September 4, 2023 · 12:33 am

The Limits of Empiricist Reasoning in Analytical Studies of the Past

Michael Roberts …. being a presentation again of an article presented in June 2014 in the Sri Lanka Guardian with the title “Fashioning History in Sri Lanka.” …. http://www.srilankaguardian.org/2014/06/fashioning-history-in-sri-lanka.html

There are several interpersonal exchanges which moulded my thinking before I presented this interpretation. They are all instructive. Some of these exchanges were combative; others unintentionally helpful.  Take one insance when I was discussing the famous tale in the Alakeshvara Yuddhaya about local readings of the strange white-men from Portuguese ships (caravels) with Professor AV Suraweera of Vidyodaya University (who had edited that tome).  As I told my readers when traing my pathway: “when I referred to lime being the smell of the viper and Vasavārti Māraya, [Suraweera’s] eyes had widened and his face had lit up.” This was an ethnographic encounter of the anthropological kind that indicated that I was on a profitable track

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September 3, 2023 · 8:22 pm

The Growth of Police Subservience to Political Overlords in Sri Lanka, 1948-2023

Merril Gunaratne, a Retd Senior DIG, in The Island, 3 September 2023, where the title runs thus: “Police subservience made political interference possible”  …. while highlighting has been imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

This writing was inspired by the topical essay of Kingsley Wickramasuriya, retired Senior DIG, which dealt with the impact of politics on the police, and the pithy observation made by Rajan Phillips in his column in the Sunday Island of August 20 where he has, whilst discussing dangers that may affect provincial policing under the 13th Amendment, stated “Nothing can be done provincially unless everything is reformed nationally”.

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September 3, 2023 · 7:17 pm

Caste Discrimination among Indians in USA to be Prohibited

A REUTER’s News Item, 31 August 2023, entitled “California’s anti-caste discrimination bill passes state Assembly”

SB 403, which would make California the first state to ban caste discrimination, has progressed further. California moved closer to becoming the first state to ban caste discrimination after a bill to outlaw the practice passed the California Assembly late on Monday.
U.S. discrimination laws ban ancestry discrimination but do not explicitly ban casteism. California’s legislation targets the caste system in South Asian immigrant communities by adding caste to the list of categories protected under the state’s anti-discrimination laws.

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September 2, 2023 · 12:30 am

Lançarote de Seixas and Madampe: A Portuguese Casado[i] in a Sinhalese Village

Chandra R. De Silva, refereed article originally pubd in Modern Ceylon Studies, Vol II/1, 1970, pp. 18-34.

At the end of the sixteenth century[ii] when the Portuguese came into possession of the south-western sea-board, Madampe proper, was a sizeable village inhabited by about a hundred families.[iii] Though situated some forty miles to the north of Colombo, the centre of Portuguese power and activity, Madampe was in some respects well located being within seven miles of the important port of Chilaw and within three miles of the sea, over which the Portuguese still had undisputed control.[iv] The village moreover, had twenty two minor villages attached to it, the whole forming the gabadagama[v] or royal demesne of Madampe, an area of approximately sixty square miles.

Statue of horse at Taniyavalla Devalaya, Madampe (constructed 1894) …… Photo from 2017

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September 1, 2023 · 4:29 pm

Convincing Win for Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh in Asia Cup Encounter at Pallekele

Madushka Balasuriya, in ESPNcricinfo, 31 August 2023 ,where the title of this review reads  “Pathirana, Asalanka lead Sri Lanka to vital opening win” 

Fifties from Charith Asalanka and Sadeera Samarawickrama saw home a nervy chase in sluggish conditions, as Sri Lanka kicked off their Asia Cup campaign with an ultimately convincing five-wicket win over Bangladesh. The result means Sri Lanka have one foot in the Super 4 stage, while Bangladesh face a must-win tie against Afghanistan.

Charith Asalanka and Sadeera Samarawickrama revived the chase after the loss of three early wickets • Getty Images

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August 31, 2023 · 11:23 am

Placing Valentijn’s Book in Its Context

Chandra R De Silva

We should welcome the efforts of Thiru Arumugam to draw attention to the Description of Ceylon by François Valentijn ……………….  (see ……………………. https://thuppahis.com/2023/08/27/francois-valentijns-description-of-ceylon/#more-74805).  That work is a valuable source of Sri Lankan history,  and as Sinnappah Arasaratnam has pointed out, his work has been used by many subsequent writers. However, Valentijn’s work needs to be used with caution. When Arasaratnam writes that ‘Valentijn’s is one of the most accurate accounts of the pre-European period of Ceylon history up to his time’ (p. 33), he is comparing Valentijn’s work only to those of other Europeans. Despite their defects, Sinhalese and Pali historical works written before Valentijn (from which European writers drew information) were certainly more comprehensive on that subject. As Arasaratnam himself comments, ‘it was noted that Valentijn often had only partially published his source and that he was not always the best judge of what was important. . .’ (p. 43).

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August 30, 2023 · 10:21 pm

Dilmah Tea & Barossa Wine in Perfect Match in Adelaide

Glam Adelaide, with this title  “Dilmah joins forces with University of Adelaide expert to refine tea and wine production” …. & with highlights imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dilhan C. Fernando, Dilmah Tea’s Chairman, is in Adelaide to explore the synergies and opportunities between South Australian wine, and Sri Lankan Tea.

In a pioneering venture that fuses the world of tea and wine, Dilmah, a globally-renowned tea brand, is collaborating with Associate Professor in Oenology and Sensory Studies Sue Bastian from the University of Adelaide. Their shared mission? To hone and perfect the way Sri Lankan tea and South Australian wine are crafted, emphasising the profound impact of climate, soil, and geography on their distinctive flavours.

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August 30, 2023 · 3:28 pm

“Mama Papa,” aka MarcSri, sustaining Disabled Children in Kalutara

There are numerous worthy charities all over Sri Lanka. MAMA PAPA is just one … but is now one I have chosen to support and to advertise. I encourage friends and relatives within easy reach of the institution to visit, assess and place their thoughts in this THUPPAHI spot….. Michael Roberts

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August 30, 2023 · 2:29 am

Sri Lanka’s Topsy-Turvy Economy in the Last Decade

Darini Rajasingham-Senanayake*…. with her choice of title being “Sri Lanka Back as Donor Darling Ignores the BRICS” and a sub-title that runs thus “France’s Macron and the US Fish in the Indian Ocean …. presented here with highlights imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi 

Sri Lanka continues to swing wildly between being a ‘Donor Darling’ flooded with foreign ‘aid’ and ‘advisors’ on the one hand to a ‘bankrupt’ pariah or outcast on the other. Last year, the strategic Indian Ocean Island went from South Asia’s wealthiest nation with the best social and human development indicators to a beggar—humiliated and shunned by the ‘international community.’ This was after staging its first-ever Sovereign Default due to a Eurobond debt trap and purported lack of US dollars. The default triggered rapid rupee depreciation and instantly beggared citizens amid a distracting transnationally networked, remote-controlled ‘Aragalaya’ protest operation led by social media influencers. Ironically, there was a blockade on fuel shipments to the country amid the United States Marine’s ‘Sea Vision’ training program for the Sri Lanka Navy.

Newly formed Sri Lankan Marine Corps gets 241 years of experience in under a week. Credit: U.S. Marine Corps photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jacob L. – Photo: 2023  .

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August 29, 2023 · 1:32 am

Charles Dickens and Ceylon

Raja Bandaranayake, in THE CEYLANKAN vol 26/3, August 2023, where the title runs “Charles Dickens on Ceylon”

Introduction: An anthology by Charles Dickens entitled Sunshine on Daily Paths (or the Revelation of Beauty and Wonder in Common Things,1 picked up in an antiquarian bookshop in the UK, included six of its forty-five chapters on different aspects of life in Ceylon, all written in the first person. I asked myself the question: Did Dickens really visit Ceylon? If he did, why is there no record of the visit of such a famous person in our 19th century history? Could he have visited Ceylon incognito? If he did not visit, how did he write so accurately, and in such detail, about the places visited?

I decided to investigate these questions.

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