My Esteem for the Buddha An open letter at Vesak to my Buddhist Sisters and Brothers

My good friend, the Ven. Bellanwila Wimalarathana Thera wrote a letter to Christians on his understanding of Christ at Christmas last year.  This has prompted me to reciprocate with this letter to you at Vesak.

Customs: What the devil is happening? - Editorial

With corruption raging at its worst-ever levels and hundreds of millions of rupees in public money being plundered by state officers and private racketeers the Customs Department--instead of helping to fight corruption inside the department and by import-export racketeers appears to be adding more oil to the palm.

FUTURE OF RAJIV GANDHI’S political legacy in Sri Lanka

Last week saw the 22nd death anniversary of former Indian Prime minister Rajiv Gandhi being commemorated. He was killed on May 21st 1991. The date of Rajiv Gandhi’s death has poignant significance for me personally. May 21st is the date of my birth.

Historical context in which early Buddhism evolved

Vesak marks the birth of Prince Siddhartha, his enlightenment and the passing away, or parinirwana of Gauthama the Buddha more than 2600 years ago. It is generally agreed among scholars that Buddhism arose in the sixth centuary BC during or....

COUNTRY SUFFERS HUMAN SOFTWARE DEARTH

Successive governments have upheld institution building and not its development. Total development rests in blending the two. Many politicians aren’t even aware of the difference between the two.

It’s hell on the highways - Editorial

Even though the terrorism perpetrated by the LTTE ended in May 2009 an equally devastating form of terrorism seems to be continuing unabated countrywide. This could be termed road terrorism.

The unstoppable pursuit of crimes against humanity

Good riddance! I wonder what their Maker will conclude. Last week one of the world's worst practitioners of...

Editorial : The virtues of abiding by the Dhamma

‘Those who abide by the Dhamma are protected by the Dhamma,’ is a line that seems to be popular...

Evolving Role of the Sangha in Society

Delving into the discussion, Rathana Thera first explained the core and the true meaning of Buddhism. According...

A unique personality of Buddha

All Buddhists in every part of the world pay special attention to Vesak Poya, because it signifies the Birth...

One man’s journey to raise funds for cancer patients

At the end of this month, Ru­van Ra­na­tun­ga will set out to do the seem­ing­ly im­pos­si­ble. On May 30 he be­gins his 500-kil­o­me­tre trek across Sri Lan­ka from Don­dra Head to Point Pe­dro on a self­less jour­ney in aid of can­cer pa­tients.

The JHU private member motion proposed bill to repeal the 13th Amendment

Whereas the 13th Amendment to the Constitution was purportedly enacted, consequent to the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord being entered into between the President of Sri Lanka and the Prime Minister of India in 1987 under duress in defiance of the sovereignty of the people of Sri Lanka and ;

Will Devananda meet his Waterlooat NPC polls?

The run up to the Northern Provincial Council election is on  and the latest personality to enter the fray is Minister Douglas Devananda who appears to be positioning himself as  chief ministerial candidate of the ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA).

The ‘crude’ reality of oil prices

The bankers have finally got their revenge. Oil traders claim that influential bankers, furious that their sector has been squeezed by regulators since the 2008 crash, have persuaded Brussels that oil traders should no longer be able to operate without the same rigorous rules.

Dismal general strike a defeat for masses - Editorial

Trade union actions and public protests are organized to win worker-rights or demonstrate the anger and the dissatisfaction of the working class against extreme measures adopted by the rulers.

‘I am not happy about how the northern land issue is being handled’

Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) Leader Douglas Devananda who currently serves as the Traditional Industries and Small Enterprise Development Minister of the Cabinet speaks to Daily Mirror on a wide range of issues from the planned Northern Provincial Council election to   the alleged land-grabbing in the north..........

Pilisarana – the Bhikkhunis’ haven

The Therawada Bhikkhuni Order in Sri Lanka has been in existence since 1998. Yet unfortunately, we do not come across many Bhikkhunis (Buddhist nuns) as often as we come across Bhikkhus in Sri Lanka. It was learned that most Sri Lanka Bhikkhunis were living in hermitages far away from society

Buddha the first to explain fundamental nature of reality

Vesak is a time for us to consider the Buddhist understanding of reality. According to Wikipedia "reality" in Buddhism is called Dharma (Sanskrit) or Dhamma (Pali). This word, which is foundational to the conceptual frameworks of the Indian religions, in Buddhism

Editorial - No money for life-saving drugs; Second-degree murder  

The State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC), which supplies life- saving or essential drugs to public hospitals and medical clinics, was reported yesterday to have run out of funds to buy drugs because the Treasury had cut the Health Ministry’s budgetary allocation by Rs. five billion.

The crisis and the solution

It is horrifying that in this day and age, that this super scientific, all things bright and splendour for one age, that 43 girls were pregnant in a girls school in Kandy area (according to the Sunday Lankadeepa of April 21).

SRI LANKA: LOOKING FOR DIRECTION?

An unscheduled mini battle is on in the junior league for“13A” that could change the face of Sri Lanka in 2013/2014. Non-playing captains, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe are watching the game from the pavilion cheering respectively

This is not Terrorism - Editorial

Today’s protests by the trade unions affiliated to the opposition parties against the government’s decision to up the electricity tariffs from this month would definitely meet with stiff resistance and scorn by the government, its trade union leaders and its media

SEEING THE REALITY

When a bunch of kids who had never seen the blue sky or the sun light sang the children’s nursery rhyme “Nil Ahas Thale Agei” I couldn’t stop thinking about the irony trapped in that situation.  “Was ‘life’ mocking those children,” I thought to my self, those children who had been gifted with eyes but were not able to see?

A white cane walk to the pool

Even with the help of an adult, 10 year old Subaharan took three attempts to cut the red ribbon that symbolised the beginning of the project. This is because young Suba, the son of a estate worker is born blind, so he didn't really know what he was meant to be doing.

“Revert to District Council”

As the Provincial Council  election for war ravaged Northern Province is nearing, various political parties have expressed various opinons  on the 13th Amendment and Provincial Council system while some allies in the government have threatened to break away if the election is held.

Celebrating Mother’s Day

Mother’s Day came and went, just another day in the calendar. Little bits of Colombo stirred, here and there, to celebrate – in hotels, homes and private occasions. But no organisation or institution, state-run or private, saw a need to organise a large-scale event, or discussion based on books, movies, personal experiences.

Ideas, Interests and Peaceful Co-existence

It was Georg Simmel, a  German sociologist, who distinguished between what he termed the Dyad and the Triad, in order to explain how social relationships can  become complex when human groups become larger. Dyad is a human pair and the two persons involved have to find common ground in order to co-exist.

Editorial - Eating poison because of a tyrannical world order

Amidst confusion, controversy and conflicting reports on the toxic chemicals in milk powder imported from New Zealand, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has disclosed that a toxic chemical has been found in imported white sugar.

Tamil National Alliance Faces Acute Political Crisis

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) regarded as the premier political formation of the Tamils of Sri Lanka has been very much in the news lately due to what could be termed as an internal crisis.

The infamous ‘kick’

Being kicked upstairs is nothing new and has been around for quite some time in  this country. Indeed it is just the required tactical measure to handle what is referred to as belligerence or non - conformism.