Budhuguna Alankaraya

The bulk of ancient Sinhalese classical literature is devoted to the admiration of the Buddha’s virtues. Budugunaalankaraya authored by Venerable Weedagama Maithreya Thera recalls the events during the times of the Buddha. The reader finds how the Buddha interfered when the city of Vishala in India was plagued with disasters one after another. The Buddha delivered the Ratana Sutta (Jewel Discourse) by way of an act of truth to regain peace for the city. The poetic work also elaborates the righteous rule of the Lichchavis (a ruling confederate clans of the Vajji Mahajanapada of ancient India) during the lifetime of the Buddha. This will be an interesting reading material for anyone keen on studying the royalty during the Buddha’s lifetime. Budugunaalankaraya is written in simple poetic style. The current edition offers annotations to the classical poems in modern language.