{"id":96475,"date":"2019-12-16T17:57:15","date_gmt":"2019-12-17T00:57:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=96475"},"modified":"2019-12-16T17:57:15","modified_gmt":"2019-12-17T00:57:15","slug":"yahapalana-versus-maha-sangha-part-4-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2019\/12\/16\/yahapalana-versus-maha-sangha-part-4-3\/","title":{"rendered":"YAHAPALANA VERSUS MAHA SANGHA Part 4"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

The Maha Sangha   worked hard on\nbehalf of Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential election of November\n2019.  Ven. Elle Gunawansa said that the\nSangha, 20,000 of them, went village by village to canvass for him\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha were openly pleased\nwhen Gotabaya won. Elle Gunawansa said this is the first    election after 1948 where the voters were\ncalled on to think of the country.  \u2018Rata\ngana, daruwo gana, Sambuddha Sasana gana hitana chande. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Omalpe Sobitha said that this was a victory for citizens who\nunderwent untold hardships during the previous regime and for those who wish to\nbring back justice and democracy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ven. Devalegama Dammasena said the President\u2019s political campaign\nwould go down as one of the cleanest operations with no posters, banners and\ncutouts.  There was no character\nassassination or slinging of mud on his stage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Gotabaya did not forget  \nthe Maha Sangha who had helped him win the election. He made it a point\nto visit  Buddhist temples after his\nvictory.  These visits were televised.\nThe chief priest of each temple was there to greet him, accompanied by a team\nof monks. Ven. Ittepane Dhammalankare met President Gotabaya accompanied by a\nteam of bhikkhus,  Dodampaha Nandimithra,  Tirikunamale Ananda, Madampagama Assaji and\nMedawachchiye     Dammajothi. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The  Sangha gave lengthy\nspeeches rejoicing in Gotabaya \u2018s victory , \nwith copious advice on what to do next. \nThey spoke  readily into\nmicrophones, to address persons seated before them! The microphones were there\nbecause these speeches  were going to\nappear in the  next day\u2019s television\nnews. The  Sangha  knew beforehand  that they were   addressing an island wide audience. This was\nnothing new for them.  Bhikkhus regularly\naddress lay audiences and advise them, during bana and pirit  ceremonies. But this time they were talking\npolitics, not religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha  said they  have great hope in President Gotabaya. They\nexpect much from him. Akmeemana Dayaratana \nsaid we needed a leader with a vision . Elle Gunawansa said  Gotabaya \nhas vision, also he delivers any project he undertakes. Ven. Kotapitiye\nRahula said that the Sangha were ready to work with Gotabaya. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keppetiyagoda Siri Wimala of\nGetambe Rajopavanaramaya  said  \u2018this time there is a good momentum. This\nmomentum should be continued \u2019.  Convert\n‘Gotabaya bheetiya into Gotabaya neethiya,’.Vendaruwe Upali of Malwatte composed a \nshort kavi  then and there, ,which\nended Janapathi vasanava me rata hadena thuru   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Omalpe Sobitha , addressing a media conference at the Bodhiraja\nViharaya,  Embilipitiya said President\nGotabaya Rajapaksa will usher in an era of prosperity and development in the\ncountry, for which he has already started work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Devalegama Dammasena, Chief priest of the\nTissamaharama Raja Maha Viharaya  addressing\na press conference in Tissamaharama said President Gotabaya has a vision and it\nwas evident from the work he did as the Defence Secretary.   ( I think\nhe meant the urban development work).  Ven.\nDammasena  said a period for the\nbetterment of the country would dawn with the assumption of duties by President\nGotabaya Rajapaksa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keppetiyagoda Siri Wimala  voiced something that all Rajapaksa\nsupporters were thinking. \u2019See to your security,\u201d he said, It may now be\nunder threat. Like what happened to SWRD. We will be destroyed if we lose\nyou  both.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha  did not confine\ntheir utterances to temple and media. They appeared on other platforms\ntoo.  A line of  bhikkhus were \nseated  in the front row at a Jana\nhamuwa for President Gotabaya  held at\nDehiwela. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The Sangha were  also \nthere, when the   intelligentsia\nheld a  seminar on the MCC at the Sri\nLanka Foundation Institute, Colombo in November 2019 .Several bhikkhus spoke,\nincluding   Vaturawila  Siri Sujata, Paraduwa Jinaratana   and \nMurungagasyaye Gnathissara from France, \nMalevana Dhammavijaya said we are not a nation that weeps, \u2018andana\njatiyak nevei\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Maha Sangha, it appears have no intention of abandoning politics.\nThey intend to stay on and supervise the government . The Maha Sangha were  on television the day after the election,\nright after the results were announced.( see Derana news 2019.11. 08) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elle  Gunawansa  addressed the media   soon after the Presidential election. He\nasked the media to  support the\ngovernment at this point of time, instead of criticizing, because \u2018if we fail\nthis time, that will  be final\u2019. There\nwill be  weaknesses in this government.\nWe must try to   correct them, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a Yuthukama gathering, Ella Gunawansa said  \u2018Now pressurize the government to do what you\nwant them to do. Do not sit back and wait.\u2019 \u2018Me\npara hondata balagena inna\u2019 he instructed , \n\u2018however much they may get annoyed we will continue to voice our\nviews.\u2019  Ven. Kotapitiye Rahula said that\nthe Sangha were ready to work with Gotabaya. If \nthis government doesn\u2019t perform well, we will get rid   of it \ntoo, he  concluded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha \npounced on  several current\nissues. They held a press conference on the Swiss embassy matter. This was a\nplot to discredit the government  and\ncountry, they said.  We, the Sangha wish\nto advise these embassies.  We may be a\nsmall country, but  we must be allowed\nto  run our country without interference\nand with  dignity. ( \u2018abhimanavat\u2019) .\nSwitzerland should not meddle in  our\naffairs.  Bhikkhus also  went to the UN Human Rights  Organization and made a complaint against the\nSwiss embassy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha spoke before  television cameras on the   fine given out to Brig.  Priyanka Perera in London. Bhikkhus including\nKamburugamuwe  Vajira  spoke of Perera\u2019s bravery in war and praised\nhis patriotism. They spoke of supporting him and  having a collection to pay the fine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jamburewela Chandraratana   representing the People\u2019s Responsibility\nCentre went to the Indian High Commission  \nand handed over a letter to  be\ngiven to the  Prime Minister Modi asking\nhim to discuss  doing away of Provincial\nCouncils  during President Rajapaksa\u2019s\nofficial visit to India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jamburewela Chandraratana    thereafter spoke to the media, on the\nnegative aspects of Provincial Councils. The Elections Commission stated that\nthe cost of holding the last provincial council election was Rs. 874 million\nand the next election will cost Rs. 3, 180 million. Further,  the Provincial Councils have not been\nfunction for  months. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The North Central, Eastern and Sabaragamuwa\nProvincial Councils were inactive for two years and eight months. The Central,\nNorthern and North Western Provincial Councils were inactive for one year and\neight months, while the Western and Southern Provincial Councils were inactive\nfor six months. But although the Provincial Councils were inactive, the country\nmoved forward, he said..\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha commented on\npolitical issues, big and small, as they came up. Pahiyangala Ananda  criticized the decision to abolish the\npermits system in transporting sand, granite and soil.  Akmeemana\nDayaratana spoke on the 13 points put forward by TNA. Kiri Ibbanare Vijitha  said \nthat all involved in the Bond Scam, including ministers must be\narrested. Kotapola Amarakiththi  said that USA intended to get their MCC\npassed  after the Presidential elections.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paraduwe Jinaratana  spoke of irregularities in the cultural\nministry. Bhikkhus commented unfavorably on officials such as Shani\nAbeysekera.  Two bhikkhus were seen  at the new demand for an inquiry against Dr.\nShafie. Liyanwela Sasanaratana spoke.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jumburewela Chandaratana  said that the head of the Pharmaceutical\nCorporation had purchased   a low grade\ncancer   drug. This  official and his Minister,  Rajitha Senaratne should be arrested. Ven.\nChandraratana  also went to the Defence\nMinistry  to ask that this person be\nstopped from leaving the country. The official concerned  said that \nhe   was not going anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ittakande Saddhatissa  said they have evidence of malpractice in\nSathosa by Rishard Bathiudeen and he must be arrested. Angulugalle Sri\nJinanada, Magalkande Sudatta,  Madille\nPagnaloka  and Akmeemana Dayaratna    speaking \nseparately said that there was illegal settlement of Muslims in\nPuttalam  and  that Rishard Bathiudeen was responsible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Walapane, there were four deaths in one family\ndue to  the collapse of a hill and the\npublic were furious. They said this  was\ndue to illegal quarrying. Mailagasthenne Dhammananda,  chief priest Galpotha temple, intervened and\nasked the family to please go ahead with the burial. They would agitate about\nthe matter the next day.  This was shown\non  television news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media reported that a group of Buddhist monks and\nsupporters of Duminda Silva are planning on appealing to the government to\nre-commence an investigation into the shooting incident between two groups of\nDuminda Silva and Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra several years ago. They claim\nthat the CID had allegedly concealed certain information from courts regarding\nthe shooting of Duminda Silva which was unfavourable to him and eventually led\nto him being sentenced to life imprisonment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group appealing on behalf of Duminda Silva\nclaim that while the CID was entrusted with the inquiry in to this incident,\nthey had allegedly concealed information regarding the fact that it was\nBharatha Lakshman\u2019s group who had initially opened fire and injured Duminda\nSilva, and only had pursued investigations regarding Duminda Silva\u2019s group opening\nfire on Bharatha Lakshman. The petitioners claim that the CID had allegedly\nconcealed certain information from courts. Therefore, they have urged the new\ngovernment to conduct a fair investigation into this incident, while respecting\nthe verdict of the courts, and ensure that justice is done to both parties\nwithout favouring either of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha showed that they were very alert politically. Ittepane\nDhammalankare  among others,\ncommented  very accurately on the\npolitical situation. Devalegama Dammasena alerted the people of impending\ndangers to the nation and its citizens. Bengamuwe Nalaka speaking at a\nGotabaya  rally  ( before the election) referred disparagingly\nto the  \u2018NGO karayo\u2019 who were working\nagainst Gotabaya.  They  talked history too. There were several\nreferences to 1815 and to Dutugemunu. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today\u2019s Sangha are media savvy. Derana news 11.12.19  showed a bhikkhu  holding his smart phone to the  Derana microphone to convey  information. They are knowledgeable and well\ninformed. They cited  relevant laws and\nacts.  They pointed out that in the Swiss\nEmbassy issue, the employee was not entitled \nto diplomatic immunity and that the whole incident was in violation of\nthe Vienna convention.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha took a strong anti \u2013UNP stance. Not other political party\nhas harmed this country more than the UNP, said \nElle Gunawansa. Earlier UNP  had\ngood people in it, he added. Ranil Wickremesinghe must resign said Medagama Dhammananda\nof Asgiri.  If Ranil Wickremesinghe does\nnot resign, then we will have to force him to resign, said Pahiyangala Ananda\nSagara  and Ittakande Saddhatissa,\nspeaking separately. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jamburewela Chandraratana commented on Ranil Wickremesinghe\u2019s    statement that  UNP must now woo back the Sinhala\nBuddhist  vote. Is this for  religion or to gain political power, he\nasked. Elle Gunawansa said that this shows that up to now they have used the\nSinhala Buddhist  vote only to win\nelections. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is well known that  while\nelectioneering was going on,  and the\nSangha were working for Gotabaya Rajapaksa , Mangala Samaraweera sent a Twitter\nmessage, where he omitted the Sangha and  \nspoke of the Blessings of  a\nDouble Gem.  This was  an absurd, laughable  utterance, but the Sangha, naturally were\nfurious. This was the last straw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They came before the public, via television, and  specifically named Mangala Samaraweera,\nRajita Senaratne, Patali Champika and Ranjan Ramanayake as persons who have\ncriticized the  Sangha. They must be\nremoved from politics. Their behavior was shameless, said  Alugalle Siri \nJinananda of Buddhist information Center . They must apologize to the Sangha, said Jamburewela\nChandraratana ,otherwise the UNP will not get votes. Paraduwa Jinaratana. and    \nVatinapana Somananda also  spoke. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sangha did not stop at that.   They went  \nto Sri Kotha when a   UNP was\nmeeting was in progress. They  handed\nover a written request  that the UNP not\ngive nominations to those who refused to accept that this was a Sinhala\nBuddhist country.  If not, the Sangha\nwill work  against  UNP not only at the next election but will\nalso engage in a campaign against UNP, said Kotahene Narada. Mangala, Ranjan\nand Rajitha were specifically named in the letter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Buddhist public including\nthe Maha Sangha had lost confidence in the government  led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe\nwhich had belittled the country\u2019s historical heritage saying that Sri Lanka is\nnot a Buddhist nation. This distrust was amply demonstrated in the Presidential\nElection results, said Medagama Dhammananda of Asgiri. No ruler can govern Sri Lanka by disrespecting the Maha\nSangha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the\nbeginning Yahapalana government  had\ninsulted the Maha Sangha and nurtured extremist minority groups said Ven\nDhammananda. They wanted to  remove the\nmonks and do what they want. Saying Sri Lanka is not a Buddhist country   showed that they were planning a \u2018vena\ngamanak\u2019. We must understand this .  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have\nnever been insulted like this before,  said Elle Gunawansa. \u2018They thought we were a\nspineless nation, that the Sangha had no power. But the   Sangha are not the fools they thought we\nwere,   he added . The Sangha became very determined.\nWhen Mahinda Rajapaksa  took office as\nPrime Minister ,  three long rows of\nbhikkhus chanted a lengthy pirit which sounded as though it would never end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The   battle between the fading\nYahapalana government and the Maha Sangha is still going on. The Sangha realize\nthat the game is not yet over. The country is still in danger from  the west. The Sangha  is now looking  ahead to the General election and the Prime\nMinister stakes of 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kamaburugamuwe Vajira  advised ‘rata beraganna nayakayek thora\nganna. ‘Think ahead, think of the future generations and vote. Elle  Gunawansa said, we need’ ratata jatiyata\nagamata garu karana  ayomya nayakayek. Me\nrate gaha kola valata adaraya karana, sivurata adaraya karana, kandula\nhandunana nayakayake ona.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kotapola\nAmarakiththi said I am not attached to any political  party. But having seen the fearful disaster\nwe are       facing, I thought that I\nmust address these few words to you. \nDon\u2019t think the way you thought \nfor the last  70 years(sic) . You must think about the next election in a  \u2018kavadavat nohitu vidihata\u2019 and  vote intelligently. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not everyone is impressed with the role played by\nthe Sangha. The columnist Nan\u201d has spoken of a \u2018Scary Saffron Surge\u201d.  She said \u2018 thoughts have been surging in my\nfeared mind after seeing so many Buddhist monks in active politics and so much\nvisiting of temples by those who won the recent election\u2019. There was also a statement\nmade by a monk loud and clear that the leaders who won the recent elections\ntook their advice  and should continue\ndoing so now they are in power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Nan\u2019 speaks of \nthe  \u2018dread and menace\u2019 in\nBuddhist monks entering active politics. \nMonks increasing in numbers and stridency, monks who do not keep the\nVinaya rules, monks who led assaults on minority groups <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Political monks are definitely stepping out on\nthe wrong path, said Nan\u201d Their place is the temple and the monastery; their\nduty to interpret the Buddha Dhamma and lead the people they have influence\nover to better lives, striving to enter the Path shown by the Buddha as\nbringing deliverance, but before that enjoying the satisfaction in this life\nfull of dukkha through meditation and improvement of their minds and sila. They\nget on the Path through renunciation and great effort and then they show us the\nPath and guide us. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We Buddhists are very fortunate to have had great\ngood monks, continued Nan\u201d and have such monks even now in considerable numbers,\nwho [deliver] bana [having much] relevance to our lives. They lead their lives\nas prescribed by the Buddha. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Nan\u2019 says that Ven. Dhammavihari has  said that monks have duties to perform for\nlay people, as the latter provide them with all necessities to sustain\nlife.  Thus their readiness and\nwillingness to advice lay people, visit homes for dana and pirit chanting, and\noffer solace when that is needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I must  say\nthat very many monks are true Buddhist monks in this land of ours, following\nstrictly the Vinaya rules set down by the Buddha and wearing the robe he\nprescribed with solemnity, serenity and dignity. We also have monks in the\nforest tradition who spend their time in meditation with not much contact with\nordinary life and lay people. In some abodes, people do not even see the\nmonks,.; dane is left for them and they appear only to gather their food and\nreturn to their kutis and seclusion, said Nan\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These observations call for a reply. Bhikkhus are\ncitizens of Sri Lanka and they are entitled to all rights of citizens,\nincluding the right to vote and participate in political activity. This is now\naccepted.   Island <\/em>editorial of     \n7.12.19  said \u2018Buddhist monks, no\ndoubt, have political rights and, in fact, they have a history of playing a\npivotal role in helping the country in times of crisis.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Secondly, these \u2018menacing, strident\u2019 monks are\noften the chief priests of highly regarded temples. Finally,, if the monks had\nsupported Sajith Premadasa, instead of Gotabaya Rajapaksa , would Nan\u201d have spoken\nof a \u2018wonderful saffron surge\u2019  and not a\n\u2018scary\u2019 one. [Concluded] <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS The Maha Sangha   worked hard on behalf of Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential election of November 2019.  Ven. Elle Gunawansa said that the Sangha, 20,000 of them, went village by village to canvass for him\u201d. The Sangha were openly pleased when Gotabaya won. Elle Gunawansa said this is the first    election after 1948 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96475","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\/96475","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=96475"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96475\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=96475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=96475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}