The Rich History of Healing in Sri Lanka: From Ancient Kings to Modern Times

 

Sri Lanka’s healing traditions, spanning over two millennia, weave together indigenous practices, Ayurveda, and modern medicine, creating a unique healthcare legacy. From the benevolence of ancient kings to contemporary innovations, this history reflects the island’s commitment to holistic well-being.

Ancient Beginnings: Healing Under the Kings and the Mihintale Hospital

During the Anuradhapura (377 BCE–1017 CE) and Polonnaruwa (1017–1236 CE) kingdoms, Sri Lankan healing flourished under royal patronage, guided by Buddhist principles of compassion. A landmark achievement was the establishment of the world’s first excavated general hospital at Mihintale, near Anuradhapura, dating to the 9th century CE. Discovered through archaeological excavations, this Arogyashala featured advanced facilities, including patient wards, medicinal stone troughs for immersive treatments, and evidence of surgical tools. The hospital catered to monks and laypeople, offering herbal remedies and Ayurvedic therapies. This pioneering institution underscores Sri Lanka’s early medical sophistication. Indigenous medicine, or Deshiya Chikitsa, relied on herbal concoctions, spiritual rituals, and generational knowledge, while Ayurveda, introduced via trade with India, became central. Kings like Buddhadasa (337–365 CE), a physician himself, authored medical treatises, and rulers funded free healthcare, ensuring widespread access.

Medieval and Colonial Shifts

In the Kandyan Kingdom (1476–1815), healing retained its Ayurvedic and indigenous roots, enriched by Arab and European influences. Traditional healers (Vedas) used astrology, exorcisms, and herbs in rural areas. Colonial powers—Portuguese, Dutch, and British (1505–1948)—introduced Western medicine, including missionary hospitals and smallpox vaccinations, but suppressed local practices, causing a decline in indigenous medicine. Kandyan kings preserved Ayurveda, maintaining royal physicians and herbal gardens.

Modern Revival and Integration

After independence in 1948, Sri Lanka revitalized traditional healing. The Bandaranaike Memorial Ayurveda Research Institute, founded in 1961, formalized Ayurveda’s role. Today, the healthcare system integrates Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, and Western medicine. Ayurvedic hospitals, wellness retreats, and training institutes thrive, attracting global tourists for treatments like Panchakarma and herbal steam baths. Rural healers continue traditional practices, while a robust public healthcare system provides free Western care, contributing to a life expectancy of 77 years and low infant mortality.

A Lasting Legacy

From the groundbreaking Mihintale hospital to modern integrative healthcare, Sri Lanka’s healing journey reflects resilience and adaptation. By blending ancient wisdom with contemporary advances, the island remains a global model for holistic health.

.

New findings of James Web Telescope

 

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has been delivering groundbreaking discoveries since its launch in December 2021, reshaping our understanding of the universe. Here’s a concise overview of some of the most astounding recent findings as of May 2025, based on available information:

1. Earliest and Most Distant Galaxies:
   • JWST has identified galaxies dating back to just 200–300 million years after the Big Bang, pushing the boundaries of cosmic history. For instance, the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES) confirmed galaxies like JADES-GS-z14-0, seen 290 million years post-Big Bang, with a redshift of 14.32, making it the most distant known galaxy. These findings challenge models of early galaxy formation, as these galaxies appear larger and brighter than expected.
2. First Star Clusters and "Firefly Sparkle" Galaxy:
   • Webb detected gravitationally bound star clusters in a galaxy only 460 million years old, the earliest such clusters observed. The "Firefly Sparkle" galaxy, seen 600 million years after the Big Bang, is a lightweight, actively forming system akin to the young Milky Way, offering clues to galaxy assembly.
3. Unexpected Chemical Signatures:
   • Early galaxies show unusual chemical compositions, with high nitrogen levels and lower amounts of other metals, suggesting unknown processes in the early universe. Additionally, JWST found complex organic molecules (e.g., ethanol, acetic acid) in ice around protostars, indicating that life’s building blocks were present early in cosmic history.
4. **Massive Black Holes andArizona (Arizona state) for each other in a dangerous dance of near-collisions, slowly warping and stretching the stars between them.
5. Galactic Revelations:
   • In May 2024, JWST detected the farthest known black hole merger in the galaxy system ZS7, occurring 740 million years after the Big Bang, suggesting rapid black hole growth through mergers. An "extremely red" supermassive black hole, 40 million times the sun’s mass, was found growing rapidly in the early universe, challenging theories of black hole formation.
6. Exoplanet Atmospheres and Potential Biosignatures:
   • JWST has characterized exoplanet atmospheres with unprecedented detail. For example, it detected methane, carbon dioxide, and dimethyl sulfide on K2-18 b, a potential "Hycean world" with a possible water ocean, hinting at conditions for life. It also confirmed the atmosphere of LHS 475 b, an Earth-sized exoplanet 41 light-years away.
7. Stellar and Nebular Insights:
   • Webb’s infrared capabilities revealed new details in star-forming regions like the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex and the Serpens Nebula, showing jets from young stars and glowing dust. It also captured the dying star in NGC 1514, revealing infrared-only rings, and revisited a star swallowing a planet, refining our understanding of such events.
8. Cosmic Mysteries and Tensions:
   • JWST’s observations of unexpectedly bright early galaxies and "little red dots" (compact, red sources with unclear origins) suggest rapid galaxy formation and unknown phenomena, challenging cosmological models. Its confirmation of Hubble’s cosmic distance ladder measurements has deepened the "Hubble tension," a discrepancy in the universe’s expansion rate.
9. Solar System Discoveries:
   • Within our solar system, JWST observed auroral activity on Neptune, a high-speed jet stream on Jupiter, and surface ice methanol on trans-Neptunian objects, providing insights into their composition and potential for organic chemistry.
10. Unexpected Phenomena:
    • Webb spotted a galaxy, JADES-GS-z13-1, emitting "impossible" light 330 million years post-Big Bang, suggesting unusual stellar populations or other exotic processes. It also detected tellurium in a neutron star merger, reshaping our understanding of heavy element formation

How learning happens in the brains of sleeping babies

Dozing in a bassinet, a newborn wears a stretchy cap fitted with more than 100 soft electrodes. A low beep sounds, and she squints. Nearby, scientists watch jagged lines moving across a computer screen, recording electrical activity in the infant's brain. The scientists want to know what's going on in there — and that tiny squinting action suggests that the baby has been learning while she sleeps.

Click to read

Coronavirus: Trump suspends European travel as global recession fears intensify

Donald Trump has banned travel to the US from most of Europe – apart from the UK and Ireland – for 30 days in an attempt to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

The move failed to stem heavy losses on financial markets and prompted one top economist to warn that a global recession was now "highly probable".

In a sombre primetime address from the Oval Office on Wednesday evening, the US president boasted that the travel ban and series of other measures designed to cushion the economic blow of the outbreak amounted to "the most aggressive and comprehensive effort to confront a foreign virus in history".

Click to read

What causes dizziness when bending over?

Feeling dizzy when bending over is a common occurrence. Most causes of dizziness or lightheadedness are not serious, although some causes may require medical attention.

A person should see a doctor if the dizziness is frequent or severe enough to interfere with daily activities. A doctor will be able to help a person determine and treat the underlying cause.

According to some studies, feeling dizzy is one of the most commonly reported medical complaints. It becomes increasingly common after age 60 and is also more common in women than men.

In this article, we look at ten possible causes of dizziness when bending over.

Click to read

MEDIA SUBSCRIBE AUDIO HUB ‘Save peace while it lasts,’ says General Assembly President, ahead of UN summit on sustaining peace

"By preventing conflict, we save human lives and we also save billions of dollars," said Assembly President Miroslav Lajčák, in a recent interview with UN News. "Therefore, we have to focus on prevention of conflicts rather than consequences of conflicts. We have to save peace while it lasts, not to deal with the situation once peace is lost."

"There is no development, there is no protection of human rights, if there is no peace," Mr.  Lajčák stressed, recalling the UN was created to achieve peace and the first sentence of the UN Charter is about saving succeeding generations from the scourge of war.

The High-Level Meeting on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace will take place at UN Headquarters in New York on 24 and 25 April, bringing together leaders of countries, UN entities and civil society.

​Click to read​

THE RICH CULTURE OF SINHALA AT STC IN YEARS GONE BY...

Please see Sinhala article: Tyretracks blog
While our Alma Mater, S Thomas' College, celebrates its 100 years at Mt Lavinia, here I take the liberty to capture the essence of a rich Sinhala culture that existed alongside the English, Tamil, Latin and Greek language scholarship that permeated the lives of students, thanks to the indefatigable services rendered by teachers, such as, Kalasuri Arisen Ahubudu, (Writer, poet, Sinhala lyricist, author, scholar, playwright, teacher and orator), Sandedas Coperahewa, (Poet, author, journalist and teacher) of the Hela Havula, father of Prof. Sandagomi Coperahewa, to name a few, whose memories we still cherish.

Even though this era was well known for its richness in English, Latin and Greek, with much familiarity with William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and Milton, we also loved Sidath Sangara, Amawathura, Salalihini Sandeshaya and Guththilaya. We were regular readers of "Subasa" ( The Subasa paved the way for the resurgence of a literary tradition that proved the efficacy of the Sinhala language to express any idea lucidly, succinctly and proficiently) and trekked to Ahubudu's residence at Mt Lavinia, for basic Pali lessons. My advice to students is to be proficient both in the mother tongue and English, for success in life. Here is a short appreciation I wrote a few days ago in Sinhala for someone who wanted an article. " Esto Perpetua" 

The 12 Psychology Studies of Christmas

​

We all want a happy Christmas (or cultural equivalent), but how do we get it? This research into happiness and Christmas suggests that a focus on spending and consumption is associated with less happiness while family and religious experiences are associated with more happiness. Not exactly earth-shattering, but satisfying to quote to little Billy when he complains about his presents.

Click to read

Virus-free. www.avg.com

A Beautiful Mind Seminar 2 Sept 10 am BMICH

​