ICSS 2013

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    Practice of Transhumance among the Bhotiyas of Central Himalaya- A Case Study
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Rawat, D.M.
    Since ancient times, the geo-political regions of Kumaon, Garhwal and Himanchal Pradesh have been the centre stage of culture and life of many ethnic communities. The Bhotiyas of central Himalaya, one of the ethnic communities with a Mongoloid appearance and occasional aboriginal traits, have sub-groups like the Tolchchhas, Marchchhas and the Saukas. They are residing mainly in the frontline areas bordering on Tibet, in the permanent abode of seven river valleys. The present study will mainly concentrate on the Bhotiyas of the Chamoli District, classified as Tolchas and the Marchas, an ethnic group which still practices transhumance. The system of transhumance involves the movements of herds of domestic herbivores cattle, specially sheep, goat, cow and rarely buffaloes among complementary seasonal pastures, as an integral part of more broadly based agricultural systems, which includes sedentary cultivation. This study has been conducted in one of their ancient villages (Gamshali) in the Niti Mana Valley of Uttaranchal, and is based on observation from close proximity of the various socio-cultural and religious traditions of these people in their temporary seasonal camps.
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    Inter-commentarial Discrepancies & Theravada Confraternity: A Critical Scrutiny on assāsa & passāsa Exegesis in Pali Commentaries
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Gamage, A.K.
    As the Pali commentators vehemently insist, at the very outset of the Atthakatha-s, the Theravada tradition is endowed pristine judgments and uncontroversial exegeses regarding the word of the Buddha. Even though those commentators claim in this manner, some topsy-turvy exegeses can be obviously seen in some Pali commentaries. So also, though the Theravada tradition itself claims about its uniformity and uncontroversial nature, Pali commentarial accounts reveal the fact that some subdivisions of this tradition held different opinions about some concepts and some of them have offered diverse interpretations for some terms existing in the Pali canon. According to the modern and common usage, assāsa means 'inhalation' and passāsa means 'exhalation.' assāsa and passāsa appear in Sanskrit, respectively as āshvāsa and prashvāsa. Monier Williams and V.S. Apte render āshvāsa as 'taking breath' and 'recovering breath' respectively. Interestingly, Monier Williams again renders prashvāsa as 'inhale.' Pali-English dictionary also translates the first term as 'exhale' whole the second term as 'inhale.' When we examine Pali exegetical literature, it is manifest that there was an identical connotation for these terms among Sutta-commentarial tradition and Vinaya-commentarial tradition. That is to say, these two Buddhist masters had totally opposite idea about the meaning of these two terms. As venerable Buddhaghosa records in the Visuddhimagga, assāsa is the wind issuing out; passāsa is the wind entering in” is said in the Vinaya Commentaries. But in the Suttanta Commentaries it is given in the opposite Sense. This shows that the early connotations of these two terms uses among the Vinaya commentarial tradition were quite different; debatable thus it is of worth exploring. This paper, critically discusses the more archaic and accurate meanings of assāsa and passāsa attempting to reach a reliable conclusion for the emergence of such a discrepancy scanning all available source materials related to the academic Buddhist studies such as Pali canonical accounts, Commentarial exegeses, Sub-commentarial (Tika) occurrences, Vedic and Upanishad texts, Buddhist hybrid Sanskrit sources, Sanskrit/ Pali lexicons will also examined when necessary.
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    Topsy-turvy Exegeses & Theravada Confraternity: A Critical Examination of DA‟s Interpretation on appa-rajakkha
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Gamage, A.K.
    The term apparajakkha that often occurs together with maharajakkha in the Pali canon is one of debatably interpreted terms in the commentaries i.e. Atthakathā-s). This term that uses as an adjective to specify the people who are under the garb of the ignorance, however has a wider usage in the Sutta collection of the Pali canon. As the Pali commentaries of which the critical editorship has been ascribed to venerable Buddhaghosa, typically interpret, the components or subunits this term has to be disjoined as appa+raja+ and akkha. The first term means 'less' or 'a little' and the raja basically stands for two meanings, namely, 'dust' and 'defilements.' And, the last term, i.e. akkha means 'eye.' Thus, in accordance with the understanding of the Theravada confraternity, this term literally means 'the people who has little dust in their eyes.' Interestingly, many western Buddhist scholars who translated Pali canon into English under the supervision of the Pali Text Society (PTS) have considered the aforesaid Theravada analysis as a trustworthy exegesis. For example, professor Rhys Davids translated this term as 'Beings whose eyes were nearly free from dust' while Miss Horner renders it as 'Beings with little dust in their eyes'. Nonetheless, it is manifest that this interpretation provided by the Theravada confraternity, is incorrect when we examine the gradual evolution and etymology of apparajakkha. As the Theravada tradition opines Sanskrit 'ksha' always appears in Pali as 'kkha.' That is to say, the Theravada tradition seems to have recognized akkha as a Pali representation of Sanskrit aksha (eye). However, in this context, 'akkha' has nothing to do with 'eye' and the accurate disjoining of this term should be known as appa+raja+kkha. The suffix 'ka' that abundantly occurs with the nouns to denote the 'possession of a quality' that belong to the Mano-group, appears in Pali as 'kkha.' Therefore, the term '[alpa+]rajas+ka' occurs in the Pali canon as '[appa]+raja+kkha' keeping the same amount of syllables protecting the law of morae. This paper, provides a substantial and more trustworthy rendering for '–rajakkha' scanning the inaccuracy of the Theravada exegesis provided for this term. In order to reach to a sophisticated conclusion, Pali canonical accounts, sub-commentarial (Tika) occurrences, Vedic and Upanishad texts and Buddhist hybrid Sanskrit sources will also examined when necessary.
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    Buddhism in Early Medieval North India (6th Century CE to 13th Century CE)
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Yadav, D.
    The paper explores the presence of Buddhism in north India during the early medieval period (600 CE-1300 CE) which is generally defined as the decline period in mainstream historical analyses. Present Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Bihar formed the zion of early Buddhism. Four great Buddhist pilgrimage centres-Rajgir and Vaiśalī (Bihar) and Sānkāśya and Śrāvastī (Uttar Pradesh) lie in this region. Nālanda, uddańḍpura and Vikramaśila continued as centres of Buddhist learning during this period. Archaeological evidences assert that Lumbini maintained its existence till at least the 10th century CE. Gahadavala kings (circa 11th century) gave land grants to Buddhist Parivrājakas. Bodh Gaya presents evidence of the intimate relationship between India and Sri Lanka. During Aśoka's reign (269 BCE) a branch of the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya was grafted at Anurādhapura, Sri Lanka. The paper explores all these sites and traces the network of Buddhist religious institutions while examining the relations between Buddhist ritual functionaries and royal authorities. This research will attempt to critically examine various frameworks given by scholars for this period. Feudal model, given by R.S. Sharma, propounds that Buddhist religious institutions decayed during this period. Integrative model given by B.D. Chattopadhyaya says that although ancient institutions decayed during this period, new institutions also emerged during the same time. This research will attempt to infer the factual status of Buddhism during the said period based on the above mentioned models.
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    Guidance provided by Buddhism to properly utilize human labour: a study based on the Sutta Pitaka
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Piyananda, W.
    The ultimate ambition of every human being is to spend a happy and meaningful life. In order to achieve this goal, people often use their labour or 'working-capacity' in both good and bad ways. The topic of 'human labour is something which has attracted a major attention throughout the globe. Further, an international labour day has been devoted to the working people all around the world. Human labour is one of the major reasons behind the contemporary development. It is also clear that various misuses of this labour have resulted in a number of issues. Some of them are environmental pollution, endless production of weapons, terrorist organizations, and drug production and distribution. The present study seeks to inquire into the factors such as (a) the recommendations depicted in the Buddhist teaching with regard to the use of human labour; and (b) the major guidelines found in the Buddhist teaching with respect to that phenomenon. Buddhism considers human life as the most valuable life on the earth. It further emphasizes the importance of making human life an important one not only to the individual but also to entire society. According to the Dhammapada, the single moment which is spent in a meaningful way is more important than spending even hundred years without a proper meaning. The Buddhist Suttas include two fields with regard to the ways in which human labour has to be used. According to them, there are certain ways in which those who wish to attain nirvana should use their physical and metal labour. Such suttas as vyaggajja, and singalovada urges the laic people to use their labour (both mental and physical) in such a way that they could live a happy life and then make their afterlives successful. Thus, a peaceful and calm environment could be established only by providing the people who spend their manual labour equal opportunities. The present study focuses on studying the guidance provided by the suttas in order to achieve such a goal.
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    Decency movement (Sovaniya Andolan): timeless movement from Odisha, India
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Dash, B.B.
    Odisha is a coastal state in the eastern part of India. Several pioneering movements have hitherto spread over Odisha through the eras and Decency Movement is one of them, which began in Odisha in 1962. From the last five decades the movement continues with the mission to bring a blissful reform, to set up global peace in the society and to establish a decent world. This study tries to know the genesis of the movement, its objectives and activities, the process of mass mobilization and its institutionalization, and its need of the hour and acceptance. History gives an account of the mission of the movement, the nobility of the mission, and its timelessness. After bereavement of Kumar Bhai, the founder-leader, the movement still continues. This qualitative study is based on the historiography method. Going through the old records of the movement and diaries of Kumar Bhai, it is found that the very essence of decency movement i.e. Atma-Suddhi Sangha (Self-Purification Society) has slowed down and Sovaniya Sikshyashram (School of Decency) has been geared up.
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    “Bokken ranga pāmuda”: gut feeling, instinct and rhetoric of Sri Lankan actor learning
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Liyanage, S.
    The mental representation of learning as a dominant model of knowledge acquisition has been a long standing formula for Western pedagogy. Within the sensation-idea-response model (Barnacle 2009, Horn and Wilburn 2005) the subject perceives the objects and conceptualizes ideas in the brain and generates actions through the body. Thus, the relationship between perception and action is hierarchical as the action is secondary to the perception (Noë 2005, Johnson, 2007).This epistemological problem is the result of the disembodied mind propagates by the Cartesian tradition. It is no exception when it comes to the discourse of acting: the rhetoric of acting has also been affected by this split (Zarrilli 2002); the actor‟s mind is regarded as the rational knower and the active mover of the body. However some actors in Sri Lankan theatre often refer the phrase “bokken ranga pāmu” (act from the gut) as metaphorical expression of how the actor should act truthfully. It further means that the good actor does not act from the heart or intellect but from the „gut instinct‟ of the body. This metaphorical idea of „gut‟ replaces the „disembodied rational thinking‟ in the mind with something fleshy embedded in the „intestine‟ of the actor‟s body. In this paper, I utilize a cognitive phenomenological reading of Sri Lankan actors‟ descriptive data gathered through semi structured interviews. In doing so, I want to show how these actors challenge the idea of mental representation of learning by introducing a visceral origination of their knowing (Dewey 1896, Merleau-Ponty 1962, Dreyfus, 2002) and the synergy of thoughts and imagination coupled with the lived body.
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    Play of novice monks before and after being ordained: an exploratory study
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Khamra; Pathirana, B.D.D.
    According to the Buddhist texts, monks are considered as distinctive group of people. Hence, even novice monks, undergo rigorous trainings/ restrictions after being ordained, though they are considered to be children and therefore have the right to play according to the convention of Child Rights. Therefore, question arises whether novice monks are allowed to play after being ordained and whether significant differences can be observed within their play behavior before and after the ordinance. In order find out the answers to these research questions the present study explored the play behaviors of 15 novice monks in two distinctive age groups; novice monks (n = 08) in early adolescence (10-14 Yrs.) and novice monks (n = 07) in their middle adolescence (15-18 Yrs.), using semi structured interviews by the first author. The key findings of this study are as follows: Psychosocial development was observed before and after being ordained within the novice monks‟ play behavior impacted by their chronological age. After being ordained, novice monks experienced guilt while playing regardless of the fact whether adults reprimanded them or not, which could be attributed to the religious and cultural consciousness/ beliefs, social values and attitudes ingrained within their training. There was a decline in the number, types and duration of play behaviors of the novice monks after being ordained. Modern life style and competitive educational system has created a negative impact on Sri Lankan children‟s play behaviors in general whether they are ovice monks or ordinary school going children Findings are discussed in the contexts of psychoanalysis, socio-cultural, behavioral and developmental and rights based perspectives.
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    Judicial administration in ancient Sri Lanka
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Wimalasena, N.A.
    Laws and Legal institutions are of vital importance for the security and progress of any society. Laws restrain members of a community from involving in crimes and acts of violence. There are prescribed punishments for specific offences. The present legal system consists of two parts, namely Civil Law and Criminal Law. Criminal law relates to crimes such as theft and murder. It consists of two parts, namely iniquitous and non-iniquitous crimes. Grave crimes carry the penalty of death or life- imprisonment. In the case of less serious crimes, the punishment is light. Civil Law pertains to matters relating to commerce, health, marriage, lands, property, water management, etc. The administration of laws requires the maintenance of courts, and tribunals and the appointment of judges at various levels. In the present study, attention will be focused mainly on courts and judges of Pre-modern Sri Lanka with special emphasis on the administration of civil and criminal laws. Courts and judges occupy a very important place in the modern legal system. There are many references in literature and inscriptions to courts of law and judicial administration in ancient and medieval Sri Lanka The research will be mainly based on primary sources; Pali chronicles, commentaries, Samantapasadika, Vamsatthappakasini, and Sinhala texts such as the Pujavaliya, Saddharmarathnavaliya and Saddharmalankaraya. Epigraphic notices are also significant as sources of information. Wherever necessary, material will also be obtained from limited secondary sources published on the ancient legal system of the island.
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    Explanation of resource use pattern between North Central and Northern part of central highland in the early historic Sri Lanka
    (University of Kelaniya, 2013) Mendis, T.; Withanachchi, C.R.
    Many academic researchers who worked on the history of Sri Lanka marginalized and underrated the use and exchange of resources in the country. On a regional scale, Northern Malayarata (Northern part of Central Highlands) and Nuwarakalawiya (North Central Province) has received less attention in these studies. The use and exchange of the natural resources between the mentioned regions have not been widely discussed, but existence of such in Early Historic Period (300 B.C. A.D) are evidenced by inscriptions. The present study discusses the matter using archaeological evidence, epigraphic data as well as literary sources. The Northern region of the central highlands of the country is rich in mineral sources. According to geological studies the Upper Kala Oya system originating from the Northern Central Highlands is rich in minerals such as amethyst, feldspar, mica and various types of quartz. Metal deposits were recorded vicinity of Nalanda. For a long period of time, people of the country used these resources and from the Early Historic period metal workmen have contributed to the Northern Highlands. The inscription at Bambaragala mentions a village called Kolagama (Koligama), which is a settlement of metal workers. Also, Early Brahmi inscriptions in Wegiriya devalaya and Nalanda provide evidence about lapidary and gem industry. Artisans and merchants obtain these minerals from the deposits in highlands and sub markets in peripheral small towns of Anuradhapura done a great role in supplying to the central markets at city. Also minerals such as agate, carnelian, lapis lazuli, onyx, etc. imported from foreign countries to Anuradhapura were distributed to highland areas via these same gateways. Further, it can be seen that there were certain population groups such as Parumaka, Gahapathi, Bharata, Gamika, etc. who handled the industry as evidenced by inscriptions.