Lihini was feeling worn-out when she trekked down the sacred mount. She could not just put up with the fatigue. In no time she lost her balance and fell down a rock cliff. Some believe this took place in Hatton route and others think it is Ratnapura route. Whatever the route pilgrims stop over at one particular place to bid adieu to Lihini and resume the journey.
Sripada is a pilgrimage that was hard when the modern transport was quite unheard of back then. Our ancestors used to declare the last wills and initiate the pilgrimage. This is Buddhists’ Mecca since they have a great faith on this mountain believed to be accommodating the Buddha’s footprint.
The pilgrims never climb the mount alone. They are always in groups which have a chief each. The group chief is normally handpicked from the elder generation. They always kept tabs on what came out of their lips. They entertained fears for divine forces that reigned over the territory.
Lieutenant Malcolm narrates an interesting story on beliefs of divine forces. During the British rule the monks in the vicinity of Sripada had a belief that no White could climb the mount without impediment. Malcolm wanted give the lie to this local Tutankhamun's Curse attitude. He started the journey at 11 at night. No rains stood in the way as they were warned. Lieutenant’s team stumbled upon many things including dilapidated army castles. It took four hours to climb one hill of the whole range. The climbers somehow reached the peak at eight the following morning.
They proved the monks wrong, and came the most celebrated event hot on the heels. They fired three gunshots to mark their victory. Still they did not seem to have any idea of islanders’ fame for sanctity and calmness. Malcolm was regretting that he could not bring the Union Jack to hoist in the territory. Such was the thought of invaders by then; Sripada was only a joyride, it was no spiritual voyage in the least.
This account is found in the Sinhala translation of William Skeen’s ‘Adam’s Peak – Legendary, Traditional and Historic Notices’. The original which was written in 1870s is now a rare find. Yasapala Wanasinghe has translated the work with his additional resourceful notes, may be because the White thought stream poles apart from ours.
Sripada journey, though infrastructure has improved quite a lot now, is still arduous and the baggage makes the journey heavier. However it is not so for the pilgrims. Even if they feel honest, they would not dare say that. They fear the wrath of deities and consider it as a verbal misgiving if any such thing comes out of your mouth. Whatever said and done night trek is the most enduring as well as enjoyable journey. Especially in season, you wouldn’t be alone. Back trekkers would keep your spirits lifted by ‘hosannas’.
A commonly known hosanna is Aggala kan don putha meaning ‘son you should eat Aggala’. Aggala is a victual with sweets and pepper mixed inside which stimulates the body into the chilly environment.
Tamils have grounds to identify Sri Pada as their Sivanoli Padam. They have dedicated a number of places to God Siva; they are mainly Trincomalee and Mannar. The Tamil work Thadchana Kaylasa Manuium describes the birth of Sivanoli Padam in chapter 6 and 7.
Three rivers spring from Siva’s footprint on the mount’s top. They are called Mahaveli, Menik and Kavari. Mahaveli river flows towards Trincomalee. Menik river is up to Kataragama, which is considered to be owned by Siva’s son Subramniyam Sami. Kavari river is up to Mannar. All these three rivers are considered holy by Tamil Hindus.
The Muslim reverence for the mountain fascinatingly stems from a Christian source. Ever since the times of Apostles, they had formed a number of different opinion groups. Those who followed Plato, the Greek philosopher, placed Adam as the first man in the earth and started paying homage to him. In one of the ancient sources they are believed to have had great faith in body relics too. This is the starting point of Muslim devotion towards Adam’s peak, though they were scoffed at by then.
This belief on a first man stole the show in Arab world. Arabs took in Prophet Muhammad as the first man on earth and started worshipping him. Muslims believe that Adam was lamenting on a mountain in India until he met Eva who was in a hill over Mecca. Koran brings up an incident about Adam’s fall, but never goes into details. The belief that Adam lived on what is Sripada for Buddhists got instilled on Arab minds only after their navigators came across the mountain.
How did Buddhist pilgrimage start off, naturally the question arises. According to Mahawamsa, the Buddha left his footprint on his third visit to Sri Lanka. Ancient literary sources reveal that a king from Kashmir had visited Sri Lanka in the first century AD to worship the Buddha’s footprint.
Deity Saman, whatever the belief that he holds authority over the mountain range, is a Buddhist disciple. Buddhism does not reject the idea of gods and deities - it turns down the concept of praying gods. So to say deity Saman is someone who has achieved Sotapanna, the first stage of Buddhist sainthood. An average Buddhist has a fair reason to worship deity Saman, for he is above the normal human, being a deity as well as a Buddhist saint.
