The Buddhist tradition of chronicling events has aided the verification of historical figures.

One of the most important of these figures is King Devanampiya Tissa (250-c. 207 BCE).

According to the Mahavamsa, Asoka's son and emissary to Sri Lanka, Mahinda, introduced the monarch to Buddhism.

Devanampiya Tissa becomes a powerful patron of Buddhism and establishes the monastery of Mahavihara, which becomes the historic center of Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lanka.

Subsequent events also contribute to Sri Lanka's prestige in the Buddhist world.

It is on the island, for example, that the oral teachings of the Buddha—the Tripitaka—are committed to writing for the first time.