Honour the Bhikkhu, the Inviolable

Why respect the Bhikkhu? He symbolizes the most subtle, most refined doctrine ever disclosed to man. He is the shining beacon that....

Gautama Buddha visits His Relatives in Kapilawasthupura

On the first Medin Full Moon Poya day after the Enlightenment and seven years after the “Abhiniskramanaya” or leaving the royal palace.....

The nation’s father and undisputed leader of all time

On the morning of 22nd March 1952, the first Prime Minster of Independent Ceylon, Don Stephen Senanayake went riding a police horse, Chithra on.....

Free from bonds; the Dhamma; Buddhism and relatives; visit to Kapilawastu

The message that the Buddha had arrived spread in a few minutes all over in Kapilawattu like a whirl-wind, creating an  environment in and.....

A society with its priorities mixed up

A young couple visiting Independence Square were chased away by a security guard recently. This is routine procedure at this venue, but.....

Water and jobs: Thirst for this theme - EDITORIAL

With two-thirds of the earth’s surface covered by water and the human body itself consisting of 75 per cent water, this is watertight proof that water is one....

What we do make us what we are

In Sri Lanka, there had been two insurgencies in the South, led by the JVP. And a war too that lasted 30 years....

IT IS TIME TO STOP: Deafening noise and filthy scenes in bus TV screens

The above news item appeared in the Daily Mirror on February 28, 2016. According to the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) Chairman, the driving....

SATELlITE TV AND CORPORATE BULLYING

If you care to ask around it becomes evident that satellite TV providers in Sri Lanka are playing foul by its customers. With a multitude of shortcomings in.....

India – Sri Lanka ‘‘ Shilpa Kala’’ India’s magic together with Sri Lankan heritage

From the ancient times, India and Sri Lanka have held bilateral ties, culturally, socially and politically, and have astonished the world with their rich culture.....

Why university students ‘rag’ – and academics think it’s normal

The  academics at the University of Kelaniya have reportedly suspended  teaching activities in protest against on-going ragging at the.....

My friends, my community help me - EDITORIAL

In 2011, the United Nations General Assembly declared March 21 as World Down Syndrome Day and invited member States to observe World Down.....

R. Sampanthan

I think it would be useful if I were to give this House the definition of “enforced disappearances” as accepted by the United Nations.

Primal Fernando A Prim and Proper Friend is no More

We were never the best of mates in College as Primal was two years my senior and though we were well acquainted by virtue of being hostellers...

THE AGRO CHEMICAL RACKET AND THE “WASA VISA NETHI” PROJECT

President Sirisena should  be thanked and congratulated for the stand he has bravely, yes, bravely  taken to ban Chemical fertilizers...

Stop grumbling about the heat, do something - EDITORIAL

Stopping the waste of electricity and fresh water while reducing carbon dioxide emissions are some of the ways in which Sri Lanka’s citizens could cooperate in the make or break...

Get on with the job, forget Rajapaksa’s deep state

The Deep State is an extremely powerful network that controls nearly everything around you. You...

EDITORIAL - Consumers, it’s time to raise your voice

As Sri Lanka joins the international community in marking the World Consumer Rights Day and week...

Plan to besiege Colombo but, what about the people?

The trade union leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) K.D.Lal Kantha has been threatening...

Scuttling reconciliation from within

  Outside of constitutional reform, the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe Government’s ‘reconciliation’ process...

Blackouts could have been avoided

The blackout, the worst in 20 years, caused much consternation to the government as it happened at a time the country was facing many economic headwinds.  The blackout did not spare even President Maitripala Sirisena in the discharge of his duties. At yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, the President noted that the generator installed at the Presidential Secretariat had not functioned during the blackout and that he had to cut short his work

Can umpires make fair decisions on Indian soil?

India milks cricket as its cash-cow contrived by its selected team of commentators on television that rule the roost by softening the ugly image to give it an appearance of a venerated Nandi Bull in a mock sporting pose - a deserving mascot in this televised-age of capsulated Bollywood cricket.  

Hot news and the burning facts behind it - EDITORIAL

Amid warnings of power cuts, the temperature yesterday afternoon reached more than 35 degrees Celsius or 95 degrees Fahrenheit—perhaps the hottest days in our history and direct result of global warming and climate change. Generally, until there is inner spiritual liberation, human nature is so self-centred, that we don’t have much concern for major social issues until they directly affect us. That is what is happening now and in a se

When cricket and sportsmanship were the ultimate winners

Stunned.  The word sums up the overall sentiment at the SSC ground on the evening of the 12th day of March, 2016.  It didn’t matter which camp you belonged to, whether Royal or S Thomas’.  If you had been following the game from day one, you would have been stunned by the result of the 137th Battle of the Blues.  

Who is the devil behind the darkness?

At a time of the year when people are rushing indoors to avoid the scorching heat, an irregular series of power 

THE WASHINGTON MODEL AND THE CHINA CARD

Sri Lanka’s current foreign policy and external alignments are increasingly asymmetrical with the needs of its material base; with its fundamental economic, financial and developmental requirements and interests.

From darkness to light

In the aftermath of blackout Sunday, a crisis and a multitude of questions have arisen over vital power supplies 

I am hurt - Lacille de Silva

The ‘sudden’ removal of Lacille de Silva, former Secretary to the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into

Mahinda Amaraweera: It’s MR’s fault

In a candid interview, newly appointed UPFA General Secretary Mahinda Ameraweera unravels the shortcomings of the former UPGA regime which....

The Blue Fairy at last

“There are two ways to be fooled; One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true” - Soren Kierkegaard