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In New Year messages, leaders highlight virtues of tradition
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President Maithripala Sirisena has expressed concern over traditions associated with the National New Year becoming submissive to market mechanisms. Emphasising the importance of being one with nature, the President in his message called on the people to understand the deep meaning behind New Year customs and traditions.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in his message has pointed out that New Year traditions bring people together in a spirit of love, care, brotherhood, unity, honour and respect.
Also issuing his National New Year message was Speaker Karu Jayasuriya. Published below are their messages:
President Maithripala Sirisena:
Since the sun and moon are the prime factors in sustaining life on earth, the people worshipped these heavenly bodies with utmost devotion since ancient times. Considering nature as divine was a practice of kings and the general public.
Likewise, the people tend to worship the moon and the sun annually during the New Year.
The Sinhala and Tamil communities who celebrate the rise of the sun in the Aluth Avurudu month of Bak, also take part in the New Year ritual of viewing the new moon.
The New Year which dawns with the annual transition of the sun, is a time of celebration of the timeless link between the environment, nature and man. After reaping the harvest and offering a part of it to the Buddha and deities first before we consume it, we commence the season of Avurudu, a period of bliss, togetherness, flourishing inter-relations, and often the period, in which people express their sense of identity as a nation. This month is named “Bak’, since it is the season of prosperity. We celebrate our New Year this month, since it is a blossoming period of happiness and joy, in which flowers bloom and fruits ripen announcing nature’s beauty.
It is time we paid adequate attention to understanding the deep meaning of this most precious traditional cultural ceremony, especially at a time when it has become submissive to market mechanisms and consumer demands. Although we are the children of Mother Nature, we have gradually kept away from this most important cultural event. Now, we have reached a point where we feel the urgent need for realigning with Mother Nature.
While we enjoy the results of the efforts of our own victories so far, we must collectively commit ourselves to fulfill the national expectations. I wish the dearest people of this country as well as Sri Lankans living abroad a peaceful and prosperous New Year.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe
The lively environment of springtime vivid, delicate and energetic, announces the dawn of Sinhala and Tamil New Year refreshingly with hopes for a new life that transcends all kinds of differences to open up new horizons.
Concepts, customs and traditions associated with the New Year enliven the closeness between people and nature and have been focused to build up invaluable human virtues namely love, care, brotherhood, unity, honour and respect.
The Sinhala and Tamil New Year is a national cum cultural festival celebrated across Sri Lanka evenly in the North and South to denote revival of the entire society and it is important for all of us to convince the relevance of New Year rituals in experiencing pure happiness in life.
It is with immense pleasure, I would like to wish all of you a blissful and a bountiful New Year.
Speaker Karu Jayasuriya
The relationship that man had with nature could be easily witnessed through ancient civilisations. The rituals performed towards the sun by the people of the eastern civilisations who used agriculture as their main source of livelihood and maintained a strong relationship with nature, bear witness to this.
Our ancestors who realised earth’s life centres around the sun, performed such rituals based on this belief.
Symbolising the Sri Lankan heritage, the Sinhala and Tamil New Year celebrated has a lot of significance socially.
Working towards a common cause and together at the same time, and wishing happiness and prosperity mutually to the entire community are most important to create harmony among the community.
Performing religious practices specific to us, worshipping elders, visiting parents and teachers and reviving such social practices remind one of the duties and responsibilities they have as a member of society.
Cleaning households and starting work with family members at auspicious times would bring good and positive beginnings to a person. Specially in Sri Lanka, where people of different religions live, the celebration of the new year regardless of one’s religion, is a particular example of reconciliation.
Wishing that this example becomes a base to create a stronger and prosperous nation, I wish all Sri Lankans a peaceful, prosperous and happy, New Year!