King Walagamba - House of Moriya i | Anuradhapura - (BC 104 - BC 103) - Sri Lankan History - Kings - Governors - Prisidents

King Walagamba

House of Moriya i | Anuradhapura - (BC 104 - BC 103)

Maharattha, who killed King Khallatanaga and usurped royal power, did not get a chance to sit on the throne. The king’s younger brother, Prince Valagamba, also known as Wattagamini Abhaya, defeated him and ascended the throne. Anula Devi, who was the queen of King Khallatanaga, betrayed him and placed her son, Prince Mahachulika Mahatissa, in her son’s place. Because of this incident, King Valagamba came to be called “Pithuraja” (the father-killer). Due to the conspiracy of the Niganthas, the burning and death of princes, and the reckless acts of Maharattha, the internal situation of the country worsened. The internal forces that opposed royal power also turned against King Gamini Abhaya. This happened unexpectedly. In the fifth month of his reign, a rebellion arose from Nakula city in Ruhuna. Its leader was a Brahmin named Tissa, also called “Thiya.” Meanwhile, seven invaders landed at Mahatittha, on the northwestern coast of Sri Lanka. Since forces were attacking from both sides, the king cleverly planned a way to divert both to one side. He sent a message to the Brahmin Thiya saying: “The kingdom is now yours. Defeat the invaders.” The Brahmin Thiya arose in Nakula city of Rohana. The Mahavamsa calls him an ignorant thief, but also says that he gathered a large following. He started the rebellion after agreeing to the words of another Brahmin. When Prince Lajjitissa was traveling from Dighavapi to Anuradhapura, although it cannot be said with certainty that there was anarchy in Rohana, signs of such a condition had begun to appear. Perhaps Princes Bhallatanaga and later Valagamba had both resided in Dighavapi. After his arrival in Anuradhapura, the situation in Rohana is unclear. When there was no proper ruler and internal unrest prevailed in the royal kingdom, it created an opportunity for opposition forces to rise. The Brahmin Thiya became a symbol of this. Moreover, the conflicts among the rulers of Lanka and the disturbed nature of the country gave foreign invaders an opening to intervene. It is evident that in almost every case in history, foreign invasions occurred when there were crises within the royal family or weaknesses in the ruling system. The same happened in the early years of King Valagamba’s reign. However, Thiya, following the king’s message, went to fight the invaders and was defeated. The victorious invaders marched toward Anuradhapura. King Valagamba faced them at Kolambahalaka but was defeated and forced to flee. Earlier, his ancestor, King Dutugemunu, had fought and won against the invader Bhalluka on this same land—but Valagamba’s defeat in that same place could be seen as the irony of fate. When all these setbacks happened, the pregnant Queen Anula Devi (the former wife of Khallatanaga), her son Prince Mahasilumahatissa, Queen Somadevi and her son Prince Choranaga, were with the king in the royal chariot. As the king fled, a Nigantha monk from the Giri Monastery shouted scornfully, “The great black Sinhalese is fleeing!” The king heard this insult and kept it in his mind. Because the chariot was heavy and could not move fast, Queen Somadevi, thinking they would be caught, sacrificed herself by jumping off. The king escaped and hid in the Wessagiri forest. This Wessagiri is not the place near present-day Isurumuniya Vihara; the stone inscriptions found there show that that site belonged to the ancient Isurumuniya temple. Since the city outskirts were unsafe for a hiding king, the Wessagiri mentioned must have been far outside the city. After the king fled, one of the invaders who took control of the city saw Queen Somadevi and took her away to his homeland. Another invader obtained the sacred Bowl Relic of the Buddha and left with it. Of the remaining five invaders, one named Pulahatta was made king. His minister was a Dravidian named Bahiya, who killed Pulahatta and seized the throne. Pulahatta ruled for three years. Bahiya ruled for two years before being killed by his general, Panayamara. Panayamara ruled for four years and was then killed by his general, Pilayamara, who ruled for about seven months before being slain by his general, Dathiya, who took the throne. Thus, these Dravidian invaders ruled Anuradhapura for fourteen years and seven months. Nothing is recorded about their activities. The above is the basic account from the Mahavamsa about the two main forces King Valagamba faced. However, in the Attuva (commentaries) written some time before the Mahavamsa, we see some differences. According to Sammohavinodani, Valagamba had to face two main powers—the rebellion of the Brahmin thief (Thiya) and the famine known as “Baminitiyasaya.” The Atthakathas mention these, while the Vamsa kathas record the rebellion of Tissa the Brahmin and the Dravidian invasion. The Attuva does not mention the Dravidian invasion at all. Generally, Atthakathas were written before the Vamsakathas, but both drew from older texts. Therefore, the absence of Dravidian invasion in the Attuva and the absence of famine in the Vamsa need to be examined. The rebellion started in Nakula city of Rohana, and during that time, a famine arose causing great suffering. This famine is called “Brahmana Thiya Bhaya” or “Baminitiyasaya.” Because of this famine, the monks and Buddhists fell into great distress. Many monks died, unable to sustain their lives, and some fled to India (Dambadiva). The land of the Great Vihara became deserted and overgrown with jungle. These details are explained clearly in the Attuva texts, but those texts do not mention the Dravidian rulers found in the Vamsa. Some believe that the Dravidians ruled in the name of the Brahmin Thiya. The Vamsa says he was captured by the Dravidians but not killed. According to the Attuva, after Thiya’s death, Valagamba regained the throne. Therefore, it seems likely that Thiya had allied with the Dravidians. Senarath Paranavitana also suggests that the Dravidians ruled in the name of Thiya. The king, hiding in the Wessagiri forest, met the monk Mahatissa, who compassionately supported him by offering alms food. Grateful, the king wrote a decree giving the temple land for the Sangha’s use. Later, he went to Silasobbha Kanda and then to Salgalla near Mathuvelanga. There, too, he met Mahatissa Thera, who entrusted the king to his attendant named Tanasiwa, a regional officer. This same person is also called “Siva” in the chronicles. “Tana” may have been a title of office. In the inscriptions found at Nuwarakanda in the Kurunegala district, references are made to “Gamini Abhaya, the grandfather king,” and to his father, a man named “Gamika Siva.” Folk tradition says a person named Sivaranga ruled that area. It can be assumed that Gamini Abhaya mentioned in the inscriptions was King Valagamba. It is unclear who Kanatistha’s wife (the king’s daughter-in-law) was. If Queen Anula, who was pregnant when the king fled, gave birth to a daughter, it may have been she who was given to Kanatistha at a young age. Gamika Siva, Kanatistha’s father, may have been the same Rattika Siva to whom the king entrusted his safety. These are new details that help fill gaps in history. The king stayed there in hiding for fourteen years. When Anuradhapura was in the hands of invaders, it was common practice for rulers to hide in Rohana, organize armies, and return to regain the throne. But King Wattagamini Abhaya did not follow that tradition. He fled instead to Malaya country. The main reason was that a rebellion led by the Brahmin Thiya was raging in Rohana. Earlier, when King Lajjitissa came from Dighavapi to Anuradhapura, no record of conditions in Rohana is found in the Mahavamsa. There is also no evidence that Princes Bhallatanaga or Valagamba were in Rohana then. This suggests that after Dutugemunu united the island, the strength of Rohana gradually weakened under his successors. A weak ruler in Anuradhapura allowed opposition forces to rise from Rohana. Possibly, the Brahmin Thiya’s rebellion arose from these tensions. The famine worsened the situation, especially in Rohana, which suffered greatly. Therefore, for the weakened king, going to Rohana was like going toward an enemy. After twelve years, Thiya died. The Atthakatha states that after the Brahmin thief’s (Thiya’s) death, Pithuraja regained power. His death removed a strong enemy who might have attacked from behind during a campaign to free Anuradhapura. The king may have begun secret military preparations with the help of Mahatissa Thera while still in hiding. During this time, an incident revealed his identity—it was a quarrel between Queen Anula Devi and Tanasiwa’s wife. According to the Mahavamsa, it began when Tanasiwa’s wife insulted Queen Anula by kicking her basket during a trip to the paddy fields. Since food for the king’s group came daily from Tanasiwa’s house, this insult angered Anula. Tanasiwa’s wife may have resented having to feed another family for a long time from her husband’s earnings. Her jealousy caused a serious quarrel. When Tanasiwa heard of this, he took up a bow to kill the king—but the king, acting in self-defense, shot him instead. Thus, Tanasiwa lost his life and his future rewards because of his wife’s folly. Local people, angered that their ruler had been killed by an unknown stranger, gathered—forcing the king to reveal himself. He declared publicly: “I am Pithuraja, son of King Saddhatissa.” This revelation calmed the crowd. After this, the king gathered eight ministers and organized his army. He again met Mahatissa Thera, who invited him to a religious ceremony at Agalla Vihara. There, an unexpected event occurred. The stairway to the upper platform of the Akasha Cetiya was narrow, allowing only two people to pass side by side. As the king ascended, his officer Kapisisa came down. To make way for the king, the officer knelt on the ground. But the king took it as an insult and rashly killed him. Shocked by this, the other ministers fled. On the way, they were robbed and went to Hambugalla Vihara, where a monk named Tissa (possibly a disciple of Mahatissa) cared for them. He asked them: “Can the country and the religion be protected by joining the king or by joining the Dravidians?” Realizing the truth, the ministers returned to the king with Tissa Thera and Mahatissa Thera, forming unity again. With his army gathered, the king marched to Anuradhapura, defeated the last Dravidian ruler Dathiya, and regained his throne, receiving his coronation. According to the Mahavamsa, the invaders of Anuradhapura were Dravidians. Since many of their names end with “Mara,” Professor Senarath Paranavitana suggests they were Pandyan. Some among them appear to have been Buddhists, as one invader respectfully took the Bowl Relic of the Buddha. Pali texts mention that even during the famine, some monks received alms from the royal palace, showing the invaders observed Buddhist customs—perhaps to gain the people's favor, as King Elara had done earlier. After expelling the invaders and being crowned, King Valagamba rewarded all who had helped him and gave appropriate positions to the worthy. He built a monastery and offered it to Mahatissa Thera, who had protected him during his hardships. Recalling the words of the Nigantha monk who had mocked him as “the great black Sinhalese fleeing,” the king constructed his monastery near the hill where that monk lived. He named it “Abhayagiri” — combining his own name “Abhaya” with “Giri” (hill), since it was built by the hill. The name did not come from the Nigantha’s “Giri,” but from the mountain itself — symbolizing that the king turned even his enemy’s insult into a monument of victory and piety.