Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

23 January 2018 

Conscience  Lesson through Coconuts

The Economist has published under the heading  ‘Sri Lanka’s president is struggling to keep his promises of reform’ , the  article that appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline "Coconuts and jolts".  Coconuts are used in Hindu ceremonies to represent the Soul – which in this instance could be called the Conscience. The outer shell of the coconut is broken and the inner white flesh is exposed to the Deity – symbolizing that we are communicating with the Deity through our Conscience.

If the Sri Lankan President follows the essence of this Hindu practice there would be no struggle but harmony that Truth brings, to those who live in the Present. Mr. Sirisena would then realize that Bond Mahendran – a Tamil - happened as the return of his former boss Mr. Rajapaksa’s karma during the 2005 Presidential elections when money was traded for suppression of Tamil votes which would have favoured Mr. Wickremesinghe. If that did not seem wrong to Mr. Sirisena – then this also would not.

As per the above article:

[The president’s ambitious promises—to transfer executive authority from the president to parliament; to devolve power to the regions; to crack down on corruption; and to hold the army to account for the war crimes it is alleged to have committed in the final days of the war—have gone largely unfulfilled]

To my mind, had these been fulfilled, Mr. Sirisena would have naturally joined his powers with Mr. Wickremesinghe’s  under the latter’s natural leadership. If Mr. Sirisena revealed his conscience to Lord Muruga of  Kathirgamam, he would identify that he is Valli and Mr. Wickremesinghe is Theivanai of Sri Lankan Government. Valli is from the Kuravar / gypsy tribe and Theivanai is the adopted daughter of Indiran - the king of gods. Valli  represents down-to-earth tangible outcomes and Theivanai represents lawful practices that lead to intangible philosophy. As per Hindu depiction of Lord Muruga – the two carried on either side of Muruga do not meet but are continuously conscious of each other.

If therefore Mr. Sirisena who spoke the words of  non-Executive President – had fulfilled those promises – he would have received less ‘yes’ votes than Mr. Rajapaksa did when defeating  the Tamil militants – Kuravar style and NOT as per global philosophy beyond the comprehension of the common Sri Lankan who needed to see to believe.

As per the above article:

[No members of the former government have been prosecuted for corruption, nor have any wayward soldiers been brought to book. Building public trust in government was an important element of the government’s mandate, says Asoka Obeyesekere, the local head of Transparency International, an anti-corruption pressure group, but it has made no progress at all. Instead, the UNP has become embroiled in a corruption scandal of its own, and many observers worry that the investigating authorities are not independent enough to untangle it.]

Sri Lankan Public Trust and Satisfaction of International Anti-corruption Mandate do not meet. Former is Valli and latter is Thevanai.  Former is Governance power needed for local harmony by majority group  and latter is Administrative power needed for global dignity. Whoever is looking for the two to meet in Sri Lanka during this generation is living in a dream-world.

Tamil National Alliance – TNA as Equal Opposition in National Parliament symbolizes the essence of the genuine investment by minorities led by Tamils towards self-governance. When our true motive is expressed as vote as per our conscience, we elect ourselves as our Government. Likewise, when our elected politicians vote on a decision, that decision, when it is as per the conscience of the MP,  represents the consolidated version  of the outcomes we, the voters, are entitled to. If that consolidated value is greater than our earnings relative to another electorate we become indebted to that electorate. That then automatically accumulates Administrative powers that would elevate the status of the other electorate – as happened with Tamils.  A self-governing MP would cast a no-vote in respect of such a decision. The best way to identify with this would be to observe the person who is by culture our opposite and take the opposite position to that person – for example the TNA by those like Mr. Rajapaksa and v.v.

Where the MP has wisdom in the subject matter, that wisdom would guide the MP as to whether or not a yes-vote would uphold the earned rights of her / his electorate. If not s/he has the duty to cast a conscience vote.

Our conscience is the consolidated value of all our experiences. A vote on the basis of conscience confirms an outcome that would bring us harmony within ourselves / our electorate, due to Truth being a cohesive power. The influence of the conscience is included in all our decisions. Where one’s Truth is predominant in the conscious mind one’s vote is a true vote for commonness and harmony in all environments  that are her/his ‘home’.