Sinhala Buddhist Nationalism

by S.J.Emmanuel
1. Ressurgence of Sinhala Buddhist Nationalism

( February 13, 2015, Geneva, Sri Lanka Guardian) Under 450 years of
successive colonialism, it was the majority Sinhala people and their Buddhist religion
suffered most and were greatly disadvantaged. In comparison to those who followed
the religion and life-style of the colonial masters, the Sinhala Buddhists had less of
religious freedom, education and social welfare. Hence with the dawn of Independence
for the island in 1948, a combined resurgence of Sinhala Nationalism and Buddhists
Revivalism, was justified as necessary and important. All the people of the country
wholeheartedly wished for such resurgence and revivalism and none expressed any
opposition to it.
Even today no one will question the right and privileges of a people and religion which
have been identified with this island for more than two thousand years. The people,
their language, culture and history have been enriched by the religion they embraced.
Similarly the religion that flourished in Sri Lanka has been characterized and enriched
by the rich heritage of the Sinhala people. What came to be evolved later as Sinhala
Buddhism, distinct from other forms of Buddhism found in other Asian countries,
definitely has a unique value and a motive force in determining the destiny of this

island. This is well understood and recognized by all the non-Sinhala-Buddhists of the
country.
The claim that the Singhalese people and Buddhist religion must be honored as the
original or the earliest on the island is well understood and recognized by all the
people who are neither Singhalese nor Buddhists.
2. Historical myths in support of exclusive claims
3.
Unfortunately this movement for resurgence and revivalism was motivated and guided
in ways contrary to historical truths and violating the rights of others living on that
island for many centuries.
Firstly the claims of the majority for a privileged place for the race and religion in the
island were linked to an exclusive role as protectors and custodians of the island and of
religion as suggested only from a text of a 6th.century Mahavamsa Chronicle.
According to K.M.D.Silva, an acknowledged objective Sinhala historian of our times
these chronicles were the work of bhikkhus and naturally enough, were permeated by
a strong religious bias, and encrusted with miracle and invention. The central theme
was the historic role of the island as a bulwark of Buddhist civilization, and in a
deliberate attempt to underline this, it contrives to synchronise the advent of Vijaya
with the parinibbana (the passing away) of the Buddha(italics mine)
The relevant and key text from the chronicles as translated by him:
When the Guide of the World, having accomplished the salvation of the whole world
and reached the utmost state of blissful rest, was lying on the bed of his nibbana in the
midst of the great assembly of gods, he the great Sage, the greatest of those who have
speech, spoke to Sakka who stood near him: Vijaya, son of King Sihabahu, is come to
Lanka from the Country of Lala together with 700 followers. In Lanka, 0 Lord of gods,
will my religion be established, therefore, carefully protect him with his followers and
Lanka.
Silva commenting further notes This was to become in time the most powerful of the
historical myths of the Singhalese and the basis of their conception of themselves as
the chosen guardians of Buddhism, and of Sri Lanka itself as a place of special sanctity
for the Buddhist religion This intimate connection between the land, the ,race and the
Buddhist faith foreshadowed the intermingling of religion and national identity which
has always had the most profound influence on the Singhalese. ( A History of Sri
Lanka, p.4, italics mine)
In the post-Independence Resurgence of Sinhala Buddhist Nationalism, this
conception has deepened and given rise to a Mahavamsa mentality which overlooks

facts of history and the post-colonial changes in ground realities.

Secondly an arrogant exclusivism got embedded in their mentality to discriminate and
disadvantage other peoples and the religions. And this was used by Sinhala Buddhist
politicians for their ascendancy to power.
They legalized discriminations against the non-Sinhala-Buddhist chauvinists by
changing constitutions and passing laws to get the extremists into their voteconstituency. But their cheap politics paved the way for the long drawn out ethnic
conflict and still continue to ruin majority-minority relations and obstruct any
reasonable solution of the national problem.
Further with the growth of a Mahavamsa mentality, the multi ethnic and multi
religious character of the Sri Lankan population, which had the potential to build up a
unity in diversity and flourish as a model for people of diverse ethnicity and religions,
was lost for ever.
3. Political vision influenced by a Mahavamsa-mentality
Analysing the root cause of our failure to build a unity in diversity and the consequent
ethnic conflict, it becomes clear that a well intended ethnic nationalism and religious
revivalism of the majority have been misused by religious fanatics and political
extremists. By promoting the exclusivism of the Mahavamsa mentality they found
justification for their narrow and selfish aspirations, namely discriminating against
non-Singhalese and non-Buddhists.
Prior to colonialism of the 16th. century, when all the Singhalese were Buddhists and
all the Tamils were Hindus, there were two Sinhala Kingdoms and a Tamil kingdom.
The differences in race and religion did not create problem within kingdoms. But later
when the people of Sri Lanka gradually came under successive colonialism, the ethnic
and religious composition of the island underwent changes. It became a multi ethnic
multi religious population. This change in the religious and ethnic composition of the
people inhabiting the island should have been taken as an irreversible ground reality.
But the majority Sinhala Buddhists, overlooked the changes which have overtaken the
country during 450 years of colonialism and pursued a nationalism and a revivalism
based on the exclusivism of the Mahavamsa chronicle.
With ethnic and religious fervour, the majority justly wanted a revival and a
resurgence of their nationality and religion. As in all renewals and resurgence,
religious motivations play an important role as motor. In the case of the Singhalese,
whose majority were followers of Buddhism their religion could have been a
motivating force for renewal and resurgence.

But unfortunately, the Sinhala politicians found it useful to whip up an emotional

nationalism by presenting the Mahavamsa chronicle as a true history of the island.
They linked Buddhism in Sri Lanka to the Sinhala people and allowed this chronicle
history to play a more important role in shaping their Buddhism as Sinhala Buddhism
uniquely linked to the whole island and people.
This view spread and sank into the mind-set which claims the island as an island
exclusively for the preservation and growth of a unique Sinhala Buddhism. Further
Politicians motivated by this mind-set, misused this claim against the interests of the
non-Sinhala and non-Buddhists.
4. State-aided Sinhala Colonisation of Tamil areas
It is true that the majority Singhalese have no objection to others living in their midst
on any part of the island as long as they accept that the Singhalese are the true owners
and primary citizens of this island. The Tamils who inhabited the Northeast of the
island for a long time and gradually during the colonial times moved to the South,
especially Colombo, for employment and commerce, bought properties and settled
down in the South. Some Singhalese too settled in the arid North for commercial
motives. All these went on peacefully under the colonial master.
But with advent of Independence in 1948, this scenario changed for the worse. The
Government of the majority after depriving the Estate-Tamils of their citizenship
launched state-aided colonization for the Singhalese in the traditionally Tamil areas of
the North and East. Tamil families were ejected from their settlements and Singhalese
brought in from the South were helped by the State to settle down. this was a hidden
plan to reduce the parliamentary representation of the Tamils and change the
demography of the North and East in favour of the Singhalese.
Ownership of land, on the basis of first come first served, has been a right of the
peoples over many centuries ago and this right has been changing through wars,
victories and defeats until a system of government took over the reins and legalized the
handling of ownership. It is an anachronism to argue that the whole island of Sri
Lanka belongs only to one people called the Singhalese and others are to be reckoned
as tenants or creepers as claimed by President Dingiri Banda Wijetunge. Equally
wrong is for the Tamils or Muslims or Tamils of recent Indian origin to claim
exclusively a particular area as entirely theirs. If at all a region is claimed as
traditionally inhabited by a people, it must not close its doors to other people coming
freely and settling down.
5. Re-educating the masses about false Nationalism

But the post-colonial path taken by the two major political parties of the south made
use of this extreme form of Sinhala Buddhist Nationalism for their political
adventurism and prevented the masses from even understanding political structures
such as federalism which were proposed to keep the island united as a multi ethnic and
multi religious reality. Because the proposals came from the Tamils of Northeast, they
were presented as poisonous and dangerous to the majority people, their religion and
their land.
A series of mob and state terrors campaigns aimed at the Tamils followed by a 20 years
of war have been the price paid so far for the wrong policies followed by the politicians
and believed by the people. It is only after such a heavy price in life and property has
been paid, that a genuine effort is attempted with the help of the international
community to reach out for a peaceful and viable political structure for the island. But
here too, the corollaries flowing from Sinhala Buddhist Nationalism impinge heavily
on the vital questions to be answered for a resolution of the ethnic conflict and remain
the biggest obstacle for any peaceful solution.
Unless and until the political parties of the South have the sincerity and the courage to
own up to their past mistakes and take upon themselves the responsibility of reeducating the masses about the basis for a viable and peaceful solution of the ethnic
problem, we have no hope for the future. Their job is made more difficult by the
resurgence of Marxist radicalism and Buddhist nationalism.
6. Sinhala Radicalism and Nationalism threaten the future
There is no sign of the major Sinhala parties courageously taking up the responsibility
of educating the masses about the whole truth of the national question. Though under
pressure the UNP and the SLFP speak to the international donors about devolution of
power to the Tamils, but have openly never campaigned for any federal form of
government that would accommodate a multi-ethnic multireligious population in Sri
Lanka. They still vie for power using their opposition to Tamil claims as criteria. The
minimum they give to the Tamils the better for their political success. There is no
positive national perspective motivating their propaganda. The southern masses are
still asked to vote into power the party that can protect the country from Tamil
separatism and terrorism. Pressure is needed from within and without the island to
make them revise their exclusive radicalism directed against the Tamils.
With the Cease Fire coming into operation and the major parties started opening
themselves a little to devolution of power, the old radical party the Janatha Vimukthi
Perumuna (JVP) and the birth of a new Janata Hela Urumaya(JHU) have raised
their heads in opposing a peaceful settlement with the Tamils. The success of the JVP
and the JHU at the 2004 general election brings in a two-way check on the traditional

UNP and the SLFP. The historic entry of Buddhist clergy as a political party into
Parliament to promote expressly Sinhala Buddhist Nationalism and keep a check on
any compromise with the Tamils will make more difficult a peaceful resolution of the
ethnic conflict. And the efforts of the anti-Tamil JVP to overtake power from the SLFP
spells more disaster for a multiethnic and multireligious Sri Lanka. Thus even the
recent openness shown by the SLFP and the UNP towards finding a political solution is
threatened by the resurgence of Buddhist Extremism and Sinhala Left Radicalism.
May Lord Buddha save Sri Lanka from committing a national suicide!
Posted by Thavam