Sunday, April 7, 2013

BOOK REVIEW BEMTOTA RUHUNU DORATUWA AUTHOR : THOMPSON A. VAN DER BONA PUBLISHED BY SARASAVI PUBLISHERS REVISED 2ND EDITION REVIEWED BY HEMANTHA SITUGE


BOOK REVIEW

BEMTOTA RUHUNU DORATUWA
AUTHOR : THOMPSON A. VAN DER BONA
PUBLISHED BY SARASAVI PUBLISHERS REVISED 2ND EDITION

REVIEWED BY HEMANTHA SITUGE
e-mail : hemantha.situge@gmail.com
web : Hemantha Situge @ blogspot.com.



Bemtota Ruhunu Doratuwa – Bemtota Gateway to Ruhuna is a landmark book written in Sinhalese by Thompson A. Van der Bona the revised 2nd edition was released recently, published by the Sarasavi Publishers. This book was republished after an elapse of sixteen years where the 1st edition was published by the ANCL publishers.

Van der Bona by dedicating the book to his mother and father who regaled interesting snippets and stories on his ‘ape gama’ has recorded these experiences with a sense of nostalgia for posterity. In other words this book a study treatise that is encapsulated with his decades of experiences documented for the future generation.

Reading Thompson A. Van der Bona’s Bemtota Ruhunu Doratuwa takes me into reveries of Sri Lankan village life in Martin Wickramasinghe’s Ape Gama (Lay Bare the Roots translated by Lakshmi De Silva into English), J Wijayatunga’s Grass for My Feet (Ma Payata Tananilla translated into Sinhalese by Newton Goonesinghe). Both these books do essentially portray the snippets of the Sri Lankan coastal village life style during childhood of both authors, Wickramasinghe in Koggala Malalagama and Wijayatunge in Urala, in the pre-independence era. But Van der Bona’s present work on his ‘apegama’ or his village, is infused with a new lease of life that critically examines some episodes of this villages culled from history, folklore, legend, and from literature.

The cover of the Bemtota-Ruhunu Doratuwa – is adorned with a photograph from the landmark entrance of the Galapatha Viharaya which has carved dancers (vide: the only of its kind Sri Lankave Narthana Ithihasaya – Prof. Mudiyanse Dissanayake) on the stone entrance. This stone entrance was declared as an Archaeological monument by virtue of Gazette notification bearing No. 1299-236 dated 13th September 1974 and the second photograph is on the Bentota river and another on the golden beaches that has been the cynosure of all the tourists. The book contains twelve chapters. They are viz. Historical background and Setting, Flora Fauna, Villagers of the village, The Villages in the Environs of the River, The River, Beliefs Yantra Mantra, Old Temples, the Learned Men produced from the area, notes during the 2nd World War, Changes after the War, Change of the Village, the Decline of the Village. From pages 168 to 191 contains as a highlight of the book the reproduction of the rare complete book the Bheematheerthalankaraya alias Bentota Lakara - The beauty of Bentota - of that erudite scholar, pioneer writer of par excellence produced from Bentota, Albert de Silva in 1890 printed by H. W. Hettiarachchi at the Vidyaprakasha Press in Dodanduwa respectfully dedicated to Arthur Jayawardena Mudliyar of Wellabada Pattu of Galle from Atadahewatta Walauwwa Kataluwa. Van der Bona retrieving part of same from the British Museum Library has given to the present reader of his book. The book is replete with 202 pages with a useful bibiliography, a complete account of the Grama Sevaka divisions bordering the Bentota river from Bentota and from Kalutara and some historical notes. There were five other books in verse that germinated the seed of thought from Albert De Silva’s renowned work. They are viz. in 1902 Kalutota Lakara by M. C. F. Perera, in 1916 Hambantota Lakara by Lionel W. De Silva, in 1934 Matota Lakara by Amarasiri Gunewardena and in 1936 Bentota Lakara by Mullapitiye K. H. De Silva.

As one enters Bentota from Galle, Thompson A. Van der Bona’s Bemtota Ruhunu Doratuwa reminds me of two significant landmarks on Bentota which riveted my eye since my childhood when one enters Bentota from Galle. They are the Pintaliya – the wayfarer’s pot of water – which was kept in a canopy, the other is referred to by Vander Bona (at page 11) the old iron bridge which has fallen into disuse which bears the inscription dated 1902 Mr. E. K. Sunil Premasiri now the Director [Maintenance] Department of Archaeology who as the Assistant Director of Archaeology Southern Province shifted it from the main road to adjacent to the AIDA shop when the road was widened.

The 14th century Gira Sandeshaya – the parrots epistle in verse has stated an ambalama – a wayfarer’s place of rest – found on the right side of Bentota named Elitota (edited by Makuluduwe Piyaratana 1963 page 21-22 in Sinhalese). This place name and the place of rest is today unheard and unknown.

The author Van der Bona examines another proverb that is embedded in the minds of southerners. His analysis on the origin of this proverb that: “No kitten who has opened one’s eyes should reach beyond the Bentota river” is incisive. Firstly (at page 19 of the book), the lore whether is it because of the “Bemrakusa” as once who were beyond the river were of Yakkha, Raksha origin. Secondly (at page 22, 26 of the book), the comely lasses of Bentota would entice anyone reaching from their guiles and viles as recorded in the 14th century Gira and Tisara Sandesha Kavya’s – epistles – Thirdly (at page 36-7 of the book), the once who are beyond the Bentara river are considered as crafty by their nature.

The fourth Chapter the villages around the river the writer Van der Bona goes into the origins of the toponymy or place names. They are viz; Hungantota, Pahurumulla, Yathramulla, Honduwa, Dope, Hendagala, Nissankagala, Berawagoda, Gasdekawatte, Urugasmanhandiya or originally the Urugasmankadahandiya – the longest place name in the world – The author gives us a vivid account on the volunteer camp at Urugasmanhandiya commenced in 1889 and draws out on the beginning of the “Boer bed” or “Booru enda” (colloquially known to the local folk as).

The seventh chapter is on places of worship, the author confines same to five ancient temples. They are viz. Galapatha Viharaya, Malmaduwakanda Purana Viharaya, Bem Vehera Raja Maha Viharaya, Bentota (Udakotuwa) Raja Maha Viharaya and Vanavasala Raja Maha Viharaya. The author exhaustively deals with the Galapatha inscription reported in Epigraphia Zeylanica Volume IV and Ven. Medauyangoda Wimalakiththi Thero’s Sheela Lekhana Sangrahaya Volume V.

The eighth chapter has dealt on the Learned men of repute produced from the area. They are : T. W. Rhys Davies, Robert C. Childers, Ven. Potuwila, Bentota K. Albert De Silva, Piyadasa Sirisena Proctor James De Alwis and also an account on the Bentota Pahurumulla Secondary school. I fervently believe that it would being apt if Yathramulle Dhammarama Thero’s name would have been included to this account in a separate heading. In 1870 when the second son of Queen Victoria the Duke of Edinborough, Prince Alfred visited Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) the epistle in verse from the Pali language bestowed by Dharmakeerthi Mangalabhidana Maligaspe the leader monk which was written or composed by Dhammarama Thero of Yathramulla who resided in the Wana Wasala Viharaya. (Vide at page 695 to 698 Journal of the Sri Lanka Oriental Studies Society, Centenary volume 1902-2002 edited by Theripehe Somananda Anu Na Himi et. al. published by the Sri Lanka Oriental Studies Society)  Robert C. Childers was instrumental in translating from the Pali language into English the first volume of the Jataka or Stories of Buddha’s Former Births in 1895 edited by Prof. E. B. Cowell published by the Cambridge University Press.

Ninth chapter are notes on the Second World War the Welhena Camp; as one passes the bridge found in the place name ‘Wadiya’. The tenth, eleventh and twelfth chapters deals on the changes after the war change and the decline of the village. This account of Van der Bona is dejected, forlorn and filled with abyss of despair.

Van der Bona’s well-known book has lead to many another work on the village or ‘gama’. One of them is Nugegoda by Mervyn Herath and Savanadasa. Van der Bona has made us to re-think of our villages or develop a deep abiding interest or penchant on the once own place of birth.

It whetted my curiosity when I posed the question as to ‘what were the four gravets of Bentota’ from Van der Bona. Answering same I said that one gravet point could be the Bentota bridge as a toll station. The second Hungantota (at page 48 of his book), the third and the fourth remains a moot point. Van der Bona is reluctant to accept another as Kaikawala because it is far away in Induruwa (Kaikawala Murakawal rekha sitina vide Sinhala Vishwakoshaya) It is my view that this book has opened a forum for further research on Bentota.

The last two decades have ‘spawned’ the interest of a new generation of few Sinhalese laymen writers firstly there was a precursor to the book of Van der Bona, entitled Bemganga Asabada Viththi by N. H. Karunathilake which was later translated into English.

Later Jithendrawansha de Silva wrote “Ambalangoda Puranaya” (History of Ambalangoda) The last decade brought two additions to the District of Galle. They were viz. Ape Gama Rajgama (Our village; Rajgama) by Jansen Rannoolu and Hikkaduwa Puranaya Saha Venath Rasa Katha (History of Hikkaduwa and other interesting stories) by Theodore Samson.

I fervently think Galle owes a debt of gratitude to two retired professors both scholars of repute namely, K. D. Paranavitana who hailed from Baddegama and Bandusena Gunasekara from Randombe for spawning this new generation of writers on Galle. Energetic Paranavitana with his stint at the Archives came out with a book in Sinhalese titled Galupuranaya published by Godage in 1991 wrote a series of articles on Galle. Some of them were ‘Gama Gaallede’ and another series of articles on the Learned Buddhist Priests in the area and on Galle Fort.

Gunasekara after doing his Master’s thesis on place names on Galle (Galle Grama Nama ha Ehi viththi 2nd edition Godage Publishers 2010) enthused in Bentota by writing on Bentota Puranaya, on Balapitiya by penning Balapitiya Puranaya, on Ratgama by writing Ratgama Puranaya (Devapathiraja Vidyalaya 50th Anniversary Volume) and on Galupuranaya and also on Seenigama Devalaya.

Before these writings came into light what remains unpublished today is the learned treatise submitted by Ven. Nagoda Pagngnananda Thero to the Oriental College Society or Pracheena Bhashopakara Samithiya in 1945 entitled “Gaalu Ithihasaya” (History of Galle) where he was awarded the Pandit Degree, which would be released as a publication shortly. All these writings are “gems purest ray serene blushed unseen” on Galle. Ven. Pagngnanada Thero would have been one of the foremost pioneers to place on record in Sinhalese a glimpse on Bemthota or Bentota.

Thompson A. Van der Bona’s attachment to once own village or ‘gama’ or place of birth is proverbial. To Van der Bona as he wished to have a dent in the world of writing and business, he intended to leave his village with the irresistible nostalgic memories. Van der Bona’s Bemtota Ruhuna Doratuwa - Bemtota Gateway to Ruhuna - is a priceless book to be reposed at the libraries in the island, which is undoubtedly a must read for all those who loves the values of the village and who wish to maintain those ideals.


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