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Mr. President, please let this be a turning point!

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By Rohana R. Wasala

When I pen these words, most Sri Lankans are still sleeping. I am ahead of them and awake. That is because of the time zone difference between where I live and Sri Lanka, my country of birth. As usual, as the first thing I do in the morning, particularly these days, I glanced at the headlines in The Island epaper, and was depressed to read the banner headline “Ratwatte remains a state minister despite resignation over running amok in prisons”, with the following underneath it:

“State Minister of Prison Reform and Rehabilitation Lohan Ratwatte yesterday told The Island that he had informed President Gotabaya Rajapaksa that he would step down immediately from his post as the State Minister of Prisons. However, he will continue to be the State Minister of Gem and Jewellery Industries”.

Having earlier read and heard over the media about Lohan Ratwatte’s alleged escapades in prisons on Sunday (12) night, I have been eagerly waiting to read a newspaper headline like “Deputy Minister remanded; a good start to meeting challenge to rule of law”, for I expect nothing less from President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. As a disciplined and determined executive, with a military background, he, I assume, tries to handle the toughest cases with the strictest adherence to the law. He appears to rely on the ministers and the government servants, serving under him, to follow his perfectly lawful commands in a spirit of military discipline, mutatis mutandis, in the context of civil government. Whatever the likely or actual response to the extremely embarrassing deputy-ministerial episode (not the first involving LR), it should be of a kind that contributes to a restoration of the fast eroding public faith in the hoped-for Gotabaya rule. The Island editorial of Thursday (16) under the arresting heading “Arrest them” offers sound advice. I drew some solace from that. For I realised that there is at least another person of a like mind.

I was even more shocked and disappointed by the Commissioner General of Prisons Thushara Upuldeniya’s attempted absolution of the Deputy Minister. According to the online Lanka C News (September 16), the Commissioner has said that the Minister visited the prison to discuss pardoning some prisoners and that the he has the right to visit the prison to discuss with the inmates at any time of the day. The Commissioner might be technically right, but I am doubtful about the lawfulness of what the Minister has done, especially in his alleged inebriated state. Upuldeniya was handpicked by the President for the extremely demanding job. His coming to the defence of LR was a bolt from the blue to the innocent peace-loving law abiding citizens of the country who have been for decades persecuted by the persistent menace posed by the unholy alliance between criminals and some jailors and a handful of politicos providing together an impregnable bulwark for the first.

However, since the case hasn’t yet been verified or investigated, we don’t know for sure whether the Deputy Minister is guilty of going berserk under the influence of liquor as alleged. As a person embroiled in politics, he could be a victim of some calumnious effort of his detractors, and we must be cautious in passing judgement on him. But again, as he, who has a previous thuggish reputation, has virtually accepted guilt in this case by tendering his resignation, citizens are justified if they expect, as I do, a tougher reaction from the President.

At this moment we should anticipate a presidential response different from the mild rebuke “Anthimai!” (equivalent of a sarcastic “Great!”) that the then President Mahinda Rajapaksa greeted the hospitalised Labour Minister Mervyn Silva with, on December 27, 2007. (I eagerly hope that the President’s deterrent reaction would be known before this reaches The Island readers.) The latter was admitted to hospital after being given a taste of his own medicine following a rowdy interference he committed with the work of a news editor by the name of T.M.G. Chandrasekera at the state-owned Rupavahini TV station over not giving enough coverage as he alleged to a public event that he had organised in Matara the day before. Though very close to MR, he was not an elected MP; he was only a national list MP from the SLFP that MR led. In any case, it was inexcusable that he conducted himself the way he did, for what he did was bound to reflect badly on the President himself. The other employees of the TV station, angered by the uncouth highhanded behaviour of Mervyn Silva, forced him and his notorious sidekick, suspected drug trafficker Kudu Nuwan or Lal or someone (I am not too sure about these trivial details now) to a room and held them there, handling them roughly. Mervyn Silva was heard pleading : “I will tender an apology if you say I have done wrong”. He had. The workers were providing manual proof as best they could.

Mervyn Silva was beaten up right royally, and bundled into his prestigious ministerial Pajero and was briskly driven away to hospital safety. The state Rupavahini telecast the proceedings live for the whole world to see in repeated ‘news flashes’ most of the day that day, as my older readers might clearly remember. It was a sort of news carnival for the wrathful Rupavahini broadcasters and for the scandalised viewers. While watching the scenario live, I convinced myself that President Mahinda Rajapaksa would kick his you-know-what-I-mean within the hour, or at least after his discharge from hospital. To my utter disgust and disappointment, nothing like that happened. The fellow flourished for another eight years under MR’s wing until he betrayed him utterly in 2015, after having abused his well-known humaneness and his reluctance to abandon people who have helped him in the past. Lately, Mervin seemed to try to cozy up to the boss he so treacherously let down; but MR’s brothers have saved him from his erstwhile unequal friend.

I personally believe that we are not going to see such wretched characters protected under President Gotabaya Rajapaksa during the remainder of his term.



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Opinion

Ajahn Brahmali’s dhammaduta visit to Sri Lanka in March 2024

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Brahmali Thera

The Ajahn Brahm Society of Sri Lanka has announced the visit of Ajahn Brahmali to this country in March 2024. He will be here from March 14 to 24 and will conduct meditation retreats, giving Dhamma talks and meeting and conversing with relevant groups. Just as it was with Ajahn Brahmavamso, who was in Sri Lanka for 10 days in late May this year, the Ajahn Brahm Society is finalising a full programme for Ajahn Brahmali, overseen by Ven Mettavihari Thera, with beneficiaries being us – Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.

 This is Ajahn Brahmali’s fifth visit to our country, his first having been in 2013. Every available minute of his time in Sri Lanka in March next year will be utilized to help us better understand the Dhamma and guide us in proceeding on the Path to end the cycle of samsaric existence. Advice on the practice of meditation will be included in his crowded schedule for bhikkhus, bhikkhunis and lay people

Biographical sketch

Ajahn Brahmali was born in Norway in 1964. In his early 20s he visited Japan and was introduced to Buddhism and meditation. He was deeply interested and devoted much time to learning more of what the Buddha taught and in quiet reflection and meditation. This was while reading for degrees in engineering and finance. On completion of his academic studies, he moved to Britain and resided in the Amaravati and Chithurst Monasteries as an Anagarika (keeper of eight precepts). Meeting Ajahn Brahmavamso and listening to his teaching, he decided to travel to Australia and train in the Bodhinyana Monastery in Serpentine, near Perth, in Western Australia. This was in 1994. Two years later he was ordained; his preceptor being Ajahn Brahm. In 2015, on completion of 20 rain retreats, he was conferred the title ‘Maha Thera’ – Great Elder.

  Ajahn Brahmali’s reputation as an expert in the Pali language and deep knowledge of the Suttas is internationally recognized. He has authored many essays inclusive of two on Dependent Origination and the treatise The Authenticity of Ancient Buddhist Texts, in collaboration with Bhante Sujato. He conducts Pali language classes and explanatory discourses on the Suttas to devotees of Bodhinyana Monastery. He is also a regular teacher at the Dhammaloka Centre in Perth. Added to his intellectual excellence is his practicality. Ajahn Brahmali oversees the building and maintenance projects at both the Bodhinyana Monastery and the Hermit Hill property in Serpentine.

And thus, propitiously and fortunately for us Sri Lankans, Ven Ajahn Brahmali will be here in our land in March 2024; generously willing to guide us to deeper understanding of the Dhamma and enhanced meditation.

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Opinion

Concept of Immunology in Ayurveda

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By Dr. Sasika Palathiratne

BAMS (Hons.) – FIM, UoC

Ayurveda is a holistic system of medicine with Vedic roots that originated in India about 5,000 years ago. Ayurveda is not only a complete system of medicine but also a scientific philosophy of life, with the two main objectives of prevention and curing of diseases and disorders. Ayurveda is believed to be of a divine origin and passed down to humans via the great sages. Ayurveda mostly utilises herbal based medicines and it has survived the test of time for many millennia; even today it is one of the most popular systems of alternative or complementary medicine throughout the globe. Ayurveda encompasses traditional wisdom, oriental philosophy as well as Vedic science.

The concept of immunology is well-established and elaborated in Ayurveda but in a different name. In Ayurveda, immunity is known as Vyadhikshamatva and defined as the power or ability that prevents the future occurrence of diseases and acts against existent diseases. Furthermore, Vyadhikshamatva is associated with Trividha Bala namely; Sahaja, Kalaja and Yuktikruta. The Trividha Bala can be interpreted as domains of immunity as congenital or hereditary, seasonal or chronological and acquired or specific respectively. Sahaja Bala is the immunity present from birth and it is due to genetic predisposition and good maternal prenatal health. Kalaja Bala is the particular power of immunity that manifests itself in certain episodes of age as well as seasons. Yuktikruta Bala is the power of immunity that a person can acquire through certain medications, healthy foods and proper lifestyle.

Good immunity or Vyadhikshamatva is invariably present in a healthy person and according to Ayurveda; for this proper functioning of the entities Ojas and Kapha are essential. Kapha is one among the Tridosha of Ayurveda, which represents fluid and earthly nature as well as the physical growth of the body. Ojas on the other hand is considered as the utmost essence of the seven body tissues and its presence is said to be extremely essential for life. Furthermore, the clinical features described in abnormalities of Ojas are also seen in most immune-compromised patients. In addition, Ayurveda has clearly described instances where the Vyadhikshamatva Bala is increased or decreased. Specifically, persons having extremes of heights and body statures such as very obesity and emaciation are said to possess a relatively low power of immunity. On the contrary, a higher power of immunity is said to be manifested in persons who are born out of good paternal and maternal gametes [reproductive cells] at a suitable geography, time and climate and of cheerful dispositions, consume good food, engage in physical exercises.

Ayurveda is a complete medical system, where each and every major disease is well-described with causative factors, symptoms and most importantly therapeutics. The system of Ayurveda medicine has a major focus on curtailing the causative factors and reversing the pathogenesis of the disease, as opposed to symptomatic treatments. Thus, the principle of prevention is better than cure, has been a core policy of Ayurveda since its inception. Sushruta Samhita, which is one among the two main compendiums or textbooks of Ayurveda, explains in a separate chapter named Anagata Abadha Pratishedaniya Adhyaya, the ways and means of prevention of future emergence of diseases. The particular chapter explains the importance of proper food, bathing, exercises and medicated oil anointments for maintenance of proper immunity power and sound health, thereby preventing future occurrence of numerous diseases. Ayurveda has also proclaimed different treatment modalities for improvement of power of immunity, notably the Rasayana and Balya treatments that rejuvenate and energize the body, respectively.

The concept of auto-immunity can be correlated with the Rakta Doshaja Vikara mentioned in Ayurveda. According to Charaka Samhita, which is one among the two main compendiums of Ayurveda, if a disease does not get cured by proper orthodox treatments it should be considered as Rakta Doshaja Vikara and atypical treatments should be administered. Rakta Doshaja Vikara are diseases occurring due to abnormalities of blood and even as per modern medicine the antibodies and other immune components mediating the auto-immune process are predominantly located in the blood or its plasma. Furthermore, the Dushi Vishaja Roga, a particular type of Rakta Doshaja Vikara; clearly explains how such chronic diseases gradually occur with time when immunity weakens due to improper geographical, seasonal or dietary factors. Conditions associated with Dushi Visha such as skin diseases, edematous conditions, sub-fertility and certain heart diseases can also occur due to auto-immune pathology, according to modern medicine. According to Ayurveda the main causative factor for such auto-immune conditions is regarded as Ama, which can be considered as the improperly digested dietary matter that gets absorbed into the blood plasma and thereby acts as a root cause for all diseases. Even according to textbooks of modern immunology, some percentage of undigested dietary protein can remain antigenically intact in the blood plasma. Certain conditions of Ama are regarded similar to the action of toxin and are said to be cured with difficulty.

Ayurveda also explains treatments for such Rakta Doshaja Vikara with comparable auto-immune pathology. The Vamana Karma (emetic therapy) and the Virechana Karma (purgative therapy) are regarded as best treatment modalities for Rakta Doshaja Vikara, where expulsion of all undigested matters and impurities of blood are postulated. In addition, the Rakta Mokshana or the bloodletting therapy allows direct elimination of blood impurities by means of medicinal leeches or other suitable methodology. Upavasa or fasting is also mentioned as a treatment modality in such cases, which facilitates the digestion of any Ama and the importance of curtailing heavy protein intake in auto-antibody mediated diseases is thus, indirectly mentioned in Ayurveda. Besides, there are many specific herbs beneficial in such cases of auto-immunity such as Giloy, Licorice, Turmeric, Neem, etc., which are designated as immune-modulators even according to modern research.

In conclusion, with reference to all these facts it is evident that the concept of immunity was well understood and properly elucidated in the ancient divine medical science of life—Ayurveda.

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Opinion

An Incomparable Friend; Dr Carmel Indranie Ernest

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Indranie with husband, Cyril and daughters, Cheryl and Melanie

“WHEN SOMEONE YOU CHERISH BECOMES A MEMORY,

THAT MEMORY BECOMES A TREASURE”   –ANON

The email from Cyril was short and simple. But the effect was seismic . It hit Kanthi ( my wife) and me with the might of a sledgehammer blow. Indranie, his lifelong partner, had passed away after a brief illness.

Cyril was one of my closest friends, and also my roommate in our final year in Bloemfontein, the boisterous medical student’s hostel adjoining Carey College. We got to know Indrani well in that eventful year in Los Angeles where I did an Echocardiography Fellowship with an outstanding Sri Lanka born cardiologist, Dr Tony Chandraratne.

Indranie was born in 1942 in Moratuwa, a town hallowed in history; 1942 was also the year that the Japanese bombed Colombo and Trincomalee. Moratuwa which escaped the bombs was the birthplace of heroes who bravely stood up to the British conquerors, peerless philanthropists and also skilled artisans who fashioned furniture from local hardwoods; these surpassed the best European fitments.

She would no doubt have imbued this heritage as well as those of her parents; her father was an accountant and the mother a dutiful housewife. Indranie was the second of five siblings and was noted always for her placid temperament, charming smile and friendliness. She was also deeply religious. However she also was adept at separating wheat from the chaff; one of her favourite sayings was ‘all that glitters is not gold’.

At school she shone academically but was also proficient in sports particularly netball and athletics. In 1962 she was among the first recruits to the newly established medical school in the sylvan surroundings of Peradeniya. It was here that the champion cricketer,

Cyril, bowled over the pretty colleen and embarked on his longest partnership. They married 53 years ago and could echo Winston Churchill’s words “we lived happily ever afterwards”.

Both graduated in 1967, she from Peradeniya and Cyril from Colombo where he had relocated on account of his many sporting commitments. In 1973 they emigrated to the USA for further medical training; Cyril qualified as a cardiologist and Indrani as an Internist . They then moved to Lancaster in California in 1977 where both established outstanding practices . ( Indranie was a popular and successful physician as many of her former patients would attest. One very eloquent tribute states “her warm smile, quiet demeanour and even temperament made everyone who encountered her feel comfortable in her presence”. She remained a caring and dedicated physician to the end of her days. But the family was her first concern. Cyril and the two beautiful and accomplished daughters Cheryl and Melanie were her primacy.

ANNUS MIRABILIS

I arrived, unannounced , in Los Angeles in 1988. Cyril somehow got wind of my coming, and on a Friday evening fronted up in the Howard Johnson Hotel in Boyle Heights. With few preliminaries, he bundled me into his luxurious Mercedes sedan and drove onto their elegant mansion in Encino the suburb where Michael Jackson too lived. Indranie was at the door with a warm welcoming smile which made me feel at home instantly. A delicious meal followed, the first of many.

It was my first meeting with Indranie. I had heard about her from our mutual friend and fellow hosteller Ganesh. Cyril and he traveled to Peradeniya on their free weekends.

Being a very private person, Cyril , never breathed a word about his mysterious sojourns; neither did he say anything about his many sporting accomplishments.

There were many other visits to Encino at weekends; they would guide me around the myriad shops in LA, and Indranie in particular helped me to get the household goods I needed for an unfurnished apartment which I had rented in South Pasadena, prior to Kanthi’s arrival.

One weekend they drove me to an orange grove outside the city, where a friend resided.Indranie graciously let me sit in the front , so I could enjoy the sweeping vistas and Cyril’s commentary.

Even after Kanthi came we were regular visitors. Cyril would invite eminent cardiologists who he felt maybe useful to me; also some colleagues from our year of 1962 in Medical school. Kanthi being a good cook , we were able to reciprocate their hospitality.

Their sincerity and affection was never more evident, as when Kanthi fell ill.

She had a severe upper abdominal pain; I imagined the worst and visualized removal of the gallbladder which was a major undertaking in the pre-laparoscopic surgery era.Indranie being the skilled internist she was, pacified us and telephoned a pharmacy near us to provide appropriate medications.

Next day we went over to her rooms where she performed a detailed examination and got the needed scans. Then we were seen by a surgical colleague who reassured us that it was an intestinal colic. Our relief was immeasurable. The year ended on a happy note.

We had a farewell dinner in our apartment which was graced by Cyril and Indranie. There were many encounters since. Once both of us were stranded in the Los Angeles airport as the friend who had promised to pick us, failed to turn up. We then called Indranie who promptly invited us home. Cyril was away in Lancaster as he was on call.

Our last meeting was in the Anantara Peace Haven Resort in Tangalle in Sri Lanka in 2020, just before the Covid pandemic broke out. We along with Cyril , Indranie and Melanie and others were attending the wedding of Lareef Idroos and Nabila’s daughter.

All of us had a grand time with friends and colleagues. Sadly it was also our last rendezvous..

We can now only seek solace in Jalaluddin Rumi’s wisdom.

“Do not grieve. Anything you lose comes around in another form”

And the deathless verse of Mary Elizabeth Frye

“Do not stand at my grave and weep,

I’m not there I do not sleep,

I’m a thousand winds that blow,

I’m the diamond glints on snow,

I’m the sunlight on ripened corn,

I’m the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning’s hush,

I’m the swiftly uplifting rush,

Of the quiet birds in the circled flight,

I’m the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry,

I’m not there. I did not die.

Farewell our dearest Friend.

May the good Earth lie softly on you.

May God hold you always in the Palm of His hand.”

Kumar Gunawardane

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