The mere mention of the term village, drives home that it is the smallest unit of the community which is considered as the family, and the collection of families form the village or a hamlet. The peruse through vast literature reveals the fact that the village is the basic step of any culture.
The genesis of the concept of village is related to the unity, togetherness, selflessness, collaboration, sharing and caring. These qualities are incessantly displayed by the rank and file as they are indelibly rooted in their hearts.
In the meantime, these qualities of the villagers help to distinguish them from the town people easily. It is due to the abundance of some natural resources that the people in the village are so lavish in many aspects of the life, but due to the limit of such resources in the township people who live there displays different behavioral patterns in their daily lives.
The lack of exposure to the modernity, simplicity and the carelessness of certain aspects of life make the village folk different from that of the town folk.
Temple as a part of the human life
The salient feature of the village folk is that they appease their heart leading towards a spiritual life. The life sans spirituality is like an empty vessel. It is because of this reason that the key events of their lives are based on the temple. The chief priest of the temple is their main guide, teacher, supporter, facilitator and even counselor.
Both the happy and sorrowful occasions were shared by the chief priest of the village temple and the villagers sought the instructions and guidance from the chief priest for their mental and spiritual satisfaction. Therefore, it demonstrates that the village temple played a major role in the lives of the villagers in Sri Lanka.
In the ancient time of Sri Lanka the basic education was provided by the priests of the village temple and it is a must for each and every person to go to the temple to gain the basic literacy such as reading and writing of the language during which the village temple became a part and parcel of their daily lives which provided an effective progress in the education of the villagers specially the children.
At the same time the villagers thronged to the temple to involve in their religious activities which reveal the piousness of the innocent village folk. The villagers provide the meals which are also called as “daanaya” in the Buddhist culture to the priests of the temple everyday as a ritual in Buddhism. It is because of this reason that in the ancient times we can see a temple wherever a village is located.
Dageba – a symbol of spirituality
Dageba or the “stupa” was also built adjoining to the village which is considered as an outstanding type of architectural creation of ancient Sri Lanka. The villagers have the religious habit of offering flowers and lightening oil lamps to “dagebas” which is the traditional way of the Buddhists in Sri Lanka.
In the meantime the village folk have the habit of making these offerings to get the blessing for their well – being and secure a good harvest from their cultivation’s. A portion of their harvest is offered first to Buddha before they consume in view of displaying their gratitude, honor and respect to their religion.
Dagebas are made out of the bricks and people offer items of gold, gems, copper and such valuable things were deposited inside the Stupas which reveal the faith of people in the village. There are many such famous Stupas all over the island constructed in massive ways by using creative architectural modes.
The construction of the Stupa at Mahiyangana Raja Maha Viharaya at Mahiyangana in the valley of Mahaweli, which enshrines the Buddha’s Hair Relic Reputedly presented by the Buddha to Saman, a deva is an example of the Stupas in ancient Sri Lanka.
The Stupas were constructed in different shapes in order depict the cultural and religious myths on that particular era that the Stupas were built. There are five different shapes of Stupas according to the historical evidence such as,
- Bubble shaped (Bubbulaakara)
- Paddy heap (Dhaanyaakara)
- Bell shaped (Ghantaakara)
- Pot shaped (Ghataakara)
- Lotus shaped (Padmaakara)
Tank – the source of prosperity of the villagers
It is a known fact that the life of the village folk was based on the agriculture which is a main aspect of the life of a Sri Lankan since then. Therefore the paddy fields were irrigated by the tank which is sometimes built by the villagers themselves in view of fulfilling water requirements for the cultivation’s. Therefore, it is clear that the water tank in villages had a prominent place in the lives of the villagers in Sri Lanka.
There is no doubt that the Sri Lankan kings built tanks in massive ways in order to develop the agriculture, the main source of income of people within the country.
In the ancient time the rulers initiated the building of tank in the vicinity of the village and a Dageba was also built near the tank. It is mentioned that the Dageba was built by using the soil of the tank which highlights the fact that the villagers were very intelligent enough to get use of the soil they removed from earth in building the tank in a very useful manner.
The tank symbolized the prosperity, self – sufficiency and the sovereignty of the region as the harvest that people get from the paddy field depicts the value of their labour and unity of the villagers in a very effective way. The villagers had to work together till they end each other’s work during the particular season.
The family happiness and proudness of the villagers are still revealed by the folk songs that they composed to alleviate their tiredness or the fatigue. In the tapestry of history there is many a gem of folk songs pertinent to the human history which reflects how people are inextricably linked with the concept of tank and dagaba and how it became a part of their life.
All in all , from ancient time the immemorial roots of human spirituality and their uniqueness of the village folk are depicted through their cultural and religious link with the society and the Tank, Dagaba, and Temple.
It is impossible to think of a life sans them as they are part and parcel of their daily life of Sri Lankan village folk.
