BELLANWILA WIMALARATHANA THERA ACCORDED A TEARFUL FAREWELL

The funeral procession left the temple at 1 pm and reached the University grounds after which the cremation ceremony took place at 5.35 pm

The final rites of Venerable Wimalarathana Thera took place at the Sri Jayewardenepura University yesterday with full State honours. The prelate was the Chancellor of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura.

The Thera’s mortal remains were placed at the Bellanwila Raja Maha Viharaya from where he served for devotees and the public, to pay their last respects. The funeral procession left the temple at 1 pm and reached the University grounds where the cremation ceremony took place at 5.35 pm.

Venerable Thera, who passed away at the age of 77 on Sunday (4), was admitted to the Colombo South Teaching Hospital after he was injured when he met with an accident while feeding the temple’s tusker.

The Thera was later transferred to a private hospital in Colombo, where he passed away.

President Maithripala Sirisena paid his final respects to the late Thera on Monday (5) while Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, former Presidents Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and Mahinda Rajapaksa and many parliamentarians also arrived at the temple to pay their last respects.

Ven. Prof. Bellanwila Wimalaratana Thera, deputy incumbent of Bellanwila Rajamaha Vihara and President of the Bellanwila Community Development Foundation, is the Anunayake of the Kotte Sri Kalyani Samagri Dharma Maha Sangha Sabha of the Syamapali Maha Nikaya, one of the three sects of Buddhism in Sri Lanka.