In Sinhala Buddhist beliefs the Bandāra deviyō (generally referred to only as Bandāra) are a group of guardian deities. Many of the Bandara deities are deification of prominent or legendary political/military leaders. The name was originally the title of high officials in the Sinhala Kingdom

Sinhala Kingdom

Sinhala was a kingdom in the island Lanka, modern day Sri Lanka, mentioned in the epic Mahabharata. From 'Sinhala Diva' are derived the Tamil 'Eelam', Persian/Arabic Serendipor Sarandib, and the European 'Ceilao', 'Zeylan' and 'Ceylon'....

. One of the Bandāra is the popular Sinhalese god Dadimunda. Chief local deities are often just called "Bandāra".