December 25, 2017 · 5:22 pm

Haallelujah! USA isolated on Jerusalem Issue

Bandu de Silva, in Island, 25 December 2017, where the title is “UN Resolution: US bullying didn’t deter Sri Lanka

Will Sri Lanka joining 127 other countries in supporting the UN Resolution against America’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israeli Capital, in the General Assembly Emergency Session’s vote on 21 December 2017 be a real test of her foreign policy in the wake of new power politics in the world as practised by the US? President Trump threatened to cut off US financial aid to those countries which voted in favour of the resolution, but Sri Lanka voted in favour of the resolution like the other 127 states which did likewise.

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December 21, 2017 · 5:15 am

Jewish-Muslim Amity in Essaouira and Morocco

Item in The Economist Nov 2nd 2017, where the title is Morocco’s little idyll of Jewish-Muslim coexistence: A moment of religious harmony””

ONCE a year the little seaside town of Essaouira, in Morocco, reclaims its lost Jewish community. Sephardic trills echo from its whitewashed synagogues. The medieval souks fill with Jewish skullcaps. Rabbis and cantors wish Muslims “Shabbat Shalom” and regale them with Hebrew incantations. “It’s our culture,” says a merchant from Marrakech, who travelled 200km (124 miles) to hear them this year.

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December 16, 2017 · 1:27 pm

The Beira Lake in Colonial Times

Shannine Daniel, courtesy of The Roar, 14 December 2017  where the title runs “The Beira Lake and its colonial history”

The man-made lakes—or tanks—constructed in Sri Lanka were built with one purpose in mind: to hold the rainwater which would help with agricultural activities throughout the year. There are several stories related to the history of such tanks, many of which were made by the kings. The Beira Lake, however, located in the city of Colombo, was built for a completely different reason—and not by one of our ancient kings either.

Thr Lake today

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December 13, 2017 · 2:59 pm

A Historical Exhibition in Mumbai that Challenges the Hindutva

   Vaishnavi Chandrashekhar, courtesy of  Christian Science Monitor, 17 November 2017, where the title runs “Mumbai museum challenges Indians’ self image

In a dimly lit gallery at Mumbai’s premier museum, visitors admire a 17th-century cloth painting depicting characters from a Muslim court in south-central India. An Ottoman trader feeds a bird; a Central Asian merchant holds a Chinese vase; and in one corner, a yogi sitting cross-legged on a deer-skin contemplates a wondrous new object: a pineapple brought to India from the New World by the Portuguese. Such intriguing juxtapositions, unexpected stories, and global connections form the essence of an ambitious new exhibition that recounts India’s history and its engagement with the world through 200 objects. In doing so, it offers a counterpoint to rising intolerance and nationalism in India and elsewhere.

 see https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-South-Central/2017/1117/Mumbai-museum-challenges-Indians-self-image

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December 13, 2017 · 12:55 am

Germany goes “Batty”: A Plan to Deter Migrants

Stefan Frank, courtesy of Gatestone, 12 December 2017, where the title is “Germany’s Batty Plan to Deter Migrants

  • Every German knows that hardly any asylum seekers whose applications are rejected are forced to leave Germany. But if their application is rejected and they do decide to return to their home country, they are rewarded with an allowance of between €1000 ($1,200) and €3000 ($3,600).
  • This information campaign, however, must have been carefully hidden from the German public — no major newspaper reported it at the time.
  • “The only authentic and honest thing about this movie were the closing credits….” — Henryk Broder, columnist, Die Welt.

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December 8, 2017 · 1:59 pm

The Guard Stones Of Ancient Sri Lanka

Shannine Daniel, courtesy of Roar Media, 6 December 2017, where the title is  “When Architecture and Buddhism Came Together. The Guard Stones Of Ancient Sri Lanka”

The ruins of Sri Lanka’s ancient kingdoms are a testament to the architectural skill of our ancestors. They have several unique architectural features including intricately carved stairs, the moonstones that lie at the foot of the stairs, and the guard stones that are placed on either side of the stairs at the entrances to these historic and religious sites. Among these, the guard stones, known as muragal in Sinhalese, are particularly fascinating. These features of Sinhalese architecture have both practical and decorative purposes.

 Some academics believe that the concept of guard stones found its way to Sri Lanka from India

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December 7, 2017 · 10:44 am

The Coconut Palm in Sri Lanka: From Yesterday to Today

WTJS Kaviratne, in Daily News, ….http://www.dailynews.lk/2017/12/07/features/136574/origin-and-evolution-coconut-palm

Anthropologists, explorers, invaders and travellers had made numerous references on the evolution of this versatile palm grown in more than 90 countries across the world. Some of these were mere theories based on assumptions yet to be proved scientifically. Extensive research is still continuing on the origin of the coconut palm on the foundations provided  through gene analysis by scientists.

Since time immemorial, the coconut plant has been found growing luxuriantly along the beaches of tropical countries. And certain scientists argue that coconut palm is not indigenous to any of those countries even if they grow there. Fossil remains of coconut up to 35 to 55 million years old have been excavated in Australia and India proving that coconut palm belongs to the Kingdom of Plants in the Prehistoric era. Continue reading →

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December 7, 2017 · 8:29 am

Hussain Miya’s Archival Donation to Brunei

Bacha Husmiya aka HussainMiyam of Peradeniya and Sri Lanka

Yesterday in a small ceremony at the UBD main library organized by the chancellory and in the presence of some Deans and press officials graced by the Asst. V.C. (Academic) Dr Ayub, I handed over my entire collections of Historical primary source documents to be preserved by UBD Bruneiana collections for the use of all scholars.

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December 6, 2017 · 2:41 pm

Eagles that hunt drones as Members of the French Air Force

French military using winged warriors to hunt down rogue drones.   This is amazing.

Following incidents of drones flying over the presidential palace and restricted military sites – along with the deadly 2015 Paris terror attacks – the French Air Force has trained four golden eagles to intercept and destroy the rogue aircraft.

A golden eagle grabs a flying drone during a military training exercise at Mont-de-Marsan French Air Force base, Southwestern France.

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December 3, 2017 · 12:57 am

Nath-thal in Ceylon in My Youthful Years

Alex Van Arkadie

Long before the legendary seafarer ‘Sinbad’ chanced to harbor in waters lapping the little isle of  ‘Serendip’, or European colonizers discovered Ptolemy’s ‘Ceylan’, pilgrims from the distant Orient have been visiting here. During the reign of the Indian Emperor Asoka (2nd Century BC), the island’s North Central Province was home to Sinhala Kings under whose patronage Buddhism spread. Following India’s gift of a sapling from the Bodhi Tree under which Sidharta Gautama Buddha attained ‘nirvana’, the ancient city of Anuradhapura draws pilgrims and curious visitors from everywhere. The tree is regarded as the oldest in the world (2,200 years). Similarly, a painting in the office of Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in Rome, depicts  “Emissaries of the Sinhala Royal Court presenting Credentials to Emperor Claudius” (according to Roman Historian Gaius Plinius Secundas, AD 23-79, pix. below).

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