A centenary commemoration marking the second visit of revered Indian social reformer and spiritual leader Sri Narayana Guru to Sri Lanka in 1926, along with the annual conference of the Sri Narayana Guru World Council, was held on the 24th at the Narayana Guru Swami Hall in Grandpass, Colombo 14.
Sri Narayana Guru, who led a revolutionary social reform movement in Kerala during the early 20th century against caste, religious, and social divisions, is highly respected among the Malayali community as a spiritual teacher and religious philosopher.
The event was presided over by Sri Swami Sachidanandaji, the current spiritual head of the Narayana Guru tradition and chief of the Sivagiri Ashram in Varkala, Kerala, where Sri Narayana Guru once lived.
Representatives of Narayana Guru organizations from several countries attended the conference, including the President of the Sri Narayana Guru World Council, S. Suvarnakumar. Parliamentarian Mano Ganesan participated as the chief guest.
Sri Narayana Guru had visited Sri Lanka in both 1918 and 1926. During one of his visits, he is said to have conducted religious observances in a small abandoned land on Layard’s Broadway Road in Colombo 14. Later, Sinhala Buddhists and the Malayali community in Sri Lanka jointly built the Narayana Guru Swami Hall at that location.
Addressing the gathering, Sri Swami Sachidanandaji stated that Sri Narayana Guru deeply respected Buddhism and maintained close ties with Buddhist monks in both Sri Lanka and India. He emphasized that the Guru’s philosophy was rooted in unity and harmony beyond religious and social divisions, based on the principle of “One Religion, One Caste, One God for Humanity.”
Special recognition was also given to Prasanna Suresh for translating the “Deva Dashakam,” the principal devotional hymn of Sri Narayana Guru, from Malayalam into Sinhala. The hymn, which has now been translated into 100 languages, was recognized as a Guinness World Record achievement.
The services of former Parliamentary language translator and veteran writer M.K. Rahulan, who serves as President of the Sri Narayana Guru Association in Sri Lanka, as well as Vice President Surendra Madhavan, were also specially appreciated during the ceremony.
Religious leaders representing Buddhist, Hindu, Catholic, and Muslim communities participated in the event. School books and educational equipment were also distributed among schoolchildren representing different religious communities in the area.
