Ancient heroic myths are retrofitted onto living Sinhalese leaders to justify dominance.

Evidence

As noted, nineteenth and twentieth century Buddhist nationalists deftly used the Duthagamani myth to institute Sinhalese Buddhist domination. … Some even equate themselves with these mytho-historic heroes. For instance, the military successes against the LTTE under the current Rajapakse government have led to Rajapakse being compared to Duthagamani. Toward the end of 2006, a massive cardboard cut-out of Rajapakse was even erected at the junction at Maradana, Colombo, proclaiming, “Our President, Our Leader; He is Next to King Dutugemenu.” — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 79

Categorization

• XREF: Connects directly to the reader’s question about manufactured external enemies sustaining solidarity and manufactured mythic identity - and parallels the ADDENDUM piece on sacrifice as stabilizing stratified societies. — connects to: Buddha’s mythic visits legitimize Sinhalese supremacy by subjugating indigenous beings — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist…, 71; The Sinhalese-Tamil enmity is a modern retrojection onto an embellished ancient chronicle. — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist…, 75; Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist ideology rests on mythic history yet betrays Buddhism’s core values — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist…, 294 (+1 more)
• SEED: The myth-to-modern-leader mapping (Duthagamani onto Rajapakse via cardboard cut-outs) is a vivid example for an essay on how groups recruit mythic heroes to legitimize contemporary domination.

Broader Connections

• Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist ideology rests on mythic history yet betrays Buddhism’s core values #expands (0.85) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 294
• Sinhalese nationalist identity is constructed as inseparable from Buddhism #expands (0.80) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 193