New Year Festival

     The Sinhala and Tamil New Year in Sri Lanka, celebrated on April 13 or 14th, marks a significant cultural and spiritual event rooted in ancient traditions and customs. Known as Sūrya Mangallya, it symbolizes the transition of the sun into Aries, ushering in a season of fertility and thanksgiving after the Maha seasonal harvest. While Vesak and Poson are prominent Buddhist festivals, the Sinhala New Year holds its significance as a solar festival. The rituals, guided by auspicious times known as nekath, are meticulously prepared by experts, maintaining the sanctity of daily rituals at revered sites the Temple of the Tooth Relic, Kandy.

    During the festivities, rituals such as boiling milk, cooking sweetmeats, and offering prayers to the Buddha and Deities, as well as anointing with medicinal oils called “Nānumura Mangallaya”, are observed with utmost reverence. The sacred medicinal oil is distributed to the rural temples and Devalas within the premises of Natha Devalaya in Kandy, under the auspices of the temple of the sacred tooth relic.