Mahinda College is a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

boys' school in

Galle Galle ( si, ගාල්ල, translit=Gālla; ta, காலி, translit=Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Souther ...

, Sri Lanka. The school was established on 1 March 1892 by the Buddhist

Theosophical Society The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the aim to advance the ideas of Theosophy in continuation of previous Theosophists, especially the Greek and Alexandrian Neo-Platonic philosophers dating back to 3rd century CE ...

led by

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

Henry Steel Olcott Colonel Henry Steel Olcott (2 August 1832 – 17 February 1907) was an American military officer, journalist, lawyer, Freemason and the co-founder and first president of the Theosophical Society. Olcott was the first well-known American of Euro ...

. As of May 2022 it is a national school providing primary and secondary education across 13 grades.

History

Colonel

, a retired United States army officer, came across a report of a religious debate between Buddhist monks and Christian clergy. He began to correspond with the Buddhist monks of Ceylon, eventually leading him to visit

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. Olcott arrived in Galle on 17 May 1880 with

Helena Blavatsky Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 187 ...

, where they converted to Buddhism at the Wijeyananda temple. They founded the Buddhist Theosophical Society and set about opening up Buddhist schools such as

Dharmaraja College Dharmaraja College ( si, ධර්මරාජ විද්‍යාලය), founded in 1887, is a boys' school in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is a Buddhist school with around 300+ teaching staff and around 5000+ students. The school has many notable ...

Kandy Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka located in the Central Province. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills ...

, Ananda College in

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

, and

Maliyadeva College ''විද්‍යා භූෂනං පුරුෂ භූෂනම්'' ''Vidya Bhūshanam Purusha Bhūshanam'' , motto_translation = Science is the jewel of man , location = Negombo Rd, Kurunegala , city ...

Kurunegala Kurunegala ( si, කුරුණෑගල, ta, குருணாகல்) is a major city in Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of the North Western Province and the Kurunegala District. Kurunegala was an ancient royal capital for 50 years, fr ...

.With the help of John Bowles Daly, an Irish clergyman and a theosophist, Mahinda College was opened on 1 March 1892 in

Galle Fort Galle Fort ( si, ගාලු කොටුව ''Galu Kotuwa''; ta, காலிக் கோட்டை, translit=Kālik Kōṭṭai), in the Bay of Galle on the southwest coast of Sri Lanka, was built first in 1588 by the Portuguese, then ex ...

. The school was named after

Arahat In Buddhism, an ''arhat'' (Sanskrit: अर्हत्) or ''arahant'' (Pali: अरहन्त्, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana'' and liberated ...

Mahinda, the monk who brought Buddhism to Sri Lanka. DalyBowles 1892-4

Daly left after one year, followed by a number of principals serving for short periods. With the arrival of

Frank Lee Woodward Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curre ...

as principal in 1903, the average attendance of the school rose to 142 from 89. Also in 1903, students took the

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

examination, and in July 1904, G. W. Perera won a scholarship to Cambridge. By 1905 there were 246 students attending. Woodward had plans to relocate the college, and purchased land called “Dawatagahawatta” with a view of the Sripada (Adam's peak). On 15 January 1908 the foundation stone of the Olcott hall was lain. On 1 August 1912 the new building was ceremonially opened and became the main hall of the college. With the new location, the number of students rose to 300. In 1919, Woodward left for

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

to edit and translate Buddhist texts for the

Pali Text Society The Pali Text Society is a text publication society founded in 1881 by Thomas William Rhys Davids "to foster and promote the study of Pāli texts". Pāli is the language in which the texts of the Theravada school of Buddhism are preserved. The Pā ...

, London. For the 60th anniversary of Mahinda College in 1952, a new physics laboratory was opened by the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Dudley Senanayake Dudley Shelton Senanayake ( Sinhala: ඩඩ්ලි ශෙල්ටන් සේනානායක: ta, டட்லி சேனநாயக்கா; 19 June 1911 – 13 April 1973), was a Sri Lankan statesman who served as Prime Mi ...

on 12 September. As of May 2022 the college provides education to 3,750 students from grades 1 to 13. Students are divided into five groups: primary, junior, secondary, senior secondary and collegiate. The current principal of Mahinda College is Athula Wijewardhane Nanayakkara, a first-grade officer in the Sri Lanka Education Administrative Service. The college employs 175 teachers and 30 non academic staff.

Past principals

Houses

Students are divided into four

houses A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

. *

Pandukabhaya Pandukabhaya (474 BC – 367 BC) was King of Upatissa Nuwara and the first monarch of the Anuradhapura Kingdom and 6th over all of the island of Sri Lanka since the arrival of the Vijaya; he reigned from 437 BC to 367 BC. According to many his ...

- *Gamunu - *Thissa - * Parakrama - The houses are named after four ancient kings of Sri Lanka. Annual sporting events are held among the houses.

Lovers' Quarrel

The Lovers' Quarrel or Battle of the Lovers is an annual cricket match played between the cricket teams of Mahinda College and Richmond College, Galle. The contest was started in 1905 under the principal of Richmond College, Rev. James Horne Darrel, and the principal of Mahinda College, Frank Lee Woodward. As of 2019, Mahinda College has won 23 times, while Richmond College has won 24 times.The Lover's Quarrel was last won by Mahinda College in 2008, breaking a 30-year-long deadlock of draws.

Notable alumni

Notable teachers

F. L. Woodward Frank Lee Woodward (1871–1952) was an English educationist, Pali scholar, author and theosophist. Woodward studied and researched on Theravada Buddhism and wrote numerous work based on them. He is admired among the Pali scholars for compiling ...

* F. G. Pearce *

Arisen Ahubudu Kalasuri Arisen Ahubudu ( Sinhala: අරිසෙන් අහුබුදු; 18 March 1920 – 26 May 2011) was a Sri Lankan writer, orator, scholar, playwright, teacher (Guru), Sinhala lyricist, author and poet. He is a member of the Hela Ha ...

Ananda Samarakoon Egodahage George Wilfred Alwis Samarakoon (13 January 1911 – 2 April 1962) known as Ananda Samarakoon was a Sri Lankan (Sinhalese) composer and musician. He composed the Sri Lankan national anthem " Namo Namo Matha" and is considered the fath ...

Edwin Ariyadasa Kala Keerthi Wijetunga Karunaratne Edwin Ariyadasa (3 December 1922 – 22 January 2021: si, එඩ්වින් ආරියදාස), popularly known as Edwin Ariyadasa, was a Sri Lankan Sinhalese journalist. He was a well known newspaper ...

References

* ''A Story of Buddhist Determination: Mahinda College, Galle;'' Buddhist Annual of Ceylon, Vol I (1920), No. 2, p. 29-3

External links

Official website

Mahinda college 2005 Group

' Asoka Weeraratna and Mahinda College - Nostalgic Memories' by W.Panditaratne
{{Authority control Buddhist schools in Sri Lanka Boys' schools in Sri Lanka Educational institutions established in 1892 National schools in Sri Lanka Schools in Galle 1892 establishments in Ceylon