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Dutugamunu
Dutugamunu (, ), also known as Duṭṭhagāmaṇī Abhaya, was a king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom who reigned from 161 BC to 137 BC. He is renowned for first uniting the whole island of Sri Lanka by defeating and overthrowing Elara, a Tamil king from the Chola Kingdom, who had invaded the Anuradhapura kingdom in 205 BC. Dutugamunu also expanded and beautified the city of Anuradhapura and projected the power of the Rajarata kingdom across the island of Sri Lanka. Due to his significance as one of the most potent symbols of Sinhalese historical power, Dutugamunu's story is swathed in myth and legend. However, many aspects of the accounts of his life have been verified by contemporary inscriptions, and the basic account of his life is generally accepted as accurate. Etymology Dutugamunu (, ) is also known in Pali as Duṭṭhagāmaṇī Abhaya. The Mahavamsa describes how as a youth he mocked his father Kavantissa, king of Ruhuna, for refusing to wage war against the powerf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ellalan
Ellalan (; ), also referred to as Elara the Pious, and by the honorific epithet ''Manu Needhi Cholan'', was a member of the Tamil Chola dynasty in Southern India, who upon capturing the throne became king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom, in present-day Sri Lanka, from 205 BCE to 161 BCE. Ellalan is traditionally presented as being a just king even by the Sinhalese. The Mahavamsa states that he ruled 'with even justice toward friend and foe, on occasions of disputes at law', and elaborates how he even ordered the execution of his son for killing a calf under his chariot wheels. Ellalan is a peculiar figure in the history of Sri Lanka. Although he was an invader, he is often regarded as one of Sri Lanka's wisest and most just monarchs, as highlighted in the ancient Sinhalese Pali chronicle, the '' Mahavamsa''. According to the chronicle, even Ellalan's nemesis Dutugamunu had a great respect for him, and ordered a monument be built where Ellalan was cremated after dying in battle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viharamahadevi
Viharamahadevi ( Sinhala:විහාරමහාදේවි) was the mother of King Dutugamunu, Saddhatissa and the Queen consort of King Kavantissa (King of the Ruhuna Sri Lanka). Some scholars suggest that her original name was 'śavera', which possibly means goddess of the night. Life Queen Viharamahadevi was the daughter of King Kelanitissa who ruled Kelaniya. The king once punished an innocent monk by boiling him alive in a cauldron of oil. It is said that the gods, angered over this cruel deed, made the ocean rush inland and flood the land. Soothsayers said that if a princess was sacrificed to the sea, the raging waves would stop. The young princess was placed inside a beautifully decorated boat which bore the letters ''Daughter of a King'' and set adrift on the sea. It is said that as soon as she was sent off, the sea suddenly turned calm again and the water receded. However, the king was very upset, the queen was wailing and the citizens were very angry over the los ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
House Of Vijaya
The House of Vijaya (also known as the Vijayan dynasty and sometimes referred to as the "Great Dynasty") was the first recorded Sinhalese royal dynasty that ruled over the island, Sri Lanka. According to Sri Lankan historical literature Prince Vijaya is the traditional first king of Sri Lanka, founding the Kingdom of Tambapanni and the dynasty subsequently founding the Kingdom of Upatissa Nuwara and finally the Anuradhapura Kingdom.The story of the Sinhalese, pp. 5 There were 37 Vijayan monarchs who reigned during a span of 609 years and ruled all but 80 of them. The dynasty ended when Vasabha of the House of Lambakanna I seized power in 66 AD. Origins In 543 BC, prince Vijaya (543–505 BC) arrived in Sri Lanka, having been banished from his homeland in India. He eventually brought the island under his control and established himself as king. After this, his retinue established villages and colonies throughout the country. One of these was established by Anuradha, a min ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinhalese Monarchy
The Sinhalese monarchy ( Sinhala සිංහල රාජාණ්ඩුව) has its origins in the settlement of North Indian Indo-Aryan immigrants to the island of Sri Lanka. The Landing of Vijay as described in the traditional chronicles of the island, the Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa and Culavamsa, and later chronicles, recount the date of the establishment of the first Sinhala Kingdom in 543 BC when Prince Vijaya (543–505 BC), an Indian Prince, and 700 of his followers are claimed to have landed on the island of Sri Lanka and established the Kingdom of Tambapanni.Mittal (2006) p 405 In Sinhalese mythology, Prince Vijaya and followers are told to be the progenitors of the Sinhalese people. However according to the story in the Divyavadana, the immigrants were probably not led by a scion of a royal house in India, as told in the romantic legend, but rather may have been groups of adventurous and pioneering merchants exploring new lands.Paranavithana (1936) p 459 The Sinhale ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saddha Tissa Of Anuradhapura
Saddha Tissa (, ), also known as Sadaha Tiss (, ), was the king of Anuradhapura (Sri Lanka) from 137 BC to 119 BC. Saddha Tissa was the son of Kavan Tissa of Ruhuna and the brother of Dutthagamani. He was the ruler of Digamadulla, the present day eastern province of Sri Lanka. Since crown prince Saliya married a Chandala girl, King Dutugamunu’s younger brother, Saddha Tissa was consecrated as King. King Saddha Tissa continued the remaining work in Mahathupa. During Saddha Tissa's reign, there was a major fire in the Lovamahapaya. The king subsequently reconstructed the Lowa Maha Paaya at one third of the cost with seven levels, two less than before. King Saddha Tissa built the Dighavapi Deeghawapi (Pali, "long reservoir") is a Buddhist sacred shrine and an archaeological site in the Ampara District of Sri Lanka, boasting of historical records dating back to the 3rd century BCE. Water reservoirs, called "tanks", were an important ... vihara and the Duratissa reservoir. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ruwanwelisaya
The Ruwanweli Maha Seya, also known as the Maha Thupa (), is a stupa (a hemispherical structure containing relics) in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. Two quarts or one Dona of the Buddha's relics are enshrined in the stupa, making it the largest collection of his relics anywhere. It was built by Sinhalese King Dutugemunu in 140 B.C., who became king of Sri Lanka after a war in which the Chola King Elāra (Ellalan) was defeated. It is also known as Swarnamali Seya, Svaṇṇamāli Mahaceti (in Pali) and Rathnamali Seya. This is one of the "Solosmasthana" (the 16 places of veneration) and the " Atamasthana" (the 8 places of veneration). The stupa is one of the world's tallest ancient monuments, standing at and with a circumference of . The original stupa had been about in height and was renovated by many kings. The Kaunghmudaw Pagoda in Sagaing, Myanmar is modelled after this stupa The Mahavamsa contains a detailed account on the construction and the opening ceremony of the stupa. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
War Elephants
A war elephant is an elephant that is trained and guided by humans for combat purposes. Historically, the war elephant's main use was to charge the enemy, break their ranks, and instill terror and fear. Elephantry is a term for specific military units using elephant-mounted troops. War elephants played a critical role in several key battles in antiquity, especially in ancient India. While seeing limited and periodic use in Ancient China, they became a permanent fixture in armies of historical kingdoms in Southeast Asia. During classical antiquity they were also used in ancient Persia and in the Mediterranean world within armies of Macedon, Hellenistic Greek states, the Roman Republic and later Empire, and Ancient Carthage in North Africa. In some regions they maintained a firm presence on the battlefield throughout the Medieval era. However, their use declined with the spread of firearms and other gunpowder weaponry in early modern warfare. After this, war elephants be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theravāda Buddhism
''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' (anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or ''Dharma (Buddhism), Dhamma'' in the Pāli Canon for over two millennia. The Pāli Canon is the most complete Buddhist canon surviving in a Indo-Aryan languages, classical Indian language, Pāli, which serves as the school's sacred language and ''lingua franca''.Crosby, Kate (2013), ''Theravada Buddhism: Continuity, Diversity, and Identity'', p. 2. In contrast to Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna, Theravāda tends to be conservative in matters of doctrine (''pariyatti'') and monastic discipline (''vinaya''). One element of this Religious conservatism, conservatism is the fact that Theravāda rejects the authenticity of the Mahayana sutras (which appeared onwards). Consequently, Theravāda generally does not recognize the existence of many Buddhas and bodhisattva ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. It shares a maritime border with the Maldives in the southwest and India in the northwest. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital of Sri Lanka, while the largest city, Colombo, is the administrative and judicial capital which is the nation's political, financial and cultural centre. Kandy is the second-largest urban area and also the capital of the last native kingdom of Sri Lanka. The most spoken language Sinhala language, Sinhala, is spoken by the majority of the population (approximately 17 million). Tamil language, Tamil is also spoken by approximately five million people, making it the second most-spoken language in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has a population of appr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamil People
The Tamils ( ), also known by their endonym Tamilar, are a Dravidian ethnic group who natively speak the Tamil language and trace their ancestry mainly to the southern part of the Indian subcontinent. The Tamil language is one of the longest-surviving classical languages, with over two thousand years of written history, dating back to the Sangam period (between 300 BCE and 300 CE). Tamils constitute about 5.7% of the Indian population and form the majority in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. They also form significant proportions of the populations in Sri Lanka (15.3%), Malaysia (7%) and Singapore (5%). Tamils have migrated world-wide since the 19th century CE and a significant population exists in South Africa, Mauritius, Fiji, as well as other regions such as the Southeast Asia, Middle East, Caribbean and parts of the Western World. Archaeological evidence from Tamil Nadu indicates a continuous history of human occupat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chariots
A chariot is a type of vehicle similar to a cart, driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, dated to c. 1950–1880 BC and are depicted on cylinder seals from Central Anatolia in Kültepe dated to c. 1900 BC. The critical invention that allowed the construction of light, horse-drawn chariots was the spoked wheel. The chariot was a fast, light, open, two-wheeled conveyance drawn by two or more equids (usually horses) that were hitched side by side, and was little more than a floor with a waist-high guard at the front and sides. It was initially used for ancient warfare during the Bronze and Iron Ages, but after its military capabilities had been superseded by light and heavy cavalries, chariots continued to be used for travel and transport, in processions, for games, and in races. Etymology The word "chariot" comes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flag Of Dutthagamani
A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular) with distinctive colours and design. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design employed, and flags have evolved into a general tool for rudimentary signalling and identification, especially in environments where communication is challenging (such as the maritime environment, where semaphore is used). Many flags fall into groups of similar designs called flag families. The study of flags is known as "vexillology" from the Latin , meaning "flag" or "banner". National flags are patriotic symbols with widely varied interpretations that often include strong military associations because of their original and ongoing use for that purpose. Flags are also used in messaging, advertising, or for decorative purposes. Some military units are called "flags" after their use of flags. A ''flag'' (Arabic: ) is equivalent to a brigade in Arab countries. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
