History - Part One

• The Arrival of Buddhism
• The Ancient king Anuradhapura
• The Medieval Kings Polonnaruwa and Kotte
• Buddhism and the Portuguese
• Buddhism and the British
• The Buddhist Christian Debates
• The Buddhist Revival
• Up to the present

 The Arrival Of Buddhism 

     The Buddha's Three Visits to Sri lanka in the traditional legends of srilanka the Buddha made three visits to the island in the course of his life. the Pali canonical texts however make no mention of these visits according to the legends, the Buddha made these visits because he foresaw the decline of his teaching in India and wished to see it survive and flourish in srilanka.
                           The Buddha made his first trip nine months after his enlightenment,arriving in a place called mahiyanganaya. during this visits,the supernatural beings inhabiting the island known as the Yaksas,Raksas and Naga, embraced Buddhism after witnessing the psychic power of the Buddha.he thus prepared sri lanka to receive the dhamma and eventually become its protector.Five years later, the Buddha saw that a war between two naga kings called Culodara and Mahodara was imminent because of their quarrel over a jeweled throne.the Buddha traveled again to the island to mediate in this dispute.out of respect and devotion for the Buddha the two kings gave up the throne to a third Naga king called Maniakkhika of Kelaniya.

The Buddha visited for the third time three years later,on the invitation of Maniakkhika and preached the dhamma in kalaniya he then went on to visit the mountain called Sri Pada he left an imprint of his left foot at its peak.Befor returing to India he stopped by at Dighavapi , Anuradapura and various other places on the island.

the thirs buddhist council was one of the most important events in the history of buddhism.its most significant outcome was to bring theravada buddhism to srilanka therefore ensuring its survival after its disappeard from india around the13th cebtury.this council was convened around 250 BCE by king asoka,the greatest ruler of india,and it was held in the city of pataliputta.

Originally a cruel,violent and highly ambition ruler,king Asoka converted to Buddhism after a particularly bloody campaign in conquering the state of kalinga.More than 250000 people were killed or taken into captivity during this war.Because of his generous patronage of Buddhism some people abused this support by joining the Singha the third council was thus convened to purify the singha and purge the corrupt monks who exploited Asoka's support of Buddhism for their own ends.

        In contrast to Indian civilization and culture, which was one of the most highly developed and sophisticated societies of the ancient world, Sri Lanka was little more than a collection of small and backward rural and fishing villages at the time of Ven. Mahinda’s arrival. The legends portray an advanced and glorious civilization existing around the period of 500 BCE but there is little material evidence or other records corroborating this picture.

         Archaeological remains suggest the existence of an aboriginal people known as the Balangodas as far back as 30,000 years ago. They were hunter-gatherers and cave-dwellers and were likely the first inhabitants. Indo-Aryan traders and fishermen arrived from India in subsequent waves, settling along the west-central coast and riverine areas. The island did not have any dominant or organized religions but had beliefs centred around the worship of Yaksas and Yaksinis, or male and female supernatural beings, thought to be inhabiting trees, caves, mountains and other places. This was a form of ancestor worship, as it was believed that tribal chiefs and relatives were reborn as such spirits, who carried on protecting their families after their death.
                                                                                There was also the worship of animistic deities such as the god of Sri Pada, called Sumana. The veneration of these deities and spirits continue to the present day, with the belief that most of these supernatural beings had ‘converted’ to Buddhism, justifying their worship by the majority Buddhist population.Traces of Brahmanism and Jainism have also been found in pre-Buddhist Sri Lanka and these religions were likely brought over by the early settlers from India. It is possible that some forms of Buddhism could also have been brought in by some of these settlers.