When Buddhism is caught between the Abrahamic religions (the Church and Islam)
Posted on August 16th, 2013

Shenali D Waduge

An important factor has been overlooked. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Islam and the Generic Church have been pursuing world conquest and domination through control of territory and people while Judaism has pursued the goal of dominating world affairs (directly and indirectly) by controlling all world capital. All 3 religions are pursuing a historically mandated predatory global agenda but this time round the quest to conquest non-Abrahamic territories for the Church is planned to be bloodless, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-legitimateƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ using the pan-national/international structures and ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-liberalƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ politically correct idioms while Islam proposes to use its weapon of birth and conversions and Judaism controls the wealth. That these People of the Book are destined to clash in what is said to be a clash of civilizations is unfolding before our very eyes. Where does that leave a compassionate philosophy such as Buddhism?

The power houses are distinct. The slogans are too obvious ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” the Church and Colonials would not give up what they enjoyed without far sight. Thus, their ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-weaponsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ became human rights slogans, liberal theories of democracy, freedom of religion, multiculturalism and individualism all based on Western Christian virtues to be applied in both international and local affairs. Slavery part of Christian colonial rule was quickly replaced by the Bretton Woods bandits in 1944 with a system of world trade monopoly (IMF and World Bank) able to devalue national currencies and further steal their wealth. IMF is in European hands while World Bank is under US control and together both steer world trade, dictate terms on how countries should enable access to natural resources and markets and if we thought slavery was over they created the slave labor deployment across continents inventing immigration.

It is also not hard to guess where the money flow prevails, where the illicit trades thrive and originate and how Abrahamic miracles can make banks collapse and recover from economic crises. The latest calls are for post-nation state (borderless states), humanitarian interventions, self-determination, open markets for free flow of capital which needless to say articulates the plan to take over non-Abrahamic territories. Religious freedoms in turn are subtle ways to push for religious conversions that only Abrahamic religions promote.

Yet, domination plots does bring clashes between Abrahamic religions themselves and we see how Islam has openly challenged Christian West that are waking up to the incursions brought about using its very norms despite the WestƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s War on Terror meant to arm and keep Muslims busy at loggerheads with their own. Fundamentalism began with the Abrahamic religions making monsters out of ordinary people and its curse continues.

The Hindus have been effectively euthanized and they do not seem to even identify their enemy in either format of Abrahamic faith that have torn apart India. Indian nationalism has to be led by Hindus.

The Buddhist world in comparison has been far more astute and alert and aware of the dynamics at play and the historical ramifications that contribute to the present impasse.

Clash of civilizations

Samuel Huntington spoke in 1993 about a cultural conflict based on civilization identity. Huntington separated world civilizations into 2 camps ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Western civilization (European and North American) and Islamic (Arab, Turkic and Malay subdivisions). A clash running through 14 centuries.

History is witness to Persians invading Europe to conquer Greeks in the 5thc BC. Alexander the Great of Greece attempted to conquer Asia in the 4thc B.C. The Persians and Greeks both set up colonial empires after militarily invading nations. The Romans invaded and put up colonies in Mesopotamia, Arabia (northwest), Assyria in 2ndc A.D. Then there were the Huns, the Goths, the Avars from Western Asia, Central Asia and China between 5th-7thc A.D. The Avars from China and Mongolia surrounded Constantinople in 626AD.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

In 624AD Mohammed plotted against a Meccan caravan killing 70. Within 2 years from 630AD led by Mohammed, Muslims had conquered Western Arabia, southern Palestine after dozens of invasions called ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Holy WarsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Crusades were not the First Holy War. Prophet Mohammed died in 632, the new Muslim caliph Abu Bakr launched Islam. This led toƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  almost 1500 years of Islamic imperialism against hundreds of nations covering more territory than the British Empire (southern France to Philippines, Austria to Nigeria, Central Asia to New Guinea). Islamic law, Arabic language, Islam prevailed and whereas the West adopted Divide and Rule, the Islamists divided people as Muslims and Non-Muslims. Both Islam and the Church objective was to convert natives a goal that has not changed. Between the two they had set up laws that served their goals and objectives regardless of indigenous natives, their culture, their laws or their religion. Both stand guilty of ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-bloodyƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ pursuits whether they happened 1500 years back or in the present context. History shows that natives had to either concede and convert or exit.

The examples to nullify claims of equality is shown through history ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Muslim Turkey expelled 1.5m Greeks and massacred 2million Armenians, Muslim Turkey also displaced Greeks when they invaded Cyprus, Muslim Sudan has slowly conquered South Sudan virtually enslaving its Christian population, we also are aware of the plight of Christians in Nigeria, Macedonia, non-Islamic western New Guinea is now incorporated into Indonesia, Muslim Indonesia has conquered Christian East Timor and there are also examples of Muslims invading their own lands ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Iraq invasion of Kuwait, Iraq invasion of Iran. Then again the reverse also happens as in the case of Serbia and Bosnia where Muslims bore the brunt,

What we see is a historical animosity between the 3 Abrahamic religions but why have they now targeted non-Abrahamic religions? If we accept that part of the wars taking place as a result of the war industry seeking to reap benefits have been specifically targeted at Muslim nations to use sectarian divides to get Muslims to kill their own, the Christian ploy has worked to perfection. But, why drag peaceful religions like Buddhism into the fold?

It is the warrior-mentality of the Abrahamic religions that have nurtured the belief that oneƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s objectives can be reached by hook or by crook whilst they also advocate dialogue professing their hypocrisy.

Nevertheless, it is obvious and the diplomatic innuendoes do not hide the fact that Abrahamic religions are reaching out to conquer non-Abrahamic territory and Buddhist Asia is now the target.

The next question is do the non-Abrahamic religions especially Buddhism simply wait and allow a repetition of what took place over centuries? Do they simply sit and watch Buddhist nations become converted into either Christian or Islamic ones? Are Buddhists the guilty lot for striking alarm bells simply because they want to protect their indigenous culture and ethos while allowing other religions to exist? Abrahamic religions do not realize that their domination equates to mean ONLY the prevalence of their faith giving no respect to others as history has shown ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” this is not the case with Buddhism. Do Abrahamic religions not realize that it is they who are the wrong-doers? Has statistics not shown that calamities have been subtly used by Christian west to enter nations through various bodies and entities and to spread their faith leading to entire coastal belts now being converted ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” India is the perfect example. Has Muslims who previously lived amongst natives peacefully have now suddenly created majority Muslim enclaves and attempted to turn the entire area to suit Muslims only ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” mosques, loudspeakers, sharia, halal labeling, animal slaughter totally insensitive to the beliefs of other cultures and religions? These factors did not exist previously. Muslims did not dress in tribal wear, their women did not cover their face from head to toe (in non-Muslim majority nations), they did not demand separate labeling of food because they purchased meat from people they knew ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” what is suddenly bringing on these new set of demands and habits, if it is new it cant be part of the religion of Islam?

More importantly, all the critics pointing fingers need to realize that when Buddhists are objecting to sudden changes in living habits and sudden demands being made it is not to victimize the Muslims that have been living amongst them, it is only to showcase that these new incursions are creating a bridge and it is upto them to remove that which is dividing the communities.

There are enough of examples to show how the public live in unity ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” where different religions are allowed to practice their faiths and where people respect the traditions that come down from generation to generation ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” it is when suddenly a religion tries to dominate and apply only its religious creed to the rest of the people that people begin to wonder what is going on and notice the new wave of incursions taking place. No Muslims demanded mosques in Buddhist sacred sites, no Muslims attempted to distort history, no Muslims attempted undermine the place of Buddhism that had been historically held over centuries ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” these factors are taking place now and this is the issue.

Buddhists do not want to take over lands or invade nations ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” they never have, Buddhists do not convert or celebrate conversions or even remunerate people for converting others to Buddhism ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” this is not the case with Abrahamic religions. Any peaceful living is obstructed when the element of conversion and the celebration of converting exists. This is why the playing field is always imbalanced and against religions like Buddhism and Hinduism.

When Buddhists of Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and the like profess fears of losing the Buddhist identity and culture it is most certainly not to exclude the existing religions of others but what cannot be ignored is that the 2 existing religions of Christianity and Islam are always seeking to either dominate through diplomacy, economy or through population and conversions. In Muslim nations in particular whatever non-Muslim natives existed has now diminished to shocking numbers ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” either they have had to convert to survive or they have left the country they lived in for sheer survival. Nigeria and Sudan are two good examples. Whereas, even in non-Muslim nations the Muslims have never seen a decline ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” their populations have increased steadily at levels exceeding that of the rest of the population ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” calculate that with time to be able to formulate why Britain, France, EU and other nations are likely to have Muslim majorities in decades to come and when that happens the scenario of what Nigeria is going through naturally comes to mind and people fear for their existence because there are no fatwas or Holy orders issued against others in Buddhism. Is this scenario very difficult for critics even the media to realize and empathize with?

What are the defenses against these truths ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” dialogue and negotiations and interfaith programs or multiculturalism do not answer or do not even wish to address this fact. So long as there is an objective to convert people or to take over nations by birth boosting it is natural that Buddhists and Hindus are likely to fear for their existence. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

The obvious showdown between the Abrahamic religions is predicted ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” but is it really necessary. We are not living in tribal times. People are not warriors ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” they are educated and learned and should be acting different to how the men of the Crusades functioned. Do we really need more bloodshed in order to make oneƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s faith prevail ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” in a quest for world domination? No one needs to convert to Buddhism but in this day and age where the world does not need any more wars and conflicts and needs instead more compassion and respect for all others including all sentient beings and where diminishing natural resources means that man needs to curtail his/her inner greed for material wealth ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” Buddhism affords that self-journey for truth. We do not need any clash of civilization nor should people of these faiths encourage such. As eventual participants people of the Abrahamic faiths must be aware of becoming pawns and now itself decide to not be part of such a global catastrophe ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” in ancient times the weapons used are nothing compared to the nuclear arsenal that the countries destined to clash are in possession of. This is why the onus is on the disciples of the Abrahamic faith to not fall prey.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

 

13 Responses to “When Buddhism is caught between the Abrahamic religions (the Church and Islam)”

  1. Lorenzo Says:

    BIGGEST threat to Buddhism comes from HINDUISM (HINDUSTAN).

    Buddha’s birth places (Nepal and India) have rejected Buddhism in favor of Hinduism. This is a HUGE obstacle to Buddhism. Now they turn OLD Buddhist universities to HINDU controlled secular money making universities.

    In SL Buddhism was destroyed badly by HINDU invades including Magha, etc. Portuguese also destroyed many places. Portuguese and Dutch used HINDU barbaric mercenaries.

    Agree there is a SHOWDOWN between the 3 Abrahamic faiths. Let them battle it out to a finish.

  2. Nalliah Thayabharan Says:

    http://www.cbn.com/spirituallife/onlinediscipleship/understandingislam/IslamHistory0212.aspx

    http://www.ied.info/books/why/the-1300-year-battle-between-christians-and-muslims

  3. Senevirath Says:

    CHRISTIANS AND HINDUS GO SLOW MOTION . MUSLIMS ARE TERRORISTS- THEY NEED ONLY FEW MINUTES TO CONVERT PEOPLE. MOST OF THE BUDDHISTS ARE ALREADY HINDUS BUT THEY DONT KNOW THAT THEY ARE. THAT IS THE DANGER IN IT

  4. Nalliah Thayabharan Says:

    Today most Christians believe that:

    – There is only one God. He is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe.

    – God sent prophets such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Joseph, John the Baptist, Jesus, etc.

    – People should follow the Ten Commandments and the moral teachings of the prophets.

    – Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a virgin; therefore Jesus was born miraculously.

    – Jesus Christ is the Messiah and he performed miracles.

    – The Old testament/Torah and the new testament/Gospel) are holy scriptures.

    – Satan is evil; therefore, people should not follow Satan.

    – An Anti-Christ will appear on Earth before the Day of Judgment.

    – Jesus Christ will return by descending from Heaven and will kill the Anti-Christ.

    – The Day of Judgment will occur and people will be judged.

    – There is hell and paradise.

    The concept of God has 3 forms (Father, Son, Holy Ghost/ Spirit) – TRINITY was not adopted by Christianity until the Council of Nicea about 325 years after Jesus died. Some of the early Christians were Unitarians. Even today, there are Christian Unitarian churches that do not accept the Trinity. Modern Christianity was not founded by Jesus, but rather by Paul and the Romans in the Council of Nicea in 325 AD, inspired by Satan. In this Council of Nicea, Church leaders from around the world debated and finally decided on what should and what should not be included in the Bible. There were different views expressed in the Council; however, the views of the those who were most powerful won. As a result, lots of Gospels were thrown away. For Christianity to be adopted by the Roman Empire as its official religion, it had to succumb to the desires of the Romans who wanted to incorporate their own pagan religious beliefs and myths into Christianity. The integrity of the message brought by Jesus from God was compromised to appease the Roman Empire. Christianity has evolved into a cult that has deviated significantly from the true teachings of Jesus by: (a) adding new doctrines not preached by Jesus, (b) deleting or modifying some of the teachings of Jesus, and (c) creating an “unholy”, man-made scripture. A holy scripture must be in the form and content intended, inspired, or revealed by God, not created by human beings. These doctrines merely form a man-made hypothesis that defies the natural/inborn tendencies of people to worship only their creator as we have explained above. Trinity is a concept that was copied from a popular pagan religion of the Romans, called Mithraism. There are as verses in the Bible that contradict with the doctrine of Trinity. The Original Sin concept encourages people to sin as much as they want and not to do any good deeds. After all, regardless of their sins, Christianity teaches that Christians will be forgiven, saved and go to heaven as long as they believe in Jesus, as explained above. The Original Sin concept is not fair, as we have explained earlier, because no one should be made to bear the burden of someone else’s sin or mistake.

  5. Ancient Sinhalaya Says:

    No country has been converted to Hinduism from another religion. But there are a lot of countries robbed
    by mossies. Iran, Egypt, Afganisthan, Pakisthan, Bangladesh, Maldives, Indonesia, Malaysia. They robbed
    those countries within a few hundred years since their arrival on those lands.
    How did they do it?
    OUTBREEDING AND OUTNUMBERING.
    Being converted to xxxxlam is all bs. There is no conversion. Outbreeding and outnumbering the natives.
    That’s all. Nobody has ever seen or heard a mohamed and his wife making babies and call them Christopher, Chris or Mary.
    That’s what they done in the past. That’s what they do now. They don’t make rocket scientists. Mainly curry shop owners, halal buthchers, shop owners, politicians (ideal job for this very honest people), taxi drivers etc, etc. But make enough money. Make more than enough babies for the whole country.

  6. Lorenzo Says:

    AS,

    Plenty!

    There was no Endia in the past. In place were MANY countries. Emperor Asoka set the tone for a Buddhist subcontinent. But later Hindus came back with a vengeance.

    IF Endia remained Buddhist RULED, we would not have MOST of the problems we have.

    But I agree about the MOSSIES.

    Who would not!!!

    In 1981 Mossies surpassed the Christians.

    In 2021 Mossies will surpass the Hindus.

    There after the FINAL FRONTIER – BUDDHISTS!!!

    Like an OMINOUS asteroid coming towards earth. It passed Jupiter’s orbit. It is just about to pass Mar’s orbit. You know what is next!!!!

  7. Nalliah Thayabharan Says:

    Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh created Islam to grab power from the other religions in the Middle East at the time. Before turned to be a prophet for fun and profit, Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh – the merchant traveled quite widely and met Jews, Christians and Greeks, whose ideas emerged later in the inspiration he claimed to receive from Allah. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh was charismatic and intelligent. Idiots don’t build empires, but they sometimes run empires, like Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus and George W Bush, but they never build empires. Founding an empire requires talent, intelligence, application, often charisma and ruthlessness. No halfwit or ignoramus has ever founded a civilization or started an empire.

    It is not possible for a religion to arise which does evil and nothing more. Nobody would join it or bring their children up in it. Islam offered some improvements over the previous situation in pagan Arabia. The status of women improved, or so Muslims have claimed, they were no longer treated like field slaves to be whipped mercilessly, they rose in status to that of house slaves, to be patronized and whipped mercifully.

    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh also swept away much of the old order’s rigid structures of class, he had some tendencies which you could almost describe as egalitarian. Not democratic socialist of course, let’s not get carried away, but he did institute a taxation system which worked to alleviate absolute poverty. So, when you compare Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh to tyrants he stands alongside those tyrants who while conquering a lot of people, slaughtering his enemies, selling their children and raping their women did manage to do a few things to add to the positive side of the ledger. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh was a warlord, pure and simple. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh roused a disorganized group of nomadic tribes into a ruthless, fearless army. During his lifetime, Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh conquered the Arabia and his followers eventually extended those conquests from Spain to India. By all rights, Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh should take his place in history among of Alexander the Great, Genghis Kahn, and Tamerlane the Great as early history’s great military leaders. But when you compare him to great spiritual leaders like Confucius, Laozi or Gautama Buddha, well, Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh looks like a ruthless tyrant.

    The claim that the status of women improved under Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh is disputed by many who say that the status of women went down under Islam. Women lost the right to own and control property. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s first wife, Khadijah, who was a wealthy widow and trader in her own right employed Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh before marrying him. Perhaps 25 years of being the husband of one older wife who was wealthy and powerful in her own right contributed to Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s rather extreme treatment of women.

    Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh was a camel-mounted pirate, a warlord, a slave trader and the murderer of defenseless prisoners. During his ten years in Medina, Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh personally led 27 military attacks. Prior to his death, Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh conquered most of the Arabian peninsula. According to the Quranic verses written in Medina verses, Allah accepts converts who do not believe in him inwardly, but will kneel to him outwardly under threat of death. Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh did not have this view of Allah until he became a warlord and used force to compel people to accept his rule. In Mecca, Muhammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh had one wife. During his last 10 years of his life at Medina, Muhammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh married 12 more women. A warlord does not tolerate those who question his decrees. Similarly, Muslims are warned by their teachers that asking too many questions about why Allah commands something is a sign of impiety. The corruption of Muslim officialdom in many countiries seems to follow the pattern set by Mohammed ibn ʿAbd Allāh when he was a corrupt warlord.

    Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh did not invent monotheism. The Pharaoh Akhenaten in Egypt’s 18th dynasty had put a single sun deity at the centre of worship 2,000 years before Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh. Monotheism makes totalitarianism and intolerance much easier. Monotheism is responsible for more human suffering than any idea ever thought up by humans, with the possible exception of the idea that faith is a virtue, but we can’t blame Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh. Whatever his myriad faults are originality of thought is not one of them.

    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh did not initiate slavery. Slavery had been universal across Africa, Asia and Europe for several thousands of years. Slavery was considered to be totally normal. We can’t blame Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh for inventing slavery. But Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh thoroughly endorsed slavery and engaged in the trading, keeping and taking of slaves himself. Nobody wants to be enslaved and making, keeping and trading of slaves is totally abhorrent under any circumstances. Slavery is wrong period.

    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh did not invent the barbaric and primitive practice of marrying very young girls. Joseph was a 90 years old man at the time of marriage with the Mary – Mother of Jesus od Nazreth. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh married Aisha at the age of 6, he watched over her until the age of 9 when he took her into his household as his wife, with all that this normally entails. Aisha was accused of being unfaithful to Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh declared that Aisha was innocent after a convenient divine revelation and decreed that from then on all accusations of adultery which includes rape require 4 reliable men as witnesses. Even today Muslim women are being thrown into prison or even stoned to death in places where sharia law is applied for the sin of being raped without enough 4 reliable men as witnesses.

    The common claim that Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh was a pedophile is unfair. If this had been the case Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh could have had a lot more children in his tent. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s first marriage was to an older widow Khadijah, which lasted 25 years during which time he had no other wife. Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh had something in the order of 16 wives and most of these were widows and older women. The statistics on the safety of childbirth among the under 14 give strong support to the idea that marriage at the first hint of puberty is an extremely bad example for any potential role-model to set. This bad example is blighting the lives of millions of girls and is directly responsible for many cases of miscarriage and horrific damage to young girls. Many women have a lifetime of incontinence and infertility because they followed the example of Islam’s “perfect man” Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh.

    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh did not invent the ritual sacrifice of animals. The Jews had done it for thousands of years. Animal sacrifice was also done by many other civilizations including the Greeks.
    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh did not introduce animal sacrifice to Arabia as his tribe and many others had been sacrificing to their Pagan gods for centuries and the younger Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh himself had both sacrificed to pagan gods and eaten the meat of that sacrifice.

    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh took for granted that his followers would be having sex with the wives of the pagan warriors that they captured in the battles and the wives of the Jewish tribes that they had killed. Qur’an says that a Muslim may marry up to 4 wives and have sex with the captives that his right hand possesses, which refers to slave women captured in battle.

    Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh did not invent the strange barbarous practice of circumcision. Jews copied male circumcision from the Egyptians. Circumcision was carried out across large parts of Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Even today the butchery of the genitals of young girls is widespread across Africa, practiced by Muslims, practitioners of African traditional religions and Christians. Female Genital Mutilation is very common in Egypt and Ethiopia among Christians, and it is not right to blame this on Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh.

  8. Nalliah Thayabharan Says:

    FIRST CENTURY OF ISLAM
    Year 622: Following the embarrassments of the Satanic Verses and hallucinogenic Night’s Journey aboard the flying ass, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh was run out of Mecca. In his meeting with 12 warlords from Medina at a waddi called Aqaba, the first Muslims “Pledge to wage war against all mankind,” and the Islamic Era officially began.
    623: Muslims drew first blood, killing one Meccan and kidnapping another at Nakhla. They plundered their caravan and brought the booty back to Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh.
    624: Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh led the first Muslims out to plunder a Meccan caravan at Badr. They missed the target but encountered some Meccan merchants who had gone out to protect their business interests from the Islamic raiders. The Muslims killed 70 Meccan merchants, most of whom they were related to, and took almost that many Meccans captive. The hostages were ransomed back to their families, creating an Islamic precedent that is followed today. The Qur’an’s 8th surah is revealed as a situational scripture to justify fighting and stealing.
    624: Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh laid siege to the richest Jewish settlement in Yathrib aka Medina. After forcing the Banu Qaynuqa into the desert to die, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh stole their homes, land, businesses, farms, and treasure. The Qur’an’s 59th, 61st, 62nd, 63rd, and 64th surahs are revealed to beguile the Muslims into believing that what they were doing was religious and good.
    625 : The Muslims continued to terrorize and rob the Meccans, so they went to Yathrib/Medina to stop the source of their pain. Thinking they had killed Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh at Uhud, as well as most of his jihadists, the Meccans returned home. Since the terrorist religion was an inch from being destroyed, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh contrived the 3rd surah, in which Allah tells Muslims that he will kill those who don’t fight for Islam.
    625 : Needing to satiate the covetous bloodlust of his mercenaries, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh decided to plunder the people in Yathrib. The defenseless Banu Nadir people were starved into submission and forced out into the desert to die. Once again, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh stole their homes, land, businesses, farms, and treasure. Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh had become so sexually perverted, and such a ruthless megalomaniac, he made up the 33rd surah, the Qur’an’s most immoral rant to justify his despicable life. Allah approves rape and incest.
    626: The Meccan merchants returned to Yathrib/Medina to stop Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh from continuing to terrorize them but they were thwarted by a trench he had dug in the sand. While the Battle of the Trench was a standoff, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh gloated in typical Islamic fashion.
    627: Since the Battle of the Trench was bloodless and booty-less, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh needed to find easy prey for his sorry lot of jihadists. The Banu Qurayza people in Yathrib/Medina suffered as a result. After starving them into surrender, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh had his goons dig trenches in the center of Medina. He had every man and boy over the age of 12 tied hand and neck. In small batches he paraded 900 of them out and in his presence, he had his mujahideen cut off their heads over the open trench – pushing their bodies in. Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh after picking the most attractive widow for himself, used lots to determine a selection order for his followers to choose their rape victims. The children were then enslaved and sold to buy more weapons. Portions of the 33rd surah were revealed to demonstrate that Allah was a terrorist, slave trader, and murdering thief.
    628: This was a very, very, bad year. In it, terror became Islam’s signature act with raids launched against the Lihyan and Banu Mustaliq Arabs. The Qur’an’s 24th surah was revealed at this time to get the pedophile prophet Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh out of a prickly situation with his child wife.
    It was then that Allah’s Messenger assembled a considerable force of jihadists to plunder his hometown of Mecca – a mud hut village of 5,000 people that was home to Allah’s rock pile of rock gods known as the Ka’aba. But Allah’s boy became timid, and rather than sack his relatives, he signed the Treaty of Hudaybiyah, whereby Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh denied that he was a prophet and that Allah was God. The Qur’an’s 4th surah is revealed telling Muslims how they are to fight.
    This led to Islam’s darkest hour. Without the plunder the jihadists expected from Mecca, the first Muslims turned on Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh in a massive rebellion. So the Islamic warlord did what all despots do – he found a patsy for his marauding hoard. On their way back to Yathrib/Medina Muhammad’s mujahideen perpetrated a terrorist raid on the Khaybar people. The farming village was savagely conquered and plundered. Its leadership was tortured at Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s behest. The men were murdered and the women were raped, with Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh again personally participating. And the Muslims stole the homes, property, and possessions. Once again, the children were enslaved and used to buy more weapons and build a larger militia. The Qur’an’s 49th surah is revealed in order to reestablish Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s tattered reputation. It is especially revolting.
    629: In anticipation of dishonoring his sworn commitment to the Meccans at Hudaybiyah, where Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh promised not to terrorize the Meccans for ten years, Islam’s prophet revealed the 66th surah in which he says: “Allah has sanctioned for you the dissolution of your vows.” Islam’s god authorized his lone witness to lie. He then recited the 48th surah in which peaceful Muslims who did not wish to fight were told that they would be tortured by Allah. Then he said in the 47th surah, “So when you clash with the unbelieving infidels in battle smite their necks until you overpower them, killing and wounding many of them. When you have thoroughly subdued them, bind them firmly, making them captives…Thus you are commanded by Allah to continue carrying out Jihad against the unbelieving infidels until they submit to Islam.”.
    With that inspiration, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s mujahideen assaulted and plundered the Arab villages of Mulawwih, Banu Bakr, Harith, Kadid, Salasil, Jusham, and Idam in a series of terrorist raids. Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh then sent them to attack the Byzantines near the Syrian town of Mu’ta, where the jihadists fought their first battle against an actual army and were pummeled.
    630: Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh revealed the Qur’an’s second to last surah moments before his conquest of Mecca. In the 9th surah, the Qur’an’s war manifesto, we find: “This announcement from Allah and his Messenger to the people on the day of the Great Pilgrimage [to attack Mecca]: Allah and His Messenger dissolve (treaty) obligations with unbelievers.” Outnumbering the Meccan merchants two to one, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s mujahideen conquer his hometown and force everyone to surrender to Islam or die.
    On their way back home, the Islamic jihadists terrorize the Arab towns of Hunsin, Auras, and Taif. .
    631: Having over hunted Jews and Arabs, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh turned his sights on the Byzantine Christians. He revealed the Qur’an’s final surah, the 5th, to turn Christians into the enemy of Islam even though no Christian had ever spoken a word to or laid a finger on a single Muslim. With his justification in hand, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh assembled a militia of 30,000 mujahideen and assaulted Tabuk in today’s Syria. He gave the Christians an ultimatum: “Pay me or die.”
    632: Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh dies a miserable death. Under the Caliphate (Deputy of the Prophet) of Abu Bakr Islamic jihadists led a crusade to conquer all of Arabia. Arabs would either submit or die.
    After conquering Arabia and forever raping the Arabs of their freedoms, prosperity, and hope, Abu Bakr’s jihadists plundered Yemen. There, Mussailima, another false prophet indistinguishable from Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh is conquered. Muslims then wage war in the communities of Zu Qissa, Abraq, Buzakha, Zafar, Naqra, and Bani Tamim.
    633: The Muslim mujahideen led by Khalid al-Walid, the new religion’s most bloodthirsty terrorist, whom Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh himself had nicknamed the “Sword of Allah” for his ferocity and proclivity to tie women’s and children’s hands behind their backs and then cut off their heads, conquered the Persian city of Ullays along the Euphrates River in today’s Iraq. Khalid beheads so many civilians that a nearby canal, into which the blood flowed, was called Blood Canal.
    In the months which follow, Khalid’s mujahideen assault Bahrain, Oman, Mahrah, and Hadramaut. Islam’s second most famous terrorist raids towns across Iraq, and lays siege to Kazima, Mazar, Walaja, Ulleis, Hirah, Anbar, Ein at Tamr, Jandal, Firaz, and Daumatul.
    634: At the battles of Basra and Ajnadin Damascus in Syria the Muslim jihadists defeated Byzantine regiments.
    Abu Bakr dies and the Caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab begins. His campaign of terror was particularly brutal. Immediately he attacks Namaraq and Saqatia.
    635: Muslim mujahideen besieged and conquered Damascus. They fought and won the battles of the Bridge, Buwaib, and Fahl. They go on to conquer Damascus.
    636: Islamic jihadists attacked and defeated the weakened Byzantines again at Yarmuk – this time pulverizing them. They fight and win at Madain.
    637: Syria falls to the Islamic onslaught. Then the Muslim crusaders conquered large portions of western Persia in today’s Iraq, beginning at the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah. Muslim mujahideen occupy the Persian capital of Ctesiphon.
    638: Islamic raiders attacked and defeated the Roman Byzantines at the Battle of Yarmouk. Muslims enter, occupy, and annex Jerusalem, taking it from the Byzantines. All Judea is claimed under the sword of Islam. Muslims go on to raid Jalula and Jazirah and continue their conquest of Syria, today’s Jordan, and Lebanon.
    On the Eastern front, Islamic armies conquer eastern Persia in today’s Iran, leaving only the Caspian Sea region firmly under Persian control.
    639: Islamic raiders conquer Khuzestan in the east and enter and begin plundering Egypt in the west, burning its libraries and defacing its monumental history.
    640: Muslim jihadists capture Caesaria in Syria and Shustar Jande Sabur in Persia. They fight the battle of Babylon.
    On the Western Front, Islam completes its conquest of Egyptian cities in the north, stealing them from the Romans. Arabia, Egypt, Persia, and the Fertile Crescent are now the personal fiefdoms of four Islamic Caliphs.
    641: Muslim crusaders who bypassed the countryside of Syria and Judea en route to Egypt, returned to raise their swords over everyone’s head. They attack Nihawand and then conquer Alexandria in Egypt.
    On the Eastern Front, Islam conquers and occupies all of today’s Iraq, taking it from the Persians.
    642: Islamic mujahideen fight the Battle of Rayy in Persia. Moving south on the Western Front, they conquer all of Egypt.
    643: In the north, Islam’s army conquers Azerbaijan and Tabaristan in today’s Russia.
    644 : The Islamic killing machine sacks and plunders Fars, Kerman, Sistan, Mekran and Kharan. Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab was assassinated. Uthman ibn Affan was appointed the third Caliph. Since Uthman’s family rejected Muhammad’s claim of being the Messenger of Allah, Islam divides with Shia rioters campaigning for the empowerment of Ali, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s cousin, adopted son, and son-in-law.
    646 : Muslims battle in Khurasan, Armenia, and Asia Minor throughout the Caucasus.
    647: The Islamic barbarians savagely plundered North Africa. Islamic jihadists conquered the Island of Cyprus. They besieged and plundered Tripoli in North Africa. And they forcibly established Islam as the only acceptable religion in today’s Iran, Iraq, Arabia, and Afghanistan.
    648 : The Muslim armies were unified and positioned against the Byzantines.
    650: The Islamic conquest and occupation of Persia was completed. The entire realm of history’s oldest and most powerful empires surrendered under the assault of bloody swords when resistance became futile.
    651: Muslims won the Battle of the Masts against the Byzantines and nearly captured the Byzantine emperor.
    652: The Islamic assault against humanity stalled and the Muslim mujahideen openly displayed their hostility toward Uthman.
    654: Islam’s violent and aggressive conquest of North Africa was all but completed. Only Morocco remained free of the religious scourge. Muslims now established new fiefdoms throughout the region they occupied.
    656 : The Sunni Caliph Uthman was assassinated by Muslim soldiers. Ali ibn Abi Talib, adopted son, son-in-law, and cousin to Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh, was given the Caliphate. His claim to the throne was having married the prophet’s daughter Fatima. Killing the Caliph to become Caliph would become standard operating procedure in the Islamic world.
    In the battle of the Camel, Aisha, Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s child wife, led a rebellion against Ali for not avenging Uthman’s assassination. Ali’s Shia partisans won.
    657: In more infighting between Shia and Sunni Muslims (today called “sectarian violence”), the battle of Siffin between Ali and the Muslim governor of Jerusalem, went against Ali. Forced out of Medina, Ali moved the Shia capital of Islam to Kufa in Iraq.
    658 : Major battles were fought by Muslims in Nahrawan and then in Egypt, where the last pockets of resistance were suppressed. The Umayyad and then Abbasid caliphates would control Egypt until 868.
    660: Ali’s forces recaptured the Hijaz (Mecca-Medina area) and Yemen from their Sunni Muslim rival, Mu’awiyah. So Mu’awiyah declared himself Caliph and sets up his throne in Damascus.
    661: Ali was assassinated by a rival Sunni Muslim. Ali’s supporters formed the Shi’ite political/religious party and promoted his son Hasan to Caliph. They insisted that a blood descendant of Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh wield control over all Muslims. Hasan, however, not wanting to be the next to die, came to an accommodation with Muawiyyah, a relative of Uthman, and abdicated the throne, retiring to Medina.
    The Caliphate of Muawiyyah I began. He founds the Sunni Umayyid Dynasty and officially moved the capital of the Islamic Empire from uncivilized Medina to Damascus. What is interesting about this is that even though Damascus, unlike Mecca and Medina, was a literate community, and although we have countless records of Umayyid battles, tax collections, and political promotions, there isn’t a single line of Islamic scripture that survives from this time – not a word from the Qur’an or Hadith was written down. The first Qur’an fragments date to the eighth century and the oldest Hadith manuscripts date to the ninth century.
    There were no Qur’ans or any other written basis for the religion of Islam when its mujahideen were conquering the world. And that means they were doing it for booty, not religion. This is one of the most astounding, and little known, facts of history.
    The Umayyid Dynasty would retain dictatorial control over all territories conquered by Islam through 750
    662 : All of the Arabian Peninsula and today’s Iran and Iraq were unified under the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates. Their reign of oppression would last until 1258.
    666: Muslim crusaders raided the island of Sicily.
    670: Islamic armies continued to plunder portions of North Africa on the Western Front. Jihadists reach and conquer Morocco. The entire region was now under the control of the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates.
    The Eastern Army captured Kabul in Afghanistan. Soon Islam would control and occupy all of the Caucasus and Caspian region.
    672: Muslims storm the island of Rhodes, placing it under the dominion of their swords.
    673 : The Islamic armies begin the Khurasan campaign.
    674: Muslims cross the Oxus. Bukhara becomes a vassal state.
    677: Islam’s militants occupy Samarkand and Tirmiz.
    678: Muslim armies besieged Constantinople, the capital of the Christian Byzantine Empire.
    680: Caliph Mu’awiyah died and Hussein (Hussain) (Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s grandson by way of Ali), his family, and his supporters were massacred in Karbala, Iraq by the Sunni Umayyids. As a result, Yazid gained control of Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s bloody legacy.
    682: In North Africa Uqba bin Nafe marched to the Atlantic. He was ambushed and killed at Biskra. The Muslims evacuated Qairowan and withdrew to Burqa.
    683: Caliph Yazid died. Mu’awiyah II is crowned king of the death machine.
    684: Abdullah bin Zubair declared himself Caliph at Mecca. Marwan I, disputes the claim and names himself Caliph in Damascus. All the while the Islamic assault marched on with the Battle of Marj Rahat.
    685 : Falling like flies, Marwan I died so Abdul Malik became the Caliph in Damascus. Not losing focus, the Islamic mujahideen fought the Battle of Ain ul Wada.
    686: Mukhtar declared himself Caliph at Kufa, Iraq. As you might imagine, being the supreme potentate of a religious empire was profitable.
    687: Not wanting to share, the Battle of Kufa was waged between the Islamic forces of Mukhtar and Abdullah bin Zubair. Mukhtar must have lost because he was killed.
    691: Muslims went on to fight the Battle of Deir ul Jaliq. But then Kufa fell to Abdul Malik.
    692 : With the fall of Mecca to Abdul Malik, and the death of Abdullah bin Zubair, Malik became the sole Caliph.
    695: The Khawarij revolt in Jazira and Ahwaz shook Islam. Muslims however won the Battle of the Karun. Then a campaign against Kahina in North Africa was launched. Unsuccessful, the Muslims once again withdrew to Barqa. Next, Islamic forces advanced on Transoxiana and occupied Kish.
    700: Muslim armies fought against the Berbers in North Africa.
    702: Islam endured the Ashath rebellion in Iraq and fought the battle of Deir ul Jamira.
    705: With the death of Abdul Malik Walid I became Caliph.
    710: On the Eastern Front, Muslim crusaders conquered the lower Indus Valley. On the Western Front, Tariq ibn Malik crossed the Gibraltar straight separating Africa and Europe with a group of Muslims and entered Europe for the first time.
    711 : A 7,000 strong Islamic army under the command of Tariq ibn Malik invaded and conquered Spain, imposing the kingdom of Andalus. Almost all of the Iberian Peninsula submits to the sword of Islam.
    Muslims advanced on Sindh in Afghanistan and Transoxiana and then conquered Multan.
    712: With their recent conquests of Spain, the countryside of Egypt, and Morocco, the Islamic Empire now occupied and oppressed most all of the Persian and Roman Empires. The enormous, aggressive, and rapid land grab had all been achieved with the sword.
    715: Walid died and Sulaiman became Caliph.
    716: Muslims invaded Constantinople but failed in their attempt to take the Christian capital.
    717 : With the death of Sulaiman Umar bin Abdul Aziz took the crown of Islam.
    718 : The Islamic invasion, conquest, and occupation of Spain was completed.
    719: Cordova, Spain became the capital of Islamic Europe.
    720: With the death of Umar bin Abdul Aziz, Yazid II was anointed king.
    724: With the death of Yazid II, Hisham gained control of Warlord Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd Allāh’s legacy.
    725: The Islamic conquest of Western Europe reached it zenith with Muslims occupying Nimes in France.
    732: The Muslim crusaders were stopped at the Battle of Poitiers (Tours). While it’s hard to fathom, the Franks (French) halted the Islamic advance on Western Europe. However, Muslim armies continued to advance in Asia and Africa.
    The first century of Islam had been marked by death and destruction. Islam had been fed by plunder and it had expanded on the backs of its bloodied victims. There is almost nothing good that can be said of Islam’s first century. Islam has been a curse on all mankind.

  9. Lorenzo Says:

    NT,

    After loads and loads of data, you finally arrived at the RIGHT conclusion.

    “Islam has been a curse on all mankind.”

    You are not alone. MOST HUMANS have already arrived at that conclusion.

  10. Lorenzo Says:

    TNA has THREATENED to CHASE AWAY 500 poor Sinhala families from their homes in Mannar.

    IF these people are chased away from their homes, Tamilians in Colombo must prepare themselves to FOLLOW THEM. Only then there can be a COMPROMISE. This is GAME THEROY at play. TNA is playing GAME THEROY. We must play it too otherwise we lose. No way!

    Why is that ONLY Sinhalese and Muslims are ALWAYS CHASED AWAY from their homes and not resettled?

    Why not the opposite happen AT LEAST ONCE?

    This is AGAINST the laws of gravity. What goes up MUST come down. Every action must have an equal and opposite reaction.

    Govt. should REGISTER the army in election register in the north. In 2010 January the gap between SLFP and TNA (SF) was about 100,000. In April 2010 it was SMALLER. IF govt. registers at least 150,000 army personnel in the DISTRICT THEY SERVE, we can TIP the balance in favor of the govt.

    Otherwise there will be RIOTS again OR WORSE.

    A simple solution!

  11. Fran Diaz Says:

    Mannar ! Manna ! Oil & for a few Dollars more AND a skippity footpath to Tamil Nadu for Tamil Illegal Migrants !

    We were wondering just when MANNAR was going to feature in the Tamil Separatist Agenda. Mannar Oil, Adam’s Bridge to Tamil Nadu & Trinco ! Tea & Sympathy for CHOGM time.

    Time for all Concerned Citizens to guard our People and our Resources.

    ———-

    Thank you, Shenali, for your article.

    WW I&II were started and expanded in Christian Europe.

  12. Mr. Bernard Wijeyasingha Says:

    I do not fully agree with the article. to quote from the article: “Buddhists do not want to take over lands or invade nations – they never have, Buddhists do not convert or celebrate conversions or even remunerate people for converting others to Buddhism” But Buddhism is a faith that converts. The very reason Sri Lanka is a Buddhist nation is due to the son of Emperor Ashoka arriving in Sri Lanka and offering the tooth of the Buddha to King Devanampiyattisa who then converted to Buddhism and making it the faith of Sri Lanka. Emperor Ashoka himself converted to Buddhism from Hinduism after he realized the carnage he created when he defeated the kingdom of Kalinga. Buddhism was spread by Emperor Ashoka as far away as Egypt and most of the present Buddhist nations are Buddhist because they converted.
    Another classic example is Cambodia where Hinduism ruled that civilization creating the largest religious building in the world; the Angor Vat to Lord Vishnu but then Buddhism took over and that Hindu Temple is now a Buddhist Temple.
    I agree with the savage aspects used by the Abrahamic religions to force conversions on non Christians. A classic example is the library of Alexandria which under the Pharaoh Cleopatra was accidentally burned when a Roman naval war at the outskirts of the city resulted in a fire spreading across that city burning down the library. But it rose again but this time in the 2nd century AD newly converted Christians deliberately destroyed the new version of the library of Alexandria.
    Jump a couple of thousand years to Christian conversions in Sri Lanka which almost wiped out Buddhism. But again even then the Buddhists fought back by adopting Christian practices such as Sunday Catechism. The Sri Lankan Buddhists took that idea and created a Buddhist version of this Christian practice. But the turning point was a public debate regarding the virtues of Buddhism verses Christianity. Called the “Panadura Debate” where Buddhism won over Christianity in that historic debate. Outside forces such as the kingdom of Siam or Thailand helped resurrect Buddhism to its rightful place in Sri Lanka.
    In the turn of the 20th century Dr. Ambedkar converted first thousands and later millions of Dalits to Buddhism in India. Now Buddhism is converting Christians in the Western nations as the values of Buddhism triumph over that of other proselytizing faiths.

  13. Mr. Bernard Wijeyasingha Says:

    The Great Panadura Debate:
    With the authorities’ increasingly unfriendly attitude towards Buddhism, and the missionaries’ aggressive and incessant attacks on their religion, the monks eventually started to defend their faith against the Christians.
    Their response however, was disorganized and ineffectual and limited to their sermons on holy days. The Buddhist community also petitioned the government to stop or moderate these attacks, but to no avail.
    The view of the authorities was that Buddhism was doomed in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, well-known figures such as the Sinhalese Christian scholar, James D’Alwis, and the Methodist missionary, Spence Hardy, confidently predicted that it would soon be replaced by Christianity.
    The missionaries had acquired a printing press around 1820 which they used to churn out pamphlets and tracts denigrating Buddhism and promoting their own religion. Many of these publications were written by the Methodist minister and scholar, Rev. Daniel Gogerly, who was also an expert in the Pali language. The missionaries even distributed their materials at Buddhist events and started to challenge the monks to public debates.
    The Buddhists finally bought a press of their own in 1855 and a second one was acquired in 1862, financed by King Mongkut of Thailand. Ven. Mohottiwatte Gunananda, a forceful and articulate monk from Colombo, and the more renowned Ven. Hikkaduve Sumangala in Galle, wrote most of the Buddhist tracts and pamphlets.
    The monks at first ignored the missionaries’ challenges to debate. This was a disappointment to the Christians as they hoped to humiliate the monks in public, and thus hasten the downfall of Buddhism. However, the monks eventually accepted these challenges, to the glee of the Christians.
    Three debates were held, in 1865, 1871 and 1873 and were formal affairs with ground rules established before-hand, and proper exchanges between the parties. They culminated in the last and most famous one known as the Panadura Debate. The Buddhists were led by Ven. Mohottiwatte Gunananda and Ven. Hikkaduve Sumangala. The Christians were represented by Rev. David de Silva, the Sinhalese protégé of Rev. Daniel Gogerly, and Rev. F.S.Sirimanne, a catechist of the Church Missionary Society.
    The local population took great interest in the final debate which lasted for two days. It had very much of a festive atmosphere with the crowd swelling to more than 10,000 people by the second day. The final debate, one of the most important events in Sri Lankan Buddhist history, was covered by the Sinhalese and English language newspapers.
    The proceedings were also published in book form by an American scholar, Dr. J. M. Peebles, who was present at the debate, and who ended up very impressed by the performance of the monks. Another American, Colonel Henry Steele Olcott, chanced upon a copy of this book in America, the result of which was to have far-reaching effects for the future of Buddhism in Sri Lanka and beyond.
    The Lion’s Roar
    Ven. Mohottiwatte Gunananda and Rev. David de Silva, the two main protagonists in the Panadura Debate, had very contrasting styles and characters. Already a seasoned debater, Gunananda was able to play to the audience, standing up and dramatically gesticulating as he spoke. He also addressed the audience in everyday Sinhalese, whereas de Silva used many Pali and Sanskrit quotes which they could not understand easily. Having received a Christian education, Gunananda also knew the Bible very well.
    On his own, Gunananda was more than a match for the Christian debaters in terms of oratorical skills. It was his Lion’s Roar which dispelled the fear and shame imposed on the Buddhists by the missionaries’ continual disparagement of their religion, and it reawakened the country’s pride in its religion.
    After much arguments and counter-arguments, the turning point of the debate was when Ven. Gunananda pointed to the verse at Judges 1:19 in the Bible. The verse states : “And the LORD was with Judah, and he drove out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.”
    Gunananda said that this showed clearly that the God could not be omnipotent as claimed, if he could not even overcome iron chariots. Rev. de Silva tried to explain that the reason the God did not overcome the chariots was because Judah did not have enough faith in him. However, Gunananda countered by asking, if Judah did not have enough faith, then why was the God with him in the first place?
    Sri Lankans believe that evil spirits are afraid of iron. In fact, they commonly hang a piece of iron up on their homes to keep evil spirits at bay. Gunananda’s point thus made sense to the audience because of this.
    Although there were more arguments, the debate was effectively over by the first day. The victory for the Buddhists could not have been more resounding and emphatic, with the crowd shouting and cheering for Gunananda and the other monks. The Lion had Roared.
    Word of the triumph spread rapidly throughout the island with temples, villages and towns breaking out in open and joyous celebration. Reflecting the open and tolerant nature of the people, the festivities were free from hostility and anger towards the defeated party, even though they were boisterous and happy.
    Pride had returned to Buddhism and its revival in Sri Lanka had begun.
    Mohottiwatte Gunananda
    Mohottiwatte Gunananda was born in 1823 in the village of Mohottiwatta to a prosperous Buddhist family. Monks in Sri Lanka, after ordination, commonly affix the name of their village to their own name. Gunananda had been in close contact with a Catholic priest in his youth and received his education in Christian schools. He had at one time, even considered becoming a Christian priest.
    However, he changed his mind after associating with some monks from his village and ordained at the age of 20, becoming a member of the Amarapura fraternity. His oratorical skills soon became apparent and he started to also acquire great proficiency in the Buddhist teachings.
    After learning that Buddhists in Colombo were being subject to pressure from the missionaries and discrimination by the government, he moved there and began defending Buddhism with his publications and speeches. In 1862, he formed the ‘Society for the Propagation of Buddhism’ to organize resistance against the missionaries’ attacks, and to publish tracts and pamphlets to counter the anti-Buddhist materials distributed by the Christians.
    Gunananda then led the Buddhists in the momentous series of debates with the Christians, which culminated in the famous Panadura Debate of 1873. His outstanding performance and convincing victory sparked off the island-wide revival of Buddhism, and he was hailed a national hero.
    Before his death at the age of 67 in 1890, Gunananda continued his efforts in helping to revitalize the Sasana. He published many works and also served on the committee that designed the Buddhist flag.

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