මේ මොහොත, අද

බෙදාගත් ගූගල් ඉමෙජයකි

මං දුකෙන් බරිත වුනා ඊයෙ

අද සතුටින් උදම්වෙලා
ඊයෙ මං හැඬුවා දුකට
අද හිනැහෙනවා සතුටින්
අහස ඊයෙ අඳුරින් පිරැනා
අද යසට ඉර පායලා
ඊයෙ ගහේ මල් වියැකිලා
අද පිපිලා දිලෙනවා
තරැ දුටුවෙ නැහැ රෑ අහසෙ
හඟිනව අද දකියි කියලා

නිවුන කෙනෙක් බුදු බණ කිව්වා ඊයෙ
දෙසු දමේ අරැත තේරැනෙ, අද.

ලිව්වෙ රෙන්ටන් ද අල්විස්

A vision

It's a warm morning
a frog is in deep meditation
on a stone by the backyard pond.

An hour later.... still warm, 
watched him jump, make soft ripples, 
shaking shadows, seeking bliss.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/fabulous-frogs/full-episode/8948/

Many lessons here for our leaders, both lay and religious ...

A fine blend

A repost

හඹා යන සාමය

A repost

Of freedom....

A repost

සැපට හැදෙන ගහ

නැවත පළ කිරීමකි.

නොදුන්නොත් ගන්නෙ කොහොමද. දෙන්නත් එපා, ගන්නත් එපා.

කල් අකල් මල්

Wasted

(A repost )

A sure recipe for national reconciliation

Make this work

and we shall see
all else will fall in place
we all shall be
the wonder we wish to see

live as if you
will die tomorrow
shun greed for power
for that we cannot eat

even better
embrace with might
the Buddha word
'Anichavatha sankara'

for all things
that shine now
will decay and wither
and decay and wither it will.

By Renton de Alwis

පාර අයිනෙ බුදුපිළිරැව

A shared Google image

තන්හා රති රඟා

රැඟුමින් මියුරැ

දැවන බිඳ නොගත් ඔබ

මුචලින්ද නාගයන්

දරණින්ද සෙවන ලැබ

මොරගහන වරැසාව

ඉවසවා වදාළා

දහම් සුවඳින් සතන්

සිත් නෙතුද අවදි කල

බුදු සමිඳූණි ඔබ

මෙනෙහි කල දහම් රස

සෙවන දුන් බෝ රැකට

අනිමිස ලෝචනයෙන්

කළෙහිගුණ වැඩූයේ

එ පාමුල්හීම වැඩ

දම්සක් සුතුරින්

සතන් මන පෑදුවේ ...

මෙදා ඔබ මෙවන් ලෙස

කොන්ක්රී ට් කුටිය තුල

පන්සලෙන් මහ පාර

දෙසට ඔබ නෙත් යොමා

විදුලි බුබුළින් දෙවන

සවනක් වු එළි දැලෙන්

හාස්කම් කතාවෙන්

දෙවියන්ද පිරිවරා

මහ පිරිත කවි බණද

කැසට් පට හඬ කවා

ඈත හිස් අවකාසෙ

පිරෙනකන් පතුරවා

පිං කැටය පුරවන්න

හරය බිඳ නරැම වුනු

පුහුඹුවන් පිනවන්න

හෙමද මගෙ සමිඳුනේ! 

මෙයද මගෙ සමිඳුනේ!

කලියුගයෙ ඔබ දකින 

අද දවසෙ අප හඟින

ඔබ දෙසූ දම් සුවඳ ! 

ලිව්වෙ රෙන්ටන් ද අල්විස්

ඉනික්බිති ...

රැසිරැ වරණින් සැදුනු සූසැට සමුලු මංගල      පාවුනා
දසත සිට ආ නේක දන මන බැන්ද කාරන    සිදුවුනා
අපට වින කල කරන කියනා මන්ද කාරණ  මඳ වුනා
අපේ හදවත දැවෙන ගිණි සිඳ මදක් අවසර    යාවුනා

ඉනික්බිති අප කරන කාරිය සැමට සුවදෙන ඉඩක්            වේවා
දනට වැඩ වන බියෙන් තොර වුන දැහැමි ගුණ පිරි දැයක්  වේවා
දමිළ යෝණක සිහළ උරැමය එකට කැටි වුනු රටක්         වේවා
මගේ මව් බිමෙ සියලු දන මන නිවුන ගුණයෙන් අසිරි      වේවා

ලිව්වෙ රෙන්ටන් ද අල්විස්

Shared Google image from ft.lk

(A repost)

Of a dreamer ....

Yin Yang

by Renton de Alwis

In darkness light creeps
life's mission greeting death
like good bad pretty ugly,
grey covers rain clouds
with drops that fall...

feed parched soil,
make oasis green,
make children play,
float boats in drains
in falling rain...

for then and then
wind will blow
trees will sway
sun will shine
blossoms will bloom...

life, 
with all its joys
all those falls
will go on.

A shared Google image from nowheal.com

English ha! English : Lyrics for a song

A shared Google image

by Renton de Alwis

English ha! English for you and for me
English for learning of a world we should see
Let's learn it well so we could trim
Our hearts and minds to the brim

There is a world,
we need to explore
to reach out, gain and share.
Where the Bard and the likes of him
Wordsworth, Dickens and Frost
wrote in verse and prose
and left for us a wealth
measured in mindful bites....

(Chorus)

This day we sit with grammar,
nouns and verbs and more
second only to our tongues of mother
we strive at home and school
we learn to speak,
sing... write, even more
of English, in English
for English we strive to learn....

(Chorus)

It is no glitzy jewel I'll wear
adorn my neck to show the world
but a mere tool to help know more
learn of other places, read lovely novels
poems, and write my very own.
To be or not, is not a question
I shall let my mind's eye see...
I'll learn it well, I'll learn it well
knowing well it's only the way
and not an end in any way.

(Chorus)

PS. I wrote this at the request of a friend of mine teaching English, who wanted a song written for the School English Day.

Breeze dance

A shared Google image

by Renton de Alwis 


Dance... dance,  leaf,  dance
let the Muses come
hold hands and dance
make... make,  music sweet
take... take,  soft hands
dance ...dance,  this morn
sun's rays soft fall
dew drops shine,
 till dance end will last
lotus blooms smile... swaying,
soft wind touch your cheeks
paint them crimson bright...

No!  paint them pale
lotus petal,  soft colour make
blow softer, touch tones sweet
like a free falling leaf... fall
sway... sway,  free fall feel
freedom... call a bird song
dance... dance,  landing soft,
touch cold,  dry earth roll,
I yearn to see you dance...
dance,  dance... dance...
yet not make this,
your swan song.

Samanthi, Menaka and I

Back in the 1980's ... You all have grown up to be such lovely ladies. Much of the credit must go to Ammi. Love you all !

Pic posted in the FB by Menaka de Alwis

Under the Poson moon ....

Under the Poson moon ... the Kiula Kiyawana Gunaya kids were invited to sing the opening devotional song at the Poson Bathi Gee Saraniya organised by the Ambalantota Divisional Secretariat yesterday. They made us all proud with the rendering of Nanda Malini's song 'Budhu Sadu Budhu Sadu'

To watch them sing click on the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGDD4UcMXu0

Here they were preparing for rehearsing before the event.

 Below are lanterns that adorned the roadside at Ambalantota, outside the premises 

where the event was held. 

My Weekend as Cecil captured it with his camera

A Cecil Perera Photo

My friend and university mate Cecil Perera, Geographer/Banker, in retirement turned photographer, spent the last weekend with me in Kiula and posted this album of what he had captured of our Kiyavana Gunaya Free Mobile Library Service, The free Mixed learning class held for the bright and low income kids of the village on Saturdays and the free classical and folk music learning session held on Sundays for library member kids with the help of two music teachers. This is when my living room turns into a class room. The album cover carries a pic of Podi and Doni, my friend Nalaka's two kids. (I added comments in each pic to better explain the context). Thank you Cecil for the pix. It will make the kids very happy to see themselves in action, when they see them next week. 

Checkout the albums at:

https://www.facebook.com/rentondealwis/posts/10152169621991966?notif_t=like

Green selling sold

by Renton de Alwis

It’s about selling and being sold
no matter what, no matter how.
To think selling your mother,
I mean Mother Nature… is ok
is despicable

Green selling is big business
consultant, politician, strategist, conservationist, marketer.
All sell for fees… for profit and profiting.
Speaking eco, seemingly being eco is lucrative.
A web of life is spun,
like the roulette wheel
It’s deplorable

Talk comes cheap
to act, to live simply, make food not weapons
is tough, nor comes cheap
presentations made at fora
exhibit at exhibition, tags and labels
all come easy with more money in it
for the making
consultant, politician, strategist, conservationist, marketer
all make money, selling out Mother Nature
It’s simply sad.  

Lest we know
who sells, sold, what, where and how.
Be fooled by them that sell & sold.
Wool over our eyes
sweet words for our ears.
Games go on, on and on
Green selling sold
reports, studies, EIAs, research, promotion
Games go on, on and on.    

Regardless
let each weave our own web
in the bosom of Mother Nature.

A firm NO to green selling sold.


A repost of a verse written in 2011 

On seeking the truth.

Pixel on ice

By Renton de Alwis

Somewhere, 
beyond it all, I could hear
me walking through
a wall to reach
to touch to feel
it’s might 
weakened to care
to let the soft wind
blow those strands of hair
fallen on a forehead bare
I stay stunned 
frozen like 
ice that needs a pixel 
to make a carving 
of a phoenix rising 

Bring that sun and that shine
through that open door
no expectation of life
but solace and joy
look not to the sky 
for rays that burn
but for the softness 
of those twinkling stars
likes of your eyes
come share that warmth
walk come walk that talk 
take come take my hand
guide come guide me on ....

An open letter .....

 Let us unite for a lasting peace


As someone who had the responsibility to promote the image of this country during the worst of times, I would like to urge all my Sri Lankan brethren not to be complacent with the thought that we as a nation has achieved it all. Being boastful does not help us solve any problems. What the LTTE diaspora is doing needs to be addressed with swift action by us on a united front. Our drawing divide lines and attacking our own, is not going to solve any issue or help our motherland win a lasting peace.

The danger signs are on. We need to place dignity, freedom and opportunities for all our citizens regardless of race, religion or creed above all else. We need to be true Buddhists, Hindus, Christians and followers of Islam. Not be swayed by emotional rhetoric but be guided by the essential wisdom of all of the Dhamma.

We need to think Sri Lankan, not because we are a wonder yet, but because we have the potential to be. We must first accept the mistakes we have made and resolve to look ahead of them with action on the ground. In doing so, we must ensure that we get our basics right.

We need to cut off the fanfare and waste, wherever, however we can. We need to conserve our resources to the best of our ability, for we owe it to our children and the yet to be born. As global citizens we owe it also to all our brethren. We need to be true practitioners of austerity. Not only by speech, but with solid action. We need to practice loving kindness and respect the rule of law, regardless of what echelon of social power or leadership we hold.

We need to take strong re look at the education we give our kids and the values we inculcate in to the process. The examinations centered and tuition based system we now practice within a fast eroding school based education system needs action that is meaningful and solid. For that holds the key to our nation's future success. While the provision of much needed infrastructure is being set in place, we seem to be letting go on the quality of the learning environment within our school system.

We must not get lost in the detail and miss out on the essence of the whole. We need to be selfless for the sake of our Motherland. We need to realize where we went wrong. Where and how we are going wrong. We need first to reflect on where we are and seek to understand. Tell the world our truth.

Our truth which is that, we want peace and do not wish harm to anyone. The truth that we need to be happy as a people. The truth that we were once a people that were happy and coexisted celebrating the unity we saw in our diversity. The truth that divisive and selfish elements stole that happiness from us. Not in the form of complaint. But in the form of rational reasoning.

We know our  politics and the constitution that guides it is flawed. We know that, for we voted on several occasions for it to be revamped. Each time we swayed away from making that happen. It is true we won a bloody war on terror and that took so much sacrifice, brevity and resolve. We must appreciate that, but must not let its burden lay heavy on our backs. We need the same sacrifice, brevity and resolve now,  to win the peace.

Please take off your colored glasses with with you view each issue. Have a clear vision. A vision for one Sri Lanka. A vision for one nation. A vision for one people.

This need be through solid action on the ground. Not through nice sounding but emply words in speeches made for the media or to satisfy short term needs.

When we get this right,  no LTTE diaspora or any other such will be able to defame us. The world, our friends and foe, they all will hear us. They will listen to us. Help us along the way. We must not be reactive or be in defense only when we are attacked.

We must be proactive, be swift in resolving our issues and present them to others as the truth. Our truth. The truth that we want to be one nation. Celebrate the unity in our diversity. We want to be ahead of forces that are destructive, not merely by responding to them but by proving that we are a nation that honor the rule of law, human dignity and democratic freedom.

Let us unite in thought and in deed. We have no choice. Divided we fall!

By Renton de Alwis

අකල් වැහි

අඳුරැ වැහි අහස අද
මට කියා ගෙන ගියා
හිරැට එනු නොහැකි බව

කුඩාවුන් ඉස්කෝලෙ
යන මගදි හමුවුනා
අද උන්ගෙ හිනාහඬ
වියළිලා වියැකිලා

ගමට කඩයප්ප දෙන
හින්නි අම්මට වැස්ස
බඩට ගහලා ගිහින්
හූල්ලල බලනවා

යසට හැදු නියර බැමි
කඩින් කඩ කැඩීලා
කඩේ සීයගෙ කුඹුරෙ
එක වැඩේ දෙක වෙලා

සිප්පි ලයිසියට අද
නිවන් මග පෑදිලා
හවස බොන ගිණි වතුර
ණයට ගන්නට වෙලා

වෙසක් මල් මැලවිලා
බටිති කැල හැංගිලා
සුළඟෙ වෙලි කොහොඹ ගහ
ලජ්ජාවෙ ඇඹරැනා

යළි එන්න පායලා
සිත් අඳුර මකාලා
නාවොතින් කුඩාවුන්
උරන වෙයි සිතාලා

රෙන්ටන් ද අල්විස් පබැඳුමක්
(A repost)

සමනළයා හා ළමයා

“සමනළයෝ! සමනළයෝ! 

නුඔ කොහේද යන්නේ
මම යන්නේ, මම යන්නේ
මල් පැණි බොන්නයි
මටත් ඇහැකි, මටත් ඇහැකි
නුඹත් එක්ක පියාඔන්න
මගෙ තටුවල පාට අරන්
පියාඹන්න ළමයෝ”


ලිව්වෙ කාව්‍ය (පොඩි) ලංකාධිකාරි
මෙය ලියන විට වයස 7 යි. හුංගම විජයබා ජාතික පාසලේ 2 ශ්‍රේණියේ සිසුවෙක්.

සටහන: මේ කාව්‍ය (පොඩි) ගොතපු තුන් වන පද වැල. මෙහි අවසන් පදය ඔහු කලින් ලිව්වෙ " බැහැ බැහැ මට පියාඹන්න තටු නෑ සමනළයෝ" කියල. අපි දෙන්න ඒ ගැන පොඩි සාකච්චාවක් කරා. ඉන් පස්සෙ එයා ඒ පද වැල මේ විදියට වෙනස් කලා.