The nature of the foreign invasions during the Anuradhapura period.

Sri Lanka has met with foreign invasions in the Anuradhapura  kingdom which either resulted in the death of the native king or causing the ruler to withdraw from the capital seeking for refuge. However, both had equally disastrous outcomes such as the instability of the kingdom and the ill-fated condition of the Buddha Sasana in the face of foreign occupations. Besides the arrival of Vijaya in Sri Lanka, which cannot be entirely assumed to be an invasion but more likely a migration as Vijaya grasped the throne thanks to the aid of the local queen Kuweni which is a feature absent in the cases of later foreign occupations. King Surathissa’s reign was marked by the invasion of the two horse traders named Sena and Guththika who were said to be pious rulers and adopted Buddhism. Sena and Guththika marked an end to the ten year rule of Surathissa. The Mahavamsa mentions them as in possession of a great power whose reign lasted for twenty-two years.

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The invasion of Kalinga Magha and the fall of the Polonnaruwa kingdom.

 It is commonplace that the disunity among the natives inevitably makes a state vulnerable, as it keeps them occupied in their internal struggles which has the result of drawing their attention from possible external conquests. A similar event occurred in ancient Sri Lanka, to be more specific, during the Polonnaruwa kingdom. Sri Lanka was marked by the Kalinga Magha invasion in 1215 AD which led to the fall of the Polonnaruwa kingdom along with several other factors which were equally undesirable to the continuity of the kingdom. However, the other reasons aside, the Magha invasion alone can be looked on as a climax point of Sri Lankan history due to two reasons. Firstly, it operated as the immediate cause among a number of long term causes for the collapse of the Polonnaruwa kingdom. Secondly it marked a striking change of the capital of Sri Lanka which was transferred from Polonnaruwa to Dambadeniya.

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Why it remains difficult to determine whether Elara was a pious king or not?

Sri Lanka has undergone foreign invasions even from Anuradhapura period as revealed by historical chronicles such as Mahavamsa. Amongst these, the invasion of Elara (from 205-161 BCE) which took place during the reign of king Asela resulted in subjugating Rajarata and remained so during the reigns of Kawanthissa and Dutugamunu during which periods the sovereignty of Sri Lanka was no longer found. Despite the South Indian origin and the Tamil identity of Elara, Mahavmsa contains an account which paints his picture in a favorable light as a pious ruler who followed a healthy policy with regard to Buddha Sasana in Sri Lanka. But determining Whether Elara was a pious king or not has remained a controversial subject due to certain other factors not to mention the disparities found in various primary sources. For instance Pujavaliya reports about Elara as an invader who destroyed Buddha Sasana in Sri Lanka while Mahavamsa portrays him as a pious king who being a Tamil, benefitted Buddhism. Following such available accounts the scholars have divided themselves in speaking for and against the view that Elara was a pious king. For example, most sources assume that Elara was a pious king who is distinguished for his justice, while they identify Elara’s soldiers as the ones who should be held responsible for the damage inflicted upon Buddha Sasana.  Mahavamsa’ description on how Elara punished his own son for a misdeed which reflected his concern for justice has caused many to bear with the assumption that Elara was in fact a peaceful king with the exception of his soldiers whose misbehavior ended up damaging and disrespecting Buddhist temples. Therefore it is due to the number of references Mahawamsa makes about Elara he became well known for his justice despite being an invader.

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