Narendra Modi congratulated Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for sweeping general elections. Modi, in a tweet, said that he looked forward to the strengthening of relations between India and Japan after Abe’s victory. He tweeted, “Heartiest greetings to my dear friend Abe Shinzo on his big election win. Look forward to further strengthen India-Japan relations with him.”
Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party-led (LDP) coalition won a huge two-thirds majority bagging 312 seats in the 465-member lower house in a snap election on Sunday. The final results are expected by Monday. The return of Abe to power is likely to ensure more business investments in India.
Recently, Abe visited India to lay the foundation stone of bullet train project from Mumbai to Ahmedabad. Similarly, the cooperation between two countries is likely to expand in other strategic fields too.
The comfortable election win is also likely to stiffen Abe’s resolve to tackle North Korea’s nuclear threat. Japan is seeking to exert maximum pressure on Pyongyang after it fired two missiles over Japan in the space of a month.
Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) benefited from a weak and splintered opposition, with the two main parties facing him created only a matter of weeks ago. A “supermajority” would also allow Abe to propose changes to pacifist Japan’s US-imposed constitution.
Tung Lin Kok Yuen in Hong Kong’s Happy Valley. Photo by Bill Cox
By Shyamal Sinha
Tung Lin Kok Yuen in Hong Kong’s Happy Valley. Photo by Bill Cox
Tung Lin Kok Yuen is a Buddhist nunnery and educational institution located at No.15 Shan Kwong Road in Happy Valley, Hong Kong. Founded in 1935 by Lady Clara Ho-Tung, it is home to approximately 30 nuns and 50 lay devotees.
It is the only seminary for Buddhist nuns in Hong Kong and provides an 8-year curricular program in Mahayana Buddhism.
Hau Wong or Hou Wang (Chinese: is a title that can be translated as “Prince Marquis” or “Holy Marquis”. It is not any one person’s name.Hau Wong refers usually to Yeung Leung-jit a loyal and courageous general. Despite his failing health, he remained in the army to protect the last emperor of Southern Song Dynasty when he took refuge southwards in Kowloon.
The Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB) of Hong Kong has designated two Buddhist temples—Tung Lin Kok Yuen (TLKY) Temple on Hong Kong Island and Yeung Hau Temple on Lantau Island—as monuments under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance, along with a Christian landmark—Kowloon Union Church.
“The Antiquities and Monuments Office considers that with their significant heritage value . . . the three historic buildings have reached the ‘high threshold’ to be declared as monuments,” said a representative of the AAB after the meeting in June. “Consent . . . has been obtained from the respective owners.” (South China Morning Post)
Installed in 1976, the AAB is a constitutional body of the Hong Kong government that evaluates old buildings for designation as monuments based on their historical or architectural merit. According to AAB chairman Andrew Lam: “Heritage is the fruit of a place’s culture and history. It not only reflects the historical facts but also carries our emotions. And the work of the Antiquities Advisory Board relies on professional judgment as well as public knowledge and awareness of the importance of heritage.” (Antiquities Advisory Board)
Yeung Hau Temple in Tai O. From thestandard.com.hk
Located in Happy Valley on Hong Kong Island, TLKY was founded in 1935 by Lady Clara Ho Tung (1875–1938) and her husband, the prominent businessman and philanthropist Sir Robert Ho Tung (1892–1956). TLKY contains an ancestral hall, Dharma hall, dining hall, lecture theater, library, sutra hall, and dormitories for monastics. The temple also houses a valuable collection of calligraphy and Chinese couplets. The temple building shows the influence of Western engineering of the time combined with elements of traditional Chinese architecture, with its flying attics, brackets, and glazed tile roofs. TLKY is considered one of the more prominent Buddhist temples in Hong Kong and serves as a center for the Buddhist community and a place of education for monastics.
Thought to have been build in 1699, Yeung Hau Temple is the oldest temple in Tai O, a fishing village to the south of Lantau Island. The temple consists of two halls connected by a roofed over courtyard that forms an incense tower. The ridge of its roof is decorated with ceramic figures portraying Chinese folk stories.
Kowloon Union Church in Yau Ma Tei, Hong Kong. From wikimedia.org
AAB executive secretary Susanna Siu Lai-kuen said that although all three buildings are privately owned, the AAB would oversee the maintenance and protection of the buildings now that they are listed monuments. If the owners want to carry out any maintenance or reconstruction work, they will need to seek permission from the AAB.
“That I can be part of this milestone is thanks to the Three Jewels [the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha],” TLKY’s abbot Ven. Tsang Chit told Buddhistdoor Global.* “I feel so fortunate that TLKY has this endorsement, but it’s important to remember that TLKY is not just a monument. It is a living structure and organization.”
Tibet supporter, Shri Sandesh Meshram will embark on “Free Tibet-Save India Cycle Rally”from Bodhgaya to Gangtok. Photo/ITCO
Tibet supporter, Shri Sandesh Meshram will embark on “Free Tibet-Save India Cycle Rally”from Bodhgaya to Gangtok. Photo/ITCO
On 21 October, an ardent Tibet supporter, Shri Sandesh Meshram will embark on “Free Tibet-Save India Cycle Rally”from Bodhgaya to Gangtok covering distance of 1050 km in 23 days.
The rally will start from Mahabodhi temple in Bodhgaya and a press conference will be held today at Mahayana Hotel near Mahabodhi temple at 1pm.
Shri Sandesh Meshram will be covering States of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Sikkim during the rally. He will be distributing Tibet related pamphlets and information along the way and also interact with local people and press alike on the issue of Tibet.
This is the third lone cycle rally successfully completed by Sandesh Meshram, alias Samten Yeshi as his Tibetan friends call him. His first rally was when he covered four South Indian states and Chattisgarh in 2014, second in December 2016 from Nagpur to Bodhgaya and in May 2015 he was the lone Indian cyclist to join cycle rally from Dehradun to Delhi organised by Tibetan youth Congress.
Shri Sandesh Meshram is presently the Regional Convenor of Western Region for Core Group for Tibetan Cause and also General Secretary of ITFS Nagpur.
The rally is organised by ITFS Nagpur, facilitated by Himalaya Committee for Action on Tibet (HIMCAT Salugara) and Core Group for Tibetan Cause-India.
Buddhism is a religion and dharma that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and spi ritual practices largely based on original teachings attributed to the Buddha and resulting interpreted philosophies. Buddhism originated in Ancient India sometime between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE, from where it spread through much of Asia, whereafter it declined in Indiaduring the Middle Ages. Two major extant branches of Buddhism are generally recognized by scholars: Theravada (Pali: “The School of the Elders”) and Mahayana (Sanskrit: “The Great Vehicle”). Buddhism is the world’s fourth-largest religion, with over 520 million followers or over 7% of the global population, known as Buddhists.
For the past three years, Buddhism has been the fastest-growing religion among prisoners in Scottish prisons. Data recently obtained via a Freedom of Information request, shows that 22 prisoners registered their religion as Buddhism in the past three years.
Prison chiefs could not say where these prisoners are housed or how many were Buddhist before 2014, however they do believe that the number has significantly increased over the past three years.
It is so far unclear why the convicts converted to Buddhism. As once source noted: “It was a surprise to see so many cons professing their belief in a peaceful religion about karma and love. In the past, inmates have said they were Jewish or Muslim to get better food but it’s hard to see what’s behind the sudden surge in popularity of Buddhism.” However, it has been suggested that Buddhism might help the convicts come to terms with their incarceration and being removed from society, and the usual material pursuits. (Daily Record)
Buddhism has also been the fastest-growing religion in English prisons in the last decade, and many organizations are now teaching mindfulness-based meditation programs to prisoners, including Angulimala; a Buddhist prison chaplaincy organization in the UK, with the stated objective:
To make available facilities for the teaching and practice of Buddhism in Her Majesty’s Prisons and other places of lawful detention or custody, specifically:
1. To recruit and advise a team of Buddhist visiting chaplains to be available as soon as there is a call for their services;
2. To act in an advisory capacity, and to liaise with the Home Office chaplaincy officials with individuals’ chaplains within her majesty’s prisons, and with any other relevant bodies or officials; and
3. To provide an aftercare and advisory service for prisoners after release. (Angulimala)
The name Angulimala comes from the Buddhist sutras. Angulimala was a robber and murderer whose name was derived from the garland he made of his victims’ fingers, which he wore around his neck (Angulimala literally means “finger garland”). One day, the Buddha passed by and Angulimala tried to chase the Buddha to kill him, but could not catch up, even though the Buddha was walking at his usual pace. After some time, Angulimala stopped in his tracks and shouted, “Stop!” at the Buddha. To which the Buddha responded that he had already stopped—he had stopped harming and killing and told Angulimala that now it was his turn to “stop.”
These words struck Angulimala to the extent that he did indeed “stop.” He threw down his weapons and followed the Buddha, becoming a monk and eventually attaining enlightenment. It is from this parable that the Buddhist Prison Chaplaincy Organization in England takes its name. (Community of Interbeing)
Venerable Khemadhammo, founder and spiritual director of Angulimala. Photo from bangkokpost.com
British monk Venerable Khemadhammo founded Angulimala in 1985, and has since introduced Buddhism to more than 100 prisons throughout England, and since 1999 to numerous prisons in Scotland. According to Venerable Khemadhammo, it is not only prisoners who are imprisoned; everyone, including monastics, is imprisoned by their own greed, ignorance, prejudices, aversione, and attachments.
“It was my belief then, as it is now, that Buddhist techniques equip us with the means to escape that imprisonment and enjoy a secure and lasting peace,” said Venerable Khemadhammo. (Bangkok Post)
Dick Allen, a former prison chaplain with Angulimala who had been visiting prisons for nine years, observed that in his experience Angulimala helps not only the prisoners, but also Buddhists on the outside. Working for the organization and visiting the prisons has helped Allen along the path, and no doubt the activities of Angulimala will be a source of inspiration for many others. (Community of Interbeing.
Buddhism has spread across the world, and Buddhist texts are increasingly translated into local languages. While in the West Buddhism is often seen as exotic and progressive, in the East it is regarded as familiar and traditional. In countries such as Cambodia and Bhutan, it is recognized as the state religion and receives government support. In certain regions such as Afghanistan and Pakistan, Buddhist monuments have been targets of violence and destruction.
Lobsang Sangay, President of the Central Tibetan Administration in Exile, was in Mexico last month to drum support for CTA’s Middle Way Approach that seeks genuine autonomy for the region within the framework of People’s Republic of China.
In an interview with Reforma, Mexico’s largest selling newspaper, Dr. Sangay affirmed: “We proposed to the PRC a win-win initiative which gives the Tibetan people genuine autonomy, as guaranteed in the Chinese constitution. We will not pursue independence from the PRC even though our country was an independent nation before China’s illegal occupation of Tibet”
Dr. Lobsang Sangay affirmed that if Mexico and the world in general wants to understand China they are obliged to study the history of Tibet.
Below is the English translation of the interview.
Guadalupe Loaeza: What is the status of the democratic process that the Tibetan community is now undergoing?
Dr Lobsang Sangay: The Tibetan community is currently spread in more than 40 countries. They all vote the same day in order to elect their representatives. It is a democratic and transparent process. Tibetans have to pay a voluntary “freedom tax” in order to participate in the elections. Without it they cannot vote. Not withstanding in the last 10 years the universe of voters has doubled.
G L: What is the role and vision of the elected members of the Tibetan people?
L S: Our main political objective is to alleviate the suffering and difficulties that the Tibetan people are currently going through in Tibet. We are simultaneously working to find a solution for the problem of Tibet by means of what we call the “middle way approach”, that is accepting our inclusion within the People’s Republic of China but at the same time seeking for genuine autonomy.
G L: Why is Tibet important on the global context?
L S: Tibet is proof for world leaders and humanity that conflicts can be solved non violently and by means of dialogue.
If the world community seeks to approach its many problems in this way, the Tibetan conflict must be resolved accordingly.
G L: What interest does the Sikyong have in Mexico?
L S: This is my first trip to Latin America beginning Edith Mexico. I am here to make a call on the consciousness of your leaders and society in generals about the tragedy of Tibet. Mexicans can and must learn the lessons offered to us by history. What happened to us can also happen to you!
G L: What will happen in the future to the figure of the Dalai Lama?
L S: The dynasty of the Dalai Lama’s began in 1642, its a tradition that has existed for more than 500 years. The Tibetan people would of course love to have a successor to the present Dalai Lama, it’s XV incarnation. The most important issue here is the Tibetan cultural belief on the spiritual identity of mind and its eternal continuity, what we call rebirth. That is to say that we come back to the world to finish what we started on previous lives. To continue with a vision.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the five-fifty forum. Photo/Tenzin Choejor
By – Staff Reporter
His Holiness the Dalai Lama left Dharamshala for New Delhi. , His Holiness will visit DAV school in Meerut to launch the Universal Ethics Program on 16 October. His Holiness the Dalai Lama will deliver the keynote address of the ceremony.
On 17 October, His Holiness will depart from Delhi for Imphal, the capital city of Manipur, to attend a global peace conference organised by the state government. The conference is scheduled for 18 October at the City Convention Centre in Imphal.
His Holiness was specially invited by Shri Yumnand Khemchand, the speaker of Manipur legislative assembly during their last meeting in New Delhi to attend the conference.
Many religious leaders including Buddhist monks from Myanmar and other southeast Asian countries are expected to attend the conference.
Korean Buddhism consists mostly of the Seon lineage, primarily represented by the Jogye and Taego Orders. The Korean Seon has a strong relationship with other Mahayana traditions that bear the imprint of Chan teachings as well as the closely related Zen. Other sects, such as the modern revival of the Cheontae lineage, the Jingak Order a modern esoteric sect), and the newly formed Won, have also attracted sizable followings.
Korean Buddhism has also contributed much to East Asian Buddhism, especially to early Chinese, Japanese, and Tibetan schools of Buddhist thought..
Former Miss Korea beauty pageant winner Keum Na-na was recently awarded this year’s Buddhist prize from the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism for her commitment to enhancing the public awareness of Buddhism.
Keum received the award, alongside three other recipients, for promoting and sharing the Buddhist teachings in numerous media interviews, talks, and books, including her bestseller Na-na’s Neverending Story. The Jogye Order also awarded the prize to poet Jeong Sang-seok, badminton player Lee Yong-dae, and lawyer Ahn Dong-il.
Keum Na-na. From english.chosun.com
Keum, who shot to fame in her home country when she won the Miss Korea title in 2002, has also garnered national renown for her academic achievements, which have made her a role model among the country’s youth.
Following her beauty pageant success, Keum dropped out of Kyungpook National University’s school of medicine to pursue her undergraduate studies overseas after being accepted by Harvard University in the United States, where she majored in biochemistry, graduating in 2008. After subsequently earning a master’s degree in nutritional science at Columbia University, Keum went on to graduate from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health with a dual-doctorate in nutrition and epidemiology in 2015.
Keum has published a number of peer-reviewed research papers and is also the author of three Korean-language books: Na-na’s Neverending Story, Everyone Can Do It, and Study Diary of Na-na. She recently accepted a professorship at Dongguk University in Seoul, founded by the Jogye Order.
Among Keum’s fellow award winners this year, Jeong Sang-seok is one of most highly regarded Buddhist poets in South Korea. Having overcome physical obstacles caused by cerebral palsy, Jeong was lauded for offering hope, inspiration, and encouragement to society through his Buddhism-inspired poems.
Lee Yong-dae became one of the world’s top badminton players in the men’s and mixed doubles, winning a gold medal in the mixed doubles event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. As a professional athlete, he was ranked world No.1 in men’s doubles for 104 consecutive weeks. The 28-year-old received the award for helping the Jogye Order raise awareness of Buddhism through his active participation in numerous Buddhist events.
The Jogye Order also acknowledged the contribution of Ahn Dong-il, who has served as the organization’s legal adviser since 1994.
Monastics of the Jogye Order. From koreanbuddhism.net
The Jogye Order is a school of Seon (Zen) Buddhism and South Korea’s largest Buddhist tradition, which traces its roots back 1,200 years to the Unified Silla (also known as the Later Silla) kingdom (668–935). The Jogye school as a distinct entity emerged in the late 11th century when the monk Bojo Jinul, credited as the school’s founder, sought to combine the practices of Seon Buddhism with the theological underpinnings of sutra-based Buddhist schools, including Korean Pure Land Buddhism.
The Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China was the residence of the Dalai Lama until the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India during the 1959 Tibetan uprising. It is now a museum and World Heritage Site.
The palace is named after Mount Potalaka, the mythical abode of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara..
A “large-scale” 10-million-yuan (US$1.5 million) renovation project is planned for Tibet’s iconic Potala Palace, Chinese state media announced. The initiative, approved by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH), will focus on preserving the palace’s gold-plated roof and improving onsite security and surveillance systems at the complex, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Sitting atop Red Mountain in the center of the Lhasa Valley at an altitude of 3,700 meters, the Potala Palace, named after Mount Potalaka, the mythical abode of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, was originally constructed during the 7th century and has since undergone several major reconstructions. Considered a masterpiece of Tibetan architecture, the complex is a major landmark and symbol of Tibetan Buddhism because of its central role in the traditional administration of Tibet and remains a major pilgrimage site for Tibetan Buddhists. The existing structure, which was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, was completed in 1694 following a 45-year construction effort initiated by the 5th Dalai Lama, and later expanded to its current size by the 13th Dalai Lama in the early 20th century.
Photo by Craig Lewis. From newlightdreams.com
An official from the SACH noted that the renovation project would focus on protecting and extending the life of the palace’s ornate roof, which has been damaged by prolonged exposure to the harsh Himalayan climate. The SACH is an administrative agency under the Ministry of Culture charged with the management and development of museums, and the protection of sites and relics of national cultural significance.
Originally the official winter residence of the Dalai Lama, the Potala Palace complex, which comprises more than 1,000 rooms and halls spread over 13 floors of the Red and White Palaces and numerous chapels and ancillary buildings, has since been converted into a public museum housing 698 murals, nearly 10,000 thangkas, some 10,000 shrines, and more than 200,000 statues, carpets, canopies, curtains, porcelain, jade, gold and silver objects, as well as an extensive library of sutras and historical documents.
Layout of Potalal Palace. From tibetdisovery.com
The imposing walls, gates, and turrets, constructed from rammed earth and stone, are built to withstand earthquakes as the Himalayan region is prone to seismic disturbances. The White Palace houses the main ceremonial hall containing the throne of the Dalai Lama, with his private residence and audience hall at the uppermost level. The Red Palace, which contains gilded burial stupas of past Dalai Lamas, is devoted to Buddhist study and prayer, comprising halls, chapels, libraries, as well as smaller galleries and passages. Situated in the west of the complex is Namgyel Dratshang, the private monastery of the Dalai Lama.
The nearby 7th century Jokhang monastery, considered the most sacred Buddhist temple in Tibet, and the 18th century Norbulingka, the former summer residence of the Dalai Lamas, were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 and 2001, respectively.
The palace is the most popular and recognized tourist attraction in Tibet: an estimated 1.37 million domestic and international tourists visited the landmark in 2016, according to Xinhua. Earlier this year, four squat toilets built some 300 years ago and located at either end of the complex were replaced by modern washroom facilities inside wooden structures designed to blend in with architecture of the neighboring buildings. The news agency stated that the central government has spent close to 3 billion yuan (US$455.9 million) protecting the cultural heritage of the Tibet Autonomous Region over the past two decades.
Tradition has it that the three main hills of Lhasa represent the “Three Protectors of Tibet”. Chokpori, just to the south of the Potala, is the soul-mountain of Vajrapani, Pongwari that of Manjusri, and Marpori, the hill on which the Potala stands, represents Avalokiteśvara.
Police gaurd the Takar complex in Naharlagun town where Tibetan refugees have shops. Oct. 10, 2017.
By Tenzin Dharpo
Police gaurd the Takar complex in Naharlagun town where Tibetan refugees have shops. Oct. 10, 2017.
DHARAMSHALA, Oct. 10: The past few weeks in the north-eastern corner of India just a few hundred kilometers away from their native Tibet, Tibetan refugees have come under extreme prosecution and duress to abandon everything that they have owned for the past few decades.
Self styled students’ organization SUMMA (Students United Movement for All Arunachal) has initiated the “Anti Tibetan Refugee Movement” calling for ousting of Tibetan refugees from the state. The organization calls for the roll back of the central and state government adopted initiative, ‘Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy 2014’ against the threat of aggressive and targeted expulsion of Tibetan refugees from the state beginning from the capital Itanagar. Banners calling for expulsion of Tibetans were seen in and around the capital.
SUMMA on Oct. 3 issued an ultimatum to the state government to act on their demands by their deadline which expired today. This morning, the vicinity of Tibetan owned shops in Itanagar and Naharlagun town were guarded by armed police and military escorts while the rally of a few hundred students cried slogans such as “roll back TRP” and “Tibetans out”. While there has not been any incident of violence reported, Tibetans feel that it would be a different scenario without the police.
Banner calling for expulsion of Tibetan refugees from Arunachal Pradesh surface in Itanagar since Oct. 6, 2017.
“The state cabinet’s decision to adopt TRP 2014 is a matter of great concern. It is sad to see that the state government focusing on the welfare of the refugees while neglecting important issues of the state,” SUMAA Vice President Kaling Moyong said at a press conference last week.
“Once TRP 2014 is implemented, all the benefits such as MGNREGA, PDS, Indira Awas Yojana, and National Rural Health Mission provided by the Centre to our people will be snatched away by the refugees, which will disturb the state’s ethnic balance,” Moyang told the press.
The organization also released a list of all the shops owned by Tibetans with their names in the Capital Complex area who they said will be targeted individually and “forcefully evicted”.
The District Administration office said that the proposed eviction of the Tibetan refugees by SUMMA is “illegal and “deprivation of natural justice”. The DA office imposed Section 144 Cr Pc, restricting assembly of more than three people within Tibetan settlement/ rental areas within the Capital Complex since October 6 as well as carrying of arms in the area.
Deputy Commissioner Prince Dhawan yesterday met with the regional Tibetan authority (Itanagar, Tenzigang and Bomdila settlement officer under Central Tibetan Administration) Yangdup and some Tibetan people, assuring them of protection.
Settlement Officer Yangdup told Phayul that the rally by SUMMA was peaceful and no evictions took place due to the placement of police in the area. “The assurances and help from the law enforcement authorities were overwhelming,” he said while adding that the ongoing incident has been the most aggressive display of tension towards Tibetan refugees in his four and a half year tenure there.
Opposition leader Kaling Jerang, Secretary General of the People’s Party of Arunachal (PPA) said that the Pema Khandu-led BJP government had shown extraordinary urgency in adopting TRP 2014 without the knowledge of some senior cabinet ministers and without any discussion in the assembly.
“The letter of proposal numbered POL/Tibetan-428/2017/395 issued by the state’s Political Department on August 9 for implementation of TRP 2014 in Arunachal Pradesh should immediately be withdrawn and a fresh government order circulated to all districts and departments accordingly,” Jerang told The Sentinal.
However, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju who is from Arunachal himself has said that the implementation of the TRP will not affect the indigenous people of Arunachal and that Tibetan refugee numbers have been dropping in the state with Canada accepting 1000 Tibetans just last year and less than 7500 Tibetans refugees live in the state today. State Chief Minister Pema Khandu also stated in a recent meeting at Tawang that no decision would be taken which would hamper the interest of the state.
The Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy assures welfare to Tibetan refugees in India on matters concerning land lease, extending central and state government benefits, relevant papers/trade license/permit for economic activity and legal permit to pursue any professional career such as nursing, teaching, Chartered Accountancy, medicine, engineering etc, depending upon the qualification.
Till date, Karnataka government has been the only state to begin implementing the policy. In Dec 2016, the Tibetan refugee settlement of Mundgod became the first settlement to be handed over the land lease agreement by Karnataka State.
Arunachal Pradesh has the fourth largest number of Tibetans in India, with four settlements in Tezu, Miao, Tuting, and Tenzingang. In India, there are close to 90,000, according to a 2009 CTA census.
Theravada Buddhism is the religion of 70.2% of the population of Sri Lanka. The island has been a center of Buddhist scholarship and learning since the introduction of Buddhism in the third century BCE producing eminent scholars such as Buddhaghosa and preserving the vast Pāli Canon..
Buddhism should be considered the “foremost” religion alongside a guarantee of equal rights for all faith traditions, prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said in an address last week. He was speaking at the opening ceremony of the Association of SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) Speakers and Parliamentarians in Colombo on 4 October. (Daily Mirror)
Wickremesinghe was reitierating Article 9 of the Sri Lankan constitution, which states: “The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give to Buddhism the foremost place and accordingly it shall be the duty of the State to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana, while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(1)(e).”
Since taking power in 2015, Sri Lanka’s government has set itself the task of drafting a new constitution, the deadline for which has been pushed to January 2018. However, an interim report submitted to Sri Lanka’s Constitutional Assembly by the Steering Committee of the Constitutional Assembly of Sri Lanka on 21 September has raised questions about the “foremost” status of Buddhism. The two provisions offered in the report change “The Republic of Sri Lanka” to simply “Sri Lanka,” offering no guarantees of patronage specifically from the government. This implies the removal of “the republic of” Sri Lanka as a responsible stakeholder in the country’s protection of Buddhism. “Thus the meaning it will then convey is that although in Sri Lanka Buddhism has the foremost place, the Government of the Republic of Sri Lanka is not obliged to treat Buddhism as being given the foremost place,” argues an editorial by Courtesy Ceylon Today (Lankaweb).
Most of the island’s influential Buddhists oppose the proposed provisions and have been making their discontent heard since July. The opposition, led by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, said in July that demonstrations would be held across the island if the government pressed ahead with the new provisions. On 29 September, the Buddha Sasana Karya Sadaaka Mandalaya questioned the wording of the proposed provisions, arguing: “It is not clear as to this applies in this situation when other religions are not subjected to discrimination even now.” (Daily Mirror)
Complicating the stakes in the interim report are ideas about moving towards a New Zealand-style system of proportional representation and constituencies, reconciliation between Sinhala and Tamil Sri Lankans, and seeing off a resurgence of Sinhala nationalism. Just last week, authorities arrested seven people for storming a UN safe house for Rohingya refugees who had fled Myanmar.
Seen in this light, Mr. Wickremesinghe’s words on 4 October were nothing new, but a repetition of his assurances for wary Buddhists. At the heart of this semantic debate is the apparent contradiction of having a “favored” religion while allowing equal rights for all faiths. Yet Buddhism is the spiritual tradition that has anchored the traditional identity of the Sinhala majority, and is already deeply embedded in the country’s politics. Sri Lanka has chosen only Buddhists for the post of president and prime minister since independence from Britain in 1948. Many Buddhist monks are members of the Constitutional Assembly.
Despite Mr. Wickremesinghe’s attempt to emphasize the “oneness” of Sri Lanka, reaching a settlement that eases the concerns of the island’s Buddhist leaders seems necessary and inevitable.
Sri Lanka has the longest continuous history of Buddhism of any Buddhist nation, with the Sangha having existed in a largely unbroken lineage since its introduction in the 3rd century BCE. During periods of decline, the Sri Lankan monastic lineage was revived through contact with Burma and Thailand.
