The devils in the minds of Sinhalese people

Beliefs of Yaka and Yakkini (the male and female devils) among Sri Lankan People.

Written on July30, 2013 By Jay Hettiarachchy

According to Mahavamsa the chronicle of Ceylon, Vijaya, the very first king who colonized Sri Lanka     lived with a female devil before he got married to a princess from Madras (Madura). Vijaya had two children born from the yakshini (devil woman) who later propagated the Veddhas (uncivilized people) of Sri Lanka. Most people in Sri Lanka still believe in the existence of the devil. Devil dancing is widely practiced to drive away the evil spirits that are supposed to take possession of men and women. 

The devils  are called yaka in Sinhala language. The female devils are called yakshinis. Besides these devils, there are other non-humans such as the prethayas, bhutayas, amanussayas, pisachayas to name a few. They are all non-human beings who are supposed to lurk around waiting to harm the humans.

The devils or demons are recognized in most religions. They are mostly represented as the personification of evil – as the enemy of God and human kind - in most religions. The devil is called “mara” meaning the “killer” in Buddhism.  Mara is a tempter for evil doings.

According to popular beliefs, the devil is a non-human being mentioned in most cultures; although they are not visible, they are present in the atmosphere in some form of ethereal body. There are representations of the devils in pictorial form drawn by people who in their minds have conceptualized how they look like. But in essence, these non-humans are supposed to be most evil in their looks, thoughts, and doings. They lurk around humans to bring them disaster and misfortune. The devils are supposed to be awake at nights when humans are sleeping and they are active during the night and are very happy in the dark. 

Some humans are supposed to be possessed by the devil and their behavior is determined by the devils that possess them. Black magic, and voodoo practices based on invoking devils to bring disaster to people are mentioned in the early literature. Books written on black magic containing incantations invoking and dispelling of devils are found in both oriental and occidental collections. These are kept as secret documents in the collection of black magicians practicing devil worship in order that they use the devils power to destroy people.

Most Buddhists firmly believe that people who do sins in life become devils or other evil beings in their next life. They also believe that by giving alms to the Buddhist monks they could prevent their loved ones from becoming evil spirits or devils in their next life. 

Analysis:

It is possible that psychosomatic diseases could contribute to visions as well as voices seen and heard by those people who suffer from mental illnesses.  Mentally ill people live among normal people in some societies where there are no medical facilities or psychiatric counseling to treat them. Some of the voodoo practitioners themselves in such societies could well be mentally sick people. 

Since most people believe in the existence of evil spirits, they find it logical that the devils that take possession of humans could be driven away by devil dancing. The belief in the devil and the practice of devil dancing therefore go hand in hand. The Buddhist religious beliefs of the existence of the non-humans have therefore gone a long way to promote the popular belief of the existence of these non-humans in these societies.