Source of Ayurvedic Medicine in Sri Lanka

 Information about the medical system that existed in ancient Sri Lanka can be found in books and archeological evidences.  Of these, the Mahavamsa occupies an important place.  The Mahavamsa mentions Sivikasalas and Sothisalas which are believed to have been built during the reign of King Pandukabhaya.  In addition, King Buddhadasa and King Agbo IV are said to have been leaders in the field of medicine.  The Mahavamsa contains a number of details, including that many other kings paid salaries to doctors and built hospitals.

 The second most important evidence of ancient Sri Lankan medicine is found in the inscriptions.  These documents include information on royalties received by hospitals, salaries and benefits received by doctors, allowances, medical procedures, land owned by hospitals, and statutes on hospital administration.  Articles such as the Dorabawila Tam inscription, the Mihintale tablet inscription and the Medirigiriya rock inscription are some examples of this.

 The Attani Parihara pillars erected during this period reveal facts about dispensaries, hospitals, dispensaries and Thimbirigewals built during the Anuradhapura period with the patronage of the state.  Attani Parihara is a special category of grants and privileges conferred by the standard of the Royal Council.  The affected lands were treated as sanctuaries.  The Kiribathvehera Tam inscription mentions a donation of land named Megiriwatta to a dispensary called Bamuna Kumburam by King Kasyapa IV.  The four borders were defined and declared a sanctuary, and even the princes had no power to apprehend the criminals who came there.  This implies that the dispensary at that time was an independent institution free from state interference.  According to the Dorabawila Tam article, there is a reference to Dappula Mapanan's harassment.  Several lands belonging to a hospital built by King Kasyapa V have inherited the above grant.  It states that kings who violate the privileges bestowed by compensation are dogs at any level, such as Epa and Mapa.  According to the Polonnaruwa Raja Sabha Mandir TAM letter, a landowner should be given a dry ginger plant every year except the one started by Dothi Valakkana for the exemption granted to him on the condition of paying taxes to the hospital.