Remembering D.S. at Pothuhera Chandasela Monastery

A memorial ceremony for the country’s first Prime Minister D. S. Senanayake was held on June 16 at Pothuhera Chandasela Monastery. The event was organized by the secretary of the D. S. Senanayake memorial committee, Prasanna Jayasuriya and Viharadhipathi Ven. Mankadawala Sumana Thera of the Chandasela Monastery. Buddhist clergy of the area, former MPs, Karunasena Kodithuwakku and Rukman Senanayake and politicians of the area attended.

D. S. Senanayake’s statue, in front of Dutugemunu Vidyalaya was garlanded by Rukman Senanayake, a member of the family. Ven. Watareka Sumangala Thera of Dambadeni, Mankadawala Sumana Thera, the principal of Mirigama Bandaranayeka Vidyalaya, Ven. Gurudeniya Punyakanthi Thera, Mr. Kodithuwakku and Mr. Senanayake also spoke at the event.

Scholarships were given to three monks studying Pali and mammoties were given to farmers chosen from the area by the Gamini Jayasuriya Foundation.

National Sea Sunday Service 

The national Sea Sunday service was held on July 8 at St. Peter’s Church Fort. Fr. Chryshantha Mendis, Archdeacon of Colombo officiated and a representative gathering of diplomats and members of the armed forces were present with the Navy band in attendance and cadets from CINEC. Picture shows British High Commissioner John Rankin and Chairman, Mission to Seafarers Wg. Cdr. Noel Fernando at the service.

Dreamcatchers: Three artists share their passion

Dreamcatchers, an exhibition of paintings by Teruni Wikramanayake and Asela Abeywardene and sculpture by Gayan Gunasekara is on today- July 22 at the Lionel Wendt.

The exhibition is the first public showcase of the artists’ work, all three students of Prof. Sarath Chandrajeewa.“All three of us have, in our own styles, tried to capture things which cannot be seen in reality so the pieces seem more like dreams. However, as artists we also dream of creating great art and through our work we are chasing that dream; hence Dreamcatchers,” explained Asela.

Both Asela and Teruni are showcasing 25 of their paintings, alongside 10 sculptures from Gayan. Teruni’s has an abstract, freeform style of painting, with a strong focus on the use of vibrant colour to convey emotion, whereas Asela’s pieces strive towards capturing the human condition through a more structured approach. Gayan’s pieces are focused on creating three-dimensional portraits of famous artists, interpreted in the context of their own art and emotional experiences.

A sculpture by Gayan

A chance for preschool, primary teachers to shine 

The Liberty International Montessori School Teacher Training Association, along with the Sri Lanka Youth Council is organizing “The Teacher Symposium and Golden Teacher Award Ceremony 2012” for the second consecutive year. Preschool and primary teachers, those who want to be preschool teachers as well as parents of young children could participate free of charge.

Two competitions have been planned for the Golden Teacher award. One for Montessori and primary teachers where they are expected to write an essay on “The teacher’s role in developing the personality of a child after the war” and the second, for designing a uniform for teachers.
Entries should be sent to Officer in charge of training division, Teacher Symposium, Sri Lankan Youth Council, Maharagama. For further details contact, country coordinator and director of L.I.M.S.T.T.A, Arosha Bakthi Silva on 0777452576.
“The Teacher Symposium” will be held on July 28 from 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. and the “Golden Teacher Award Ceremony” at 6 p.m. at the Youth Council theatre, Maharagama.

A new Dhamma School

A three-storeyed Dhamma School was declared open on July 14 at Abayadarshanaramaya, Athurugiriya to celebrate the 23rd anniversary of the temple. The new building was built at the cost of Rs. 25 mllion with donations from Reggie Abeyweera and Kanthi Abeyweera. Picture shows the Chief Incumbent of the temple Ven. Paraamulle Siriwimala Thera with Mr and Mrs Abeyweera at the opening.

Tracing our Portuguese heritage | National Trust lecture

‘Portuguese-speaking Communities in Sri Lanka’, a lecture by Dr. Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya will be the 42nd in the monthly series of the National Trust of Sri Lanka and will be at the HNB Auditorium, 22nd Floor, HNB Towers, 479 T.B. Jayah Mawatha, Colombo 10 at 6.30 p.m. on Thursday, July 26.

Portuguese-speaking communities in the Indian Ocean World are a reminder of the Lusitanian intervention in Asian trade. The contact language, Indo-Portuguese of Ceylon or Sri Lanka Portuguese Creole, was once an important lingua franca. Today it is endangered but, against all odds, it still survives.

Dr. Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya is a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies (University of London), a member of the UNESCO International Scientific Committee (Paris) and an elected Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society (Great Britain & Ireland). She has a PhD (Linguistics), an MSc (Finance) and a BSc Honours (Economics) from the University of London. She is the author of 85 peer-reviewed articles in international journals, and has also written eight books in the fields of Historical Linguistics, Ethnomusicology, Portuguese Studies, African Diaspora Studies and Ethnography.

150th Jubilee closing ceremony at St. Philip Neri’s Church

The closing ceremony of the 150th Jubilee of St. Philip Neri’s Church (1862-2012), 157, Olcott Mawatha, Colombo 11 will be held with the celebration of the Holy Eucharist on Sunday, July 29 at 9 a.m. The service will be presided over by Very Rev. Fr. Leonard Ranasinghe, OSB. All are welcome.

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