Uniting Sri Lanka through food and medicinal security

By the Harmony page team

 In the backdrop of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), there was an event back home, which was given no international publicity. Foreign media or even local English language focused media did not show much interest in its coverage, although this page announced the event in detail last week. 

World leaders and diplomats who are quick to catch onto sensationalised accounts of ‘hunger in Sri Lanka’ probably were not aware that it was held in Colombo. If they were, they would know that the way forward would be to support initiatives such as these as opposed to ‘food donations.’

Held amidst Money pox and Corona fear mongering still monkeying around, a group of citizens organised an exhibition and sale of Sri Lanka’s traditional medicine, indigenous food and wellbeing related products, showcasing the country’s lived in food and medicine based heritage functional in many villages that elite English speaking educationists and ‘experts’ of this nation had almost completely forgotten about. 

Held at the premises of the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress (ACBC), organised by a Collective of indigenous physicians and indigenous wellbeing promoters and heritage food producers, the event was held from 23rd to the 25th to coincide with the International Book Fair held at the nearby premises of the BMICH. 

Free indigenous medicine consultation through ‘naadi checking’ (traditional pulse checking) was a key highlight of the event which had many citizens of Colombo who had hitherto been ignorant on disease occurrence, prevention and cures through diet and the traditional medical sciences, learning how to be healthy – the national way.

The participation of Sri Lanka’s Northern entrepreneurs of producing Siddha medicine centred food and wellbeing items was an added attraction showcasing the unity within Sri Lanka. This example serves as a base for the potential of using traditional knowledge and the nations’ intangible heritage for an authentic national unity and prosperity model which could be a core part of a domestic model of reconciliation (based on the core needs of Sri Lankans).

 With the encouragement and support of the current President of the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress, Chandra Nimal Wakishta and the organising coordinator Senarath Wijeysinghe amidst others, the Northern Participation was facilitated by mass communication practitioner and Traditional Knowledge promoter, Frances Bulathsinghala. 

The event served as a foundation for a national initiative she is working on to use traditional Lankan (Hela) knowledge of diverse sectors towards the collective purpose of a national unity model; of authentic practical heritage knowledge, holistic wellbeing, economic rights, heritage based human rights and national unity.

The exhibition and sale of Sri Lanka’s traditional medicinal/food/home curative plants, as well as cosmetic products, showcased the sustainable indigenous medical science of this land which has no after effects. 

The key goal of the initiative was educating Lankans of their heritage of food security, health and wellbeing in order to show the amount of financial wastage that occurs in each family because of this ignorance.

It certainly served as a timely reminder, to prevent our nation from squandering money we don’t have on global big pharma and remind them that our national medicinal heritage and food tradition easily cures, pre-empts and prevents any lifestyle disease from cancer to diabetes.

This event therefore could serve as a foundation to creating a health security model that will educate both Lankans and the international community that Sri Lanka can be independent of illnesses or malnutrition with adequate reinforcing of our local knowledge lost in the abyss of colonisation, neo colonisation and industrialisation.

Featured significantly at the September event was the non-poisonous agro and soil healing sciences of this nation, the ignorance of which is costing us billions of dollars which we are paying to the global chemical fertiliser industrialists. 

Several traditional physicians and their associates involved in the conservation and sale of medicinal plants were present, not just selling these plants but educating the public of their curative values through workshops and directly sharing information with customers who patronised the event.

 Among those carrying out the traditional wellbeing education workshops were, Sinhala Wedakam physician Arjuna Podiwedamahattaya who educates on environment based ‘wild foods’ of Lanka that the modern citizens are ignorant of, Laksuwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera hospital Director Sinhala Wedakam physician Dulari Mataraarahchi, Ayurveda Doctor Uthpala Perera who is working on the concept of ‘healing home gardens’ (Suwadayaka Gewathu), (traditional home healing) through the medicinal plants available in this country, MBBS qualified traditional nutrition expert Dr. Sujeewa Wickremesinghe, Ayurvedha Doctor G.C. Wijendra and Ayurveda doctor, G.V.C.P. de Silva. This is not an exhaustive list of the practitioners who held knowledge sessions at the event. 

While we will publish in the weeks to come the relevant educational material, below is a quote from Dr. G.V.C.P. de Silva who had a wide range of indigenous leaves on display along with the curative details cited: “We have put these leaves on display for the public to learn that they can be eaten as a ‘mallum. These commonly available leaves have extremely high immunity boosting medicinal properties that prevent diverse diseases and can be easily cultivated in every garden in minimum space. 

“The leaves are; Wild Orange leaves, Thebu, Gotukola, Murunga and Ranwara. They can be eaten together as traditionally done in the Pas Kole Sambole (Five leafy variety mixture)” which is an almost miraculous immunity booster and keeps all viruses at bay,” he said. 

 “Traditional Grain varieties, Leaves, fruits and spices are all part of the ancient medicinal and food security heritage of this nation. People become economically insecure because they do not practice the culture of food self- sufficiency that each household used to practice traditionally,” adds Dr. Uthpala Perera.

She said that knowledge camps are being conducted in many parts of the country assisting households to access and cultivate many indigenous food/and medicinal plants of the country to ensure they do not succumb to diseases easily.

 In the free health camps held by the Laksuwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera conducted by Sihala Wedakam physician Dulari Mataraarahchi the most problematic for people seemed to be the common diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension which made them life time dependents of the pharmacy.

“We checked the naadi and advised on a range of solutions that begins with traditional diet of indigenous food and correct lifestyle. Selling our medicines or profit making is not our goal,” she said adding that the Laksuwa Sahana Maha Weda Gedera in Kelaniya which began during the COVID pandemic as the only hospital treating COVID patients with Sinhala Wedakama has conducted many free health camps so far and treats every kind of ailments ranging from eye disease to cancer.

“We are very happy to see our Tamil brethren at this event and I am sure many of the Sinhala traditional physicians would have especially appreciated the sale of authentic Tamil heritage Gingerly oil products, as I have that were sold,” stated Arjuna Podi Wedamahattaya who as a result of the event had connected with and invited the North indigenous product entrepreneurs to showcase and sell their products at the Pala Wela restaurant run by him at the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress (ACBC) premises. 

“For us who know thoroughly about our food heritage, any fear that Sri Lankans will starve on the roads is a joke. What we will starve of is ignorance, if we continue to merely think of dhal and bread as our food. What we should be doing right now is having national campaigns to share the lost knowledge of traditional food of this nation and its heritage of wellbeing,” opined Arjuna Pannilage.

Subothan Mahadevan, an entrepreneur using the Tamil Heritage Wooden Sekku tradition of Gingerly oil production showcasing his ‘Mathura” food brands, Ruby Mariyathas, an entrepreneur who uses North and South cuisine for peacebuilding and who had pioneered the traditional Sinhala Kola Kenda tradition in Killinochchi and manufactures her grandmother’s Siddha medicine based hair oil recipe for many head related ailments, showcasing her Arokya food and oil brand, and Suganthini Sivakumar who manufactures a very wide range of Tamil heritage food products were all provided free stalls by the organisers. 

Seven more stalls were offered to the North-East entrepreneurs of Siddha and Unani traditions but although participation was confirmed several had problems with managing their transport and hence could not participate.

 “Whether in the North or South of Sri Lanka we have many natural foods that provide us health and prosperity. In the Tamil culture of Sri Lanka we generally consume these products which include those made with Kohomba leaves, Thulasi leaves and Gingerly to name a few,” stated Ruby Mariyathas. 

Gifted with an exuberant personality and a knack of making friends Ruby had within hours not just made friends but had the Sinhala entrepreneurs offering to teach her how to replicate their products and even re brand them under her brand! 

Several national business ventures have arisen out of this event through the North-South friendships created and will be showcased in this page once these plans are finalised. 

“This is a very nice set up and I really enjoyed the interaction with many Sinhalese and getting to know about their traditional heritage,” said Subothan Mahadevan who states that much of his clientele are Sinhalese. He was especially happy to connect with Sinhala Wedakam physician as gingerly is a key ingredient in Sinhala Wedakama. 

Also a spiritual practitioner of meditation Subothan Mahadevan had been part of a South team which had carried out meditation for the government military in January 2020 on the invitation of the then Commander of Security Forces in Jaffna. This page published this unique story two years ago.

Among the Sinhala traditional food product entrepreneurs who exhibited a range of heritage food products was a traditional physician Palitha Kumarasinghe who produces medicinal food products under the brand of ‘Ama,’  Samanlatha Jayakody who produces traditional Sinhala foods under the brand name of Hela Rasa, Theja Kumari, a 25 year old Ayurveda student and the daughter of a Sinhala Wedakam physician who produces a traditional – non chemical beauty product range and Dekalan Kandage Priyanthi Mallika, an international award winner and patent holder for Jackfruit ice cream and a unique traditional ice cream variety including Garlic and bee honey ice cream, Siyambala ice cream as well as Murunga ice cream, were those who attracted the crowd most.

 A wide array of village raw products from  the national project – ‘Sil Suwandai - Keth Sisilai” and the islandwide traditional food products exhibited and sold daily at the Pala Wele outlet at the ACBC, Colombo 07 premises were also showcased. 

 The traditional food and medicine event, held as an independent citizen event, under the patronage of the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress, serves as an ideal case study to the international community providing a counter narrative to the current version of economic situation which is sensationalised around the world as Lankans being starved on the high roads and which has well-meaning diplomats rushing to donate dry rations to a country of which it is said that even a dry twig will bear fruit. 

“This nation still retains the knowledge of the ancient agrarian and well-being heritage, kept alive by citizens valuing the authentic practicing of its indigenous knowledge,” said Dr. Kumudu Dahanayake, one of the pioneers of the ‘Sil Suwandai – Keth Sisilai” campaign who had organised exhibition stalls connected to the link between traditional diet and disease prevention.

A Forensic Medical specialist in the Western tradition who had converted to traditional medical practice, including the ancient meditation induced naadi wedakama said to have been practiced by ancient Rishis, Dahanayake in association with the indigenous wellbeing centre, Hela Suwaya, is currently working with relevant institutions to create economically secure villages. 

Cultivating the indigenous varieties of rice and educating the public on the need to convert to the traditional farming practices is a key goal Dahanayake and Hela Suwaya are working on.

“This holistic and sustainable framework of economic prosperity and individual wellbeing/happiness, is modelled on the ethics of the Dharma and indigenous values, creating economic structures that are not isolated from local knowledge, culture and environment protection,” says Dahanayake.

“Dharma is a spiritual concept not just associated with Buddhism but which is connected to all the spiritual traditions and can be used as a concept for a sustainable model for traditional economic prosperity and unity across Sri Lanka,” opined Dahanayake.

“We have created such a model village based on a spiritual and economic value framework in Polgahawela,” states a Samurdhi Development Officer Hettiarachchige Mala Niranjani who had showcased several of the agrarian and medicinal products of the village of Wellewa – the model village of sustainability and food security in Polgahawela. 

The food products included a wide range of traditional sweetmeats produced by indigenous rice and related grains and leaves. 

Going well out of her official duty limits Niranjani regularly comes to Colombo bringing the village produce to the Colombo 07 Pala Wela restaurant’s sale outlet, helping hundreds of rural traditional agriculturists of her village who find transport to Colombo difficult.

NOTE: This story will be continued next week featuring detailed entrepreneurial narrations of the participants of the 23 to 25 September event on traditional medicine and indigenous wellbeing.