By; Mahinda Karunaratne

It is sad to inform that Mr. D.D.M. Waidyasekara former Commissioner of Inland Revenue and author of several books in history and fiscal taxation and an intellectual passed away on the 16^th Dec. 2019 after brief illness at Apeksha Hospital, Maharagama.

His remains were cremated on 17^th Tuesday Dec. 2019, day following his pass away at his request in a very brief and simple performance at Mount Lavinia cemetery.

It was a sad incident for me remembering the late Mr. Waidyasekara whom I called Harry Uncle” when I was very small, who had been an occasional visitor on his visiting of relatives in Kandy area some time several times a year while he was attached to the dept. of Inland Revenue. To the small me, his arrival was special not because of anything else, but when he comes to our ancestral home where we lived in the late 60’ties, I was fortunate to eat the toasted bread slices with bees honey left over after Harry uncle leaves our home. Harry Uncles’ favorite was eating toasted bread slices with bees honey spread, thus when he arrives my grandfather or someone else runs to the nearby Madawala junction to bring bread. The bees honey in a large bottle from Mahiyangana is always were at home. Those days we had no electricity or electrical goods at home, so bread was toasted on the clay tray by fire wood. After eating toasted bread with bees honey Harry uncle used to drink a plain tea with Kithul Juggery. I was waiting until his departure to eat the left over toasted bread slices with bee’s honey.

The other interesting thins was for little me while the elders chatting with Harry uncle I closely watched thick and black densely grown hair popping out from his ears which was a surprise. Those days it was a rare and surprising scene for me.

When we visited Colombo we stayed overnight at his house in Ratmalana and he used to drop us and collect back from Dehiwala Zoological garden by his Ford Prefect black car. The following day he drops we at Mt. Lavinia station to take train for Fort and onward to night mail train to Peradeniya.

Uncle Harry was a bachelor, after his step mother passed away he shifted to a house in Mt. Lavinia and due to various problems and other circumstances I went through, there had been a period of some years without contacts but since few years I have been able to rebuild close relations.

Uncle Harry was such an excellent example who was vise, intelligent, compassionate, who had no differences among in relationships with family relatives had given me an example and he resemble me Aravinda in Viragaya” .

He lived an exemplary life, passed away very calmly, peacefully, but with right view and understanding who at the last few days had given up all bonds and understanding through his wisdom all beings and matter are born, decay and die the common and universal triple truth said by Lord Buddha.

I was entrusted and asked to proceed of publishing his last book written on nine generations of Kandyan Kingdom a day before he was taken to hospital.

May he attain Nibbana the supreme bliss.

Resources links:
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170305/plus/a-tale-of-the-kandyan-royal-architect-and-court-intrigue-231157.html

http://search.lib.ou.ac.lk/cgi-bin/koha/opac-search.pl?q=au:%22Waidyasekara,%20D.D.M.%22

By; Mahinda Karunaratne