සසර පුරා සුවඳ සරා ඔබම ළඟම රැඳෙමි

පි. තුරුලිය නිසලයි - වැව් දිය සසලයි

තනිකම ඉවුරු බිඳියි

මග අතරමංව හිඳිමි

ඔබ කොහිද කොහිද සොයමි

ගැ. ඔබ ළඟම ළඟම හිඳිමි

ගැ. සසර පුරා සුවඳ සරා 

ඔබම ළඟම රැඳෙමි

ඔබ කොහිද කොහිද සොයමි

පි. ඔබේ සුසුම් සුවඳින් පෑරී

වෙල් ඉපනැල්ලේ පවන් සළයි

ගංදොර සුහුඹුල් මතකය වැළපී

සිත මා තෙමා වැටෙයි

ඔබ කොහිද කොහිද සොයමි

පි. ඔබේ සුරත් පහසින් ගිලිහී

ලියගොමු ලන්දේ සොවින් සැළෙයි

තණපත් මුතුපිණි කඳුළින් බරවී

ඔබ පා පහස පතයි

ඔබ කොහිද කොහිද සොයමි

ගැ. ඔබ ළඟම ළඟම රැඳෙමි

පදමාලාව - කුලරත්න ආරියවංශ

සංගීතය - ශාන්ත ජයලත් තිසේරා

ගායනය - ඉමාන් පෙරේරා, උරේෂා රවිහාරි

හදවතින්ම ආදරය කරන කෙනෙක්‌ වෙන් වුනොත්... නැත්නම් මිය ගියොත්... දැනෙන වේදනාව... වචනවලට පෙරළන්න පුළුවන්ද.... බැහැ... මුළු ලෝකයම හිටියත් වැඩක්‌ තියේද... ඇය... ඔහු නැති ජීවිතය... තනිකම පාලුව ඉවසන්න බැහැ....

ශ්‍රී ලංකාවට "ෆේස්‌ බුක්‌" එපාවේගෙන එනවාද?

ඉස්‌සර සාරවිටින් කළ දේ දැන් ෆේස්‌ බුක්‌ කරයි. සාරවිට ගැන ගීතයක කියන්නේ 

"නැති නෑදෑකම් ඇතිකර ගන්නට 

ඇති නෑදෑකම් තහවුරු වන්නට

කාගෙත් හොඳ හිත සමග බෙදාගෙන කාලා බලන්....." යනුවෙනි.

ඒ එකලය. මේ කාලයේ නම් ඇති සබඳතා තහවුරු වන්නත්, නැති සබඳතා ඇතිකර ගන්නත් හොඳහිත බෙදාගැනීමටත් යොදාගන්නේ ෆේස්‌ බුක්‌a එකයි.

පළමුවරට දැන හැඳිනගෙන හිතවත්වූ කෙනෙක්‌ සමග ඒ හිතවත්කම දිගින් දිගටම පවත්වා ගැනීමට ඉස්‌සරම විමසුවේ ලිපිනයයි. පසුව ජංගම දුරකථනය ජාතික හැඳුනුම්පත තරමටම බහුල වද්දී zමොකක්‌ද මොබයිල් නම්බර් එකZ යෑයි විමසූ කාලයද අවසන් වී යන අයුරකි. මෙකල අලුත් හැඳුනුම්කමක්‌ දිගින් දිගටම පවත්වාගැනීමට විමසන්නේ zමොකද්ද ඔයාගේ එෆ්. බීZ එක කියාය.

Colombo hotels, restaurants internationally graded

The Ind-Expo Certification Company, with the collaboration of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), has launched a project to encourage the upgrading of food storage, food preparation and food supplying in organizations such as hotels, restaurants, bakeries and super markets that are engaged in supplying food to the public. This project, aimed at improving the cleanliness, the hygiene and the taste of the food the public buy, is named the "Crowns for Food Hygiene" project. The company is planning to expand this project, initially launched within the CMC limits, to cover the whole of the island, with the active participation of the health authorities.

Royal wedding: Marriage is an institution for a good reason

By John Sentamu

Prince William and Kate Middleton are about to make a commitment that is becoming all too rare, says John Sentamu.

The millions around the world who will be watching the royal wedding may not notice the wording of the promises Kate Middleton and Prince William make to each other. As with every other couple, each will be asked first if they will "love, comfort, honour and protect…" their spouse. The answer to this is "I will". It will not be "I do". We take it for granted that the bride and groom love each other on their wedding day, so there is no need to ask them if they do. It is what follows that counts.

At the outset, the couple is asked to make a commitment, an act of will, for the future. Theirs is a resolution to love, comfort, honour and protect, whatever the circumstances. Someone joked that love is blind, but marriage is a real eye-opener. There are bound to be times in the future when the romance thermometer will barely register a reading; those who have said "I will" and meant it, know only too well that feelings can wobble and are untrustworthy tests of authenticity, anyway. Long-lasting marriages rely on mutual understanding and forbearance. Maturity discards rose-tinted spectacles in favour of seeing things as they really are.

Royal wedding..............

 

Prince William places the ring on the hand of Kate Middleton, at Westminster Abbey during their wedding service at Westminster Abbey, central London, Friday April 29, 2011. (AP Photo/Andrew Milligan, Pool)

Work for country's progress - President

I take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt wishes to the working community when the May Day is celebrated worldwide, President Mahinda Rajapaksa states in his May Day message.

"I remind you with pride of Sri Lanka's higher recognition among the South Asian countries as a country which enforced the conventions of the International Labour Organization very successfully. First and foremost I extend my gratitude for the Sri Lankan labour community for contributing fruitfully to increase the country's economic development growth rate to eight percent. "With the defeat of terrorism we have expedited our program to win the rights of the working class. The introduction of a Pension scheme for the Private sector as a government which could recognize the interests of the people is a massive victory of the general public. It ensures a better future for the contributors of the Employees' Trust Fund. It is a great pleasure for us as we dedicated ourselves to win the rights of the working crowd throughout the history.

Guns silent; reports as weapons

Editorial - The Island

One's opposition to the Moon Panel report should not be misconstrued as one's disregard for the suffering of civilians during the war. For, those who are supporting that document to the hilt are the very ones who backed and defended the LTTE thus enabling it to scuttle several peace processes, plunge the country back into war, use human shields, recruit child combatants and kill civilians in their thousands. If they are genuinely interested in having crimes against civilians probed, they should ask for an investigation into all phases of the eelam war. By demanding that only the final phase of eelam war IV be probed, they are trying to cover up what theLTTEhad done previously.

GL: Moon Report ‘is legally, morally and substantively flawed’

External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris says the controversial Darusman Report is the product of a personal initiative taken by UNSG Ban ki-Moon and the mandate of the Panel was purely advisory in nature, as stated in its Terms of Reference.

Addressing the Colombo-based diplomatic corps at the External Affairs Ministry, Prof Peiris highlighted some of the fundamental deficiencies, inherent prejudices and malicious intentions that characterize the Darusman report. The flaws pertain not only to the contents of the Report, but also to the methodology followed in arriving at its conclusions, Prof. Peiris said. The Minister declared that the Report is "legally, morally and substantively flawed".

Prof Peiris made the following points during his briefing: Sri Lanka does not consider the Darusman Report as a UN document, as it has not been mandated by any inter-governmental or multilateral forum. The document is the product of a personal initiative taken by the UNSG. Furthermore, the mandate of the Panel is purely advisory in nature, as stated in its Terms of Reference.

Facebook launches deals programme, rivals Groupon

The social networking site Facebook login webpage. File Photo

What happens when you cross the world's largest social network with one of the hottest business models in e-commerce? Facebook wants to find out.

Facebook is launching a deals programme on Tuesday in five US cities, following on the popularity of Groupon and other services that offer deep discounts - for example, $50 worth of food at a local eatery for $25.

By allowing small businesses to leverage the Internet while helping consumers score great deals, these group-couponing services have become some of the fastest-growing businesses in the world.

Many deals sites have a social component. For instance, if you get three friends to buy a LivingSocial voucher, yours is free. Groupon's offers become valid only after a certain number of people purchase them.Facebook now wants a part of that. It hopes to exploit its existing networks of friends and family when it begins testing offers in San Diego, San Francisco, Atlanta, Dallas and Austin, Texas.

Sri Lanka gifts sapphire studded hair pin to Kate

The studded diamond hair pin

Sri Lanka has gifted a Ceylon Sapphire studded diamond hair pin to Kate Middleton who marries Britain's Prince William today. The state-owned Sri Lanka Gem and Jewellery Authority (SLGJA) said the gift was in appreciation of the British Royal family's association with Ceylon Sapphires over many generations.

"This is the first ever international campaign aimed at raising awareness about the rarity and value of the Ceylon Sapphire," SLGJA chief Macky Hashim said. The hair pin had already been delivered to the Middletons, Hashim said.

Kate Middleton already wears a blue Ceylon Sapphire engagement ring, coming from the late Princess Diana, the mother of the groom, Prince William.

Daily News - 

Effective use of words in business Well-written, well-spoken ; well done!:

Good communication is essential for your business; without it your business will not remain alive. If your business associates and customers do not understand the message you are conveying or if they interpret it as negative, they may take their business elsewhere.

Business owners and employees, therefore, must practice refined communication standards at all times to win over more customers and corporate partners.

Keenness and commitment to keep a great business communication channel open is a surefire recipe for continued success in business.

The communication you want to convey may be a proposal that opens new doors, a technique that solves a problem, an insight that simply makes sense or any other idea that boosts the bottom line of your business

Perhaps the particular communication may be a difficult one like a new policy statement, a refusal to contribute to some corporate donation, issuing an ultimatum letter, having to tell the shareholders to expect a lower result or may be even a strong request from the bureaucrats. The objective of effective communication is being able to break both good and bad news in the most professional way.

Marketing insights from Facebook

Facebook, the social media giant, has now reached a 665+ million user base with 80 million new accounts in the first quarter of 2011. There is no doubt that it has hit the Sri Lankan context with a 47.2 percent online penetration that is a user base of 830k+ taking the country into the 75th position of the global Facebook list. However, Sri Lanka experienced a 7 percent drop in the user base that is over a 64k+ users. Mark & Comm Limited (MNC), a strategic marketing, reputation and communications partnered with Social Baker, the heart for Facebook statistics and a leading Facebook application developer, to bring in insights into Facebook pages in Sri Lanka and how it is mis-used when it comes to brand engagement, and the measures taken to tackle and change perspective.

Ozone hole has dried Australia says study

The Antarctic ozone hole is about one-third to blame for Australia’s recent series of droughts, say scientists.

Writing in the journal Science, they conclude that the hole has shifted wind and rainfall patterns right across the Southern Hemisphere, even the tropics.

Their climate models suggest the effect has been notably strong over Australia.

Many parts of the country have seen drought in recent years, with cities forced to invest in technologies such as desalination, and farms closing. The scientists behind the new study - led from Columbia University in New York - added the ozone hole into standard climate models to investigate how it might have affected winds and rains.

“The ozone hole results in a southward shift of the high-latitude circulation - and the whole tropical circulation shifts southwards too,” explained Columbia’s Sarah Kang.

Of particular interest was the southward migration of the Southern Hemisphere jet stream. These high-altitude winds are key to determining weather patterns, in both hemispheres.

Much of the cold weather felt in the UK over the last couple of winters, for example, was caused by blocking of the Northern Hemisphere stream.

Ceylon Sapphire adorns Kate’s engagement ring *The Royal Wedding:

With the world holding their breath for what has been termed ‘the greatest reality show to ever hit television’, the most important symbol of this wedding is the beautiful engagement ring that sits on Kate Middleton’s finger which is intrinsically linked to our wonderful island-nation. This is a symbolic ring that has set off a chain of events that has culminated in this highly anticipated Royal wedding.

The Ceylon Sapphire, which is the central focus of her engagement ring, is one of Sri Lanka’s prized gem treasures. It is, however, a sentimental treasure to all the citizens of the United Kingdom, as this ring belonged to and was chosen by the ever iconic, late Princess Diana. For Prince William, this ring has enormous significance. "It’s my mother’s engagement ring, so of course it’s very special to me. This was my way of making sure that my mother didn’t miss out on today," he said as the couple posed for photographers inside St James’s Palace.

The whole world awaits: Wedding of a most loved future king

The Royal couple

The whole world will be watching when Prince William, second in line to be the King marries Miss Kate Middleton tomorrow. One of the most important things about this wedding is that, bride and groom will not be accepting wedding gifts and they have created a charitable gift fund to help celebrate their wedding. The fund will focus on

assisting charities, which sup

port the five causes chosen by the couple and they have asked that anyone wishing to send them a wedding gift consider doing so in the form of a donation to the fund. The five charities are: Children fulfilling their potential, support for Services personnel and their families, changing lives through art and sport, help and care at home and conservation for future generations.

The most lavish wedding to date was that of Charles and Diana who married 30 years ago on July 29, 1981, at St Paul's Cathedral. It was also the BBC's biggest and most expensive outside broadcast ever and their son's Royal Wedding is set to be a global media extravaganza with the biggest audience in television history with an estimated 2.4 billion, more than double that of his parents. An estimated 400 million-plus will also watch the ceremony online. The first royal wedding to be filmed was that of Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the late Queen Mother, and the Duke of York in 1923. The current Queen's wedding, on a wintry day in November 1947, was the first to be televised and broadcast live, to 42 countries.

I’m not hungry for money, says Malinga

Lasith Malinga prepares to address the media at the briefing held yesterday, to announce his retirement from Test cricket at the Galle Face hotel, Colombo. (Pic by Kamal Wanniarachchi)

Courtesy - The Island By Revata S. Silva

Clarifying his decision to retire from Test cricket following Sri Lanka’s defeat against India in the World Cup final, Sri Lanka’s ace fast bowler Lasith Malinga reiterated yesterday that his retirement was not due to temptation for hefty amounts of money offered in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

A somber looking Malinga, barring his earrings, etc., addressed the media at the Galle Face hotel, Colombo last afternoon emphasising his Test retirement had been planned as early as last January due to a nagging right knee injury and, in fact, had confirmed Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) earlier, on his non availability for the forthcoming England Test series.

Malinga, the key fast bowler of the IPL franchise Mumbai Indians, owned by tycoon Mukesh Ambani, puzzled local cricket fans for his continued involvement with the money rich Indian franchise, amidst talks on his retirement plans, sparking speculations on the star bowlers’ greediness for money.

"After the selection of the England Test squad (for the forthcoming England tour) there were lots of reports in the media insinuating that I might be feigning an injury to play in the IPL. This was very upsetting as I have always been totally committed to playing for Sri Lanka. I realised then that I was better making a final decision on my Test career and, after discussing with my family, I decided to give up Test cricket. I wrote to the selectors and the cricket board last Friday confirming this and the same afternoon I released a statement to the media," Malinga, who played in his last Test in August 2010 in a career spanning 30 Tests, stated in a media release issued yesterday.

Teen suicides… why ????

The definition of suicide contains two components – that the individual brought about his or her own death, and that he/she did so knowingly. Attempted suicide or suicide is usually carried out at the height of an interpersonal crisis. Suicides can be grouped in to two broad categories. The first group includes those deaths comes as a surprise to his/her acquaintances.

Often these are individuals who have led stable lives but whose stability has been precariously dependent on one other individual.

The other sub group is chronically maladjusted individuals. They have a long history of personal difficulties, conflicts with the law, work instability and sometimes interpersonal violence.

Teenagers who attempt suicide have similar difficulties to their adult counterparts, but in many cases they also face problems in their relationships with their parents. Although psychological and psychiatric issues are found in most individuals who attempt suicide, only a third are found to have definite psychological disorder. In many cases this is transient, being largely secondary to social difficulties. About 5-8% of individuals suffer from serious psychological illnesses, which require treatment in a hospital. The most common disorder is depression, with anxiety and schizophrenia (a serious psychiatric condition) occurring in few cases.

How the controversial Darusman report cynically whitewashes the terroristic LTTE: The horrifying doings of the ‘world’s most disciplined militant group’

Courtesy - Daily News

While the world had been horror-struck by the gruesome terroristic acts of the LTTE over nearly 30 years, the controversial Darusman report, which Sri Lanka totally rejects, attempts to give the LTTE some dubious respectability in the most cynical fashion.The following quote from the report proves the point:

The LTTE began as a Tamil liberation movement and eventually became the most disciplined and most nationalist of the Tamil militant groups, emerging as the dominant force espousing a separatist agenda in the mid-1980s.

However, it is plain to see that this is nothing but a childish attempt at whitewashing the LTTE which emerged as the world’s most brutal terror outfit. Our pictures here of instances of LTTE savagery over the years prove the point.

Kebithigollewa massacre	Habarana bus massacre
Aranthalawa massacre	Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi before being killed by an LTTE suicide bomber
Muttur massacre	Kent and Dollar Farm massacre

Diana’s Ratnapura sapphire ring worries Kate Middleton

Courtesy - The Bottom Line By M.S.Shah Jahan 

Super slim Kate-Catherine Elizabeth Middleton, 29, the princess-to-be has a worry over her engagement ring with Ratnapura sapphire. Kate has slimmed down so much that she had to shrink her famous engagement ring to fit her finger as the dazzling sapphire and diamond band is too big for her size H finger. Princess Diana too wore it on the same finger. 

A Royal source said: “The band was turning. Kate absolutely adores it and didn’t want to cause fuss. The bride asked Royal jewellers G Collins and Sons to make it smaller attaching two tiny platinum beads to the inside of the bottom of the Sri Lankan sapphire ring from slipping. That will make it a size I, one notch up from Kate’s finger width to ensure it remains comfortable. She was terrified it will fall off during the wedding. A bride’s worst nightmare is looking down and seeing her ring has fallen off. One can only imagine how this will be magnified when you are marrying the future King of England.” 

William said he had given his mother’s famous engagement ring to his fiancée so that his late mother would “not miss out” on the royal wedding. In February 1981, when Diana Spencer was placed in the spotlight right after the wedding proposal of Prince Charles, the same spotlight focussed on her wedding ring too. Garrard Jewelers who is the British’s royal family’s official crown jeweller, created a lovely ring out of a magnificent 12 carat oval Sri Lankan blue sapphire of the bluish hue with 14 solitaire cut diamonds on the side, and set in 18-carat white gold forming an elegant and very elaborate setting.

කපුගේ!

කුඹුරු කොටන තැන ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

හේන් රකින තැන ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

පෝරු ගාන තැන ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

බැත පාගන තැන ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

අඬ හැරේ තවම ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

සී පදේ තවම ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

පෙරහරේ තවම ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

ගම්මඩුවෙ තවම ඔබේ හඬ ඇහෙනවා

 

ජයන්ත ග. ජෝතියරත්න Silumina

(2011.04.03 දිනට යෙදුණු ගායන ශිල්පී විශාරද ගුණදාස කපුගේ මහතාගේ අනුස්මරණය වෙනුවෙනි.)

සැඳෑ වරුණ ගැයේ මෙසේ..................

ගීතයට පදනම් වන ප්‍රස්තුතයෙහි මූලික හැඩතල අනුව ඒ ගීතය හරහා මතුවන රසය ද විවිධ හැඩතල උරුම කරගනී. එකම ප්‍රස්තුතය මඟින් බිහිවන විවිධ රසභාවයන් රසිකයාගේ සිත් සතන් පුරවා ලමින් ඔවුන් ආනන්දයටත් ඒ හරහා ප්‍රඥාවටත් යොමු කරවයි. ගීතය සඳහා ස්වභාවධර්මය වස්තු විෂය කර නොගත් කිසිදු ගේය පද රචකයකු මේ මිහිතලයෙහි අපට හමු නොවේ. ස්වභාවධර්මයේ විවිධ සංසිද්ධීන්, වෙසෙසින්ම ස්වභාව සෞන්දර්යේ විවිධ පැතිකඩ සිය ගීත මඟින් සන්නිවේදනය කිරීමට උත්සාහ ගනු ලබන පද රචකයන් අත ස්වභාව සෞන්දර්ය තේමා කොටගත් වචන සමුදාය ගේය කාව්‍යයක් බවට පත්වනුයේ නිරායාසයෙනි.

සැන්දෑව වූ කලි මෙසේ ගේය පද රචකයන් අත පිරිපහදු වී එහි නොයෙක් හැඩතල ඇසුරින් රසිකයාගේ භාවමණ්ඩලය ආමන්ත්‍රණය කරනු ලබන සියුම් ප්‍රස්තුතයකි. සැන්දෑව, සැඳෑ අහස, සැඳෑ කළුවර, සැඳෑ වෙලාව, සැඳෑ සෞන්දර්ය හරහා මූලික ලෙස ගලායන විවිධ අනුභූතීන් රසිකයාගේ හදවත සියුම් ලෙස ආමන්ත්‍රණය කරයි.

සැඳෑ අඳුර ලොව ගලන වෙලාවට

කවුළු පියන් පත් වැසෙන වෙලාවට

දහසක් දොම්නස් සිහින පැතුම් මැද

තනිවුණු ඔබෙ සුසුමන් සෙමින් විත්

මගෙ හදවත පාරයි

Wijedasa Rajapakshe’s letter to UNSG

Through UN office in Colombo/ By post/email

25th April, 2011

Dear Sir,

Report of the purported Panel of Experts to advise you on the alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka during the last phase of the war ended in May 2009

I am a Member of Parliament representing the United National Party, the main opposition in the Parliament. I write this in my capacity as a President's Counsel (Senior Lawyer) and a citizen of Sri Lanka. ( My C.V. is annexed hereto for your perusal)

I have learnt that the said purported Panel of Experts appointed by you has submitted a report to you in which serious allegations are levelled against the Head of the State and Armed Forces of Sri Lanka. I am aware of only a limited summary of it through the publication in the media and I reserve my right to make a comprehensive representation on contents thereof, once I get an opportunity to read the entire report supposedly of about 200 pages.

Sai Baba's funeral tomorrow

Sathya Sai Baba's body will be buried tomorrow in line with the practice for spiritual leaders in India.

Thousands of grieving devotees yesterday filed past the body of Sathya Sai Baba, who was followed by politicians, Bollywood actors and sport stars alike. Sai Baba's corpse was displayed in a transparent casket at his ashram in Puttaparthi, a village in Southeast India that was transformed into a major pilgrimage centre during his life.

Followers wept as they bid farewell to their spiritual leader, who died aged 85 of multiple organ failure on Sunday morning after spending three weeks in hospital.

Daughter...................................

World’s lowest gravity found in Sri Lanka

The Southern sea of Sri Lanka has been identified as the region with the lowest gravitational pull in the world, geologists said. According to researching scientists a particular reason behind this low gravity had not yet been discovered. Professor of Geology Wilbert Kehelpannala of Peradeniya University told Daily Mirror that scientists were still researching on factors which cause low

gravitational regions in the world but no explanation had been discovered so far.

“Gravitational power is a factor which depends on the density of basic rock and its calculation is a complex process. It is determined according to the density of the basic rocks as well as considering the topography of a region. Usually if the density of the basic rocks is high, the gravitational  power should be high too,” explained Prof. Kehelpannala.

He added however in certain regions the trend differs whereas the basic rock density contradicts with the gravity power.  “In such situations the basic rock density might be high but the gravity would be low or vice versa. This results in a gravity anomaly, otherwise known as a Bouguer anomaly and the South sea of Sri Lanka has the lowest in the world,” he stated.

By Lakna Paranamanna - DM

Hindu holy man Sathya Sai Baba dies aged 86

Hindu holy man Sathya Sai Baba, considered a living god by millions of followers worldwide, died Sunday morning in a hospital near his southern Indian ashram, a doctor said. He was 86.

Sai Baba had spent nearly a month on breathing support and dialysis while struggling with multiple-organ failure after being admitted March 28 to the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, near his ashram in Puttaparti village in Andhra Pradesh state.

Women selling marigold garlands broke down in tears outside the ashram when the news was announced, and followers began trickling into the temple complex where the guru's body would lie in state from Sunday night through Tuesday before a planned funeral Wednesday morning.

"We appeal to all not to rush to the hospital, but to remain calm," a hospital statement said.

The saffron-robed Sathya Sai Baba had a huge following, with ashrams in over 126 countries and Indian devotees including high-placed politicians, movie stars, world-class athletes and industrialists.

He was said to perform miracles, conjuring rings and watches and "vibhuti," a sacred ash that his followers applied on their foreheads, from his overgrown and unkempt Afro-style hair.

Sri Lankan monk among Royal Wedding invitees

Courtesy - The Island - by Rex Clementine

A Sri Lankan Buddhist monk is among the special guests invited for Friday’s Royal Wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Buckingham Palace announced yesterday.

Venerable Bogoda Seelawimala Nayaka Thera, the Director of the London Buddhist Vihara Monastry, is among the dignitaries in the special guests list that includes several Royal families of Europe, British Prime Minister David Cameron, football star David Beckham, singer Elton John, comedian Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean) and a selected few others.

Ven Bogoda Seelawimala Nayaka Thera hails from Malwatta Chapter of the Siam Nikaye. He’s the first Buddhist monk to be invited for a Royal Wedding.

The full list of special invitees:

Royal Families: Belgium’s Crown Prince Philippe and his wife Princess Mathilde, Denmark’s Queen Margrethe, Norway’s King Harald and Queen Sonja, Serbia’s Crown Prince Alexander and his wife, Crown Princess Katherine, Spain’s Queen Sofia, Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria and her husband, Prince Daniel, The Netherlands’ Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima, Prince Albert II of Monaco and his fiancee Charlene Wittstock, Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa of Bahrain, Prince Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg and his wife, Princess Saskia.

Weight loss sharpens your memory

Losing weight not only provides a variety of health benefits, but may also help sharpen your memory. These are the findings of new research from Kent State University recently published in the journal Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases.
John Gunstad, an Assistant Professor of psychology and lead author of the study, reported that results of the research indicate that weight loss may improve concentration and overall cognitive ability.
He pointed out, "We've known for a long time that obesity is a risk factor for things like Alzheimer's disease and stroke, and more recent work really shows that obesity is a link to memory problems and concentration problems before that even begins."
Gunstad then explained that his research team set out to answer the question, "If excess weight causes these problems, can losing weight help reverse them?"
For their study, the researchers analyzed the memory and attention of a group of 150 obese people having an average weight of 300 pounds.
At the beginning of the study, each member of the group was given mental skills testing for assessment of baseline abilities of recall and attention.

Drucilla Dyess / AFP / DN

Mother's diet during pregnancy alters baby's DNA

Can a baby predict the environment it will be born into?

A mother's diet during pregnancy can alter the DNA of her child and increase the risk of obesity, according to researchers.

The study, to be published in the journal Diabetes, showed that eating low levels of carbohydrate changed bits of DNA.

It then showed children with these changes were fatter. The British Heart Foundation called for better nutritional and lifestyle support for women. It is thought that a developing baby tries to predict the environment it will be born into, taking cues from its mother and adjusting its DNA.

Studies in animals have shown that changes in diet can alter the function of genes - known as epigenetic change. It is a growing field trying to understand how the environment interacts with genes. In this study, the researchers took samples from the umbilical cord and looked for "epigenetic markers".

Modern city complex close to Galle Face Work begins in May:

Work to reclaim 450 acres of sea area opposite Galle Face to construct a new commercial city will commence in May.

Under this project, the sea is to be filled with earth beginning from the breakwater of the Colombo South Harbour to Galle Face opposite the Presidential Secretariat (Former Parliament Building). The modern city will be a separate administration unit. The proposed offshore city is to be divided into three segments including business, residential and leisure.

It will be developed into a modern city with high rises, hotels, residential apartments, shopping malls, and other space to cater to the public needs.

Meanwhile, buildings to be constructed in the new city are to be above 35 stories. The sources said that the proposed modern city, a concept of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, will be equipped with advanced infrastructure facilities reducing congestion, traffic jams, lack of space for parking and pollution.

Spiritual leader Sathya Sai Baba passes away

NEW DELHI: Spiritual leader Sathya Sai Baba, who was hospitalized on March 28 following problems related to heart and respiration, passed away on Sunday morning. According to sources, Sai Baba breathed his last at 6.25am. 

Baba's body for darshan will be kept at Sai Kulwant Hall on Monday and Tuesday, Sathya Sai Central Trust announced officially. 

Preparations for last rites are under way. Four lakh devotees from India and abroad are expected to arrive. 

For the first time since Baba was admitted toSathya Sai Baba super speciality on March 27, the doctors did not issue a morning bulletin on Sunday.

Sathya Sai Central Trust, which runs social service activities in India and abroad, is to hold a media conference at 11 am. 

In the Saturday evening bulletin, the doctors had termed Baba's condition as very critical. 

Fearing the worst, hundreds of devotees in the town broke down as their hopes for recovery of the 85-year-old spiritual guru appeared to be fading. 

Major industries minister Geeta Reddy and senior government officials rushed to the hospital on Sunday morning and were holding meeting with doctors and trust officials before making an announcement. 

The state government has gone on high alert. 

More than 6,000 policemen were rushed to the town for deployment and to make arrangements for the visits of VIPs.

timesofindia.indiatimes.com

May Day in grand scale

Colombo is expected to turn gay and colourful as usual with typical revelry by exuberant crowds on this year’s May Day as well, given the elaborate arrangements being made by a number of trade unions and the main political parties to celebrate the event. 

The ruling UPFA will hold their rally at the Colombo Town Hall grounds and the JVP at the BRC grounds. Meanwhile, the UNP which has taken a decision to have their May Day celebrations out of Colombo will hold their rally at the UC grounds in Bandarawela.

The UPFA rally to be held at the Town Hall presided over by President Mahinda Rajapaksa at 3 p.m. on May 1, is expected to draw the biggest crowd given the government’s plans to demonstrate the popular backing it continues to enjoy in the backdrop of the challenge to the country’s image posed by the UN Experts’ Panel.

GL to phone Ban to reiterate SL’s position - Strong support for SL from Russia and China

Both China and the Russian Federation are extending strong support to Sri Lanka on her demand that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon desists from publishing the damaging report of his advisory panel on accountability issues relating to the final phase of Sri Lanka’s 30-year war against terrorism, External Affairs Minister G.L. Pieris said yesterday.

Ambassador Vladimir. P. Mikhaylov Friday met Pieris and conveyed his government’s position to the minister while Chinese Ambassador Mme. Yang Xiu Ping has also consistently assured the minister that Beijing considers the matters raised by the Ban Panel as local issues adequately handled by the Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission.

These positions have been conveyed by both China and Russia at a meeting of the Consultative Committee of the Security Council held in New York on Monday, Pieris said.

Spreading the Buddha’s word through the film medium

Courtesy - Sunday Island By Maya Bille

2,600 years ago the Buddha was enlightened, and the faith of Buddhism born. The positive idea of the way of living came to the Buddha - the middle path. He followed it to discover the noble eightfold path to enlightenment. Sri Lanka is a developing country where many business sectors are booming and an increasing part of the population is getting more money in their pockets. Most of the money is spent on consumption and materialist acquisition, but is materialism and greed for money consonant with the messages of the middle path?

Like many other religions Buddhism is built on a foundation of positive messages advocating that you should treat your neighbour, friend or family member with respect. That you should not steal, lie or kill. All the biggest religions have these messages in common, but several wars continue to be fought around the globe. Does this mean that people have gotten more aggressive and less religious? Or is it that the modern way of life is a burden too heavy to carry?

Theravada doctrine - The message of Sambuddhathva Jayanthi:

Abhayagiri

Courtesy - Sunday Observer by Rupa Banduwardana

Sakyamuni Siddhartha Gautama blossomed forth into the universe to relieve humanity from the miseries of existence. With his Supreme gift of eternal truth He found a solution for suffering mankind with His boundless compassion.

He led the people to enjoy and experience the joy of Vimukthi through His supreme Dhamma and it became the common light of the Buddhist world. One could read in ancient chronicles of Buddhism being the greatest achievement in the annals of Sri Lankan history.

Buddhism had it’s firm and unshakable place in its land of origin as a great faith, a fine philosophy and a unique doctrine, upon which one of the world’s most remarkable civilisations were built. Similarly in Sri Lanka one could call the message of the Buddha the greatest civilising force in the history of the island.

Easter: Good news of a pro-life culture

Courtesy - Sunday Observer by Rev. Fr. Leopold Ratnasekera, OMI Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya

Easter proclaims the decisive gospel event of the Resurrection of Lord Jesus which is at the inner core of the Church's faith. It is this paschal faith from which all understanding about the mysteries of sin and grace flow. The Lamb of God that was slain took away the sins of the world and emerging from the empty tomb vanquished the darkness and gloom of death.

Instead of the sorrow and pain of death, there is given to us now the joy and jubilation of Grace. Prophet Ezekiel shows how people are invited to a life in God: "Cast away from you all transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone says the Lord God.

Turn, then, and live." (Ezek. 18:31-32).

Right before entering the promised land God tells his people to make a choice: "I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord your God" (Deut. 30:19-20).

Jesus affirms the revelation to Moses given at the burning bush that the God of the patriarchs is God not of the dead, but of the living (Mark 12:26-27). This was to illustrate the truth of life after death, the pledge of which was his Own Resurrection. Through it, the great act of redemption has been accomplished and the final enemy of man which is death has been defeated.

Is it not St. Paul who says that the wages of sin is death?

බඹරුන් විතරයි තනියට ළඟ ඉන්නේ

අපි ඈතට ඈතට පා නගලා

ගන වනන්තරේ

අතර මං වෙමු

වසන්ත මල් ගොමුවේ

කාත් කවුරුවත් නෑ එන්නේ

ඉඳුල් නොවේ රුදු මිනිස් ඇසින්

අපේ ම පුංචි ලෝකයේ අප ඉන්නේ

බඹරුන් විතරයි තනියට ළඟ ඉන්නේ

කෙසේ ද අත් බැඳ ඇවිදින්නේ

වෙරළේ උයනේ තුරුළු වෙමින්

නෑ හිත මිතුරන් මගතොට හමුවන්නේ

උකුසු ඇසින් අප කෙළෙස ද ගැලවෙන්නේ

පද රචනය - මහාචාර්ය සුනිල් ආරියරත්න

සංගීතය හා ගායනය - වික්ටර් රත්නායක

නැත ලොවේ අන් රසඳුනා... ආදරේ සේ සුවදෙනා...

මහාචාර්ය සරච්චන්ද්‍රයන් අතින් නිමැවුණු මේ වැකිය ‘තත්සර ඇසුරෙහි කීප වාරයක් ම ලියැවෙන්නට ඇත. ආදරය ගැන ලියැවෙන බොහෝ අවස්ථාවල එය නිබඳ ව සිහිපත් වේ. ආදරයක දිග පළල ගැඹුර සොයන්නට තැත් කිරීම විශ්වයේ කෙළවර සොයන තරමට ම සංකීර්ණ ය. අවසාන තීන්දුව වන්නේ ආදරය යනු ආදරය ම මිස අනෙකක් නොවන බවයි.

ආදරය කරන්නන් මිහිපිට පය ගසා සිටින බව සැබෑවකි. එහෙත් ඔවුන්ගේ සිතුවිලි අහසේ සැරිසරයි. නිල් වළාකුළු කඳු වැටි අතරින් පාවී ඉර හඳ තරු අතරින් විශ්වයේ අනන්තය තෙක් පාවී යයි. ඔවුහු ලෝකයේ සියලු භෞතික වස්තූන්ගෙන් වෙන්වී තමන්ගේ මනෝලෝක තුළ කූඩුවෙති.

සාගරයේ ජලය නිමා නොවන්නාක් මෙන් ආදරය පිළිබඳ වස්තු බීජ නිමා නොවන්නේ එබැවිනි.

මේ ගීතයට පාදකවන්නේ ද පෙම්වතුන්ගේ රොමැන්ටික් සිහිනයකි. තමා පයගසා සිටින ලෝකයේ, ගල් බොරලු වැටකඩොලු සීමා මායිම් තැනෙද්දී ඔවුහු පියවි ලොවින් ඈත් වීමට ආශා කරති. ඔවුන් ප්‍රාර්ථනා කරන ලෝකය අතිශයින් මනරම් ය. රචකයා ඒ සිහිනය මෙසේ ස්පර්ශ කරයි.