Sir Cyril de Zoysa, a man of great munificence

By Most Venerable Karagoda Uyangoda Maithri Murthy Maha Nayaka Thero

(Master of Education)
President, Sri Lanka Amarapura Maha Sangha Sabha
Acting Supreme Maha Nayaka, Sri Lanka Amarapura Maha Nikaaya

(Today, 26 Oct., 2023 marks the 127th birthday of Sir Cyril de Zoysa, a man of great munificence who lived in Sri Lanka, once as President of the Senate too. This presentation is in commemoration of his birth.)

If ever there was a person who throughout a lifetime cultivated qualities of devotion, discipline, generosity and wisdom, who was endowed with an immensely dignified personality, who displayed uncompromising self-confidence, who was imbued with knowledge and foresight, who was fortified by a full blown sense of patriotism and keen business acumen, and above all, bearing the character of a most amiable lay Buddhist devoted to the Sambuddha Sasana, who in recent times had fallen from the skies as it were, upon our resplendent isle, such person was none other than Sir Cyril de Zoysa.

Sir Cyril’s birthplace was the historic Welitota in the township of Balapitiya in South Sri Lanka which had earned encomiums as being the land of the valiant. His parents were Solomon de Zoysa, Notary Public and Harriet de Zoysa. Born on the 26th of October in the year 1896, he had his education at St. Thomas’ College, Matara, Richmond College, Galle and Royal College, Colombo. He was successful at the Cambridge Senior Examination in 1916, gained admission to the Ceylon Law College, Colombo, studied the Law and commenced his professional career at the Balapitiya Courts. Very soon, he moved to Kalutara Courts and started practising as a Proctor, which was the turning point in his life.

The Kalutara Bodhi Premises

Sir Cyril, who spied an ancient Bo Tree near the railway line close to the Kalutara Courts made it a part of his routine to visit the place every day in the evenings after Court work, perform the prescribed rites, offer flowers and light little clay lamps as was the long tradition. Then, this Bo Tree was in an undeveloped and highly unprotected state. The British Government Agent of Kalutara had issued orders that the performance of rites and rituals at the Bodhi premises shall be abandoned. For this reason, the Bodhiya stood alone and deserted. As a clever young lawyer and a devout Buddhist, Sir Cyril, ignored such orders and engaged in the performance of the traditional rites and rituals, with added vigour. Seeing this, the Buddhist community rallied round him and fearlessly engaged in worship and homage to the Buddha. Sir Cyril went on to purchase with his own private funds the official residence of the white Agent of the Government, which was perched upon the knoll or mound opposite the sacred Bodhi Tree, and also the Kachcheri premises, (Kachcheri being the office complex of the present day District Secretary /Government Agent). He then commenced the work of constructing a Chaitya or great sepulchral monument, likened to the work of the Great Creator Architect, Vishvakarma, in the Hindu pantheon.

For this purpose he established in 1951, the Board of Trustees of the Kalutara Bodhiya and had caused the construction of the premises designed to attract and inspire with devotion, passers-by along Galle Road. The Chaitya, with a circumference of 300 feet and a diameter of 95 feet, has the unusual feature of an open space within its inner chamber. Sir Cyril had the great good fortune to commence the work of the Chaitya in 1964, complete it all by January 1974, place the pinnacle upon the crest of the Chaitya and make this offering to the Maha Sangha. It is with infinite devotion that he invested his wealth, energy and time in this venture. Today the premises of the Kalutara Bodhiya has been transformed into a sacred place of great beauty, attracting honour and respect from millions of Buddhists and non-Buddhists the world over. The Bodhiya indeed represents the prime fruit among all the fruits that Sir Cyril’s wholesome actions have yielded.

The Business World

Sir Cyril who formed a private Bus Company by the name of ‘Swarnapali’ later changed its name to South Western Bus Company and expanded its services from Colombo to Matara, Tissa and Kataragama. At the time, this was the largest private Bus Company in our country. In 1956 when the Bandaranaike Government nationalised bus services Sir Cyril handed over the buses belonging to his Company only after repairing them all and having the tanks brimful with fuel. In the same token, it is in the cause of public welfare that he handed over to the Government all Depots and Service Centres that belonged to his Company.

It was with all goodwill towards public welfare that he started a Handloom Textile Project in the land where his parental home stood in Balapitiya, his birthplace. This gave rise to job opportunities for hundreds of people while it was successful in squirting out top quality textiles and garments fit for the local market and the foreign market as well. He started a number of rubber-based industries, rubber being one of the main economic resources in the Kalutara District. This led to the creation of thousands of job opportunities for youth. He was thus successful in having the country earn a sizable volume of foreign exchange too.

Politics and Social Service

In the year 1941 Sir Cyril became the Chairman of the Urban Council, Kalutara. At a later stage he was appointed to the Senate which was then popularly known as the Upper House. Here he served as Vice President for six years and as President for eight years making a name for himself as a man of unblemished character in the world of politics, forthright, honourable and dignified, which clearly reflected his political acumen.

Sir Cyril de Zoysa who became the Chairman of the Young Men’s Buddhist Association (YMBA) took the initiative to construct the YMBA Building in Colombo Fort, using part of his own personal funds too. He ensured that much of the income generated by this Building was used for the provision of services rendered by the YMBA. It was by popular choice that he was called upon to chair a large number of organisations such as the Sri Lanka Law Society, the All-Ceylon Buddhist Congress, the Sri Lanka Scout Association and the Parama Vignaanaartha Sangamaya . He was the founder of Kalutara Vidyalaya and Kalutara Balika Vidyalaya.

Sir Cyril organised the Kataragama Kirivehera Restoration Society, became its first Chairman and reconstructed the historic Kirivehera Chaitya. He went on to provide much of the infrastructure required for the sacred premises of Kataragama by building the required network of roads, Pilgrims’ Rests, Alms Halls, etc. It is along with the restoration of the Kirivehera that the majesty and the ancient glory of the sacred Kataragama premises too were restored. At this time these sacred premises of Kataragama did not have electricity. The Electricity Board, too, had neither the capacity nor the means to make provision. At this juncture Sir Cyril came forward to meet this need. He gifted a generator with sufficient capacity to provide power to the entirety of the sacred premises at Kataragama; and what is more, he undertook the responsibility of paying for its maintenance. We should never forget that it is due to Sir Cyril’s magnanimity that Kataragama has developed and progressed to this extent.

The Amarapura Bhikku Samagree

It is to the Most Venerable Madihe Pannaaseeha Maha Nayaka Thera that Sir Cyril first revealed his firm determination that Bhikkhus of the Amarapura Sector who were organised by way of twenty-two sectors, separately from one another, should come together as one organisation. Later on, Sir Cyril himself provided all facilities including transport facilities for Maha Nayaka, Anunayaka and Lekhakadhikari Theras of the Amarapura Sector, who were spread out all over Sri Lanka, to meet together to discuss this subject. It is as a result of this that the Sri Lanka Amarapura Maha Sangha Sabha was formed in 1966. Accordingly, the massive force and the giant energy that stood behind the chain of activities that comprised the screen behind which the Sri Lanka Amarapura Maha Sangha Sabha was created, was none other than Sir Cyril himself.

Conclusion

The Government of Great Britain conferred a Knighthood on Sir Cyril de Zoysa who had provided large-scale services in the cause of the Buddha Sasana and also in other fields – national, religious, social, educational, political, etc. This knighthood is the “Knight of the British Empire (KBE)”. Its shortened form in English is ‘Sir’ and in Sinhala ít is Srimath. This is how Cyril de Zoysa came to be addressed in English as ‘Sir Cyril ’ and in Sinhala as ‘Srimath Cyril da Zoysa’.

Sir Cyril who provided such large-scale services lived for 82 years and passed away on the 2nd of January 1978.

The Present and the Future

I hold in high esteem the dedication of Deshamanya Ajita de Zoysa, the incumbent Chairman and of other members of the Kalutara Bodhi Trust who continue unbroken the tradition of providing services in the same manner as did Sir Cyril. Chief among such services are the Programme of Training Teachers in the Dhamma Schools; the Programme of the Annual Provision of Text Books for Student Bhikkhus in all the Pirivenas in the Kalutara District; the Programme of granting scholarships to Student Bhikkhus preparing to earn the qualification of Praacheena Panditha, in the Districts of Kalutara and Galle; the Bodhignana Library Project; Homes for the Aged and Homes for Children. Moreover, the Bodhi Trust gives very generous donations for the development of Viharasthana or residential quarters for monks; for preserving the good health of monks; and to subsidize the costs of funeral ceremonies. In the active discharge of all these duties it is Ashan de Zoysa, Member of the Board of Trustees, who plays a very active role, on behalf of the Chairman. I see this as a very good omen for the future. I perceive the past of this most munificent generation in Sir Cyril de Zoysa, the present in Deshamanya Ajita de Zoysa and the future in Mr. Ashan de Zoysa.

Today, Deshamanya Ajita de Zoysa is the President of the Sri Lanka Amarapura Nikayabhivurdhi Dayaka Sabha, Vice President of the Sri Lanka Ramañña Maha Nikayarakshaka Sabha, Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Colombo YMBA, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Musaeus College, which is a popular Buddhist Girls’ School. The efforts made by Deshamanya Ajita de Zoysa to uphold the Amarapura Maha Sangha Sabha set up initially with the support of Sir Cyril de Zoysa and to continue the social services initiated by Sir Cyril in the same original way, are most commendable. Furthermore, the Honorary Chairman repeatedly emphasizes the need for the Amarapura Sector and the Ramañña Sector to come together and work in unison. To this end Sir Cyril acts with dedication to extend his unstinted support. He filled in the vacuum evident by the lack of an Office for the Amarapura Sangha Sabha, by constructing a three-storied office complex at No. 70, Galle Road, Wellawatta, Colombo 6, using his own private funds, and made an offering of this to the Sasana on 16th August 2020. It was named the Srimath Cyril de Zoysa Anusmarana Mandiraya (Sir Cyril de Zoysa Memorial Building), by way of honour and respect extended to him by the Sri Lanka Amarapura Maha Nikaya.

It is our belief that on this day when we commemorate Sir Cyril de Zoysa’s 127th birthday he watches all these activities through the power of paranormal perception and extends his blessings to us all. May he attain the eternal peace of Nibbana.