Inky darkness of the night sky
Studded with nature's twinkling lights
Retinue of the translucent coquettish moon
That slides and glides
'mongst the quivering heart-shaped tapering leaves of the Bo
Nature's canopy
For Kelaniya's night of nights
Against the silhouette of Kelaniya's historic pilgrim site
A
panorama unfolds
Sparkling lights and flaming torches
Rhythmic drum beats
Embellished swarthy bodies
In frenzied accompaniment
Graceful lithe forms
Rendering dance form obeisance
The majestic stride of the casket bearer
Trunk uplifted in regal obeisance
Conscious of its noble honoured role
Bearer of the relics
Of the Holy, Enlightened One
The hauteur of the Nilames
In their drapery and finery
The trappings of a regal past
Relived; encapsulated
Wave on wave of "Sadhu! Sadhu!"
Resonate on the night air
Hands clasped in reverential adoration
A mesmerised mass of faces
As another Kelani Perahera unfolds
Continuity of the historic pageantry
Of historic Kelaniya.
If apologies from the British Royal Family for colonial misdeeds are the order of that day, in all fairness, we must also insist with equal fervour, that all those Sri Lankans whose ancestors were collaborators also apologise prior to any Independence jubilee celebrations.
It is time we, as a nation, stop being self-righteous hypocrites and turn to the future and study our options. It is a well known fact that if you point a finger at your neighbour there will always be three more pointing back at you.
In Sri Lanka today, the presidency is a position of power equivalent to kingship and we have both an occupier and an aspirant to that office.
In the circumstances, it is indeed timely that on the 50th independence celebrations of this country that we should have as the Chief Guest of the nation, another aspirant to kingship- Charles, the Prince of Wales.
When the people of Lanka signed the Kandyan Convention in 1815, they entrusted their heritage, their religion and their wealth to the King of England, who became the King of Lanka.
However in England, the King had been robbed of his power by the 'commons' and what belonged to the King had been usurped by them. These commoners in England were a club - a new class seeking respectability through politics in what was termed democracy.
They in turn duplicated the British mode in Lanka. They set up a local mob to represent their interests, and within 50 years these 'brown sahibs' have undervalued and sold off most of our wealth. We think we have a right to ask the Prince of Wales to undo the damage done to us through his ancestors being robbed of their custodianship.
From White Sahib to Brown Sahib, what decline!
On the other hand let us consider the Prince of Wales. He comes with pomp, pageant and ritual worthy of a king. A king has a code of behaviour to treasure performance. While a king is governed by fixed rules the Punch and Judy show of democracy only wants more power.
What if Charles were King of Lanka?
Charles has created a niche for himself as an environment conscious person with a deep respect and awe of nature. He likes traditional architecture and traditional medicine. He talks to trees. He likes solitude. King Charles of Lanka and a return to kingship in Lanka will attract tourists from all over the world. The best of British investment capital will follow. There will be ethical investment since the Prince of Wales views are well known. He will naturally seek the audience of local experts to provide a healthy, productive, and sustainable environment through to the next century.
The Prince of Wales values his culture and history. He does not undervalue people and their traditional skills in order to turn them into a cheap labour force. He has had the best training for the job of leadership in the whole world. If he becomes our leader, the 'separatists' will have nothing to fight over. We can close down parliament and turn it into a residence for our new king. It will be cheaper by far. In fact Charles will cost the people of Lanka less than politics costs them today.
King Charles will definitely generate more than it costs us to maintain him and his court.
The mass media will love us. We can close down all our publicity offices worldwide. We will be news all the time. Good news for a change of a marvellous experiment. If there are to be apologies let us do so collectively. All of us in Colombo are guilty. The present is a result of the past. We can't undo the past but we can learn from it. Or else let us remain condemned as the Mecca of Mediocrity. The Buddha calls this Karma Vipaka
Your item in the "Alia" column (11/1/98) under the above caption regarding the refusal by the US authorities to approve the sale of M16 rifles to us and the reaction to your query by the US Embassy official to "go ask your government" is interesting. When the government has shown definite bias against US trade interests as in the case of-
1. The ATT telecom tender awarded by the previous government and cancelled by this government as soon as it assumed office, which drew a sharp protest from the then US Ambassador.
2. The Evans International offer for the Fort Area redevelopment where the Letter of Intent was abruptly cancelled which drew protests from the US Ambassador and the Secretary of State.
3. The recent Locomotive Tender where the General Motors offer recommended by the Cabinet Appointed Tender Board was rejected at the highest level in favour of the French GEC - Alsthom.
What would you expect the official at the US Embassy to say other than "go ask your government".
The United States is our biggest trading partner, takes most of our garments, and have been our friend for many years and the least they would expect is fair treatment in trade matters and tenders.
More letters to the editor * Raja - Killer or victim? * Those jaw-breaking names! * Iodine Deficiency Disorders * The old order yielding place to new
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