Midweek Review

Imperialist land grab – Relevance of Thoradeniya’s latest novel

Published

2 years ago

2021/03/3

Sahan Weerasooriya

Review of the novel “Madaran” by Sena Thoradeniya

Reviewed by N.A.de S. Amaratunga

The subject of Sena Thoradeniya’s latest novel titled “Madaran” is the land grab practiced by British colonialists in the 19th Century which created landless peasants, poverty and much suffering. This theme has its relevance today when the US attempts a similar maneuver by means of MCC, SOFA and ACSA. The terms used for the various land taxes imposed on the poor farmers to deprive them of their land ownership were “Madabadda”, “Weebadda” and “Madaran”. Hence Thoradeniya’s title for his latest novel. He deals in detail with the methods employed by the British rulers to force the people to part with their inherited land holdings and the reaction of the people and the uprisings against these taxes and cruelties in 1818, 1840 and 1848.

The story is unfolded through the main protagonist Malinda. His wife Opali and their seven children take little part in the story. The story begins with Malinda returning to his wife after a long absence. He had been away fighting the British in the first uprising. But before the story begins there is a Prologue which takes the form of a little episode that is placed in recent times concerning a mass grave which is very much similar to the happenings in relation to the Mannar mass grave of recent times. The Prologue gives a description of the dirty tricks and treachery that today’s imperialist West adopts to subjugate third world countries and take them in their hegemonic grip. The role played by their local agents is also described showing the danger this country could be facing. A mass grave is found under a rock in a land belonging to a retired army officer and he is indicted in courts for mass murder of Tamil terrorists. How the incident is blown out of proportion by the UN with the connivance of the local agents of imperialists forms the essence of this Prologue which connects the present with the past.

Malinda’s character depicts the national consciousness of the native Sinhalese and their bravery in the face of adversity. Despite hardship he wants to fight the British whom he sees as his oppressor. He is glad to hear that the Sinhalese has found a king who could lead them against the foreign ruler. He leaves his wife and goes in search of the king. He joins the king’s army. After the uprising had been put down by the ruthless British he returns to his wife. Helpless Opali meanwhile had formed an alliance with another man and given birth to a child. As the man is no more Malinda accepts both his wife and her child and they have seven more children. They have a bit of land and they make a huge attempt to eke out a living. But the land grabbing policy of the British would not allow them to be land owners. Vast extents of land that belonged to the upcountry peasants were expropriated and handed over to big time coffee cultivators. Roads and railways were built to facilitate the transport of the products. Upcountry peasantry was made landless. Malinda’s children go in search of employment and are lost to him and his wife. He and his wife end up as homeless coolies and end up living in a cave. Yet he still dreams of the splendour of arts and crafts of the Kandyans and his own gallantry. He has not lost his national consciousness and would like to have another fling at his tormentors.

The author employs a novel method to describe the situation in the country while Malinda’s story is unfolding. Details of the various taxes, ways of the British ruler and how the ruler appears in the view of the people are described in the form of conversation of nameless villagers. Apart from these conversations he briefly looks at the character of few of the British officials who are deployed to implement the harsh tax laws. Some of these British officials themselves feel the pain of the suffering masses. Their personal view of the harsh taxation methods where the motive is to force the people to sell their land clashes with the demand of their official duties.

Malinda’s character is typical of the Sinhala villager who resisted the occupation by colonial forces while some higherups in the feudal society collaborated with the foreign rulers in order to get personal benefits. His bravery under adverse conditions is something inherent in the national consciousness of the Sinhalese. This national consciousness is discernible from early times when the inhabitants of this island fought against foreign invasions with much success. Malinda would leave his young wife in Pathadumbara and go to Uva to join the uprising. When the struggle fails he returns to his wife and accepts her lovingly forgetting that she had borne a child by another man. Thoradeniya has captured the nature of the Sinhala peasant in the character of Malinda quite successfully.

The novel has only one major character as such but the conversations of the nameless people that take place in ambalamas and such other places brings into the novel many characters that as mentioned earlier make a lasting impression in the reader’s mind. Another character though minor but who is nevertheless very important is the GA in Nuwara-Eliya, Le Mussier. Special mention is made of him for he feels for the suffering masses. He introduced several projects to mitigate the burden of the land taxes. He makes a heart rendering speech at one of the occasions when he commissions one such project where he laments the cruelty of the system. He talks about the beauty of the country and says that it is a pity that people have to die while they look at the beauty of Nuwara-Eliya.

The book is a treasure trove to the student of history. It is full of information on the British period of this country. Some of this information must have been unearthed by lot of research as the author says in the introduction. The system of government that the British adopted made use of the existing systems and the human weakness for titles and other benefits. They could pursue their agenda as there was personal vendetta among the Sinhalese high officials and they could be made to betray their own people. The novel brings out the emotion of ordinary people like Malinda when such treachery affect them. They are left helpless to fend for themselves. The situation today is not very much different. The imperialist West is stalking us relentlessly. There are local opportunists and separatists waiting for every opportunity to help the West.

Thoradeniya’s art is not for art’s sake. It has a purpose and social relevance. He wants to analyze and lay bare the reality of today through the eyes of the historian. Yet his latest work is somewhat different from his previous works. As usual it is not a straight forward narration but this novel is different from his usual realistic novel. It has no beginning and an end. The conversations of nameless people intermingle with the main narration, the story of Malinda. These conversations like a haunting melody captures your mind and remains there while you grapple with the pathos of Malinda. Though it is an unusual method of story telling the experiment seems to work. Yet the work is not post-modern which usually has no identifiable aim of depicting an aspect of human life.

Thoradeniya’s work is mainly anti-imperialist and therefore is timely. The Prologue which deals with the mass grave is a powerful anti-imperialist statement. It brings to focus immediately the hidden agenda of the West, the fact that human rights is a tool in their hands and is used to force third world countries to obey their dictate. Some critics may say such a prologue has no place in a novel. A prologue is different from an introduction and may take the form of an addendum that help the reader to understand the message of the novel. Thoradeniya’s message is clearly anti-imperialist and has social relevance in the present context. Mitchell Brechtlet the present High Commissioner for Human Rights got involved in the Mannar mass grave incident and clearly jumped the gun in an attempt to incriminate our armed forces and now she is busy trying to crucify Sri Lanka in Geneva. Thus the Prologue of the novel vividly exposes the cunning and treacherous intentions of the West. It helps the reader to understand this present situation and appreciate the past that the novel expounds through the pathos of the peasantry under the British rule.

With regard the purpose of the novel there are two schools of thought, one believes that the novel has a social function and must depict an aspect of life. Others say novel as an art has no specific social function and believes that art is for art’s sake, its only function seems to be entertainment. The latter view has its origin in postmodernism which in essence is the philosophical basis for neo-liberalism. The post-modernist novel therefore cannot raise a voice against neo-liberalism and the hegemonic agenda of the West. One could be glad that a prolific writer of the calibre of Sena Thoradeniya belongs to the school of thought that believes the novel has a social function.

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Midweek Review

Post-war military matters and concerns

Published

6 days ago

2023/05/31

Sahan Weerasooriya

Australian HC Paul Stephens with President Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Secretariat on 12 May, 2023. The PMD released a pic of HC Stephens meeting President Wickremesinghe to inform him officially of the proposed handing over of the Beechcraft, previously used by the Royal Australian Air Force.

This year’s annual Indian Navy–Sri Lanka Navy bilateral maritime Exercise SLINEX was conducted amidst political turmoil here. The six-day SLINEX, the 10th edition of the series commenced three days after the launch of a public protest campaign near President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s private residence at Pangiriwatte, Mirihana. The two-phased exercise involved several Indian vessels INS Kiltan (Advanced Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette) and INS Savitri (Offshore Patrol Vessel), SLNS Gajabahu (Advance Offshore Patrol Vessel/The one in which President Gotabaya Rajapaksa took refuge on July 09) and SLNS Sagara (OPV). In addition, Indian Navy Chetak helicopter and Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft and SLAF Dornier and BELL 412 helicopters participated in the exercise. The Exercise featured the Special Forces of the two Navies. The previous edition of SLINEX was conducted in Visakhapatnam from 7-12 March 2022.

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The Indian Defence Research Wing (government website) recently declared that Australia would provide a former Royal Australian Air Force Beechcraft KA 350 King Air (registration A32-673) to Sri Lanka on a request made by India. The KA350 King Air is a modern twin-engine turboprop aircraft.

The story, posted on 16 May, four days after Australian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Paul Stephens, officially informed President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is also the Defence Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of the move, was headlined ‘Australia to donate Beechcraft KA 350 to Sri Lanka upon India’s request.’

HC Stephens was accompanied by Deputy High Commissioner Ms. Lalita Kapur, First Secretary Brett Zehnder and Defence Advisor Captain Ian Cain. The meeting took place at the Presidential Secretariat, the scene of violent confrontation between President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s administration and the protest movement, a year ago.

The Indian website asserted that the Australian move mirrored New Delhi’s bid to strengthen security ties with Sri Lanka as part of its Indian Ocean outreach. According to the website, the deployment is meant to boost Sri Lanka’s sovereign aerial maritime surveillance capability. In terms of the agreement between the two governments, the donor would support the operation of the aircraft for a period of 12 months.

The President’s Media Division (PMD) announced: “The gift of the aircraft is part of the Australian Government’s commitment to strengthening and enhancing the cooperation and collaboration that is the foundation of the strong bilateral relationship between Australia and Sri Lanka. A key focus of this relationship remains the continued cooperation on countering all forms of transnational crime, including drug smuggling, as well as strengthening border management through intelligence sharing and the deterrence, disruption, interception and return of maritime people smuggling ventures under the border security operation, known as Operation Sovereign Borders.”

Operation Sovereign Borders is a high profile military led mission, launched in 2013, to thwart illegal entry of would-be asylum seekers. The change of governments, over the past decade, hasn’t undermined the high profile operation as major political parties are committed to block illegal migration whatever the consequences.

The donation of the aircraft is in line with the understanding the two countries reached following a visit undertaken by Australian Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil, from June 19-21 last year, amidst deepening political turmoil here. She met the then President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe, as well as Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris. A year later, Wickremesinghe is at the helm and Gotabaya Rajapaksa ousted by a US-backed protest campaign, as alleged by former Minister Wimal Weerawansa, a claim denied by the US mission here, but not denied by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, a key protagonist referred to by the accuser.

In April and June 2014, Sri Lanka took delivery of two 38.2 m long Australian patrol boats and they were commissioned as SLNS Mihikatha and SLNS Ratnadeepa. Both vessels are in service today. It would be pertinent to mention that the talks, on the transferring of vessels, were finalized in Colombo when the then Australian Premier Tony Abbott visited Colombo for the Commonwealth Heads of Government of Meeting (CHOGM). The Australian move was made in the wake of the UK going all out against Sri Lanka over the accountability issues.

In the following year, the then Sri Lanka’s shameless government co-sponsored the US–led accountability resolution at the Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) against one’s own country.

India, Australia strategy

In late August last year, Australia announced an unprecedented move to pay for a part of Sri Lankan military’s fuel requirement. Australian High Commissioner in Colombo Paul Stephens tweeted:

“Australia is pleased to be working with India to provide fuel to Sri Lanka’s Navy and Air Force. It will help our long-standing cooperation, against transnational crime, to continue. As Indian Ocean neighbours, all three countries share a commitment to preserving regional security.”

India and Australian joint approach here should be examined against the backdrop of ‘Quad’ strategy in relation to Sri Lanka. However, India pursues its own policy in terms of India’s policy of ‘Neighbourhood First’, ‘Security and Growth for all in the Region (SAGAR),’ as well as ‘Priority One’ partner. ‘Quad’ security alliance meant to counter growing Chinese influence consists of the US, Japan, Australia and India. Sri Lanka has been caught up in the China vs ‘Quad’ battle and Sri Lanka’s dependence on Chinese investments made the situation worse.

The US has included Sri Lanka in its military exercises programme while the other ‘Quad’ member Japan entered into the ‘Comprehensive Partnership’ Agreement in October 2015.

Sri Lanka took delivery of a Dornier 228 maritime patrol aircraft, from India, in mid-August last year. The SLAF declared that India made available the aircraft in response to a request made during the Yahapalana administration (2015-2019). India assured that another Dornier would be supplied within two years after the deployment of the first naval Dornier – a short takeoff and landing multirole light transport aircraft with a turboprop twin-engine, in production since 1981.

An Indian statement said: “The aircraft would act as a force multiplier, enabling Sri Lanka to tackle multiple challenges, such as human and drug trafficking, smuggling and other organized forms of crime, in its coastal waters, more effectively. Induction of the aircraft is timely in view of the current challenges to Sri Lanka’s maritime security.”

Bankrupt Sri Lanka should be grateful for Australian and Indian stepped up assistance at a time the country is experiencing a deepening economic-political-social crisis. Obviously, the crisis here can be a push factor for more Sri Lankans to risk their lives to reach foreign lands. However, the military’s growing dependence on foreign assistance must be a matter for concern for all as there is always the danger of being smothered by the giant neighbour or being unnecessarily dragged into a wider conflict between between the Quad on one side and Russia and China on the other.

Recently, India announced further help to the SLAF. The announcement was made during the four-day official visit of Chief of Air Staff Indian Air Force Air Chief Marshal V. R. Chaudhari earlier this month. The Indian air chief was here on the invitation of SLAF Commander Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana.

During the visit, Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari laid the foundation stone for the construction of the India-Sri Lanka Friendship Auditorium at the Air Force Academy, Trincomalee. In line with New Delhi’s ‘Neighbourhood First Policy,’ the project would be carried out under a 250 mn LKR grant assistance from India. The Indian air chief also donated AN-32 propellers to the SLAF, at the China Bay Air Force Academy, and at the National Defence College training aids were donated to students.

In addition to massive economic assistance provided in the recent past to Sri Lanka struggling on the financial front, the Indian investment, in the defence sector, is rapidly growing.

Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob, in late February this year, underscored the Indian investment when he addressed the Indian Navy-trained Sri Lankan military personnel on board Offshore Patrol vessel Sukanya in Colombo. The Indian High Commission quoted Jacob as having stressed that training is the strongest and most enduring pillar of bilateral defence cooperation between India and Sri Lanka. The Deputy High Commissioner declared that India offered approximately 1500 training slots every year, to Sri Lanka, financed through a special programme with an annual allocation of USD 7 million.

Security sector reforms

: Sri Lanka receives Indian Dornier at the BIA in August, 2022

Last week’s midweek piece, titled ‘Blind security reforms: Assurance to US on the size of military’, attracted the attention of quite a number of military officers, including the retired. They queried whether a proper and cohesive assessment has been made before the declaration that the 200,000 plus wartime strength (2009) would be reduced to 135,000 by 2024 and 100,000 by 2030.

One retired General, who had served the infantry and considered one of the foremost battlefield strategists, pointed out that the projected downsizing/right sizing of the Army, should be studied, taking into consideration the current strength. “Do not forget we are already down to 160,000 officers and men,” the retired General said, while another pointed out AWOL (‘absence without leave’ seems to be quite a problem). A retired General Officer Commanding (GoC) of a fighting division on the Vanni front emphasized the need to examine how the proposed reduction would affect post-war deployment and what is the land mass of ‘Eelam State’ (north east districts) and in relation to the drop in ground strength.

In the absence of a cohesive strategy, in relation to vital sectors, including defence, Sri Lanka seems to have neglected matters of utmost importance. Against the backdrop of a worsening situation, regardless of the USD 2.9 bn IMF package, spread over a period of 48 months, Sri Lanka cannot ignore the need to be cautious and be ready to meet any eventuality. In line with the Army, the Navy and Air Force are also to be slimmer and the fact that the downsizing of overall military strength takes place at a time of great political uncertainty and economic upheaval.

In March, Deputy Indian High Commissioner Jacob underscored the importance of Indo-Lanka relations on the basis of five areas of particular significance in the immediate short and medium term objectives.

Addressing Indian and Sri Lankan military personnel, onboard Sukanya, Jacob declared: “First is the potential for economic and financial cooperation by building on the Indian support to the people of Sri Lanka, in 2022, to the tune of USD 4 billion. The Indian HC quoted Jacob as having emphasized that focus could be laid on areas, such as trade, in national currencies, ease of investments and strengthening financial cooperation. “Second, the two sides are working towards increasing air, ferry, digital and energy connectivity. Third, a new type of development cooperation partnership, building on the existing multi-billion portfolio with special emphasis on vulnerable communities, is required. Fourth, both sides need to enhance people to people exchanges, particularly in tourist movements. Fifth, it is essential to strengthen the cultural, religious, music, movie and sporting links for mutual benefit.”

The Indian High Commission media statements present a clear picture of Indo-Lanka developments. A recent Indian High Commission statement that dealt with a visit undertaken by Indian Navy Ship ‘Batti Malv’ to Trincomalee disclosed hitherto unknown information.

Let me reproduce the relevant section from the media statement dated 17 May. The statement issued soon after the vessel departed Trincomalee made an important reference to further Indian support. “The visit of the Indian ship Batti Malv, a fast patrol craft, is also significant in view of the potential for cooperation between India and Sri Lanka for augmenting capabilities of Sri Lanka Navy in similar fast patrol craft for efficiently addressing shared challenges for maritime security in the region,” the High Commission stated.

However, the statement issued by SLN, on that particular ship visit, didn’t make any reference to the possibility of a similar type vessel being made available to Sri Lanka. The locally built 46 m long vessel, crewed by five officers and 54 men, was inducted into the Indian Navy in July 2006, the year Sri Lanka launched a combined forces campaign to eradicate the LTTE.

Since the successful conclusion of the war against the LTTE, in May 2009, India gradually advanced its relationship with a series of military visits at different levels, though the progress was slow. But, over the past several years, there has been a steady enhancement of the relationship which sort of coincided with the deterioration of the national economy.

The Indian Western Fleet visited Colombo and the China-managed Hambantota port, in the second week of March, last year, as Sri Lanka was heading for an unprecedented crisis over the collapse of supply chains.

Four ships of the Western Fleet under the charge of Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF),

Rear Admiral Sameer Saxena visited Sri Lanka. The indigenous guided missile frigate BRAHMAPUTRA along with frigate TALWAR entered Hambantota port while advanced indigenous destroyer INS CHENNAI and frigate TEG entered Colombo harbour. In spite of being invited to join a reception, onboard INS Chennai, on 10 March, the then President Gotabaya Rajapaksa skipped the event. Instead, Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris represented the President. The other notable invitee was Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeyawardena.

A few weeks later, the Indian High Commission had to deny reports of Indian military deployment here in the wake of the eruption of public anger, near President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s private residence at Pangiriwatte, Mirihana. In brief statements, issued in English, Sinhala and Tamil, the High Commission of India strongly denied, what it called, blatantly false and completely baseless reports in a section of media that India is dispatching its soldiers to Sri Lanka.

The High Commission statement, dated 02 April, 2022, also condemned what it described as irresponsible reporting while expressing the belief those responsible for spreading rumours would desist from doing so.

Delhi’s assistance seemed vast with the Indian Navy actively engaged with Sri Lanka Navy in facilitating engagements, like Deck Landing Practice and Co-pilot experience on indigenous ALHand Sail Training Experience onboard INS Tarangini for SLAF/ SLN personnel in March 2022.

In line with India’s Neighbourhood First Policy, spares for SLNS Sagara, SLCG Suraksha and AN 32 are being provided, on grant basis, by New Delhi, to ensure, what the Indian High Commission called, optimal operational availability of the platform and thereby improve security in the region.

Sri Lanka should take stock of overall foreign military assistance to the post-war military as Sri Lanka faced growing international criticism over accountability issues. Canada has taken the anti-Sri Lanka project to a new extreme by declaring Tamils were subjected to genocide. In a bid to appease powerful Diaspora groups, Canadian parliament has targeted Sri Lanka with the declaration that two former Presidents, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Gotabaya Rajapaksa, are war criminals, is a clear move to inspire countries, with large communities of Sri Lankan origin, to act in a similar fashion. Unfortunately, Sri Lanka has pathetically failed to counter the Canadian project, built on the preposterous accusation that over 40,000 Tamils perished during the final phase of the combined security forces offensive on the Vanni east front. This is despite even UN internal documents placing casualties in the north, during the final phases of fighting, to be in the region of 7000.

Midweek Review

Ceylon tree healing a cut: perfuming the striking axe

Published

6 days ago

2023/05/31

Sahan Weerasooriya

By Prof. Kirthi Tennakone

The genius British chemist Sir Humphry Davy scribbled a stanza in his notebook, saying he is like the fair Ceylon tree, which heals a cut and perfumes the axe by secreting an oil – a strange comparison.

That illustrious tree is on the verge of extinction. We cut down trees, feeding and protecting us. Yet trees are not after vengeance, they perspire (transpire) to save us from extinction.

Humphry Davy

Humphry Davy, one of the greatest exponents of the scientific method with a poetic inclination, was born in December 1778 in the remote coastal town of Penance, in Cornwall, England. While studying at the grammar school, he wrote poetry and wandered in the beaches and woods, but could not finish schooling. At sixteen, his father died. To support the family, Davy worked as an apprentice to an apothecary and acquainted a liking for chemistry. He pilfered chemicals from the shelves and did experiments at home, learning chemistry by himself. Noting his exceptional talent, an informed friend of his mother, introduced him to Thomas Beddoes, a physician philanthropist and prolific writer, noteworthy for controversial views. Deeply concerned about the poor suffering tuberculosis, he ran a hospital treating patients free and hoped to find a cure for the disease.

Dr. Beddoes employed Davy in his institute, devoted to studying the medicinal properties of gases. After day and night experimentation, Davy exclaimed breathing nitrous oxide (subsequently known as laughing gas) induces a pleasant calmness, suggesting a way to relieve the pain of operations.

The close associates of Dr. Beddoes were equally radical poets; Robert Southey and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. They not only risked the repressive actions of the British Government by openly supporting the ideals of the French Revolution but volunteered as guinea pigs to test Davy’s hypothesis. Robert Southey after inhaling nitrous oxide, said “The atmospheres of the highest of all possible heavens must be composed of this gas”. Samuel Coleridge was more realistic. He described the experience of inhaling laughing gas as the sudden transfer from a chilly winter to a warm spring. William Wordsworth, another friend of Beddoes, visited Humphrey Davy and consented that poetry and chemistry are similar because both subjects deal with material things.

The invention of the first anesthetic agent and acclaim by eminent literary men qualified Humphry Davy, who had no college degree, for a professorship at the prestigious Royal Institution in London. There he performed extraordinarily. Today, we insist on a first-class degree for the same job!

At the Royal Institution, Davy made groundbreaking discoveries one after another. Isolated eight chemical elements for the first time, opened the field of electrochemistry and showed the world how to liquefy gases. He invented the safety lamp to light coal mines while preventing flammable gases existing there from catching fire explosively.

As a tradition, the Royal Institution presented lectures to the general public highlighting the achievements of science. Humphry Davy’s lectures were one of the most popular events in London, at that time. The theater was packed with people from all walks of life. Appreciating his intellect and stunning good looks, aristocratic women admired him. Men raising their hands volunteered lifting things to the podium.

In one of his lectures, Davy showed a piece of potassium metal, first extracted and named by him and dropped it into water. Astounding the audience, the material caught fire with a purplish flame and exploded. People saw something dropped into water catch fire, for the first time. Seventy-odd years ago, I witnessed the same experiment as a seventh grader in a rural school and displayed by a teacher from South India. Today, the phenomenon is rarely demonstrated in chemistry classes in our schools. Students have no time or interest in experiencing inspirational fascinations. They hurry to tutors to cram the workings of the ‘covalent bond’ fitting atoms in organic molecules, merely to pass an exam and become specialists! No new discoveries of anesthetics or cures, but escalating fees for consultations. The problem seems to be that we do chemistry without poetry and specialization without empathy.

In 1820, Humphry Davy was elected president of the Royal Society unopposed. Despite its supremacy, the body functioned as a club of literary elites proud of a degree from Oxford after schooling in Eaton. Davy proposed changes to orient society’s affairs more towards scientific inquiry and promote greater public participation. Unfortunately, he met with opposition and criticism. Although his achievements were incomparable, he didn’t belong to the elite group.

Davy was a victim of jealousy. No man or woman succeeds in all endeavors. Yet just one failure suffices for adversaries to discredit him or her. In 1823, the British Admiralty requested Davy to find a solution to the problem of the corrosion of the copper- clad bottoms of naval vessels. He provided an ingenious method, but did not work in this particular case. Davy’s opponents diverted the incident to blemish his reputation in the eyes of the British Establishment.

Davy, in a depressed mood and not experienced enough to face criticism, drafted a verse. Telling us he is like the fair Ceylon plant, the Cingalese tree, which heals a cut by secreting a balmy oil to prevent its decay, while perfuming the axe, a poetic way of expressing his feelings. Possibly, this means, he was not defamed by the attacks of his enemies but instead blessed them.

Humphry Davy didn’t name the tree. Undoubtedly, he heard a story from his younger brother, John Davy, who visited Sri Lanka and looked at many things in our country, curiously and rationally.

John Davy, a surgeon and chemist was posted to Sri Lanka in 1816 as a physician for the British Armed Forces. However, his primary mission has been carrying out scientific investigations in the colony, conquered a year ago. During his nearly four years of occupation, he traveled all over the island, examining the natural environment, indigenous technologies and cultural practices in the country. While in Sri Lanka, he wrote to his brother frequently, presenting his experience in the alien land. On September 18, 1817, Humphry Davy, read a letter from his brother at the Proceedings of the Royal Society describing his journey to Adams Peak, accompanied by Alexander Moon, the Superintendent of Botanical Gardens, Kalutara. Both of them curious about flora in the Island, came to know the trees used by the inhabitants to extract resin.

When a Doona tree is incised, a pleasant smelling, clear resinous liquid secretes, wetting the axe. Our indigenous people (Veddas) were the first to use the resin as medicine and incense. They saw how the resin oozing after strike of an axe, closed and healed the cut. If the axe bruises the hand accidentally, they ran to a Doona tree and applied the resin and it worked. Later, to extract the resin, trees were wounded multiple times, but plants still survived because the exudate prevented the rot.

The local population exploited aboriginal technology for profit. To get more oil, they axed tree and burnt the wound, eventually killing the tree.

A craft and a paying export business in those days (the1800s), was tapping resin (gas dummala) from Doona (Shorea zeylanica) and related species of trees belonging to the family dipterocarpaceae (dipterocarps). Arabian traders purchased the product, used for making incense, perfumes and varnish and shipped it to Europe and China The thicker resinous oil secreted by the Dorana tree was used mainly for making paints.

Undoubtedly, John Davy, told his brother, what he learned in Sri Lanka. The “fair Cingalese tree of Davy” is certainly a Doona species, not cinnamon, as speculated by a European historian. Cinnamon doesn’t fit into the story.

Dipterocarpaceae

Dipterocarps were the dominant species of trees in our forests and thickets everywhere centuries ago. Think for a moment about why there are so many villages and place names with prefixes; Hora, Dorana and Doona. For example, “Horana”, derived from “Hora Arana” means a forest of Hora trees. Today, a Hora tree is hard to spot in a village. As a child, I played with the spinning fruits of the Hora tree, not remotely maneuvered helicopter drones but later understood the mathematics of aerodynamics.

No more Hora, Doona and Dorana trees in Horanpella, Doonagaha and Doranagoda. A few of these in Sinharaja and other reserves need to be saved preciously.

Again, guess why there are more than one hundred villages and localities in Sri Lanka with the prefix “Dummala”. The fossilised resin of dipterocarp vegetation is dummala (bimdummala). The occurrence of dummala in the locality is the origin of these names. Tens of thousands of years ago, dipterocarp plants existed in abundance. Their resins, resistant to decomposition, accumulated in the soil as dummala.

The plant family dipterocarpacae is a fascinating evolutionary marvel. Originating in Africa more than 100 million years ago, they drifted to India, Sri Lanka and other parts of Southeast Asia. While retaining primitive characters, the family diversified to suit the environment. In a dipterocarp – dominated rain forest, there are tall as well as short species of trees, trapping sunlight optimally and thereby capturing large quantities of carbon. They are the ‘thermostats’ of the planet.

The dominance of dipterocarps owes much to the wind dispersal of seeds. When the winged fruit falls after ripening, they spin like helicopter propellers and carried away by the wind. The average distance the fruit deposits on the ground is not too far from the base of the parent tree, but greater than the width of its canopy, so that the seedling is not shadowed by the parent. The roots of the parent tree extend a distance greater than the canopy width. Seeds deposited in the vicinity of the roots of the parent tree and beyond the extent of the canopy have a special advantage because roots harbor symbiotic fungi. Thus, the seeding gain ready access to sunlight and fungi in soil the promoting growth.

Dipterocarps, so common everywhere in our land until recent times, are now endangered. When John Davy visited Sri Lanka, there were no tea or rubber plantations. Clearing land for cultivation eliminated a good portion of trees. Unfortunately, despite inviting danger, the species yields quality wood. Therefore overexploited for timber, legally and illegally. Many truckloads of timber, would have been used to build one mansion out of unjustly earned money. Imagine the number of trees felled!

They are fast losing hold in other parts of the region because of extensive logging and the expansion of land use.

Dipterocarps survived natural catastrophes such as mega volcanic eruptions, glaciation and asteroid impacts. They have peacefully coexisted with dinosaurs for 65 million years; providing them; food, shade and oxygen. Contrastingly to humans, these mighty animals did not threaten their proliferation. Occasionally, a tree may have been injured by goring creatops (horned dinosaurs), but the oily resin secreted cured the injury.

After an asteroid impact on Earth in the month of June 65 million years ago, dinosaurs and many kinds of plants died out, but dipterocarps survived. Yet they struggle to escape the threat of humans.

Given, sufficient time, evolution is capable of achieving almost ‘anything’ not forbidden by the laws of nature. Through prolonged existence, dipterocarps have acquired and inherited unique characters to suit the environment. Their extinction would irreparably damage the rainforest ecosystem.

I was inspired to be fascinated by the wonders of dipterocarpaceae by my elder brother, the late Jayasumana Tennakone, who played with me, throwing Hora fruits into the air and watching how they spin. We were questioning, how it decides to rotate either clockwise or anticlockwise. Two decades later, the idea helped me fathom a concept in the theory of elementary particle physics.

A part of my ancestral village, Matikotumulla, in the Gampha District, goes by the name “Dummaladeniya”, a beautiful marshy area with paddy fields and a stream. My father walked us to this part of the village frequently. We picked up sizeable pieces of dummala from the stream. He said these are fossils of plants and cannot be minerals. Later, I was enthralled to learn dummala is derived from dipterocarpaceae.

Once, I walked miles in the wilderness to see a Dorana tree. What I saw was a giant tree on its deathbed, tortured by severely burned wounds!

(The author can be reached via email:ktenna@yahoo.co.uk)