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| Sunday, 7 August 2005 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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The grandest pageant of all
The Kandy Esala Perahera is, without a doubt, the grandest and most colourful pageant in Sri Lanka, and is one of the most important religious and cultural events in the country. It is held annually in July/August on days fixed by the Diyawadana Nilame of the Dalada Maligawa. It is held to honour the Sacred Tooth Relic and comprises five components: the Dalada Maligawa Perahera, followed by the peraheras of the Natha, Vishnu, Kataragama and Pattini devales situated around the Maligawa. These temples honour the four guardian deities Natha, Vishnu, Kataragama and Pattini. The Dalada Perahera dates from the time Buddha's Tooth Relic was brought to Sri Lanka. The relic arrived from Kalinga, India to Anuradhapura, concealed in the tresses of Princess Hemamala, during King Kithsiri Mevan's reign. It was housed in a specially built shrine in the Thuparama, in the vicinity of the royal palace. The king initiated an annual celebration in which the Tooth Relic was carried in a procession through the streets of Anuradhapura to the Abhayagiri Monastery. Some believe the victory parades that King Gajabahu I ordered after he successfully invaded South India gave birth to the procession. Still another theory is that it originated from an Indian festival known as 'Asalhi Games' which was introduced here by Vijaya and his followers in the fifth century BC. There is no evidence to prove either of these theories.
King Vimaladharmasuriya I installed the Tooth Relic in Kandy. The Perahera assumed strong Hindu characteristics under the Nayakkar rulers in the 18th century. However, it was a Nayakkar ruler, Kirthi Sri Rajasinghe (1747-1781), who brought about a Buddhist revival in the Kandyan Kingdom and took steps to transform the Perahera into a mainly Buddhist festival, as the one we see today. With regard to the origin of the devale peraheras, it is said that there was war among the Asuras in which the God Kataragama was involved. The war ended on the day after the new moon in July. To commemorate this event, an Esala tree is cut, its trunk fixed as kap and certain ceremonies performed on this day every year. The Esala Perahera gets under way with the kap planting ceremony when a jak, esala or rukattana tree is cut and its trunk cut into four pieces. These four pieces (kap) are then taken to the four devales and planted in each devale as a vow that the Perahera will be held. For five nights, processions are conducted within the four devale premises. The Kapurala of the temple) walks in these processions carrying a golden weapon called 'Ran Ayudhaya', said to have belonged to the deity of the temple and supposedly used by him in battle. On the sixth night, the Kumbal Perahera starts. It's on this day that the Perahera is seen for the first time outside the devales and is joined by the Dalada Maligawa Perahera. The temple chiefs wear their traditional white Kandyan court dress to walk in the procession. Each night the number of elephants in the Perahera increases and the Perahera gets bigger, grander and more colourful. The Randoli Perahera is held after five such nights. Ancient Sinhalese kings are said to have walked in the Randoli Perahera with their retinue. On the last day, the glittering Perahera is led by whip crackers, who announce the approach of the procession. The flag bearers carrying the standards of the different provinces and temples come next. The Peramunerala who, in olden times, carried the mandate from the King giving permission to hold the Perahera, comes on the first elephant. Next come the drummers followed by the Gajanayaka Nilame on elephant-back. The Kariyakorale, who is next to the Diyawadana Nilame in order of precedence and is responsible for the ceremonies connected with the Maligawa, walks next in the Perahera.
After him comes the high point - the beautifully decorated Maligawa Tusker carrying the golden casket containing the Sacred Relics. (The actual relics are not carried in the Perahera now. Instead, a duplicate casket carries other relics.) The casket is placed on the Tusker's back by the Diyawadana Nilame. The majestic Tusker, accompanied by two other elephants, is followed by dancers and drummers, and the Diyawadana Nilame walks at the end of this group. The four devale peraheras follow the main perahera. These also comprise Basnayake Nilames, elephants, dancers and drummers. The Randoli Perahera is held over five nights with the last night being the grandest. After the last night, the four peraheras from the four devales go to the Mahaveli River where the chief priests of the devales perform the diya kapeema (water cutting) ceremony. The peraheras then make their way back to Kandy and join the Maligawa Perahera. They then parade along the streets three times, the Maligawa Perahera enters the Maligawa and the devale peraheras wind up at the respective temples, bringing the annual pageant to an end. This year's Perahera started yesterday with the kap planting. The devale peraheras, which also started yesterday, will continue till August 9. The Kumbal Perahera will parade the streets of Kandy from the 10th to the 14th. The Randoli Perahera will be on from the 15th to the 19th, on which night the grandest pageant takes place. The festival will conclude with the day perahera on August 20. |
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