By Kasinathan Nadesan – 

I am scared that I am going insane or even mad. You may ask why? Thankfully I don’t live in Sri Lanka now yet I have a habit of reading Sri Lankan News. I still have a great love for my land of birth that gave me everything free from primary education, University education and even Medical postgraduate education including overseas scholarship. So how can I ever dislike or betray my motherland? As a senior doctor, I have served for 22 years and wanted to continue forever. But in 1994 after the general elections, I felt that the time had come for me to leave, leave my patriotism behind, when Mahintha Rajapaksa was appointed as the prime minister. That was a time when Chandrika became the president and the minority people had a great hope of everlasting peace in Sri Lanka. But when Mahintha became the prime minister (most likely against the wish of President Chandrika), I realized that life would become more complicated in Sri Lanka. By then, I had completed 22 years of service and thus was able to take an early retirement.

What worries me now is the way our Buddhist religion is being practiced and the way at least some Buddhist monks are handling and taking control of the religion. Sadly, in a poor and illiterate country like ours, it is very easy to hoodwink the masses, immaterial it is north or south. Very few have the ability to think rationally. Our education means nothing and merely having a certificate is of no use. Real education must produce intelligence and thus they will be in a position to think rationally, logically, look for truth, ready to search and study instead of just swallowing what others say. When I left the country in 1995 and after the civil war was over in 2009, I really believed that there would be a dramatic change in the thinking ability of the people, politicians and the Buddhist clergy. I wrongly assumed that the majority are patriotic and being believers of a great religion will be ready to unite and build a great nation. Talking of what happened 2500 years ago is a waste of time. Today, after more than 2500 years, the world has changed so much and many countries have progressed in so many ways that have given the people a great quality of life. But in Sri Lanka, with all our past history, which is mostly turned and twisted by politicians, historians, and Buddhist monks, has gone into reverse gear and more than 30% of our people are below the poverty line. From my early age I learned that religion can only flourish in ignorance and it is meant to benefit a certain group of people who are either gullible or crooks or those with political interests.

Nowhere I could find that religions have really brought peace among the followers. What is done in religions are based on blind faith and cooked up or distorted history. I don’t refer to a particular religion here but to all religions. In Sri Lanka, the major religion Buddhism is so totally politicized that no one can survive unless they bow down to the monks. Monks, somehow, using the religion and the vulnerability and gullibility of the majority people, have virtually in the process of achieving total power. Knowing this reality, politicians too are ready to bow down to monks, though not out of respect or faith. Politicians use these monks to achieve their political aims. I personally know, many educated, enlightened Buddhists are mortally scared to express their views and criticisms. This situation has further strengthened the grip the monks have on the population. The way some of the monks behave or talk is a clear proof that they are convinced that they are above the law of the land. They have now come to a stage where they believe that whatever they want to do, they can do and law cannot touch them. Besides, they have also reached a stage where they don’t care about the public opinion. There is a young immature monk who had the audacity to ask the president to hand over the power to him and go away. Though it is a joke, yet it shows the mind set of these monks who take cover behind the robe.

In Sri Lanka the minority religions Hinduism, Christianity and Islam have no numerical or political clout and thus they are watchful of their conduct. Our venerable Gnanasara Thero’s conduct in the past and present is a clear example of this reality. He has total freedom and power to do whatever he wants to do from insulting any religions or the ability to demolish their places of worship, use languages that no civilized human could use in public and promote racial and religious violence. This most shameful conduct by him is not only against the minorities but against fellow monks too. He is the only person in our history, who has walked into a court of law and insulted the entire judiciary.

Scholars note that religion is an essentially contested concept with no single, universally agreed-upon definition. Most frameworks include a mix of beliefs, moral codes, sacred texts, rituals, organized communities, and veneration of a higher power or divine reality. While religion involves lived practices and social structures, theology is the philosophically oriented study of faith statements and divine concepts. So, what is important is that religions and Gods are manmade and not vice versa. Man can exist without religions but religions cannot exist without man. But almost all religious leaders don’t accept this concept since the above belief will undermine their power and survival. So, they always have to add some supernatural, divine, supreme power to religions to make the gullible toe their lines without challenging them. They also postulated hell and heaven, karma, rebirth, etc to caution them that even if they escape in this birth, they will get caught in the next birth. If this is really true, to my mind and experience, the first to suffer are the so-called religious clergies, monks and God-men. A priest only knows that there is no God. If there is a real God, the so-called monks, godmen, clergies will be turning in fire in hell. But they are very certain there are no such things.

Hinduism, which I always refer to as “Brahminism”, was created by Brahmins in ancient times to protect their wellbeing, suppress and exploit the non-Brahmins. All Vedic literature written over a period of time is written with the same purpose. The rituals prevalent in Hindu practices are all created by wild imagination and blind beliefs. From early days I used to wonder how these rituals are of any use to humanity except just hoodwinking the vulnerable. Of course, I accept that these practices act as some form of solace and may bring some kind of peace of mind. It won’t solve an issue but may give some mental strength to face the issue. In other words, it has a tranquilising effect only.

Coming to the present crisis that is happening in Sri Lanka, I am fully convinced that this so-called uprising is not due to any real religious fervour or concern but pure political move. These monks are acting as proxies to the bankrupt politicians whose existence, luxurious lives and unquestioned misdeeds are seriously threatened under President Anura’s government. The President is only doing what he promised to the masses and thus honouring his promises. All criminal, shameless, ruthless politicians and their followers are now held responsible to pay for their sins. Can any of these protesting monks or the followers, explain as to what the President doing is wrong in any way or against the Buddhist principles? The monks’ robe issue is just an excuse only to please their political masters and it is absolutely certain that it has nothing to do with Buddhism. These guys are not protecting Buddhism, but using the religion for their political agenda.

The concept of Buddhist monastic robes (Kashaya) centres on humility, renunciation, and detachment from material possessions. Originally, the Buddha instructed monks to make robes from scavenged or discarded scraps—such as burial shrouds, old rags, or cloths left by roadsides. This practice eliminated personal vanity and financial burden. As recorded in early texts, the robe was designed simply to “ward off cold, ward off heat, ward off the touch of flies and mosquitoes,” and ensure modest coverage. The cut and layout of the fabric is traditionally said to mirror the neat, square-patterned rice fields of Magadha, symbolizing an ethical field of merit for the community. Because scavenged scraps were a mix of colours, monks boiled and dyed them with natural plant pigments—most commonly saffron, ochre, or orange, to create a unified, unassuming appearance.

So, the above clearly explains the purpose and status of the robe or “sivuru” and there is nothing magical or divine about that as claimed by some of these opportunistic monks. It is meant to be worn by people who have dedicated their lives to simplicity, humility and serve humans to understand and achieve humanity. But can anyone explain what percentage of our clergies or monks, immaterial of their religions, are following this concept? I am not blaming Buddhism alone but all the religions. Just see the Miracle Dome at Katunayake, a multimillion-dollar investment, and see the patrons? All are well attired and appear well educated but how they are hoodwinked? The Prophet is behaving as if he is taking part in a fashion parade and exhibiting his great luxurious life. The Prophet is supposed to be curing all forms of diseases that cannot be cured otherwise. I am a doctor myself, and there are no such things that are possible unless they are treating psychological conditions (Psychosomatic diseases) or just drama staged by actors. I have also examined numerous cases alleged to have been cured by Hindu Holyman, Babas, etc. they are all just fake. We also know how some of our well-known politicians got screwed by Tirupathi Deyo and Anuradhapura Kali Amma.

Coming to our Buddhist monks, how many of them really follow any of these principles of monkhood, propagated by Buddha? They are ready to fight and even change governments from doing their rightful duties, but not prepared to follow what Buddhism preaches. Expensive robes, luxury living, luxury vehicles, greed for wealth, going after political powers, arrogant, abusive language and then where is real Buddhism. Simply because a very abusive and aggressive monk was brought to court in a civil dress, it has become a huge crime to some monks whose credibility itself are under serious questions. On top of that the recent protest has clearly exposed some of the most bankrupt politicians for whom exploiting the gullible monks has become a way of survival. This group of monks are ever ready and waiting for a chance to pounce on, not to protect religion, but to serve their masters’ political agenda. Their way of survival is just racism, since they believe that next to religion racism is the best weapon to create chaos and disturb the country.

Very rightly, the president has agreed to ensure that in the future, monks will be always brought to courts in robes. But what these ignorant monks don’t realise is that the monks who are involved in various disgraceful heinous crimes brought to court in robes is the easy way to disgrace the robe and disgrace the criminal monks. But the reality is that these trouble-making monks only want an excuse and not to deal with a real issue. One bespectacled, young monk threatened that if he wanted, he could close down the entire Colombo. What an arrogant, aggressive statement and a blind courage he has. Another monk, who newly came into limelight, claimed that by bringing the monk in civil dress to court will make the angels angry. I do not know where these angels come from? This guy uses so much abusive, aggressive language and if there were real angels, this ignorant monk would have become the first victim. There is a funny monk from Batticaloa and for him mental hospital is the only salvation. These monks started with the robe, and after that issue being resolved by the president, they jumped into another issue, that is to release a criminally convicted monk. In other words, these monks thought that judiciary is a joke, government is a joke, our constitution is a joke and being Buddhist Monks, they can just do whatever they please. This itself is a proof of the mentality and ignorance of some of these mercenary monks. But the public know who their advisers and handlers are. This gang comprises of discarded four or five jokers, who themselves have lost their credibility long ago.

The funniest thing is about a bunch of monks who wanted the Secretary to the President to give a word of agreement in ten minutes on an issue that involved the judiciary and the constitution. That is another proof of their grandiose ideation. If so, no one can rule or run this country. I feel that as a first step these monks have to undergo a course about constitution, law and order, good governance and more importantly orderliness among the monks.

Dr Kasinathan Nadesan – Retired Forensic Medical Consultant, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Australia