• TOURISM & CULTURE
  • ADVERTISEMENT

Latest News

  • The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) Buddhist Festival in Hanoi
  • Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’ medicine for Covid-19 in Presence of Union Minister Harsh Vardhan
  • Buddhism, bollywood, business can expand people-to-people engagement between India, Singapore: Goyal
  • When the Dalai Lama Dies, His Reincarnation Will Be a Religious Crisis. Here’s What Could Happen
  • Sikyong greets Tibetans on Losar, Tibetan New Year 2148
  • Home
  • ABOUT US
  • BUDDHIST HISTORY
    • BUDDHISM MESSAGES
    • Message by PM Narendra Modi
  • BUDDHIST CIRCUIT
  • BUDDHIST MONKS
  • MONASTRIES
  • BODH GAYA
  • MCLEOD GANJ

Buddha Statue Returned to Sri Lanka by British Family after 100 Years

Jan 16, 2020 Shyamal Sinha BREAKING NEWS, TOP NEWS Comments Off on Buddha Statue Returned to Sri Lanka by British Family after 100 Years


By Justin Whitaker

 

The statue returned to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. From facebook.comThe statue returned to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. From facebook.com

Rev. Kenneth Bell, with his daughter Fiona, accompanied the return of an important Buddha statue to Sri Dalada Maligwa (Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic), in Kandy, Sri Lanka, on 17 December. The grandson of British archeologist and explorer Harry Charles Purvis Bell—better known as HCP Bell (1851–1937)—returned the statue to Sri Lanka after it had been in the family’s possession for a century.

“It is a far better thing that I do than I have ever done before,” said Rev. Bell, quoting Charles Dickens from A Tale of Two Cities. (The Sunday Times)

Harry Charles Purvis Bell c. 1890. From wikipedia.orgHarry Charles Purvis Bell c. 1890. From wikipedia.org

The Buddha statue, a 14-centimeter-tall wooden sculpture, was taken from an archeological site in 1919 by HCP Bell, who achieved renown as as the “father of archaeology” in Sri Lanka. Bell served as the first commissioner of archeology of Sri Lanka (then called Ceylon) from 1890–1912, and continued his work into retirement, passing away in Sri Lanka in 1937. The robe and head ornamentation on the Buddha suggest that the statue is likely to date to the Kandyan Period (15th–19th century).

During his time in Sri Lanka, according to family lore, Bell was gifted the small wooden sculpture by a monk at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. “They handed this little statue over, which he then gave to my grandmother as an engagement present,” Rev. Kenneth Bell’s daughter, Fiona, told the BBC.

After nearly 100 years in the family’s possession, the Bell family decided it was time to return the sculpture to its historical owners. Members of the family traveled to Sri Lanka from their homes in Hampshire, England, in December to take part in a ceremony marking its return.

“We believe it is time for the little Buddha to come back home,” said Rev. Bell, who turns 90 on 8 April. Saying he felt that he may not be able to travel much thereafter, Rev. Bell added: “This is an act of peace and unity between our religions of Buddhism and Christianity, preached by two great men—Buddha and Christ.” (The Sunday Times)

At the ceremony in Kandy, Rev. Bell delivered a message to those attending before Buddhist monks accompanied him and the statue to where it would rest on display. Describing the event, he said: “We entered into the most holy place and the little Buddha was taken from me and put down, in a way to bless it, in coming back. . . I think it’s just the completeness of something which I felt is the right thing to do. That it should go back to the temple and be honored in the place where it originated.” (BBC News)

Rev. Kenneth Bell. From facebook.comRev. Kenneth Bell. From facebook.com
The Buddha statue. From facebook.comThe Buddha statue. From facebook.com

Rev. Bell’s daughter, Fiona, described the ceremony as “incredibly moving,” adding: “It really stressed for me how important it was for us to give back some of the things that we took. You know all those years ago when we were colonizing parts of the world and so on.” (BBC News)

An inscription on the statue reads, “Gifted to HCP Bell in 1919 and returned in 2019 to the temple of tooth by his grandson Kenneth Bell. Silver stand donated by the Ondaatjie Family.”

Theravada Buddhists make up the majority of Sri Lankans, according to a 2011 national census, representing some 70.2 per cent of the population. Hindus account for 12.6 per cent, Muslims 9.7 per cent, and Christians 7.4 per cent. The first Europeans to visit Sri Lanka were the Portuguese, who landed in 1505 and later founded a fort in the port city of Colombo. Significant portions of the island were ruled later by the Dutch and then the British before the island gained complete independence in 1948.

Share this...
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter
Email this to someone
email
Share on LinkedIn
Linkedin

  • tweet
Indian State of Andhra Pradesh to Protect Buddhist Heritage US President Trump considering visit to India next month

Related articles
  • The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) Buddhist Festival in Hanoi
    The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara...

    Feb 23, 2021 Comments Off on The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) Buddhist Festival in Hanoi

  • Buddha statue at Hazaribagh, Jharkhand
    Buddha statue at Hazaribagh, Jharkhand

    Feb 22, 2021 Comments Off on Buddha statue at Hazaribagh, Jharkhand

  • Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’ medicine for Covid-19 in Presence of Union Minister Harsh Vardhan
    Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’...

    Feb 20, 2021 Comments Off on Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’ medicine for Covid-19 in Presence of Union Minister Harsh Vardhan

  • Buddhism, bollywood, business can expand people-to-people engagement between India, Singapore: Goyal
    Buddhism, bollywood, business can...

    Feb 18, 2021 Comments Off on Buddhism, bollywood, business can expand people-to-people engagement between India, Singapore: Goyal

More in this category
  • The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) Buddhist Festival in Hanoi
    The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara...

    Feb 23, 2021 Comments Off on The annual Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) Buddhist Festival in Hanoi

  • Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’ medicine for Covid-19 in Presence of Union Minister Harsh Vardhan
    Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’...

    Feb 20, 2021 Comments Off on Patanjali’s ‘Coronil’ medicine for Covid-19 in Presence of Union Minister Harsh Vardhan

  • Buddhism, bollywood, business can expand people-to-people engagement between India, Singapore: Goyal
    Buddhism, bollywood, business can...

    Feb 18, 2021 Comments Off on Buddhism, bollywood, business can expand people-to-people engagement between India, Singapore: Goyal

  • When the Dalai Lama Dies, His Reincarnation Will Be a Religious Crisis. Here’s What Could Happen
    When the Dalai Lama Dies, His...

    Feb 15, 2021 Comments Off on When the Dalai Lama Dies, His Reincarnation Will Be a Religious Crisis. Here’s What Could Happen


VIDEO NEWS

WEEK IN VIDEO

BUDDHIST CUISINE

  • Buddhist Cuisine-5

    Buddhist Cuisine-5

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Buddhist Cuisine-4

    Buddhist Cuisine-4

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Buddhist Cuisine-3

    Buddhist Cuisine-3

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Buddhist Cuisine-2

    Buddhist Cuisine-2

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Buddhist Cuisine-1

    Buddhist Cuisine-1

    Aug 01, 2019

Mantra Om Mani Padme Hum

Intl Chanting Ceremony Bodhgaya 2019

gallery img (60)
gallery img (47)
gallery img (35)
gallery img (15)
gallery img (38)
gallery img (49)
gallery img (41)
gallery img (27)
gallery img (58)
gallery img (55)
gallery img (53)
gallery img (51)
gallery img (50)
gallery img (46)
gallery img (44)
gallery img (43)
gallery img (42)
gallery img (40)
gallery img (37)
gallery img (33)
gallery img (32)
gallery img (31)
gallery img (30)
gallery img (29)
gallery img (26)
gallery img (24)
gallery img (23)
gallery img (22)
gallery img (21)
gallery img (20)
gallery img (19)
gallery img (18)
gallery img (17)
gallery img (16)
gallery img (14)
gallery img (13)
gallery img (12)
gallery img (11)
gallery img (8)
gallery img (6)
gallery img (5)
gallery img (4)
gallery img (2)
gallery img (1)
gallery img (62)
gallery img (28)
DSC_0180
DSCF7503
DSCF7483
DSCF7475
DSC_0077
DSC_0130

GALLERY

  • Ven. Lama Lobzang -15 January 2016

    Ven. Lama Lobzang -15 January 2016

    Jan 16, 2016
  • Launch buddhisttimes.news at Greater Noida

    Launch buddhisttimes.news at Greater Noida

    Jan 16, 2016
  • Buddhism in Japan

    Buddhism in Japan

    Jan 15, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Jan 09, 2016
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015
  • Dec 30, 2015

Weather

+39
°
C

+39°
+27°

Bodh Gaya
Saturday, 30

See 7-Day Forecast

NOTICE

  • Dr. Yeshi Dhonden, Former Personal Physician to the Dalai Lama, Dies
    Dr. Yeshi Dhonden, Former Personal Physician to the Dalai...

    Nov 27, 2019 Comments Off on Dr. Yeshi Dhonden, Former Personal Physician to the Dalai Lama, Dies

    By  Staff writer Dr. Yeshi Dhonden, 1927–2019....
  • Former Rigpa Head Sogyal Rinpoche Passes Away in Thailand
    Former Rigpa Head Sogyal Rinpoche Passes Away in Thailand

    Aug 29, 2019 Comments Off on Former Rigpa Head Sogyal Rinpoche Passes Away in Thailand

    By Staff Writer On behalf of all members of the...
  • Passing of World-renowned Scholar Jao Tsung-I Mourned
    Passing of World-renowned Scholar Jao Tsung-I Mourned

    Feb 07, 2018 Comments Off on Passing of World-renowned Scholar Jao Tsung-I Mourned

    By Staff Writer On behalf of all members of the...
  • Respected Tibetan Teacher Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche Dies
    Respected Tibetan Teacher Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche Dies

    Feb 17, 2017 Comments Off on Respected Tibetan Teacher Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche Dies

    Respected Tibetan Teacher Kyabje Gelek Rinpoche On behalf...
  • Condolence message on the demise of Ven. Anamaduwe Sri Dhammadassi NayakeThero
    Condolence message on the demise of Ven. Anamaduwe Sri...

    Jun 27, 2016 Comments Off on Condolence message on the demise of Ven. Anamaduwe Sri Dhammadassi NayakeThero

    Ven. Anamaduwe Sri Dhammadassi NayakeThero General...

Inauguration

  • Inauguration 7

    Inauguration 7

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Inauguration 6

    Inauguration 6

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Inauguration 5

    Inauguration 5

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Inauguration 4

    Inauguration 4

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Inauguration 3

    Inauguration 3

    Aug 01, 2019
  • Inauguration 2

    Inauguration 2

    Aug 01, 2019
Copyright budhisttimes.news 2019-20 | All Rights Reserved
Developed & Maintained By Shyamal Sinha Web Design Delhi Web Design Agency in Delhi Web Desinging Services in India Best Website Portfolio Creative Website Desinging Agency in Delhi Web Desinging Comapny India Custom Web Application Development Comapny Wordpress Website Designing Logo Desinging in Delhi Internet Marketing Company Mobile Application Development
  • TECH & SCIENCE
  • BUDDHIST ART/MUSIC
  • UPCOMING PROGRAM