“Dear Kassapa, please warn these Bikkhus and guide them from wavering in their code of conduct. You must please counsel them repeatedly , now. sermonize them the Dhamma too. Or else, I myself will have to do so”. –The Buddha.
“O Lord, these bikkhus are now unmanageable. They are not amenable to rectification. They often resort to their own ways. They do not show compliance or patience. They are not prepared to abide by advice given to them for their own wellbeing and progress; instead they often misinterpret and misunderstand it.”
The First Sangayanawa was held on Nikini poya.
Bhikku Subhadda thought that the Buddha had been curtailing their autonomy. The thera, who became a monk in his old age directed the mourning monks to celebrate the parinibbana of the Buddha. He asked them to be happy and not to weep, that now they can do what they desire, “The Master is gone; we are now free.”
“Anujanami Bhikkave Vassane Vassan Udaganja” – I advise oh monks! To observe the rainy retreat during the Rainy Season.
Arhant Maha Kassapa, just 21 days after the parinibbana of Buddha, decided that a council must be held with the beginning of the rainy season’s retreat for the Sangha. It was held three months after the demise of the Buddha, at Sattapanni Cave in Rajagaha under the patronage of King Ajasattu. All matters concerning planning, organising, and conducting was done under the auspicious of Maha Kassapa Thera. The council was attended by 499 arhath theras at the beginning and Mahakassapa Thera kept the 500th seat vacant for Ven. Ananda Thera, who would attain arahathship on that particular Nikini poya. Beginning with the first Council the great Theravada tradition flourished in countries such as Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Laos and Cambodia.
Maha Kassapa thero sent a message to all the partakers, that they should gather in the hall constructed in front of Sapta Parani cave. In the arhants took their seats according to seniority, in the gaily ornamented hall. In reply to Maha Kassapa, arhant Upali, chief among vinaya experts collated the Disciplinery code [VinayaPitake]. Arhant Ananda thero took that special seat allocated to him. As guided by Kassapa thera, he assembled the entire code of Dhamma covering all five Nikayas. It was well known that all of those five hundred arhants were authorities on Dhamma and Vinaya…
‘Foremost Place and Protect’, the Responsibility Entrusted by Constitutional Charter to State
Through clause 9, foremost place and the responsibility has been guaranteed by Constitutional charter to the government; it reads as, “The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give to Buddhism the foremost place and accordingly it shall be the duty of the State to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana, while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(1)(e).
The government, is given a free hand through this clause to act, question, acquire, directly intervene, obstruct, and continue in any manner as it perceives as fitting to preserve and uphold moral conduct of individuals, control of possessions and financial discipline in relation to matters that leads to the security, safety and fostering of the Sasana.
It is rather sad to learn that successive governments had been responsible of dereliction of sacred duty by the Sasana, even disregarding the constitutional provision that the Buddhists had always screamed for the inclusion and preservation during compilation of a new constitutions. Attempts by constitutional authority to delete the above condition from the nation’s basic law ‘under the pretext of establishing a secular state’ had been met with stern opposition from ‘mahasangha’ and honorable Buddhists, rather ‘Sinhala-Buddhists’.
End of Sangayana
Having come to the conclusion of first Council, Elder Mahakassapa entrusted the responsibility of protecting through learning by heart and passing down to posterity, all the books of entire code on discipline to the chief of discipline, arhant Upali Maha thera and his entourage of pupils. Similarly, the responsibility of memorizing and safeguarding, and passing down to posterity all of the thirty four long discourses, the Dighanikaya to arhant Ananda thera and his retinue of pupils. The middle length discourses [Majjimanikaya] to another leading thero and his pupils. The Samyukthanikaya, to himself and his pupils, while the Anguttra nikaya to arhant Anuruddha thera and his pupils.
Placing Buddhism above other religions and ensuring foremost or honored status to it for the simple reason that it is the religion of seventy percent of Lankans. Does it ignite a reverse process? Is it totally against the principles of Dhamma which are based on teachings of Buddha? The problem here is the superficial manner in which most of us have grasped the profound and deep teachings of Buddhism. One of the most sacred ethical principles of dhamma is fairness and compassion. Buddhism injects impartiality by the very sentence that tells to show kindness and care for all beings. Buddhism does not persuade special treatment to a particular group, sect, or religion. Any type of favoritism based on race, caste, position, wealth, academic success, social status, power has no place in the Sasana. Another major philosophy in Buddhism is the inter-woven and interdependent nature of all things. So there is no opportunity of anything can be unequal to anything else.
It is the primary duty of the government to pick-up all those young monks parading the streets with lay students, at least during the rainy retreat four months. Senior monks who engage in politics, conduct media shows ‘decorate’ political rallies should be notified to the Nayake theros for further action. Traditional rituals and butchering of animals has been happening for a long time. Whatever the reason behind it, this is a barbarian act. Some religious leaders profess killing animals to satisfy the ‘Gods’. In performing customary rituals so many women had been burned alive just because they lost their husbands-[Sathi puuja] . These customs has to be changed as the world advances.
It was through realisation that the Buddha rediscovered the exact Dhamma!. That he felt disillusion with this round of regeneration; that he fully understood other being’s anguish; that he himself crossed over the flood to Nibbana; that he became his own ultimate and absolute helper. He gained distinction as a worthy Buddha; he remained separated from all being’s craving; his own mind was detached from all occurrences.
It was through compassion, that he taught it methodically to a large number of beings. That he himself was unafraid of all other beings; that he tolerated it long, while learning to liberate others; that he embarked on to counter their immense misery; that he brought other beings across this flood also…!
For just as the Blessed One’s empathy was without biased sentimental fondness,
so was his highest realization free from the concepts of “I” “Me” and “Mine”… let alone Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Christian…caste, creed, race— an untold misery of mythological Divisions! There is just a single category of Humans… They are Homo sapiens!
May all beings be happy!
– Daily News Sri Lanka
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