This article is part of a series on the ‘Mahavamsa’, the recorded chronicle of Sri Lankan history

Dutugemunu fights Balluka

  1. Bhalluka organized his army. King Dutugemunu announced that he was ready for the battle. By this time, the Tamil soldiers, who fled in the face of defeat, had joined the army of Bhalluka. They were unanimous in their decision to march to the battle field. Well armed, they marched towards Anuradhapura. It looked as if the Tamil army was taking revenge on the Sinhala people, because they were burning villages and killing even the animals on their way.
  2. The Sinhala army, under King Dutugemunu, advanced fearlessly. But the march was unusually slow. It was because of Kandula, the elephant. Kandula who goes tearing at the enemy was going quite half-heartedly. Though the king tried to make him go faster, it didn’t work. The king was worried that the army too would get disheartened.
  3. King Dutugemunu summoned Phussadeva and asked, “Phussadeva, what is this change of attitude of my elephant? He has played an active part in about 28 battles, before this. He has never retreated before. Is this an indication that the battle with Bhalluka will be, to our disadvantage?” Phussadeva then answered “O’ King, do not lose heart. The elephant will draw back only till he finds a place of victory. Once he gets it, he will halt there”.
  4. These words spread to the commanders and the other soldiers as well. They were delighted with the news. What Phussadeva predicted came true. When the elephant reached the boundary of Mahavihara, he stopped. Then all the soldiers, quickly armed themselves and waited in readiness to face the enemy. Bhalluka, who was unaware of all these happenings, got ready to face Dutugemunu’s army.
  5. The battle began. When Bhalluka saw Dutugemunu he was almost shivering in anger, thinking, “this is the man, who killed my uncle. I must see him dead”. Bhalluka, shot an arrow to pierce Dutugemunu’s mouth. The king managed to avoid it. It struck the blade of his sword and fell to the ground. The king, who was having his chew of betel in his mouth, dropped it there. On seeing this, Bhalluka thought that his dart hit the king’s mouth and he was bleeding from his mouth. He was overjoyed that his dart hit the target. “He is struck in the mouth”, uttered Bhalluka, shouting in sheer joy.
  6. Mighty Phussadeva, who was sitting behind the king, let fly an arrow into Bhalluka’s mouth. As the arrow passed, it slightly touched the king’s ear-ring. But it went straight piercing Bhalluka’s mouth. When he was about to fall, with his feet towards the king, Phussadeva let go another arrow at the falling man.
  7. This struck him on the knee, making him fall with his head towards the king. By then, the Sinhala army had completely defeated the Tamil forces. About sixty-thousand of Bhalluka’s warriors lay dead. The entire place was red with blood. There were dead bodies strewn all over.
  8. There were a number wounded among the Sinhala army too. Comparatively, the damage was less. When the king’s ear-ring was hit, his ear was slightly wounded. When Phussadeva saw the ear bleeding, he was thoroughly upset. The king’s doctors treated him. Though the king’s wound healed in no time, Phussadeva’s guilt over what happened hurt him.


By Halaliye Karunathilaka
Edited and translated by
Kamala Silva
Illustrated by Saman Kalubowila


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