Performances of Theravada Buddhist Sri Lanka cover a spectrum ranging from ritual to theatre, usually associated with different levels and stages of social organization (tribal, agrarian, industrial). All, however, are performed in present day Sri Lanka and it is not uncommon for the same individual to participate in all of them. An analysis of these three types of performances and their interrelationships may provide insights into the nature of their significance for their audience/participants and help extend present definitions of such relationships. The three performances are: a pirit ceremony; a Sanni Yakuma ritual; and a theatre piece called Maname.

A pirit ceremony

This is a Theravada Buddhist ritual, one of the few major ritual performances associated with the “higher” religion (as distinct from the folk Buddhist rituals) and where the performers are Buddhist monks. The ceremony consists of monks reciting specific Buddhist texts in Pali, as protection against sickness, disease, demonic afflictions, and evil planetary influences. The magical transference occurs by an “act of truth” or satyakriya. The truth of the statements uttered by the monks is believed to generate a power that has a beneficial, protective, prophylactic effect. The performance is serious, sacred, largely non-dramatic and has very little element of play in it.