| ID | 168816 |
| Title Proper | Reclaiming Ravana in Sri Lanka |
| Other Title Information | Ravana’s Sinhala Buddhist Apotheosis and Tamil Responses |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Sanmugeswaran, Pathmanesan |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This paper considers the appropriation of Ravana, the demon-king antagonist of the famed Ramayana epic, as a Sinhala Buddhist cultural hero in the context of twenty-first-century, post-war Sri Lanka. We highlight the irony of the recent Buddhist appropriation of Ravana as a signifier of indigeneity and sovereignty, given that he has already been employed in this capacity in the Tamil Hindu context for nearly a century. We note several convergences between the ‘Sinhala Ravana’ phenomenon and its Tamil counter-narrative, including a shared archive of textual material invoked as evidence, the introduction of alleged physical evidence as proof of Ravana’s historicity, and a sympathetic outlook on Ravana’s character, emphasising his qualities as a learned and righteous king. |
| `In' analytical Note | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies Vol. 42, No.4; Aug 2019: p.796-812 |
| Journal Source | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 2019-08 42, 4 |
| Key Words | Sri Lanka ; Ramayana ; Dravidian Movement ; Ravana ; Deification ; Sinhala Nationalism |