109] records the foundation of a
Vihara for a hundred resident monks, 25 from each of the four nikayas,
which it appears to regard as equivalent. But in 1165 the great
Parakrama Bahu held a synod to restore unity in the church. As a
result, all Nikayas (even the Dhammaruci) which did not conform to the
Mahavihara were suppressed[110] and we hear no more of the Vaitulyas
and Vajiriyas.

Thus there was once a Mahayanist faction in Ceylon, but it was
recruited from abroad, intermittent in activity and was finally
defeated, whereas the Hinayanist tradition was national and
continuous.

Considering the long lapse of time, the monastic life of Ceylon has
not deviated much in practice from the injunctions of the Vinaya.
Monasteries like those of Anuradhapura, which are said to have
contained thousands of monks, no longer exist. The largest now to be
found--those at Kandy--do not contain more than fifty but as a rule a
pansala (as these institutions are now called) has not more than five
residents and more often only two or three. Some pansalas have
villages assigned to them and some let their lands and do not scruple
to receive the rent. The monks still follow the ancient routine of
making a daily round with the begging bowl, but the food thus
collected is often given to the poor or even to animals and the
inmates of the pansala eat a meal which has been cooked there. The
Patimokkha is recited (at least in part) twice a month and ordinations
are held annually.[111]

The duties of the Bhikkhus are partly educational, partly clerical. In
most villages the children receive elementary education gratis in the
pansala, and the preservation of the ancient texts, together with the
long list of Pali and Sinhalese works produced until recent times
almost exclusively by members of the Sangha,[112] is a proof that it
has not neglected literature. The chief public religious
observances are preaching and reading the scriptures. This latter,
known as Bana, is usually accompanied by a word for word translation
made by the reciter or an assistant. Such recitations may form part of
the ordinary ceremonial of Uposatha days and most religious
establishments have a room where they can be held, but often monks are
invited to reside in a village during Was (July to October) and read
Bana, and often a layman performs a pinkama or act of merit by
entertaining monks for several days and inviting his neighbours to
hear them recite. The recitation o