Naga people (Lanka)

Cobra symbolism in a Sri Lankan Hindu statue of the Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple
According to Buddhist scripture the Naga king Muchalinda shielded the Buddha from getting wet in the rain by coiling round him and holding his large hood above the Buddha's head.

The Naga people are believed by some to be an ancient Mythological tribe who once inhabited Sri Lanka and various parts of Southern India. There are references to Nagas in several ancient texts such as Mahavamsa, Manimekala. They were generally represented as a class of super-humans taking the form of serpents who inhabit a subterranean world.

Certain places such as Nagadeepa in Jaffna and Kalyani in Gampaha are mentioned as their abodes. The names of some Naga kings in Sri Lankan Ancient legend and the cult of Naga prevailed in India up to medieval times.

The Jaffna Peninsula was mentioned in Tamil literature as Naka Nadu, in Pali literature as Nagadeepa and in Greek gazetteer as Nagadiba. The name Nagabhumi was also found on a Brahmi-inscribed coin from Uduthurai, Jaffna and in a Tamil inscription from Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu referring to the Jaffna peninsula. Naga workship tradition still followed in Tamil Nadu.

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