Kavan Tissa, also known as Kaha Wan Thissa (''Golden-coloured Tissa)'' and Kaka Wanna Tissa (''Crow-coloured Tissa'') was the
king
King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
of the
Kingdom of Ruhuna
The Principality of Ruhuna ( Sinhala: , ), also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern Sri Lanka. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri L ...
in the southern part of
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, ...
. He ruled Ruhuna, at the same time as
Kelani Tissa
King Kelani Tissa was a king who ruled Kelaniya of Sri Lanka. He was the eldest son of King Dhamaraja and Queen Uttara Devi of Kelaniya. His brother was Uttiya. His daughter was Viharamahadevi. According to legend, he punished an innocent monk ...
of
Maya Rata
The Maya Rata (Principality of), also known as the Kingdom of Dakkinadesa, was a principality or an administrative region of the Sinhalese kingdom. It was located in the Southwestern part of Sri Lanka, bordered the Deduru Oya. Its last capital w ...
. Kavan Tissa was a great-grandson of King
Devanampiyatissa
Tissa, later Devanampiya Tissa (, ), also known as Devanape Tis (, ), was one of the earliest kings of Sri Lanka based at the ancient capital of Anuradhapura. According to the traditional chronology, he ruled from 307 BC to 267 BC, b ...
's youngest brother
Mahanaga
Mahanaga was an early monarch of Sri Lanka of the Kingdom of Ruhuna in the southern region of the island. He is the founder of the Ruhuna. The Kingdom of Ruhuna was in some periods a client state loyal to the King of Anuradhapura and in some pe ...
, and also the father of the King
Dutugemunu
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 kin ...
.
Sources
As with his son Dutugemunu, Kavan Tissa's figure is mostly swathed in myth and legend. The main source of information on his life is ''
Mahavamsa'', the historical chronicle about the kings of Sri Lanka, which portrays Kavan Tissa as "devoutly believing in the
three gems,
ndhe provided the
brotherhood continually with... needful things".
Life and legacy
In Wilhelm Geiger's rendering of the Mahavamsa Kavantissa is given as Kakavannatissa. Under that name, the Mahavamsa mentions him twice.
In chapter 15 Kavantissa, or Kakavannatissa is the son of a king named Gothabhaya and father of king Abhaya better known as Dutthagamini, correctly spelt as Dutugemunu.
Chapter 15 of the Mahavamsa has been called, either by Geiger or by previous scribes, "The acceptance of the Mahavihara".
Chapter 22 of the Mahavamsa, "The birth of Prince Gamani" mentions of the city of Rohana where there are "still princes who have faith in the three gems" (Buddha, his Teaching, the Community of monastics). Chapter 22 describes the war against the Damila. This name of Damila occurs both in the Mahavamsa and in the Culavamsa (Small Chronicle).
See also
*
Mahavamsa
*
List of monarchs of Sri Lanka
The monarchs of Sri Lanka, also referred to as the Sinhalese monarchy, were the heads of state and rulers of the Sinhala Kingdoms located in present-day Sri Lanka, from 543 BCE (according to chronicles) until its abolition in 1815 CE.
The Sinha ...
*
History of Sri Lanka
The history of Sri Lanka covers Sri Lanka and the history of the Indian subcontinent and its surrounding regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean.
Prehistoric Sri Lanka goes back 125,000 years and possibly even as far back a ...
References
External links
Kings & Rulers of Sri LankaCodrington's Short History of Ceylon
Monarchs of Ruhuna
{{SriLanka-hist-stub