An Open Letter To Prof. Kapila Abhayawansa
By Sharmini Serasinghe -January 13, 2014
Sharmini Serasinghe
Dear Prof. Abhayawansa,
You may regard the following disrespectful, and highly impertinent, but I was educated within a system, where I was encouraged, to challenge my teachers. And the most adamant of them all, was my reverend Guru, the late Piyadassi Maha Thera.
Therefore, though you are not one of my esteemed teachers, I shall nevertheless, regard you as a teacher.
To start with, your post titled “God in the Buddha” on Colombo Telegraph dated 10thJanuary, 2014, in response to Mr. Shyamon Jayasinghe and Dr. Jagath Asoka, I found quite intriguing, to say the least.
You start with by stating, that you got the idea “to write something revealing the true nature of popular Buddhist practices”. But having carefully studied your post, I find nothing cogently “revealing” of such, except to condone what you term, as “popular Buddhist activities”, introduced to the people of Sri Lanka, as Buddhism, by Buddhist monks, over 2500 years ago. Though these “activities” appear to have been borrowed from Hinduism, they are indeed harmless, but they are nevertheless, contradictory, to the Buddha’s teachings.
Therefore, what I did find “revealing”, is that your archaic views on Buddhism, are not applicable, in today’s context.
You, dear Professor, have cited the Buddha’s words, “na āyatkeneva aññārādhanam vadāmi. Apica anupubba-sikkhā anupubba-kiriyā anupubba-patipadā aññārādhanam hoti”.-(M.I. 479), which translates into “I do not say that one can win the final knowledge at the very beginning. It is had from a gradual discipline, a gradual mode of action and conduct”.
Given the context in which you have stated the above, your interpretation of it appears to be, that the Buddha condoned and encouraged his followers, to engage in, what you term as “Popular Buddhist Practices”. You might be aware, that the Buddha categorically denounced such practices, as worshipping of objects, including himself, as a prerequisite to attaining “the final knowledge”.
You also go on to state, that most Buddhists, in all Buddhist countries, irrespective of the sect, perform popular ‘religious activities’, “We cannot say that all such activities are based on wrong beliefs”. If so, please do enlighten me and others such as myself, on the ‘right belief’ according to you, of such practices? As far as I know, the Buddha denounced such practices, as he meant Buddhism to be a philosophy and not a religion (Religion, defined as per the Oxford dictionary- “the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods”).
Did the Buddha (who was not a God), advocate the offering of flowers to perceived images of him, in order for one to be reminded, of the impermanence of life (anicca)? Similarly, did he advocate lighting oil- lamps, candles etc., in order to remind oneself of “wisdom illuminating the darkness of ignorance”? Also, did he ask of his followers, to keep watering Bo trees, which gave him shade, as he attained enlightenment?
