{"id":89628,"date":"2019-05-30T16:08:13","date_gmt":"2019-05-30T23:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=89628"},"modified":"2019-05-30T16:08:13","modified_gmt":"2019-05-30T23:08:13","slug":"fast-reaching-the-threshold-of-buddhist-tolerance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2019\/05\/30\/fast-reaching-the-threshold-of-buddhist-tolerance\/","title":{"rendered":"FAST REACHING THE THRESHOLD OF BUDDHIST TOLERANCE"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Daya Hewapathirane\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Muslim Hostility Since\nAncient Times                                                            \n<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those professing Islam have been the biggest enemies of Buddhists and\nBuddhism throughout history. Buddhists have suffered extreme forms of\nviolence, untold persecution and discrimination from Muslims since the 12th\ncentury, with the ruthless Muslim incursions of ancient Buddhist nations in the\nCentral Asian and Himalayan regions. Prior to the arrival of Muslim invaders, all\ncountries\/regions associated with the ancient Silk Road, were inhabited by\nflourishing Buddhist communities. They included Afghanistan, Kashmir, Indus\nvalley, present day Pakistan and\nBangladesh. Muslim\ninvasions were marked by widespread killing, torture and persecution of\nBuddhists and rampant destruction of Buddhist places of worship and learning,\nmonasteries, historic monuments and Buddhist settlements and widespread\nconfiscation of Buddhist properties. There\nare ample historic records which describe vividly the atrocities committed by\nMuslims against millions of Buddhists in several countries. Islam destroyed\nBuddhism not only in India but wherever it went. Before the onslaught of Islam,\nBuddhism was the religion of almost the whole of Asia – ancient\ncountries\/regions such as Bactria, Parthia, Afghanistan, Gandhar, Chinese\nTurkestan, along with Tibet and Inner Mongolia were Buddhist nations that\nformed almost the whole of the Asian continent. Buddhism was the dominant\nreligion of the people of this vast area of the Asian continent. Islam\ndestroyed and eliminated Buddhism from almost all these countries. In the late 12 century, Indonesia and Malaysia were Buddhist countries. With\nMuslim invasions most Buddhists in these countries were either killed or forced\nto convert to Islam. Most Buddhist shrines and settlements were destroyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For five centuries, from the 13th<\/sup> to 17th<\/sup>\ncenturies, most parts of India were under Muslim rule. During this time, over\n50 million Buddhists and Hindus were massacred by Islamists in greater India, which\nin the past included Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. It is a well known\nfact that Buddhism disappeared from India under the sword of Islam. Dr. B.R.\nAmbedkar, the great Indian Buddhist leader said that there is absolutely no\ndoubt that the fall of Buddhism in India was due to the invasions of the\nMusalmans or the adherents of Islam. Ruthless Muslim invaders slaughtered\nthousands of Buddhists including monks in places such as Bihar, India. They destroyed the ancient illustrious Buddhist\nUniversities of Nalanda, Vikramsila, Jagaddala, Odantipur among others. (For\nfurther details read my paper in Lankaweb – titled NALANDA: illustrious\nInternational Buddhist University 5th century CE to 12 century CE.)   At the end of 12th century, Muslim invaders\ndemolished Nalanda university, burnt down its priceless library, and\nmercilessly massacred its scholars including Buddhist monks. Countless ancient Buddhist\nmonuments were defaced or destroyed, virtually erasing the Buddhist faith from\nIndia. Forced\nconversion  of Buddhists and Hindu people\nto Islam was the order of the day. They\nrazed to the ground many thousands of Buddhist monasteries with which the\ncountry was studded. The monks fled away in thousands to Nepal, Tibet and other\nplaces outside India. Muslim invaders killed thousands of Buddhists outright.\nHow the Buddhist monkhood perished by the sword of the Muslim invaders has been\nrecorded by Muslim historians themselves. Seen in this light the wanton and\nheartless destruction of the colossal Bamiyan Buddha statues by the Taliban as\nrecent as in February 2001 does not seem out of place. Smashing the head of\nBrahma in Thao Maha Brahma or Phra Phrom Erawan Shrine in Bangkok was done by\nMuslim youth. It reflects the atavistic iconoclastic behaviour of Islam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although we proudly claim that Buddhism has survived\nfor some 2300 years in Sri Lanka and founded on Buddhist teachings of\nnon-violence, tolerance and  compassion,\nthe Sinhala Buddhist community was able to withstand various threats and\nchallenges and was able to protect Buddhism, we should not overlook the fact\nthat Buddhism was wiped out from many countries and regions in the Asian\ncontinent in the not too distant past.  The\nexclusively Buddhist populations of places such as Afghanistan, present day\nPakistan, a good part of the Indian sub-continent, Bangladesh, Nepal, Malaysia,\nIndonesia, Philippines and Maldives Islands were either murdered or converted\nto Islam. Ruthless Muslim invasions changed the Buddhist religious landscape of\nthese places. Buddhist places of worship and reputed places of learning were\ndemolished during Muslim invasions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

                                                                                                                                           \nMore recently in 2001, in the name of Islam, the Taliban destroyed the\nworld renowned monumental Bamiyan Buddha statues built in the 6th<\/sup>\ncentury, citing that these were \u2018idols\u2019 which are forbidden under Sharia law in\nIslam. In\ncontemporary times we witness a disastrous hardening of Islam into rigid\nfundamentalism, in which Muslims are resorting to violent terrorist means to aggressively\nproclaim their beliefs and zealously proselytizing non-Muslims. A\nfundamentalist and intolerant stance, taken by any religion, is offensive to\nfollowers of other faiths and to those of no faith at all. Disrespect,\ndisregard and sheer indifference towards people of other religions, is a common\ncharacter trait of Muslims, wherever in the world they live.  These negative attitudes have made them\nresort to crude forms of violence against people and property of other faiths,\nespecially Buddhists. This is well evident today not only in places like\nBangladesh, Southern Thailand and Myanmar, but also in our own motherland, the\nmost recent being the bomb blasts in Catholic Churches and in prominent hotels\nin Colombo, killing and injuring many hundreds of innocent people.         <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deceit and Violence in Sri Lanka<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allah based Islam religion argues that they\nare required according to the word of Allah to propagate their religion by\nresorting to various means, one being the so-called Holy War\u201d to convert or\nkill all unbelievers. Intimidation and terrorism are common methods used even\nin modern times. Threatening and discriminating against unbelievers is a common\npractice. Muslims believe the Koran is the word of Allah. They believe this\nbecause it says so in the Koran. It also says that a good Muslim must make\ncontinual war on all unbelievers until the entire world is Islamic. Radical\nIslamic ideology is being spread all over the Muslim world through schools\npopularly known as madrasas, also through the media and through mosques. They\nalso resort to organized forms of disinformation and spread lies about other\nrival beliefs and ways of living. These are psychological blackmail techniques\nused by them to serve their selfish ends. They demonize other religions by\nusing big lies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muslims are trying hard, using cunning and deceitful means to introduce\ntheir crude extremist Saudi Arabian cultural norms to our country, thereby\nundermining our traditional Sinhala Buddhist cultural norms. Their disgusting\nhalal terrorist methods of animal slaughter, their unsightly and repulsive\n\u2018gonibilla\u2019 outfits, their nauseating loadspeaker shouting at odd times of the\nday disturbing entire neighborhoods, and using internet and other means to\ninsult and discredit our Sangha community are some well known Muslim (Arabian)\ncultural garbage they are introducing to our land. They disregard the fact that\nthey live in a predominantly Buddhist country and what they are doing is\nincompatible with the way of life and the social value system of this country. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is clearly evident in recent years that there have been organized\nattempts on the part of extremist Muslims, the Wahhabis, to discredit and\ndishonour the Buddha Sasana and the Sangha Community of Sri Lanka. Their\nactions show their indifference and sheer disrespect and disregard for Buddhist\ncultural norms and values of this country. They appear to detest our Buddhist\nnational culture and heritage. In fact they have resorted to the destruction of\nBuddhist monuments and archeological remains in the island, especially in the\nEast. The Buddhist cultural heritage of this country is being undermined by\nMuslim extremists.in devious ways. In recent years,\nthe extremist Muslims who have recently adopted the fundamentalist Wahhabi form\nof Islam imported from Saudi Arabia along with enormous amounts of Saudi funds,\nhave been instrumental in causing serious problems in Sri Lanka having direct\nnegative implications for the mainstream Buddhist community. In general, the\nMuslims are concerned only of themselves, their religion and their community.\nThis is a reason why they cannot assimilate with mainstream communities in\ncountries where they live or have immigrated to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was not\nlong ago that Islamic fundamentalists and armed Muslim extremists were inciting\nviolence against legitimate Buddhist activities in the East in the Pottuvil\nregion. Muslims were encroaching upon and forcibly taking land that rightfully\nbelongs to Buddhist temples on the southeast coast and elsewhere. Muslim illegal\nencroachment of the Wilpattu national conservation for exclusive Muslim\nenclaves is well known. Muslims have also demolished some significant Buddhist\narcheological sites and instrumental in destroying Buddha statues in several\nplaces in the East and recently in Mawanella. The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and\nseveral Islamic groups of Sri Lanka had the audacity to oppose the construction\nof Buddha\u2019s statues on the island\u2019s southeast coastal areas which contain\nBuddhist historic monuments and important archeological remains as part of the\nnation\u2019s cultural wealth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muslim Proliferation by Reproducing Abundantly<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a means of propagating their believers, a well evident practice in\nall Muslim societies almost throughout the world is Fecundism or proliferation\nby reproducing abundantly. Their so-called true believers are encouraged and\nassisted to breed faster than non-believers. This is an ecologically disastrous\npopulation growth situation which can lead to far reaching, highly detrimental\nconsequences affecting overall development of any country. In a deceitfully\norganized manner Muslim medical professionals have resorted to illegal sterilization of many Sinhala women in view of controlling\nthe growth of Sinhala population. It is reported\nto be a common practice in popular Muslim business establishments to offer\nspecial benefits and privileges to female Sinhala employees who convert to\nIslam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Buddhist Approach of Non-Aggression  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fanaticism\nand brutality and unethical and confrontational approaches adopted by\nIslam    and other theistic religious\nestablishments, often in the past and Islam most evidently in present times, to\npromote their religious beliefs provide a stark contrast to the approach in\nBuddhism. The Buddha Dhamma is described as ‘ehipassiko’, inviting one to come\nand see for himself. There is no concept of coercion or proselytization in\nBuddhism. The Buddha taught the importance of patience, tolerance, and\nnon-aggression, providing a splendid ideal of tolerance for Buddhists to\nfollow. There is not a single occasion in the Buddhist scriptures of the Buddha\nbeing less than compassionate, not only to those who accepted his teachings but\nalso to the followers of all faiths, not only to the good but also to the wicked,\nnot only to humans but also to animals and to all living beings. In striking\ncontrast to the spread of other world religions, which are replete with\nunethical and forcible conversions and sectarian strife, the history of\nBuddhism is remarkable for the complete absence of bloodshed in the name of the\nteacher. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spirit of Tolerance and Accommodation of Others                                                                                  \n<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

History\nof our country reveals vividly that this spirit of tolerance and accommodation\nof others irrespective of their religious or other differences has been a\ncommon distinguishing characteristic of Sinhala Buddhists of this country from\nvery early times. Judging from the fanaticism and confrontational attitudes and\nactions especially of  extremist Muslims\nin recent decades, it appears that this spirit of tolerance and accommodation\non the part of Buddhists is not appreciated by them. It is being exploited as a\nweakness to pursue their self interests of promoting their religions and ways\nof life at the expense of Buddhism, Buddhist culture and Buddhist way of life <\/p>\n\n\n\n

No Claim of Divine Authority in Buddhism<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buddhism\ndoes not accept an omnipotent God, a Creator, nor any revealed scripture.\nBecause faith in God or a savior is not an issue for Buddhists, there is no\nreason for Buddhists to judge others, to condemn them for their beliefs, or to\nfeel compelled to convert them. Buddhism is a religion which has never attempted to propagate itself and\nexterminate its enemies by war and tyranny. Buddhism recognizes that one of the\nmost destructive delusions is excessive attachment to any view, which will thus\nappear virtuous and right for all people. The harm that can be done by\nfundamentalist attachment to ideologies and abstractions is far greater than\nthat caused by attachment to wealth or material objects.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buddhism does not claim to be the one and only valid spiritual path. It\nis not based on, or claim divine authority. Gautama Buddha never claimed to be\ndivine or sent by God. Buddhism does not attempt to suppress reason by dogma.\nUnlike most other religions, Buddhism isn’t so much about things to believe, as\nthings to do. It is a technology of mind improvement. Therefore Buddhists often\nrefer to themselves as practitioners rather than believers. The Buddha told his\nstudents to trust their own experience of the effectiveness of the teachings,\nand not believe things just because he said so. The Buddha\u2019s teachings are to be judged by their effectiveness in\npromoting peace and spiritual realizations, rather than unverifiable claims to\ntheir origin.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strengthen and Revitalize the Sinhala\nBuddhist Nation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The present generation of\nSinhala nationals has a moral obligation to protect, preserve and promote the\ngreatest of their inheritance, their unique nation, for the survival of their\nBuddhist cultural heritage and for the benefit of future generations. Concerned\nSinhala nationals will under no circumstances allow the sovereignty, the\ndistinct territorial integrity and the all-pervasive Sinhala Buddhist cultural\ncharacter of the island be subject to any form of disarray or disintegration.\nThey will not permit any force, internal or external, ethnic or religious, to\nsubjugate or undermine the integrity of the Sinhala Buddhist culture of this\nisland nation. Sinhala history is replete with valor and courage in battles against\noverly superior forces. The struggle against extremism and the looming division\nof this Sinhala island nation of ours demands our full national strength. Let\nall Sinhala nationalists rise to the occasion, forgetting for a moment their\n\u2018other\u2019 differences, and swear allegiance to the unity of this country by\ngiving unswerving support to those commendable organizations that have emerged\nin recent times to save the nation from undesirable elements. The renewed\nloyalty that is fast emerging among the Sinhala nationals, particularly among\nthe contemporary youth, is most encouraging. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the circumstances, a good part of our traditional Buddhist\nleadership \u2013 the Mahasangha has come to the forefront, providing leadership to\nthe growing nationwide movement to counter this undesirable anti-national trend\nspearheaded by extremist elements of the Muslim community of Sri Lanka. The\nemergence of and initiatives taken by the Bodu Bala Sena and other Buddhist and\npatriotic organizations are timely and most admirable. In spite of untold and\npersistent challenges from various quarters \u2013 local and foreign, they are\ndetermined to provide necessary leadership to this movement, as a moral\nobligation to save the nation, the Buddha Sasana and the Buddhist heritage of\nour country. The courage, forthrightness, fearlessness, determination and\nforesight of the Bhikkhus of the Bodu Bala Sena and other Buddhist\norganizations that have sprung up in recent times to counter these undesirable\ntrends are most praiseworthy. It is encouraging to note their rapidly expanding\nand widespread support base across the country and extending to the Sinhala\nBuddhist communities living overseas. It is time that all those who care for\nthe survival of our nation, begin supporting this courageous movement, in all\npossible ways. The\nhighly tolerant nature of the Buddhist community of Sri Lanka should not be\ntaken for granted.They are becoming increasingly aware of the various forms\nof threats to which they are subject without good reason. As proven repeatedly in their\nnation\u2019s long history of foreign aggression and misdemeanors, the Sinhala\npeople, especially the Sinhala Buddhists will rise to the occasion when\nnecessary, to save their Buddhist norms and principles which form the\nfoundation of the national culture of their treasured motherland.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Daya\nHewapathirane                                    \ndaya.hewapathirane@gmail.com<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Daya Hewapathirane\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Muslim Hostility Since Ancient Times                                                             Those professing Islam have been the biggest enemies of Buddhists and Buddhism throughout history. Buddhists have suffered extreme forms of violence, untold persecution and discrimination from Muslims since the 12th century, with the ruthless Muslim incursions of ancient Buddhist nations in the Central Asian and Himalayan regions. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[101],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-89628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dr-daya-hewapathirane"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89628","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=89628"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89628\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89628"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}