Hinduism in Sri Lanka

The first major Hindu reference to Sri Lanka is found in the epic Ramayana. Sri Lanka was ruled by the Yaksha King Kubera. The throne of Lanka was usurped by Kubera's half-brother Ravana, the epic's chief antagonist, who was killed by Rama (the seventh avatar of Vishnu). The Ramayana also mentions Rama's Bridge, between India and Sri Lanka, which was built with rocks by Rama with the aid of Hanuman and others. Many believers see the chain of sandbars, connecting Sri Lanka to India in satellite images, as remnants of the bridge. Archaeological evidence supports the worship of Siva in parts of Sri Lanka since prehistoric times, before the arrival of Prince Vijaya. Ravana was also a devotee of Siva.[6]

Evidence indicates that the island's earliest inhabitants were the Nagas and Yakkas. The Nagas practised an early form of Hinduism, worshipping Shiva and serpents. This animistic Shaivism is also common in Tamil Nadu and other parts of India.[7] The Nagas who inhabited the Jaffna Peninsula were probably the ancestors of Sri Lankan Tamils. They began absorbing the Tamil language and culture during the 3rd century BC, and lost their separate identity.[8][note 1] The Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple in Nainativu is believed to be one of the Shakti Peetha.[11]

Buddhism was introduced by Mahinda, the eldest son of Ashoka, during the reign of Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura.[12] The Sinhalese embraced Buddhism, and the Tamils remained Hindus.[13] Activity from across the Palk Strait in Tamil Nadu set the stage for Hinduism's survival in Sri Lanka. Shaivism (worship of Shiva) was dominant among the Tamils, and most of Sri Lanka's Hindu temple architecture and philosophy of Sri Lanka drew from that tradition. Thirugnana Sambanthar noted a number of Sri Lankan Hindu temples in his works.[14]

In common with South India, local rituals include Kavadi Attam and firewalking.[15] These rituals have also influenced the Sinhalese on southern cost of the island; For an Instance, the inhabitants of Tangalle, Kudawella and the surrounding area perfrom Kavadi.[16]

Religious teachers include Kaddai Swami, his shishya Chellappaswami, and Chellappaswami's shishya Yogaswami.

The Pancha Ishwarams are:

• Naguleswaram temple in the north
• Ketheeswaram temple in the northwest
• Koneswaram Temple in the east
• Munneswaram temple in the west
• Tondeswaram in the south

According to the 1981 census, there were 2,297,800 Hindus in Sri Lanka; the 2012 census reported 2,554,606 Hindus in the country. Twenty thousand people died during the 2004 tsunami in LTTE-held areas alone.[18][19][20]

• 
  Ravananugraha at Koneswaram Temple
• 
  Front entrance of Nallur Kandaswamy temple
• 
  Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple

• Hinduism in Guyana
• Hinduism in Brunei
• Hinduism in Réunion
• Village deities of Sri Lankan Tamils
• Village deities of South India

• Department of Hindu Religious and Cultural Affairs