Hinduism in Sri Lanka

2022-06-23T18:57:31Z

76.68.140.6:

{{Short description|Overview of the presence, role and impact of Hinduism in Sri Lanka}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}{{EngvarB|date=August 2020}}

{{Infobox religious group|group=Sri Lankan Hindus|image=Hindu Temple festival, Colombo in 1900.jpg|image_caption=[[Hindu temple]] festival in [[Colombo]] in 1900s.|flag=நேர்த்தி.jpg|flag_size=50px|image_size=270|religions='''[[Hinduism]]'''<br/>[[Shaivism]] (majority)<br/>[[Vaishnavism]] and [[Shaktism]] (minority)|languages=[[Old Tamil]] and [[Sanskrit]] (sacred)<br/>[[Tamil language|Tamil]] (majority) and [[Sinhala language|Sinhala]] (minority)|scriptures=[[Ramayana]] and [[Vedas]]|population=2,561,299 (2012)<br/>'''12.6%''' of its total population}}

{{anchor|European invasion|Conversion attempts|Civil conflict and exodus}}

{{Hinduism by country}}

'''Hinduism''' is one of '''Sri Lanka's''' oldest religions, with temples dating back over 2,000 years.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Buddhism in Sri Lanka: A Short History|url=https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/perera/wheel100.html|access-date=2021-05-27|website=www.accesstoinsight.org}}</ref> {{As of|2011}}, Hindus made up 12.6% of the [[Sri Lanka]]n population.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/index.php?fileName=pop43&gp=Activities&tpl=3 | title=Census of Population and Housing, 2011 | publisher=Department of Census and Statistics | location=Sri Lanka | access-date=29 August 2020 }}</ref> They are almost exclusively [[Sri Lankan Tamils|Tamils]], except for small immigrant communities from India and Pakistan (including the [[Sindhis]], [[Telugus]] and [[Malayalees]]).

According to the 1915 [[census]], Hindus made up about 25% of the Sri Lankan population (including [[Indentured servitude|indentured labourers]] brought by the British).<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-02-07|title=During Mahinda Rajapaksa's India visit, New Delhi likely to raise Sri Lankan Hindu Tamil's issues|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/sri-lankan-prime-minister-mahinda-rajapaksa-india-visit-keeping-the-southern-neighbour-engaged-6254943/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-27|website=[[The Indian Express]]|language=en}}</ref> [[Hinduism]] predominates in the [[Northern Province, Sri Lanka|Northern]] and [[Eastern Province, Sri Lanka|Eastern]] Provinces (where [[Tamils]] remain the largest demographic), the central regions and [[Colombo]], the capital. According to the 2011 census, there are 2,554,606 Hindus in Sri Lanka (12.6% of the country's population). During the [[Sri Lankan Civil War]], many Tamils emigrated; Hindu temples, built by the [[Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora]], maintain their religion, tradition and culture.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Bradley|first=Mark|date=2018|title=Sri Lankan Tamil Hindus and other Tamis in the Montréal diaspora|url=https://core.ac.uk/display/162675443|language=en-gb}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=2019-12-28|title=Success story of a 'victim diaspora'|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/success-story-of-a-victim-diaspora/article30415963.ece|access-date=2021-05-27|issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

Most Sri Lankan Hindus follow the [[Shaiva Siddhanta]] school of [[Shaivism]], and some follow [[Shaktism]]. Sri Lanka is home to the five abodes of Shiva: [[Pancha Ishwarams]], holy places believed to have been built by King [[Ravana]]. [[Murugan]] is one of the country's most popular Hindu deities, venerated by Hindu [[Tamils]]. The Buddhist [[Sinhalese people|Sinhalese]] and Aboriginal [[Vedda]]s venerate the local rendition of the deity, [[Kataragama deviyo|Katharagama deviyo]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Goonasekera|first=Sunil|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6nrXAAAAMAAJ|title=Walking to Kataragama|date=2007|publisher=International Centre for Ethnic Studies|isbn=978-955-580-110-2|pages=520|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Obeyesekere|first=Gananath|date=1977|title=Social Change and the Deities: Rise of the Kataragama Cult in Modern Sri Lanka|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2800544|journal=Man|volume=12|issue=3/4|pages=377–396|doi=10.2307/2800544|jstor=2800544|issn=0025-1496}}</ref>

[[Yogaswami]] of [[Jaffna]] is a significant modern Hindu religious figure in Sri Lankan history. A 20th-century mystic, he was the [[Satguru]] and counselling sage of the country's Tamil Hindu population. The [[Ramakrishna Mission]] is active in the [[Amparai]] and [[Batticaloa]] districts, and the Shaiva Siddhanta school is prevalent in the north.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.himalayanacademy.com/media/books/yogaswami_ei/web/ch35_56.html|title=Lion of Lanka|publisher=Himalayan Academy|pages=816}}</ref> Yogaswami was the 161st head of the [[Nandinatha Sampradaya]], and was succeeded by [[Sivaya Subramuniyaswami]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.himalayanacademy.com/monastery/lineage-philosophy/gurudeva|title=Shivaya Subramaniam|website=Himalayan Academy}}</ref>

==Legendary origins==
The first major Hindu reference to Sri Lanka is found in the epic ''[[Ramayana]]''.{{Sfn|Henry|Padma|2019|p=43}} 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]]).<ref>{{Cite web|last=Heather|date=2021-02-25|title=The Ramayana and Sri Lanka|url=https://asianartnewspaper.com/the-ramayana-and-sri-lanka/|access-date=2021-06-07|website=Asian Art Newspaper|language=en-GB}}</ref> 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 [[Shoal|sandbar]], connecting Sri Lanka to India in satellite images, as remnants of the bridge. Archaeological evidence supports the worship of [[Shiva|Siva]] in parts of Sri Lanka since prehistoric times, before the arrival of [[Prince Vijaya]]. Ravana was also a devotee of [[Shiva|Siva]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gokhale|first=Namita|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1y8nAgAAQBAJ&q=The+Book+of+Shiva|title=Book of Shiva|date=2012-10-23|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]|isbn=978-81-8475-863-4|pages=104|language=en}}</ref>

==Historic roots==
The [[Naga people (Lanka)|Nagas]] are claimed to have practised an early form of Hinduism, worshipping Shiva and serpents. This [[Animism|animistic]] Shaivism is also common in [[Tamil Nadu]] and other parts of India.<ref name="Dailynews">{{cite news|url=http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/06/13/fea05.asp|title=Nainativu Nagapooshani Chariot festival|last=Meeadhu|first=Kalabooshanam|date=13 June 2008|access-date=18 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604144757/http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/06/13/fea05.asp|archive-date=4 June 2011}}</ref> 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.{{sfn|Holt, The Sri Lanka Reader: History, Culture, Politics|Duke University Press, 2011|pp=73-74}}{{refn|group=lower-alpha|According to several authors, they may have been [[Dravidian peoples|Dravidians]].<ref name="saf">Laura Smid (2003). ''South Asian folklore: an encyclopedia: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka''. Great Britain: Routledge, p. 429.</ref><ref>Chelvadurai Manogaran (1987). ''Ethnic conflict and reconciliation in Sri Lanka''. United States: University of Hawaii Press, p. 21.</ref>}} The [[Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple]] in [[Nainativu]] is believed to be one of the [[Shakti Peetha]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Nainativu Nagapoosani Amman Temple, Sri Lanka - Info, Timings, Photos, History|url=https://www.templepurohit.com/hindu-temple/nainativu-nagapoosani-amman-temple-sri-lanka/|access-date=2021-05-27|website=TemplePurohit - Your Spiritual Destination {{!}} Bhakti, Shraddha Aur Ashirwad|language=en-US}}</ref>

Buddhism was introduced by [[Mahinda (Buddhist monk)|Mahinda]], the eldest son of [[Ashoka]], during the reign of [[Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura]].<ref>''Asian Religions in British Columbia'', UBC Press (2011), p. 125.</ref> His father [[Mutasiva]] and brother [[Mahasiva of Anuradhapura|Mahasiva]] had names associated with [[Shiva|Siva]] suggesting prior Hindu beliefs.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Indrapala |first1=K.|title=The Evolution of an Ethnic Identity - The Tamils of Sri Lanka 300 B.C.E to 1200 C.E. |date=2005|isbn=0-646-42546-3}} p. 212</ref> This is supported by the common occurrence of the personal name Siva in the earliest [[Elu|Prakrit]] inscriptions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Indrapala |first1=K.|title=The Evolution of an Ethnic Identity - The Tamils of Sri Lanka 300 B.C.E to 1200 C.E. |date=2005|isbn=0-646-42546-3}} p. 212</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inscriptions.lk/db/VInscriptionsView/69?showdetail= | title=ඉන්ස්ක්‍රිප්ෂන්ස් ඔෆ් සිලොන් වොලුයුම් I මිහින්තලේ 29 ශ්‍රී ලංකා අභීලේඛන - ශ්‍රී ලංකා අභිලේඛන පිළිබඳ අන්තර්ජාල දත්ත ගබඩාව }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inscriptions.lk/db/VInscriptionsView/80?showdetail= | title=ඉන්ස්ක්‍රිප්ෂන්ස් ඔෆ් සිලොන් වොලුයුම් I මිහින්තලේ 40 ශ්‍රී ලංකා අභීලේඛන - ශ්‍රී ලංකා අභිලේඛන පිළිබඳ අන්තර්ජාල දත්ත ගබඩාව }}</ref> The [[Sinhalese people|Sinhalese]] embraced Buddhism, and the Tamils remained Hindus.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Buddhism among Tamils. An Introduction|url=http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:604434/fulltext01.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=|website=}}</ref> 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. [[Sambandar|Thirugnana Sambanthar]] noted a number of Sri Lankan Hindu temples in his works.<ref>[http://www.sundaytimes.lk/events/611-lecture-on-hindu-sculpture-and-architecture-of-sri-lanka Lecture on Hindu sculpture and architecture of Sri Lanka] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012234629/http://www.sundaytimes.lk/events/611-lecture-on-hindu-sculpture-and-architecture-of-sri-lanka |date=2012-10-12 }} Sunday Times - September 29, 2010</ref>

== Culture ==

===Rituals===
In common with [[South India]], local rituals include [[Kavadi Aattam|Kavadi Attam]] and [[firewalking]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hinduismtoday.com/archives/2003/7-9/36-37_fire_walk.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060326185409/http://www.hinduismtoday.com/archives/2003/7-9/36-37_fire_walk.shtml|title=Walking on Fire|website=Hinduism Today|author=Gilles Flament|date=July–September 2003|archive-date=26 March 2006|url-status=dead}}</ref> 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 perform [[Kavadi Aattam|Kavadi]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Reach out to the minority.|url=https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/98C0C5E7FC5B03AD492575C900165A96-Full_Report.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=|website=}}</ref>

===Religious teachers===
Religious teachers include Kaddai Swami, his ''[[Guru–shishya tradition|shishya]]'' [[Chellapaswami|Chellappaswami]], and Chellappaswami's ''shishya'' [[Yogaswami]].{{Sfn|Mookerji|1998|p=76}} Swami Vivekananda the Bengali Hindu monk right after returning from West, started a series of lectures in India( British India at that time included Sri Lanka), from Colombo and Jaffna. The Hindus of Colombo and Jaffna received with much excitement and shouts of "Har Har Mahadev" and "Jai Swami Vivekanandaji" .

===Temples===
{{Main|List of Hindu temples in Sri Lanka}}
<gallery mode="packed" heights="200px">
File:Ravanan - King of Lanka.jpg|alt=Statue of Ravana, with ten arms and heads, beneath Shiva and Parvati|[[Ravananugraha]] at [[Koneswaram Temple]]
File:Nallur Kandasamy front entrance.jpg|alt=Ornate, covered temple entrance with columns|Front entrance of [[Nallur Kandaswamy temple]]
File:MAIN NAGAPOOSHANI TEMPLE.jpg|alt=Ornate, colorful temple complex|[[Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple]]
File:Thirukkovil Entrance.jpg|[[Thirukkovil Sithira Velayutha Swami Temple]], in [[Ampara]].
</gallery>Most of the [[Hindu temple]] in [[Sri Lanka]] have [[Tamil culture|Tamil]] [[Hindu temple architecture|architecture]], most of which are ancient with [[Gopuram]] and [[Ratha]] in them.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Acharya|first=Prasanna Kumar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jw79PAAACAAJ|title=Hindu Architecture in India and Abroad|date=1996|publisher=Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Limited|isbn=978-81-215-0732-5|pages=187|language=en}}</ref> Alike many [[Hindu temple]]s, which are dedicated to [[Hindu deities]], many temples in [[Sri Lanka]] are also for their [[Village deities of Sri Lankan Tamils|Village deities]] which is mainly among the [[Tamils|Tamil community]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Acharya|first=Prasanna Kumar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rbayQwAACAAJ|title=A Dictionary of Hindu Architecture|date=1997|publisher=Low Price Publications|isbn=978-81-7536-113-3|language=en}}</ref>

The [[Pancha Ishwarams]] are:
* [[Naguleswaram temple]] in the North.
* [[Ketheeswaram temple]] in the Northwest.
* [[Koneswaram Temple]] in the East.
* [[Munneswaram temple]] in the West.
* [[Tenavaram temple|Tondeswaram]] in the South.
<

== Demographics ==
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 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami#Sri Lanka|2004 tsunami]] in [[Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam|LTTE]]-held areas alone.{{Sfn|2012 Census|p=2}}<ref>{{Cite web|date=2007-10-07|title=Sri Lanka Statistics, 2006|url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Abstract_2006/Tables/chap%202/AB2-13.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071007215109/http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Abstract_2006/Tables/chap%202/AB2-13.pdf|archive-date=2007-10-07|access-date=2021-05-23|website=[[Government of Sri Lanka]]|page=202}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Sri Lanka Population Statistics|url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/PDF/p5%20Population%20and%20Housing%20Schedule.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=27 May 2021|website=Sri Lanka Statistics}}</ref>
{{Historical populations
|title = Hindus in Sri Lanka
|type =
|footnote = *The 2001 census did not cover all regions, due to political instability; however, the overall population increased by 1.02 percent per year.<ref name=final2012>{{cite web|title=Census of Population and Housing of Sri Lanka, 2012|url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/Pages/Activities/Reports/FinalReport/Population/FinalPopulation.pdf|publisher=Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402110406/http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/Pages/Activities/Reports/FinalReport/Population/FinalPopulation.pdf|archive-date=2015-04-02}}</ref>
|align = right
|width =
|state =
|shading = on
|pop_name =
|percentages = pagr
|source =
|1881 | 593,600
|1891 | 615,900
|1901 | 826,800
|1911 | 938,300
|1921 | 982,100
|1931 | 1,166,900
|1946 | 1,320,400
|1953 | 1,610,500
|1963 | 1,958,400
|1971 | 2,238,666
|1981 | 2,297,806
|1991 | 2,406,852
|2001 | 2,481,495
|2012 | 2,561,299
}}

=== Decadal population ===
{| class="wikitable"
|+'''Hinduism in Sri Lanka by decades'''<ref name="rel2012">{{cite web|title=Census of Population and Housing of Sri Lanka, 2012 - Table A4: Population by district, religion and sex|url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/Pages/Activities/Reports/FinalReport/Population/Table%20A4.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141229002205/http://www.statistics.gov.lk/PopHouSat/CPH2011/Pages/Activities/Reports/FinalReport/Population/Table%20A4.pdf|archive-date=2014-12-29|publisher=Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Table 2.13: Population by religion and census years|url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Abstract%202013/CHAP2/2.13.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402091504/http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Abstract%202013/CHAP2/2.13.pdf|archive-date=2015-04-02|work=Statistical Abstract 2013|publisher=Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Population by religion|url=http://sis.statistics.gov.lk/statHtml/statHtml.do?orgId=144&tblId=DT_POP_SER_268&conn_path=I2|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402115728/http://sis.statistics.gov.lk/statHtml/statHtml.do?orgId=144&tblId=DT_POP_SER_268&conn_path=I2|archive-date=2015-04-02|work=LankaSIS Sri Lanka Statistical Information Service|publisher=Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka}}</ref>
|-
! '''Year'''
! '''Percent'''
! '''Increase'''
|-
| '''1881'''
| '''21.51%'''
| '''-'''
|-
| '''1891'''
| '''20.48%'''
| style="background: Red" |
'''-1.03%'''
|-
| '''1901'''
| '''23.2%'''
| style="background: lightgreen" |
'''+2.72%'''
|-
| '''1911'''
| '''22.85%'''
| style="background: Red" |
'''-0.35%'''
|-
| '''1921'''
| '''21.83%'''
| style="background: Red" |
'''-1.02%'''
|-
| '''1931'''
| '''22%'''
| style="background: lightgreen" |
'''+0.17%'''
|-
| '''1946'''
| '''19.83%'''
| style="background: Red" |
'''-2.17%'''
|-
| '''1953'''
| '''19.9%'''
| style="background: lightgreen" |
'''0.07%'''
|-
| '''1963'''
| '''18.51%'''
| style="background: Red" | '''-1.39%'''
|-
| '''1971'''
| '''17.64%'''
| style="background: Red" | '''-0.87%'''
|-
| '''1981'''
| '''15.48%'''
| style="background: Red" | '''-2.16'''
|-
| '''1991'''
| '''14.32%'''
| style="background: Red" | '''-1.16'''
|-
| '''2001'''
| '''13.8%'''
| style="background: Red" | '''-0.52'''
|-
| '''2012'''
| '''12.58%'''
| style="background: Red" | '''-1.22'''
|}
The [[Hindu]] percentage have declined from 21.51% in 1881 to 12.58% in 2012.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sri Lanka Religious Statistics|url=http://www.worldgenweb.org/lkawgw/slstats-religion.html|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-23|website=www.worldgenweb.org}}</ref> Mainly because of the [[Indentured servitude|indentured labourers]] brought by the British returning to India and immigration caused by the [[Sri Lankan Civil War|Srilankan Civil War]] .

=== District-wise population ===
{| class="wikitable"
!{{Abbr|S. No.|Serial number}}
!District
!Total {{Abbr|pop.|population}}
!Hindus {{Abbr|pop.|population}}
! colspan="2" |Hindus ({{Abbr|%|percentage}})
|-
|1.
|[[Colombo]]
|2,324,349
|274,087
| rowspan="6" |[[File:Sri Lanka Hinduism.svg|frameless|360x360px]]
|11.79%
|-
|2.
|[[Gampaha]]
|2,304,833
|112,746
|4.89%
|-
|3.
|[[Kalutara]]
|1,221,948
|114,556
|9.37%
|-
|4.
|[[Kandy]]
|1,375,382
|197,076
|14.32%
|-
|5.
|[[Matale]]
|484,531
|45,682
|9.42%
|-
! colspan="2" |Total
!20,359,439
!2,561,299
!12.6%
|- Sri Lanka
| colspan="6" |Source: {{Harvnb|2012 Census|p=1}}
|}

== See also ==
{{div col|colwidth=30em|rules=yes|gap=1em}}
* [[Hinduism in Guyana]]
* [[Hinduism in Brunei]]
* [[Hinduism in Réunion]]
* [[Tamil diaspora]]
* [[Sri Lankan Tamils]]
* [[Sri Lankan Civil War]]
* [[Village deities of Sri Lankan Tamils]]
* [[Village deities of South India]]
* [[Siva Senai]]
{{div col end}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

==References==
=== Citation ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===
* {{cite book|last=Mookerji|first=Radha Kumud|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mjFfqpq7HhkC&pg=PA345|title=Ancient Indian Education: Brahmanical and Buddhist|date=1998|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-0423-4}}
* {{cite book|last=McEvilley|first=Thomas|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gbjelOMYyN8C&pg=PT558|title=The Shape of Ancient Thought: Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies|date=2012|publisher=Constable & Robinson|isbn=978-1-58115-933-2}}
* {{Cite web|date=2011|title=Census of Population and Housing, Sri Lanka (2012)|url=http://www.statistics.gov.lk/pophousat/cph2011/pages/activities/reports/finalreport/population/table%20a4.pdf|url-status=live|website=[[Government of Sri Lanka]]|publisher=[[Demographics of Sri Lanka|Sri Lanka Demographics department]]|ref={{SfnRef|2012 Census}}}}
* {{Cite journal|last1=Henry|first1=Justin W.|last2=Padma|first2=Sree|date=2019-07-04|title=Lankapura: The Legacy of the Ramayana in Sri Lanka|journal=South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies|volume=42|issue=4|pages=726–731|doi=10.1080/00856401.2019.1626127|issn=0085-6401|doi-access=free}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Hinduism in Sri Lanka}}
* {{url|http://www.hindudept.gov.lk/|Department of Hindu Religious and Cultural Affairs}}
{{Portal bar|Sri Lanka|Hinduism|Tamils|Religion|Society}}{{Sri Lankan Tamil people}}{{Asia topic|Hinduism in}}{{Religion in Sri Lanka}}

[[Category:Hinduism in Sri Lanka| ]]
[[Category:Hinduism by country|Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Hinduism in South Asia|Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan Tamil culture]]
[[Category:Religion in Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan Hindus]]

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Hinduism in Sri Lanka