Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c7.80

c7.80

Religious dedications by women were not unusual. For example, Lat Etanā, granddaughter of Abeyakon Mudiyanse of Medivaka Minuvangomuva, ‘did many meritorious acts with a view of obtaining the other world.’ Her daughter, Kudā Etanā, offered to the Daladā Māligāva certain lands, ‘reserving her right to possess on giving one bag of rice to the Māligāva each year,’ and made other offerings of robes, books, mats and cloths, and ‘for a general almsgiving,’ twenty-two cloths, three cows with calves, five bill-hooks, five axes, five sickles, two areca-nut slicers and lime boxes, two sets ear-flowers, and six silver bangles.” The merits of these offerings were to be shared by the gods, the king, the ministers, the incumbent of both vihāras, the low and high inhabitants of the world, her ancestors, herself, and her dead relations, ‘and may I obtain such blessings as to see the future Buddha’ (Lawrie’s Gazetteer, p. 586).