A newlywed couple in Sri Lanka decided to do a kind gesture for the needy on their special day.   

Love for others: Bride Anoma Geeganage and groom Dishan Thilakshana spent their wedding day distributing food and cold beverages to the homeless in the streets of Matara. 

• In a Facebook post, Thilakshana shared how he came up with the idea to feed the hungry.
• “We thought we would fill the stomachs of the homeless before going home to the party,” he said, according to Today Online.
• Thilakshana also posted photos of him and his new wife dressed in traditional red wedding outfits as they distributed boxes of Pizza Hut and bottles of cold Coca-Cola to the smile of many. They also took the time to chat with the people they fed. 
• One of the homeless men even revealed to the couple that he has never eaten pizza in his life.
• “My chest burned when an uncle asked me how to eat this,” Thilakshana wrote.
• In an interview with NextShark, the couple shared that they distributed so many pizzas that day that they lost count.
• “Whoever met on the road who was in need of some food, I distributed what I had in my hand and made sure everyone shared a genuine smile with me with a happy and full stomach,” he said.
• At the end of the post, the newlyweds thanked those who helped them in their acts of kindness. They also reminded everyone to “start life in such a way so you can be happy forever.”

A life lesson: According to Thilakshana, a lesson that stuck with him as a child was from his teacher, who taught him the most valuable thing to give to someone. 

• “Whenever possible we should fill a man’s stomach and look from a distance and remember him happily,” Thilakshana said. “The joy it brings is priceless.”
• He noted that hunger is something common to all humans.
• Thilakshana told NextShark that helping others comes second nature to him.
• At one point, he helped an old homeless man find shelter by taking him to an elderly home and taking the responsibility of looking after him for the rest of his life.

• He also shared an incident where he saved thousands of turtle eggs that a mother turtle had delivered.
• “I sat near the mother turtle and chanted ‘angulimaala piritha’ which is a powerful chanting, commonly used and well known in Buddhism that eases the delivery pain of mothers. I looked after the eggs for 41 days until they were released back to sea safely.”

Feature Image via Dishan Thilakshana