Martin Wickremasinghe:

A literary genius

by Rupa Banduwardena

Surrounded by the lush scrub vegetation and vast tracts of coconut land with plenty of scenic spots is a small but beautiful village, called Koggala close to Galle.

Sri Lankans take much pride as it is an impressive place of cultural value. It was at Koggala that Martin Wickremasinghe, the genius of the Sinhala literary world was born.

He was born on May 29, 1891 to Bastian Wickremasinghe, known to the villagers as Opisara Gedara Punchi Mahattaya. He learnt to read and write from Andiris Gurunnanse as was the custom then and later he attended the village temple to study under Ven. Deerananda Thera.

He enrolled at the Unawatuna, Bonavista College to pursue his English education which he had to give up following the demise of his father. This led to a new turn of events in his life.

He bade goodbye to his carefree life in the village, lakes and jungles and left for Colombo to work under a businessman. Here he devoted his free time to reading. Reading was his forte.

He very often used the dictionary to improve his knowledge of English. Starting with Robinson Crusoe and Gulliver's Travels his reading covered Dickens, Thomas Hardy, Tolstoy and Chekhov. Having learnt English on his own, he acquired a comprehensive knowledge of the world around.

He also went through ancient literary works such as Amavatura, Buthsarana, Guttila Kavya, Loveda Sangarava, Subhashithaya and Sidat Sangarava, a praiseworthy attempt to fulfil a timely need of the Sri Lankan readership culminating in literary awakening.

He assumed duties in the Dinamina, followed by Lakmina, where he performed an honorary service. He started a printing press of his own to make ends meet. Having functioned as an Editor of three newspapers for more than 15 years he devoted his entire life to reading and writing.

The journalist-turned-writer had mastered the technique of writing.

He enriched language and literature by writing books on a variety of subjects ranging from social sciences, biology, philosophy, Buddhism and fine arts. He wrote 14 novels first one being Leela, sub titled as Rasawath Kathandarayak.

His famous novel Gamperaliya touched the hearts and minds of the people of that era so much so a film was produced based on it. It left an indelible impression in the minds of cinema lovers. Koggala with its picturesque surroundings provided the backdrop to his writing.

Madolduwa written in 1947 is an outstanding example. It reflects how the splendour and the grandeur of the Sri Lankan landscape has entered into his writing. He had a mind prone to rural life. Not only Madolduwa, but the majority of his literary works are village-centred. It is the village atmosphere that has been highlighted throughout.

He had a sharp insight into life as is evident from his novels Viragaya and Kaliyugaya written in 1956 and '57. They are his first psychological novels which remained as masterpieces reflecting the social strata of the day, and had an amazing acceptance by the society. Considering the theme all three are supposed to be inter connected.

The trio, the Thunendutu navakatha is said to go down in literary history as a landmark that changed the basis of the Sinhala society. Those wonderful creations had become a part of their lives. Wickremesinghe's contribution to drama too should be appreciated. Chitra, Mayuri and Vijitha are a few of his excellent creations.

He wrote many more books on history, culture and literature. Sinhala Sahithyaye was very useful to university students.

He was well versed in ancient literature and developed his own independent style with his new theories of criticism. The modern use of the language introduced by him still prevails for the present generation. A carefully written autobiography completed in the twilight of his life, gives pride of place to his birth place.

The numerous translations of his novels and short stories, poetry and prose into English, French, Russian, Chinese is a clear indication of his creativity, vision and foresight.

The museum at Koggala stands as a monument to his memory. He is referred to as the "Rishi of Koggala" by the grateful nation, for his magnanimous contribution to the literary world, ushering a golden era in modern literature.