The hard copy of THOMIA by Richard Simon in two volumes — all 868 + lxv pages of this searching history — is now in print. Presented here are the initial pages.
Category Archives: centre-periphery relations
Reflections on Gananath’s Wide-Ranging Corpus of Work
Professor M.W. Amarasiri de Silva, about 3/4 years back in … … where the full title of the essay reads thus: “Sinhalese Society Through The Prism Of Religion: An Appreciation Of Gananath Obeyesekere’s Work On Sinhalese Buddhism”
This article celebrates the remarkable scholarly contributions of Gananath Obeyesekere, specifically in the field of popular Buddhism in Sri Lanka. Obeyesekere, now aged 93, embarked on his anthropological career at the University of Ceylon (now University of Peradeniya), where he earned his undergraduate degree in English. Subsequently, he served as a lecturer and professor in the Department of Sociology from the 1960s to 1972, before moving on to the United States. He was Professor of Anthropology at Princeton University from 1980 to 2000.
Filed under accountability, ancient civilisations, art & allure bewitching, British colonialism, caste issues, centre-periphery relations, commoditification, communal relations, cultural transmission, economic processes, ethnicity, fundamentalism, governance, heritage, historical interpretation, landscape wondrous, language policies, Left politics, life stories, literary achievements, modernity & modernization, nationalism, patriotism, performance, pilgrimages, politIcal discourse, power politics, racist thinking, religiosity, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, social justice, sri lankan society, Tamil civilians, teaching profession, transport and communications, unusual people, vengeance, working class conditions, world events & processes, zealotry
Nationalisms in Sri Lanka: A Bibliography Cast in 2014..
bull-mascot-team-logo-design-longhorn-133746227 Presented here at ……………………………………………………….. https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/nationalism-the-past-and-the-present-the-case-of-sri-lanka/…. & thus in need of updating.; while being dedicated to a Peradeniya University buddy -alas deceased– with whom I shared notes and thoughts during undergraduate days and thereafter in the 1970s & 1980s in Chicago: namely, Ananda Wickremeratne …
Amunugama, Sarath 1979 ‘Ideology and class interest in one of Piyadasa Sirisena’s novels: the new image of the “Sinhala Buddhist” nationalist’ in M Roberts (ed.) Collective identities, nationalisms and protest in modern Sri Lanka, Colombo:: Marga Institute, pp 314-36
Anderson, Benedict 1983 Imagined communities. Reflections on the origin and spread of Nationalism. London: Verso
Filed under accountability, authoritarian regimes, British colonialism, Buddhism, centre-periphery relations, communal relations, constitutional amendments, cultural transmission, demography, devolution, discrimination, Dutch colonialism, economic processes, education policy, Eelam, ethnicity, governance, hatan kavi, heritage, historical interpretation, Indian Ocean politics, insurrections, island economy, Kandyan kingdom, language policies, Left politics, legal issues, life stories, LTTE, martyrdom, modernity & modernization, Muslims in Lanka, nationalism, patriotism, power politics, racism, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, sri lankan society, Tamil civilians, Tamil migration, tamil refugees, Tamil Tiger fighters, transport and communications, vengeance, war reportage, world events & processes, zealotry
An Epitaph for Gananath Obeyesekere
Chandra R. De Silva, … with highlighting emphasis added by The Editor, Thuppahi
I write to add a few words to the outpouring of appreciations of Gananath Obeyesekere, a scholar whose research in anthropology, religion, myth, and cultural practices has won him accolades across the world. I will not comment on the advances in knowledge and the discussions he provoked by his many scholarly works of which among the best known are Land Tenure in Village Ceylon, The Cult of the Goddess Pattini, Buddhism Transformed (co-author), The Work of Culture, The Apotheosis of Captain Cook: European Mythmaking in the Pacific, and The Doomed King. There has been much written on this world renowned scholar, and there will undoubtedly be more comments by experts in the years to come.
Filed under accountability, art & allure bewitching, Buddhism, caste issues, centre-periphery relations, commoditification, communal relations, cultural transmission, economic processes, education, electoral structures, ethnicity, governance, heritage, historical interpretation, Indian religions, island economy, land policies, language policies, Left politics, life stories, modernity & modernization, nationalism, patriotism, performance, pilgrimages, plural society, politIcal discourse, power politics, self-reflexivity, Sinhala-Tamil Relations, social justice, sri lankan society, teaching profession, vengeance, working class conditions, world events & processes
Face-to-Face in Sri Lanka: Elephants & Humans
Zinara Rathnayake, in an Item in the New Lines Magazine that is reprinted in The Island, 23 March 2025
Screenshot
In Makulpotha village, 89 miles northwest of Colombo, Punchibanda woke up to the trumpet of an elephant while he was sleeping in a small wooden hut built on a tree beside his vegetable farm. Fearing that the elephant could destroy his harvest of pumpkins, melons and eggplants, Punchibanda rushed to chase it away. But he could not guard his produce, and instead lost his life.
The large bull elephant charged toward the 62-year-old, who fainted out of fear; the animal crushed him to death. Over a year later, villagers still live in fear as they struggle to protect their crops from wild elephants.
Slaughter of Palestinians …. Again
A Sri Lankan American, in an Item entitled “Slaughter of Palestinians”
As the world wakes up to the harrowing images of children slain by Israeli bombs across the entire Gaza Strip AGAIN, we cannot bear witness to global leaders JUST… DOING…. NOTHING. This is an acceleration of the genocide that Israel is committing against the Palestinian people as a whole. We already failed to prevent it and our Governments have an even greater obligation to stop it now.
Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) – March 18, 2025
https://x.com/FranceskAlbs/status/1901964025950310842
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ALSO SEE
Filed under accountability, anti-racism, arab regimes, atrocities, authoritarian regimes, centre-periphery relations, ethnicity, Fascism, fundamentalism, historical interpretation, human rights, Jews in Asia, life stories, Middle Eastern Politics, military strategy, Palestine, power politics, racist thinking, religious nationalism, self-reflexivity, slanted reportage, trauma, truth as casualty of war, vengeance, war crimes, war reportage, world events & processes, zealotry
Christina A. Bejan: Multi-Talented Authoress, Performative Artist, ….
A NOTE From the RHODES TRUST Secretariat, 24 March 2025
Cristina A. Bejan is a Romanian-American theatre artist, poet, and historian. A prolific playwright, Bejan has written nineteen plays, with productions in the United States, United Kingdom, Romania, and Vanuatu. Her hit play “Districtland” was bought for TV development, and Next Stage Press has released three of her scripts. She writes creatively in five languages and has published countless poems, plays, and poetry translations in literary journals and anthologies.
Filed under anti-racism, art & allure bewitching, authoritarian regimes, centre-periphery relations, cultural transmission, economic processes, education, ethnicity, Fascism, governance, historical interpretation, human rights, legal issues, life stories, patriotism, performance, politIcal discourse, power politics, racism, self-reflexivity, social justice, truth as casualty of war, unusual people, world events & processes
Palestine Tomorrow: A Bold Forecast from A Lankan Seer
A Sri Lankan Seer ……. “Compatible neighbors”
Arabs and Jews lived in relative peace in Palestine before 1948.
The Zionist movement was established by European Jews and Israel (which became a state in 1948) was a settler colonization project that served as a garrison state in the oil rich middle east for protecting the interests of the Western imperial power Britain and later USA.
Filed under accountability, american imperialism, atrocities, authoritarian regimes, British imperialism, centre-periphery relations, economic processes, ethnicity, historical interpretation, legal issues, life stories, Middle Eastern Politics, migrant experiences, nationalism, politIcal discourse, power politics, religiosity, religious nationalism, truth as casualty of war, vengeance, world events & processes, zealotry
Lesser Known ‘Armwrestles’: The Baluchistan Liberation Army Within Pakistan
An Item in FRONTLINE …. Produced in India & One of the World’s Leading Journals
In yet another blow to Pakistan’s internal security, militants seized control of a train in the Bolan area of Balochistan on March 11. The Jaffar Express, with around 500 passengers in nine coaches, was travelling from Quetta to Peshawar. An army spokesperson said that the attack was quelled the next day after all 33 militants were killed. He added that 21 passengers and four soldiers were slain by the militants. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) later claimed responsibility for the attack.
Filed under accountability, centre-periphery relations, China and Chinese influences, communal relations, counter-insurgency, ethnicity, historical interpretation, Islamic fundamentalism, law of armed conflict, life stories, military strategy, nationalism, politIcal discourse, power politics, travelogue, world events & processes
