’’In these troubled times, think about life options in the light of Lord Buddha’s teachings’’

While wishing the members of the Venerable Maha Sangha and the Buddhist public, a blessed Vesak celebration, Archbishop of Colombo His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith said that in these troubled times, when Covid-19 is afflicting our nation, it is important for us to think about our life options in the light of the teachings of the Lord Buddha.

In his Vesak message, the Cardinal said it was also important to live a life based on the spiritual principles of self- negation and dedication to the wellbeing of one another.

The full message:

On the occasion of the celebration of the threefold festivities of the Birth, Enlightment and the Death of the Lord Buddha, I write to express our most sincere and fraternal greetings to the Most Rev. Mahanayake Theros and the members of the Sangha as well as to all our Buddhist brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka.

The Lord Buddha who, troubled by the immense suffering his fellow human beings were seen to be facing, left all the comforts of his royal upbringing and engaged in a search for personal liberation from that suffering. After following several ways of searching for a meaning to life, he found it in the understanding of greed as the cause of all suffering, its true nature and the path to freedom, which leads one to Nirvana, a total state of bliss.

His preaching led to the acceptance of this path to emancipation by millions of human beings the world over. The Lord Buddha’s teaching has also been the foundational source of Sri Lanka’s culture and religiosity. It has influenced us too and continues to shape our national identity.

In these troubled times, when Covid-19 is afflicting our nation in a significant manner, it is important for us to think about our life options in the light of the teachings of the Lord Buddha and live a life based on the spiritual principles of self- negation and dedication to the wellbeing of one another.

I wish all our beloved fellow citizens, specifically the members of the Venerable Maha Sangha and the Buddhist public, a blessed Vesak celebration.