Gajalakshmi
Paramasivam
27
January 2020
THE TRUE REPUBLIC
OF SRI LANKA IS SECULAR
There
is a Tamil saying that ‘whatever we see with our eyes is false; whatever we
hear with our ears is false; only that which we thoroughly investigate and
learn about is fact’. This is presented by Thirukural as follows:
[epporul yaar yaar vaai
ketpinum apporul
mei porulkaanpathu arivu] Thirukural 423
mei porulkaanpathu arivu] Thirukural 423
The
motto of the University of Jaffna is ‘Mei porul kaanpathu
arivu’ (That which finds
truth is knowledge)
That
‘Fact’ is ours because of the research we did. If we merely stated what
happened it is of hearsay value. Hence to identify with the truth in a fact –
we need to go deeper and deeper into that fact until we become that fact. Then
and only then is it our truth.
If Independence is truth – freedom is ‘fact’. The
Sunday Observer has presented a picture under the title ‘Heroes who fought for
independence’. At the top is a part titled 1815 – The British captured the whole
country by signing the Kandyan Convention. The picture ends with the report –
The first Prime Minister of independent Ceylon Hon D S Senanayake hoisted the
lion flag at the ceremony on February 4, 1948.
On the face of it – both are ‘what happened’. We did
not witness either. Hence it is hearsay.
Wikipedia reports as follows about the Kandyan
Convention:
[The Kandyan
Convention was an agreement signed on 10 March 1815 between the British and
the chiefs of the Kandyan Kingdom, British
Ceylon (now Sri Lanka)
for the deposition of King Sri Vikrama Rajasinha and ceding of
the kingdom's territory to British rule. The king, of South Indian
ancestry, faced powerful opposition from the Sinhalese chieftains
who sought to limit his power. A successful coup was organized by the
chieftains, marking the end of 2358 years of self-rule on the island and
resulting in the imprisonment of the king in Vellore.
The treaty is quite unique in that it was not signed by the monarch on the
throne but by members of his court and other dignitaries of the kingdom.
The convention gained a degree of
infamy when, according to apocryphal sources, Wariyapola Sri Sumangala, a Buddhist monk
of the kingdom, seized and trampled a Union Jack hoisted by the British,
demanding the flag of Kandy be left flying until the Convention was signed. ]
Wikipedia states about King Sri Vickrma Rajasingha as
follows:
[Sri Vikrama
Rajasinha (1780 – January
30, 1832, born Kannasamy Nayaka) was the last of four Kings, to rule the
last Sinhalese monarchy of the Kingdom of
Kandy in Sri Lanka. The Nayak Kings
were of Telugu origin who practiced Shaivite Hinduism and
were patrons of Theravada Buddhism. The Nayak rulers
played a huge role in reviving Buddhism in the island. They spoke Tamil,
which was also used as the court language in Kandy alongside with Sinhalese.
The King was eventually deposed by
the British under the terms of the Kandyan Convention, in 1815, ending over 2300
years of Sinhalese monarchy on the island.
The island was incorporated into the British
Empire, and Sri Vikrama Rajasinha was succeeded by George III,
as monarch of British Ceylon.]
Many years ago I wrote about Sri Vikrama Rajasinha. I
was seeking through my feelings as Sri Lankan and to that extent that picture
became my ‘fact’. This was confirmed when I ended up in a Guest House at
Rajasinghe Road in Wellawatte – a majority Tamil suburb in Colombo. There was
the painting of King Sri Vikrama
Rajasinha and his wife –
both wearing the Tamil culture ‘Pottu’ – the Hindu representation of Third
Eye/Insight. To me it was no coincidence but rather the blessing of an ancestor
who was betrayed by his Sri Lankan rivals. Back then there was no demarcation
between Hindus and Buddhists nor Sinhalese and Tamils at People’s level. Since
I also did not so demarcate – I believe that King Sri Vikrama Rajasinha’s
spirit led me to this fact.
When we invest in the Truth / Soul of an issue – there comes
a point when we connect to the Soul through our own truth. From then on the Soul
takes over and leads us. These to my
mind are ‘miracles’. The information in Wikipedia is the skin of the issue as
it happened / manifested in the past. It becomes our fact as per the truth in
us in relation to the same issue. The picture in the Colombo suburb was such a
miracle. I did not plan nor was I consciously seeking. But the blessings came
from the origin.
This report confirms that Tamil King Ellalan who is reported to have
been killed in the war against Sinhalese
King Duttu Gemunu was succeeded by other Kings from South India. Hence according
to my ‘fact’ - the last Lankan Monarch was a Hindu of Indian origin. Every
Hindu Sri Lankan has the opportunity to inherit this Governance power by
believing in Sri Lanka and also by being a Hindu.
The core message in the report ‘Wariyapola Sri Sumangala, a Buddhist monk
of the kingdom, seized and trampled a Union Jack hoisted by the British,
demanding the flag of Kandy be left flying until the Convention was signed.’ is presented in the Observer picture as well.
This means that to the Observer Reporter - the way Tamil LTTE and Sinhalese Government
colluded to get rid of Indian Peacekeeping Forces – the Sinhalese chieftains and
the British colluded to eliminate those of Indian origin – be they Buddhists or
Hindus. Back then the two religions were part of each other.
So what did we gain on 04 February 1948 that we had in
February 1815 but lost a month later?
Self-Governance.
In his Sri Lanka Guardian article ‘Freedom!
Freedom! Where art thou?’ Zulkifli
Nazim quotes as follows:
[Without Freedom of thought and expression I am
a slave to the demagogues, preachers and ancient traditions claiming the right
to tell me what to think, how to live, what to believe – and that I must not
question, but only obey. This is not a full human existence. To be truly free
to live, one must be free to think and speak.”
A. C.
Grayling – British Philosopher and Author.]
But what is my moral authority to publish my
thoughts and feelings? It is the Truth that I discover and/or the respect I pay
of my own free will to one who discovered Truth that is the authority to express/publish.
Militants and activists who so express themselves would naturally facilitate opportunities
for others to discover the truth. But one who takes such opportunity has to pay
the royalty of respect. Otherwise it is mere hearsay and is lifeless rubbish in
the mind of the user.
Did the Lankans from 1815 to 1948 – fight for
Independence from the British or were they then militants like the JVP and the
LTTE? The parallel question for the 2009 war is ‘Did the Government Forces
fight to invade Tamil area - Northern Province or did they fight to discipline
the LTTE?’ Effectively it is the parallel of repatriating Sri Vikrama Rajasinha with the help of
British – whose current parallel was the USA and the UK and all other countries that listed the LTTE
as Terrorists even though they were not directly affected by the LTTE. Those
who idly accumulate surface information/ what happened. As leaders in global
group – the USA & the UK have the responsibility to do the parallel with
the Government Forces. By failing to take responsibility – the Sri Lankan Armed
Forces confirm inheritance of the Chieftains’ powers against Buddhism itself. Mr
Talduwe Ratugama Rallage Weris
Singho, who killed Mr SWRD Bandaranaike was a Sinhalese
in the clothes of Buddhist clergy.
The Sinhala Maha Sabha
established by Mr Bandaranaike, lacked funds and this led to Buddhism becoming
the theme.
As per my own
experience – my belief was developed at the primary level when I asked through
a particular form of Divinity and I received it. It is difficult to ‘ask’ a
language as if it were Divine. Hence the best way was to divide as Buddhists
and Hindus and combine former with Sinhalese and latter with Tamils. Rural
Sinhalese driven by religion would have naturally lost consciousness of the
fact that Buddha was Indian and therefore ‘foreigner’.
The Divide & Rule
habit of the British was also inherited by the likes of Mr Bandaranaike who was
killed by that very demotion. The more we ‘see’ benefits for our policies the
greater the tendency to divide. Chieftains needed to ‘see’ and all armed militants
and Politicians who promoted armed war – are/were heirs of the Chieftains. They
are not heirs of Buddha or any other religious leader.
Using the name of
Buddhism to get votes confirms this excitement of ‘possession’. Likewise, using
the name of Tamil homeland without a particular belief in Divinity – makes such
fighters Tamil Chieftains. Most Tamils known to me are believers in religion.
The above mentioned author Zulkifli Nazim confirms
this as follows:
[We Sri Lankans also have a penchant for religion and we
should be able to practice any religion - Buddhism, Christianity. Hinduism,
Islam or any other. We may print or write whatever we want and express
ourselves in a decent manner.]
Every place where one realizes independence through
Islam is a Muslim part of Sri Lanka. Likewise others. Where one uses the
Secular pathway it is Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka. THAT is the Royal Ruler.
All others are delegated authorities of
that ruler.
Thank you Miss Gajalakshmi Paramasivam, for having read my article and quoting me in your well researched article. Zulkifli Nazim
ReplyDelete