Who is distorting Buddhism?

By Dr Upul Wijayawardhana

Whilst being in total agreement with the sentiments expressed by a ‘Member of the silent majority’ in the article “The distortion of Buddhism and the rise of meaningless rituals” (Sunday Island, 26 November), being someone belonging to the vociferous minority repeatedly pointing out distortions of Buddhism, I wish to expand on some of the points raised.

The Doctrine of the Buddha “Buddha Dhamma” needs separation from “Buddhagama” Buddhism, the religion. In a way, the greatest disservice done to the teachings of the Buddha is by the categorization of it as a religion and, in fact, there is no one word to describe it, as it is a philosophy, way of life, a science of the mind etc. It has become a religion by the introduction of rituals as well as by the process of mystification and I raised some of these issue in my article “Demystifying Buddhism: Need of the hour?” (The Island, 2 June 2023) wherein I mentioned:

“The Buddha showed us the way to overcome the sense of dissatisfaction that pervades all aspects of life and also the power of the mind. He showed us the way we could develop our mind and introduced the concept of mindfulness. He showed the path for ultimate detachment. What happened subsequently was converting this Dhamma to a religion by enveloping it in rituals and mysticisms; very practices denounced by the Buddha.”

One may argue that rituals have served a purpose, as they have contributed to the continuation of Buddhism as a leading world religion but, as the writer alluded to, it is the rise of meaningless rituals that we should be concerned about. Whilst the minds of the intelligentsia are stimulated by the metaphysics of Buddha Dhamma, rituals may be the attraction for some others but it is the duty of the Sangha as well as the educated laity to direct them towards the substance of Buddhism, as ever pervading sense of dissatisfaction can only be overcome by enlightenment, not by rituals.

It is very true that the opulence associated with Katina ceremonies have converted them to carnivals. One could argue that it is a practice no longer of relevance. Buddha walked across vast swathes of India, very likely barefoot, imparting the knowledge he gained by his own experience. He stayed in one place only during the rainy season but in the modern world all activities continue across all seasons. In the time of the Buddha, disciples had no more than two saffron robes and getting a Katina robe was a bonus. Modern day Bhikkhus have plenty of robes of varying colours and of the highest quality material. Is Katina robe a necessity for them?

If we are keen to continue a tradition, we can make the Vas season a time for reflection and education, sans opulence. I remember when we sponsored the Katina Ceremony in Shanti Vihara, Nottingham, five or six years ago, we requested Venerable Tedeniyaye Amitha to teach us Abhidhamma. He obliged and every Saturday evening, from the beginning of the rainy retreat to Katina Ceremony, was devoted to the teaching of Abhidhamma, which gave me the grounding for that study. Some other years, the concentration was on Mindfulness Meditation. Needless to say, whilst these activities attracted only a small crowd, there invariably was a huge crowd for the Katina ceremony!

The biggest distortion happening at the moment is the rewriting of the Buddha’s existence. Perhaps, deluded with false patriotism, there is a group of individuals, led by some Bhikkhus, who claim that the Buddha was born and lived in Sri Lanka! I must admit that I too get annoyed by the stories that all Buddhas are born in India but the only Buddha for whom there is archaeological evidence is Gautama Buddha and all places related to life events are found in India. It is shame that these individuals are allowed to disregard the inscriptions in the Pillars of Ashoka and our Mahanayaka Theros have taken no action to prevent the spread of gross distortions.

In addition to corruption, what ails most in Sri Lanka is indiscipline; unfortunately, some Bhikkhus displaying this in large measure. In addition to indulging in various activities and professions barred by the Buddha, some of them mislead the public by their levels of Enlightenment! One of the first to claim Arahant hood has been given the final warning, it was widely reported. In fact, this is the second final warning! About six years ago, he was given a final warning for insulting the Tooth Relic.

This time, he referred to an unsavoury liaison between the aspiring Buddha and Sujatha, who brought milk rice. His explanation was that he quoted from, what he realised later was a misinterpreted Sinhala translation of a Mahayana story! If someone who claims himself to be enlightened makes such mistakes, what about mundane beings like us? He will continue to mislead his followers as gullibility seems to be yet another national characteristic of ours! Will our Mahanayaka Theros ever instil discipline?

When the majority of the population is at the verge of starvation, what is the point of having Buddha Puja with hundreds of curries? When children cannot dress properly to school, what is the point in draping Dagobas? Why cannot a part of the donations to the Temple of the Tooth be used to alleviate hunger?

The most meaningless ritual is Bodhi Puja. Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree and we are fortunate to have a sapling of that tree. The famous writer H G Wells in the chapter, “The Rise and Spread of Buddhism” in his 1920 book “The Outline of History” refers to this as follows: “In Ceylon there grows to this day a tree, the oldest historical tree in the world, which we know certainly to have been planted as a cutting from the Bodhi-Tree in the year 245 BC. From that time to this it has been carefully tended and watered.”

We can show our respect to that tree of historical significance but what is the point in having special poojas to similar trees, spending hours reciting Gathas. A misguided young priest introduced this tradition and it continues to this day though it serves no purpose. Why not spend that time in Mindfulness meditation; perhaps, Buddha’s greatest gift to the world!