Pelene Siri Vajiragnana Nayaka Thera

Pelene Sri Vajiragnana Maha Thero
Pelene Sri Vajiragnana Mahanayaka Thero
Religion	Buddhism
School	Theravada
Lineage	Amarapura
Education	Vidyodaya Pirivena
Dharma names	Päläne Vajirañāna Mahanayaka Thero
Personal
Nationality	Sri Lankan
Born	(1878-07-28)July 28, 1878 Pelana, Matara
Died	September 21, 1955(1955-09-21) (aged 77) Colombo
Senior posting
Title	Mahanayaka of Amarapura Sri Dharmarakshita Sect "Sri Dharmarkshita Vamsālankāra Dharmakirti"
Religious career
Teacher	Weragampita Siri Revata Thero Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala Thera

Pȁlȁne Vajirañāna Mahanayaka Thero (November 25, 1878 – September 21, 1955) was a Sri Lankan scholar Buddhist monk, who founded the renowned Siri Vajirārāmaya temple in Bambalapitiya, Sri Lanka. He was also the Maha Nayaka (head) of Amarapura Sri Dharmarakshita sect for 37 years from August 5, 1918 until his death in 1955.

Pelene Vajirañāna Mahanayaka Thero was born to a very illustrious aristocratic family in Pelene, Weligama in Matara District on 28 July 1878. His father was Muhandiram Don Andris Tudawe Pandita Gunawardene, a well known Oriental scholar at the time. His mother was Dona Gimara Serasinghe. His lay name was Don Aron Pandita Gunawardena. Don Aaron had his early education at the village vernacular school and for his English education he was sent to the bilingual school at Mirissa. At the age of 15, on July 20, 1890, he was ordained a monk under the tutelage of Weragampitiya Siri Revata Maha Thero, who was himself a well known oriental and Buddhist scholar, at Devagiri Vihara, Kabmurugamuwa with the given name Pȁlȁne Vajirañāna. In 1897, he was admitted to Vidyodaya Pirivena, Colombo under Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala Mahanāyaka Thero and passed out brilliantly in 1900 winning the prestigious Siyāmarāja Prize for the best student of that year. He received higher ordination on April 20, 1900 at the Udakakkhepa Sima on River Nilvalā in Matara.

In the 1880s the Buddhists living in Bambalapitiya area formed a society with the name Dharma Samagama, meaning Dharma Society. Later they built a hall for the preaching of the Dhamma (Dharma Sālāwa). They constructed a small room with basic facilities as an adjunct and in 1901 invited young Pelene Vajirañāna to come and reside. He was brought in procession from his temporary residence in Siri Suviddharamaya, Wellawatta. This was the genesis of the present Vajirārāmaya and gradually he built it up with a character of its own. A Bo tree was planted to symbolise Buddha's Enlightenment and a small Vihara-ge was later constructed with a serene seated Buddha image. In 1909 Muhandiram P.J. Kulatilake built the library with two rooms and donated it to the Sangha. The Vajirārāma Dhamma School was started in 1918 and among the renowned students who studied in this Dhamma School were future leading politicians of Sri Lanka. Dudley Senanayake, J. R. Jayewardene, Bernard Zoysa, R. Premadasa, Chandrika Bandaranaike and Anura Bandaranaike, Lalith Athulathmudali were a few such leaders.