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The present work is based on fieldwork carried out in Southern Sri Lanka among the Beravayo, a low status caste traditionally responsible for the performance of various ritual drumming duties. Although this occupational association goes back centuries and is still an important element in their contemporary caste identity, the Beraväyö are nowadays involved in a wide range of other ritual activitiea which include temple art work. astrology and in particular the performance of elaborate healing rituals for the relief of sickness and misfortune. The thesis centers on the lives and work of those Beraväyö who are most closely involved with the performance of such healing rituals. The first part of the thesis (Chapters 1-4) deals with the social organisation of the Beravä caste, paying particular attention to the way in which the various traditions of knowledge and skill which make their ritual performances possible are reproduced. The traditions passed on within the caste are viewed as a kind of property and the role they play in strategies of marriage and apprenticeship is examined. Chapter 4 deals with the translation of personal traditions into the caste specific services for which the caste is known. This entails examining the structure and organisation of the troupes which come together to perform certain rituals and the various factors, such as cost, scale of performance and elaborateness of preparations which the ritual patron must consider. The second part of the thesis (Chapters 5-7) deals with a specific ritual, an astrological ritual called the Bali Tovil which is intended to combat the malign influences of the planets. A description of the beliefs and ideas which underlie the ritual is given. followed by an account of a particular performance of a Bali Tovil. The analysis given in Chapter 7 attempts to account for the persuasive power which the performance of this type of ritual has in producing a positive effect on its participants. The final Chapter (8) looks at the impact of changes upon the tradition oriented system of ritual organisation and performance described in the previous chapters. The changes in question are coming from tourism and the new markets for cultural artefacts which this brings. With changes in the style of production to meet this demand, the meaning which various traditions have for those who possess them is re-evaluated. Chapter 8 demonstrates how traditions are creatively transformed to meet these changing circumstances and the consequences this has for the wider Beravä community.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington. / Bibliography: l. 323-331.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1997. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [193]-199).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Lehigh University, 2004. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 167-173).

The Wanniya-laeto, often referred to as Veddas, are the indigenous people of Sri Lanka. They live primarily in governmental designated areas in the forest with a few Vedda villages on the eastern coastal region. In-depth, semi-structured interviews as well as participant observation were the methods used to access the perceptions of mental health and mental illness among the Wanniya-laeto population. Research was conducted over a two month period and focuses primarily on the Ratugala Veddas with additional interviews conducted with three other Vedda communities, including one coastal village, to use for comparison and support. Five itinerant psychiatrist who work in clinics and hospitals that serve Vedda communities were also interviewed. Results show that the Veddas believe mental illness is the result of not being satisfied by with the basic gifts supplied by the spirits and refer to mental illness as a "city disease." There are no acknowledged cases of acute mental illness among the participant's communities. There are a small number of cases of depression in the Vedda's communities, but they do not associate depression with mental illness. The Veddas believe depression is due to external factors, such as government intervention in their lifestyle. Like many indigenous populations throughout the world, the encroachment of external forces has led to the loss of their land rights as well as a slow decline of their culture. The Veddas feel that the prevalence of depression in their society is increasing as they are becoming more detached from the land and traditional way of life. They believe that gaining their hunting and agricultural land rights would help restore their balance and prevent depression. Additionally, they believe that financial and social support from the government for their cultural preservation would also keep depression and other mental illness out of their communities. / Graduation date: 2004

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This study endeavours to explore the diasporic processes of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sydney, their cultural life, their migration patterns, their long-distance nationalism and their audiovisual media consumption. In doing so it presents a social profile of the Sri Lankan Tamils in Sydney while exploring the communities' demographical and topographical features. The ethnic unrest in Sri Lanka and the changing immigration policies in Australia were the major factors influencing migration of the Sri Lankan Tamils to Australia. This study delves into the various aspects of everyday Tamil life, like Tamil periodicals, associations, films and schools. It is an attempt to understand the individual, cross-cultural and communal dynamics of the way these cultural institutions are used by Sri Lankan Tamils in Sydney to maintain and negotiate their cultural identity in Australia. / Master of Arts (Hons)

Driven by the overarching objective of promoting reconciliation through education, this thesis strives to unpack the first national goal of education set out by the Sri Lankan Ministry of Education, which involves nation building and the establishment of a Sri Lankan identity through the promotion of social cohesion and the recognition of cultural diversity in Sri Lanka's plural society. Within education, history teaching in secondary school acts as the main focus of the research, due to the relevance of this goal to the subject of history as well as the ability of history to shape the attitudes and perceptions of youth. As such, the original contribution of this thesis is the development of an understanding of how the goal of nation building is being carried out through the Sri Lankan education system by focusing on the subject of history, which in turn facilitates an analysis of the identity politics of teaching history in a multicultural post-war society. With the intention of developing such an understanding, the study aims to answer three research questions: 1) What type of nation is being built through history education in Sri Lanka?; 2) How is the ethnic and religious diversity which characterises the Sri Lankan nation being dealt with through history education?; and 3) How are Sri Lankan youth being aided in understanding the sensitive matters which impeded the nation building exercise in the recent past and resulted in the break out of the ethnic conflict? The thesis draws on an inductive approach, using qualitative research and secondary literature. Findings are generated from field work and textbook analysis. Conducted in four different districts around the country chosen based on their ethnic and religious compositions, field work involves the conducting of interviews with youth, history teachers, curriculum developers, textbook writers and other academics. This thesis argues that an ambiguity regarding the composition of the 'Sri Lankan nation' is being created through history education, with it sometimes being characterised as a purely Sinhalese-Buddhist nation instead of a multicultural one. This is most likely because the prominent players involved in the development of the curriculum themselves appear to be conflicted about the monoethnic versus polyethnic nature of the nation, with their views filtering through to the educational materials they produce. It is evident that the history curriculum predominantly contains Sinhalese-Buddhist history, with little information being conveyed about the history of the minority groups. Tamils and Muslims are portrayed as invaders and outsiders since the national story is narrated through the perspective of the Sinhalese-Buddhist community who play the role of the protagonist. With respect to stakeholder reactions, there appears to be a contrast in the attitudes of Tamil and Muslim youth regarding the portrayal of minority history, with Tamils being vocal about their anger towards the perceived bias, but Muslims being reluctant to discuss ethnic matters, preferring to sweep them under the rug. Finally, in terms of the ethnically sensitive matters in recent history, while some are completely omitted from the history lessons, others are narrated through a majoritarian perspective or glossed over by leaving out key pieces of information. Youth are therefore largely unaware of the contentious matters that led to the breakdown of ethnic relations in the country, despite having lived through a brutal ethnic conflict. These findings indicate the failings of the nation building exercise being carried out through history education. Instead of building a strong Sri Lankan identity, this type of education is creating confusion regarding the composition of the nation and adversely affecting the sense of belonging of minority youth. It is also creating a younger generation who are unaware of their country's past troubles. The recent spate of ethnic and religious violence that shook the nation highlight the need to address these weaknesses in a timely manner, with a view to promoting reconciliation through education.

No description available.