Sri Lanka

The Buddhist faith, according to tradition, was introduced into Sri Lanka in the 3rd century BC, by monks guided by Mahinda, son of the famous Maurya Emperor Ashoka (r.268-232). In all its different forms Buddhism teaches the rejection of human attachment to the world, objects, illusions and self. The worship of demons and other spirits is regarded as one of many human attachments. Over time the indigenous demons, nagas and other spirits, were incorporated into Buddhism as protectors.

Sri Lanka occupied a preeminent position on trade routes linking the West with the Far East. Its proximity to India also led to regular interference from the kingdoms of southern India, between the 9th and late 11th centuries. Driven by the spice trade, the Europeans arrived five centuries later: first the Portuguese in the early 16th century, followed by the Dutch in the mid-17th century and finally the British from 1802 onwards until Sri Lankan independence in 1948.