Abstract

The first Sinhalese literary evidence of Gaṇapati is found in a verse of Sasadāvata, a poetry work composed in 12th century CE during the Polonnaruwa period. Gaṇapati or Gaṇesha, who is one of the most worshiped gods in Hindu culture, is not found in Sri Lankan literature till the medieval period. However, a sculpture of an elephant-headed figure belonging to the 2nd century CE has been found on the cornice below the topmost register of one of the frontispieces of Mihintale Kaṇṭaka Cētiya among the frieze of dwarfs, referred to as gaṇas in literature. The figure has been identified by scholars as the well-known Hindu god Gaṇapati owing to the elephant head. In comparison to Hindu sculpture, the figure can be correctly identified as an early depiction of Gaṇapati.

This interpretation leads to a number of questions that need to be answered, such as: does the presence of this representation of Gaṇapati refers to the existence of the cult of Gaṇapati in Sri Lanka at that time? and further it also raises the question as to what was the intention of having a figure of Gaṇapati in a Buddhist temple? and it also prompts us to think about the nature of Buddhism that would have prevailed at that time in Mihintale that allowed a sculpture of Gaṇapati in the Mihintale monastery of Kaṇṭaka Cētiya. This study intends to examine the social and cultural dynamics that would have allowed for a non-Buddhist icon into a Buddhist building at an early stage of Buddhist history in the island. Arising from the facts available, this figure can, thus, be identified as an earliest depiction of this Hindu god at a Buddhist temple in Sri Lanka, as the head of the gaṇas, in the form of Ēkadanta who has only one tusk as we know him today. The consciousness among the contemporary society of him as a divine being is evident from the archaeological context of the sculpture.

Therefore, sculpturing Gaṇapati at Mihintale Kaṇṭaka Cētiya can be identified as the early stage of absorbing this non-Buddhist deity in to Sri Lankan Buddhist culture. Further, it can be concluded that the heterodox Buddhism was influential in sculpturing non-Buddhist icons in early Buddhist art. Simultaneously, the political revolution from Mauryan to Lambakarṇas led to changes in political context, therefore, new group of patrons for heterodox Buddhism were begining to emerge.

Keywords: Gaṇapati, head of gaṇas, Hindu sculpture, non-Buddhist deities, Mihintale Kaṇṭaka Cētiya

BA, MPhil in Archaeology, PhD candidate, Visiting Lecturer, Postgraduate Institute of Pali and Buddhist Studies (PGIPBS), University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. Email: koshaleekaku@gmail.com
BA, MSc, PhD (China) in Archaeology, Co-supervisor, Senior Lecture, Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. Email: dr.chandima@gmail.com