A Mirror to the Sea: Revisiting Sri Lanka's Forgotten Maritime Legacy

Review of “Sri Lanka, Serendib & the Silk Road of the Sea” by Dr. Sanjiva Wijesinha

- By AvisHKA MARIO SENEWIRATNE, Epitor, THE CEYLON JOURNAL

It is not often that a slim volume quietly arrives on the literary shore, only to awaken something dormant and forgotten within the national consciousness.

Sri Lanka, Serendib & the Silk Road of the Sea, the latest work by Dr. Sanjiva Wijesinha, is just such a book—a timely voyage through history’s less-traversed sea lanes, executed with scholarly rigour, personal charm, and a deep-rooted love for this resplendent isle.

A few weeks ago, Dr. Sanjiva Wijesinha kindly sent me a copy of his latest book via email, inviting me to review it. Regrettably, I had to decline the request at the time, owing to a demanding schedule. However, I made the mistake of opening the manuscript—and within a matter of days, I found myself utterly immersed. What I initially intended to browse became a compelling journey through a monumental work that I now feel duty-bound to review—not only in support of the author's efforts, but also to draw the attention of a wider readership to the profound value of this book.

Dr. Wijesinha is a familiar name in Sri Lankan literary circles, known for his earlier works in public health, memoir, and travel. But this book marks a definitive departure—an intellectual homecoming of sorts—for it revisits not the contemporary highways of health or personal stories of war, but the forgotten maritime arteries that once sustained and shaped the island's identity.

Drawing on sources both ancient and modern, the work serves not merely as a historical survey, but as a meditation on memory, maritime movement, and the richness of Sri Lanka’s intercultural past.

A Historian by Serendipity