The Kiralagala Affair: A Lesson On Basic Logic
Farweez Imamudeen
The holy site was apparently unmarked. No signs indicating an ancient religious site, were to be seen in the vicinity. In addition, people had in the past taken pictures standing on it. Yet, when it was brought to the attention of the Horowopathana police that seven South Eastern University students had taken pictures, while standing on the Kiralagala sthupa they were apprehended and remanded with a sensational news story to supplement the whole drama.
Fair enough. Those who intentionally revile a religious site need to make amends by going through the systematic process of law and order, for treating such an act with indifference may have grave consequences for the society at large.
However, justice is not to apprehend civilians for merely climbing atop an ancient ruin, which is claimed to be an ancient religious site; justice is not to remand a group of students for standing on an ancient sacred site, which apparently bore no signs or indications of its sacredness; justice in fact is to consider the context of the incident before randomly throwing people behind bars.
To find out whether it was justice that was truly served we need to assess the site in which the so called abominable act took place. Was there any indication to say that it is an ancient religious site? Apparently NO! There are hundreds of ruins all over the island, but how many of them are religious and thus holy? How is anyone to know if there is nothing to indicate to distinguish the sacredness of the site? If there’s nothing to indicate that the site is sacred, and therefore ought to be treated with respect, what is the logic behind apprehending someone for reviling it by standing on it?
After all every ruin are merely remains of building materials. Thus in the absence of a sign to distinguish a sacred location, the general and lay public will merely and naturally regard it as another ancient building. It is the responsibility of the archeological department to label the sacred sites. Why did they not take measures to inform the public? Do they expect the citizens to carry a manual of all the archeological ruins wherever they go, or to have knowledge of the sacredness and non-sacredness of every single archeological ruin in Sri Lanka?
