6 December, 2024

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A Paradigm Of An Impeccable Personality – The Buddha

By Ven. Horowpothane Sathindriya Thera

Ven. Horowpothane Sathindriya Thera

“Of supreme serenity, with extensive wisdom, A man of great wisdom, devoid of all greed; He is the Tathagata, he is the Sublime One, The person unrivalled, the one without equal, He is intrepid, proficient in all: The Blessed One is he, and I am his disciple.” ~ (Upali Sutta – Majjhima Nikaya)

It marks the Birth, Enlightenment and Great Passing Away of the great son who were born in Maha Bharath (Great India) on full moon day of the month of May, today.

Today is the 2565th anniversary of the celebration of the life of the great master the Gautama Buddha.

In order to pay my homage and respect to the Blessed One, I thought to elaborate and inscribe some profound characteristics of the great Master, the Buddha in brief on this special day.

Twenty-six centuries ago, the Birth of prince Siddhartha, an unprecedented and extraordinary age was dawn in the history of mankind which multitude of people still respectfully commemorate and celebrate, not blindly but realistically. Later, at the age of 35, by becoming a Buddha he pragmatically accomplished his spiritual aspiration and the fact of the matter that relevant to life of the living being.

Present day global atmosphere is inconceivable and unprecedented which the whole human society is drastically changed by COVID-19 deadly virus. An amazing fact and unique peculiar veracity have been proven, even in this digital age what the Buddha precisely emphasised and gave prominence to the essence of his teaching.

This is the precise time to reflect upon the inner qualities of the Buddha and what he compassionately encouraged us to do.

The Uniqueness of the Buddha is beyond comparison. A paragon of virtue, model of perfection, an embodiment of morality, a paradigm of impeccable personality, and incomparable immaculate spiritual leader who compassionately taught, guided and encouraged humanity towards innermost peace and happiness, not merely by words but by examples.

His gentle and pleasant smile has blossomed into vast libraries of scriptures, treatises, and expositions attempting and endeavouring to fathom his profound wisdom.

“The excellent one, knower of excellent,

Giver of excellent, bringer of the excellent,

The unsurpassed one taught the excellent Dhamma.

This too is the sublime gem in the Buddha.”  ~ (Ratana Sutta)

Once the Buddha was asked thus by Dandapani the Sakyan thus:

“What does the recluse assert, what does he proclaim?

Then, the Blessed One explicitly and precisely elucidated thus:

“Friend, I assert and proclaim such a teaching that one does not dispute with anyone in the world with its gods, its Maras, its Brahmas, in this generation with its recluses and brahmins, its princes and its people; such a teaching that perceptions no more underlie that brahmin who abides detached from sensual pleasures, without perplexity, shorn of worry, free from craving for any kind of being.” (Madhupindika Sutta)

Inconceivable challenges and ineffable difficulties were enormous and excessively inundated in his life, but he patiently overcame and assiduously conquered them with courage and perseverance. With his unique dedication and paramount persistency, he conquered the battle of defilements and impurities by treading the Noble Eightfold Path or Path of Purification which he finally recognised, and ultimately, he attained in his spiritual accomplishment, the bliss of Nibbana.

After an extensive and amicable discussion with the Buddha one of the eminent and dedicated devotees of Nigantanataputta called Upali impressively extolled and glorified the Buddha in front of his devoted teacher thus:

He is the wise one who has cast off delusion.

Abandoned the heart’s wilderness,

Victor in battle, he knows no anguish, is perfectly even-minded,

Mature in virtue, of excellent wisdom,

Beyond all temptations, he is without stain,

The Blessed One is he, and I am his disciple.

The first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, in his book The Discovery of India has mentioned about the Gautama Buddha thus:

“The ages roll by and the Buddha seems not so far away after all; his voice whispers in our ears and tells us not to run away from the struggle but, calm-eyed, to face it, and to see in life ever greater opportunities for growth and advancement. Personality counts today as ever, and a person who had impressed himself on the thought of mankind as the Buddha has, so that even today there is something living and vibrant about the thought of him, must have been a wonderful man – a man who was, as Barth says, ‘the finished model of calm and sweet majesty, of infinite tenderness for all breathes and compassion for all that suffers, of perfect moral freedom and exemption from every prejudice.’ ”

“His message old and yet very new and original for those immersed in metaphysical subtleties, captured the imagination of the intellectuals; it went deep down into the hearts of the people.”

Even though a man is intoxicated with the advancement of Modern Technology and development of Information Technology, there is no remedy or therapy for mental agonies, and psychological afflictions. Nano technology and Digital Revolution along with Proliferation of Digital devices have created highly perplexing entanglements in our human society today.

The whole global society has been traumatized by the present pandemic, COVID–19. Nearly three and half millions of lives of people perished and still the numbers are unpredictable. People are in fear and struggle to survive. During his Forty-Five years of Mission, he compassionately advised and encouraged multitudes of people, how to manage one’s earning and income. In Sigalovada Sutta, young student was advised how to allocate funds in three aspects and facets by the Buddha.

If political leaders, professionals and authorities, and ordinary individuals are truly and pragmatically mindful of Buddhist Economic management strategies and policies, no one meet challenges which currently everyone experience. All are Buddhists in words and in slogans but in practice and in operation, all are failed.

The profound words of the Buddha are always fresh and updated. The true words never change.

“This Dhamma that I have discovered is deep, hard to see, hard to understand, peaceful and sublime, not within the sphere of reasoning, subtle, to be experienced by the wise. But this generation delights in adhesion, takes delight in adhesion, and rejoices in adhesion. For such a generation this state is hard to see, that is, specific conditionality, dependent origination. And this state too is hard to see, that is, the stilling of all formations, the relinquishment of all acquisitions, the destruction of craving, dispassion, cessation, Nibbana.”

“Surveying the world with the eye of a Buddha, the Blessed one saw beings with little dust in their eyes and with much dust in their eyes, with keen faculties and with dull faculties, with good qualities and with bad qualities, easy to teach and hard to teach, and a few who dwelt seeing blame and fear in the other world”

Above mentioned profound words of the Buddha which stated twenty-six centuries ago explicitly reveal and bring to light the authenticity and the purity of the Buddha-Dhamma. These words are more than enough to understand the essence of what the Buddha realised and compassionately encouraged us to practice.

For Buddhism, numerous interpretations and expositions have been given by foremost scholars and prominent intellectuals who have immensely studied Buddhism in the globe.

However, twenty-six centuries ago, DHAMMA-VINAYA is the exclusive and peculiar word the great Master, the Gotama Buddha has pronounced and proclaimed for the reality or the truth he founded.

Some scholars have characterised and distinguished the teachings of the Buddha as the way of life and philosophy. It is beyond modern philosophy and psychology.

It is the Path of Purification and Path of Freedom. Freedom from bondage to liberation. Freedom from cruelty to compassion. Freedom from misery to happiness. This is the essence and principle of Buddhism.

It is impossible to define and describe what Buddha said in few words. As a Buddha he has delivered innumerable discourses in his 45 years incumbency.

DHAMMA – the truth – is what he realised and pointed out as advice for all who want to get rid of suffering.

VINAYA- discipline- is what the Blessed One compassionately constituted as disciplinary codes and standards of behaviour for those of his followers who go forth from home life to take up the quest for release in greater resolution and enthusiasm.

In the present, so called Buddhist countries and born Buddhists wherever they live, even in abroad, they have added their own cultural aspects and practices with Buddhism.

Some cultural values and ethnic practices are acceptable and admirable. Some of them are controversial and inconsistent with what the Buddha said.

We are in the climax of the development of science and advancement of technology now. We call it is the New Millennium and Digital Age.

Specially, we are in a global village now. Whatever it happens in any part of the world will swiftly fly and spread all over the world in a nanosecond.

Our young generation is well equipped with the knowledge of modern science and well advanced in nano technology. When they curiously question and challenge us to find what exactly the great master the Buddha said. Now outdated rites and rituals are critically questioned and severely challenged by youth. If it is not compatible and agreeable with the true words of the Buddha, we are lost for words.

As a matter of regret and sadly, now Buddhism has been politicized and modified by some hypocritical politicians and monks who support corrupted politicians to make innocent citizens fool and mislead. It is completely contrary to what the Buddha said.

Unfortunately, most born Buddhists think and accept what these hypocrites do, but in Buddha-Dhamma there is no room at all for these blind faiths and beliefs.

Be wise to understand what the Buddha said and be honest to be pragmatic disciple of the Buddha.

Currently innocent people tremendously suffer and live at the verge of death.

Immensely corrupted politicians and so-called Buddhist monks terribly misguided multitude of citizens for their own sake of power and exploitation of public wealth. Most Buddhist monks are utterly responsible for this catastrophic tragedy which innocent people gravely experience today. Nowadays they are silent and have become speechless and wordless.

Some psychopaths and psychoneurotic people blindly claim that Gautama Buddha was born and lived in Sri Lanka. They wanted to have a Sinhalese Buddha rather THE BUDDHA.

Most are racists and pseudo followers, but few true and legitimate disciples of the Buddha silently and peacefully practice and lead their lives according to what the Gautama Buddha who was born in India said.

Various cults and cults of personalities, along with their ulterior motives are abundant in the name of Buddhism. Unfortunately, many people blindly follow them and misguide the youth. This is the dangerous and horrendous disaster. Our future generation will be in a very catastrophic situation. No one is mindful of this danger. Responsible authorities are blind and deaf because they are serious mindful of their political power.

Hope that our wise scholars and professionals who truly respect and practice what the Buddha said, will take necessary actions to eradicate these toxins from our society.

Latest comments

  • 14
    1

    Venerable Sir,
    Indeed an enlightening write up.
    The underlying reason to pen this is to request your enlightened intervention, Implore all political parties in SL to stop politicising Buddhism. In my humble view, Buddhism has a strong base in SL and needs no politicising.
    The cause enumerated by the Gautama the Buddha, who gave up all material wealth (Kingdom) in pursuit of the Truth at the prime age of 35, remarkable sacrifice, without doubt, should not be utilised for short term material gains by any one individual or political entity for material gain.
    A case in point, as you may know and recall, Buddhism was thriving in Bharath in the period up to the 14th century AD, until it’s decline thereafter. A tool in the governance of the Kings. Especially in southern India (Kaveripattinam and Kanchipuram) and decline set in.
    It is a philosophy and should be treated with great respect without politicising for personal gain, not for cheap politics of people capture Power.
    I wish you well in your endeavours to change the hearts and minds of those who may have been misdirected, without knowing that they are in the wrong path.
    I pray that your endeavor in this regard of changing the hearts and minds of those misdirected cause of Buddhism, merits almost equally to that of the Great son of Bharath, Prince Siddhartha, The Gautama, The Buddha.

    • 5
      8

      The Buddha taught about the decaying body and impermenence or Anicca but Sri Lankans are so afraid of dying of Covid-19?!

      Even though this is Monsoon flu season when the rains cause increase in flu and nature takes her course and weak and elderly with compromized immune system (diabetes, heart disease, chronic kidny disease) pass away in this monsoon season, the whole country has been locked down and poor people are starving due to lack of wages and food, so that the doctors and rich people can feel safe!!
      Is this the Buddhist way in a Buddhist country?!

      • 3
        10

        Seasonal Monsoon flu has been replaced with the Covid-19 fear psychosis by the GMOA SLMA and so Sri Lanka economy and poor people are suffering with lockdowns and no wages, while doctors sit in their comfortable air-conditioned rooms and duty free cars and talk non sense about Covid!
        But no Doctors, nurses , Public Health Inspectors (PHI) have died of Covid-19 Flu in Sri Lanka. Covid-19 is mild in Lanka because of Universal BCG Vaccination. Doctors know this but pretend they do not and GMOA, SLMA and other doctors organizations have been promoting themselves through the Covid-19 hoax and Vaccine roll out because they get paid by Big Pharamceutical companies who are making big profits from untested Covid-19 vaccines, and WHO also buys doctors with jaunts, and conference trips and job offers overseas. Sorry to say majority of doctors in Lanka a selfish. money-mad and greedy lot who have forgotten the Hippocratic Oath “DO NO HARM” to patients.

        • 2
          0

          Why do people need a religion, a philosophy, an indoctrinated mode of behaviour/thinking, ………. as a crutch to live their lives? Are people incapable of thinking for themselves?

          It pains me to see very young children going to Dhamma Pasal, Sunday schools, Madrassa, ………. the trick is to get them young: very young!

          How many of you would have accepted any of this, if introduced to you as 35-year old adults with some maturity and life-experience? Would, any of you, have picked up any of this, on your own as free adults?

          Why is that, the “Buddhists” are not bound by the “moral ethics/codes of Christianity” …….. and vice versa …….. why aren’t the “Christians” bound by the “moral ethics/codes of Buddhism?” …… and it goes for other “religions” too. …….although the “moral codes” seems to be pretty common/similar among most of the “religions.”

          If a person was not introduced to any religion, he/she would have the same scepticism of all the “religions.”

          That’s the effect of child-indoctrination.

          Get them young!

          • 2
            0

            continued


            Study of human-behaviour is more important than the study of “religions.” ……. admittedly I came to all of this through greed: greed for money …….. by reading a piece by Charlie Munger on “Behavioural Economics” ………. how people behave in their investment-thinking.

            For example, Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos have to live to be 500 years old for Tesla or Amazon to make the profits to justify their current share-price. The share-price is not set by the underlying economics of the companies but by the perception what the share-price would be in the future. …….. The “next fool theory.”

            Donald Trump may be a fool but he knows how other fools think …….. he doesn’t have gold plated fittings in his bathrooms not for nothing

            The Mahanayakes don’t travel in Mercedes not for nothing ……. the Pope doesn’t live in a palace and sit on a jewel encrusted gold chair not for nothing ……..

            All “religions,” “philosophy-systems” end up as man-made hierarchical edifices: people fighting to get to the top.

            Survival of the fittest!

            Btw …….. I have 2 children brought up as animals without a religion.

      • 10
        2

        The medical anthropologist simply couldn’t resist getting her two cents’ worth in, it seems.

    • 2
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      Hats off to Ven. Horowpothane Sathindriya Thera for reveling the facts as a true Buddhist priest. Only a very few people are bold enough to write the truth. You must be commended for enlightening the so called ‘Buddhists’ in Sri Lanka who are betraying Buddhism and insulting the Buddha.
      Today it is very difficult to find Buddhism (Gautama Buddha’s Philosophy) in Sri Lanka. What we have is a racist and fanatic Political Buddhism known as Sinhala-Buddhism. The politicians took the maximum advantage of this Political Sinhala-Buddhism to win the elections. The political Buddhist Monks preach their own racist political Bana instead of Buddha`s Bana. They do not even follow the 5 basic moral principles (Pancha sila) what Buddha has preached. Some of them are engaged in ‘Buddha Business’ owning acres of real estates, bungalows and have luxury vehicles. The political Buddhism preached by the Sinhala Buddhist monks is no longer able to provide any vision or guidance or constructive power to the society but are only occupied in maintaining their own petty positions.

  • 11
    0

    “As a matter of regret and sadly, now Buddhism has been politicized and modified by some hypocritical politicians and monks who support corrupted politicians to make innocent citizens fool and mislead. It is completely contrary to what the Buddha said.”

    Not ‘some’, almost all. Well written, happy Wesak.

    My observation is that being a rationalist, those who see only the country, nationalism, language, religion and God appears to be big. To those who see only the world, Religion and belief in God appears to be big. To those who can understand the universe and its dimensions, God does not exist and religion appears to be tools to discipline the minds. If you persist that you need a god, then you will have to accept the nature and its system as your god. Every form of life and matter is part of it whether alive or when dead.

  • 9
    0

    Hope that our wise scholars and professionals who truly respect and practice what the Buddha said,
    Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.

    Provide vaccine urgently, to bring Excellency of the country

  • 3
    13

    /* Some psychopaths and psychoneurotic people blindly claim that Gautama Buddha was born and lived in Sri Lanka. */. Well, there is no “blindness”. Although I suspect that isn’t enough to convince. Bahiya is mentioned in the Tipitaka as a businessman and a ship owner. Bahiya’s ship gets wrecked at a port known as “Supparaka”. He then walks or takes a carriage to see the Buddha at Savathi. He reaches Savathi in just one day. The modern day Supparaka and Savathi are considered to be in the west coast and eastern regions of India about 1200 km apart. It’s simply not possible to travel this distance in just one day. So India is not where these two towns are located. These two towns are located in the small island of Siri Laka i.e. the island of the Buddha. That is just one of a plethora of evidences that can be offered to proved Buddha did not live in India.

    • 8
      2

      Jambu,
      You are being less than honest. The Bahiya Sutta says:
      “There is, Bahiya, in a far country a town called Savatthi. There the Lord now lives who is the Arahant, the Fully Enlightened One. “……
      “Then Bahiya of the Bark-cloth, profoundly stirred by the words of that devata, then and there departed from Supparaka. Stopping only for one night everywhere (along the way), he went to Savatthi where the Lord was staying in the Jeta Wood.”
      It is clear that Savatthi is in “a far country” . All that is claimed is that Bahiya stopped over during only one night, which means that he rested briefly at other times.
      The Tripitaka doesn’t lie, but those who interpret it may. Shame on you!

    • 8
      1

      Myth regarding the birthplace of Buddha debunked. UNESCO has done an excellent job carbon dating the birthplace of Buddha at Lumbini in Nepal. The authenticity of the archaeological remains within the boundaries has been confirmed through a series of excavations. The remains of viharas, stupas and numerous layers of brick structures from the 3rd century BC at the site of the Maya Devi Temple are proof of Lumbini being the birthplace of Buddha. A large stone was also found buried exactly 25 steps from the pond where Buddha’s mother took a bath before giving birth to Lord Buddha. Prominent scholar of archeology Ellawala Medananda and Professor of archeology Raj Somadeva have said that the ruins of what has been excavated in Nepal proves beyond any doubt that prince Siddhartha was born in Lumbini, Nepal. The Cult in Sri Lanka that believes in the Myth are caught with their pants down. All those sacred trees that the Cult claim to have recognized are less than 500 years old.

    • 3
      0

      Jambu, Rambutan, Durian, mangosteen and so on are East Asian names and their origin was East Asia. Jambu is a Malay/Indonesian term and various types include jambu air (Watery rose apple), jambu bol (Malay rose apple), jambu semarang (wax apple), etc.
      Dipa is a Pali term for (“island” or “Peninsula” or “continent”) and Jambudvīpa (Sanskrit) or Jambudipa (Pali) is literally refers to “the land of Jambu trees”.
      Sri Lanka was NEVER known as Jambudipa whereas Thailand was known as the land of Jambu trees and the people of Thailand were claiming for a very long time that the birthplace of Buddha is Thailand. However, it is proved beyond any doubt that Pini jambu is an exotic fruit in Nepal and North India.

  • 12
    2

    Learn form God, Learn from Lord Buddha, Learn from the war, Learn from Tsunami, Learn from Corona.
    Turn from I to We! Turn from Violence to Humanity! Turn our country into a place of harmony from hate.

  • 11
    2

    In my understanding of Buddhism, Buddha was a mortal, highly advanced in his thinking, & there are no all powerful ‘god’ in Buddhism. However, in SL, we have mixed folklore with Buddhism, incorporating ‘Jathaka’ stories & even worshipping Hindu gods, such as, Katharagama, Kali, etc. Since SWRD politicised religion & race, the average Sinhalese have become ‘nationalistic’ confusing religion with race & even believes SL as the guardian of Buddhism, probably, unaware that Buddhism is now global & practiced in many countries in its true form better than in SL.

    It is time true Buddhists stand up against politicians exploiting Buddhism & Buddhist monks accepting their primary purpose is to provide spiritual guidance, not political advise in governing the country. SL can certainly be governed by Buddhist philosophy, in which case, Buddhists should understand tolerance & selfless behaviour, key aspects of Buddhism, instead of resorting to corrupt & selfish practices at any opportunity.

  • 10
    0

    As per all the “TEACHINGS” of Buddha, the ultimate “GOAL” is to achieve “NIBBANA” or “NIRVANA” – the “Extinction” of “Greed”, “Hate” and, “Delusion”. The popular “Teaching” and “Belief” of today, are that this status of “Nirvana” could be achieved only after going through arduous life experiences running through “Innumerable” life spans (Sara Sankeyyah Kalpa Lakshayak). I reproduce, herein an interesting paragraph that was found in “Manual of Buddhist Terms and Doctrine” written by Rev. Nayanatiloka.
    ” Enraptured with “Lust” (Raga), Enraged with “Anger” (Dosa”, Blinded by “Delusion” (Moha), overwhelmed, with mind ensnared, man aims at his own ruin, at the ruin of others, at the ruin of both, and he experiences mental pain and grief. But if lust, anger, and delusion are given up, man aims neither at his own ruin, nor at the ruin of others, nor at the ruin of both, and he experiences no mental pain and grief. Thus is Nibbana visible in this life, immediate, inviting, attractive, and comprehensible to the wise”
    Just stated for the readers to ponder over during this time of Vesak.

    • 6
      0

      I know so much less Buddha Dharma than I ought to, but I, too, have been told something like that, Simon.
      .
      By Professor Mahinda Palihawadena.
      .
      The problem is that most humans seem to want something much more from the “religions” that they follow. they want to be assured of something akin to “immortality”. Totally irrational.
      .
      Professor Palihawadena is a vegan; I’ve never wanted to torment him by asking whether there was a more “omnivorous” period in his life. However, almost all readers would have been fed “flesh” when they were babies at least.
      .
      We know the destiny of all animals, but strangely not our own.
      .
      Let’s find life attractive, and then pass on. I’m not advocating irresponsible hedonism, though!

  • 6
    9

    “Some psychopaths and psychoneurotic people blindly claim that Gautama Buddha was born and lived in Sri Lanka. They wanted to have a Sinhalese Buddha rather than THE BUDDHA.”
    .
    Seriously? Awasara, Hamudurwvane, do you think people who try to find the true history of Lord Buddha are psychopaths and psychoneurotics?
    Hamuduruwane, may all bitterness, anger and malice be put away from you!!!
    As you see, Hamuduruwane, the Sinhalese Buddhists are fast rejecting “Eheyi Buddhism”.
    They now want to go beyond “Eheyi Hamuduruwane”.
    The Sinhalese Buddhists are now seeking the truth. Some have already started finding the truth by self-learning. Others have begun listening to discussions about our history and engaging in interactive Dhamma discourses as never before. Their enthusiasm and eagerness to learn Dhamma and the path to Nirvana is unprecedented.
    Very soon, they will reject Nikayas too, which are totally against Lord Buddha’s teachings.
    There are no limits whatsoever when it comes to learning.
    .
    Contd’…… 1/5

    • 8
      4

      Champa,
      “Very soon, they will reject Nikayas too, which are totally against Lord Buddha’s teachings.”
      Which is your Nikaya?

      • 2
        9

        old codger
        Fortunately, Buddhist lay people have no Nikayas.
        I am against Nikayas as they were introduced by the Dutch and the British to incorporate external elements into the Sinhalese Buddhism and also to cause division.
        We need leaders in Maha Sangha to stand by our country, not stand by the rulers.

      • 8
        1

        OC@
        It took years Chsmpa to realise who the Rajapakshes are. And now she or he is uttering not a single word about that bslukukka, sakkiliwanse .our people majority get caught easily. That Eagle bp should realised let alone today we are now far below the Bengalies who are branded to be the poorest in South Asia until few years ago.☹☹☹☹☹☹☹☹☹☹

    • 3
      10

      I wish to extend my sincere apologies to Venerable Horowpothane Sathindriya Thero as my comment here is a little too harsh. But a Buddhist monk calling others as psychopaths and psychoneurotics just for having different views than his own is unacceptable.
      .
      Maha Sangha and the Sinhalese Buddhists should be aware that the Catholic Malaccan Rajapaksa government is trying their best to,
      1. truncate our sovereignty,
      2. wipe out the Sinhalese nation,
      3. obliterate the Sinhala language,
      4. distort the “Sinhalese Buddhism” which is inextricably intertwined with our own unique Buddhist rites and rituals, and,
      Contd’….

      • 4
        9

        Continuation …..
        .
        5. destroy our Sinhala Traditional Vedakama by arbitrarily absorbing elements of Indian Ayurveda into ours.
        For example; Kansa, Ganja, Cannabis or Opium WAS NEVER a part of our Sinhala Traditional Vedakama.
        We never used herbs that have ‘psychoactive components’ to heal diseases or ailments.
        Parts of the Kansa plant are used in Indian Ayurveda. Even then, they first started using ‘Opium’ only after Moors took over Malabar. Later on, Indians started using Kansa as it has similar psychoactive components as ‘Opium’.
        Also, I want to place on record that, Sinhala Traditional Vedakama is totally different from the Indian Ayurveda. We are the first to introduce hospitals to the world. We are the first to carry out surgeries. We used our own herbs for all types of emergencies. We are the first to find antibiotics. Why did our Sinhalese ancestors have Aggalaa and Rice Kavum in their sacks when they went to war against invaders?
        I want to ask those who support Rajapaksas’ attempt to incorporate Indian Kansa into our Sinhala Traditional Vedakama, what is next? Cow dung and cow urine?

        • 7
          1

          Champa,
          “We are the first to carry out surgeries. We used our own herbs for all types of emergencies. ” I will grant that we are good at claiming to be the first at everything.Your knowledge is highly deficient.
          “6500 B.C.: Evidence of trepanation, the first surgical procedure, dates to 6500 B.C. Trepanation was the practice of drilling or cutting a hole through the skull to expose the brain. This was thought to cure mental illness, migraines, epileptic seizures and was used as emergency surgery after a head wound.”
          All your claims above are false.

          • 2
            8

            old codger
            Do you have any evidence that people have done primitive trepanation or drill holes in skulls for medical purposes and that it did not occur death?

            • 6
              1

              Champa,
              “Do you have any evidence that people have done primitive trepanation”
              When I write something, it is ALWAYS based on sources. Unlike some here.
              Please remember that . You can look it up yourself:

              https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_surgery&ved=2ahUKEwif1pSC8-3wAhW1FLcAHb-KBUkQFjACegQIChAC&usg=AOvVaw2kBUHu5vqouZryNyC4bBY5

              • 6
                2

                Champa,
                I know you sincerely believe what you write, unlike Jambu, who is a liar.
                Do your research. You will find that ancient Sri Lanka is NOT among the top civilizations, in spite of what you were told. You are dismissive of Europeans, but do you know that there is a 4500 year old house in Scotland, and Stonehenge is twice as old as any temple here?

              • 0
                6

                old codger
                Our ancestors have done surgeries for specific medical purposes.
                Your sources doesn’t provide answers to my question.
                Have they done trepanation for medical purposes? I don’t think so. How do you drill someone’s skull and make a big hole when the person is alive? And for what?

                • 5
                  1

                  Champa,
                  “How do you drill someone’s skull and make a big hole when the person is alive? And for what?”
                  I thought you can read English.

                  • 5
                    2

                    Champa,
                    There is saying:”You can’t convince a believer that his beliefs are wrong, because they are based not on evidence, but on a deep seated need to believe.”

                    • 1
                      0

                      OC
                      At times I think that I am nuts to debate with some characters.
                      But you seem nuttier to waste your breath on this.

          • 1
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            old codger
            Didn’t you notice that Champa sounds like a nut case? She is concocting fairy tales/fiction (idiotic and irrational blabbering drawn from thin air without any evidence what so ever) and then believing in the stories that she created as gospel.
            She has either escaped from a Mental Asylum OR have forgotten her medicine OR addicted to some hallucinatory drugs?

      • 5
        1

        Champa,
        Perhaps you don’t know that Sathindriya Hamuduruwo is the viharadhipathi of the same vihara in Australia that Soma hamuduruwo once occupied. This hamuduruwo seems to be a lot different to his predecessor. So far…

    • 10
      1

      Dear Champa,
      .
      Welcome back.. I really dont know where you had been all these days… when we need you, it is very difficult to contact you..
      .
      ““Some psychopaths and psychoneurotic people blindly claim that Gautama Buddha was born and lived in Sri Lanka. They wanted to have a Sinhalese Buddha rather than THE BUDDHA.””

      This is exactly the truth…. what is being practised in SRILANKA today is not ” buddhism” we learnt in the DAHAM school. It has been manpulated so that RAJAPSKHES and THEIR HENCHMEN could live up their propensities abusing the innocient masses in this country.
      :
      Any vicious politician in current day srilanka, would bend before a MONK as if a snake would be treated with carrossine oil. :::: all because they would focus fooling the nation. More you bend before a SIVURU wearers, it will be easier you to CONVINCE thanakola eating majority of the nation.

  • 6
    8

    “Some psychopaths and psychoneurotic people blindly claim that Gautama Buddha was born and lived in Sri Lanka. They wanted to have a Sinhalese Buddha rather than THE BUDDHA.”
    .
    Seriously? Awasara, Hamudurwvane, do you think people who try to find the true history of Lord Buddha are psychopaths and psychoneurotics?
    Hamuduruwane, may all bitterness, anger and malic be put away from you!!!
    As you see, Hamuduruwane, the Sinhalese Buddhists are fast rejecting “Eheyi Buddhism”.
    They now want to go beyond “Eheyi Hamuduruwane”.
    The Sinhalese Buddhists are now seeking the truth. Some have already started finding the truth by self-learning. Others have begun listening to discussions about our history and engaging in interactive Dhamma discourses as never before. Their enthusiasm and eagerness to learn Dhamma and the path to Nirvana is unprecedented.
    Very soon, they will reject Nikayas too, which are totally against Lord Buddha’s teachings.
    There are no limits whatsoever when it comes to learning.
    .
    Contd’…… 1/5

    • 5
      9

      2/5
      .
      Lord Buddha was born in ancient Jambudvipa, not in India and that Jambudvipa was in ancient Lanka. We now possess enough evidence to prove it.
      India does not have a written history of Buddhism. I challenge anyone to prove India’s history of Buddhism without referring to (distorted) Mahawansa.
      The original Mahawansa was written by our Sinhalese ancestors and it was not one book but a series of hundreds of palm-leaf manuscripts written in chronological order in Hela or Elu letters.
      In the 5th Century AD, a Malabar monk (not necessarily a Buddhist monk) visited Sihaladvipa or Heladvipa to COPY the history of Buddhism from our palm-leaf manuscripts.
      It was this Malabar monk, namely Mahanaman, who distorted our history attributing prominence to Male or Malabar. He has even gone to the extent of portraying our Sinhalese Kings as Tamils. There is no record of Malabari Tamil (Kalinga/Chola/Chera/Pandya) invasions in South Indian history.
      It was Willem Geiger who got hold of our palm-leaf manuscripts or Manawansas and put them together as ONE Mahawansa.
      Hamuduruvane, if you check the history, you will see that Geiger had received hundreds of Mahawansa palm-leaf manuscripts from the then Chief Incumbent (a Samanera?) of Mulgirigala Temple. There is more to say. But this is not the time.

  • 5
    9

    3/5
    .
    There is even plagiarism in Malabari Mahanaman’s Mahawansa.
    Vijaya Hora’s story is only a fable. I found 3 such fables; 1. Vijaya Hora landing in Thambapanni, 2. Vijaya Hora landing in Point Pedro and 3. Vijaya Hora landing in ancient Lanka after seeing Sri Pada.
    .
    Lord Buddha was not born in May or attained Parinibbana in May, and certainly not in Maha Bharath or Great India.
    Until the 18th Century AD, our Sinhalese ancestors commemorated the Birth and Parinibbana of Lord Buddha in different months and in different places.
    Only the Enlightenment has been commemorated in May.
    It was Sri Wickrama Kannasamy, the Malabari ruler, who had combined all three Buddhist festivals as one and ordered a commemoration in May.
    Hamuduruwane, the Sinhalese people have a legitimate right to know the truth about Lord Buddha.
    They have a right to know as to why our Sinhalese ancestors illuminated the entire Kataragamapura to commemorate Lord Buddha’s Parinibbana.
    They have a right to know as to why one of our kings held Dalada Perahara from Dambadeniya to Bambaraya.

  • 6
    9

    4/5
    .
    Many times I have referred to distorted Mahawansa to save our historical evidence.
    For eg: when the previous slave government tried to sell KKS to India, I referred to the story of Sanghamitta Theri where it says the Theri brought Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi “from India” in a ship and landed in Dambakola Patuna. So, I pointed out that if Sanghamitta Theri has come “from India”, the landing port should be today’s KKS.
    The story is true, except for the “origin” of her journey.
    Then again, referring to various books, three years ago, I mentioned here that Prince Sapumal is the son of a South Indian Karaiyar leader who was hired by King Parakramabahu VI to fight against Mukkuvars. I still want to hold on to that story, as there is some invaluable archaeological evidence to be protected before revealing the true story.

    • 8
      4

      Champa,
      “The story is true, except for the “origin” of her journey”
      If it is so, why would she use a ship?
      She could have walked, and even so, what was the need to do even that?
      How do you explain the Buddhist artefacts found in India, which are much older than anything found here?
      Really, it’s OK to be a nut-case, but you and Jambu are the limit.

      • 2
        9

        old codger
        In ancient times, our Sinhalese kings and ancestors have used inland water transport extensively.
        According to records, Sinhalese Kandyan kings have ordered ships and boats from “Bintenne” even in the 18th Century AD.
        The Kingdom of Mahiyangana was a very important, large kingdom which is totally omitted in the distorted Mahawansa.

        • 6
          3

          Champa,
          How come the Sanchi stupa complex is older than the Thuparamaya?
          The fact is that the Sinhalese speak an Indian based language, have an Indian-originated culture, eat mostly Indian influenced food and wear Indian influenced clothes. Why are you struggling against Indian Buddhism? You are as Indian as a Singaporean is Chinese.

          • 4
            5

            old codger
            Who built the Sanchi stupa and when? Don’t tell me it is Asoka as there is no king with that name in the Indian history.
            Our language Sinhala, Hela or Elu is not based on any Indian language. Our alphabet has no similarity to any Indian language. Even the original Sanskrit and Pali were written in Elu letters. It is India which was influenced by our Sinhalese civilization.
            We have a unique culture independent from Indian or any other foreign culture and we have our own cuisine. Over the years, interested parties have mixed up our culture with Indians. But one day, our original culture and cuisine will be highlighted.
            We don’t wear Indian influenced clothes. It is actually the other way. I have proof. Indians didn’t even wear clothes in ancient times. Compare your ancient art with our ancient art and see who is wearing clothes. Now don’t talk about Sigiri girls. I have evidence to prove that Sigiri paintings have nothing to do with our Sinhalese artists.

            • 5
              3

              Champa,
              As I have suggested before, why not write your own history book and put all those fake historians out of business, such as the ones who actually dug the relic caskets out of the ground, whereas you and Jambu have found true history suiting at home. Most of my friends are Sinhala Buddhists, but even the more intelligent ones are unbelievably gullible.

            • 5
              3

              Champa,
              There is no need to know who built Sanchi to find its age. Have you never heard of radio-carbon dating?

            • 5
              3

              Champa,
              “Our alphabet has no similarity to any Indian language”
              You make such incredible
              assumptions on no evidence at all. Just have a look at the Malayalam alphabet. Don’t talk about things you clearly know nothing about.

              • 5
                0

                “Don’t tell me it is Asoka as there is no king with that name in the Indian history.”
                Does not Asoka or a close relative not receive a mention in the Mahavamsa?
                *
                “Even the original Sanskrit and Pali were written in Elu letters. It is India which was influenced by our Sinhalese civilization.”
                I have not come across any Elu inscriptions. Where can I find some?
                How is that the the Sinhala script is closest to Malayalam (even closer than to Tamil)?

                • 0
                  0

                  I think this Champa is in the process of writing a Chimpwamsa which will someday the history of his tribe.

                  I am not suggesting that history would not be taken with a grain of salt but this is not a grain of salt but a bottle of arsenic .

                  This is the problem when people have too much time on their hands they invent histroy like wiggy or this chimpy

      • 9
        5

        Dear o c, these folk don’t realize they are corroborating the Venerable Thera’s observations. They are obsessed and needy for a Sinhala Buddha.

        “They wanted to have a Sinhalese Buddha rather THE BUDDHA.”

        • 1
          12

          Sugandh,

          It seems you are still in the early stages of discovery. Buddha lived in an area known as the “Jambudipa”. The British changed the reference of this location to India. Although you will find a rock inscription in Devanagala, Sri Lanka that mention Jambudipa. It mentions how a Sri Lankan king invaded Jambudipa and made it a vassal state! Now, if Jambudipa was India then that would mean a king from a tiny kingdom in the island invaded and made India his vassal state. On the contrary, this king Parakramabahu was based in the northern region. He invaded the eastern Jambudipa region of the island where the Buddha lived. So that is just one reference to Jambudipa in the island. There are many more. The rock inscription I mentioned here and others like that are found in this article -> https://jambudipa.quora.com

          • 10
            3

            Dear Jambu… I am only interested in Buddha’s philosophies which I will consider and make up my own mind about. Completely useless to me where he was born and where he roamed about.

            Those who want to play identity politics can invest their time and efforts on propaganda about Buddha’s geographical origins while any good that can come of Buddha’s teachings has gone down the drain in Lanka.

            • 5
              1

              Dear Sugandh,
              .
              Few have ever uttered so much truth in so few words!

              • 7
                2

                Dear S_M, always glad to hear from you.

                This whole business of religion and faith is the biggest human tragedy ever! We humans are perfectly wired to execute this tragedy.

                • 9
                  1

                  Sugandh@
                  This is why repeat if few dozens of SINHALA MAN TYPE were in the country, island would have become a “real paradise”. 😉😐😐😐😐😐😐

                  • 8
                    2

                    And dozens of LMs too!

                    We see here in the CT space many who desire to live united in peace and harmony. Only if we could extrapolate that to the real world!

                    • 8
                      0

                      Sugandh,
                      thanks for the complement. I have been doing my best revealing all what I know about the criminals for the last 10 years. What counts me is that we are all srialnkens. All citizens should be treated equally.

                  • 0
                    1

                    leelas balli

                    yes if we have more of these traitor humbugs we would actually be slaves.

            • 3
              8

              Well it cannot be entirely useless to you. It may help to shed some light for example why the British walk into the human rights council demanding to uphold the rights of Prabakaran and Pottu Amman! That too in the middle of a pandemic! This weird behaviour and the history of the island are all connected. Find here how -> https://qr.ae/TUtFWm

              • 5
                4

                Jambu,
                “why the British walk into the human rights council demanding to uphold the rights of Prabakaran and Pottu Amman”
                Ah, now the wolf in sheep’s clothing is exposed!
                So, in your version of Buddhism, killing suspects without trial, murdering innocent civilians, raping women, is all acceptable behaviour? Buddha the Indian would be so glad you are distancing yourself from his truly great philosophy!

              • 9
                3

                Jambu, I can see you are good at creating such connections. I think it’s because you are not interested in Buddha’s teachings. You want to play Buddha as a trump card for your own agenda.

            • 7
              2

              Sugandh
              You are absolutely right. First of all, Buddhas are not born, they attain Buddhahood. What does it matter wheather Sidhartha Gauthama was born in Bulguria or in Balukistan or in the North Pole or in Mars. What matters is the Dhamma what he preached and not his birthplace.

              • 8
                0

                LC,
                what is being practised in SL is not buddhism, but BUDDHAGAMA going by Mahawansa. My question is why Mahawanse was not subjected to its due revisions while all other scripts of that nature have been revised not once several times so far.

                Most what is being preached by SRILANKEN start monks are based on Jathaka tales. People are misled by them ye ttoday. Look at the manner almost everyone would think yet today that blood would turn out to be a human milk… during maternity of a mother. Truth as it is, it is not blood but mamaglands and its specific cells produce milk. And this common to all mammalians.

                • 0
                  1

                  Leela,

                  Rituals such as you describe are dangerous. But what you see in SL Buddhism is nothing compared to India. First of all, India has a caste system (open discrimination) that still keeps millions of people in poverty. Secondly, people have no sense of public hygiene. They bathe and sh-t in so-called “Ganges” at the same time. They also burn bodies (cremate) near the same river. They have smelly rituals involving ghee and thala thel. Worst thing in SL are people paying homage to Buddha statues. Mahavamsa is quite accurate, given the supporting archeological evidence. If Mahavamsa was wrong, there won’t be any “Buddhism” in SL today.

                • 3
                  1

                  leelagemalli
                  “what is being practised in SL is not buddhism, but BUDDHAGAMA going by Mahawansa”
                  You are absolutely correct.
                  The BUDDHAGAMA practiced in Sri Lanka, better known as Sinhala-Buddhism or Mahavamsa-Buddhism is different from the Theravada Buddhism practiced in other countries such as Thailand, Cambodia and so on. Since the Buddhist scriptures (Tripitaka) and the mythical Buddhist history (Mahavamsa) were both written in the Pali language, a Buddhist layperson who does not understand Pali cannot understand the difference between the two and, therefore, he/she believes everything that the Buddhist monks preach, to be the true words of Buddha. Today, due to ignorance, the rogue monks (Hora Ganayas) are brainwashing the present day Sinhala-Buddhists to believe that they are blood relatives of Buddha.

              • 0
                0

                LC
                I like that.
                I often think that of the three sloga chant
                Buddham saranam hachchami
                Dhammam saranam hachchami
                Sangam saranam hachchami
                only the second mattered.

                • 0
                  0

                  Sorry typo.
                  kachchami no h.

          • 7
            3

            Hi Jumbo,
            “The British changed the reference of this location to India”
            When did British do this in 1796 or 1815, after the Chieftains betrayed the kingdom to the British in Kandy?
            Does the Mahavamsa great chronicle of SL state as to this?
            All of the bad tidings that came upon SL due to the British.
            What did the British Gain? Fantasy. if no gain why did they do it?
            Just because, they wanted you to discover it.
            Very smart and clever

            • 1
              6

              The link above clearly show how before 1850’s the world knew the Buddha lived in the island of Ceylon. A fella known as Anton Furer produces a fake pillar with an inscription in Nepal. When caught plagiarising he confesses he lied. Although the revised birthplace is where the history stood from that point onwards. The Buddha’s authentic history was unearthed in 2009. It has stood up to 12 years of scrutiny. I can assure you the history is based on an excellent foundation.

          • 4
            3

            Jambu,
            “then that would mean a king from a tiny kingdom in the island invaded and made India his vassal state. “
            Well, didn’t the British do that from much further away?

            • 6
              0

              OC
              The only way to combat absurdity is with absurdity.
              Will someone unleash the Lemuria-Kumarikkandam theory on him.
              There is a medical practitioner around who can help, I do not mean professionally.

              • 4
                1

                SJ,
                I am digging around for a few absurdities.

                • 0
                  1

                  old codger
                  For your information, the ‘Raavana’ Cult and the ‘Buddha’s birthplace is Sri Lanka’ Cult have already adopted Lemuria-Kumarikanda (that went under a massive quake of the sea) as part of greater Sri Lanka during Raavana and Buddha’s period. All Indo-Aryan languages (including Pali, Sanskrit) are claimed to be derived from Sinhala by the Raavana cult. A remarkable literature has been woven, with the standard Buddhist history rejected as an anti-national conspiracy to hide the truth. You don’t have to dig anything, just refer to their stories. Our fellows are nowhere compared to them. More than absurdity, it is absolutely hilarious.

        • 2
          11

          Sugandh
          When the Buddha was believed to be Indian, nobody had any problem.

          • 10
            5

            Champa,
            Not true.

            It is quite apparent and frequent that you and the likes of you find it a problem that Buddha wasn’t a Singhalese from SriLanka. Your club find it to be such a big problem, so much so you take great efforts to sell your propaganda.

            Who’s the loser in all of this? Buddhism.

            • 2
              5

              Sugandh
              What propaganda are you talking?
              .
              First of all, finding the truth about the places where Lord Buddha was born, attained Enlightenment, delivered his first sermon and attained Parinibbana is EXTREMELY important to all Buddhists.
              .
              Your reply to Jambu which is mentioned below shows that you have no knowledge about Buddhism:-
              “Dear Jambu… I am only interested in Buddha’s philosophies which I will consider and make up my own mind about. Completely useless to me where he was born and where he roamed about.” – Sugandh
              .
              Sugandh
              I assume that you have never heard of “Maha Parinibbana Sutta” where Lord Buddha himself spoke of the “benefit of pilgrimage to four holy places (sanvejaniya sthana)”.
              When Ananda Thero asked Lord Buddha “how people in the future could SEE Buddha after Parinibbana”, Lord Buddha named the following places where a pious person could visit and look upon with emotional serenity:-
              1) The place where Lord Buddha was born.
              2) The place where Lord Buddha attained enlightenment.
              3) The place where Lord Buddha delivered his first sermon.
              4) The place where Lord Buddha attained the state of Parinibbana.
              Therefore, if anybody knowingly misleads people to visit wrong places, it is a great sin.
              Interestingly, all these four places could be recognized with sacred trees!
              The ultimate wish of the Sinhalese Buddhists is to “see the Lord Buddha”.

              • 1
                8

                The ultimate wish of the Sinhalese Buddhists is to “see the Lord Buddha”.
                However, until a small group of devoted Theravada Buddhists found these four places in Sri Lanka after years of extensive research, many people were not aware.
                .
                CT, Thank you for publishing my long comment. I realized it only after it was posted.

                • 8
                  2

                  Dear Champa,
                  I am not an expert on any religion. But I think you are going about Buddhism the wrong way just as much everyone else seems to go about any religion.

                  Religion is a personal thing, and it’s a culturally conditioned behaviour for most. So please speak for yourself and not all Buddhists and not all Sinhalese Buddhists.

                  Did Buddha wish that those who follow his teachings visit his birth place, the trees that he sat under, or idolize anything or seek to be with him after his death? Or is this a circus the Buddhist cult has created in total abomination of Buddha’s teachings?

                  Did Buddha or his teachings wish for anyone
                  to stake claim to life philosophies that transcend any human identity? Did he wish to attach himself to any identity… specially The Sinhalese brand?

                  Once again, you are corroborating everything that the Venerable Thera has written here.

                  • 1
                    9

                    Sugandh
                    Oh, finally, you have admitted that you know nothing about Buddhism. I hope Sinhala_Man has seen this comment.
                    Non-Buddhists have this unholy habit of trying to show that they know Buddhism more than Buddhists. If I don’t write a rebuttal, it is an injustice to my fellow Sinhalese Buddhists.
                    Buddhists in Sri Lanka or the Sinhalese Buddhists are different from any other Buddhists in the world.
                    As I pointed out somewhere else, Sinhalese culture and Buddhism are inextricably entwined. Every stage of our life is connected to Buddhism.
                    As Venerable Elle Gunawansa Thero pointed out at a television discussion, there is no other Buddhist country that celebrates Vesak as the way we lightened the entire country and the way we offer plenty of free food by way of Dan-sal or commemorates Vesak the way we observe Sil in every temple in the country.
                    My fervent hope is to see a permanent Dan-sala in every major Buddhist temple in the country, so that no one, even animals, has to starve. Too bad we could not hold Dan-sal in this Vesak week, otherwise, as Basil Fernando has revealed in his article, no one has to die on the road when they go out in search of food!

                    • 2
                      8

                      Sugandh
                      You ask, “Did Buddha wish that those who follow his teachings visit his birth place, the trees…………………..” I have already answered this question. Of course, Lord Buddha did. Check my comment again. I have given the source. Read “Maha Parinibbana Sutta 16.5 and 6” and find this out by yourself. Have you ever experienced emotional serenity? I have and so many others also have experienced. Therefore, I can speak on behalf of those who have similar experience and request others to experience the same at least once in their lifetime.

                    • 7
                      4

                      Champa, I said I am not an expert on any religion. Do you see how quickly you distorted that to say I know nothing about Buddha’s teachings? Is this because of the emotional serenity that you experience from your religious practice?

                      Again, please speak for your own emotional serenity; don’t enumerate how many others have attained it; that’s just advertising Buddhism as a commodity. Your multiple postings here don’t indicate any serenity.

                      One doesn’t need any religion to attain emotional serenity. One doesn’t need any religion to differentiate good from evil.

                      Your brand of religious practice is divisive, cultish, nationalistic, and detrimental as has already been proven.

                    • 6
                      4

                      “Sinhalese culture and Buddhism are inextricably entwined”
                      Don David Hewavitarana who was born into a Catholic Salagama family later became known as Anagarika Dharmapala, a Sinhala-Buddhist supremacist who was responsible for yoking Sinhala and Buddhism together. He was the father of Sinhala-Buddhist nationalism (Buddhist nationalism has its roots in the Dīpavamsa and Mahāvamsa but not Sinhala-Buddhist nationalism). He desperately needed the Aryan myth to distinguish the Sinhala-Buddhists from the rest of the population in Ceylon. Since Buddha was a North Indian and as per the Mahavamsa, Vijaya and his men were also North Indians and Sinhala also was an Indo-Aryan language, it became very convenient for him to label the Sinhala-Buddhists as ‘Aryans’ (North Indian). Armed with the Mahavamsa-inspired ideology as the Orthodox Theravada Buddhist doctrine of the Sinhala Buddhists, he declared, “This bright and beautiful Island was made into a paradise by Aryan Sinhalese”. He preached that Sinhalese – the Lion Race – are a superior people descended from pure Aryan stock. If research was done on Sinhalese (including him) who considered themselves pure in lineage (with pure Aryan blood), it would prove otherwise. His exhortations brought about a fanatical Sinhala-Buddhist national consciousness. The new wave of Sinhala-Buddhist awakening (a Political Buddhism).

                    • 8
                      1

                      Hello SENSITIVE Readers !!!!

                      “Sinhalese culture and Buddhism are inextricably entwined”

                      Let me correct this – SINHALESE CULTURE AND BUDDHAGAMA (which is not buddhism as taught by LB, but a life style form following Mahawansa) MAY BE INEXTRICABLY INTERTWINED.

                      BUDDHAGAMA is based on a MAHANWANSA, which was written by MONK Mahanama. The Mahavamsa, written around 400 CE by the monk Mahanama, using the Deepavamsa, the Attakatha and other written sources available to him, correlates well with Indian histories of the period. Indeed, Emperor Ashoka’s reign is recorded in the Mahavamsa

                      Btw, Is that the reason why they today kill people in remand not thinking twice ? Since GOTABAYA-AND MARAYA returned to power, how many were gunned down in POLICE remand as ” extra judicial killings” ? We have no doubt, we would also be gunned down during our next travel – as their siamese brother from BELARUS did it with the dissident journalist few days ago.
                      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqHOUPiTw_o
                      .
                      And I thought TRUE BUDDHISM is based on ” NON-VIOLENCE” අවිහින්සාවාදය.That is what I was told by buddhism teachers in DAHAM PASALA those days ( mid 70ties to early 80ties).

                    • 0
                      1

                      you are a frog in a well who has not seen a lake. Sad to say.

                      Sinhalese Buddhists are not that speacial. even though I admit Sri Lanka is a speacial country in the history of Buddhism.

                      What we do , almost all Burmese , Thai , Laotians Cambodians do. There are differences but in the end their traditions are not that different. I know this because my wife is half Thai and half Cambodian. and I do visit both Thai Cambodian and Sri Lankan temples.

                  • 3
                    0

                    Sugandh,
.
So do I. Almost everyone of us born to the religion dont know much about true teachings of buddhism. May be few, like Champa, may have studied Suthras and PITAKAYA in depths.
                    Sinhala buddhism has become a life style in SL. Similar to what is being practised in Thailand. Just imagine, if you would please interview few hundreds that gather to observe sil at Kelaniya, about their basic knowledge of buddhism, not many of them would be aware the bascis. That is the saddest reality of SINHALA buddhists. I know my relatives and some known to me that observe sil almost every poya day and go on giving free food to the monks. However most among them dont behave like real good buddhists in their day today life. I know how they look down upon their domestic servants. and some to their employees. If they are real good buddhists, they should let alone adhere to ” five precepts” or not ?
Rajapakshes go on licking the bo tree … pretending there cant be any better buddhists than they themselves. To the eyes of majority of the nation, it is public secret how they committed high crimes. How they looted the state as no other leaders did it sofar.

              • 0
                0

                Champa,
                Do not be so gullible as to fall for Jambu’s fake history, where he claims Bahiya travelled the distance to Savatthi in one day. What the Tripitaka says is:
                “There is, Bahiya, in a far country a town called Savatthi. There the Lord now lives who is the Arahant, the Fully Enlightened One. “……
                “Then Bahiya of the Bark-cloth, profoundly stirred by the words of that devata, then and there departed from Supparaka. Stopping only for one night everywhere (along the way), he went to Savatthi where the Lord was staying in the Jeta Wood.”
                It is clear that Savatthi is in “a far country” . All that is claimed is that Bahiya stopped over during only one night, which means that he rested briefly at other times.
                Does one have lie to prove points?

              • 0
                0

                “Interestingly, all these four places could be recognized with sacred trees!”

                According to the Archaeological department and Archaeology Chakravarty Ven Ellawala Medhananda, none of these trees (what the Hora Ganayas claim) are more than 500 years old. LOL!

              • 0
                0

                Chimpi

                if you actually told what should be important to a buddhist when the buddha was alive he would have been saddned.

                As buddha said numerours times what is important is ones salvation not where anyone was born .

          • 8
            4

            The Buddhist history regards Lumbini in ancient India (present-day Nepal) as the birthplace of Siddhārtha Gautama who became the Buddha. The place was known as Jambudvīpa which literally refers to “the land of Jambu trees” in present Nepal, and he grew up in Kapilavastu, India. You find plenty of Jambu trees in India, Thailand, and Sri Lanka. For a very long time the people in Thailand and Laos believe that Buddha was born in the present land known as Suwannabhumi in Thailand (mentioned in the Tripitaka as “Jambodvip-meaning the land of Jambo trees which they believe is Thailand) and now (very recently), the Sri Lankans are also claiming something similar. The recent Sri Lankan claim is a Chinese conspiracy (heavily funded by China) to keep the Sri Lankans away from India. They managed to find a rogue Monk (hora ganaya) from somewhere Mirigama who is an expert in concocting fairytales which cannot be proved with archeological evidence. Several educated professionals are drawn into it by paying them handsomely. The easiest thing is to blame the Suddha (British) for everything as usual. Fortunately, the archeological department of Sri Lanka has rejected this hilarious claim.

        • 0
          1

          After the Buddhist revivalist period instigated by Don Niculas Gunawardhana aka Hikkaduwa Sri Sumangala along with a few others, many Catholics from the Western and Southern parts of the country converted enmass to Buddhism. One of them was Don David Hewavitarana aka Anagarika Dharmapala who was later responsible for yoking Sinhala and Buddhism together and creating a Sinhala-Buddhist race and a religion called Sinhala-Buddhism where Buddha’s philosophy (Tripitaka) was mixed up with mythical Buddhist history (Mahavamsa) converting it into a political religion ideal for politicians to win elections. Later he called Sri Lanka a Sinhala-Buddhist country (that the non-Sinhala Buddhists never accepted then as well as now). He created a Rata (Sinhala-Buddhist country), Jathiya (Sinhala-Buddhist race) and Aagama (Sinhala-Buddhist religion). The only thing he did not create was a Sinhala-Buddhist Buddha. Instead, he went to India and lived where Buddha was living and called himself a homeless one. Today, what is missing is a Sinhala Buddha. For a long time, the Sinhala-Buddhists had a dream of creating a Sinhala Buddha in Sri Lanka to complete the mission that Anagarika Dharmapala started. Finally they found a Hora Ganaya who was very capable of creating/concocting wonderful stories. Along with several others (well educated), they started the project and created a Sri Lankan born Sinhala Buddha and thanks to China for funding the project.

      • 6
        1

        Yes, old codger, all that Champa has said above is much too far fetched for me to accept.
        .
        Nevertheless, it is good to have Champa around because whatever she says is her thinking, not what she has been paid to say.
        .
        There’s plenty of new stuff that has come in below this article, in its dying “comments-period”:
        .
        https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/time-to-pull-down-politicians-from-their-pedestals/
        .
        How objective a statement is for you to judge, since most of it has been said by me!

        • 5
          2

          SM,
          “Whatever Champa says is her thinking, not what she has been paid to say”
          Either she/he is just another gullible like several others, being mislead by Hora Ganayas and their organization or part of the organization getting paid for propagating their concocted fiction/fairytales. Out of ignorance and innocence, many Sinhala-Buddhists cannot understand or unable to differentiate (not capable of distinguishing) myth from truth. They cling onto the myths and refuse to move in any progressive direction. Champa is just one example.

        • 3
          0

          SM,
          .
          that is called TUNNEL VISION SYNDROME: tunnel vision syndrome WHICH prevents the sufferer not allowing him or her to recognize anything else, but to believe only what is being taught to her or him.
          .
          The very same CHAMPA was blind believer of WIMAL SANGIILIA WEERAWANSE until few months ago.
          :
          Surprisingly enough, today SINHALA NATIONALIST Champa behaves as if she does not know WIMAL BURUWANSE anymore.
          :
          So please wait, she will very likely become normal in next few months. Atleast let us hope the best for her..

  • 4
    11

    5/5
    .
    As for Vinaya (Discipline), out of 5 books of Vinaya Pitakaya, the first and second books, namely; ‘Parajika’ and ‘Patichcha’ are about expulsion from the priesthood a.k.a. criminal code. The third and fourth books, namely; ‘Maha Vagga’ and ‘Chula Vagga’, are about civil code. How many Buddhist monks, who are divided into Nikayas, respect these laws?
    Throughout our history, Maha Sangha has played a prominent role in protecting Buddhism, the Sinhalese nation and the environment. When there are threats to our nation, Maha Sangha always comes forward to protect our country. Hamuduruwane, there is no clause in Vinaya Pitakaya restricting Buddhist monks from doing that.

    • 9
      6

      Champa,
      “When there are threats to our nation, Maha Sangha always comes forward to protect our country.”
      Like the way they advised the chieftains to invite the British?

      • 2
        10

        old codger
        It is debatable.

        • 7
          4

          Champa,
          “It is debatable”
          Sometimes an interest group’s interest coincide with the interests of other groups. The Maha Sangha is just one group. Don’t confuse them with the nation.

      • 9
        3

        OC and others,

        During the last four decades the majority Sri Lankans, especially Sinhala Buddhists have been witnessing a psychological confusion with respect to attitudes of India. They most often felt India as a “regional policeman”, an unfriendly bully rather than a caring elder brother. This anti-Indian sentiment aggravated when India air-dropped dhal in the late 80s and recent decisions taken by India at International Fora to vote against Sri Lanka thereby affecting the cultural ties that the Sinhala-Buddhists had with India for thousands of years. For example, even the last king of Sri Lanka (Kandy) was an import from India. On one side, they have developed a burning fire within themselves against India but on the other side, the originator of their religion, Buddha and the initiator of their race, Vijaya according to their bible of history, “Mahawansa” were Indians. Due to the above reason, the majority Sinhala-Buddhists were looking for a Sri Lankan birth certificate to Buddha and digging the graves of the mythical “Ravana” to replace Vijaya in order to negate the claims of Indian originated race stated in the Pali Chronicles Mahawansa and Dipawansa.
        Continued…

        • 8
          3

          Continued from above…
          With the support of the Chinese, they launched a long-term project ‘Lanka is the birthplace of Buddha’ and initiated a ‘Raavana cult’ to break the bond that the people of Sri Lanka have with India due to the Buddha and prince Vijaya. With Chinese money, they have bought university professors/academics, highly educated professionals and the educated Buddhist cleargy for this campaign and a remarkable literature has been woven rejecting the Pali chronicles and parts of the Pali cannon. The original Buddhist history and some parts of the original Buddhist scriptures were rejected as an anti-national conspiracy to hide the truth. They have written many books in Sinhala on ‘Buddha’s birth place in Sri Lanka’ and the ‘Ravana’ story thereby rejecting the Vijaya story as a myth. Stage dramas, teledramas and movies are also produced on ‘Ravana’ story. They have also adopted ‘Siv-Hela’ as the four original tribes of Lanka rejecting ‘Sinhala’ originated by Vijaya.
          The newly concocted history is spreading like wild fire among the majority Sri Lankans and unfortunately, the Sinhala-Buddhist society is either not willing or not capable of distinguishing lies and myths from facts. It is tragic to see that the Buddhist religion and the Buddhist history are so badly distorted by the so called guardians of Buddhism.

          • 5
            1

            LC,
            Sadly,.even some Indians, who should know better, have bought into the Ravana story with a fake Sita temple and the alleged Ram Setu.

            • 3
              0

              OC,
              That is because the Ramayana mythology is sacred to them. Indian tourists also have their own version of the Raavana Myth and they travel to Sri Lanka to visit places related to Raavana and Sita. They believe that domesticated winged dinosaurs were used by Sri Lankan king as virtual spy planes (launched from the huge cave at Ella) to fight off an army of gigantic dinosaur gorillas from south Indian invaders — which led to the whole Ravanna myth. Place names like “Sheetha Ella” (Cold water fall) have been conveniently changed to “Sita Ella” (Sita’s waterfall).

          • 1
            6

            /* It is tragic to see that the Buddhist religion and the Buddhist history are so badly distorted by the so called guardians of Buddhism. */
            I don’t see any distortions here though-> https://qr.ae/TUtFWm
            Can you explain any issues with the items you see here?

      • 8
        0

        Old Codger,
        .
        Why is that the very same so called ” Maha Sangha” became silent regarding PORT AUTHORITY BILL. What happened to our ALPHA ANIMAL IN ROBES nonother than BBS head ? Not vocal at all why ? I thought SO CALLED PATRIOTISM would not be betrayed easily…. am I wrong ?
        :
        And all other heads nakedly became the decorative animals of the RAJAPAKSHE POHOTTUWA ELECTION campaign. What they robbed was – pancha maha balawega.. or something similar to that ?
        .
        What happened to that MADAGODA ABEYTHISSA MUDALALI ?
        .
        Why did they all go to hibernation mode today ?

    • 5
      1

      Champa

      “When there are threats to our nation, Maha Sangha always comes forward to protect our country. “

      Give us one example when the Maha Sangha came out to fight against threat?
      Gota’s goons threatened Maha Sangha if they participated in the protest in support of Sarath Fonseka being incarcerated for treason. Maha Sangha being Maha Sngha didn’t travel to Colombo the next day, just chickened out.

      During the Mahinda’s 100 days coup Sangha was keeping a deafening silence.

      Where did you get the idea Maha Sangha were on the right side, supporting just causes? Even now a certain caste dominates Maha Sangha.

      Could you name members of Karaka Saba and their respective castes?

      In a few years time are you going to change your mind about the Sangha as you did with the clan, Gota, Mahinda and Weerawansa as if nothing has happened.

      • 1
        0

        Native,
        Champa is dead if you talk about the Sangha’s caste system.

        • 1
          0

          Deaf

  • 3
    8

    I happen to see a good discussion on Vesak based on our own tradition, on TV.
    .
    https://youtu.be/4WzNhaAWT3o
    .
    Vesak is both a cultural celebration and a religious commemoration.
    I wish to extend my deepest gratitude to Venerable Elle Gunawansa Thero and Venerable Kotmale Kumarakassapa Thero for reminding everybody the value of celebrating and commemorating Vesak which is unique to the Sinhalese Buddhist people.

    • 6
      1

      I think that the Buddha should soon pay a visit and sort this mess.
      *
      There was an invitation from a 71 April JVP rebel in the form of a graffiti near a Buddha statue which read:
      ” You have been idly seated here for too long. Time that you got up.”
      50 years on it is time for a reminder.

  • 4
    4

    Venerable Sir, my humble Thank you with gratitude for the excellent article, I must say, a literary production worthy of reading and to emulate by all irrespective of what social group they belong to.
    The fundamental truth in all religions is one and the same. The underlying essence in all religions is universal love, tolerance, and respect for other religions. All religions proclaim ‘ Unity of Divinity ‘. Those who are ignorant of this basic truth or they refuse to accept it are creating great confusion, chaos and sometimes violence among the innocent masses thereby fragmenting Divinity.
    Mankind’s search for God has led people down thousands of pathways as is evidenced by the diversity of religions, cults and sects as told by Swami Vivekananda.
    ‘Truth is one, paths are many’. That is why no Hindu religious leader ever claimed that Hinduism is the only way to salvation or God-realization.
    Emeritus Prof. Gananath Obeyesekera in one of his publications queried as to why Buddhism, a religion that is given to an ethic of radical non-violence, has produced a nation Sri Lanka, that has over the last few decades produced a culture of extreme violence.
    I am too unable to comprehend why the Maha Nayakas of the different Nikayas observe complete silence and allow unhindered space for the Buddhist monks militancy to grow unchecked.
    Thank you.

  • 8
    3

    Buddha was born in India – there’s no dispute about that fact, and hence there’s nothing to discuss about that. If somebody can claim that Buddha was born here, then on the same basis somebody else can claim that the Buddha was born in planet Mars – both claims have equal validity and proof.
     
    The totally moronic claim that Buddha was born here, is not only blasphemic its also illegal according to international laws of cultural, historical and religious heritage. It is also a majour case of falsifying the historical record of both Srilanka and India and also Buddhism, which is a criminal act. One must never discuss with these lunatics or even mention their falsehoods, as discussing these totally idiotic claims, make them believe that they have a valid case and inadvertently we give legitimacy to their claims.
     
    The only way to stop them propagating this lie is through legal actions. There were some monks and Buddhist leaders who had warned about taking legal action, but nothing has been done yet. We owe it to Emperor Asoka, Mahinda Thero and Sangamitta Theri for the gift of Dharma that they gave us, to stop these lunatics.

    • 7
      2

      Buddhas are not born, they attain. What is relevant to the Buddhists is Buddha’s philosophy (Dhamma) and not his birthplace or death place or where he attained Buddhahood. Those monks who go in search of Buddha’s birthplace are Hora Ganayas (heavily funded from outside with a big hidden agenda) and those who follow these Hora Ganayas are either misguided Buddhists (who gets a thrill that Buddha was one of them) or some highly educated professionals who are well paid to propagate this concocted story (without any provable archeological evidence). This is nothing but a conspiracy and it is believed that China is funding for this project to keep the Sri Lankans away from India or rather to break the link that the Sri Lankans had with India for 2500 years. For a long time now, Thailand also claims that Buddha’s birthplace was in Suwannabhumi in Thailand. However, the truth is Lumbini in ancient India (presently Nepal) is proved to be the actual birthplace in 563 BCE of Prince Siddhartha Gautama, who achieved enlightenment about 35 years later and became Buddha.
      Continued…

      • 6
        2

        Continued from above…
        There are too many Hora Ganayas in Sri Lanka preaching (or rather misinterpreting) Buddha’s Dhamma. It is tragic to see that the Buddhist philosophy is dragged down to such a low level by exploiting the respect that the Buddhist society has for the saffron robed Sangha. They are not only misleading the gullible Buddhists (who cannot differentiate between a genuine Buddhist Bikku and a Hora Ganaya/rogue monk) but also betraying Buddhism and insulting the Buddha. Unfortunately in Sri Lanka, there is no central authority (Buddhist Disciplinary Commission/Committee) to monitor/control the behavior/actions of the Buddhist Sasana to see if they are aligned with the Buddhist Vinaya (disciplinary code). The Buddhasasana ministry is only a silent observer to all the anti-Buddhist acts committed by these Hora Ganayas. Even the Mahanayake Theros of the four main Nikayas have no authority to punish these Hora Ganayas (or rather rogues and rowdies in robes). Due to this, unfortunately Buddhism has to pay the price.

        • 0
          0

          Thanks to anti-Buddhists and anti-Sinhalese Tamils like you, Buddhism is not the state religion now. Even after independence from British tyranny, the Sinhalese were deprived of re-establishing Buddhism as the state religion. If Buddhism was the state religion of this island as it was in pre-British occupation and pre-Tamil occupation of the north, then handling the monks who do not adhere to discipline expected of monks could have been dealt with by the state and “The Buddhasasana ministry….” won’t be “only a silent observer…. ” . As it is now, Tamils and Muslims won’t allow Buddhism to be made the state religion; therefore the state cannot legally interfere and take action, as was the practice earlier. This is one good example of how the Tamil invasion and migration to the Sinhalese island has caused destruction to the Sinhalese and the Buddhist social and religious order. I wonder what the situation would have been if the Tamils didn’t invade and destroy the Sinhalese capital of Anuradhapura, and then Polonnaruwa, and let the Sinhalese live in peace. Would the Sinhalese been able to protect the island from Europeans and avoided corrupt politicians and monks and also Tamil and Muslim harassment altogether?

      • 0
        0

        It is evident that you have no religious, cultural, social or historical basis for understanding Buddhism or the Sinhalese or for that matter what this island is, as you are a Tamil. All this is alien stuff for you, but want to have an opinion – this is why you have the need to write that “Buddhas are not born, they attain.” Everything you have written here is so out of place – it shows how far removed you are from Buddhism, Sinhalese and this island – “Hindu caste politics” cannot be operational in the Sinhalese Buddhist society as Sinhalese Buddhist society does not have the social or religious basis for “Hindu caste politics” . Your Tamil Hindu caste system is religiously sanctioned, while the Sinhalese caste system is not. Since you are a Tamil you try to find answers in your totally oppressive and downright repulsive caste system and caste politics, where people are segregated and discriminated in the most inhumane way. There was this Tamil called J.L. Devananda (he didn’t Tamilize Devananda by adding an -n to his name), who had written some hateful things about Sinhalese and Buddhism, you sound very much like him.

    • 5
      1

      PP,
      “The only way to stop them propagating this lie is through legal actions. “
      As in Saudi Arabia, I presume.
      I always knew you were their secret admirer.

      • 1
        0

        P.P,
        “is not only blasphemic its also illegal according to international laws “
        I know you will never answer this, but please tell us which “International law” bans blasphemy? Chapter and verse please.

  • 5
    5

    This question of whether Buddha was born in India or Sri Lanka is irrelevant. Since most of the known history of Sri Lanka consists of fending off invaders who wished to impose their own traditions and usurp Buddhism from the island entirely. This “invasion” continues today, albeit in the form of human rights inquiries and demands for separatism. It is remarkable that Sri Lanka has upheld the original “Theravada Buddhist” tradition for so long, given these circumstances. No doubt, the supreme sacrifice came from the kings and monks.

    • 5
      1

      Lester,
      “No doubt, the supreme sacrifice came from the kings and monks.”
      For once, you’re absolutely right.
      The monks sacrificed the last king, of course.

    • 5
      1

      ***It is remarkable that Sri Lanka has upheld the original “Theravada Buddhist” tradition for so long, given these circumstances.***

      While the earlier tradition of Buddhism in Sri Lanka was Asoka’s Buddhism introduced by Arahat Mahinda which was similar to the earlier Buddhism that was in South India. The present day Buddhism in Sri Lanka was imported from Thailand and Burma. Sri Lanka did not spread (export Buddhism), it only brought down (imported Buddhism) Theravada message from Siam (Thailand) and Burma (Myanmar).
      The need to bring them from there arose as Buddhism has died out in Sri Lanka for several centuries and needed to be re-established. In order to re-establish the lost Buddhism in Sri Lanka, Siam Nikaya from Thailand (Malwathu and Asgiri) was established in the upcountry (Kandy) during the 18th century. Similarly Amarapura and Ramanna Nikayas from Burma were established in the early 19th century for the low country.
      It is totally a new form of Buddhism originating from Thailand (Malwathu and Asgiri) and its foundation was closely linked to both the aristocratic and Hindu caste politics. Later caste free Amarapura and Ramanna Nikaya were established by bringing Buddhism from Burma. This kind of Buddhism did not exist in Sri Lanka during the earlier period.
      Continued…

      • 5
        1

        Continuation from above…
        What the Sinhalese call as Sinhala-Buddhism has nothing to do with Sinhala/Hela or Sri Lanka or Asoka or Arahat Mahinda or 2500 years, it is imported recently (250 years ago) from Thailand and Burma.
        The start of the historical misrepresentation begins with the arrival of the Siamese Buddhist sects that were brought from Siam (present day Thailand), 250 years ago. The Mahavamsa was re-fabricated and re-written by these Buddhist monks who succeeded in misrepresenting the Buddhist history. Today the twisted history along with the myths has become the truth and the Sinhalese believe it as gospel. If anybody tries to undo the twist (after enormous amount of new discoveries) he/she will be considered an Anti-SinhalaBuddhist unpatriotic traitor.
        For those who call Sri Lanka a Buddhist country, let’s not forget that Cambodia is 97% Theravada Buddhist, Thailand is 93% Theravada Buddhist, Myanmar is 80% Theravada Buddhist, and Sri Lanka is only 69% Theravada Buddhist (that also imported from Siam/Thailand and Burma/Myanmar).

    • 0
      0

      Lester

      Agreed . But Sri Lanka by virtue of being and island has not really see the level of invasions and brutality non island nations have had to go through.

      Neither Champs nor jambu can distort this nobel religeon by messing around the edgese of what is less important . It has survived many fools and heretics. it will survive champijamby and wiggy too.

  • 1
    6

    What is going on with Buddhism is due the nature of the current Buddha Sasana. This is a Pragnadika Buddha sasana thus the authentic Dhamma emerge at certain intervals. As such the authentic Dhamma is now available after 1800 year hiatus. The history opening up is a side-effect with the emergence of the Dhamma. Although most are not enlightened enough to understand. Only 3 people in this forum appears to have the capacity to understand. Although there are signs many are recognising what has happened as can be seen here -> https://youtu.be/33A9R1te8Sw

    • 1
      0

      Dear Jambu
      Have you heard about a Professor from Canada, who, while being quite sane when talking about science, takes on multiple identities to spread crackpot theories? He is very good at disguise.

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