Buddhism in Sri Lanka has turned radical, with a lack of sympathy for Muslims and Tamils.
AN AWE - INSPIRING sight greets you as you step out of Kandy railway station—an 88-foot-tall, white statue of the Buddha. It is 6km away from the railway station, atop the Bahirawa Kanda (Devil’s Hill) and shows the Buddha seated in the nirvana pose. A smaller golden-coloured statue of the Buddha sits below it. It has white lotuses and purple flowers etched on it; photos of the most important Buddhist temples in Sri Lanka flank it. Near the statues, a boy with a tonsured head, clad in a maroon robe, is folding a flag that represents the aura that is believed to have emanated from the Buddha when he attained enlightenment. The young monk touches the flag gently and seems to have been transported to a world of peace and tranquility.
At the same time, near the President Secretariat in Colombo, burly monks dressed in robes similar to the boy’s were up in arms. The police were forced to use tear gas and water cannons to disperse the mob. These monks were part of the hardline Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist organisation Bodu Bala Sena (BBS). They were demanding the release of their leader Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero (thero is the title for head priests). He had been sentenced to six years in jail on charges of intimidation; during the trial, the court had also held him in contempt.
Denne historien er fra January 20, 2019-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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Denne historien er fra January 20, 2019-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus
RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
