The Makara
Beknopte History, 1688 describes a white flag charged with a red flag hoisted on royal ships (JRASCB XI No.38 106 & 109). And in the words of Valentine Francois, the 18th century Dutch Historian, “the Karawas displayed a white flag with the device of a particular fish in the centre".
This most likely refers to one of the many Karava flags with the fish symbol, since the Karava have been traditionally fisherfolk in accordance with their lowly caste status. Some however contend that it may also mean the Makara flag which is widely used in Karava ceremonies (fish and dragons both have scales). The Makara, is a composite dragon with a curious mythical structure. It symbolizes the house of Capricorn in the Zodiac to which it has given its name Makara in the Hindu calendar. It has the head of a crocodile, horns of a goat, the body of an antelope and a snake, the tail of a fish and feet of a panther. Makara is half animal half fish and it is sometimes described as having the head of an elephant and the body of a fish. It is generally large and regarded as living in the ocean rather than in lakes or streams.
Only Varuna, the spiritual ruler of the world has power over the Makara. It is Varuna’s vehicle in Hindu mythology. As most Karavas in southern Sri Lanka belong to the Karava Varunakulasuriya clan, the symbolism is extremely interesting. In mythology Varuna is the chief of the Adithyas. Remnants of the name Adithya from the medieval period can still be found in Karava family names. As Adithya is a synonym for Suriya (i.e. the Sun). the Karava clan Varunakulasuriya too signifies Varuna-Adithya.
- The Kokila Sandesha poem from the Kotte period refers to the Makara flag as follows:
- Punsanda surindu sanda salakuna adina vara
- Ban sonda telitudew tele tudeni mana hara
- Min dada jaya virudu nada karana piya kara
- An koda mediya tura topa sarivana pavara
See Fish and ship symbols of Sri Lanka for the significance of the Fish and Ship symbols on these flags.
Read more about this topic: Karava Heraldry