Come with me and do the devil mask dance in Sri Lanka! Elsie Gabriel

Come with me and do the devil mask dance in Sri Lanka! Elsie Gabriel

 I loved the drama, the entertainment, historic ritual and of course the anthropology involved in the beautiful colorful ‘masks’ worn during the charade. Sri Lanka is fascinating. An island famous for its pristine beaches and wild life, you have to give in to the ancient cultural mythological stories when it comes to the history of ‘Masks’. Masks used in various dramatic rituals in Sri Lanka can be classified as demonic, animal-spirit and human figures. The significance and designs of mythological masks are associated with iconography of the folk religions of the historical period.

The Mask dance is said to have been a carefully crafted ritual with a history reaching far back into Sri Lanka’s pre-Buddhist past. The Lankans love their visual art and the ‘Mask’ is one highly coloured and revered piece of artifact used in religious ceremonies as well as entertainment. The masks are mainly made from a durable wood called ‘Kaduru’.  The wood is light and allows carvings to be made very easily.

 The ‘mask’ rules in most ceremonial and devotional performances. The use of masks in  rituals and ceremonies is a very ancient human practice across the world, although masks can also be worn for protection, in hunting, in sports, in feasts or in wars or simply used as ornamentation. Some ceremonial or decorative masks were not designed to be worn. Although the religious use of masks has waned, masks are used sometimes in drama therapy or psychotherapy.

If you ever go to Sri Lanka do not miss the ‘devil mask’ dancing which is generally performed with the motive of healing. These are also accompanied by drummers, to enhance the accompanying crazy steps and movements of dancers wearing the geometrically brightly coloured masks.

It is an extraordinary cultural phenomenon .Mask dancing and drama are mostly  attempts at invoking the supernatural. But the most elaborate masks are for drama. It is more like an opera, having a central theme and a series of episodes enacted by dances wearing masks of different sizes, culminating in the dramatic presentation of a story. 

Try and find a local Mask maker and see how well it is chiseled, crafted and painted. Each one is a master piece!

By hiding your face the mask allows you to play a totally different role, it gives you the liberty to assume another personality. It is symbolic and magical, anonymous and mysterious.Well when I danced the mask dance in Sri Lanka, I felt liberated; the mask did not hide my persona but accentuated my feeling s of freedom. 

Try one next time. 

Think of it, the Mardi
gras, the African cultures, South Indians and Chinese dragon mask dances all simply celebrate cultural well being!