Jettha Tissa I

Jettha Tissa I
ජෙට්ඨ තිස්ස
King of Anuradhapura
Reign263 – 273
PredecessorGothabhaya
SuccessorMahasena
FatherGothabhaya

Jettha Tissa I (Sinhala: ජෙට්ඨ තිස්ස, lit. 'Tissa Senior', [dʒeʈʈə θissə], ruled 263–273)[1] also referred to as Detu Tiss (Sinhala: දෙටු තිස්, [deʈu θis]), Kalakandetu Tissa, and Makalan Detu Tissa,[2] was the eldest son of Gothabhaya and brother of Mahasena. He was a king of Sri Lanka for ten years.[3]

The chronicle of Sri Lanka - Mahavamsa described Jettha Tissa I as a cruel person and stated that immediately after his father’s death, he had all of his father’s court ministers killed and then had their bodies placed on spikes around the pyre.[4]

Sources cite that Jettha Tissa and his brother Prince Mahasena were educated by the Buddhist monk Sanghamitta.[5] It is said that the young Jettha Tissa, who later embraced the Maha Vihara priests instead of Buddhism, disliked his teacher.[3] The monk was forced to flee when he became king but returned and became influential during Mahasena's reign.[3]

  1. ^ Ray, H.C. (1960). History of Ceylon: Vol. I: Part II. Ceylon University Press. Colombo. pp. 843–847.
  2. ^ Senaveratna, John M. (1997). The Story of the Sinhalese from the Most Ancient Times Up to the End of "the Mahavansa" Or Great Dynasty: Vijaya to Maha Sena, B.C. 543 to A.D.302. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. p. 278. ISBN 81-206-1271-X.
  3. ^ a b c Blaze, L. E. (2004). History of Ceylon. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. p. 48. ISBN 81-206-1841-6.
  4. ^ "The Mahavamsa". The Mahavamsa.org. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  5. ^ Mahanama-sthavira, Thera (1999). The Mahavamsa: The Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka. Fremont, CA: Jain Publishing Company. p. 360. ISBN 978-0-89581-906-2.