Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

16 January 2019

Jaffna Heritage

Ray White real estate guy rang to find out whether we would sell our property – and I said ‘no’. During the ensuing discussion the guy asked me why I had thought of selling a while ago. I said ‘because I was experiencing work related problems and was concerned that we would not be able to repay our mortgage’. The guy asked whether we would sell now for a higher offer and I said ‘no’ – that it was now a heritage for our children and grandchildren. This is also the case with our investments in Sri Lanka through which we are confirming our heritage in Sri Lanka. A heritage confirms true Energy. 

Global Tamil News has published an interview with the New Governor of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province. As per that interview the Governor shares the conclusion that if not for the 2015 January change of Governance structure there was high risk of Sri Lankan becoming a dictatorship. Dr Raghavan highlights that it is not the personalities concerned but the structure of the Government. The Governor stated that the President had expressed the conclusion that of all the Provinces in Sri Lanka, Northern Province was the one with strongest intellectual power. I identify with that not through the current population in Northern Lanka but more through the ancestral powers that we have access to. The main reason was to get there was the urge to win. Those who had natural resources in other parts of the country – would not have felt the urge as strongly as we did.

This Energy remains as the root of Jaffna. It supports me here in Sydney, Australia when I am focused on the real needs of  Northern Sri Lanka to the extent I have the capacity to address those needs.  If I did not complete my education-led experience in Jaffna by thanking all facilitators – starting with my parents – I would not have the connection to access the Common Energy pool of Jaffna Education.

Dr Raghavan was asked the question as to how he proposed to function under the current circumstances where there was no Council of elected members? The response was that the structure was there. The question is whose mind would be accessed by Dr Ragavan to promote Northerners to govern themselves through the laws they were conscious of.

In his interview with Journalist Sulochana Ramiah Mohan published by Ceylon Today under the heading - “I have a dream like Martin Luther King” Post-war transitional justice, not another victor’s story! - NP Governor Dr. Raghavan – the Governor states:

[I am sad about the level of education in the North. We are at the bottom as far as the AL results are concerned. Nearly 6,000  posts for teachers are vacant. 

 Drugs and corruption is rampant. These come up when you are in the poverty line.
Besides taking note of these, I would invest my time in building a bridge for a greater honest social dialogue between the southern intellectuals, social activists and ordinary people to come out with a creative solution between the two nations.]

Dr Raghavan cannot ‘give’ the solution. Recently, Dr Laksiri Fernando shared with us the following message from Lord Buddha:

[He who sees dukkha sees also the arising of dukkha, sees also the cessation of dukkha, and sees also the path leading to the cessation of dukkha.’ – The Buddha ]

What was seriously damaged by the war was the intellectual pathway of Tamils. The more money distractions we have, the stronger the distracting influence. This Dukkha needs to be consciously identified with by the common Jaffna Tamil more than loss of lives/bodies. Our investment in education lives as heritage beyond the physical body.

The level of education in Northern Sri Lanka deteriorated due to disconnection with our ancestors who raised their investment in education to Energy level. This happens when we sacrifice money and mind towards the identified goal. Heritages are developed through this pathway.

Ms Ramiah Mohan asked the question:

Q: Many do not know your background and the religious practices you follow, can you give a brief description?

Dr Raghavan: I’m a Sri Lankan and practice basic democratic values of Sri Lanka which should be a plurinational state and towards that, certain principles and fundamentals should be adjusted and guided which I am doing. As a person, I am a spiritualist and influenced by great religious thoughts and highly influenced by the Gospel of Jesus Christ and that remains strong in my life. In a practical sense, Jesus was a revolutionary who worked for the liberation and salvation of his people.

 Slowly and gradually with my academic knowledge in Theravada Buddhism, I am also influenced by Buddhist philosophy. Buddhist norms and ethics have guided me.  Born a Hindu while living in Colombo, I was often taken to the Pilliyar Temple and I was influenced also in Hindu culture and its beauty. The Bible says God is love or ‘Anbey Deivam’ and I practise that.

The above confirms that Dr Raghavan was born a Hindu but is now more a Buddhist intellectually. A Hindu Jaffna Tamil would have said  ‘Anbey Sivam’ instead of ‘Anbey Deivam’

In his interview with Global Tamil News, Dr Raghavan states that Senior politician Mr Sampanthan blessed him;  About Mr Wigneswaran – they had intellectual discussion as friends. Dr Raghavan expressed the view that it was unfortunate that the two leaders had conflict . That is also the conflict of Northerners – conflict  between experience based wisdom and the urge to win intellectually. It is also the conflict between ITAK and young intellectuals like Mr Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam (whose birthday it is today) whose educational pathway is similar to that of Mr Wigneswaran’s and Dr Raghavan’s. They all tend to ‘give’ education rather than ‘share’.

Democracy requires us to share laterally. To share with the current common Jaffna citizen, intellectuals have to renounce the extra intelligence which then becomes root Energy that binds both sides. Otherwise they have to use the vertical pathway of being blessed by Jaffna ancestors.

To the extent Buddhism is valued as  heritage it confirms true value. Those who use Buddhism for current benefits weaken that heritage and hence the problem  of instability for the whole community. Likewise, Jaffna.