සිරිත් මල්දම

The best-loved Sinhala book of manners for children: three parts of sixty-two four-line verses each, written in 1895 by a village-school headmaster to teach good conduct — respect for parents and teachers, honesty, cleanliness, kindness to animals, how to behave at school and at home. Generations of Sri Lankan children learned it by heart, and many adults can still recite it.