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A Biographical Anecdote: Being a Perera: “What’s in a Name…?” by KKS PERERA   A reader and a well-known Buddhist scholar mailed a comment in response to my article on a  full moon day entitled, ‘Futility of Abhi-dhamma in the Path of Emancipation’ with a harsh personal attack saying , ‘You are a skeptic heathenist with a Portuguese name who is trying to …’  [sorry, the rest is unprintable, but I referred the dictionary and made a short reply thanking him for upgrading my poor vocabulary];  he, however, coaxed me to reminisce down memory lane to mid 1950s, when our teacher, Mrs … Perera was taking a class on Ceylon history at lower school, St John’s College, Panadura.                                                           “All Pereras, please raise your hands.” A rather friendly appeal than a command made to the seventh standard in the mixed school.   Five of us responded to her request and among them ...