Observance of Five Precepts sine qua non for curbing crime
By Chandra Edirisuriya-September 20, 2014
It is of vital importance for Buddhist leaders, especially of the Sangha hierarchy in this country, to take effective measures to drive home to the Buddhists of all ages, the necessity to observe the Five Precepts. When we look at the Penal Code of this country and other laws relating to crime, we can very clearly and convincingly see that one who observes the Five Precepts in Buddhism will not break any of the criminal laws of any country. The Five Precepts in Buddhism admonish one to abstain from theft, killing, sexual misconduct, telling lies and taking intoxicants.
Thus, we see that the Five Precepts embrace the totality of the criminal behaviour of man. We are badly in need of a thousand Anagarika Dharmapal as at this hour to accomplish the task of getting the Buddhists to observe the Five Precepts. So, let's make this the occasion, at the time of the celebration of the 150thBirth Anniversary of the Great Anagarika, to rekindle the flames kindled by this illustrious Son of Lanka!
Responsibility of Buddhist monks
There is no shortcut to achieve this onerous task. The Buddhist monks have to bear the sole responsibility to see that the people do not go on the wrong path. They should not give silly excuses such as that they too are caught in the currents of modern life. The other day I met a 15-year-old Samanera named Ven. Ranne Sudhamma, in the bus, who was from the Dharmashrama Vihara at Wanathamulla and studying at Padhanaghara Pirivena in Maligakanda, Colombo, in Year Five, the class equivalent to Grade 10 in a school, preparing for his GCE (Ordinary Level) Examination. He, hailing from a farmer family in Ranna, in the deep South, seemed to be un-spoilt and disciplined and it's a pity if he also moves with the currents reaching adulthood.
A very silly excuse is given that the Buddha did not force anyone to follow the Five Precepts. But the simple truth is that one cannot call oneself a Buddhist if he or she does not observe the Five Precepts. All those who claim to be Buddhists should give serious thought to this matter. Buddhism is accepted and valued by intelligent people all over the world as a philosophy that provides consolation to the mind.
When we read about them and their writings we see that they have acknowledged the fact that following the Five Precepts is a pre-requisite and
sine qua non for anyone who claims to be a Buddhist. So why are we, who say that we live in what was called the Dharmadveepa, lax in this matter? Chanting manthras like in the village, the temple and the dageba alone is hardly sufficient.
Reform the Angulimalas
Buddhist lay leaders, who observe the Five Precepts, should visit every Buddhist home and prevent Buddhists from committing crime. The Venerable Buddhaputras must get more close to the people, emulate the Noble One and reform the Angulimalas. My humble father, who was a headmaster of government schools and was also managing the village cooperative store, in the 1950s, reformed a man of a respectable family in the village, who hardly got any income from his land through neglect, and was up to distilling illicit liquor, by purchasing for him the monthly provisions worth about Rs 100, and in time the man realized his folly and went to Mannar to be employed in making dried fish. When my father died he rushed from Mannar and wept in gratitude. It is time our Venerable Prelates realized this and thought about a way out, because it is the Sinhala Buddhists who commit crimes quite out of proportion to their numbers!
There is no other way to save the Buddhists. It is heart rending to read news about the various crimes such as murder, abduction and kidnapping and rape committed in this country daily. Those who commit these crimes do not seem to have been guided by the tenets of Buddhism. The most recent two cases of kidnapping of children, of a boy to get a ransom to save a house mortgaged to the bank and a girl, by a mentally deranged person, goes to show the helpless situation of the people, and how unsafe young children in this country are.
The fact that crimes relating to money increased after opening of the economy in 1977 is indicative of the moral bankruptcy of unbridled capitalism that promotes consumerism. When people get accustomed to a life of luxury they try to make more and more money by hook or by crook. So much so there has emerged a school of thought advocating socialism as way of minimizing crime. When the basic necessities of food, clothing and shelter are available to all and poverty is minimized, as happening in China and a proper education, inculcating values, is imparted to the children, there will be less crime.
However, not stopping at making children go to the temple with the parents, sending them to Dhamma Schools in addition their being taught Buddhism in school, as a subject for public examinations, the youth should be made to lead religious lives rather than allowing them to imitate alien life styles, living a life out of tune with the indigenous culture.
Thailand and Myanmar
In Thailand, every young man is encouraged to ordain as a Buddhist monk as a qualification for marriage. In Myanmar, every young man and young woman is required to don yellow robes and may disrobe if they want to marry. I happened to talk to a young Myanmarese monk who said that he is studying Buddhism in the English medium at the Pali and Buddhist University in Homagama. He also said that Buddhism is not taught in the English medium in Myanmar. He said there are over one hundred young monks, along with him, who have come here for the same purpose, staying at the Buruma Pansala at Maligakanda and that he hopes to propagate Buddhism in the West, after completing his education. It is said that in Myanmar, in time to come, there will be more people who have attained higher mental planes than in any other country in the Buddhist world. This is clearly evident from the manner in which they conduct themselves.
When we look at the life of the Buddha, as ordinary men or laymen, we can see that the Buddha never condoned misbehaviour or crime and was diligent in tactfully showing the correct path to the misguided. The story of Angulimala is the best case in point.
The motto of my Alma Mater, Ananda College, Colombo, is Appamado Amathapadan, meaning 'diligence is the ambrosial expression'. This institution that could be equated to a university, in my time, diligently spread the word of the Buddha to the four corners of the world. Those who correctly understood the philosophy of Buddhism, while being students of this premier Buddhist educational institution, emanate its fragrance and shine in whatever they do in the service of humanity.
The Buddha exhorted the Sangha to propagate the Dhamma, travelling the length and breadth of the then known world purely for the good of the many and not to set up a Buddhist empire.
The penal laws of a country discourage and deter the people from committing crime, inculcating virtue in them in a negative way. The Buddhist philosophy makes people virtuous in a positive manner and has the potentiality to create a world free of crime. So the Venerable Sangha, have a big role to play in minimizing crime.
Fifty years ago the Venerable Sangha was more close to the Dayakaya. The Chief Incumbent of the temple, in my village, visited our home very frequently to offer advice, not only on religious matters but also on temporal matters. My father had a very close association with several erudite monks and took delicacies, which they did not usually receive as dana to please them, treating it as a highly meritorious act. Buddhist leaders observing the Five Precepts should also be fully awakened to this fact. They must rise to the occasion and take appropriate action without delay to create a righteous society in this beloved land of ours.
By Chandra Edirisuriya-September 20, 2014 It is of vital importance for Buddhist leaders, especially of the Sangha hierarchy in this country, to take effective measures to drive home to the Buddhists of all ages, the necessity to observe the Five Precepts. When we look at the Penal Code of this country and other laws relating to crime, we can very clearly and convincingly see that one who observes the Five Precepts in Buddhism will not break any of the criminal laws of any country. The Five Precepts in Buddhism admonish one to abstain from theft, killing, sexual misconduct, telling lies and taking intoxicants.
Thus, we see that the Five Precepts embrace the totality of the criminal behaviour of man. We are badly in need of a thousand Anagarika Dharmapal as at this hour to accomplish the task of getting the Buddhists to observe the Five Precepts. So, let's make this the occasion, at the time of the celebration of the 150thBirth Anniversary of the Great Anagarika, to rekindle the flames kindled by this illustrious Son of Lanka!
Responsibility of Buddhist monks
There is no shortcut to achieve this onerous task. The Buddhist monks have to bear the sole responsibility to see that the people do not go on the wrong path. They should not give silly excuses such as that they too are caught in the currents of modern life. The other day I met a 15-year-old Samanera named Ven. Ranne Sudhamma, in the bus, who was from the Dharmashrama Vihara at Wanathamulla and studying at Padhanaghara Pirivena in Maligakanda, Colombo, in Year Five, the class equivalent to Grade 10 in a school, preparing for his GCE (Ordinary Level) Examination. He, hailing from a farmer family in Ranna, in the deep South, seemed to be un-spoilt and disciplined and it's a pity if he also moves with the currents reaching adulthood.
A very silly excuse is given that the Buddha did not force anyone to follow the Five Precepts. But the simple truth is that one cannot call oneself a Buddhist if he or she does not observe the Five Precepts. All those who claim to be Buddhists should give serious thought to this matter. Buddhism is accepted and valued by intelligent people all over the world as a philosophy that provides consolation to the mind.
When we read about them and their writings we see that they have acknowledged the fact that following the Five Precepts is a pre-requisite and
sine qua non for anyone who claims to be a Buddhist. So why are we, who say that we live in what was called the Dharmadveepa, lax in this matter? Chanting manthras like in the village, the temple and the dageba alone is hardly sufficient.
Reform the Angulimalas
Buddhist lay leaders, who observe the Five Precepts, should visit every Buddhist home and prevent Buddhists from committing crime. The Venerable Buddhaputras must get more close to the people, emulate the Noble One and reform the Angulimalas. My humble father, who was a headmaster of government schools and was also managing the village cooperative store, in the 1950s, reformed a man of a respectable family in the village, who hardly got any income from his land through neglect, and was up to distilling illicit liquor, by purchasing for him the monthly provisions worth about Rs 100, and in time the man realized his folly and went to Mannar to be employed in making dried fish. When my father died he rushed from Mannar and wept in gratitude. It is time our Venerable Prelates realized this and thought about a way out, because it is the Sinhala Buddhists who commit crimes quite out of proportion to their numbers!
There is no other way to save the Buddhists. It is heart rending to read news about the various crimes such as murder, abduction and kidnapping and rape committed in this country daily. Those who commit these crimes do not seem to have been guided by the tenets of Buddhism. The most recent two cases of kidnapping of children, of a boy to get a ransom to save a house mortgaged to the bank and a girl, by a mentally deranged person, goes to show the helpless situation of the people, and how unsafe young children in this country are.
The fact that crimes relating to money increased after opening of the economy in 1977 is indicative of the moral bankruptcy of unbridled capitalism that promotes consumerism. When people get accustomed to a life of luxury they try to make more and more money by hook or by crook. So much so there has emerged a school of thought advocating socialism as way of minimizing crime. When the basic necessities of food, clothing and shelter are available to all and poverty is minimized, as happening in China and a proper education, inculcating values, is imparted to the children, there will be less crime.
However, not stopping at making children go to the temple with the parents, sending them to Dhamma Schools in addition their being taught Buddhism in school, as a subject for public examinations, the youth should be made to lead religious lives rather than allowing them to imitate alien life styles, living a life out of tune with the indigenous culture.
Thailand and Myanmar
In Thailand, every young man is encouraged to ordain as a Buddhist monk as a qualification for marriage. In Myanmar, every young man and young woman is required to don yellow robes and may disrobe if they want to marry. I happened to talk to a young Myanmarese monk who said that he is studying Buddhism in the English medium at the Pali and Buddhist University in Homagama. He also said that Buddhism is not taught in the English medium in Myanmar. He said there are over one hundred young monks, along with him, who have come here for the same purpose, staying at the Buruma Pansala at Maligakanda and that he hopes to propagate Buddhism in the West, after completing his education. It is said that in Myanmar, in time to come, there will be more people who have attained higher mental planes than in any other country in the Buddhist world. This is clearly evident from the manner in which they conduct themselves.
When we look at the life of the Buddha, as ordinary men or laymen, we can see that the Buddha never condoned misbehaviour or crime and was diligent in tactfully showing the correct path to the misguided. The story of Angulimala is the best case in point.
The motto of my Alma Mater, Ananda College, Colombo, is Appamado Amathapadan, meaning 'diligence is the ambrosial expression'. This institution that could be equated to a university, in my time, diligently spread the word of the Buddha to the four corners of the world. Those who correctly understood the philosophy of Buddhism, while being students of this premier Buddhist educational institution, emanate its fragrance and shine in whatever they do in the service of humanity.
The Buddha exhorted the Sangha to propagate the Dhamma, travelling the length and breadth of the then known world purely for the good of the many and not to set up a Buddhist empire.
The penal laws of a country discourage and deter the people from committing crime, inculcating virtue in them in a negative way. The Buddhist philosophy makes people virtuous in a positive manner and has the potentiality to create a world free of crime. So the Venerable Sangha, have a big role to play in minimizing crime.
Fifty years ago the Venerable Sangha was more close to the Dayakaya. The Chief Incumbent of the temple, in my village, visited our home very frequently to offer advice, not only on religious matters but also on temporal matters. My father had a very close association with several erudite monks and took delicacies, which they did not usually receive as dana to please them, treating it as a highly meritorious act. Buddhist leaders observing the Five Precepts should also be fully awakened to this fact. They must rise to the occasion and take appropriate action without delay to create a righteous society in this beloved land of ours.
