| One of the three kingdoms of Sri Lanka some centuries back
in history, still remains in glory and pride, even after many social
and political upheavals caused by foreign invasions and natural
disasters. The reason is clear; Southern has been blessed with
invaluable resources in terms of people, terrain, flora and fauna,
climate and geography; and the people of Southern have played an incomparable role in every aspect of the |
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life of Sri Lanka including
the culture, knowledge transmission, trade, industry, defence, etc.
The beautiful golden southern beach extending from the historical
city of Galle to the river of Palatupana supports hundreds of
thousands people in earning a decent living by fishing, tourism,
agriculture, and small industries and draws the attention of the
rest of the world who are in search of places of scenic beauty to
spend their holiday.
The
ancient ports in Kirinda and Godawaya do still serve
as fishing harbours. Due to the obstacles faced in transport along
the land route famous as the Silk Road, many ancient merchants
used the sea route. Ancient records show that this was known as the
silk road of the sea, muhudu seda mavatha. The ports along
the Southern coast proved to be ideal harbours for merchant ships and
thereby became popular among voyagers. This made Sri Lanka famous in
the world and promoted her products in international markets.
As a
result, Sri Lanka has maintained commercial and diplomatic relations
with a considerable number of ancient kingdoms in the world. Pliny
records that a delegation of Sri Lankans was received by the Emperor
of Rome subsequent to the assistance and hospitality extended by the
people of Sri Lanka to a group of sailors from Rome stranded on a
Sri Lankan beach. This establishes that Sri Lanka's international
relations come from a long way in history.
All these relationships
were built upon the silk road of the sea in which Southern has played
a main role.
As
the records of the history reveal, since the seventh century Dondra
has been the homeland of the royal family of Ruhuna and their
princess was married to the royal family of Anuradhapura. Their son
king Manawamma started the lambakarna royal family which
lasted through out the latter part of the kingdom of Anuradhapura
and extended to the kingdom of Polonnaruwa. This highlights the
involvement of Ruhuna in ancient Sri Lanka and her administration
and statecraft. |
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The Culture of DownSouth |
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DownSouth or Ruhuna of Sri Lanka is famous for its unique culture from
ancient times. The culture based on the fishing community still
dominating along the Southern coast. Several fishing harbours are
scattered along the Southern coast. Hambantota, Godawaya, Dondra are
to name a few. Traditional fishing methods and equipment are still
being used by the community and large scale modernized fishing also
can be seen.
Traditional wooden masks and puppets made in Ambalangoda are world
renowned for their artistic value. This traditional industry has
been able to attract tourists coming from different parts of the
world.
Ancient customs, for example, rituals carried out in invoking
blessings of the ancient local gods upon the people and their
property, or in appeasing the devils who are a threat to the
people's existence, play an important role in the lives of the
people of Southern. These rituals are considered great cultural events
because of their aesthetic value and are staged today as dance forms |
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Religious Background |
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| While the majority of the people of Ruhuna are Buddhists, the rest
are composed of the followers of Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism.
The culture is mainly built upon the teachings of the Buddha. Many
ancient Buddhist temples are found throughout Ruhuna. The Kiriwehera
in Kataragama, the Gotapabbatha vihara in Godawaya, Thissamaharamaya
and other temples and dagabas are of great historical value.
Kataragama and Devinuwara are considered sacred places because
of the temples dedicated to God Kataragama and God Vishnu
respectively, who believed from ancient times to be guarding the
people and land of Sri Lanka. |
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