Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya and lyric writing

In this week's column, I examine the art of lyric writing against the backdrop of Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya, the song to mark the 2600th anniversary of the enlightenment of the Buddha. Veteran lyricist Sunil Sarath Perera wrote the lyric for Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya and the music for the song was composed by Rohana Weerasinghe.

Before discussing the salient characteristics of the Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya and how resourcefully the lyricist epitomises the significance of the event and in the way in which the lyric was written generating devotion and a sense of piety, it is pertinent , at least, briefly to examine the lyric itself.

Gnaloken
Lokalokava
Babala //
Babala Sambuddhatva Jayanthiya
Dedahas Hayasiya Vasarak Elabena
Samaramu Ea Suvisudda Jayanthiya

Gaya hise vil dala gan thirey
Vidurasune Vidasun haraba
Thilonidano Keles marun sinda
Pasakkalo Samyaksamboodiya

Sadu Nadayen Mululova Allalay
Sadra Pranggna Neth guna pibide
...Sambuddathva Jayanthiya Babale

(The world is glowed with the light of wisdom and let us celebrates this holiest 2600th anniversary of the Enlightenment of the Buddha). Thus, the gist of the lyric can be loosely put into English though the Sinhalese lyric will convey profound meanings of the significance of the event, generating a strong sense of devotion and piety.

The significance of the lyric lies not only in the fact that it was written to celebrate the 2600th anniversary of the Buddha's Enlightenment but also in its sheer creativity which is peerless among contemporary Sinhalese lyric writing.

Among the prominent factors that make the Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya unique in the arena of contemporary Sinhalese lyric writing are its rich tonality and plurality of voices it represents and the deep philosophy that it ably encapsulates within a limited number of words. A repertoire of voices rendered to it by popular vocalists has made it a truly collective effort, in a way, representing collective conciousness of the vast Buddhist population in the country.

Songs and lyrics

From a broader perspective, a song can be defined as a composition for voice or voices often accompanied by scores of music.

However, there is a variety of songs such as cappella which is unaccompanied by music. Lyrics of songs are essentially poetic, rhythmic and on some occasion religious or written in prose and represents the milieu.

Although lyric may come from the bottom of the heart, often born out of strong emotions as in the case of Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya, it is not born out of heart alone. A highly talented lyricist would employ, apart from his emotions and impressions that he may derive from secondary sources such as from literature and devotional and religious books, four main factors ; knowledge, creativity, observation and objectivity, analysis and learning. One of the salient characteristics of highly acclaimed and talented lyricists is the application of his knowledge in his craft and always engages in experimenting with the language.

In this respect, Sunil Sarath Perera is in the forefront among contemporary Sinhalese lyricists. He has always been engaged in experimenting with the language. One of the principal techniques Perera employs in his composition of lyrics is the creative use of metaphors. Songs such as Sanda kaluvara gala halena vita amply demonstrates his ability to use metaphors in the most effective manner rendering multi-layered meanings to his lyrics.

Use of metaphors

In the Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya, he uses the potent metaphor of radiant light to paraphrase how the Buddha dispelled the darkness of ignorance through the radiant light of wisdom. It is through wisdom that the Buddha attained Enlightenment 2600 years ago. The entire story of enlightenment of the Buddha is captured in two short lines with the use of metaphor radiant light; gnanaloken, Lokalokava (The world is lit up by the radiant light of wisdom). In this instance, the metaphor of radiant light not only refers to the radiant light of wisdom but also to the Buddha himself.

The use of metaphor is one of the effective ways in which lyric is made meaningful and philosophical. Usually, in Sinhalese songs metaphors are formed by fusing nouns. However, Sunil Sarath Perera has formed metaphors by the fusion of noun and verbs. For example, in his song Sanda Kaluvara gala halenna vita , Sunil Sarath Perera has formed metaphors by the fusion of noun and verb. Sanda Kaluvara gala halenna vita (gathering darkness) and Senehasa Dalvunu Nivasa Soya Emi ( come into the house lit up with warmth ) are potent metaphors.

Among the religious songs he wrote, is the popular song 'Mage Ratta Dalada Himi Saranai. It is noted for generating patriotic sentiment though it is dedicated to the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha. It also generates strong sense of devotion and piety. Prominent characteristics of Sunil Sarath Perera's lyrics is that they can be appreciated for their rich literariness. Rich and creative diction that he employs in his lyrics as well as in his poetry, demonstrates, among other things, his deep knowledge of Sinhalese classical literature and of the rich folk literature. He derives inspiration from both classical and folk traditions.

In a foreword to Sunil Sarath Perera's book of poetry entitled Vanamadale Bisau, Prof. Wimal Dissanayake observes, citing Moris Halvwacsh's special concept of collective memory, that there is an inalienable nexus between culture and the memory. The principal component of collective memory is cultural memory. The application of cultural memory is amply manifested in the literary creations by Munidasa Kumaratunga, Martin Wickremasinghe, Ediriweera Sarachchandra and Gunadasa Amerasekara.

One of the prominent characteristics that Prof. Dissanayake has observed in Sunil Sarath Perera's creations both in poetry and lyrics is his ability to distinguish the raw idea (Anvaya) and poems. At the hand of a skilful poet and lyricist, a raw idea turns into a poem in a diction with diverse embellishments which is capable of generating myriads of zest and meanings. A significant aspect of Sunil Sarath Perera's poetry and song is his ability to turn a raw idea into a poem or a song by the use of cultural memory.

In Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya, what is obvious is that he has gone beyond turning a cultural memory of a nation into a song but capturing the quintessential characteristic of a mega narrative of a civilization within a limited space of words.

Controversy born out of ignorance

The apparent controversy over the use of the word 'Suvisudda Jayanthiya' ( meaning the holiest anniversary) in the Sambuddhatva Jayanthi Geetaya is, perhaps, born out of ignorance of a section of pseudo lyricists whose understanding of Sinhalese literature in general and classical literature in particular is low. What is apparent is that some of the socalled lyricists could not make a difference between a raw idea and a poem or a song. The harsh reality is that invoking little known postmodernist theories would never turn a raw idea into a poem or song. They have erroneously attributed the world 'Suvisudda' to faith.