{"id":67994,"date":"2017-07-19T20:36:31","date_gmt":"2017-07-20T02:36:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=67994"},"modified":"2019-06-12T15:19:32","modified_gmt":"2019-06-12T22:19:32","slug":"yahapalana-versus-maha-sangha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2017\/07\/19\/yahapalana-versus-maha-sangha\/","title":{"rendered":"YAHAPALANA VERSUS MAHA SANGHA Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA\u00a0 PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Last\nrevised 12.6.19<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yahapalana\nwon the election in 2015, due partly to the enthusiastic support of   the Maha sangha, notably Ven.  Maduluwawe Sobitha.   Unlike\nin the 1956 election, where the sangha were making demands and actively\npursuing those demands, in 2015, they were blindly supporting an externally\nintroduced plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Maha\nSangha were originally an important part of the \u2018regime change\u2019 strategy. The\nMahanayakes of Malwatte and Asgiriya were regularly visited by   ministers and members of Parliament, to\nstate their positions on political issues. These visits were televised and we\nsaw them on TV news. These visits were not confined only to Buddhist politicians.\nChristian and Muslim politicians also are shown on TV news, prostrating\nthemselves on the floor in worship, and gifting ata pirikara. Ravi\nKarunanayake, who is, I believe, Roman Catholic, was also shown worshipping at\nthe Dalada Maligawa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few bhikkus\nstayed loyal to Yahapalana.  Ven. \nThiniyawela Palitha asked Supreme Court to declare that the Central Bank\nbond auctions were done correctly according to Central Bank rules.  Lawyer S.A. Parathalingam appeared for him.\nSenior state counsel was S Gnanarajah. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But most admirers of Yahapalana soon found\nthat the government was not delivering what it had promised   and\nseveral leading monks turned against the government. Ven. Bellanwila\nWimalaratne of Bellanwila Raja Maha Vihara said Yahapalana has fooled and\ndeceived the people. They promised a surangana lokaya of dushana ne, vancha ne,\nhorokam ne. The public were bamboozled with fairytales, he said. Bellanwila\nWimalaratne  was thereafter charged and\nremanded for keeping  an unregistered\nbaby elephant in  his temple. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Kappetiyawe Siri Wimala, chief incumbent\nof the Getambe temple, Kandy   who is now\ngetting high profile visits from politicians, told MP Bandula Gunawardene in\nJuly 2017 that Yahapalana had not carried out its promises. The public thought\nthe country would overflow with kiri peni, instead Yahapalana is robbing the\npeople. Yahapalana has no proper plan of government and no idea whatsoever of\nhow to run a country. The country   is\nabout to  go down a precipice, he said.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a conspiracy to destroy the country,\nsaid Ven. Medagoda Abayatissa . People who supported the government are now\ncursing it. The only thing this government has done is to take revenge against\nall those who supported  Mahinda\nRajapaksa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Ven.\nGalagodaathe  Gnanasara  said at a press conference in March 2017 that\nhis organization was planning to stage an agitation with the participation of   7000 bhikkus countrywide against the\nsuppression of democratic rights by the government Appearing  with him were  Ven. Muruththettuwe<\/em> Ananda, Itthekande Saddhatissa ,\nAkmeemana Dayaratne and Galagama Dhammaransi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Pavidi\nHanda Organisation said in July 2017, that a massive sangha conference would be\norganized shortly to protest against the harmful and anti-people social and\neconomic programmes of the Yahapalana government .We are in the midst of a\ncomprehensive political and economic crisis created by this Government, Pavidi\nHanda Convener Ven. Muruththettuwe Ananda said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yahapalana government\nhad promised a number of benefits and relief to the people, but when we look at\nwhat is currently taking place in the country, it is doubtful as to whether any\nreal change had taken place, continued Ven. Ananda .Country is leading to\ndestruction and lots of people are pushed into poverty. The tremendous work\nundertaken and completed by the previous government is yet  visible. This government has not started a\nsingle development project. Leaders of this government are still opening only\nthe projects that former government commenced, he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The Yahapalana government is today engaged in\narresting bhikkus who have raised their voices for the protection of Buddhism and\nour own self-identification, Ven. Ananda continued. Even though the government\npromised to give foremost place to Buddhism, it is now engaged in sealing the\ncharity boxes of temples. Bribery and corruption are pervasive within the last\ntwo and half years. We are ready to reveal all information related to these\ncorruptions in the near future. Further the government is trying to hide the\nfigures of dengue death cases and has directed the hospitals not to divulge\ndetails. But, we have actual details of hospital admissions and deaths occurred\nby dengue and they will be revealed to the country soon, concluded Ven. Ananda.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yahapalana held\nthe inauguration ceremony of the Sri Lanka-China Industrial Zone in\nMirijjawila, Hambantota in January 2016. The \nsangha  actively   participated in opposing the handover of\nHambantota to China. Hundreds of protesters, including the sangha defied the\ncourt ban relating to the function, and tried to storm the venue. The\npolice and STF brought\nthe protests under control using tear\ngas and water cannon.  52 persons,\nincluding a Buddhist monk,  were taken\ninto custody. Orders were issued on\nnine Buddhist monks.  Ven. Vimalabudhi   head of the Beragama Buddhist temple had spoken to the President, about\nHambantota. His temple is \u2018now a protest command centre,\nused by villagers to mobilize against the\nproject,\u2019 the media reported. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around this time, a leading politician of the\nHambantota area, (name withheld) had succeeded in getting a group of bhikkus to\ncall a media conference in favor of the Hambantota handover. This came on TV\nnews. Before the meeting could even start, cameras showed some persons entering\nthe meeting to confront the speakers.  The three bhikkus quickly left the podium and\nwent away. Ven. Pitigala Premaratana  who\nremained announced that all the Nayake theras of the viharas in Hambantota were\nagainst the Hambantota agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the Yahapalana victory,  Sri Abhayarama Temple in Narahenpita became \u2018a\n much talked about and highly politicized\nBuddhist temple in the country\u2019. Abhayarama\nfunctioned as the focal point between Rajapakse and his public.  Abhayarama has had a long connection with\nPresident Rajapakse. In 2014 he celebrated his 69th<\/sup> birthday with a\ndane at the Abhayarama. Abhayarama was the venue for press conferences.\nRajapakse announced his decision to participate in the 2015 elections at a\npress conference held at Abhayarama Temple. \nIn October 2015, Rajapakse explained the purpose of the underground\nbunker at Presidents House, he said similar facilities existed at Temple Trees\nand elsewhere. He spoke from Abhayarama. Abhayarama\nwas also the place where his now adoring public could meet him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\n2015,  Mahanayakes resident overseas  in US, Singapore, Australia and India\naddressed  a press conference at\nAbhayarama.  These Mahanayakes observed\nthat some UNP candidates, such as  Vijayakala\nMaheswaran  used  a poster \nshowing the UNP elephant and a map of \nEelam during the election. \nWalpola Piyananda,  Mahanayake of\nUK  added that  majority of Buddhist  abroad are worried. There are many NGOs\nworking overtime to destabilize the country. \nThis unfortunate situation would not have risen if  had there been a stronger President and\nstronger government in power. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A centre called National Assets\nProtecting Centre was started at\nAbhayarama,\nwith the participation of party leaders of the Joint Opposition. Setting up a centre and creating a\nmovement to protect public assets at this moment is the need of the hour as the\ngovernment has lined up several state ventures to sell or privatize,”  said  Mahinda Rajapaksa  at Abhayarama. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

in February\n2016, Ven. Pathberiye Wimala Gnana   \nfiled a lawsuit against the Chief Incumbent of the Abhayarama Vihara\nVen. Muruttetuwe Ananda  requesting an\ninjunction order against the holding of political meetings and trade union\nmeetings at Abhayarama . Abhayarama has been the centre of activity of the\n‘Joint Opposition’ which backs former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, he said.. Press\nconferences are held at Abhayarama by Joint Opposition stalwarts regularly. The\ntemple is being discredited in the eyes of Buddhists since it is been used for\npolitical, trade union and commercial purposes <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pathberiye Wimala\nGnana  had earlier  filed a case in the Colombo District Court\nagainst Ven. Muruttetuwe Ananda  saying\nMuruttetuwe  Ananda had no right to head\nthe Abhayarama.  In 1998 was made the\nChief Incumbent of Sri Abhayaramaya Narahenpita; Purvaramaya at Kirulapone,\nRilawala Susimaramaya at Polgasowita, Vapikaramaya at Boralesgamuwa and\nKiriporuwe Nagharukkaramaya at \nEheliyagoda on the death of the then Chief Incumbents of the above\ntemples Ven. Radalle Sri Pangaloka and Thalawitiye Pemaloka..\nCourt has  issued  an interim order on Abhayarama to stop using\nthe property for political, commercial and trade union activities till the case\nby  Ven. Pathberiya is heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yahapalana\ngovernment retaliated against the bhikkus who had criticized Yahapalana . Over 81 bhikkus have been remanded from January\n8. 2015 to March 2016 said Minister of Justice. They were remanded for theft of\nartifacts, financial fraud, child abuse, rape, and so on. The total number of\nmonks remanded or convicted from 1948 to Jan 8, 2015 was 172.  Yahapalana also tried briefly to introduce\nnew laws to control the Maha sangha. This was interpreted as  an international conspiracy, to wipe out\nBuddhism from Sri Lanka. The Yahapalana government has taken a contract to help\nachieve this by devising these news laws.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven.\nMaduluwawe Sobitha, head of the NGO \u2018National\nMovement for Social Justice\u201d, founded by him, gave tremendous leadership to President Sirisena\u2019s\ncampaign and helped him to win the election. Sobitha was a highly visible,\nhighly vocal supporter\nof Yahapalana. K.H.J.\nWijedasa said that Sobitha was one of the people who masterminded the\nPresidential election, in close consultation with Ranil Wickremasinghe   and Chandrika Kumaratunga. But when\nhe saw what Yahapalana government was doing, and the direction that Yahapalana was\ntaking Ven.\nSobitha turned against the government. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leading\nacademic ,Nirmal Devasiri  said  that it \nis no secret that Sobitha was bitterly disappointed with  the Yahapalana government. He was very\ncritical of the government and made public statements to that effect.  Sarath\nWijesooriya   who took over the National\nMovement for Social Justice after Sobitha also said that Sobitha had been very\ndisappointed.  Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka said\nthat Sobitha has told him that he, Sobitha was dissatisfied at the direction\nthe country was moving in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Sobitha had been openly critical of the\nPresident at a convention held by his NGO on 1.3.2015.   Ven. Sobitha was the first to criticize the\nnew government   for not doing election\nreform as promised, for appointing defeated candidates onto the government and\ncreating a huge cabinet, said an observer  \u2018Sobitha realized\nthat the path on which the government was heading was not right, and was not\nafraid to say so. We also are now beginning to realize that the Yahapalana was\nnot what was expected,\u2019 he concluded. Sobitha  was a  strong critic.   As a high profile critic, he could cause\nmuch damage to the government.  In fact\nVen. Sobitha could have brought the government down single handed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But  within a week  of        \nstarting to publicly criticise Yahapalana  Ven. Sobitha was taken ill.            He was first seen by the doctors at\n the National Hospital, Colombo.  He was then operated on by a cardiac surgeon\nat a private hospital in Colombo.  \u2018By-pass\nwas done, he had recovered and was discharged.\u2019 \nFor convalescence he had  been\nadmitted to anther hospital, then transferred back to the first private\nhospital. between September 10 and\nNovember 8 he had been moved to six different hospitals, with his consent. C.A.\nChandraprema says that neither President Sirisena nor Prime Minister  Ranil visited  Ven. Sobitha when he was ill. Then a\n\u2018political decision\u2019 was made to take him to Singapore. Ven. Sobitha  died of heart failure at Singapore\u2019s\nMount Elizabeth Hospital on Nov 8. 2015. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was a large attendance at\nhis funeral. Those who wrote to the Sunday Island<\/em> praising Sobitha\nincluded  Jayantha Dhanapala, H.L. Seneviratne,\nA.C. Visvalingam and Elmore Perera. \nThere was a  service of\nthanksgiving for Sobitha by the Catholic Church. Rev Duleep de Chickera, Head\nof the Anglican Church also   praised\nhim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Since Maduluwawe Sobitha died soon after he\nstarted to critique the government,  several\nwell-known bhikkus alleged that  his death\nhad not occurred due to natural causes and requested a high powered commission\nto look into the matter. The request was made by Ven. Muruttetuwe Ananda, Ven.\nElle Gunawansa and Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They held a press\nconference at Abhayarama.\nUduwe Dhammaloka said that there was a conspiracy behind the death.     The surgery performed on him had been\nsuccessful and he had recovered. Therefore there are serious doubts about his\ndeath.    \u2018When I complained to the top\npersons in government they brushed aside my concerns.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Muruttetuwe\nAnanda  also said  that it was he who usually recommended doctors\nfor late Sobitha thera. But this time, others had  admitted him to hospital. \u2018Suddenly\nthe doctors who were treating him were changed. We were not informed of the\ntreatment he was undergoing either. While he was being treated his condition\nchanged. We were suspicious.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Muruttetuwe Ananda  said \u2018When I visited the National hospital\nupon learning that he was in the Intensive Care Unit, Sobitha held my hands and\nsaid \u2018Ananda we made a mistake. We have been deceived\u2019. Had he lived he would\nhave been an arch enemy of this government. \nHis death is highly suspicious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Elle\nGunawansa   said that there were some\nmonks who died mysteriously after doing a great service to the nation. These he\nsaid included Ven. Gangodawila Soma and Ven. Panadure Ariyadamma. We are still\nsuspicious about their deaths as well.\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u2018National movement for social\nJustice\u201d  also called for an impartial\nprobe into Ven. Sobitha\u2019s death.  So did Udaya\nGammanpila. Gammanpila claimed that Gangodawila Soma had also died under\nmysterious circumstances. Kotagama Vachissara and Labuduwe Siridhamma who rose\nagainst the then UNP government had also died under mysterious circumstances. A group of Sri Jayewardenepura undergraduates asked the Sri\nLanka Medical Council to conduct a fresh inquiry into Sobitha\u2019s death. They\nstated in the letter that there is an element of suspicion in people\u2019s minds\nabout this death. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CID initiated an inquiry since\nUduwe\nDhammaloka and National Movement for Social Justice (NMSJ)\nhad called for an impartial probe. Court directed National Hospital Director\nDr. Anil Jasinghe to appoint a special panel of doctors to investigate the\ndeath of Ven. Sobitha Thera . This team  \nlooked at the local medical records.  Sobitha was a high risk patient with lots of\ncomplications, they said.  The\nSingapore hospital did not send their records but the  team accepted the cause of death given in\nSingapore, saying it was in keeping with the clinical features of Sobitha\u2019s\nillness. The team stated that there was no evidence of negligence. The charge that Sobitha had died due to medical\nmisadventure  was strongly  contested. The clinical skills of the Sri\nLanka doctors were far superior to those in other countries  where they greatly rely on technology, the\nteam said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uduwe Dhammaloka , an influential monk  was now \nopenly against the government.  Yahapalana \nretaliated. Uduwe Dhammaloka  was\ncharged and remanded for keeping an  unregistered baby elephant in the temples. The Wildlife Department officials had taken\ninto custody a two and half year-old elephant calf found inside the Alan\nMathiniyaramaya Temple in Polhengoda. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka it is alleged had kept\nthis calf in his temple knowing, that it had been stolen. He was charged   under Fauna and Flora Protection (Amendment)\nAct of 2009 and Public Property Act.  The indictment has been filed over two counts\ncome under section 22 (12) of the Fauna and Flora Protection (Amendment) Act,\nNo.22 of 2009 and section 5(3) (a) of Public Property Act..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Attorney General maintained that\nDhammaloka Thera had illegally possessed a stolen property, a baby elephant\nwithout a valid licence, an offence under the Fauna and Flora Act. The Attorney\nGeneral further alleged that the accused had also committed a punishable\noffence under the Public Property Act since he had intentionally kept a baby\nelephant without a valid licence. There\nare legal provisions to charge three times the value of the elephant calf as a\npenalty 19 persons have\nbeen named as witnesses in the case and three documents will be presented as\nproduction items in the case, sources said. Senior\nState Counsel led the evidence of 13 witnesses including State Minister of\nForeign Affairs Wasantha Senanayaka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uduwe Dhammaloka thera  said the elephant calf had been left in\nthe   temple by an unknown person.The\nThera  said that elephants brought for\nperaheras of various temples in Colombo, were kept at his temple.He had no\nconnection with the capture or sale of elephants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Uduwe\nDhammaloka was arrested and remanded in March and released on bail in June\n2016.  This is the first time in Sri Lanka,\nan accused had been indicted in the High Court by the Attorney General over an\noffence of possessing an elephant without valid licence following the\namendments to the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance in 2009. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March 2019, Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka was\nacquitted, and released by the Colombo High Court from two indictments which\nincluded the illegal possession of an elephant calf, \u2018Chooti Putha\u2019. The court\nnoted that the prosecution had failed to prove the case beyond a reasonable\ndoubt. The Judge maintained that there was no credible evidence to prove that\nthe baby elephant had been in the custody of Ven. Dhammaloka. The   elephant calf was to be handed over to the\nDepartment of Wildlife. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, Uduwe Dhammaloka was remanded\nover using loud speakers in his temple in Polhengoda causing a nuisance. A\nprivate plaint was brought against Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka of Alan\nMathiniyaramaya Temple in Polhengoda that      \nloudspeakers used by the temple was causing an annoyance and disturbance\nto the residents. The complainants Gavinda Jayasinghe Dr. Kalinga Kaluperuma,\nDiren R. Hallock, Milinda Moragoda, Kamalesh Johnpillai and Centre for\nEnvironmental Justice. They said they were compelled against their will to\nlisten to the amplified sounds which emanate from the loudspeakers at the Alan\nMathiniyaramaya Temple.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In December 2016, Court issued a conditional\norder preventing Ven. Uduwe Dhammaloka from using loudspeakers in a manner\ncausing nuisance at his temple between 5.00 a.m. and 6.00 a.m. the case is\ncontinuing .A warrant was issued for his arrest,   he was granted bail in March 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The position of\nBuddhism in the north-east of Sri Lanka under Yahapalana rule has also caused concern.\nThere was   an attempt to demolish Sambodhi vihara in\nMullativu. There have been religions tensions relating to\nBuddhism in the east.  On one occasion police did not allow  bhikkus to use a certain\nroute to a temple since a group was waiting to pelt stones at them. An NGO had organized a demonstration against\na  Buddhist  monk in Batticaloa  at Pattiyamalai, closing down the\nPattiyamalai  DS office and blocking the\nroad, demanding that legal action be taken against a Buddhist monk who     had allegedly scolded government officials\nand obstructed them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A lawyer filed a Fundamental Rights application\nin August 2016, challenging the vandalizing of Buddhist statues in north. He\ncited the case of the shrine room in Mankulam built by the army, but\nstated that this was not an isolated instance. Over the past few months there\nhave been constant demands for the\nremoval of Buddhist temples and  Buddhist statues located in Northern Province. Objections have\nbeen raised over the construction of new Buddhist temples.  Buddhist archaeological sites in Northern Province are under\nthreat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thereafter, TNA MPs    met the\nPrime Minister and raised concerns about Buddhist temples and Buddhist statues\nbeing built in their area.  They are not\nagainst resettlement of Sinhalese. A complaint was made that  there were plans to build  a Buddhist temple and Buddhist statue in\nKilinochchi. D.M. Swaminathan stated in Parliament that no one will be allowed\nto remove Buddhist temples or statues in the north.  Buddhist monks and devotees had the right to\nbuilt temples and statues in any part of the \nNorthern Province. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To the great alarm  and consternation of  Yahapalana, the Maha Sangha of Sri Lanka,\ndecided in June 2017 to   move to center\nstage. The Maha Sangha  issued two\nstatements which   greatly upset\nYahapalana . <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In June 20. 2017  the \nMahanayakes of the three Nikayas and their Sangha Sabhas issued a\nstatement, which  said that there is no\nneed or urgency to bring  in another\nConstitution or  Amendment to the\nConstitution and also that   the Bill to\nimplement the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from\nEnforced Disappearance (ICPAPED). should be delayed.   They also asked that a special committee be\nappointed to look into the grievances facing Buddhists, Attention must be paid to\nprotecting religious places of archeological interest in the country . Buddhism\nmust be given the foremost position in the constitution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yahapalana was shaken by the Mahanayake views\non Constitution Reform. Laksiri Fernando observed that Yahapalana fully\nexpected obstructions to constitutional reform from other sources, but not from\nthe Sangha. The Maha Sangha have now turned into unexpected obstacle, an\nanticipated hurdle for the new constitution making process, said Laksiri\nFernando. The opinion of the Maha Sangha is considered so important that\nYahapalana has already withdrawn or postponed the second reading of the ICPAPED\nBill, earlier scheduled for the 5th July. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were a few comments in the media\nregarding the Mahayanake position on Construction reform.  One critic argued that Mahanayakes are\nentering the political sphere, undermining the democratically elected\nParliament with the intention of acting as a \u2018shadow state\u2019 behind the existing\none. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another critic said that the Mahanayake statement   on constitution reform was \u2018an invasion of\nthe constitutional space of Parliament\u2019, an\u2019 invasion of the political space of\nthe country\u2019s elected representatives,\u2019 and an \u2018invasion of the sovereignty (sic)\nof parliament\u2019 said this critic. Does the Sangha think it is within their\nterritory of immediate concern to ask for a committee to be appointed to look\ninto the above mentioned issues, this critic asked. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These observations are   a load of \nnonsense. The  making of a\nconstitution is  not a \u2018prerogative\u2019 of\nparliament,  nor a  \u2018constitutional right\u2019 of Parliament. Constitutions\nare made by constituent assemblies and Parliament functions under the Constitution,\nnot the other way round.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 A\nsecond critic observed that the Sangha are not experts on constitutions. If\nthey have had any bright ideas about matters like independence of the judiciary\nor the system of devolution they could have expressed them during the public\nconsultation process, said a second critic. The opposition to a New\nConstitution at this moment even without waiting for a draft, is a political\nact and not a religious mission. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Maha Sangha,  it must be pointed out, are first and\nforemost, individual  citizens of Sri\nLanka , with all rights and privileges \nenjoyed by citizens, They can vote at elections, speak at meetings  and have the right  to study and \ncomment on political issues. The argument that the Maha sangha should\nonly deal with Buddhist matters and keep quiet about everything else cannot be\naccepted. That argument has been concocted to silence the sangha. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In order to further support their       argument these critics stated that Gautama\nBuddha involved himself in social matters, but not politics. Similarly the\nsangha should also confine their attention to Sasana and not politics. They\nshould keep away from controversial politics   and express opinions only on social,\nreligious and moral concerns continued the critics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are over 30,000 Buddhist monks in the\ncountry, continued the critics. They are ordained into various levels by these\nthree Nikayas. However, it is not clear how far the Mahanayake Theras represent\nthe opinions and wishes of the general Sangha. On many occasions, divergent\nviews are expressed, continued this critic. There are also visible class\ndifferences among the Sangha, apart from caste. There are \u2018rich sangha\u2019 and\n\u2018poor sangha.\u2019 poor sangha  in remote\ntemples who have to struggle for their day to day survival, while rich temples\nare patronized by the State, politicians and the elite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there are over 14 million Buddhists in\nthe country, young and old, and it is not clear how far they would adhere to\nthe advice of the Mahanayake Theras in respect of politics and constitutional\nmatters. The statement of the Sangha may be looked upon as a directive to the\nBuddhists. If so the Sangha becomes a contributor to conflict situation in\nsociety.   That is incorrect. Buddhists know that the\nMaha sangha  only express  views, Buddhists are not given directives by\nthe clergy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following a\nmeeting of the Karaka Sangha Sabha, the Mahanayake of the Asgiriya Chapter, the\nMost Venerable Warakagoda Gnanaratana Thera sent out a  second missile, also on June 20, 2017. In a\nstrongly worded statement  he said,\nalthough we do not approve the aggressive behavior and speech of Bhikku\nGalabodaatte Gnanasara the viewpoint expressed by him cannot be  discarded, without trying to find out whether\nthere is  any truth in  what  he says. The statement continued, bhikkus have\nbeen insulted by various groups. Political monks have been spoken of  \u2018without respect and addressing them by\nname.\u2019 We cannot condone\nthis either. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This statement received weightage as it was  the decision of the Karaka Sangha Sabha of\nthe Asgiriya chapter. Alarmed  supporters\nof Yahapalana reacted strongly\nto this \u2018Asgiriya declaration\u2019. This statement, titled  \u2018A Kind Notice to the Government,\u2019  containing two prefatory paragraphs and eight\nhard-hitting operational paragraphs, was like a political party manifesto, they\nsaid. It started by declaring, “We all know that the Buddhist monks acted\nwhen there was any threat to the security of our motherland, Sinhala nation and\nBuddhist Sasana.” but it said nothing about the Dhamma. By this statement, Asgiriya Mahanayake\nTheras are dragging  other bhikkus also\ninto politics. Asgiriya Mahanayake\nTheras also should kindly realize  that,\nif the monks get involved in controversial and rather muddy politics, then they\nmust be able to face counter criticisms, concluded the critics.   (\ncontinued)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA\u00a0 PIERIS Last revised 12.6.19 Yahapalana won the election in 2015, due partly to the enthusiastic support of   the Maha sangha, notably Ven.  Maduluwawe Sobitha.   Unlike in the 1956 election, where the sangha were making demands and actively pursuing those demands, in 2015, they were blindly supporting an externally introduced plan. The Maha Sangha were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67994"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67994\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}