Those halcyon days
Jinadasa Jayawardena (JJ) transports us to a place of enchantment complete with family, friends and boyish pranks, as he describes the village of Telengapatha, where paddy fields are rich with golden grain, streams trickle “like milk down Mother Nature’s breasts” and the gravel road is “like a dark pink ribbon adorning a damsel’s hair.”
While legend has it that Telengapatha derived its name from that of a Telugu Prince, who had found refuge in this village after fleeing invaders, oral history connects the village with epic journeys made by two royal personages at different times. Both journeys are linked to the “Well near the Ambalama” fed by the crystal clear waters of an underground spring.
The first event occurred when Princess Devi (daughter of King Kelanitissa of the Kelaniya Kingdom) was taken to be sacrificed to the sea to stop its flood waters from further devastation of the land. It is said that on their journey through Telengapatha, the Princess and her retinue rested at the Ambalama and quenched their thirst from the nearby well,
The second was the journey of Sri Wickrema Rajasinghe (the last King of Kandy), whose escort is said to have rested near the well, when he was being taken in captivity to Colombo. The counterpoint to these tales is Jayawardena’s own visit to this historic well in 2004, when, with a heavy heart and tear-filled eyes; he witnessed its demolition by the new owners of the land.
The Ambalama, though primitive, was a picturesque structure complete with pillars and benches constructed from coconut tree trunks. Travellers along the Meegahawatte Road often stopped to refresh themselves at the Ambalama, while they exchanged news about temple festivals, and deaths, births and marriages. Local farmers rested there after a hot, weary day in the fields and partook of the “ambula” (lunch) brought by their womenfolk; and young women from the rice paddies laid aside their sickles for awhile to rest in the Ambalama and flirt with the young farmers there.
The close bond between the author and the Pokuna Pansala is described through pen portraits of its scholarly and devout monks, who helped him to grow spiritually, while his intellect was nourished by Jataka stories, folklore and anecdotes from history. What made the most impact, however, was the iconic Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihare, blessed by a visit from Lord Buddha. Among its treasures are wall paintings by renowned artist, Solias Mendis, whom the author had seen at first hand.
The deep affection between Peduru Mama, the village blacksmith and his wife, the attractive, long haired Reginahamy Nanda, is sketched with finesse. Quoting Longfellow’s poem; JJ draws a parallel between the immortal chestnut tree underneath which the village smithy stood, and Telengapatha’s own Kamaranga tree whose branches formed a canopy over Peduru Mama’s smithy.
Another beloved character was ‘Govi’ Mama – a village elder and the repository of farming lore. It was Govi Mama who knew the auspicious times for ploughing, sowing and harvesting and for preparing the Kamatha (threshing floor). The Kamatha, like the Ambalama, was a social construct – a place where young men sought to mingle with young women, enjoy their coquettish ways and even choose a life part- ner. JJ quotes passages from Sinhala classical poems like the Gira Sandesaya and Hansa Sandesaya, to describe this rite of passage.
Simon Mama (called Nadagam Gurunanse), was the female lead in many a dramatic production largely due to his beautifully modulated voice. His portrayal of a distraught Mandri Devi, who begs her husband, King Vessantara, not to sacrifice their two children, was designed to bring tears to the onlookers’ eyes.
Childhood games are remembered with wistfulness – making windmills from “kurumbatti” (immature coconuts); engaging the “bin kundo” (antlions) in a dance, holding candle-lit tortoise processions and watching tadpoles turn into adult frogs are counterbalanced by more energetic games like Elle, Gudu, Pora Pol and Hora Polis (cops and robbers).
JJ’s halcyon days were occasionally spiced with danger. Although he spent many hours swimming (floating) in the Mudun Ela with his friends, yet an attempt to swim through the tunnel under the Danwatte culvert, almost cost him his life. Likewise, JJ’s curiosity to know what was on an islet on the far side of the stream led him to shanghai a friend and visit the islet. Their adventure, fraught with peril, comes to an abrupt end.
Telengapatha was no stranger to the pilgrim season to Siripada (Adam’s Peak), the country’s holiest mountain. Captivated by the phenomenon of thousands upon thousands of jewelled butterflies flying towards Siripada “on pilgrimage”, JJ likens them to “a rainbow stretched over the sky” and laments that future generations would neither see, nor even imagine such a magnificent spectacle.
Nature’s bounty was also evident in the profusion of fruit trees lining the embankments or growing in the thickets, where the boys engorged themselves on luscious fruits such as Madan, Amba, Domba, Cadju Puhulang, Jambola, Pera, Dun, Beli and more.
Finally, no rural milieu is complete without a “thovil” ceremony. Since the host was a relative, JJ had unrestricted access to the exorcists, even to the extent of helping them gather stuff. Constructing an Aile in Pinnakelle, the exorcists predicted that Mahasona would appear at midnight accompanied by Kalu Kumaraya and Ririyaka to swing the Aile.
This was a siren call to our hero. Ignoring his mother’s warning, JJ and a friend go to Pinnakelle after the thovil ceremony is over. Here they see a figure resembling a demon vanishing into the thicket. And then JJ heads home in the wee hours of the morning to meet his Nemesis.
This book is available at S. Godage & Brothers (Pvt) Ltd. Nos. 661, 665, 675, P de S Kularatne Mawatha, Colombo 10. Tel: (011) 2 685 369 & 2 686 925. Price: Rs. 450.