In from the West
The result of the Panadura Debate set off a chain of events that helped to change the entire landscape of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. After reading a book about the debate in America, Colonel Henry Steele Olcott decidedto travel to the island to seek more knowledge about Buddhism. Prior to his visit, he corresponded with Ven. Gunananda and Ven. Sumangala and eventually arrived in 1880. As one of the first few westerners professing an interest in Buddhism, he was received with much fanfare and celebration when he arrived in Galle.
Although the Buddhists had regained their self-belief and courage, there was still much more to be done. They still faced the government’s discrimination, and the missionaries’ dominance over the schools and
education system. They lacked organizational skills and a unified leadership, both of which the Sangha at that time was unable to provide.
Olcott with his experience as a senior officer in both the American army
and navy, had these necessary organizational skills. Furthermore, as a neutral outsider, he was able to unite the Sangha behind him. Just one month after his arrival, he formed the Buddhist Theosophical Society,
bringing together prominent monks and lay people.
The objective of the Society was to promote the welfare of Buddhists and to establish Buddhist schools. Great emphasis was placed on the schooling of children, as Olcott believed that a good education was the only way that Buddhists could stand up to the missionaries. Before the Society was founded, there were only three Buddhist schools. By 1897, the Society had established 46 Buddhist schools and by 1903, they were managing 174 such schools. By 1940, the Society had established 429 Buddhist schools throughout Sri Lanka.
Olcott was also the inspiration for the Young Men’s Buddhist Association (YMBA) and Buddhist Sunday schools. These were modelled after the
Protestant system, and are still very active today. In the early days, Olcott worked very hard, going from village to village to raise funds for the schools. His companion and translator was a young man called Anagarika Dharmapala, who was also to play a leading role in the Buddhist revival. Many of the well-known Buddhist schools such as Ananda College and Nalanda College in Colombo, Dharmaraja College in Kandy and Mahinda College in Galle, stem directly from his efforts. Olcott also encouraged Buddhists to start their own publications to disseminate their teachings. The Buddhist Theosophical Society eventually established both a Sinhalese as well as an English language newspaper.
Olcott was surprised at the lack of proper knowledge about Buddhismamongst most of the laity he encountered. He therefore formulated the Buddhist Catechism in 1881, modelling it after the Christian Catechism. The Buddhist Catechism summarized the essential teachings in a question and answer format, so that ordinary people were able to learn and understand
these teachings on their own. It is still in use today in many schools.
At that time, Vesak Day was surprisingly, not recognized as a national holiday. It was made a holiday only in 1885 after Olcott successfully petitioned the British government in London to grant this right to the Buddhists. He also helped to design a flag which was accepted at the World Buddhist Congress of 1952, as the International Buddhist Flag.
A number of other westerners living in Sri Lanka also played active and significant roles in the service of Buddhism.
They translated the ancient texts, wrote books and treatises and eventually taught it in their own
countries when they returned home. Among these figures are George Turner who was the first to translate the Mahavamsa to English, Wilhelm Geiger who translated it to German, and Robert C. Chillers who published
a Dictionary of the Pali Language.
One of the most important figures was Prof. T.W. Rhys Davids who founded the Pali Text Society in 1881. Together with his wife, Mrs. C.A.F. Rhys Davids, they made a great contribution to the spread and advancement of Buddhist knowledge with their vast number of translations and writings.
Colonel Henry Steele Olcott
Henry Steele Olcott was born in 1832, in New Jersey, U.S.A., into a pious Presbyterian household. He attended the prestigious Columbia University of New York but had to leave after the failure of his father’s business. He then joined the US Army and served during the Civil War. He was promoted to the rank of Colonel after distinguishing himself, and was then transferred to the Naval Department in Washington D.C. Olcott earned himself a good reputation and worked on a special commission investigating President Lincoln’s assassination. He subsequently turned to journalism and law. In 1874, he became involved in spiritualism after befriending the Russian occultist Helena Blavatsky.
A year later, they founded the Theosophical Society with a group of other spiritualists. The headquarters of the Society was eventually moved to India so that they could be closer to the teachings of Hinduism, Buddhism and Zoroastrianism.
Olcott and Blavatsky’s main interest however, was in Buddhism and they soon made their way to Sri Lanka, arriving in 1880. Just a few weeks after their arrival and convinced of the teachings of the Buddha, they took the Three Refuges and the Five Precepts, thus becoming the first westerners in modern times to publicly and formally become Buddhists. Olcott proceeded to work tirelessly for Buddhism in Sri Lanka.
He passed away in 1907 and the anniversary of his death is still widely observed in Sri Lanka. The service rendered by Col. Olcott to Buddhism cannot be over-emphasized and the debt that all Buddhists owe to him is
impossible to be measured.
Protestant Buddhism
In the late 19th century, Buddhism was taken forward in its revival by Anagarika Dharmapala, Sri Lanka’s greatest Buddhist activist. It was to evolve into Protestant Buddhism, a term penned by the eminent Sinhalese
scholar and writer, Gananath Obeyesekere. Protestant Buddhism had two aspects. Firstly, it was a protest against aggressive missionary activities and government policies favouring Christians. Secondly, it referred to the adoption of ideals which had similarities with those of Christian Protestantism. At that time, many upper-class Sinhalese still considered it unfashionable to be Buddhist. Many of them had converted to Christianity and adopted western names, dressing and customs. Anagarika Dharmapala spoke out against this trend in his numerous speeches and articles, and his activities helped to revive the people’s pride in their own religion, language and traditions.
Protestant Buddhism also denied the wrong view prevailing at the time that salvation, i.e. Nibbana, can only be attained through the Sangha. Instead, it maintained that all Buddhists should strive for themselves through proper Buddhist practices, such as meditation. Protestant Buddhism led
to a great renewal of interest in this essential and indispensable practice. In addition, it gave rise to a growing sense of nationalism and Buddhist religiosity. Another result was the increased involvement of the laity in the propagation of Buddhism, and the organization and administration of Buddhist institutions.
Anagarika Dharmapala
Anagarika Dharmapala was born Don David Hewavitarana in Colombo in 1864. His father was a wealthy merchant who was a key member of the Buddhist Theosophical Society founded by Col. Olcott. Although largely educated in English Christian schools,
Don David followed the speeches and debates of Ven.Mohottiwatte Gunananda and Ven. Hikkaduve Sumangala and associated closely with them. Don David left home at the age of 20 to lead a celibate life and devote all his time and energy to the support and promotion of Buddhism. He soon changed his name to Anagarika Dharmapala. “Anagarika” means a homeless one who keeps the Eight Precepts, and “Dharmapala” means a protector of the Dhamma.
After joining the Buddhist Theosophical Society, Dharmapala travelled together with Olcott in his campaign to establish Buddhist schools, and acted as his interpreter and assistant. He soon became the major force in the Buddhist revival through his powerful speeches and articles. Anagarika Dharmapala also established hospitals, schools and other foundations for the spread of Buddhism and for the benefit of the sick and needy. Notably, he helped to form the Young Men’s Buddhist Association in 1898 together with a group of like-minded lay people.
The YMBA is now also established in many countries outside of Sri Lanka.
Apart from his contributions to Buddhism in the country of his birth, Dharmapala founded the Mahabodhi Society in India. Many important Buddhist shrines in India had fallen into ruin and the Mahabodhi Temple,
the very place where the Buddha had become enlightened, had been converted into a Hindu shrine. One of the Mahabodhi Society’s aims was to restore these shrines and to re-establish Buddhist control of the Mahabodhi Temple. Dharmapala also traveled to Europe and America, giving lectures and creating international awareness in Buddhism.
He ordained as a bhikkhu in Sarnath, India in 1933 and passed away in the same year at the age of 78. Dharmapala left behind an incomparable legacy in the service of Buddhism.
The Buddha Jayanti
Sri Lanka attained independence from the British in 1948 to widespread jubilation, enjoying the taste of freedom after more than 450 years of foreign domination. The excitement in anticipation of the Buddha Jayanti celebrations in 1956 also contributed to the euphoric atmosphere.
Celebrated on the Vesak full moon day of the 23rd of May 1956, the Buddha Jayanti marked the 2,500th anniversary of the Buddha’s Parinibbana, a day which is significant to Buddhists the world over. It had been prophesied that the Buddha’s teachings would last for 5,000 years and therefore the 2,500th anniversary was of major importance. This
is because it was also prophesied that this halfway point would be the beginning of a golden age of Buddhism, with the Dhamma spreading all over the world. Preparations for this event were made throughout the island, with the government directly involved in many new projects which were to commemorate the occasion. Such projects included the renovation of the Temple of the Tooth, the restoration of various stupas and the building of new Buddhist structures.
Other projects were also started, such as the translation of the entire Tipitaka to English and Sinhalese, and the creation of a new and comprehensive Buddhist Encyclopaedia. In anticipation of the celebrations in 1956, Sri Lankan Buddhists successfully established the World Fellowship of Buddhists in 1950 and also arranged for a conference.
This conference was attended by Buddhists from all over the world, and had the stated aim for Buddhists to unite and to work together for the Dhamma and for peace. This was probably the first time that the leaders of all the Buddhist lands, and from every sect and school had ever met together in a single occasion. All these events helped to reawaken the missionary zeal in Sri Lanka, and its monks went all over the world to spread the Dhamma.
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