Childhood Memories of Bogawantalawa - By Dr Nihal D Amerasekera

Much to my surprise retirement is not the beginning of the end but an opportunity to get on with what I have always wanted to do but never had the time.  Travelling, reading and writing has kept me wonderfully amused and entertained. I keep active during the day by walking and running. But it has always been my desire to emulate my grandfather who spent his retirement on an ebony “harnsi putuwa” in our family home in Nugegoda. As I breathe the noxious car fumes in London, a creaky Edwardian rocking chair is my refuge from the trials of the day.  

My soul delights in the stillness as I rest in the comfort of the chintz cushions and the gracious curves of my rocking chair. As the autumn wind and rain batter my windows, I recline in my chair at peace with myself.

When the mind is idle there is often an urge to return to the dim and distant past. It gives me a soothing warmth to rummage through the archives of my mind in an attempt to recover my earliest childhood memory.

As a teenager and even much later, I was fascinated by the past and my childhood. The transition from an infant mewling and puking in my mother’s arms to a toddler struggling to walk and talk became a catalyst for a multitude of stories which my parents took great delight in reminiscing. This gave me enormous pleasure to stitch together my disconnected recollections to an accurate and continuous narrative.

My earliest memories are of Bogawantalawa. It is a magical small town in a valley in the Central Province surrounded by mountains of tea estates. In 1869, when the pioneering British planters came across this valley and its unique climate, realised its potential and grew tea in the surrounding hills. Now it is called the Golden Valley producing some of the finest high grown teas in the country famous for their distinctive flavour and aroma.

From 1940-44 my father was a Government Servant in Bogawantalawa. Those were turbulent times with WW2 raging across Europe and the Far-East.  Somehow, my little town nestling beneath the hills remained untouched by the inhumanity and the horrors of war.  As a kid, I was bemused to see the occasional convoy of jeeps and trucks carrying military men waving rifles.

We lived in a quaint upstairs house with a small rear garden.  At the front, there was a wooden fence draped in purple Bougainvillea. Our neighbour was a friendly Tamil family. Their little girl was about my age. She came over to play with me. It seems I was more fluent in Tamil than Sinhala. I wish I had kept up my language skills. The house backed on to a hill.  The village school on the hill had a large playground where I often played with my little friend. Next to the school was Mr Cherian’s house. He was the Headmaster. Although he had a stern look, Mr Cherian was a kindly man, often seen clad in a brilliant white verti. His wife was a skinny lady with a Colgate smile. She was my mother’s closest companion.

Bogawantalawa weather was wild being served by easterly and westerly winds. The rain was never far-away. I remember the cloudy skies and the rolling mist that covered the surrounding hills. But whenever the sun shone it was closer to heaven than any place else I know. People always wore mufflers and sweaters and carried umbrellas. The raincoat was a ‘must-have’ accessory. There were many British planters rushing on their noisy motor bikes. The only shop I remember is Maskeliya Stores on the High Street. It had lots of sweets on display. This was also the biggest shop in town where the great and the good did their weekly shopping. It gives me great pleasure to see the shop has survived the ravages of time and is still open for business.

It was a daily ritual for my mother and Mrs Cherian to go for walks on the gravel road in front of our house. I often tagged along with them. The road meandered through a lonely pine forest. I recall the primaeval silence of the forest except for the chirping of the cicadas. On my way, I picked up pine cones that littered the floor. My mother spoke in fluent Tamil to her friend. The deserted winding road went up to Kehelgamu Oya. This is a fast-flowing river with a simmering rage. The views were dramatic with a deafening noise of a multitude of rapids, waterfalls and swirling currents. The charming wooden footbridge across the river stood as a lone sentinel bringing calmness and serenity to the mayhem down below. The birds that bathed and frolicked in the pools perched in tandem on the wooden railings of the bridge. The striking tranquillity of this wilderness breathed freedom and peace. One cannot get any closer to nature than this.

The nights were peaceful beyond belief. There was the occasional eerie howl of jackals that broke the silence. We had a maid to look after me. She was a kindly woman with a huge repertoire of fairy tales. In those days there was the early to bed early to rise culture for kids. Before I slept there were the nightly stories of kings and queens and wicked witches. The mornings were often dank and chilly. The dew on the grass lasted until the sun shone.

I remember with such clarity my first introduction to the concept of death when I saw a funeral procession in the High Street.  The car bearing the coffin was covered in flowers. This with the procession of wailing mourners was enough to upset a 4 year-old. Death is hard to define even for an adult. My father tried his best to explain. I found it bizarre and disorientating. I kept thinking about for the rest of the day. Now, as a septuagenarian, I understand the concept of death. It’s finality however still remains shrouded in mystery. Over many centuries religions and philosophers have tried to unravel its perplexities without much success.

When so much time has passed it is hard to find my earliest memory. A myriad of memories emerge at random but they lack date stamps.  A single vivid memory, however, stands out. It was a stormy evening. I was then about 4 years old and seated by an upstairs window fascinated by a storm that blew across the valley. Streaks of lightning lit up the darkened sky. This was followed by deafening peals of thunder that was frightening. The rain fell in bucket loads. I watched in awe as the road was turned into a river. The water went rushing and crashing into everything in its path. This is such a simple childhood memory of the magical splendour and the formidable and destructive power of nature.

Those who served the Government were moved every 4 years what was euphemistically called transfers. All our possessions were loaded into a lorry and we bade farewell to our friends. As the sunset on our lives in the valley, there was a new dawn in Kadugannawa. We never returned to Bogawantalawa again. Since I retired, with time on my hands, there are always flashbacks of times past.  Occasionally those early wistful memories still wake up bringing joy to my soul. I enjoy the hustle and bustle and the bright lights in London. Time and again there are reminders of the peaceful existence in this rural idyll that distils the true meaning of life.

I still visit Bogawantalawa in my waking hours and in my dreams. My only sojourn in real-time is through Google Maps. They are mostly detailed aerial views. The village school still exists and is now called St Mary’s School. This even features on Facebook. Our house down the hill is still standing as is the road leading up to Kehelgamu Oya. I do hope the river has retained its power and dignity. Progress has encroached on the pristine pine forest. Much of it has given way to houses and farms. The roads are crowded with people and vehicles and the High Street cluttered with shops, cafes and colourful billboards. It is such a joy to discover even after the passage of over 70 years some of the old landscape is still preserved. But the peaceful and rural Bogawantalawa of my childhood only exists in a secure corner of my mind. 

I have lived longer in Britain than in Sri Lanka but the memories of home and family and friends seem such a strong pull even after nearly half a century in exile. I have left a part of me in that beautiful island of my dreams.

My musings on Evolution

The theory of evolution is to me, a proven fact and not just a hypothesis. The evidence is overwhelming. These include fossil evidence, DNA and archaeological evidence. It is the only hypothesis that explains the diversity of Nature and its failures and successes, without the need to invoke a “designer”. One of the reasons some still have difficulty in accepting it is because they fail to appreciate the enormous time scale of life on Earth. We are talking of billions of years! There are also misconceptions such as that we arose from chimpanzees whereas the truth is that we both have a common ancestor only.

The driving force for evolution is the quest for survival. This ensures that genetic mutations which enhance the chance of survival are favoured and a species will progressively become better suited for continued survival. Offspring which are better equipped will gradually overtake those that are not. This is natural selection. It is not a “law” that is “obeyed” but pure common sense. All living beings are constantly exposed to threats and it does not require any sort of faith to accept that those who are better equipped will survive, and in the course of billions of years, that is exactly what happened. Better adapted species emerged and the failures became extinct. In fact, 99.9% of all species that ever existed on Earth are now extinct. The more recent ones to become extinct (last 10 years) include the Tasmanian wolf, Pinta Tortoise, Baiji Dolphin, Caspian tiger and the Golden Toad. The closest known animal to Man (Homo sapiens) is the Neanderthal Man (Homo Neanderthalensis) and he became extinct around 40,000 to 42,000 years ago.

When it comes to more evolved species such as mammals and birds, other factors came in to influence evolution. This can be called cultural evolution. Reptiles and other less evolved species are solitary in nature and just care for themselves only. Mammals and birds have are more “social” because they have realised that to be successful as a species, cooperation, caring for other members and developing a “group mentality” has evolutionary advantages in propagating the species. Thus the notion of “survival of the fittest” was modified in the sense that in order to be fit for survival, the needs of other members of the species have to be taken into account. They don’t have a moral code as such, it is purely pragmatic. It is reasonable to postulate that these tendencies became genetically codified and hence transmitted to offspring.

At this stage, if we take a giant mega leap in how Man developed, we can see that behaviour traits which are now called “good” arose, and the “bad” ones were not favoured. At a much higher evolved and cultural level, these behaviours became entangled with the concept of “morality” driven by Theistic religions as well as any philosophy that believes in an after-life. There is no doubt that moral laws could help in the survival process. Discipline was found to be useful and different ways of obtaining it evolved. One of the most powerful is the emotion of fear. Fear figures prominently in many religions – fear of retribution,a painful afterlife wherever it is, and fear is the basis of law enforcement. But human beings appear to be driven to behave morally not just by these means. While it is true that many people behave well because of the fear factor, there is overwhelming evidence that humans who are atheists and humans who are not driven by fear of breaking the law and its consequence, still adopt moral attitudes and behaviour and this appears to be something that has evolved over thousands if not millions of years. This kind of moral behaviour is seen in birds and mammals. For example, rats share food with other favoured rats (their “mate”), wolves defend each other against grizzly bears, a prairie vole taken out from a cage in which he shared with another vole and is subjected to banging noises which stresses him and then is put back on the cage is greeted by his mate who grooms and licks him to calm him down, elephants are known to help injured or ill members of the herd, Chimpanzees show a sense of justice and those who deviate from the code of conduct set by the group is set upon by other members as punishment, vampire bats who successfully foraged for blood will share with those who were not successful.

For humans, and most probably for other higher species as well, I believe that two other factors (related) operate. The first is the desire to experience pleasure and the second is the desire to avoid discomfort. Indirectly, both these will enhance chances of survival. For example, the desire to avoid discomfort will lead to a safer life and thus a longer life through attention to matters of safety. The desire for pleasure will also, in general, promote a safer life although it could admittedly have the opposite effect at times. Pleasure often involves socially “survival” promoting behaviour such as helping others, sharing with others and caring for others. Like everything that occurs in Nature, deleterious effects can also occur with the pursuit of pleasure. There are no ordained laws which govern human beings and just as some mutations produce less well-equipped species, the pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of discomfort can act in more than one way but it is my contention that the nett result of this is towards a better-equipped species for survival.

THE MAX KORAL KORNER

Hello! My name is Max Koral. I am not unique. I am not perfect, but I am entertaining.  I used to be a doctor, now I need one! When you get to know me better after reading my regular posts in this column, you might even like me!

I want to start by stating that I like observing human nature and love causing consternation with the manipulation of words. Let me give you an example. I was enjoying a meal with friends at a restaurant, and I chose beef chorizo as my starter. I thought it was delicious, but as I was cutting into it with my knife, I dropped a sizeable piece on the floor near my feet.  Of course, I couldn't eat it anymore, but I was anxious not to leave it on the floor as the floor was so clean and tidy. I called the little waitress with a big smile and announced that I wanted to bring to her notice something important. She stood at the head of the table, and as I spoke, her cheery face began to display a worried expression. This, I thought, was because she was anticipating a complaint. She noticed that I was holding a fork aloft with a piece of chorizo stuck in it. I started speaking with no particular expression but with clarity, which I hoped would impress her.

My dear girl, I said. What is perching at the end of my fork is a piece of chorizo which came from a much larger one you were kind enough to place before me on this small white plate you can observe on the table. You probably noted that the plate is now empty and I can state without any ambiguity that the reason for this emptiness is because I ate the contents on it apart from this piece I am now showing you on my fork. You may well ask why I have not consumed the piece I am showing you. Why has this piece of chorizo not been sent to its rightful place which is to my stomach? Is there some deficiency which prevented this small piece of rather sorry looking cooked chorizo not been given its rightful place in the World, which is my stomach? Was it not cooked properly? Did it offend me in some way? Have I developed a sudden unexplained aversion for chorizo? Am I planning to take it home and eat it later? Am I saving it for a loved one at home who has a particular liking for chorizo? The answer dear girl is none of these you will be pleased to hear.

The facts are as follows to the best of my recollection. As only a little time has passed, I can assure you that the facts I now recall are correct and an accurate description of what transpired. As I was cutting this chorizo, which I expected to be as delicious as the fellow chorizos I consumed only a minute ago, this piece which I am holding in my fork, fell to the ground and stood close to my feet on the clean carpet. It was a sorry sight, and if a piece of chorizo could speak, it would have said something like "Why have you discarded me?" If chorizo could comprehend speech, I would have said "Of course not dear chorizo. It was just an accident. You can call me clumsy if you like".  I may not be the brightest but I know for sure that chorizo cannot hear and I did not say anything at all, apart from something like “oh dear”. The question now arises. What do I do now? Pretend it never happened? Push it away under the next table? Pick it up and eat it and risk food poisoning? None of these appealed to me because although I am not perfect as stated at the beginning of this discourse, I am honest and entertaining. I, therefore, plucked up courage and decided to make a clean breast of it and face the consequences. Dear girl, will it offend you if I do not eat this and merely place it on this clean plate now that you know that my not eating it does not in any way indicate that the chorizo was not cooked properly or cooked inadequately. No offence meant and no need to inform the chef that a customer did not appreciate the chorizo.

The girl looked somewhat puzzled and merely said "What?"

I mean to say, so much for honesty and appreciation of food!

Professor Sanath P Lamabadusuriya.50 years of Academic Service to Sri Lanka

A truly illustrious career. We are all proud of our Batchmate. I just read a post about a felicitation ceremony for Lama for completing 50 years of academic paediatrics (on the 1st of April, 2019), held on the 6th of June 2019, by the Faculty of Medicine, Sabaragamuwa University. The felicitation address was delivered by Professor Deepthi Samarage.

She ends her speech thus:-"As a practising paediatrician, he strode the world of paediatrics in our country to greater heights. His academic brilliance, attention to detail, splendid diagnostic skills and unwavering commitment to excellence are indeed legendary.

I fervently hope that I have managed to do the justice to the profile of this spectacular academic
Thank you Prof Lamabadusuriya. I wish you good health and many more years of life to continue your invaluable services for another generation of medical students and little kids".

Please click on the link below to view a Power Point Presentation at the event.

Tribute to Prof. Sanath P Lamabadusuriya

IS THERE LIFE AFTER DEATH?

IS THERE LIFE AFTER DESTH?

If human beings have only one life, I.e., there is no existence after death, the only concern as far as being happy is to find a way to be in that state for as long as possible either continuously or in long bursts till they die as death is inevitable. Even an unhappy life has to be endured only till such time as death intervenes to provide release. In other words, even the worst journey is time limited. If this is accepted, it has many repercussions that follow.

1. It provides a different perspective on end of life decisions.
2. It should enable persons to not worry about death ( apart from concern about how it would affect others who are left behind, possibly fears about the process of dying itself).
3. It would make life activities more urgent and focus the mind on making best use of our lives before it ends.
4. It could potentially lead, at least in some, for a reduction in moral behavior in those who lead moral lives only for fear of repercussions in the next life.

If there is life after death, why is it not obvious? For such a significant truth about lives, why is it so “hidden”? One would reasonably expect a large number  of well documented and well authenticated accounts of previous lives. While there are some such accounts in the literature, they are of questionable accuracy.

But, our recollection of past events even in this life are incomplete and does not stretch back far. Is it then reasonable to expect memories of past lives to persist. 

Even if there was a past existence, if we have no recollection of it at all, is there any point in being concerned with the possibility of a previous life?

If life does continue after death, there are major questions to be answered as to its mechanism. This leads concepts such as existence of “body” and “mind” (or soul), for example, and greater understanding of consciousness, self awareness, self image. 

Basing morality on the basis of rewards or punishments, or the need to please or satisfy supernatural forces who are able to shape our future, is common.

If life persists in some form, is it restricted to the human form or could it be in lesser animals or even in beings which are outside our realm?

If death is followed by passing onto another form of existence, is it a permanent state (good - heaven) or (bad - hell)?

What makes that state desirable or undesirable?

Is there a “life” after death and even if there is, should we be concerned about it?

If human beings have only one life, I.e., there is no existence after death, the only concern as far as being happy in this life is to find a way to be in that state for as long as possible either continuously or in long bursts till they die, as death is inevitable. Even an unhappy life has to be endured only till such time as death intervenes to provide release. In other words, even the worst journey is time limited. If this is accepted, it has many repercussions that follow.

1. It provides a different perspective on end of life decisions.
2. It should enable persons to not worry about death (apart from concern about how it would affect others who are left behind and possibly fears about the process of dying itself.
3. It would make it more urgent to focus our mind on making best use of our lives now.

4. Potentially lead in some instances, for a deterioration in moral behaviour for those who lead moral lives only or mainly because of fear of repercussions in the next life.

If there is life after death, why is it not obvious? For such a significant truth about lives, why is it so “hidden”? One would reasonably expect well documented and well authenticated accounts of previous lives. While there are accounts in the literature, they are of questionable accuracy.

Our recollection of past events even in this life is incomplete. How many of us recall our first 2-3 years of life? Is it then reasonable to expect memories of past lives to persist? 

Even if there was a past existence, if we have no recollection of it at all, is there any point in being concerned with the possibility of a previous life? And if a new life were to follow, why should we worry about it as we wouldn’t be aware of the transition.

If life does continue after death, there are major questions to be answered as to its mechanism. All what we know about the Universe has been through scientific inquiry. As our knowledge advances, the proportion of phenomena attributed to “supernatural” ones, decrease. Science is still advancing and we have not reached the point where all phenomena could be explained. There is very reason to believe that this process will continue and that we will be able to explain many hitherto unexplained phenomena by application of the scientific method of enquiry. The submission that understanding of the Universe can be realised through “thinking” or meditation or introspection is open to question although it forms the basis of many religions. The fact that these Religious teachers who claimed  to have a full understanding of the Universe lived hundreds of years ago when our understanding of the World was relatively miniscule, does not appear to matter as they gained their “knowledge” either through deep thought or alleged divine revealation.

This leads to debate on concepts such as existence of “body” and “mind” (or soul) as separate entities. The body is apparent and visible although it may be undergoing constant change but the mind or soul persists even though that itself may be undergoing constant change. There is a clear and evident connection between who you are now and who you were before but such a connection is not clearly apparent in the case of the mind, assuming of course that there is a body/mind separation. The alternative view is that the mind is something that arises within a living body and the existence of a living body is a sine qua non for the existence of a mind. Consciousness has various meanings but could be included within the broad heading of a “mind”.  

There is also the assumption by many that consciousness, self-awareness and other features of the mind are unique to human beings. This specially applies to human centric beliefs which are common to most religions. The Human centric aspect goes beyond that in some cases to the extent that it extends to the whole Universe. Man is at the Centre and signifies the whole “purpose” of the Universe. From time immemorial, Man has been naturally curious. Man seeks explanations and some Men also seek purpose and it is not surprising that answers to “purpose” are not available as in my view; the question is meaningless unless you are Theist.

Morality could be based on a system of rewards and punishments operating through the need to please or satisfy supernatural forces who are responsible for our outcomes. Morality also could be based on a different system of reward or punishment through a cause-effect system where good acts beget good outcomes although how acts are classified as good or bad is not immediately clear.

If life does persist in some form, is it applicable only to mankind? If it extends to animals, at what level does it operate? Could an amoeba be reborn? Could an animal die and be reborn as an animal? Could animals operate in a cause-effect system?

If death is followed by passing onto another form of existence, is it a permanent state (good - heaven) or (bad - hell)? Does a man who goes to hell suffer eternal damnation? Does a man who goes to Heaven enjoy eternal happiness?

My thoughts on Destiny

My thoughts of Destiny

Destiny is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “The events that will necessarily happen to a particular person or thing in the future”.

The Collins English Dictionary defines Destiny as “A person's destiny is everything that happens to them during their life, including what will happen in the future, especially when it is considered to be controlled by someone or something else.”

This implies that the future is already determined and is “waiting to happen”.

I find this impossible to accept and if true, terribly depressing as it removes all incentives and promotes an attitude of resignation as “no matter what you do, what has to happen will happen”. Diligence, application, ambition, hard work have no real meaning as all these are attempts to shape the future.

Apart from that aspect, it is just inconceivable that everything that happens in this Universe, including mundane things such as missing a bus, or the number of times you visit the toilet involving billions of people are all part of a script that has been written already. Just imagine the complexity of a World where billions of human beings and billions of animals are just part of a preordained script being enacted day after day. It is so ridiculous and far fetched, it is hard to understand how such a belief is held by a lot of people.

Is the future totally unscripted? Clearly not, as reasonable predictions could be made which have a high probability of occurring but with no absolute guarantee. A heavy cigarette smoker is likely to develop lung cancer or heart disease or both. A diabetic who neglects his illness is likely to reach a premature end. Such examples are many and obvious. At the same time, completely random events occur and these are not predictable. To imagine that Tom was delayed by traffic and thereby missed his flight which subsequently crashed killing all its occupants was all part of a script which had already decided that Tom was not going to die and thereby be had to be delayed by traffic in order to miss the flight takes a lot of fanciful imagination to accept.

There are other aspects to consider too. We are all conditioned by our genetic makeup. Even simple attributes such as height, weight, the colour of eyes and more complex ones such as inherited diseases.

We are all affected by the environment in which we grow up and one could analyse all these factors and make some predictions on the future pattern of life of a child. We are not creatures who are totally free to determine our future, Even when we are under the impression that we are making a free choice, we are already conditioned by our genes, the environment we grew up. Two children of the same age asked to choose between two options, one of which is clearly anti-social may make “free choices” but the child who grew up in a loving atmosphere with caring parents operate on a very different platform from a child from a broken home with alcoholic parents living in poverty.

Even if we move on to a supernatural power such as a Deity, a predestined future does not make any sense. What is the use of prayer and good behaviour if the future is already determined? How can a Supreme Deity be all loving and forgiving if He has already determined the destiny of people? If destiny is not determined by Him, this implies that He is not all powerful and he cannot control events.

It is therefore evident to me that the future cannot be based on a rigid predetermined set of events which are inevitable. But it is perfectly feasible to postulate on possible and probable ways that the future may unfold taking into account factors such as :
Genetics
Family history
Environment.
Built-in longevity if that can be shown, in other words, you are programmed to last a certain length of time (bar unexpected accidents)
Upbringing and parents.
Habits and lifestyle
Exposure to risk factors
Predictable Natural disasters.
Conscious decisions on life events.
Availability or, lack  of, choices:
Living in times and places of danger and in dangerous occupations.


Religion. I have already commented on Deistic Religions.
Karma. A proper understanding of Karma will only show tendencies or probabilities, not an immutable future.

We know of Universal trends such as certainty that the sun will die and that the milky way and Andromeda will collide.

I dream.... Forever

I dream.... forever?

I dream as I often do

Of a planet where humans are free

Free to join hands in caring for our precious abode

Free to be ourselves

while being an integral part of a community

Free to stop searching for a purpose where there is none

Free to love others and be loved

Free to feel the pain of others less fortunate

Free to state our feelings without being judged

Free for our views to be considered dispassionately

Free to receive and understand the views of others

Free to forgive and bear no grudges

Free to let go the burning ember of regret and revenge

Free not to be classified according to birth, belief or bias

An interconnected world permeated by respect and love

A veritable Utopia without the need to commit to a Faith,

Judged on action and behaviour, not on words without meaning

Will I be dreaming forever in this complex world or ours?

Danno Budunge, a very special song. 

By Mahendra (Speedy) Gonsalkorale. January 2019

A Historical perspective of people who influenced it and of culture related to the song

(I don’t claim this to be a scholarly treatise; it is based chiefly on internet resources)

I discuss this subject in paragraphs and indicate the main subject in the sub-heading. You will see a thread running through the article which I hope is relevant. At first reading, it may appear disjointed but when your revisit, it will all make sense. Some of the views expressed are my own. I have done my best to check on accuracy.

John de Silva- (1857-1922)

As far as I can determine, the lyrics of Danno Budunge was written by Makalandalage John de Silva playwright and play-producer, a pioneer in the field of Sinhala drama, for his drama Sirisangabo Charitaya.

Born in Kotte on January 13, 1857 to Catholic parents, he first attended Christian College, Kotte and then went to the Colombo Academy which later became Royal College, and at age 20 he was a teacher at St. Joseph's College and later at Wesley College. As he moved closely with oriental scholars like Pundit Batuwantudawa, he had acquired a good command of the Sinhala language too.

Like many young men of his age living close to Colombo, John de Silva too must have been a theatre fan, who tried his hand at play-writing and producing. The first play he wrote was Nala Raja Charitaya), which was staged in 1886, when he was only 29. This was followed by Dascon Natakaya (1888), the story of the Portuguese General who had a love affair with the Sinhala Princess Samudra Devi. He also wrote a play called ‘Parabhava Natakaya’ (1901-1902) a satire on the Europeanised upper class.

His next play 'Ramayanaya Natakaya ' was staged on May 31, 1889 (according to some writers in 1904) at the Floral Hall, Malwatte Road in Pettah, a popular venue for plays (sadly no more). It is said that on the night of the second performance, June 5, the hall caught fire, and stage sets, curtains, costumes etc. were destroyed. It was believed to be arson by those jealous of his success.

Shock and grief turned into anger and he gave vent to his anger in a booklet he published in Sinhala titled 'Fire-fight or Hanuman comes to Floral Hall.' (It was Hanuman the monkey who set fire to the garden where Sita was kept a prisoner by Ravana). Later in the year, he printed and published the play with the title 'Sitaharanaya' (abduction of Sita) or 'Ginigath Ramayanaya' (Ramayanaya that caught fire). Downcast and disgusted, he gave up writing and producing plays, entered Law College and qualified as a proctor, and started practising as a lawyer. This was in the 1890s.

But the theatre beckoned him and with the writing and producing of Sirisangabo, began the second and the best phase of his career as playwright and producer. First staged in 1903, Sirisangabo is perhaps his most popular play and a perennial favourite. After Sirisangabo, his group of actors (no actresses, as females were not allowed to act then, and it was usual for males to dress up as females for feminine parts), became professionals, known by the name Arya Suboda Natya Saba. They entertained audiences every night, and regular theatre-goers wouldn’t miss a John de Silva play.

By this time he had become a Buddhist and also a devotee of the Hindu Gods. It is on record in his own writing, says Sunil Ariyaratne who has made an in-depth study of John de Silva's plays, "that after the first premier of Ehelepola, he made offerings to God Kataragama and God Vishnu". He was convinced that Sinhala music had firm roots in India. He wrote “There is evidence that Indian classical music existed in ancient Lanka during the times of our Sinhalese kings. Consider where Sinhalese poets of the past took their poetic meters. A careful analysis shows that Sinhala poetic meters originally belonged to the system of rāga [Indian melodic modes] and tāla [Indian rhythm cycles] found in North Indian classical music”. This explains why his songs had the Raga-thala tradition which he approved of.

John de Silva wrote plays not only to entertain the public. Through his plays, he tried to inspire in the audience a feeling of nationalism, a sense of pride in our culture and heritage and encourage them to regain the lost freedom. He poked fun at those who slavishly aped the white ruling class and he was averse to alcohol and championed temperance. It is on record that he didn't engage any actors who had taken to drinking. In his own small way, he was contributing to the national movement, and he was among the Sinhala leaders arrested and jailed after the riots of 1915. In spite of that, he retained his love of Western attire and favoured the jacket, shirt and tie.

John de Silva's last play was Nagananda Natakaya written in 1919 and staged at the famous Tower Hall. He passed away on January 28, 1922 after a brief illness. He was 65 years old. He had injured his foot while swimming in the sea, and being a diabetic the wound had proved fatal.

The Tower Hall and John de Silva's Nurthi have become synonymous. When we speak of Tower Hall plays, we mean Nurthi (also spelled Nurthi) and John de Silva's plays.

But it was many years after the Tower Hall was built and opened for public performances that a play by John de Silva was staged there. Folklore says that the proprietor of Tower Hall, G. Don Hendrik Seneviratne, whose son-in-law Charles Dias was J. de S's rival in the theatre, did not permit J. de S's plays staged there. Only Charles Dias' plays were staged at the Tower for a number of years, and they were so popular that many actors left John de Silva's Arya Subodha Natya Sabah and joined Charles Dias's Arya Sinhala Natya Sabah.

The John de Silva hall behind the Art Gallery in Colombo was built in 1974 in honour of and to commemorate this great playwright and play-producer who made theatre-going the most popular form of entertainment in the early decades of the 20th century

Danno Budunge composition – 1903

The melody was composed by the Indian musician Viswanth Lauji (also spelt Lawjee). Sirisangabo Charithaya was first performed in 1903 and the song Danno Budunge from it contains three verses sung separately by Sanghatissa, Sangabo and Gotabhaya as they approach Anuradhapura after crossing a wooden bridge and saw the city of Anuradhapura in the distance. The play is based on the story found in the thirty-sixth chapter of the Mahāvaṃsa. The thirty-sixth chapter is about a virtuous king named Sirisānghabō who with his two friends Gōtḥābhaya, and Sangatissa, travel to the royal city of Anuradhapura to serve the Sinhalese king. The following is an English translation.

Sānghatīssā:                 Behold in this mansion-like town

Many monks adhering to the precepts

Destroying their defilements

And abiding by Buddha’s dharma teachings

Sirisānghabō:                Like heaven on earth!

The shade of the many monks

Who travel by air

Destroy hot sun rays

Gōtḥābhaya:                 I see flocks of ducks wading

In deep ponds, where stems of

Lotus and lily flowers

Rise to the top

The song describes the environment created by the large number of monks and the beauty of the city with lakes full of flowers and whistling fowls. The song describes the beauty of the city of Anuradhapura and is not directly a Buddhist song as such. But the words proclaim the wisdom of following the Dhamma. The religious and patriotic feelings aroused made the song very popular and became a favourite among the early musicians who made an attempt to create a place for the Sinhala song. Among them was Hubert Rajapakse, famous Tower Hall singer. Hubert Rajapakse, was the brother of Gate Mudaliar Tudor Rajapakse who donated land to build Ananda College and the Medical College. Their main house was "Gatherum" while they had two ancestral homes - one Maha Kappina Walauwa and the other in Muthuwadiya near Negombo. Hubert Rajapakse is believed to have sung this song in the 1920s. The public did not react well to his “western” style of singing. Hubert was said to have been trained by the famous German opera singer Madam Mathilde Marchesi. According to Dr Tissa Abeysekara, Devar Surya Sena and Hubert Rajapakse were attempting to bring about a Sinhala music culture at a time of imperial rule and relaunched Danno Budunge with a few modifications.

It must be remembered that Hubert R sang this song in the 1920s, long after Sirisangabo. His style of singing was apparently very different from the original which was sung in the Hindustani (vedic) style. He, for some reason, sang the first words as ‘Dharma Budunge’. Being the gramophone age, he recorded under the HMV (His Master’s Voice) label and the record was titled ‘Dharma Budunge’ (in Sinhala) – Ode to the Sacred City’. A popular notion is that Hubert Rajapakse being very western educated, had some difficulty pronouncing Sinhalese words properly and Danno became Dharma.

Another pioneer musician, H.W. Rupasinghe sang the song by himself while Rukmani Devi sang it twice, the second time accompanied by the Super Golden Chimes. Pandit Amaradeva’s rendition is highly rated as is Nanda Malini’s – the latter singing with a male chorus.

It is said that ‘Danno Budunge’ was popular with both Governor General Lord Soulbury and Prime Minister D.S. Senanayake. In fact, Lord Soulbury’s daughter Joan Ramsbotham sang the song. Joan has also recorded Olu Pipeela and Handapane, both sung in operatic style in 1948.   According to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe, when the Queen visited Sri Lanka on two occasions, ‘Danno Budunge’ was sung at both receptions.

The SLBC once played it as the signature tune when announcing election results.

The clock tower in front of the Central Bank always chimes the first two lines of 'Danno Budunge' before it strikes the time. This clock tower is a historical monument because it was from this point that distances from Colombo were measured. This clock tower was not properly maintained till recently. However, the Governor of the Central Bank decided to renovate this historical monument and to maintain it, and for this, the country should be grateful to the Governor of the Central Bank.

The other singers who sang this popular song included Lawrence Perera and Mohideen Baig in the 1950s,  Dalrine Arnolda, Soul Sounds, Sudath Samarasinghe, Corrine Almeida, Janaka Wickremasinghe and Kapila Pugala Arachchi and Nelu Adikari and the well-known cricketer Sidath Wettimuny.

The latest of course is the “operatic” version sung at the 68^th Independence Day celebrations at Galle Face Green in 2016, by the talented internationally famed Sri Lankan Soprano, Kishani Jayasinghe, causing such a storm. Kishani’s credentials were impeccable. She was a member of the Jette Parker Young Artistes Programme at the Royal Opera House from 2006 to 2008. She is also an Associate of the Classical Opera Company; an Alumni Laureate of the University of Nottingham; Zonta’s Woman of Achievement for the Performing Arts (2010) and the Asian Woman of Achievement for Art and Culture in the UK. Even her worst critics admire her musical talent.

Her husband Kaveenga who was surprised and disappointed by the overreaction says “She is a Sinhala Buddhist woman, the former Head Prefect of Sri Lanka's leading Buddhist Girls' school Viskha Vidyalaya, who has mastered a revered and exalted form of singing - Opera, who has gained international fame and recognition, who sang a beloved Sinhala song in opera, wearing a traditional saree, in gold and maroon nonetheless, in dignified demeanour, meaningfully and respectfully but is vilified by a segment of her very same people, for petty political reasons, which has nothing to do with her. Those who say that she Christianised a traditional Sinhala song, despite singing it in the same melody with the exact original lyrics written by John De Silva, (who happens to be related to her), are being disingenuous. Singing a song in opera does not make it Western or Christian, if that was so everything written or said in English or Italian should be considered as such. Singing a Sinhala song in opera is not an insult to the Sinhala language, yet some people seem to think so”.

Harsha Makalanda, the great grandson of the composer commented thus on Kishani’s version "Kishani sang Danno Budunge" beautifully. The lyrics were written by my great grandfather Makalandage John De Silva for his immortal play "Sirisangabo" which stirred a wave of patriotism in real Sri Lankans in people who march forward into battle. Kishani's rendition is Majestic as well as Spiritual-that unique combination my great grandfather wanted”

In "Sirisangabo" what was intended was patriotism and by all musical terms, Kishani conveys it and it takes someone who had studied music to properly understand it.

The reaction to Kishani’s song broadly ranged from mostly favourable to non-committal with fortunately only a small minority resorting to vile and insulting language. Some moderates commented that although the song was sung beautifully, the occasion was not right for it. But I don’t personally subscribe to that view although I have some sympathy for it.

At this point, it is relevant to a quote from another famous Sril Lankan musician, Devar Surya Sena, about the power of music. He said “I realised the power of music to provide a common platform for the meeting of people of divergent races, creeds and interests”

Music and Cultural Background in Ceylon

An appreciation of the cultural background that prevailed in the late 19^th Century and early 20^th century helps us to understand the evolution of music and drama in Ceylon. The background to the story takes us through the various stages of drama in Ceylon (as it was called then) and the influence of foreign musical traditions on local music. It was also a time of display of national identity and moving away from colonial rule. There was a Buddhist revival with organised activity against Christian Missionaries who denigrated Buddhism. Key influences in this revival were people such as Hikkaduwe Sumangala, and Organisations such as The Buddhist Theosophical Society (Henry Steele Olcott) and the Maha Bodhi Society (Anagarika Dharmapala). The Printing press also proved to be a good medium to disseminate propaganda. The Buddhist revival became the dominant theme in John de Silva’s Nurthi musicals. The other key influence was the advent of the vinyl record and how it changed the medium of musical entertainment available to the Public. Nearly every song that labels in Sri Lanka released between 1906 and 1930 were songs from the nurthi theatre. During this period gramophone players became status symbols of affluent homes in urban areas in Sri Lanka. This was coupled with one more important occurrence. This was the move of people to urban areas and their desire for entertainment, and the advent of the cinema.

Before the availability of the cinema, the chief mode of entertainment was the performance of Drama. The prevalent form in the mid-1880s was the Nadagam form, which was heavily influenced by India. The Nadagam were prolonged affairs, sometimes going on for days. John de Silva wanted to change this and can be regarded as the architect of the nurthi form of drama. Nurthi was derived from the Persian Theatre with its actors and musicians mostly from Gujerat and trained in the Hindustani school of classical Raga music. This heavily Persian influenced form was much more colourful and much shorter. Nurthis included “Sri Wickrema Rajasinha” and“Sirisangabo,” (1903).

However, the nurthi era also began to fade in the 1930s and aluth-sindu took its place. The melodies were derived from Hindi or Tamil songs and mostly musical imitations. One example of this is the Indian song (1940) Chal Chal Re Naujawan original tune from movie Bandhan, sung by Leela Chitnis and Ashok Kumar which was made into “Dul Sal Vanē Lakal”   Colombia Record by Mr Stanley Mallawarachchi and Mrs Greta Jennet de Silva and group, composed  by  late Mr. U.D.Perera.

Sinhala songs continued to evolve and the next great Chapter was the emergence of Sunil Santha who wanted to get away from Indian influence and create genuine Sinhala form. He was influenced by poet Munidasa Kumaratunga and Hela Hawula, a school of poets and intellectuals who placed importance on unsanskritised Sinhala known as Elu_Sinhala (also called Hela Sinhala). I will discuss Sunil Santha (and others like Ananda Samarakoone) in more detail in a later article. Suffice to say that he was a highly principled man who did not seek any personal glory in pursuing his love for Sinhala music.

Pundit Viswanath Lauji

(Also known as Vishwanath Lawjee, Vishvanath Lowji, Vishvanat hLowji, Viśvanāt Lauji, Viśvanāt Lauji).

John de Silva (henceforth referred to as JdS) was not a musician. He was more a lyricist and the melody for Danno Budunge was written by his Indian Musician friend, Pundit Visvanath Lauji, who came from Bombay. Lauji came to Ceylon with the Parsi theatre but stayed behind. It is said that Lauji was impressed by Western music and that he moved in circles which included Mendelssohn and Wagner. The story goes that John de Silva had met the Indian maestro of music, at a Christmas party hosted by Sir Solomon Dias Bandaranaike (the father of the late Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike) at his manor in Kotahena. JdeS invited him to compose fitting tunes to the songs in his dramas. He would describe the scene and the character around whom the song is written and read out the Sinhalese poetry and Lauji would hum various melodies and JdeS would choose the one he liked. In other words, Lauji composed suitable airs to the poetic verses in JdeS’s libretto. This has been compared to the famous Gilbert and Sullivan theatrical partnership.

Thus it can be seen that Danno Budunge music was composed by an Indian musician schooled in the Ragadhari tradition. Could this be truly called a “Sinhala” song?  You can decide! John de Silva’s songs have become a part of Sinhala dramatic heritage as indeed was his intention. He was convinced that musical dramas portraying the finest periods of Sri Lanka’s history could arouse a sense of true patriotism; hence his choice of plays around Dutugemunu and Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe.

It is debatable whether Danno Budunge can be called a “Buddhist” song but the popular view that it is a Buddhist song is understandable in the context of evolution of the song. The lyrics describe the beauty of the city Anuradhapura. It does praise the virtues of pursuing the Buddha dhamma and does arouse religious and patriotic feelings. On the other hand, throughout history, Buddhism was not associated with music although Art, on the other hand has been heavily influenced by it. Buddhism is associated more with chanting than singing. But over time, the association of Sinhala history with the predominant religion in Sri Lanka has made it in the eyes of many people, a Buddhist Sinhalese song. A moderate critical view of Kishani’s version is that it failed to deliver the intention behind the lyrics as the melody and the manner in which the words are sung must bear semblance to the meaning of words in the song, and that is exactly what is lacking when sung in operatic like style - in the opinion of some.

Before Nurthi

Nadagam, a kind of musical play, came to Sri Lanka about 1750. The music consisted of simple forms used in South Indian village plays. Instruments were the drums Mridangam or maddal, the wind instruments. Nadaswaram, and kaithalam. Sinhala nadagam became popular, and by 1850 was a hobby of the elite. But it had become poor in musical content and the limited melodies failed to attract urban audiences. The arrival of more lively North Indian music also played a role in decline of the nadagam. In India with Muslim rule Sanskrit, drama had declined, but folk play traditions had continued. Local music had developed with new Arabian and Persian raga and thala.

In 1853 in Ayodhya the musical play ‘Indrasabha’, comparing an earthly ruler to a deity, was created, guided by classical and folk music and it became very popular. Parsi entrepreneurs spread this and similar plays across much of India. In these early Indian musical plays many melodies were based on Ghazal, originally Persian, music for poetry.

There was also influence of Western melodies. Indian musicians, it is conjectured, heard these from military bands. Europeans and their ways were sometimes uncritically emulated in India, and also in Sri Lanka.  On the other hand, Christian missionaries in India used Indian raga for Christian songs in English. These were now used in these plays, for travel and weddings scenes.

In the latter half of the century, when travel by sea became easier, North Indian melodies came to SL. Indian traders visited and some settled in Sri Lanka. Indian pilgrims to Kataragama landing at Galle were sought and hosted by nadagam practitioners. Their experts had no training in music. They appreciated the elegance of Hindustani songs. There was some influx of the melodies into nadagam.

Beginning in the late 1870s Calutantrige Don Bastian Jayaweera Bandara (1852- 1921) and his followers staged plays which used North Indian music, such as his ‘Rolina’ in 1877. He called these nurthi a Sanskrit word for a dance signifying a subject. In nadagam, each actor first appears in a dance conveying his or her character, and CDB’s early plays continued with this. He may have intended the new name as a contrast to nadagam. In popular use it became nurthi. He is also recognised as a pioneer in establishing Sunday Buddhist schools and for setting up the first Sinhalese daily newspaper, Dianapata Pravurti. He is always referred to as C Don Bastian.

In 1880 the Indian musical play company of Baliwalla arrived in SL, followed by others from India. Their plays were influenced by ‘Indrasabha’. These often used emotional love stories, which suited musical plays. Baliwalla’s first in Sri Lanka was ‘Romeo and Juliet’. Some of his others were based on stories of Arabic and Hindu deities.

CDB attended Baliwalla’s plays and learnt their melodies and instrumental passages. He too produced a ‘Romeo and Juliet’ which closely followed Baliwalla’s. CDB’s Sinhalese Drama Co. continued until about 1900.

John de Silva set up his company after CDB. His first two plays contain much music from ‘Indrasabha’ and Baliwalla. But he was the first playwright in Sri Lanka to try to understand the classical basis of Hindustani music. In 1885 he engaged Abdul Latif, a North Indian businessman in Colombo, to write the music for his ‘Nala Raja Charitaya’, an Indian-based play, and published a book with the raga and thala and the orig. Hindustani lyrics for each song.

A liking for Hindustani and Urdu music developed among Sri Lankans. Sinhalese and others who liked Indian music regarded Hindustani as associated with music, as Italian was in Europe. A singer would follow a Sinhala song with a Hindustani one in the same melody to show it was authentic. It was quite common for the first line of the song to be the name of the original to indicate its derivation. Few in Sri Lanka knew Hindustani, and lyrics were often cleverly faked!

In 1888 JdeS got down a Gujarati copy of ‘Indrasabha’. The play was staged from Colombo to Hambantota. Its songs became popular. Renditions though were not always accurate. Until 1900 all musical plays in Sri Lanka were influenced by ‘Indrasabha’. Its song of welcome, king’s song and others were used in many Sinhala plays, with also some adaptations.

Early Sinhala musical plays contained several alien Western melodies. This is an example of the emulation mentioned above.

Around 1900, soon after CDB’s co. closed down, as I have indicated earlier, JdeS brought new vitality to nurthi by engaging Vishvanat Lavji, a professional musician involved in Hindustani and Gujarati plays. VL took music from such plays and altered it close to classical form. JdeS produced six Sinhala plays with his guidance, including ‘Sirissangabo’. He believed that the earliest Sinhalese were Hindus and were hence heirs to Hindustani music.

Other producers of plays in SL at the time freely used music from the six plays by JdeS and VL. After VL went back to India the Tower Hall co. engaged other Indian musicians for JdeS. Most of their music for nurthi were popular melodies from Hindustani and Gujarati plays. In general, this was the case in Sri Lanka from the 1880s until the Tower Hall Company closed down. Three years before it did, Butabhai, a North Indian musician, convened all leading actors in Colombo and taught them ‘Indrasabha’ in Hindustani.

Another source for nurthi music were the “Malays” of Sri Lanka. They had heard Indian melodies from Indian soldiers in Singapore. They helped CDB by memorising Baliwalla’s music and in his plays. Many were experts on the violin and dhol. Their saji meeting places were a source for the spread of nurthi music. From time to time, well known Sri Lankan musicians composed for new plays, such as H.W. Rupasinghe, J.A. Sadiris Silva, and W. Satasivam. Incidentally, playing a lead role in the play Sirisangabo was Sadiris de Silva, popularly known as Sadiris Master for his musical talent. He was to assist Henry Jayasena who was invited to produce ‘Sirisangabo’ to mark the opening of the Tower Hall after exhaustive renovations in March 1978. It was coincidental that Sadiris Master’s son, reputed musician Shelton Premaratne handled the music in Henry Jayasena’s production.

Later, there was much competition and secrecy among those involved in musical plays in Sri Lanka. Nurthi music declined because of the cost of getting down Indian musicians

Alleged connections with Mendelssohn and Wagner

It has been stated many times, without firm evidence that Danno Budunge is based on a Wagner Organ concerto. Nobody has so far produced any firm evidence to substantiate this. Another favoured Western influence is Mendelssohn. Mendelssohn's Duetto op. 38 no. 6 , in ‘Songs Without Words’ (MWV U119) does have a lot of similarity to the opening two lines of DB.

Mendelssohn also had an indirect connection with Ceylon, and this is referred to in an article which appeared in the Sunday Times Plus Sri Lanka dated 17^th April 2016 by US. “In 1829, when Ceylon was a British colony, Alexander Johnston, its ex-Chief Justice, asks Mendelssohn to compose music to given lyrics to mark legal changes in Ceylon including the abolition of “slavery”. Mendelssohn does so. Johnston is impressed by the piece and says it can reform the Empire. In 1832 Mendelssohn. composes #38-6. A sequence of notes at the start (of its first “voice”) is identical to that at the start of the Western version of Danno Budunge. Therefore, maybe he had written the same beginning for the Johnston piece, it was sung here, the melody survived, reached nurthi, and Lavji altered it a bit”. Incidentally, in the same article he says “The first run of ‘Siri sangabo’ did not include Danno Budunge. This and two more songs were added in the second or third “edition”, to provide more time for changes of sets. Maybe in this situation, Lavji was not that finicky about their origin? (In opera, for this purpose, rarely, a producer added a piece by a lesser-known composer!)”

It is possible that composers such as Mendelssohn and Wagner did influence the melody on DB. The evidence for being influenced by Mendelssohn is more compelling. But in the absence of definite evidence it is still largely speculation, but interesting.

Hymn for Ceylon

The next to consider in this historical piece is the Christian Hymn, “Hymn for Ceylon”. This was written in 1923 by the Rev Walter Stanley Senior. The notion that Danno Budunge was influenced by Hymn for Ceylon is clearly false as DB was composed long before Hymn for Ceylon. It is in fact the converse; Hymn for Ceylon borrowed the melody from DB.

Rev Senior came to SL in 1906. By that time Sirissangabo nurthiya had been shown in Ceylon for at least 3 years. WSS wrote the Hymn for Ceylon at a much later stage. Devar Surya Sena composed music for this song in the 1950s using the Danno Budunge melody, slightly modified to suit Church singing.

Reverend Walter Stanley Senior. (10 May 1876 – 23 February 1938) 

He was an English scholar, poet and member of the Church Missionary Society and was popularly known as the "Bard of Lanka. Reverend Senior came out to Ceylon in 1906, and served as Vice Principal of Trinity College Kandy from (1906–1916). When the then Principal of Trinity, Rev. A. G. Fraser, was looking for talent in the English Universities to come and serve at Trinity College, he came across Senior who belonged to a set of brilliant men, including the late Dr Kenneth Saunders from Emmanuel College, Cambridge, N. P. Campbell, also a Balliol man recognised as a great scientist, and J. P. R. Gibson, later Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge. In the absence of Rev Fraser, Senior also deputised as Acting Principal for a short period.

He retired to England, and one of his greatest desires, namely, to see Ceylon and some of his numerous friends before his death, was gratified when he was able to spend a short holiday in the Island two years before his death, already a very sick man who knew that the end was not far off. A few months before his death, he said: “The idea has come to me that I should like my ashes, for I contemplate cremation rather than burial, to be interred in St. Andrew’s Churchyard, Haputale.” His gravestone at St Andrew's is a testament to his life, bearing the plain legend “He Loved Ceylon” preceded by the opening lines from his poem, Lanka from Piduruthalagala: Here I stand in spirit, as in body once I stood Long years ago, in love with all the land, This peerless land of beauty's plenitude. The pulpit of the Trinity College Chapel is dedicated to his name.

A common vein in many of his finest pieces is an appreciation of the diversity and beauty that is Sri Lanka. Rev Senior also has the distinction of being the author of the famous Hymn for Ceylon as well as the Hymn of Trinity College, Kandy and that of St. John's College, Jaffna. His best-known work, however, is the soul-stirring epic titled The Call of Lanka, which many consider to be arguably the finest poem dealing with Sri Lanka ever written.

The tune of the Hymn for Ceylon is another adaptation from the DB tune composed by John de Silva. The music for the hymn for Ceylon was composed in 1950 by Devar Surya Sena. The tune is the same as that of the original tune of Danno Budunge except for the 5th and 6th lines which were altered by Devar Surya Sena. When it is sung in full harmony, it sounds wonderful.

According to Devar Surya Sena, Walter Senior gave him the words of his ‘Hymn for Ceylon’ (O father thou has promised the isles shall wait for thee), and suggested, “Someday you’re going to write a tune for this Bertie.” Later, “on my return from England…In a flash the thought came that the much-loved melody of ‘Danno Budunge’, adapted slightly, would fit the metre…I…married the words to the tune, harmonising the melody in four parts”.

Deva Surya Sena (1899- 1981)

He was the son of Sir James Pieris and was baptised Herbert Charles Jacob Pieris. His cousin was the well-known Rev Lakdasa De Mel, later Bishop and Metropolitan.

Devar was the pioneer who introduced Sinhalese folk songs to Western audiences. There he is in the same league as Ravi Shankar. Like most sons of rich families, he was sent to England for further education. He went to Tonbridge School in Kent and later read Classics and Law at Cambridge although his primary love was in music.  He initially returned to Ceylon as a Lawyer but he travelled regularly to London and studied at the Royal College of Music (RCM) in London and obtained ARCM in singing.

In 1927 he decided to pursue a career in singing and left for England.  He said that the spiritual satisfaction that music gave him was far more valuable than materialistic comforts.  Once back in Ceylon, he developed an interest in Sinhalese traditional music and did extensive research on it. He dropped his Pieris name and called himself Surya Sena and wore Indian dress to de-Westernise himself. His wife Winifred (nee De Silva) a musician herself and mostly educated in Belgium took the name Nelun Devi. They went round the country collecting folk songs which are now preserved at the Devar Surya Sena Trust. As they travelled the island, they heard, probably for the first time, the songs of the earth that was theirs. The devotional songs, the sacred chants, the haunting village lullabies, and the folk songs and rhythms became part of a new adventure of discovery and learning.  

The vannams, or sung poetry of lion, elephant, horse, hare, cobra, monkey and hawk, are part of the earth and sky of this land; and the flutes and drums of the villagers, and the long sad chants of the Veddahs, return with reminding presence. Surya and Nelun, listening and learning, discovered the primitive wonder of indigenous music; the simple brooding songs of farmer, fisherman, carter and blacksmith – the folk music that accompanies hardship. Surya Sena expressed anew the emotions of love, joy, anger and grief expressed in song and dance and in the chanted poetry and silence of his people, and these became his own. He pledged to use his gifts to make this knowledge as widely known as possible.

Later, he expanded his interest into Hindustani music by studying at Maris College of Hindustani Music in Lucknow and Sangit Sangha at Calcutta. He also spent 9 months in Tagore's Shantiniketan. In 1932, Devar and his wife Nelun Devi sang Sinhalese folk songs at a concert in London. “The singer's voice was most agreeable and musical”, said the Daily Mail. They toured Europe and America and introduced our folk songs to a wider international audience. He has written books and articles on Sinhalese Folk Music. 

Surya Sena used his wealth and experience to set up a Trust for the furtherance of education, music and art. He gifted his gracious home in Colombo 3 with its valuable effects to become what is known as the Surya Sena Centre. He was awarded the OBE in 1949.

The Hymn for Ceylon

O father, Thou hast promised

The isles shall wait for Thee,

The joyous isles of ocean,

The jewels of the sea.

Lo! we, this island’s watchmen

Would give and take no rest;

For thus hast Thou commanded -

Till our dear land be    blessed. //

Then bless her mighty Father,

With blessings needed most,

In every verdant village,

By every palmy coast.

On every soaring mountain,

O’er every spreading plain,

May all her sons and daughters -

Thy righteousness attain. //

Give peace within her borders

Twixt man and man goodwill,

The love all unsuspicious,

The love that works no ill.

In loyal lowly service,

Let each from other learn,

The guardian and the guarded, -

Till Christ Himself return. //

To Him our land shall listen,

To Him our land shall kneel;

All rule be on His shoulder,

All wrong beneath His heel;

O consummation glorious

Which now by faith we sing;

Come, cast we up the highway -

That brings us back our King! //

In conclusion, this wonderful song Danno Budunge, loved and cherished by the people of Sri Lanka has been sung by many singers over the years and will no doubt continue to be sung by singers from future generations for time immemorial.