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| Sunday, 2 February 2003 |
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Sel Lipi : Abodes of tree spirits Swasthi Shree! Thus says his sacred Majesty, the gracious Great King, glorious Chakravarthi, King of the Kings of Maya, Pihiti and Ruhuna, Mahoora of the Vanniala-aeththo and ruler of all lands from Yapapatuna to Sampanthota: It is two thousand years since the first abhayaboomiya (sanctuary) for animals and plants was established in this resplendent isle. The great kings of this dhammadweepa set aside land for the conservation of animals and of the dwellings of the ruk devatas, the spirits of the trees. This practice has continued to this day. The Sinharaja adaviya was set aside mainly for the preservation of plants, from the smallest of grasses to the largest of trees, as well as animals. The East end of this area has one of the last purana jungles left between the jungles of the lowlands and the jungles of the mountaintops, and has many rare birds found only in this area. Now it has come to the notice of the Maha Vasala that when some Shaasthruhu of the arts and sciences of beasts and plants had visited this area recently, they had found several large and rare trees cut down and other trees damaged by preparations to cut them down. And not merely this, but pits had been dug to search for precious gem-stones, further damaging the tranquillity of the ruk devatas in this hitherto quiet area near Rakwana. This type of behaviour by greedy and unscrupulous vessapathis has been seen often enough in the past. Without piety or right thinking, they wantonly disturb the abodes of the ruk devatas. But now the area of undisturbed purana jungle in the moist areas of the South-west have shrunk and shrunk, only the Sinharaja abhayaboomiya now remaining. Unfortunately, it seems that these activities are merely hints of far darker and dirtier deeds being done in this self-same abhayaboomiya. It has come to the notice of the Maha Vasala that evil and treacherous vessapathis are stealing the rare and valuable animals and rare and medicinal plants that are found in these jungles. And not merely this, but they are sending these, the heritage all beings on this resplendent isle to foreign lands. The Sinharaja adaviya has many such plants and animals. It seems that in foreign countries, they use the neethi-reethi, the laws and regulations, to say that the plants and animals found only in this bounteous land actually belong to them. It seems that they enter the qualities of the jeeviyas, the life forms of this country into registers. It seems that this process is enough to make these same qualities belong to them. This means that if, to give an example, we were to make medicine from one of our own plants, as our vedhas have been doing for centuries, we will have to pay these foreigners, because these plants are said to belong to them. Of course, we expect these rapacious foreign vessapathis, not one of whom is worth a bead of sweat on the brow of an infant of the noble country of ours, to behave in a greedy and unscrupulous manner, for their one and only God is the kahapana. But for the vessapathis of this country to behave in such a way as to destroy the natural resources of their own land of birth is pure treachery. Perhaps it would be apt if such traitors were allowed punishment by the ruk devatas themselves, by tying them between two puwak trees and rending them asunder in the time-honoured manner. Swasthi Shree! This rock edict is made on this day of Ravi of the month of Navam of the Year of the Saka Era 1929. Gotabhaya. |
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