Online edition of Sunday Observer - Features: "by Shanika Sriyananda
The dusty gravel road snails along the lush forest. Invasive plants, Salvadora pursica and prosopis juliflora seem to slowly killing most of the native plants in the forest with weera, palu, satin, kohomba and divul.
A Few miles away from the Bundala village, close to the border of Bundala National Park, two youth are busy fitting green coloured mesh on window frames, to ward off mosquitoes. A foreign Buddhist monk, clad in mud coloured saffron robes helps them. Surrounded by the thick jungle, he lives in a small three-roomed hermitage within the elephant corridors.
"I am Warapaniya" says the Thera, who came from Poland in search of 'peace of mind'. Not fluent in speaking or writing English, Ven. Warapaniya Thera who is in his 40s says he wants to put the theories of Buddhism into practice now.
The wild elephants, which cross the forest close to the hermitage in Uraniya don't bother Ven. Warapaniya Thera, who goes on 'pindapatha' (in search of food) to the Bundala village frequently. "The villagers always give me food", he says.
The Uraniya hermitage is an ancient place which was used by Buddhist monks even before the park was declared a National Park in 1972. It is popular among the Buddhist monks from the West as an ideal site for meditation. Before Ven. Warapaniya Thera, Buddhist monks from Austalia, New Zealand and Iran had stayed here for meditation in the very silent environs, where the disturbances that one could call if that came from the chirping of birds.
The Dharma, which he read at the age of 16, at high school, changed Ven. Warapaniya Thera's entire life. The true teachings of Buddhism made him a Buddhist priest and Ven. Warapaniya Thera became a monk under the Korean tradition.
After the stint of meditation at a forest hermitage in Kandy, Ven. Warapaniya Thera came to the hermitage in Uraniya a few weeks ago, on the recommendation of a friend.
The red spots on his fair skin is due to mosquito bites. But Ven. Warapaniya Thera doesn't mind the hardships, and says that he will stay in this hermitage as long as it takes him to make his dream a reality; 'an end to suffering and end to an illusion', through meditation.
Bundala Village, which is over 100-years-old, is a traditional village in Bundala. Over 90 families inhabit this village and these people depend on chena cultivation, fishing in the lagoon and the sea, and paddy cultivation. Some work in salterns to earn a living.
Though we are a few miles away from the shores, we could still feel the cool sea breeze. Thilina (4) and his little friends are playing in front of Indrani's small grocery shop which has items from 'sini bolle' to meat balls. Two old men sitting on a bench discuss the 'highlights' which appear in the papers, while sipping plain tea. This reminds one of the old 'copi kade' (Coffee and tea boutique) where people gathered to discuss current news. Indrani earns nearly Rs. 450 daily but many villagers buy provisions on credit.
The little children were fortunate to witness the tsunami and escape death and destruction on that fateful day in December last year.
"We did not have to run because the sea water did not flood our village", says Thilina. He knows the secret of escaping the killer tsunami. It was the long sand dune around the park that protected the humans, flora and fauna of the park and its environs.
Bundala is a village which is below sea level, but the Bundala National Park suffered slight damage due to the man-made entrance, which cut the sand barrier some time ago, and through which the tsunami waves entered the park.
When compared to the mass destructions by the tsunami, the village by the forest and the park has been safe, thanks to the sand dunes along the coast. This emphasises the importance of not harming nature's natural defence. The sand dunes are a part of the wetlands eco-systems which can slow the gravity of natural disasters.
"Sand dunes are an integral component of coastal wetlands that play a major defensive role as a barrier to the force of the wave", IUCN Program Officer Dr. Channa Bambaradeniya says.
Meanwhile, the eco-friendly livelihoods of the inhabitants of the Bundala village also played a vital role in protecting the village and the park from the tsunami. Being traditional farmers, they mainly engage in chena and paddy cultivation and during the off season depend on fresh water fishing in lagoons - Bundala lewaya, Emilikala Kalapua, Malala lagoon, Mahalewaya and Koholankala lewaya.
"They engage in their livelihoods and reap the benefits while minimising the damages to lagoons and other natural eco-systems", says Assistant Park warden Chamath Gallage.
Compared to other tsunami hit areas, which suffered massive destruction, the tsunami waves that entered the Bundala National Park has helped increase the salinity in lagoons and inter tidal mud flats thus making fine feeding grounds for migratory birds.
"Flamingos did not come to the park for the last two years but they are coming now after the tsunami. A flock of 10 to 15 can be seen now in the park", Gallage says.
The park, which lies on the southeastern coast in the Southern Province, is 274 kilometres away from Colombo and a popular haunt for watching migratory birds.
Being the country's first Ramsar site, the 6216-hectare park, accommodates over 15,000 migratory shore birds. Especially, the migratory birds are from East Europe and the flamingos from India.
According to Park Warden Kumara de Silva, the number of tourists visiting the park has dropped after the tsunami, and the park's income had dropped from Rs. 400,000 to Rs. 50,000. "But the tourist arrivals are now increasing gradually", he says.
However, he says that the Park authorities are looking into the possibilities of paying compensation to the villagers who engage in traditional fishing with a view to stop fishig in the lagoons.
"We cannot say no to fishermen who have been engaged in lagoon fishing for years.
They depended on this for their livelihood even before the park was declared a National Park. But this practise will lead to a shortage of food for the birds", he adds.
Fishing in lagoons will also disturb the free movement of the migratory birds and lead to a decrease in the number of migratory birds in the park. The park became a popular destination for migratory birds because of rich food availability in lagoons. " Now we are holding discussions with the villagers to pay compensation for those fishermen who engage in lagoon fishery", de Silva says. "
The dusty gravel road snails along the lush forest. Invasive plants, Salvadora pursica and prosopis juliflora seem to slowly killing most of the native plants in the forest with weera, palu, satin, kohomba and divul.
A Few miles away from the Bundala village, close to the border of Bundala National Park, two youth are busy fitting green coloured mesh on window frames, to ward off mosquitoes. A foreign Buddhist monk, clad in mud coloured saffron robes helps them. Surrounded by the thick jungle, he lives in a small three-roomed hermitage within the elephant corridors.
"I am Warapaniya" says the Thera, who came from Poland in search of 'peace of mind'. Not fluent in speaking or writing English, Ven. Warapaniya Thera who is in his 40s says he wants to put the theories of Buddhism into practice now.
The wild elephants, which cross the forest close to the hermitage in Uraniya don't bother Ven. Warapaniya Thera, who goes on 'pindapatha' (in search of food) to the Bundala village frequently. "The villagers always give me food", he says.
The Uraniya hermitage is an ancient place which was used by Buddhist monks even before the park was declared a National Park in 1972. It is popular among the Buddhist monks from the West as an ideal site for meditation. Before Ven. Warapaniya Thera, Buddhist monks from Austalia, New Zealand and Iran had stayed here for meditation in the very silent environs, where the disturbances that one could call if that came from the chirping of birds.
The Dharma, which he read at the age of 16, at high school, changed Ven. Warapaniya Thera's entire life. The true teachings of Buddhism made him a Buddhist priest and Ven. Warapaniya Thera became a monk under the Korean tradition.
After the stint of meditation at a forest hermitage in Kandy, Ven. Warapaniya Thera came to the hermitage in Uraniya a few weeks ago, on the recommendation of a friend.
The red spots on his fair skin is due to mosquito bites. But Ven. Warapaniya Thera doesn't mind the hardships, and says that he will stay in this hermitage as long as it takes him to make his dream a reality; 'an end to suffering and end to an illusion', through meditation.
Bundala Village, which is over 100-years-old, is a traditional village in Bundala. Over 90 families inhabit this village and these people depend on chena cultivation, fishing in the lagoon and the sea, and paddy cultivation. Some work in salterns to earn a living.
Though we are a few miles away from the shores, we could still feel the cool sea breeze. Thilina (4) and his little friends are playing in front of Indrani's small grocery shop which has items from 'sini bolle' to meat balls. Two old men sitting on a bench discuss the 'highlights' which appear in the papers, while sipping plain tea. This reminds one of the old 'copi kade' (Coffee and tea boutique) where people gathered to discuss current news. Indrani earns nearly Rs. 450 daily but many villagers buy provisions on credit.
The little children were fortunate to witness the tsunami and escape death and destruction on that fateful day in December last year.
"We did not have to run because the sea water did not flood our village", says Thilina. He knows the secret of escaping the killer tsunami. It was the long sand dune around the park that protected the humans, flora and fauna of the park and its environs.
Bundala is a village which is below sea level, but the Bundala National Park suffered slight damage due to the man-made entrance, which cut the sand barrier some time ago, and through which the tsunami waves entered the park.
When compared to the mass destructions by the tsunami, the village by the forest and the park has been safe, thanks to the sand dunes along the coast. This emphasises the importance of not harming nature's natural defence. The sand dunes are a part of the wetlands eco-systems which can slow the gravity of natural disasters.
"Sand dunes are an integral component of coastal wetlands that play a major defensive role as a barrier to the force of the wave", IUCN Program Officer Dr. Channa Bambaradeniya says.
Meanwhile, the eco-friendly livelihoods of the inhabitants of the Bundala village also played a vital role in protecting the village and the park from the tsunami. Being traditional farmers, they mainly engage in chena and paddy cultivation and during the off season depend on fresh water fishing in lagoons - Bundala lewaya, Emilikala Kalapua, Malala lagoon, Mahalewaya and Koholankala lewaya.
"They engage in their livelihoods and reap the benefits while minimising the damages to lagoons and other natural eco-systems", says Assistant Park warden Chamath Gallage.
Compared to other tsunami hit areas, which suffered massive destruction, the tsunami waves that entered the Bundala National Park has helped increase the salinity in lagoons and inter tidal mud flats thus making fine feeding grounds for migratory birds.
"Flamingos did not come to the park for the last two years but they are coming now after the tsunami. A flock of 10 to 15 can be seen now in the park", Gallage says.
The park, which lies on the southeastern coast in the Southern Province, is 274 kilometres away from Colombo and a popular haunt for watching migratory birds.
Being the country's first Ramsar site, the 6216-hectare park, accommodates over 15,000 migratory shore birds. Especially, the migratory birds are from East Europe and the flamingos from India.
According to Park Warden Kumara de Silva, the number of tourists visiting the park has dropped after the tsunami, and the park's income had dropped from Rs. 400,000 to Rs. 50,000. "But the tourist arrivals are now increasing gradually", he says.
However, he says that the Park authorities are looking into the possibilities of paying compensation to the villagers who engage in traditional fishing with a view to stop fishig in the lagoons.
"We cannot say no to fishermen who have been engaged in lagoon fishing for years.
They depended on this for their livelihood even before the park was declared a National Park. But this practise will lead to a shortage of food for the birds", he adds.
Fishing in lagoons will also disturb the free movement of the migratory birds and lead to a decrease in the number of migratory birds in the park. The park became a popular destination for migratory birds because of rich food availability in lagoons. " Now we are holding discussions with the villagers to pay compensation for those fishermen who engage in lagoon fishery", de Silva says. "
