Buddhists target Sri Lanka's Muslims

[Kazhugu]

I think there is much more to this development, that is the Buddhist rage against Muslims whether in Myanmar, or Lanka or in Tibet - it's very interesting --- The assertion of Buddhist revival or nationalism seems in these places to be predicated on opposition to the Muslim.

Myanmar & Lankan buddhists are not the same as Tibetan buddhists..while the former is of theravada school of thought....the latter is tibetan school of thought......yes...the theravada school has nationalistic pursuations......which we see in lanka, myanmar and also in other s.e asian countries......

Sure - every religion needs to fight back for their own survival against practices and forceful attempts to convert people and most probably the Sri Lankans are doing it too - Hindu's fighting back is also no different.

lankans did not fight back...they just fought......

 

[muse]

Myanmar & Lankan buddhists are not the same as Tibetan buddhists..while the former is of theravada school of thought....the latter is tibetan school of thought......yes...the theravada school has nationalistic pursuations......which we see in lanka, myanmar and also in other s.e asian countries......

lankans did not fight back...they just fought......

Yes I understand but in each case Buddhist awakening is manifested in opposition to Muslims -- accident? if it is it's pretty damn peculiar

 

[Kazhugu]

Yes I understand but in each case Buddhist awakening is manifested in opposition to Muslims -- accident? if it is it's pretty damn peculiar

In lanka it was against hindus........muslims are only the new kids on the block there......

 

[illusion8]

Myanmar & Lankan buddhists are not the same as Tibetan buddhists..while the former is of theravada school of thought....the latter is tibetan school of thought......yes...the theravada school has nationalistic pursuations......which we see in lanka, myanmar and also in other s.e asian countries......



lankans did not fight back...they just fought......

One can say they are taking action before they need to fight back - looks like an attempt at subjugating the Muslims so they don't start creating problems like elsewhere.

 

[Kazhugu]

One can say they are taking action before they need to fight back - looks like an attempt at subjugating the Muslims so they don't start creating problems like elsewhere.

no....what i meant was....the lankan civil war against the tamils itself was primarily an expression of sinhalese buddhist nationalism.....muslims are only new ones.....

 

[Zabaniyah]

the buddhist reactions in burma and srilanka is intriguing cases. because, this religion was thought to be the most peaceful by many "experts". I will, rather deny that hindu-buddh-jain like religions are peaceful. you can comparatively says so if compared with Mohammadan and Judaism like religions.

I think all religions are good. They just have different paths to spirituality.

A religion, or religious group being perceived as "bad" by non-members of a particular religion depends on who's in control of that religion.

I think there is much more to this development, that is the Buddhist rage against Muslims whether in Myanmar, or Lanka or in Tibet - it's very interesting --- The assertion of Buddhist revival or nationalism seems in these places to be predicated on opposition to the Muslim.

Never heard of Buddhist nationalism.

I understand Myanmar's problems due to mass unemployment, lack of economic activities, neglect, insurgencies and massive propaganda.

But post civil war Sri Lanka? Come on....

 

[muse]

Never heard of Buddhist nationalism. I understand Myanmar's problems due to mass unemployment, lack of economic activities, neglect, insurgencies and massive propaganda. But post civil war Sri Lanka? Come on....

So nationalism stops after civil war? And the combination of politicizing religion and nationalism is something you may not have heard of either? Where have you been hiding?

 

[illusion8]

no....what i meant was....the lankan civil war against the tamils itself was primarily an expression of sinhalese buddhist nationalism.....muslims are only new ones.....

What are they out to achieve? "a land of pure" meant for Sinhalese Buddhists exclusively?

 

[Zabaniyah]

So nationalism stops after civil war? And the combination of politicizing religion and nationalism is something you may not have heard of either? Where have you been hiding?

I've heard of religion and nationalism being combined together before that forms a nation's ideology.

But not the term "Buddhist nationalism".

In fact, there is no such thing as nationalism in Islam either.

The Muslims of Sri Lanka have remained largely loyal to the state during the civil war. Should Muslim nationalism elsewhere be used as an excuse for "Buddhist nationalism" in Sri Lanka? Did the Muslims of Sri Lanka demand a separate state?

That is what I'm saying, it doesn't make sense. Unless of-course it is pure bigotry, then that is understandable.
BBC News - The hardline Buddhists targeting Sri Lanka's Muslims

 

[manlion]

since when did Indians all of a sudden care about Muslims?
Please spare us your crocodile tears.

Indians are double headed snakes, Buddhist and Muslims have a warm / cordial relationship in Sri Lanka its goes back to many centuries. Indians need to clean their own backyard especially in Kashmir , Tamilnadu and NE India e.g Nagaland , Manipur etc

Even if theres any Buddhist extremism, fingers are pointing towards India involvement, just like how India sponsored and trained LTTE and other militant groups. Sri Lankan know India's dirty games in Sri Lanka ..

 

[manlion]

Haunted by Mahavamsa by Tisaranee Gunasekara

In Sri Lanka the boundary line between myth and history is dangerously amorphous. And this twilight world often plays a decisive role in Lankan politics.

Sinhala school children are taught that they belong to a race which began when an Indian-Aryan princess eloped with a lion. They learn this tale not in the story-hour but during the history lesson.

The lion myth is from the Mahawamsa, venerated by most Sinhala-Buddhists as a history book cum sacred text. It is the grandson of the lion and the princess the Mahawamsa embraces as the originator of the Sinhala race. According to Mahawamsa itself, Vijaya ‘was of evil conduct’; he and his followers committed so many crimes of such horrific nature that his father was eventually compelled to exile them'

Vijaya’s enforced sea-journey supposedly coincided with the death of the Gautama Buddha. According to Mahawamsa the Buddha, on his deathbed, told the Chief among deities, Sakka, “Vijaya, son of king Sihabahu, is come to Lanka….. In Lanka, O lord of gods, will my religion be established; therefore carefully protect him with his followers and Lanka”.
So the Mahawamsa created the myth of the ‘Chosenrace’ with its ‘sacred space’. This myth became the foundation for what I call the ‘Hosts and Guests’ concept of Lanka. According to this, the island belongs to Sinhala-Buddhists, who are its sole real owners. This ‘sacred bequest’ must be protected by whatever means necessary, including the use of violence.

In the teaching of Gautama Buddha there is no concept of holy war, no space for the use of force/violence in the protection of either the Dhamma or those who practice it. Given the absolute taboo against the taking of any life in Buddhism, killing human beings to ‘protect Buddhism’ could not be justified without adding a major new chapter to Buddhist teaching. This is precisely what the author of Mahawamsa did by depicting the conflict between the Buddhist Dutugemunu and the Hindu Elara for political supremacy as a Sinless/Meritorious War.
That was the moment Buddhism of Siddhartha Gautama was transformed into Sinhala-Buddhism, a new religion of the book, the Mahavamsa. The war against unbelievers was consecrated as sinless and meritorious; a straight path to heavenly bliss, akin to Crusades and Jihads. Not only was Dutugemunu reborn in the highest heaven, according to the Mahawamsa; he “will be the first disciple of the sublime Metteyya, the king’s father (will be) his father and the mother his mother. The younger brother, Saddhatissa will be his second disciple, but Salirajakumara, the king’s son will be the son of the sublime Metteyya”. The Mahawamsa clinches the argument of the meritorious nature of waging war for Buddhism by demonstrating that it will benefit not just the holy warrior but his entire family.

The Mahawamsa was written around seven centuries after the Dutugemunu-Elara war, by a Buddhist monk with a political agenda. Even a passing knowledge of the teachings of Gautama Buddha would suffice to know that shedding all attachments is a sine-qua-non for the attaining of Arhathood. A man or woman with attachments, however understandable or justifiable, is bound to the samsara by those very bonds. Those who have attained Arhathood have no attachments, including to country, race or religion. Nor can they condone any killing. The claim by Bhikku Mahanama that monks who had attained Arhathood justified mass murder in the name of religion was an obvious and an evil lie. Yet this lie has triumphed over the First Precept.

Constantine and his heirs had to remake Jesus from a man of peace to a prince of war; they were aided in this re-make by the vengeful God of the Old Testament. Mahanama had to do the job by himself, without any doctrinal help. He, and not the Buddha, is the true teacher and leader of the likes of the JHU and the BBS.

Myth as Destiny

The Mahawamsa stories are not just popular myths retold in an ancient chronicle. They have determined the trajectory of Ceylon/Sri Lanka in modern times.

The anti-minority nature of the 19th Century Buddhist renaissance, under the tutelage of Anagarika Dharmapala, was fuelled by the Mahawamsa myths. Distorted and enslaved by the Mahawamsa myths, Sinhala-Buddhism lost the ability to appeal to Tamils or to create a Lankan Dr. Ambedkar. Had there been a significant segment of Buddhist Tamils, with a voice within the Sangha, our post-Independence history may have taken a less destructive path. But to be able to appeal to Tamils, Buddhism has to cease being the identity-badge of Sinhala supremacism and reclaim its pre-Mahawamsa universalist potential.

 

[Jackdaws]

I understand that you don't have a high enough IQ to actually understand the intricacies of advanced language so lets' just say
I am saying what ever you think I am saying.

That is a wise and thoughtful answer. I bow before your logic.

 

[Skyline]

BBC News - Buddhists target Sri Lanka's Muslims

Muslims in Sri Lanka have voiced concerns about a growing number of anti-Muslim protests and attacks, carried out by hardline Buddhist groups.

It comes four years after the army in this mainly Sinhalese Buddhist country defeated Tamil separatists.

Charles Haviland reports from Colombo.


Sinhalese fanaticism is stronger now after the defeat of LTTE and are finding new boogeymen to further their agenda.

There wasn't any attack but there was an anti halal protests. Sinhalese and Tamils refuse to buy Halal products!

 

[imran_ind]

There wasn't any attack but there was an anti halal protests. Sinhalese and Tamils refuse to buy Halal products!

Anti -Halal in a way is anti-muslim

 

[Mujraparty]

• Anti - Muslim demonstrators, led by Buddhist Monks, carry placards depicting Allah as a pig.
• Attacks and destruction of Mosques.
• Protests against Halal food, Muslim dress, higher education, & attacks on Muslim businesses.
• A Buddhist Monk shot and killed a Prime Minister in 1958 for having dialogue with Tamils.

- In an appeal to the UN Special Rapporteur on Religious Freedom, Mr. Heiner Bielefelt, the Prime Minister of Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE), Mr. Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran, urged the UN Rapporteur to visit Sri Lanka to investigate abuses against Muslims, including attacks on Mosques by groups led by Buddhist monks.

“Abuses against Muslims include protest against Halal food, Muslim dress, admission to higher education, even attacks on Muslim businesses and Mosques” said Mr. Rudrakumaran. “Moreover, no one was arrested or charged for these abuses.”

“Anti-Muslim demonstrators carry placards depicting Allah as a pig and burning effigies marked Allah,” he continued.

“The Government of Sri Lanka has failed to protect religions other than the State religion Buddhism and abuses against Muslims have increased dramatically in recent times" said Mr. Rudrakumaran. “Instead of protecting Muslims, Sri Lankan Government’s senior leaders, including the Defense Secretary, attend events by groups that lead these attacks on Muslims.”

"Buddhist Monks are very powerful in Sri Lanka. A Buddhist Monk shot and killed a Prime Minister in 1958 for having dialogue with Tamils[ Buddhist Monks also have a political party called Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), which is part of the Government. One of their representatives is an influential Cabinet Minister," said Rudrakumaran. “There are also other groups like Bodu Bala Sena (Buddhist Power Force) which are active in anti-Muslim activities.”

Some of the anti-Muslim campaigns include:

1) Anti- Halal food: There were series of demonstrations, led by Buddhist monks, against Halal certification of food. These anti-Halal demonstrators shout anti-Muslim and anti-Islamic slogans. Due to intense pressure, Halal certification was abolished and this announcement was greeted by fire crackers being lit close to Muslim owned businesses.

2) Attack on Mosques: On April 20th, 2012, in a town called Dambulla, a violent a mob of 2,000 led by high ranking Buddhist monks stormed and vandalized a 60 year old mosque during Friday prayer. The Police stood by idly and allowed the attack on the Mosque. To date, no one has been arrested or brought any criminal action against attackers. Later, the Prime Minister's office released a statement ordering closure of the Mosque. Earlier, in 2011, an Islamic Sufi shrine was destroyed by a mob led by Buddhist monks in a town called Anurathapura. Attacks on Mosques continue in different parts of Sri Lanka.

3) Campaign against Muslim dress: There is a campaign led by Buddhist monks, to stop Muslim women wear Muslim dress. A major rally is being organized in a town called Kandy on March 17th, to increase the pressure to force Muslim women from wearing Muslim dress. Muslim women students were also threatened and intimidated for wearing Muslim dress.

4) Rallies against Muslim owned businesses: There were several rallies protesting outside Muslim owned businesses. Demonstrators shout anti-Muslim and anti-Islamic slogans and carry placards depicting Allah as a pig and burning effigies marked Allah.

5) Protest against Muslim admissions to higher education: Recently there were demonstrations against Sri Lanka Law College for admitting large number of Muslim students. As a result, the admissions were put on hold.

To watch the video click here: BBC News - Sri Lanka hardline group calls for halal boycott

U.N. urged to Act on Abuses Against Muslims in Sri Lanka: TGTE - Open Society Foundation News Today