Dalada Perahera during the British era

By Amal HEWAVISSENTI

With the capture of King Sri Wickrama Rajasinha and the signing of the Kandyan Convention, the British realised that they were to take possession of the Sacred Tooth Relic to ensure full political authority.

The British had understood the value of Dalada as the symbol of supreme political power. By 1815, they needed Dalada to establish their political power among the Buddhists in Sri Lanka.

History illustrates that the ancient Kings had paid attention to the performance of Dalada rituals and ceremonies.

Power

This is further illustrated in the Wellassa rebellion in which 'Wilbawe' a chief demonstrated Dalada in his possession and declared to the public that he was the "King of Three Sinhala". This furhter establishes the role of the Sacred Tooth Relic in defining the powers of Sri Lankan rulers and generating public recognition to the ruler.

In 1815, the British took King Sri Wickrama Rajasinha captive while he was seeking refuge in the house owned by Udupitiya Arachchi in Mahanuwara. By this time, the British officials were in constant pursuit of the Sacred Tooth Relic that nestled safely in the temple of Pusulpitiya.

After signing the Kandyan Convention in 1815, the move was to track down the whereabouts of Dalada. Here John D' Oyly the British representative for the affairs of Kandyan Kingdom, obviously understood that capturing the King alone would not grant them total power over the kingdom. He realised that the possession of the Sacred Tooth Relic would ensure the right for them to govern the Kandyan Kingdom.

Having had a perfect knowledge of Sri Lankan culture at the time, John D' Oyly spelled out the immediate need to take possession of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

Accordingly D' Oyly assembled the Kandyan chiefs and made the solemn pledge that the British would safeguard the Tooth Relic and upgrade the ceremonies and rituals associated with it. In the course of his elaborations on the sacredness and importance of Dalada, he earnestly appealed to the provincial chiefs to help the British to recover the Tooth Relic.

At a special meeting headed by Malwatu-Asgiri Maha Theras and Ehelepola Nilame, John D' Oyly openly requested them to hand over the Sacred Tooth Relic. Here D' Oyly agreed to transfer the Pattirippu where the British governor resided, back to the temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. This was at the request by Ehelepola Nilame.

In the interim, the Mahatheras, under the pretence of surrendering the Sacred Tooth Relic to the British, surreptitiously transferred it from one place to a safer place, thus, they tactfully delayed the Sacred Tooth Relic being handed over.

Arrangements were made to transfer the Sacred Tooth Relic to Hindagala temple from the place it had been previously kept.

The following morning the Maha Theras and Ehelepola Nilame mounted a grand ceremony to bring the Sacred Tooth Relic to Mahanuwara and keep it under the surveillance of the English.

Here, John D' Oyly expressed his conviction that Sri Lankans had placed their full confidence in the British administration by granting the guardianship of the Sacred Tooth Relic the undisputed symbol of Kingship in Sri Lanka.

Even though the British administration now had the control of Dalada and the entire Kandyan Kingdom, the provincial chiefs had the mutual understanding that they should in no time, break away from the British authority.

After a futile attempt to remove the Dalada from the custody of the English, Ihagama Thera and Madugalle Udagabada Nilame were instantly apprehended on charges of conspiracy against the British administration. But Ihagama Thera managed to escape the captivity and map out plans to grab the Sacred Tooth Relic from the English. After the great rebellion against the British administration in 1818, Wariyapola Sumangala Thera succeeded in recovering Dalada and transferring it to a secret place of safety away from the city of Mahanuwara.

Possession

Here, Wariyapola Sumangala Thera was too well aware of the significance of the possession of Sacred Tooth Relic in insurgencies against British administration in Kandyan Kingdom. Accordingly, the Thera took the initiative to hand over the Sacred Tooth Relic to Keppetipola Nilame's guardianship in Wellagiriya, Maturata. Keppetipola Nilame took particular care to protect the Sacred Tooth Relic and to perform rituals for it in perfect secrecy.

John D' Oyly and the higher officials of the British government became extremely agitated when they realised that the Sacred Tooth Relic, the symbol of power and authority in Kandyan Kingdom, had made its escape from their custody. Their disappointment doubled when they learnt that Keppetipola Nilame had made an elaborate public show of the Dalada in his guardianship.

This was definitely a body blow for the pride of British governor as reports of Keppetipola Nimale and his public show of Dalada were sweeping through the country. It is said that the British did not even open the casket to check whether the Dalada lay safely snuggled in it.

Keppetipola Nilame secretly transferred the Dalada to the guardianship of Kivulegedara Mohottala who kept it safely in complete secrecy in the village of Kivulegedara. Subsequently, Keepetipola Nilame fell into the custody of the British.

On secret information provided by Sovers, an British secret agent, the British forces raided the village of Kivulegedara only to find that the Dalada and the guardian missing.

On October 2 , 1818, a military officer named Ensain Sulbreddi arrested Madugalle Nilame at Elahera and he launched a wider search operation in the jungle for any person in possession of the Sacred Tooth Relic. In the evening of the same day, he arrested Wariyapola Sumangala Thera in the jungle and found the Dalada in the golden casket that lay hidden in a bag carried by the Thera.

Insurgents

Ven. Sumangala Thera was immediately arrested and the Sacred Tooth Relic once again fell into the hands of the English administrators. The British court convicted the Thera of supporting insurgents and 'smuggling' a state property. He had to remain in custody for a number of years.

From the outbreak of the insurgency of 1818 up to 1828, the Dalada Perahera had been suspended owing to the turmoil in the Kingdom.

For the first time in 1829, the British mounted an elaborate ceremony and Dalada Perahera which involved all the rituals and practises of traditional Esala Perahera. The Kandyan chiefs had informed the British that Dalada Perahera was essential against the backdrop of increasing turmoil in the country.

During this Dalada Perahera, the English administration made arrangements to offer 32 cows to the temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

However the respect the British showed towards the Sacred Tooth Relic and the Perahera appear, to have sprung from their political motives. Ultimately, the British administration handed over the Sacred Tooth Relic to the guardianship of Kandyan chiefs, Asgiri-Malwathu Theras and diyawadana Nilames in 1847. From then on the Dalada Perahera continues to be the greatest cultural pageant of Sri Lanka.