When Arjuna's on a Ramayana quest
Sri Lankan cricket icons Arjuna Ranatunga and Aravinda de Silva have been in India to sell the 'Ramayana trail' , in the hope that Hindus will flock to Sri Lanka to see places associated with the epic.
By Ranjeni A Singh, TNN |
Sri Lankan cricket icons Arjuna Ranatunga and Aravinda de Silva have been in India to sell the 'Ramayana trail' , in the hope that Hindus will flock to Sri Lanka to see places associated with the epic. The head of the Ramakrishna Mutt in Colombo and the high priest of the Hanuman temple in Dehiwela are accompanying the sports stars on their mission to hardsell the island nation’s Ramayana links. S Kalaiselvan, director general Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority and former skipper Ranatunga spoke about their epic mission.
Kalaiselvan on the Ramayana Link:
Sri Lankan folklore and religious scholars have identified about 50 sites on the island which are associated with the Ramayana. And interestingly enough, people in these places have a strong sense of history and lore, and a strong sense of possession. They are proud of their association with the epic.
On the package for Indians:
We are promoting spiritual tourism, aimed specifically at Indian visitors, who, at 100,000, already constitute 20% of the country's annual tourist inflow. SLTDA hopes to attract over 1.5 lakh overseas visitors this year, a majority of them from India. Our experts have identified five "airports " where Ravana parked his fleet of pushpak vimanas, the mythological aircraft he used to abduct Sita when she was in vanvaasa on mainland India. The five-day tour would be enough to make a tourist realise what we're talking about
On the sacred spots:
There are various spots associated with Ramayana spread across the island, beginning from its northern tip at Nagadeepa , believed to be Hanuman's entry point to Lanka. The southern tip, Donara, is the place where Ram began his first attack on Ravana. The main battleground, identified as Yudagannawa, is a wildlife sanctuary but strangely no vegetation grows in the area except grass.
On close cooperation:
Arjuna Rarnatunga:
We are happy with the new venture as the two neighbours already have such a close association in cricket. I am not an expert on Ramayana and this is my first assignment as a tourism ambassador to India. Earlier I had the pleasure of travelling to cricket playing nations as deputy minister of tourism. Now I have been assigned the task of encouraging people in India to visit our country!
Kalaiselvan on the Ramayana Link:
Sri Lankan folklore and religious scholars have identified about 50 sites on the island which are associated with the Ramayana. And interestingly enough, people in these places have a strong sense of history and lore, and a strong sense of possession. They are proud of their association with the epic.
On the package for Indians:
We are promoting spiritual tourism, aimed specifically at Indian visitors, who, at 100,000, already constitute 20% of the country's annual tourist inflow. SLTDA hopes to attract over 1.5 lakh overseas visitors this year, a majority of them from India. Our experts have identified five "airports " where Ravana parked his fleet of pushpak vimanas, the mythological aircraft he used to abduct Sita when she was in vanvaasa on mainland India. The five-day tour would be enough to make a tourist realise what we're talking about
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On the sacred spots:
There are various spots associated with Ramayana spread across the island, beginning from its northern tip at Nagadeepa , believed to be Hanuman's entry point to Lanka. The southern tip, Donara, is the place where Ram began his first attack on Ravana. The main battleground, identified as Yudagannawa, is a wildlife sanctuary but strangely no vegetation grows in the area except grass.
On close cooperation:
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We have entered into an arrangement with Andhra Pradesh Tourism specifically over the trail. We believe that Ramayana has brought together Sri Lanka and India through the exploration of its great story backdrop, which is Ayodhya and Lankapura (Sri Lanka). We are also undertaking restoration and maintenance of these sites. Arjuna Rarnatunga:
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We are happy with the new venture as the two neighbours already have such a close association in cricket. I am not an expert on Ramayana and this is my first assignment as a tourism ambassador to India. Earlier I had the pleasure of travelling to cricket playing nations as deputy minister of tourism. Now I have been assigned the task of encouraging people in India to visit our country!
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