Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c7.132

c7.132

The principal dēvāles are dedicated to the following five Hindu gods: (1) *Viṣṇu*; not much resembling the Hindu Viṣṇu, but a Buddhist archangel, a candidate for Buddhahood and a tutelary deity of Laṅkā: (2) *Nāta deviyō*, who is to the Buddhist no other than the Maitri Buddha, or Buddha of the next epoch, at present in the world of gods: (3) *Kataragam deviyō* (see p. 1): (4) *Pattini*, goddess of chastity (see p. 6): and (5) *Saman* (*Lakṣmaṇa*), half-brother of Rāma, who, with Viṣṇu and Kārtikeya accepted the general trust of guarding Laṅkā for Gotama Buddha; *Saman* is the special deity and guardian of Śrī Pāda (Adam’s Peak), called after him, Samanala.