Provoked Kondadeniya Priest Stopped The Moving Train By His Mantra: Land of Exorcists – Part II

By Ashan Nanayakkara –JUNE 22, 2021

Ashan Nanayakkara

In re ‘Thowil’ ceremonies, Sinhalese folks believe that ’18-Sanniya’ (Daha Ata-Sanniya / ‘Sanni Yakuma’) is as grandeur as the 9th Symphony of Beethoven. This particular ‘thowil’ ceremony is organized only in very exceptional occasions such as someone is fatally ill, the country faces to a pandemic or unfound disease, procuring very low harvest due to insecticide attacks, fear engulfed due to evil spirits and so on. This exorcism method goes far back as Lord Buddha’s days where it is believed that during reign of King Lichchavis in India, there was a threat of a demon called ‘Maha Kola’ who was begot from the womb of a martyred queen who was executed under a fake charge of adultery. Aforesaid ‘Maha Kola’, the child of the queen, turned into a devil and generated 18-poisons which brought numerous diseases to people. History says, after Lord Buddha’s intervention the said demon stopped his fury. The number 18 in this ’18-Sanniya’ ritual connotes the 18-dances and those epitomize different types of evils which could bring the diseases to human. Bruce Kepferer the Professor of Social Anthropology at University of London, in his book, “Celebration of Demons: Exorcism and Aesthetics of Healing in Sri Lanka – 1991” has determined that, “…the Sinhalese exorcism rituals are perhaps the most complex and the most magnificent in performance still extant…. the techniques of healing in Sri Lanka the aesthetic of this healing cannot be reduced to Western psychoanalytic or psychotherapeutic terms and develops new original approaches to ritual and the aesthetic in general…” Undoubtedly, he must have referred to ‘Daha Ata-sanniya’.

‘Daha Ata-sanniya’ lasts dusk to dawn. This normally takes place at outside the house of the aggrieved person or the ‘Kamatha’ (arena like place which is made by the farmers on the paddy filed after they reaped the harvest). Starting from Ata Paliya, after mid-night, Daha Ata Paliya is followed by. Back to back dances come wearing dreadful masks, anthropomorphizing different demons with splashing-coloured jackets. The dancers swiftly spin their body whilst some demon forms make acrobatic moves on the arena which would liven the audience. Some demons (dancers) talk obscene language (in addition to the sheer fear it brings, this may be another reason why do the parents ban their small children be present at these ‘thowil’ ceremonies) with the drummers and, in turn, drummers mock them too. At times, dancers do summersaults and climb into trees as if they are tranced into a supernatural spirit. Throughout the ritual, the patient(s) is before the dances, and must listen and watch. There are times where the patient spontaneously dances like he is possessed by a spirit. In such event, the evil starts to have a dialogue with the ‘yakadura’ (the chieftain who does these rituals). The ‘yakadura’ wittily rejoinders to the said evil spirit and orders the latter to leave the patient’s body or stop the calamity. Mostly, the evil spirit departures. Moment that happens the patient faints unconscious. If one carefully listens to what the ‘yakadura(s)’ and drummers chant are the good virtues of Lord Buddha.

Organizing ‘Daha Ata-sanniya’ performance is not as easy as we think. This will cost so much of fortune. The organizers should invite best exorcists in the region to perform at the gala night. They do not come for pittance. The drummers must also be invited. They bring ‘yakeberaya’ (a cylinder type wooden musical instrument covered by treated cattle hide from both sides fastens to waist) or ‘udekkiya’ (which is covered by cattle hide, same as ‘yakberaya’ from both sides but gets thinner at the mid of the cylinder. This is a light percussion instrument that one could play holding on one hand) and ‘horanewa’ (brass instrument). The band must be well attended by giving all sorts of good food and supreme drinks available. More the performers are happier more the results you get, poor event planners think. Entire village will be at your doorstep by sun setting on the big day and from that day evening to next day morning the organizers will have to provide the guests, the dinner, tea, and various types of Sinhalese customary oily sweets, beetle leaves and what not. This is an event, when the mid-night falls, even in most un-holy hours, village Romeos tend to flirt with village lasses whose old parents are almost at deep slumber dreaming that their girls are protected by sanctified sprits around. Apart from the love stories, some youth steal and drink the water of tender counts owned by the neighbours around amidst the ‘thowil’ rituals are taken place at the ‘thowil gedara’ (‘thowil’ house) whilst the owners of those coconut trees are busy with helping this conjuring event. Time to time, elder men vanished from the audience, to their wives’ un-notice, to taste fresh toddy which is freely given to them by the chief organizer without the knowledge of the ‘yakadura’ who has strictly banned any booze. At the dawn of the next day, once the ‘yakadura’ finishes his work the patient(s) who is exhausted after burning the midnight oil is covered by a white cloth and carefully taken into the house and let him rest. This will end the rituals and entire village go their home and sleep believing that their bad times are over.

Other than ‘thowil’ ceremonies to heal folks of this island, Sinhalese resort to some other forms of occults when they confront with the problems in their day to day life. One such menace is cattle theft. I recall how a ‘kanappuwa’ (3-legged wooden stool – Teapoy) was set off to find a cattle thief at Wadduwa (a town locates 40Km down the Galle road from Colombo) when I was spending a vacation at my grandparents’ house. I do not rank this incident as supernatural per se as I saw nothing unnatural in the whole exercise. It is just science and law of gravity. I saw, 2-men from both sides of ‘kanappuwa’, give a gentle push to the chanted teapoy thereby which moves forward. The said duo stand on both sides to make sure the tripod keeps on course. It is obvious that when someone is pushing the edge of a tripod that will incline to move forward due to the imbalance it creates. There you get a walking-tripod! There is no magic in it. Yet again, in this instant that I saw, this particular ‘kanappuwa’ went up to a house of a known petty thief in the village and stopped its movement. That is a confirmation that who is the robber. I remember, the villagers who came in a mob with that ‘kanappuwa’ stretched their arms and assaulted the man who alleged to have committed this felony, as they pleased. Before this extra-judicial sentence was passed, the mob hardly found any other evidence to substantiate whether this man was the real cattle thief.

In the book of “The History of Ceylon (subjoined to Robert Knox’s Historical Relation of the Island, with an account of his captivity during a period of near twenty years)” too has a similar old Ceylonese story where when a theft is reported. As per Knox a voodoo master enchants a spell on a cocoa nut and holds it on a stalker at the gate from where the burglar came to the house. It is believed that this cocoa nut would track down to the culprit, same as it did by ‘Kanappuwa’, as a modern day Slough dog apprehending a serial killer. Once the thief is confirmed by the cocoa nut, the rules of natural justice, presumption of innocence and / or nuances such as beyond reasonable doubt are little concerns to the angry villagers.

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