Short Leela hopes to walk tall

This is not a tall story, but the story of a woman of short stature who believes she would become tall and beautiful at least in her next life and offers atapirikara as a pooja.

A Leelawathie (62) a resident of Shanthi Nivasa, an elders’ home at Saliyapura in Anuradhapura is only 41” tall and has none to call her own. A Buddhist and believing in rebirth, she attributes the short stature to a sinful past. The woman tries to do good deeds and achieve merit hoping that in her next birth she would be a normal person. She was unable to give her age or her date of birth when inquiries were made and is blissfully unaware who her parents, brothers, sisters or relatives are. She had been an inmate when young at a children’s home in Uppuveli in Trincomalee and was named Leelawathie by the matron there. She is fluent in Tamil and said she learnt it as the inmates and the matron at that home were Tamils. She said everyone has a second look at her because of her short stature. Leelawathie said she could not play or run about like other children in the home and invariably was by herself sans company. She remembers coming to Anuradhapura during the 1983 riots and living on the benevolence of others.

More information about her was obtained from the Saliyapura elders’ home superintendent who said this inmate had been there for around 25 years and that she gives to him all monies she collects for safe keeping for the pooja. He said he buys the atapirikara and allows her to offer them to monks. According to him, she has only a single meal a day and her diet consists only of dhal and rice, while she drinks only water and not even tea. He said she visits the shrine room daily and offers flowers before observing pansil.

Her humble wish was that in her next birth she be beautiful, tall and blessed with parents and relatives.