his brother
Kirti Sri Rajasinghe came on the throne. The Portuguese
missionaries saw a ray of hope with the new king. A Moor
physician, Gopala Mudaliyar was bribed with ten gold coins
who spoke to the king and obtained permission for Fathers
Mathias Rodrigues and Alexander Manuel to enter his territories
and carry on with their work of the mission. The gold coins
that were mentioned by the Dutch had a name of a South Indian
temple on one side of the coin and a image of God Vishnu
on the other weighing 3.4 grams.(CCD, p 10,vol:111). Having
entered Kandy they obtained the services of the King's father
NARENAPPA NAYAKKAR, having bribed him with thirty gold coins,
to speak to the son to obtain permission to preach in the
Kandyan kingdom.
During this period the Christians in Vanny were persecuted
by the ruler of the Vanny. He issued an order that the Catholics
should confine their religious practices only in the village
of MADHU, where Father Pedro Eerrao had built a church.
Madhu church has been a sanctuary to all refugees from that
time onwards.This shrine is considered the Lourdes of Sri
Lanka.
Chapter 10 - Tamil from Putalam to Galle
It is interesting to note that Tamil was taught from Puttalam
to Galle. The foregoing is taken from page 131, vol: iii
of CCD. ' Some country schoolmasters and the 'tomboy register
of births & deaths) holders reported that the following
Church members had gone over to the Roman Catholic church
and had their marriages solemnised by Roman Catholic priest,
ie., Joseph Pieris 'Pattangatyn' namely Joan Fernando, Simon
Fernando, Lourenz Fernando, Anthony Pieris, Julian Fernando,
Johanna Fernando, Manuel Zoysa (all of Negombo), Francisco
Pieris, and Don Diego (both of Hunupitiya), Sattabigey Saloman
Fernando(former assistant master of Maggona), and Angela
Fernando'. The above persons are all Karava Tamils who hailed
from the fishery-coast of Kayalpattinam of South India and
migrated from time to time by the ingenuity of the Portuguese
to propagate Tamils of Catholic persuasion in the western
coastal regions of Ceylon.
The Dutch by a special order dated 9th April 1774 of Colombo,
made the Catholic priests by a deed of allegiance to the
Dutch Company, before the Commander or the Chief of their
respective districts or before the `dessave' in Colombo
and this declaration was preserved in at the Colombo secretariat.(CCD,
pp 302,303 vol: III). Thirty nine Catholic priests of Jaffna
and Kalpitiya down the coast to Galle made the declaration
in Tamil. On 5th October 1767, on a complaint lodged by
Joan de Silva, the Tamil Roman Catholic schoolmaster at
Colombo said that he was obstructed in his teaching duties
by those of the Reformed religion.(CCD, p 328,vol:III).
By a `Plakkaat, the Dutch published in the 1778 in Tamil,
conditions under which persons could marry whether they
belonged to the Catholic church or the Reformed Church and
attaching certain penalties for failure to abide by the
order. This was a general restriction for marriages and
birth of persons in so far as the issue of a certificate
was concerned at baptism, and solemnisation of weddings
as stipulated in the order.
Chapter 11 - British Occupation (1793 - 1948 AD)
With the fall of Trincomalee;Mannar,Galle,Colombo and Jaffna
to the British, Governor Sir Robert Brownrigg declared war
on the Kandyan kingdom on January 10th, 1815 AD. The Kandyan
kingdom was ruled by a Tamil from Pandya, of Tamil Nadu,
by the name of Kannusamy alias Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe.
When John D'Oyle entered the city of Kandy with the British
troops, Kandy was in flames. The city was deserted except
for a few stray dogs who greeted the conquerors.
With the fall of the Kandyan kingdom and the subsequent
capture of Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe, Britain became the undisputed
owners of the island of Ceylon.
On 2nd of March 1815 AD, the Kandyan Convention was held
and a treaty was signed whereby the said kingdom was surrendered
to the British Crown. This unique treaty was not signed
by the deposed King. Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe but by members
of his court and other dignitaries of the Kandyan kingdom.
As it was reported that the treaty was signed in Tamil,
I was eager to obtain a copy of the treaty. The Public Record
Office of The National Archives of U.K. was contacted, who
in return requested me to contact the Director of National
Archives of Sri Lanka. Through a personal friend of mine,
the archives were contacted but they refused to give a copy,
perhaps due to obvious reasons. However, I obtained a paper
cutting from a Sri Lankan newspaper where K.D.G.Wimalaratne,
the then Assistant Director of the Sri Lankan Archives had
published an article under the heading, 'When we signed
away our sovreginity.The relevant para is re-produced as
follows:
Who were the signatories to the Convention? Governor Brownrigg
signed first on behalf of the King of Britain. On behalf
of the people the following chiefs signed in the order mentioned
below.
1. EHELEPOLA in Tamil
2. MOLLIGODA,first Adigar and Dissawe of seven Korales
in Sinhalese.
3. PILIMATALAWE,second Adigar and Dissawe of Sabragamuwa
in Tamil.
4. PILIMATALAWE, Dissawe of four Korales in Tamil
5. MONORAWILA, Dissawe of Uva in Sinhalese
6. RATWATTE,Dissawe of Matale in Tamil
7. MOLLIGODA, Dissawe of the three Korales in Sinhalese
and Tamil
8. DULL EWE, Dissawe of Walpane in Sinhalese and Tamil
9. MILLEWE, Dissawe of Wellesse and Bintenne in Sinhalese
and Tamil
10. GALAGAMA,Dissawe of Tamankaduwa in Sinhalese
11. GALAGODA,Dissawe of Nuwara-Kalawiya in Sinhalese'.
There were 12 signatories to the Kandyan Convention of
2nd March 1815 AD and signed in the following languages:
a. One signature in English (Brownrigg - Governor).
b. Four signed in Tamil.
c. Three signed in Tamil and Sinhalese.
d. Four signed in Sinhalese.
Of the four who signed in Tamil one was RATWATTE Disawe
of Matale. To subscribe a signature to such an important
document in Tamil would give one an impression that either
he was a Portuguese married to a Tamil, a Tamil or of Tamil
extraction. The Ratwatte's of Sri Lanka are well known by
their fair complexion, perhaps the mingling of foreign blood.
The present President Chandrika Bandraranaike belongs to
the Ratwatte clan. As reported in the Sunday Leader newspaper
of 18.10.98 the present Bandaranaikes trace their ancestry
to a SUSANNE SCHARFF daughter of Lieutenant Jan Christoffel
Scharff, who served in the Dutch East India Company and
hailed from Sangerhausen, Upper Saxony Thuringia, Germany.
He married one Elizabeth de Saram in Colombo on 21st March
1734. An extract of the said Newspaper is given below:
'Our prime minister's (S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike) direct male
ancestor, of whose connection some members of his family
used to take pride (see Twentieth Century Impressions of
Ceylon edited by Arnold Wright, (1907) p,525) was NILAPERUMAL,
a Tamil from south India who arrived in Ceylon in the late
fifteenth or early sixteenth century. He was described as
a 'high priest' of a temple in Ceylon. He was the first
kapurala in his family of the Nawagomuwe dewale, with the
fortunes of which the Bandaranayakes were long associated.
Kalukapuge was a name which the family used to effect in
the past. It is the Sinhalese version of the Nilaperumalge,
the ge name of the Bandaranayakes'.
The Kandyan treaty or the Kandyan Convention consisted
of 12 articles transferring the sovereignty of the Kandyan
kingdom to Britian. It guaranteed to preserve the political
and religious institutions of the island of Ceylon.
It is rather intriguing to note at page 392 of Pundit Dr.Nandasena
Wijesekera's book, 'The Sinhalese' the following is recorded.
'.... TIGER flag represented the WELLASSEY DISSAWE and also
HATH KORALE' (ZS). It is not a coincidence that the districts
of Welassey and Hath Korales flew the 'Tiger' flag as the
residents were Tamils and owed their allegiance to their
original home of the Cholas of South India. The fact that
Tamils lived in the said districts cannot be disputed. No
Sinhalese will ever dare fly the Tiger flag, unless he is
a Tamil. The residents of 'Wellassey' and 'Hath Korales'
flew the Tiger flag during the reign of the Tamil King Sri
Wickrama Rajasinghe in 1815 AD, were undoubtedly Tamils.
Since 1815 due to political expediency and compulsion of
successive Sinhala governments by draconian laws, these
Tamils adopted the Sinhala language.This pattern was seen
in the west coast of the island from Puttalam right down
to the southern extremity of the country. A search in the
land registry of these districts would reveal that the title
deeds have been written in Tamil. This goes to prove that
the civil administration of these districts was in Tamil
and ruled by Tamil kings.
It is a trajedy that cloning of ' Nilaperumal' of Malabar
(Tamil) with ' Sussane Scharf ' of Germany has resulted
in the massacre of thousands of Tamils in Sri Lanka. This
unholy alliance which has come to us like the 'hound of
the Baskervilles', in a vicious circle, and spawned by the
abject greed of the ' Pandaram Nayakers' (Bandaranaikes),
to cling on to political power at the cost of human life.
Sacrificing birds, animals and human life is a national
trait of the Sinhala Buddhists to achieve their diabolical
ends. The practice of magic came into the teachings of Buddhism
during the reign of King Sena 1, in 887 AD.(CV, ch;84;7-17).
According to B.C.Law, on the chronicles of Ceylon states,
Paritta Texts were also works on ritual and magic'.(ZCC,9
71). They say that old habits die hard!
The Sri Lankan map on the opposite page, shows the location
of the eleven signatories to the Kandyan Convention. They
were rulers of the revenue districts for the sole purpose
of maintaining law and order and for collecting revenue
for the king. These appointments were made at the express
command of king Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe alias Kannusamy.
The two districts viz Hath Korale on the west of the country
and the other Wellassey on the south east of the country
was a strategically important to the King of Kandy. Through
these districts the king had access to the sea ports of
Batticola on the east coast and Chilaw on the west coast
for trade and commerce.
During the reign of Tamil King Elara (145 BC), of Ceylon
who ruled from Polnnaruwa, Maiyangane was his military outpost.
King Elara was a prince from the house of the Imperial Cholas
of South India. During his reign he settled men from the
kingdom of the Cholas in and around Polnnaruwa, Anuradhapura
etc. These Tamils went on pilgrimages to the Hindu kovil
at Katargamam on the Southern extremity of the country.
There were Tamil Brahmans officiating as priests at this
temple. They livid with their families and a whole colony
of Tamils sprang up at Katargamam. Katargamam was and is
part of the Tamil homeland and the southern boundary of
the district of Wellassey. On the west coast of the country
is the famous Muneswaram Hindi Temple and its environ which
also became a strong hold of the Tamils. This was home for
hodes of Tamils from south India. This falls within the
district of 'Hath Korale' which was under the control of
the king of Kandy.Both districts 'Hath Korale' and 'Wellassay'
flew the TIGER flag an emblem of the Imperial Cholas and
now of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.The Dutch in
a campaign of internal persecution and saw to it that the
Catholic church and its adherents and priests were given
a hard time with a view to giving it a body blow so that
their faith was obliterated from the island. All this was
not to be.
A glimmer of hope was seen in the intrusion of another
foreign country which had the same greed to convert the
riches of the island to itself. With the fall of Trincomalee
on 20th of August 1795 and Colombo on 16th February 1796
to the British, the Catholic church was given freedom of
worship by a proclamation dated 3rd August 1796. This freedom
of worship was extended to all other religions practised
in the island whether Christian or pagan.
The Portuguese were directly responsible for the mass exodus
of Tamils of the Karava and Parava castes from the fishery-coast
of Punniyakayal, of South India to the west coast of Ceylon.(CC,
p 346,347,vol:l). They were all Catholics by conversion.
Their intention was to have a Catholic community living
on the fringe of the location where there were spices. Their
intentions was that this would expose them to learn the
methods adapted by the natives in their cultivation and
harvesting. They felt that these expatriates were under
their power and more amenable to their control to obtain
optimum benefit in financial returns and a bulwark against
the pagans.
The Roman Catholic Portuguese did more damage to the country
by the destruction of many places of worship revered by
those of the Hindu and Buddhist fraternity, whom they called
pagans. The cruelty and torture perpetrated by them have
been well documented . One cannot comprehend how nations
professing Christ as their Saviour, who taught all men to
'love his neighbour', killed each other and the local population
which such impunity at the sight of the treasures of the
island. They came with the sword in one hand and the Bible
in the other, and when they saw the riches of the island
they jettisoned the Bible to fill their pockets with the
aid of the sword. Even in this day and age, we find them
following the age old practise of fostering those who have
taken up the sword to kill his neighbour rather than loving
his fellowmen. They have all contravened God's first commandment
Thou shall not kill'.
Chapter 12 - 'Yellow Robes' and the Temples of Doom
'The first panacea for a mismanaged Nation is inflation
of the currency; the second is WAR. Both bring temporary
prosperity, both bring permanent RUIN. But both are the
refuge of political and economic opportunists' - Ernest
Hemingway
The Sinhala chronicles of the Mahavamsa, Culavamsa, Dipawansa
etc., record among other things, primarily financial assistance
bestowed by the monarchy to the Buddhist Sangha from time
to time. With the inception of the Sangha in the island
of Ceylon, the Buddhist priests who were mendicants in so
far as their food and garments were concerned relied on
the benevolence first on the ruling King and the people
at large, in keeping with the teachings of the Hindu philosopher
and teacher called Siddhartha Gautama who became the renowned
Buddha.
In the epigraphical survey undertaken by Dr. Muller, Professor
of Oriental Philology at the University of Berne, H.C.P.Bell
Archaeological Commissioner of Ceylon, etc., there is evidence
even to this day that the alms, caves, lands etc., were
bestowed by the Kings of Ceylon on the Sangha. This has
been engraved on rock stones which were lying scattered
at Jetavanarama in Anuradhapura, Vessagiri inscriptions,
slab-inscriptions of Kassapa v, Mihintale rock-inscriptions
of Mahinda iv etc. (EZ). This was the plight of the Buddhist
clergy from the beginning of Buddhism in the island.
The Sangha was surviving on the acts of charity both by
king and people. They were dedicated men with a mission
of preaching to mankind the path to nirvana or enlightenment,
as preached by Buddha . Hence they were mendicants when
it came to food and clothing. As for shelter, the country
was replete with stone caves which they found adequate to
carry on their meditation without impinging on the comfort
and riches of the villages or towns. This was in keeping
with the volt-face of Gautama Buddha, who abandoned the
palace, his wife and child to seek an end to suffering and
pain in the woods of Uruwela.
King Devanampiyatissa is credited with the receipt of envoys
also with the gift of the true doctrine' from Dharma Asoka
of Pataliputta in the year 247 BC,(MV, p 78 & 79). From
247 BC upto 568 AD of the inception of the reign of King
Aggabodhi, the Sangha were pampered by a total of 79 ruling
kings with lands to build temples and lands, to obtain produce
for the upkeep of the temples and monasteries for a period
of 815 years.
It was during the reign of Aggabodhi I (568-601 AD), to
the present era where the King allowed his Chief Buddhist
Priest Dathasiva to run the country by influencing the reigning
Monarch.(CV,cht:42,line22 & cht:57,lines 23 & 39)
This is the beginning of the political influence of the
Bhikkus'. A positive reference to the political influence
appears in chapter 57 of the Sinhala chronicle Culavamsa
as follows. Since the time of King Mana (676-711 AD), the
sovereigns of Lanka act according to the counsel of the
Bhikkus, who hold the leading position'. (CV,cht:57,p23-39).
Since the 7th century the Bhikkus have become landed proprietors
and affluent enough to dole out the necessities of life
to the villagers in and around their temple dwellings. From
mendicants to feudal lords, they have imposed their power
on the masses of the Buddhist people living around them.
Hence there was a subtle shift of the balance of power from
loyalties to the King to the Bhikkus. This had political
ramifications to the ruling King and this shift had flowed
like a fount since the 7th century to this day.
The Senior High Priests of the Malwatte and Asgiriya Chapters
jointly control about 15,000 Buddhist temples in Sri Lanka
comprising of about 14 million Sinhala Buddhists. These
High Priests vehemently object to any proposals brought
forward by any political party to grant any concessions
to the minority Tamils. Instead, they have challenged the
incumbent President of the country that they would supply
20,000 youth to intensify the war against the Tamil Tigers.
It is apparent that there is not a single person belonging
to the families of the parliamentarians of Sri Lanka or
any Buddhist Priest in the war front to fight the so-called
'Tamil Tigers'. These war mongers in 'yellow robes' instead
of exploring peaceful means, as their Lord Buddha expounded,
are instrumental for the death of hundreds by sending smoke
signals from their temples. The rest of the Buddhist world
who attribute mildness and meekness to Buddhism, are shocked
and appalled at the Sri Lankan Buddhist priests who are
openly desecrating the Triple Gem' of the Buddha, Dhamma,
and the Sangha.
Today, in Sri Lanka religion has become the 'opium of the
people' .The Bhikkus are seen leading political rallies
and demonstrations and meddling in the governance of the
country. The Bhikkus have become Priest-Kings' in the country
and dictate to the ruling government of the day of how the
country should be run, specially where the minority Tamils
are concerned. This unBuddhistic attitude of the Bhikkus
towards the Tamils comes down to us from the time before
the Sinhala chronicles were written down from the so called
'atha kathas'(true stories). It is alleged that Buddhist
temples have become 'temples-of -doom', where they are used
as mustering points for cajoling sons of poor villagers
in the South of the country, to serve in the armed services
to fight the Tamil Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Instead of preaching
the way of peace and advocating against hurting or killing
fellow human beings, as their Lord Buddha professed, the
National Sangha Council are sounding war drums and sacrificing
innocent village youth as cannon fodder to achieve the unachievable.
The history of the present conflict has shown that soldiers
are being returned to their villages in body-bags, others
missing in action and thousands sans hands, sans legs and
sans everything.
This is reminiscent of the role played by Kings and priests
in the history of the western world, where the masses suffered
as a result of the power struggle between priests and kings
where murder and mayhem was the order of the day. In the
spirit of it's times Denis Diderot wrote, 'Men will never
be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails
of the last priest'. This sadly captures the tragedy of
our times.
Does this not mean anything to those who have propagated
this war, whether Priests,Press or People in high places?
Perhaps they are thinking in terms of 'Billeta Thenava'-human
sacrifice, to achieve their evil designs. Billions of dollars
loaned by the World Banks for irrigation works have been
channelled to prosecute the war efforts and that too on
their very own people.(BD, p 68 & 69).
Dr. Olga Mendis (OAM),in her book, 'The story of the Sri
Lankans (SS,p472), states,' 'The Indian High Commissioner
had informed Delhi that the Mossad was training in Sri Lanka.
This is incorrect. Training was by Shin Bet the Israeli
Internal Security Services. Israel sold sophisticated fire
arms such as Uzis, mini Uzis , and Dvroa Fast Attack craft
to the Navy'. The Doctor should read the book ' By Way of
Deception' by Victor Ostrovsky where he writes his foreword,
'Revealing the facts as I know them from my vantage point
of four years inside Mossad was by no means an easy task'.
Here is a Mossad Officer who had defected to Canada speaking
the truth about the working system of the Mossad. He says,
I was elated when I was chosen and granted the privilege
to join what I considered to be the elite team of the Mossad'.
But he further adds, out of love for Israel as a free and
just country that I am laying my life on the line by so
doing, facing up to those who took upon themselves to turn
the Zionist dream into the present-day nightmare'.(SS).
The Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan Security forces have
found a place in his book. Victor says at page 67, 'Amy
Yaar made the connection then tied the country in militarily
by supplying it with substantial equipment including PT.boats
for coastal patrol. At the same time, Yaar and company were
supplying the warring Tamils with anti-P.T., boat equipment
to use in fighting the government forces. The Israelis also
train elite forces for both sides, without either side knowing
about the other, and helped Sri Lanka cheat the World Bank
and other investors out of millions of dollars to pay for
all the arms they were buying from them'. He states that
it was Mossad's man "Amy Yaar" , 'who dreamed
up the great "Mahaveli Project" to divert the
Mahaveli river from it's natural course to dry areas on
the other side of the country. The claim was that this would
double the country's hydro-electric power and open up 750,000
acres of newly irrigated land. Besides the World Bank, Sweden,
Japan, Germany, the European Economic community and the
United States all invested in the $2.5 Billion (US) project'.
Victor the Mossad Officer states that he 'was assigned to
escort J.R.Jayawardene's daughter-in-law a woman named Penny-
on a secret visit to Israel. She knew me as "Simon".
We took her wherever she wanted to go. We were talking in
general terms, but she insisted on telling me about the
project and how money for it was financing equipment for
the army. She was complaining they weren't getting on with
it. The project was invented to get money from the World
Bank to pay for those weapons'. Really, Doctor, heal the
nation of Sri Lanka 'by way of deception'.
The common man is none the wiser to the fact that aid sent
for the social upliftment by the world has been frittered
away on the war by the jingoism of the government of the
day. They do not hear the sound of distant guns nor the
blitzkrieg by air and sea to decimate a people across the
Vanni, but they see and hear the whining sound of ambulances
all day long bringing the dead and dying and the injured
from the theatres of war, which should have never been enacted.
Perhaps, they hear the cry of those who are howling to high
heavens on the loss of their dear ones swelling the numbers
in the 'Association of Relatives of Servicemen Missing in
Action'. They just don't care, as they have not lost any
one of their OWN in the battle front but console themselves
that it is a necessary evil to offer as sacrifice those
who are expendable in the diabolical misadventure which
has petered out to be a damp squib. No wonder as Alex Perry
of Travel Watch, Time Asia put it, 'Sri Lanka offers BEACHES,
BUDDHAS AND BOMBS :(Tuesday, May 15,2001,vol:157 No:20).
History reminds that when there is conflict of interest
between religion and the state, in so far as power over
the people, has brought those countries concerned to decay
and destruction. It is harkening to reflect on what has
been said by J.Gerson Da Chuna in his book ' Memoir on the
history of the tooth-relic of Ceylon', that" Notwithstanding
the sublimity of his doctrine, however, the religion of
Buddha is vague after all, and could not be better symbolised
by it's followers than by the Chakra or wheel; for Gautama
ignored the beginning and was equally uncertain of the future.
Fair, humane and lovely as may be it's outward forms, it's
inherent principles confessing no supreme God, it's moral
code void of all authorities, denying the true dignity and
freedom of the human agent, and investing moral sentiments
and relations with a kind of physical outsidedness, it has
left the countries it has overrun a prey at once to superstition,
political misrule, and spiritual lethargy.
Chapter 13 - The Backyard of India
If those who are steering the affairs of Lanka have an ounce
of political wisdom they could perceive the clouds of war
fast approaching from China which is playing Russian roulette
patiently on the political chess-board in the Indian Ocean.
One could see China which has for many years wormed its
way into the body politics of countries in and around this
region in Pakistan, Bangladesh etc. It is known by western
security analysts that China is dredging a port in the Pakistani
coastal city of Gwadar at the mouth of the Persian Gulf,
to enable larger vessels to be anchored. This project has
given China unique docking facilities for her naval vessels
and a ring-side presence in the Indian Ocean.
The presence of China in the ports of Bangladesh and their
recent 'war-games' in the Bay of Bengal will come as a wake-up
call for India. It will be, not before long when the Indian
presence in Sri Lanka will be more felt to neutralise the
move of China. This may affect their position regarding
the internal conflict in Sri Lanka.
China's presence in the Indian Ocean would put her arch
enemy India in a quandary. Sri Lanka is China's ideal choice
to encompass the Indian sub-continent and hence she has
done everything possible to have Lanka her closest ally
by supplying military hardware and personnel to prosecute
the present war in Lanka. Right now India has played her
cards well by allowing Uncle Sam to invest in her country
to such an extent where the former President of the United
States, Bill Clinton had declared that India is its best
ally in the East. It has to be so, as she is a bulwark against
Chinese expansionism and a lucrative partner in trade. As
far as Lanka is concerned, Uncle Sam is aware that India
would clean up her backyard.
The suicidal attacks on the American pride of the 'Twin
Towers' and the Pentagon by alleged cohorts of the Taliban
on Black-September, has changed the course of world history
with far flung economic consequences not only to America
but also to the rest of the free world. Consequent to the
terrorist attacks, America has taken a stern attitude towards
the Taliban, centred around the elusive Osama Bin Laden
and his second in Command Dr. Ayman al Zavahiri, an Egyptian
by nationality who had been condemned to death in absentia
for the mass murders of foreign tourists in Egypt. Both
men and their associates, derelicts and renegades, are now
on the run from impending justice. The latter has been reported
to have been killed by the bombings of Kandhar. Only time
could tell whether America and her allies could match the
strategies of Osama Bin Ladan and his associates to evade
being captured . Even if they are eventually brought to
justice, the ghost of Osama Bin Ladan and his Al Qaeda bases
would haunt the world for many years to come.
Notwithstanding American political and trade ties with
India, affairs in Lanka are a different kettle of fish involving
Tamil Nadu's 65 million Tamils who have their brethren specially
in the North, and East. Kandy the one-time hill capital
of Sri Lanka, and the tea plantations of the country. Their
blood bonds are strong coming down from many centuries to
present times. It is not beyond the realms of possibility
or prophecy to foretell that a tragic situation would befall
Lanka once again, as recorded in the Culawamsa (Cpt;80:58
to 80 ), where Magha alias Ariya Chakravathi alias Kulasekera
Singai Ariyan, a prince of the Chola dynasty ruled Ceylon
for 21 years in the 13th century from the kingdom of Jaffnapattinam,
if a solution is not found to the present conflict.
The grandiose scheme of the 'Sethu Samuthram' of India
would be a reality soon judging from the mood of the parliament.
This was thought of half a century ago whereby India stands
to gain from shortening the sea voyage from Vishakapattinam,
their naval base, to her seaports on the south and west
of the the country, specially with the ongoing conflict
with Pakistan and the increase of a Chinese naval presence
in Pakistan. At present her merchant navy circumnavigates
Sri Lanka to reach her seaports on the south and west of
her country.
The scheme to build a bridge across the Gulf of Mannar
over the legendary Adams-bridge to connect the north eastern
town of Talaimannar to Rameswaram, a distance of 18 nautical
miles, is apparently to counter the Indian vision of the
' Sethu Samuithram' project to deepen the Pamban -Pass at
the western sea board of Rameswaram. The scheme thought
of by the present Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremasinghe,
is that South India could use a land route to Sri Lanka
to make use of the sea port of Colombo to haul container
cargo consigned to south India. Although the scheme was
thought of with all good intentions, it appears rather a
negative proposal as South India (Tamil Nadu), has a up-to
date container handling facilities in the port of Tuticorin
barely 180 km south of Rameswaram. With the completion of
the Sethu Samuthram project the port of Tuticorin would
become prominent and container cargo destined to Colombo
would be discharged in the port of Tuticorin as transhipment
cargo .
The scheme would generate a robust tourist industry specially
to the reputed temples, churches and other places of worship
of both countries. Whether India would like to have an umbilical
road link to Sri Lanka is much in doubt due to political
ramifications. India may like to have the sea between the
two countries rather than to bridge the Gulf of Mannar.
The Central government of India would like to see Tamil
Nadu a dormant partner rather than play a dominant part
which would alter the balance of power in the body politics
of the subcontinent.
However, if India has other designs in the region and agrees
to the scheme then one could see the sky line of the towns
of Talaimannar and Mannar change from obscurity to boom
towns. They say that history repeats itself, where Mantota
(Mahattitha), of the Mahavamsa and Silappadhigaram, would
become an entrepot as in the days of the kings of Jaffna.
If India is to play an effective role in the Indian Ocean,
she has to increase her naval deployment in the region.
To achieve this she has to safeguard her long coast line,
especially the south, to effectively neutralise any foreign
invasions. At present her security is hampered due to the
inability to patrol her southern and western territorial
waters caused by the shallow waters of the Pamban-Pass.
To reach the southern and western regions, her navy has
to skirt around Sri Lanka and thereby lose valuable time
in a given emergency. The dredging of the sea bed of the
Pamban -Pass 'Sethu Samuthiram', will enable her navy and
merchant navy to ply via Pt.Calimere on her east coast to
Cape Comarin and other ports of the west. This will also
enhance the cargo handling capacity of the ports of Tuticorin
and Cochin where the former would become the world's largest
container terminal of South East Asia. The previous Sri
Lankan Government has communicated her objection to the
project because the threat to marine life in the territorial
waters along the Pamban -Pass to the Gulf of Mannar.
When the scheme comes into reality, perhaps in the not
too distant future the seaports of the north, north west
and east of Sri Lanka would rise into prominence as during
the rule of the King's of Jaffna pattinam. This would make
the rest of the ports in Lanka a 'backwater' in the backyard
of Mother India.
There is concurrence, specially among certain members in
the parliament of Tamil Nadu and some stalwarts in the Centre,
that her problems in her backyard could be solved like a
hen tucking a wayward chick under her wings. This thought
may be in the 'RAW', yet it may take place in an ultimate
scenario.
It is said that it rains both on the good and evil. The
evil that has been galvanised by the Sinhala government
against the Tamils has turned into showers of blessings.
Although the Tamils have been swamped by tears, torture,
massacre and loss of lives they have now risen to prominence
like a meteor from the obscurity of the rustling palmyra
palms of Jaffna to be world's greatest Freedom Fighters.
They have been driven to the sea for survival, which in
years gone by earned them the epithet, 'KAPPAL ODDIYA THAMILAN'
. It is said that their merchant navy is more in numerical
strength than any other shipping organisation in Lanka and
their sea-tiger fast attack crafts deadlier than those of
the Lankan navy.
Although it has not been admitted by the Sinhala government,
30% of the foreign earnings come from expatriate Tamils
living all over the world, thanks to the powers that be.
Like the Jews, the Tamils will return to their homeland
with much wealth and technology to build Tamil Eelam from
the ashes of those who have sacrificed their lives for freedom.
'Where every prospect pleaseth, but man alone is vile'.
This was written by a foreigner about Sri Lanka, who did
not want to mince his words. How true his words have proved
even to this day and age where thousands of men, women and
children are being slaughtered in the name of Sinhala jingoism
riding on the backs of 'yellow robes'. That serene and enchanted
island which we knew Lanka to be, today is far from being
the 'Island Paradise' and 'Pearl of the Indian Ocean', and
has become the 'Sickman' of the Indian Ocean, and an eternal
thorn in the side of India. Let those who persist in prolonging
and sustaining the cruel war hearken to the words engraved
on rock stones by Buddhist Kings of Lanka, 'become a crow
or dog and will be boiled in the eight great hells'. (EZ,p
82,vol:iv).
If peace is to prevail in Lanka, the intransigence of the
Maha Sangha should be tempered down by the state so that
their ambit of power does not impinge on the affairs of
governing the country. The Maha Sangha should meditate on
matters pertaining to the 'triple Gem' of the Buddha, Dhamma
and Sangha. If the swan song of the Buddha 'Let all beings
be happy', then let the Sangha take the initiative in calling
upon the government to solve the ethnic problem, where the
hope and aspirations of the Tamils are secured and guaranteed
for 'as long as the Moon and Stars endure'.(EZ).
The Maha Sangha and majority of the Sinhalese are of the
deluded notion that granting concessions to the Tamils would
put them in a compromising position in so far as governing
the country. In this regard they are inclined to be bordering
the realms of hysteria, in that the Tamils would join their
blood brothers across the Palk -Strait and thereby render
their religion exposed to Hinduism, which was responsible
for booting out Buddhism from the land of its birth, and
leave their language in dire straits and the Sinhalese reduced
to a minority. Their slogan is 'Sri Lanka for the Sinhalese
only and the Tamils should be driven to Tamil Nadu'.
The Press, Priests and People are invoking a mythical story
of a battle between an old Tamil King Elara and a Sinhalese
King Dutugamunu, spun into the Sinhala chronicles, recorded
by designing Buddhist priests of ancient times from 'atha
kathas"(true-stories),to whip up feelings and bolster
the flagellant Sinhala psyche.
The unholy alliance of the National Sangha Council by its
actions is hastening the achievement of a Tamil State of
Eelam. It is an irony, that the very people who are fighting
against a negotiated settlement in the present crisis and
by their militancy, are unwittingly paving the way for the
Tamils to govern.
With the dawn of 5th December 2001, a ray of hope has warmed
the hearts of many in Lanka, whether Tamils or Sinhalese,
with the welcome change in the political horizon of the
country. The United National Party under the wing of Ranil
Wickremasinghe has come to power after a lapse about a decade
of despotic rule under the so called Sri Lanka Freedom Party
which offered FREEDOM only to the Sinhalese and brickbats,
bullets and death for the minority Tamils. The UNP has taken
up the challenge to bring a peaceful solution to the much
vexed problem of the hopes and aspirations of the Tamils,
with the blessings of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam,
is the only panacea for the immediate future. This is a
golden opportunity for the government to extricate itself
from the quagmire of narrow politics and embrace the cause
of the Tamils and live in harmony for the prosperity of
the country.
The historical agreement reached between the Sri Lankan
Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam of 22nd
February,2002 is another golden mile-stone in the persistent
pursuit for that elusive peace necessary to find a negotiable
solution to the ongoing ethnic conflict. There are some
against the peace deal and are howling at the caravan of
peace. Be that as it may, the dogs of war will bark but
the caravan must move on. .
However, it takes no prophet to tell, and is also the candid
opinion of some sane Sinhalese with the pronouncement in
the Tamil Nadu State Assembly that eventually the Sun will
rise on Tamil Eelam. Whether the Sangha or the Sinhala state
like it or not, the handwriting is on the wall' of the liberation
of the Tamil people from oppression, tyranny and carnage.
Addendum
Since writing ' Kappal Oddiya Thamilan', I was fortunate
to receive a photocopy of the signatories to the `Kandyan
convention' of 2nd March 1815 AD which is carried overleaf.
This is mentioned in chapter 11 of the book. The photocopy
should be read in conjunction with pars 5 of page 49 of
the book.
It is not surprising that majority of the eleven signatories
to the convention, were against the rule of Sri Vickrama
Rajasinghe alias Kannusamy the last king of the kingdom
of Kandy, covertly or openly conspired in the downfall and
the subsequent capture of the monarch chose to subscribe
their signature in Tamil. There were a few who opted to
sign both .in Tamil and Sinhalese. Yet a few contended to
sign only in Sinhalese.
The dignitaries who placed their signature to the convention
only in Tamil were Ehelepola, Pilimatalawe second Adigar
and Dissawe of Sabergamuwa, Pilimatalawe Dissawe of the
four Korales and Ratwatte Dissawe of Matale. It is seen
that Ratwatte Dissawe of Matale has signed as 'RAVATHAI'
in Tamil in 1815 AD.(see photocopy).If the Ratwatte of today
claim ancestry to the 'RAVATHAI' the change is due to political
expediency to a Sinhala phonetic Ratwatte.
It is an accepted historical fact that the language of
the court of Kandy was Tamil. But it is intriguing to note
that even after the King was deposed they chose to subscribe
their signature in Tamil as they were Tamils.
Bibiliography
Abbreviations & References used in this book
1. AC- Ancient India, V.D.Mahajan,S.C.Chand & Co,New
Delhi-1993
2. AJ- Ancient Jaffna, Mudaliyar C.Rasanayagam, AES,New
Delhi-1993
3. BD-By Way of Deception, Clare Hoy & Victor Ostrovsky,
Stoddart, 1990
4. CC -The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka, Vol: & iii
-Fr.V.Perniola S.J.,Colombo1989
5. CCD -The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka,Vol: & Fr.V.Perniola
S.J.,Colombo-1983
6. CCB-The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka,Vol: & Fr.V.Perniola
S.J.,Colombo-1992
7. CT-Ceylon an Account of the Island Physical & Topographical,
Longmans & Robertson-1859, Sir James Tennent, K.C.S.,LLD.
8. CV-Culavamsa, Wilhelm Geiger,AES,New Delhi-1992.
9. EHC-The Early History of Ceylon, G.C.Mendis, AES, New
Delhi-1992
10. EMC -A Description of East India Coasts of Malabar
& Coromandel - Ceylon, Philip Baladeus, AES New Delhi-1996
11. EZ -Epigraphia Zeylanica, D.M.de Silva Wickremasinghe,
Vol: i, iii, iv, AES, New Delhi-1994
12. FI -Sri Lanka the Fractured Island, Mohan Ram
13. HC -History of Cambodia, David Chandler
14. HI-The Historical Inscriptions of South India, Robert
Sewel, AES, New Delhi -1983
15. HM-The History of Malaysia & Her ghbours,F.J.Moorehead-1952
16. HT-The Historical Tragedy of the Island of Ceylon,
P.E.Pieris, AES, New Delhi-1999
17. KC - Khymer, Lost Empire of Cambodiya, T.Zephir, Thames
& Hudson, London, 1998
18. MP-Manuel Pratique Pour Cambodignes,Saigon-1876
19. MVD-A Manual of the Vanni Districts, Ceylon, J.P.Lewis,
C.C.S., Navrang1993
20. MS-Maniampathier Santhathimurai, Srimath T.Vinasithamby,
Lake HouseCbo-1991
21. MV-The Mahavamsa, Wilhelm Geiger, AES, New Delhi-1993
22. TC-The Colas, K.S.Nila Kanta Sastri University, Madras-1984
23. TFH-Travels of Fah Hian, Samuel Beale, AES, New Delhi-1996
24. TR-Memoir on the History of the Tooth-relic of Ceylon,
J.Gerson Da Cunha, London-1875; AES, New Delhi-1996
25. TS-The History of the Tamils & the Sinhalese of
Sri Lanka, G.K.Rajasuriar, Australia-1998
26. YVM- The Yalpana Vaipava Malai or The history of the
Kingdom of Jaffna,C.Britto,Colombo-1879
27. ZCC-On the Chronicles of Ceylon by B.C.Law-Aes.Delhi,1947/94
28. ZS-The Sinhalese-Nanda Wijesekera-Gunasena- Colombo,1990
29. ZNIV-The NIV study Bible-Zonderman-USA-1995
30. ZHT- History of the Tamils -P.T.Srinivasa lyengar-AES,1995
31. ZIS- The Indianized States of South East Asia- by George
Coedes-Hawaii1962
32. ZHS- A History of South East Asia by D.G.E.Hall-London,1961
About the Author
G.K.Rajasuriar (Christy), hails from Manipay, a one time
sanctuary of the `Madappalis', where the descendants of
the Kings of Jaffna found a safe haven from the botched
attempts to re-capture power first from the Portuguese and
then from the Dutch, since the fall of the kingdom of Jaffna.
He had his initial education in several Colleges south
of the country and finishing up at Hartley College, Point
Pedro and Alexandra College of Colombo 7. An excellent sportsman
having won the Senior Athletic Championship Cup in 1948
while at Hartley. He was awarded College colours for his
performance in athletics. He represented his alma mater,
Hartley, in soccer and in cricket.
He joined the Customs Department as a Customs Officer,
in the then Her Majesty's Customs of Ceylon in 1951, and
served in various sections of the service. In 1982 he was
sent to the Royal Customs Training College of Malacca, sponsored
by the Division of Narcotic Drugs Control of the United
Nations, for training in rummaging of ocean going vessels,
motor vehicles, aircraft's etc, for drugs, narcotics and
smuggled goods. Subsequently, he obtained further specialised
training in the Customs of Hongkong, Singapore and Australia
in sea surveillance to combat smuggling. He rose to the
position of Assistant Collector of Customs of the Customs
Marine Division, which he set up for the Sri Lanka Customs
in the year 1979. He was reputed in the art of combating
smuggling activities in the country, specially off-shore
and high sea operations. He was a recipient of a record
number of high commendations for his detection's on land
and sea. He was appointed a Justice of the Peace in 1979
for the district of Colombo.
Due to political instability in the country he migrated
with his family to Australia in 1988. In his retirement
he published his first book 'Smugglers' World' in 1991 which
contains his memoirs as a Customs Officer. As President
of the Tamil Senior Citizens Fellowship of Victoria in 1996,
he was instrumental in publishing the `Yalpana Vaipava Malai',
a Tamil chronicle of the history of Jaffna, into English.
As a student of Sri Lankan and Tamil Nadu history he travelled
to Tamil Nadu and Kerala and visited the Saraswathy Mahal
Library and Art Centre of Tanjore and the Museum in Chennai
to learn the ancient history of the Tamils. Subsequently,
he published the book The History of the Tamils and the
Sinhalese of Sri Lanka' in 1998. The present volume `Kappal
Oddiya Thamilan', potrays the adventurous spirit of the
master sailors of the Tamils in quest for trade by peaceful
methods rather than by the sword. This volume is a result
of the writer's dedication to the Tamil community to which
he belongs.
Copyright - G. K. Rajasuriar & Tamil Writers Guild with permission of Tamilnation
All Rights Reserved without limiting the rights under copyright
reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in, or introduced to a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical photocopying,
recording or otherwise ),without the prior written permission
of the copyright owner of this book or Tamil Writers Guild except in the case of brief quotations embodied in history reviews or for promotion of Tamil culture and history. Permission granted for reference, personal and educational use provided Tamil Writers Guild is mentioned as source or with the link 'http://www.tamilwritersguild.com/overseas-exploits-tamil.htm' ]
