Dilrook Kannangara

Twisting history to claim ownership of land has become the modus operandi of certainƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ communal elementsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in the island. Obviously they cannot have a long history in the island as they still practice religions and use languages not unique to the island. If they had a long history in the island, there is no reason why these equally developed people could not have developed their unique religion and language like ethnic Sinhalese. It is true Sinhalese may have partially their origins in the Indian subcontinent and Buddhism arrived in the island from there, but they have since developed their uniqueness not found in modern India. Any group of humans living in their own space for millennia is bound to develop their own language and religious beliefs different to neighbouring countries. Given a very high population density close to 320 persons per square kilometre, the threat of land grab is to be expected. However, no concession should be given to these history twisters since any concession will only embolden them for bigger threats.

Jilani Never Visited Lanka

Jilani (Abdul-Qadir Gilani – 1077 AD to 1166 AD) was a highly articulate Islmaic scholar and saint who deserves reverence from Muslim and non-Muslims alike.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ He stood up to the truth and denounced various ambiguous interpretations of Islamic teachings. He insisted on truthful interpretation of teachings. Claiming he visited Lanka is an insult to what he stood for. There is absolutely no record in Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, India or Lanka that he visited the island nation. Association of Jilani with Kuragala is purely fictional.

Even the belief that Jilani made the pilgrimage to AdamƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Peak (pre-British name being Samanala Kanda) is an insult to this great scholar who totally denounced such pilgrimages and homage as anti-Islamic. He spent 25 years in desert regions of Iraq and not elsewhere.

There is no tunnel to heaven in Kuragala. The tunnel and the mountain were part of a sinful and pleasurable venture of King Ravana in the past (circa 2400 BC). King Ravana was a devoted worshiper of Lord Shiva. Kuragala was associated with many other historical and religious antiquities way before Islam was even invented in 622 AD. Miracles said to happen in Kuragala are not associated with Islam in anyway as according to Islam only the one true god Allah (PBUH) possesses all power and His will be done always. Traditional customs performed by South-Eastern Muslims at festivities at Kuragala are Hindu customs that are performed in the worship of God Kataragama. These rituals include piercing the tongue, cheeks, etc. followed by dancing.

There is no reason to convert Kuragala into another Jerusalem, Ajodhya, Nalanda or Dighawapi by artificially creating an Islamic tradition over a pre-existing religious affiliation.

Actions of MLM Aboosally in 1989 when Sinhalese Buddhists in the region were subjected to war crimes by marauding forces are despicable and racist. He made use of the predicament of Buddhists to build a mosque in the vicinity and turn the pre-Islam historical location into an Arabic 13^th century construction dedicated to an Iranian scholar who never visited the island. The so called Arabic ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-inscriptionƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ found there is very recent.

Jilani lived in the 11^th to 12^th century AD. This was the time the great Buddhist university of Nalanda in north eastern India was destroyed and its monks were massacred by Muslims. Very close links existed between Nalanda and Sri Lanka. Buddhist text Tripitaka was documented in Sri Lanka in 89 BC in Matale. Needless to say the concentration of such knowledge was not in isolation. All Buddhist knowledge bases were very closely connected as Indian, Thai, Burmese, etc. Buddhist learning has the Sri Lankan written Tripitaka as the foundation. Until the 12^th century very close state level relations existed with Nalanda Buddhist University. Nalanda Buddhist University was destroyed by Islam invaders in the 12^th century. It is unthinkable for Muslims to seek any acceptance in Lanka after such a horrendous crime against Buddhism.

This may be the reason why there is an exception to the spread of Islam in selected countries notably Sri Lanka, Burma and Thailand in wide contrast to Maldives, Malaysia, Indonesia, modern day Pakistan, Bangladesh and India in the region. Countries associated closely with Nalanda were less welcoming of Islam than others.

No Mention of Kuragala by Ibn Battuta

Ibn Battuta, the Arabic traveller from Morocco, visited the island nation in 1344 AD. He landed in Mannar and made his way to the AdamƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Peak (then known as Samanala Kanda which is still the correct name). He doesnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t mention Kuragala whichƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ is outsideƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ his path from Mannar to AdamƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Peak. He mentions a place by the name ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”KonarƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ which may either be a Hindu shrine close to Mannar or a place close to Kurunegala which was a major city at that time. It was the capital city a century later. He travelled to modern day Galle and Colombo too.

Ibn Battuta is no independent historian when he talks about his own Arabic community. Himself an Arab, he is not independent in his writings about Arabs. He presented himself at the king who was marvelled not by his Islamic faith but his fascinating stories of travel. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

The Despicable Crime of Stealing Older Religious Sites Must Stop

There is the nasty practice of claiming and occupying othersƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ places of religious worship. There are examples the world over how it leads to needless war. These include Jerusalem, Ajodhya, Mali, Nalanda, Bahamians, etc.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ NoƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ room should be allowed to replaceƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ older shrines.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

Absurd beliefs about Adam living in the island must not be entertained by the learned. It is a scientifically proven fact that man originated in Africa. Biblical interpretation is not too far from this scientific fact. Besides no right thinking person worships or pays homage to Adam just for being the first man!ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

Laws must be enacted toƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ prevent the replacement of religious shrines. Cleaning up Kuragala is a move in the right direction.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It must not lead to any violent acts by anyone.