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The Ramayana Trails promoted by the Tourism Authority came under flak at a recently held meeting of the Royal Asiatic Society.

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Hakgala Gardens in Nuwaraeliya supposedly one of the areas of Ravana's vast pleasure garden

Academics, scholars and archeologists attending, asked the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) if it was “advisable to promote fiction to market Sri Lanka” when there was a greater need for promoting the country’s Buddhist Travel Trails, as was the original plan. Moving from promoting Buddhist travel to the Ramayana Trails was like “descending from the sublime to the ridiculous” they commented.

One wonders if the actual purpose of a commercial body set up for finding means to attract visitors to Sri Lanka is to be the guardian of the sublime.  A country finally picking itself up after decades of war surely has every right to find avenues to make itself noticed by the rest of the world and rebuild a flagging tourism industry?

Fictitious Realities

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The Ravana Falls where the 'demon king' is said to have hidden Sita in a cave behind it

It is interesting to find that to the rest of the world using legends, myths and fiction attributed to their town or country to enhance touristic value has not caused such grouse. Countries in Europe especially have capitalized on giving realistic twists to works of fiction and promoting legends, converting them into very profitable alternate reality.

The Lochness Monster can be the best example of this. The Scottish town of Inverness thrives on the legend of a prehistoric monster living in the murky waters of the lake Loch with close to 25,000 tourists paying yearly visits hoping to be the first ones who get to see the formidable ‘Nessie’.

Then there is a Romanian tourism site that actually encourages visitors to take the Dracula Trail – if one may call it that, citing many of the legendary places that Irish writer Bram Stoker set his famed tale of the vampires.  Visitors are encouraged to eat the exact meal fictional character Jonathan Harker had at an inn in the Romanian town of Bistria.

Economics and Pragmatism

‘The world’s most famous address’ 221b Baker Street, the Sherlock Holms Museum, which was recreated for the benefit of countless fans of the fictional detective, is another well known tourist attraction in London which is avidly promoted.  Visitors are shown around the house by illustrious Holmes’ fictional Maid or Dr. Watson himself and taken along to see his famous violin and the room he worked in.

The world has never hesitated to promote their indigenous quirks and stories, and one cannot say that any country’s history is entirely redeemed of legend or myth - history after all is someone’s point of view.

 A tale of good over evil, the Ramayana has held its own fascination among Sri Lankans as much as the Indians for centuries. Even the smallest of children are aware of the Ravana Ella, Seetha Eliya, the Sthripura Kanda Caves and the stories behind it.  Sharing this story with the rest of the world cannot be a crime?

If nothing else, the tourism industry has got a boost with 5000 Hindu pilgrims from India expected to complete the trails this year, which proves that the Ramayana has helped and not hindered the process. With the irrefutable proof of the Ramayana Trails success story, it has to be understood that the Economics of Tourism and the Pragmatics of Science do not go hand in hand with one another.


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