Stupidest move on earth - to build the world’s tallest Christmas tree in this poor, small, insignificant island. People who are inflated with national pride might take offence at the use of the adjective ‘insignificant’ But what are we if not that? We seem to know only how to shout slogans and protest on roads.
Oh! Xmas Tree!
To come back to the Christmas Tree, the question to be asked is: for whose benefit was it being constructed? Reading about it and seeing rubbish, yes, what looked like rubbish on Galle Face Green, this feline wondered whether we as a nation had gone stark raving mad allowing all that muck in one of the major lungs of the city. How much was it costing?
A newspaper on Thursday 8 elucidated the matter. This sure to be monstrosity was being constructed by the Prime Mover Drivers Union (whoever that body may be) attached to the Ports Authority.
The Secretary of the Social Welfare Committee of the Ports Authority said the following: The Posts Authority had nothing to do with the tree and did not contribute to its construction; the tree was costing Rs 12 million and 6 had already been spent; the money came in as donations from private companies. Coerced we suppose.
We are deeply grateful to His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, Archbishop, for expressing the strong view that it was all a sheer waste of money that could be used in so many different ways like building houses for the destitute and offering scholarships to poor school children, as His Eminence suggests.
So the tree is kaput and with it goes the Guinness Record that was being aimed at. What crass stupidity to spend Rs 12 million to enter Sri Lanka in this annual book of whatevers.
This catty feline wondered what all our politicians, from the very highest to lower down thought of the tree that was coming up. Weren’t they concerned like the Archbishop? Why did they keep mum? Maybe, this feline concedes, a Buddhist or Hindu criticizing the tree would have raised a hornets’ nest of protest from Christians; in reality from paid goons to hold aloft placards, shout and cause mayhem - another attempt to topple the government.
A nation of shameful protesters
Nothing can be done; no decision taken; no policy matter decided on without having people protest and of course on main highways. On Thursday 8 December, the Hambantota Port (I refuse to give the full name it was christened with – Magampura dash dash dash) was to be sold or leased or rented to a Chinese company.
Wimal Wee turned eloquent, so also Lal Kantha but as the Minister of Finance pointed out, the government was losing a colossal amount of money just maintaining that vast expanse of water with no ships a-calling.
No one speaks of the unfathomable folly of the Ex Prez in the so expensive white elephants he built in his demesne; mostly to derive pride and pleasure seeing them named after him; never mind them never being used, leave alone earn money. And the ports Johnnies even in Colombo struck work.
Massive International Buddhist Centre
The Christmas tree is a one-off thing; Christians nor Hindus nor Muslims decide to spend millions wastefully. We know there are Christian sects in pockets here and there attempting conversion.
They sure must be spending lots of money having people accept their religion promising them much in the way of continued material benefits. We don’t know what expenses Muslims go to, to get their customs followed, their laws abided by. We know how Hindus sacrifice animals, but though the cost to animal rights is colossal, money spent is little.
Buddhists love to erect statues, build temples, beautify and expand existing ones. Now here comes an official plan, one that this cat scoffs at, and spits venom at. Dr Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, Justice and Buddhasasana Minister, announced in October this year that “an international Buddhist centre named Sakya Kingdom will be established in Sri Lanka to coincide with the 2017 UN International Vesak celebrations to be held here.”
The 21 October newspaper item noted that “President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe are providing direction and guidance in this regard,” as said by Wijeyedasa Rajapakshe. It’s to be built on 70 acres close to Colombo and would portray important places of Buddhist worship such as Lumbini, Kusinara, Varanasi, and Buddha Gaya. Reminds us of the constructions at President Premadasa’s Gam Udawas, like a miniature Sri Pada constructed with a colossal amount of money spent just to cool the water resembling seethe gangula that flowed off the rock, if not in size at least in temperature.
The Sakya Kingdom to be constructed will cost Rs 5,000 million!! This you can easily estimate would double come 2017. No one has protested though the Minister officially unveiled the plan at the Taj Samudra Hotel on 19 October.
Not a squeak from any Buddhist about the colossal waste of funds. Hundreds of poor people can be sent on pilgrimage to India to the sacred places for many years with the money to be spent on this white elephant. Has the Prez really agreed to this building? The Prime Minister? The Mahanayake Theras? They may say alright, go ahead, we are the foremost Theravada Buddhist country in the world. But we still have sensible Buddhist monks and Ministers of State. Why won’t they protest before the construction is started and millions sent down the drain before some sensible person calls halt to this. Don’t we have a right thinking person comparable to the Archbishop among Buddhists, brave enough to say no to a Buddhist construction of absolutely no use? The Buddha never wanted veneration of himself. Having listened to a sermon by Ven Brahmavamso, this cat is completely convinced that what the Buddha meant by saying that those who accepted his teaching and wanted to live by it should visit the four places he had been in, were the four jhanas which lead to arahatship and final deliverance.
He did not mean his birth place et al since he wanted no worship, no blind veneration, no senseless devotion, no making incidents and places in his life cults, or holy places to be worshiped in. There is no worship in true Buddhism. We DO NOT want a recreation of the Sakyan Kingdom here in Sri Lanka burdened as we are with so many necessities like hospitals, houses for the poor… The list is endless!
- Menika