Papers presented at the International Buddhist Conference, March ...

expectation of the relatives. When she approach the last stage of
the confinement husband or relatives consult the Buddhist monk
and bring the sacred thread and tied up her upper part of the hand.
Three months after the child birth the child is brought to the
Buddhist religious place and keep the baby at the door step of the
shrine room. In Anuradhapura people visit to Jayasrimaha bodi and
baby is offered to the Buddha. In Kandy within three months
periods of time baby bring into Daladhamaligava (the Temple of
the tooth) and at the sacred tooth relic temple door step and baby
is offered to the Buddha and get the blessing from the Buddhist
monks.
At the second stage of the life cycle, specially, girls who attain
puberty family members bring the sacred thread from village
temple and tied up her upper portion of hand just after the bathing
ceremony parents bring first food potion to the temple. Then get
the blessing from the Buddhist monks. The third life cycle is
marriage ceremony. The complete functions of marriage ceremony
organize according to the Buddhist values. In Sri Lanka, Buddhist
marriage function associated stanzas, display Bodisattva`s lay life
up to marriage with princess Yasodara. Further, at poruwa
charithra which display wedding ceremony of price Siddhartha
and Yasodara, the king Suprabudda who handed over his daughter
to prince Siddhartha tying up fingers with sacred thread and
putting sacred water as a symbol of Sarana mangalla. Then girls
singing jayamangala songs which include special incidents of
Buddhist life and adding wishes to the newly wedded couple.
Finally, before come down from the wedding stage both bride and
groom handing over sacred white cloth to the bride's mother as a
symbol of sacrifice her life to the bride as breast feeding which call
“kirikadahelaya”. The total story is connected to the king okkaka's
story who lived in India that reminding the mother's role in Indian
Buddhist tradition. The last event of the life cycle is death
ceremony. Again those also, all over the country completely
organize according to the Buddhist value system. Mourning period
is seven days, before you cremate or buried the body by the closest
relatives and friends get together and offer pansakula chiwara for
Buddhist monks who visited to the function. And relatives offer
merits using water, monks say “yatha vary vahapure
paripurethusagara..” Further, give merits to death sprit to good
rebirth. Then they organize seventh day, three months, and one
year religious ceremonies for the death sprit. Above explanation
shows how life cycle ceremonies of Sri Lankan Buddhists
organized according to their central value system.
Personality Development and Buddhist Value
System
From the very beginning after Arhath Mahinda's visit to Sri Lanka,
the Buddhist mission try to develop new personalities in the new
society. New belief system introduced that based on karma and
rebirth. The Vimanawththu and Pethawaththu provided essential
details connected to the human activities in this world as well as the
other world. All Suttas and Bana preaching immensely
internalized the new ideology to the new nation in Sri Lanka.
Secondly, after the Sangamiththa theranies arrival with the sacred
Bo sapling with new Bodhi culture spread in the island very fast.
The Buddhist monks who started Dhamma propaganda movement
that they themselves used art, music, painting and other avenues to
approach indoctrinate people in the island. For this purpose
Buddhist monks used paintings in their respective temples. Those
paintings included Jathaka stories, Buddhist history, and
bodhisattva characters. Mothers who carries babies into the new
temple premises and they explained values display in paintings and
those were internalized by children in the society. As a result of that
Buddhist literature became a part of their day to day life. Five
hundred and fifty jathaka stories ware embraced by kings as well as
general masses of the society. Since then monthly, people get
together at the temple they enjoyed with Buddhist monks and their
rituals. They avoided evil activities. This social morality provided
th
by the Buddhist value system. Even before 4 century A.D tank
building was collective effort of the villages. They build tanks
benefit for all.
The samanthapasadika a commentary written to vinayapitaka in
th
the 5 century A.D. which says community based reservoirs and its
water equally distributed among the people. The word used by
them “sabbasadarana”. In a country normally citizens as well as
rulers who ruled in the country did not build gigantic palaces. They
only built big community centers including massive irrigation
schemes without their names or signs. There were about 177 kings
had ruled the island there was no single sign board or birth places or
cremation sites discovered. There was a very significant event
disclosed in history and the value system of the country was king
Elara's cremation site established by the king Dutugamunu. Why
Buddhist kings did not build their personal properties all these
were belongs to “anicca” concept. When king Datusena's son
Kassapa who was inquiring about a hidden treasure from his father,
the father accompanied him to Kalawewa tank and shown the
Kalawewa “this is my treasure, that I have earned and given to the
nation”, these stories show that how citizens as well as kings
personalities moulded by the Buddhist value system.
Domestic life and the Buddhist Value System
Domestic lives of the Sri Lankan Buddhists are governed by the
value system of the Buddhism. Any special events or occasions
emerges they remind “bless of triple gem” ninety nine percent of
rural children daily worship their parents, the reason is not like
other religions, in Buddhism there is no creator. Father and mother
are the house gods, they procreate children and they teach every
thing as “poorvacharyas” at the family.
Even illiterate mothers in the society know Indian Buddhist
history, Buddhist literature and they are enjoying with those
literature tradition. In any funeral house or any sorrowful occasion
they read Vessanthara Jathakaya or Thunsaranaya or
Yasodarawatha. When they accompany any pilgrim like travel to
Sripada they sing those religious songs and poems according to
their tradition.
In addition to that most of the domestic folk tails, folks stories and
poems are based on Jathaka stories and Buddhist character.
Further, how folks conscious is connected to the Buddhist value
system, all temple names in the island are Indian names such as,
Jethavanaramaya, Veluvanaramaya, Asokaramaya,
Neegrodaramaya, etc. And all leading schools names are Ananda,
Nalanda, Dharmaraja, Dharmapala, Mahinda, Asoka, Thakshila,
Sanghamiththa, Sujatha, Mahamaya, Yasodhara, Seevali,
Swarnamali, Gothemi, Visaka, etc in addition to that Individual
names of the Sri Lankan Buddhist society call Upatissa, Ananda,
Piyatissa , Udeni, Mangala, Mahinda etc. thousands of people used
different personal names which were taken from the Buddhist
history and literature. Most of them daily follow and worship to
Buddhist statues observe panchaseela as well as Poya days they
observe Astanga seela, annually they celebrates Vesak or Buddha
poornima festival. In the vesak festival day even very poor people
donate food and other consumable commodities as Dana or Dansal
free of charge meals for others. They enjoy with this type of merit
earning activities according to the Buddhist values. Even in the day
to day to day life before they go to bed they sing, in Sinhala,
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