The humours in their pernicious gatherings
spit and pout, visit and nibble
and body and mind
in their imperfections
shiver, sweat and weep
their physiological discomfort
and take their birth-right endowments
of faith and belief
as per custom and ritual of the age
gift as appropriate to the expiator
‘doctor’ to some, ‘gurunnanse’ to others
equipped to exorcise disease-clusters
clothed in anxiety and credulity;
some are healed, we know
but bodies and minds
are ready prey for pharmaceuticaled greed
gentlemened now as science
and not vilified as hogwash
in the political economy of cultured medication,
a sanniya in its own right
with more than 18 manifestations
Inspired by the photography of Ishara Kodikara
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Was the picture from a real thowilaya? i wasn't aware that we still practiced that.
ReplyDeletegood one.
ReplyDeletei have a feeling that 'imperfections' of something or someone can be removed or improved through the 'perfections' of someone who is perfect. but no one is perfect.... 'gurunnanse' if you take the general meaning of the wpord i guess it has several meanings ' teacher', 'veda mahaththaya' ,'healer' and i don't know whether it has other meanings yes, the person who leads the 'thowilaya' is also known as 'gurunnanse' ... hope i m right. 'if you take the word 'sanniya' some use this word to give another meanings ... it is locally use for other purposes i believe to describe a character etc ... this is my personal view...
yes, in sri lanka we call mad cases pissu sanniya.
ReplyDelete