Need to be promoted as national celebration stressed:

Significance of New Year in April

by Anuradha KODAGODA

When the Sun moves from the Meena Rashi (House of Pisces) to the Mesha Rashi (House of Aries) in the celestial sphere, Sri Lankans celebrate the New Year or Aluth Avurudu (in Sinhala) and Puththandu (in Tamil). It marks the end of the harvest season and also coincides with one of two instances when the Sun is directly above the country.

Avurudu has become an important national holiday in the cultures of the Sinhalese Buddhists and the Tamil Hindus in Sri Lanka and is unique as it is not celebrated in the same manner anywhere in the world.

Apart from these well-known facts about the Sinhala-Hindu New Year, are there any other important reasons for us to consider this New Year as a national celebration? Particularly in an era when we, as a country are so concerned about national identity, national harmony, national unity and patriotism, isn’t it a good entry point to give broader meaning to New Year celebrations?

“This is our New Year. It is much broader and deeper in its meaning and significance to all of us, probably more than the value we assign to it. When we were young, we had a deeper sense about the New Year in April, and we had much value assigned to it.

“However, according to my understanding, the importance of New Year is gradually declining compared to those days due to various reasons. Therefore, it’s high time to think of it again in a different dimension,” said Senior Lecturer, Department of Economics of the Colombo University, Dr. Lalitha Gunaruwan.

Real meaning

He said there are a few questions to be asked when clarifying the real meaning of ‘New Year’. Some of these are: What is the New Year? As Sri Lankans, why is the New Year in April so important? Is it just a change in the man-made calendar? Why do we call it the Sinhala-Hindu New Year? Does it mean that there are other new years for Sri Lankans to celebrate? Or does the New Year have much deeper meaning than that?

“When we were young, the only New Year we celebrated was in mid-April. It is not merely because our elders prepared to celebrate it by painting the house, buying new things and clothes and preparing sweetmeats, but we experienced the newness of the year through nature itself. For me, New Year is the renewal of everything. It is the renewal of nature. It is the time that the clock of nature changes and sees renewals which is not artificial, but a purely natural process. That is the time we see nature blossoming, awakening and refreshing with a new beginning its life circle.

“Therefore, this is the New Year for us; it’s not just the Sinhala-Hindu New Year, rather it is the New Year for the entire nation,” he said.

Economic perspectives

“This is proven even in terms of economic perspectives. From early ages, we have been a culture wedded to agriculture. Mid-April is the end of the Maha season in paddy cultivation, when the farmer earned his income. Therefore, that was the most suitable time for them to celebrate the New Year. Therefore, economically, traditional Sri Lankan culture was geared for celebration around that time of the year. Also, in terms of climate too, mid-April is the best period of time when there are neither heavy rains nor completely dry environment.

These are the reasons which prove that naturally Sri Lankans have all the reasons to celebrate their New Year mid-April. Not only in Sri Lanka, but in entire region including in India, Bangladesh, Thailand and in every other country within the region irrespective of religious backgrounds, the New Year falls around this time. Such coincidences can only happen if it’s natural,” he further said.

“However, gradually, mid-April has come to be considered as the Sinhala-Hindu New Year while January 1 is celebrated as the New Year, which I think is a mis-focus. Nearly 95 percent of our population comprises, Sinhalese and Tamils, therefore, isn’t this a fine determination?

“Today we are trying to find common ground to build the Sri Lankan nation and, I think, it is a national necessity to promote the new year as the national celebration of our country. Unfortunately, we have not identify its importance and most of us still use the ‘Sinhala and Tamil’ adjective. I think we have demoralised or undervalued its meaning, Dr. Gunaruwan said.

Western culture

“It is merely due to us borrowing western culture. Even for Europeans, how can it be a new year, when they cannot walk out from their houses and the entire environment is sealed and frozen? Therefore, anywhere in Europe, January 1 cannot be a proper New Year, it is just a change in the calendar which is artificially made. For them too the festive season starts in March.

“There is another good point that we have to consider which proves that the break-down of calendar months is also confusing. Who determined December as the last month of the year? Though I don’t have a clear answer for that, one thing I can say for sure, is Decca in Latin means 10 and Noa means nine, Octar means eight and so on.. So December has to be the 10th month and November the ninth month. It is questionable from where the other two months in the calendar came from. Even if January and February were the 11th amd 12th months in the calendar, then it’s obvious that March 1 would be the New Year. Somewhere something has surely gone wrong. However, though there are no solid answers, it is essential to raise these questions because as I believe, the clock of the nature is much more solid than any of these man-made calculations.

Therefore, this has to be our New Year or Sri Lankan New Year which proves it in economical, cultural and logical terms”, Dr. Gunaruwan said.

With the dawn of peace, now it is time to eliminate narrow categorisations of human beings by its religion or language. It is time to stand as one nation by giving new explanations and meanings for the betterment of the entire nation.