Editorial

Vesak, the month that marks the Birth, Enlightenment and Parinibbana (passing away) of Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, is the holiest of holy months for over 500 million Buddhists the world over. They will be honouring the sacred occasion in an era of profound global challenges.

That is a tall order in a world being torn asunder by continuing wars in Europe, West Asia and still closer home in South Asia between two close friends of Sri Lanka; a global trade war unleashed by one economically powerful nation; and geopolitical chicanery in international affairs.

In the midst of this growing sea of worldwide turmoil, a controversy over the ‘gem relics’ of the Buddha has come to the forefront of attention, causing an uproar internationally.

In Sri Lanka, the public exposition of Buddha’s Sacred Tooth Relic housed in Kandy attracted millions of worshippers a fortnight ago. And in Viet Nam, millions keep making their way to pay homage to Buddha Relics that have been in the custody of the Maha Bodhi Society of India at the Mulaghandha Kuty Vihara at Sarnath and brought to their country by the Government of India to mark the UN’s Vesak Day.

The expositions of these Sacred Relics and the deep veneration given to them (is because they) are (seen as) the living embodiment of the Buddha himself. That is why they are so precious to Buddhists wherever they may be.

In sharp contrast, a surreptitious bid to showcase and auction gems imbued with the presence of the Buddha, considered as part and parcel of the Buddha’s corporeal remains, was stopped at the 11th hour due to the intervention of Buddhist scholars, monastic leaders in the United Kingdom and the Government of India. (Please see Page 6 and Plus cover for more details).

These gemstones comprising rubies, pearls, gold, amethysts etc., were wrongfully acquired during the colonial era in India by excavating the memorial site where the Buddha’s bones and ashes were kept by his family after his cremation around 480 BC. The British Crown at the time took over the find under its 1878 Indian Treasure Trove Act and gifted the Buddha’s bodily relics to the King of Thailand for distribution. The descendants of the British family which owned the sacred property –long abandoned as Buddhism faded away from India for centuries – was allowed to keep a portion of the gemstones.

The Government of India lent its diplomatic muscle citing international conventions, and threatening legal action to halt the auction that had been scheduled for last Wednesday where the British auctioneer, Sotheby’s no less, and the British seller were expecting Hong Kong Dollars 100 million (Rs. 3.8 billion) as a starting point for the sale.

The issue of ‘colonial loot’ and the demand for their return to the original owners has drawn attention in recent times with worldwide campaigns. In an editorial not long ago, we too referred to the subject under the heading “Colonial loot – a theft is a theft is a theft”.

While the Government of India deserves praise for its swift action in saving these Buddhist relics from going under the hammer on Wednesday in Hong Kong, the auctioneer has only postponed the auction, and the relics remain in the custody of the descendants of the British family that plundered them in colonial India. There is, therefore, a long battle ahead to wrest these relics from their possession and bring them from some private collector or gallery or even a national museum to a reputed place of Buddhist worship so that the ordinary people can venerate them from time to time.

In a related development relevant to the Buddhists around the world, a renewed campaign has been launched within India to give full managerial control of its holiest site, Buddha Gaya – to the Buddhists, in its entirety. After a lifelong campaign by the Sri Lankan missionary Anagarika Dharmapala to regain control of the temple from its then non-Buddhist custodian during British colonial times, it was Free India that gave the Buddhists half control of the temple by law. When the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the city of Anuradhapura during his state visit to Sri Lanka last month, a petition was given to him by the Atamasthanadipathi on behalf of the Chief Monks of Sri Lanka requesting that Buddhists be given full management control of Buddha Gaya.

Premier Modi said he would look into the matter on his return to India and one is certain he will keep his promise, though it might be difficult for him to displease his Hindutva support base in trying to appease the Buddhists crying out for this request.

For PM Modi will know only too well that Siddhartha Gautama was India’s greatest son and Buddha Gaya for the Buddhists is what Mecca is for the Muslims, Jerusalem for the Christians and Varanasi, his own constituency, for the Hindus.

The challenge to the auctioning of the relics in the meantime, may be seen to detractors as serving the interests of India primarily and Buddhism only secondarily. But a good deed is a good deed. The Buddha said to give credit to those who deserve credit.

It is unfortunate that the JVP-NPP Government played no role in protesting against the auctioning of the relics. The invitation by the Government of Viet Nam to President Dissanayake to be the chief guest at the UN Vesak Day, a day so declared due the efforts of a former Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, came, due to the historical recognition of Sri Lanka as a Dhammadvipa—land of the Dhamma, and not as a Marxist or socialist party leader.

Historically Sri Lanka has played a prominent and proactive role globally in protecting and nurturing Buddhism, a role remembered to date by several grateful modern nations in South and East Asia, and by Buddhists around the world.

Despite this enduring legacy, regrettably, Sri Lanka failed to take an active role through its diplomatic channels on the much disputed issue of auctioning of the relics in Hong Kong. The Government missed a key opportunity on the international front to demonstrate its support for Buddhism to which its Constitution accords a foremost place.

The President would have seen with his own eyes how well State-Religion relations were conducted during the UN Vesak Day in a modern Socialist country like Viet Nam.