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News and Events |
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Photographing
the masks at the Sri Sunandaramaya temple in Mirissa, Matara |
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Deities, demons and magic form part of the popular beliefs of
the Sinhalese and are closely associated with the folk culture,
rituals, healing practices and play in Sri Lanka. Despite the
gradual disappearance of these belief systems, rituals and
dramas with rapid socio-economic changes in the country,
attempts have been made by many scholars and others to preserve
these traditional rituals and drama for the benefit of the
future generations. |
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Sri
Sunandaramaya temple in Mirissa is one of the religious centres
that have strived to protect and preserve a large number of
original masks of deities and demons that it inherited and used
in folk rituals, healing practices and drama in the ancient
times. They are still being used in rituals and ceremonies
annually organized by the temple. PRDA took the initiative to
photograph these masks and preserve them in electronic form. The
photography was conducted
by an international photographer, John Mostard from Montreal,
Canada and they are now available in a CD at the public library
and the Nanasala located in the premises of the Mirissa temple. |
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Collection of masks at Sri Sunandaramaya
temple, Mirissa |
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