Sri Lankan Traditional Masks

- June 19, 2018

When I am talking about Traditional Masks, it is better to tell you something about Ambalangoda. It is a well known city for mask making industry which is located at South Western coastal belt of Sri Lanka. It is really amazing art & culture.

There was a ancient story behind the mask making industry. Today, masks are used for various rituals & dance performances. According to ancient believes, it also use to cure sicknesses.

In mask making industry they used " Rukkattana " and " Diyakandura " as a timber because it must be a light and durable timber. Those trees have that qualities. So that they selected it for their crafts. After making their masks they uses decorative methods for makes its beauty. They used nice colours for that.

There are three types of mask categories in Sri Lanka. They are ;

Kolam Mask
Sanni Mask
Raksha Mask

Kolam Mask

Kolam Masks are used mainly in dramas. Jasaya & Lenchina both are famous masks among the kolom mask. Kolam Masks are used in storytelling performances.

Sanni Mask

These masks are used in curing ceremonies. In ancient times, this healing way used to cure some diseases such as mental diseases, diseases of food digestive system, some temporary diseases like deafness, dumbness, shivering and fits, unbearable cold, headache, wrong actions & etc. People thought all this happens beacause of demon possession. So that they used these type of masks to drive away those bad spirits from human body. There are 18 Sanni Masks.

Deva Sanniya
Vata Sanniya
Pith Sanniya
Amukku Sanniya
Naga Sanniya
Ginijala Sanniya
Selesma Sanniya
Kapala Sanniya
Maru Sanniya
Kadawata Sanniya
Kora Sanniya
Buhutu Sanniya
Kana Sanniya
Jala Sanniya
Bihiri Sanniya
Golu Sanniya
Vevulum Sanniya
Gedi Sanniya

Bihiri Sanniya- This mask shows the temporary deafness. In this mask half side was covered with a cobra. They believed cobra as a deaf animal.

Naga Sanniya - This means the vision of the demon causes poison like cobra poison in the body blister, swellings.

Buhuta Sanniya - causes for the temporary madness.

Deva Sanniya - causes measles, mumps, small pox, typoid fever and cholera

Raksha Mask

This masks also used to perform Raksha dances in Kolam Maduwa. It had a nice legend in Ramayanaya. In ancient time there was a King called "Ravana" who ruled the Sri Lanka. He was a race of devil. Those devil people could able to assume various forms. It is about 24 forms. Among them few were used in Kolam dance. Those are ;