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Those with a sound knowledge of Dhamma know the path to Nirvana

January 28 was Duruthu Poya
Let us discuss whether a person who develops the path to Nirvana can do it all at once or gradually. Those who have a sound knowledge of Dhamma know the path to Nirvana. We need to slow down when walking on this path. Moving faster may cause more mistakes. If that happens, the distance we will have to go will be longer.
Go slow and be mindful. We call it mindfulness. About what? Have I been mindful? Have I conducted mindfulness? Have I lost my mind by trying to conduct mindfulness? Am I aware that I have lost mindfulness? Am I aware of having mindfulness and not having mindfulness? What is the mindfulness that exists and that do not exist? The mindfulness that exists is the mindfulness that you conduct. If you perform an act, do it mindfully. Be aware that you do it. If you are performing an act without being aware, just be aware that you are doing it without being aware.
You need to analyze it both ways. Apart from these two methods, is there any other way that you can conduct your mindfulness? They are the only ways. You can conduct your mindfulness either with awareness or without awareness. Apart from these two methods, nothing will work. But we all have heard only about the first method. That is to conduct mindfulness by force. I know a way to conduct mindfulness effortlessly.
All those who are enlightened knows it. All those who are enlightened are in that effortless mindfulness. That is why they do not feel exhausted.
If your vehicle is out of fuel, the tank needs to be filled up. Similarly, I will not ask you to walk continuously on this path. I ask you to stop for a while and take a rest. This resting time is the fuel to your next step in the journey. While resting we need to adjust our drawbacks. When we stop to have tea during a journey, what will the ladies do if their hair is disheveled? They will comb it again. We need to correct the drawbacks in our journey.
If I am asked what the easiest thing in the world is, my answer would be attaining Nibbana. But you have been taught that it’s the most difficult thing to achieve. You were told in such a way because the correct path is unknown. If the correct path is known, it would be the easier to attain Nibbana. But you need to understand very carefully.
There is a Sutra called Musika which many may not have heard of. Now, I am going to tell how to do, without ‘doing’. If we are to do something, there will always be a result. Even for not doing something, there will be a result. But when you do without ‘doing’, there would not be a result at all. So, then that’s the correct path.
– Ven. Sri Samanthabadra Thera
News
Unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation plague most schools, say Principals

By Pradeep Prasanna Samarakkone and Chaminda Silva
Around 500 schools across the country lack access to safe drinking water for students, Piyasiri Fernando, Secretary of the Sri Lanka Principals’ Association, has said.
Fernando told The Island that a significant number of schools did not have facilities to store water properly. He said many schools lacked sanitary facilities.
Fernando also noted that in some schools in the Eastern, North Central, Uva, North Western, and Central provinces, as well as in approximately 20% of schools located near coastal areas, there are no proper toilet facilities. Despite the issuance of circulars specifying the number of toilets to be built, based on the number of students, some schools still did not have sanitary facilities as per those guidelines, the Secretary of the Principals’ Association said.
According to the School Census -2023 (2024) conducted by the Department of Census and Statistics there were 3,882,688 schoolchildren, 830,021 in National Schools and 3,052,667 in Provincial Schools.
Out of 10,096 schools, 1,506 have 1-50 students, 1,638 have 51-100 students and 2,128 have 101-200 students. Only 67 schools have 3,001-4,000 students, while only 33 have more than 4,000 students. 3,117 or 30.9 percent schools have fewer than 10 teachers.
News
Julie meets Namal at SLPP HQ

US Ambassador, Julie Chung, visited the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) office on Friday (14) for discussions with party representatives.
Ambassador Chung arrived at the SLPP Headquarters around 10:00 a.m. and engaged in talks for over an hour and a half. Her visit followed a request by the SLPP to meet her.
During the meeting, she held discussions with SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam, former Members of Parliament Sanjeewa Edirimanne, C.B. Ratnayake, and Jayantha Ketagoda, as well as current MP D.V. Chanaka. Milinda Rajapaksha, an advisor to former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was also present.
The visit comes amid calls from SLPP MP Namal Rajapaksa for an investigation into USAID fund recipients in Sri Lanka.
News
Speaker agrees to probe allegations of ‘unethical funding’ by USAID

By Saman Indrajith
Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne informed Parliament on Friday (14) that he intended to take necessary action regarding requests made by MPs concerning allegations over USAID funding in Sri Lanka.
He made this statement in response to a question raised by Opposition MP Dayasiri Jayasekara, who sought a clarification on the matter.
Jayasekara noted that SLPP MP Namal Rajapaksa had sent a letter to the Speaker calling for the appointment of a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to investigate reports about unethical USAID funding in the country. He questioned whether such a committee would be formed and the matter formally examined.
In response, Speaker Wickramaratne confirmed that he was planning to take appropriate action on the issue.
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