Enlightened guidance

This article was originally published in Daily News on June 24 to mark Poson Poya Day.

 

During his brief stay on the island, Arahant Mahinda accessed five works of the Pali Canons:

1. Cullahatthipadopama Sutta (Majjhima Nikaya I, 3. 7)
2. Peta Vatthu
3. Vimana Vatthu (Peta Vatthu and Vimana Vatthu are two books of Khuddaka Nikaya (short volume) on celestial and ghostly mansions
4. Devaduta Sutta (on Heavenly Messengers - Majjhima Nikaya III 3. 10)
5. Balapandita Sutta (on Wise and Fool - Majjhima Nikaya III, 3. 9.)

King Devanampiyatissa and his royal family are recorded to have become the followers of the Buddha’s teachings following these sermons. Some family members had become stream-winners too.

A stream-winner is the one who enters and abides in the first stage of Buddhist sainthood, sotapanna. Entering the stream is a metaphorical reference to attaining the first stage of sainthood. The stream-winner eradicates the first three of ten fetters: belief in an individual self (sakkaya diṭṭhi), doubt or uncertainty, especially about the Buddha’s teachings (vicikiccha) and devotion to rites and rituals (silabbata paramaso). The rest of the ten fetters are sensual desire (kamacchando), ill will (vyapada), lust for material existence and rebirth, (ruparago), lust for immaterial existence and rebirth in a formless realm (aruparago), conceit (mano), restlessness (uddhacca) and ignorance (avijja). Sotapanna, therefore, is the first followed by three stages: sakurdagami (once-returner), anagami (non-returner) and arahant (fully awakened).

The solid establishment of Buddhism in Sri Lanka is a result of Arahant Mahinda’s skilful choice of works from the Pali Canons. His mission in sailing for Sri Lanka was more than just converting another royal clan into Buddhism.

This fact is corroborated, as the arahant did not venture into the conversion right away. His first requirement was inquiring the intellectual capacity of the chief of state with the history’s first recorded famous Intelligence Quotient on trees and relatives.

 

Simile of the elephant footprint

Culla Hatthipadopama Sutta (Majjhima Nikaya: Sutta 27), a minor discourse on the simile of elephant footprints, is an interesting study. Linguistically, Hatthi, Pada and Opama mean elephant, foot and simile respectively in Pali.

The source is based on a conversation between two Brahmins (non-Buddhists): Pilotika and Janussoni. Pilotika, though not a perfect Buddhist convert, describes his pleasant feelings about Buddhist philosophy and its followers to Janussoni, making the latter get fascinated in a follow-up.

An inquiring-minded Janussoni raises the issue of Buddha’s claim to be an Enlightened Being. Simply put, the learned Brahmin questions the Buddha’s feat of wisdom, to which Pilotika brings out a simile of an elephant.

"… Suppose a wise elephant woodsman were to enter an elephant wood and were to see in the elephant wood a big elephant's footprint, long in extent and broad across. He would conclude: 'Indeed, this is a bi bull elephant.' So too, when I saw four footprints of the recluse Gotama, I came to the conclusion: 'The Blessed One is fully enlightened, the Dhamma is well proclaimed by the Blessed One, the Sangha is practising the good way.'"

(Translated from Pali by Venerable Nanamoli and Bodhi Theras)

The Buddha’s footprints, Pilotika notices, involve the non-Buddhist scholars thinking about raising a particular set of questions and getting armed with rebuttals for obvious answers. Pilotika delightfully explains how he sees the same scholars becoming the Buddha's disciples. Pilotika argues that he can measure Buddha's accomplishment of wisdom by seeing his disciples.

Janussoni could be made satisfied by Pilotika’s explanations, but it reflects the modern-day misunderstanding of Buddhism. This misunderstanding is not confined to the West as most of us assume. It is very much prevalent in our hemisphere as well.

Buddhism is generally understood as the fact that the true Buddhist stays away from basic sins such as slaughter, stealth, non-celibate conduct, false speech and alcohol consumption. The core of the teachings, however, is far deeper.

 

Comparison of faiths

Arahant Mahinda's choice epitomises what he wanted to represent. The five works handpicked from the Pali Canon indicate the stark gap between an ordinary saint and a Buddhist saint. Interestingly, the works show the path to observe the truth. This can be accomplished only by traversing the darkness towards the radiance. The Buddha’s detailed interpretation of the elephant-footprint simile inspired Janussoni. It was his motivation to become an Enlightened Being.

Just because the footprint was large in length and breadth, it does not help picture the big elephant. There can be dwarf female elephants with feet large in length and breadth. Similarly, there can be other non-Buddhist saints who stay away from the sins; most sins are listed in the sutta. A big elephant can be fathomed only by the inquiring observation of the whole being.

The proper Buddhist saint, therefore, must be understood, or the real accomplishment of wisdom should be understood, by the realisation and the practice of four noble truths, originally taught in Buddhism. The sutta is hard to understand in one step. However, if studied carefully, the sutta helps us develop the idea that the modern-day concept of comparing Buddhism with other religions is not theoretically correct. Every religion has its unique features, and so has Buddhism: four noble truths, for one.

Although the message seems simple and clear, it is hard to convince it to a run-of-the-mill. It is this background that led, or forced, arahant Mahinda to inquire about the intellectual capacity of King Devanampiyatissa to get the message.

Many scholars, especially Westerners, entertain the theory that Buddhism encourages only the saintly life. Arahant Mahinda gives the lie to this famous misconception with his subsequent sermons of Peta Vatthu, Vimana Vatthu, Devaduta Sutta and Balapandita Sutta, which mostly discuss the way a Buddhist should behave as a layperson. For instance, Peta Vatthu illustrates the fate of evil-doers and Vimana Vatthu focuses on what the virtuous can await.

 

Heavenly messengers

Devaduta Sutta talks of five heavenly messengers we see in our life, but continuously and unknowingly pass over.

The five heavenly messengers are termed in the following manner:

1. A toddler standing and lying with difficulty.

2. An old woman or man decayed and bent like the framework of a roof.

3. A sick woman or man, immersed in their own urine and excreta, raised by others and conducted by others.

4. An offender taken hold by the king and given various kinds of torture caned and whipped.

5. A dead woman or man after one day, two days or three days, bloated and turned blue.

Balapandita Sutta teaches how human beings suffer through their follies, thus encouraging good deeds.

The primary reason for arahant Mahinda’s arrival in Lanka is the third council which took place during Emperor Asoka’s regime under the guidance of Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera. It was a hard task for the emperor to set the background to the third council, but reached the expected fruition. Arahant Mahinda’s emissary role is a result of the third council of Buddhism held during Emperor Asoka’s period.

 

 Third Council

The council remains significant and weighty since it paved way for the establishment of the teachings in nine different countries. The result: Arahant Mahinda set foot in Lanka, one of the countries then known as Thambapanni, to establish Buddhism.

The background for the third council was manifested 218 years after the Buddha’s demise, during Emperor Asoka’s regime. Despite his notoriety for military offensives, Asoka became a saint-like monarch following the encounter with a novice monk. The emperor soon became interested in the teachings.

He directed a large portion of state funds to the welfare of Buddhism, earning the wrath of powerless brahmins. The brahmins had issues with the upbringing of Buddhism, and they had been scheming for the downfall of Buddhism.

One strategy was entering the monk order and living as they desire. This was infiltration, one can say. This strategy proved effective as people became embarrassed and disappointed over the behaviour of some monks. They did not care to assume it was a brahmin strategy to put Buddhism into shame.

By this time, it dawned upon the emperor that the Uposatha ceremony, or prescribed purification of monks, had not been performed for seven years. He was interested in continuing the much-acclaimed spiritual practice. A monk must confess any discipline breach to another monk according to the prescribed purification procedure. The emperor sent courtiers to let the monk order be informed about his wish.

However, a positive response from the genuine monks was hard to obtain. They objected as the order was impure with heretic monks. Courtiers could not see the spiritual grounds of the objection, and they mistook the objection as acting against the royal decree. Offended courtiers started massacring the monks, but were brought to halt by the emperor's brother who was also a monk.

Asoka was disturbed to learn this and inquired Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera if he was responsible for what his subordinates had done. Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera had a diplomatic approach. He made use of the situation to enlighten the emperor further on the Buddha’s teachings. The Venerable Thera pointed out that Buddhism is a philosophy that sorts things out through analysis.

Asoka then assigned himself the time-consuming task of interviewing every monk to identify their genuine position. A monk failing to provide a satisfactory explanation would be disrobed with a proper layperson's job as an alternative.

At least 60,000 people are said to have been disrobed in the purging process. The path for the third council was thus cleared in the 17th year of Emperor Asoka’s period.

 

Later additions

Pali sources maintain that Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera compiled a book titled Katavatthupakarana of 23 chapters as a rebuttal to heretical views held by different sects. The council had been executed for nine months with Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera as the chair of the assembly of 1000 arahants.

Many historians, however, question the third council. Lankan chronicles and Samantapasadika glossary do mention the third council, but many other sources do not have references to such an event during the period. Ironically Asoka's inscriptions do not refer to the event either!

Asoka’s claim of having united the monk order and disrobed the heretics remains scribed in his inscriptions.

It is clear, as mentioned earlier, Asoka's two precautions were followed by the major event of the third council. When it comes to the shouldering of the event, it is Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera who deserves the honour, though the emperor must have provided financial and other material sponsorship.

The absence of the mention may well be accredited to the emperor’s respect towards Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera for shouldering the event.

Following this major event, the emperor worked on extending his foreign relations by spreading Dhamma in the neighbouring countries. He was lucky to be equipped with enough human resources to accomplish his mission. Asoka’s mission of sending Buddhist representatives to nine countries is a breakthrough event second only to Venerable Moggaliputtatissa Thera’s compilation of Katavatthupakarana and steering the third council.

 

Hey chum, hey Saho!

This article was originally published in Daily News on June 23.

Ariyaratne Atugala has done it again. He has already accomplished what could have been unaccomplished under normal circumstances. If we are familiar with The Legend of Kung Fu and the Red Theatre in Beijing, the theatre production and the theatre ‘colosseum’, we cannot just dismiss our own Nelum Pokuna Theatre and the like of Mahasamayama staged atop that regal territory. Mahasamayama was not Atugala’s only prodigious stage production. He produced another Maha-prefixed massive production titled Mahasupina. Stage productions aside, Atugala has authored quite a few teledramas as well. All this deserves note, as Atugala is no mere creative artiste. He is an academic, holding a professorial position at Mass Communication Department, Kelaniya University, which means a life already packed with commitments.

This is precisely why his newest achievement is noteworthy. Saho is Professor Ariyaratne Atugala’s maiden attempt at novel and cinema. So to say, his latest creative contribution is now available as a novel (Sarasavi publishers) as well as a movie. The movie made it to the second round of the Cannes Film Festival, competing in the feature section.Dr Lester James Peries marked his name with his debut at the prestigious film festival. His Rekhava (Silver lining), made in 1956, was nominated for the Palme d’Or at the 1957 Cannes Film Festival. Vimukthi Jayasundara was the first Sri Lankan to win the prestigious Caméra d’Or (Golden Camera) in 2005 for his film Sulanga Enu Pinisa. We can, of course, agree with Chandran Rutnam who termed this as a milestone achievement. Yet we can only keep fingers crossed as to when we get to savour Saho on the silver screen among a host of other hopeful cinematic works.

Cinema and novel are two mediums. Privacy could perhaps draw the boundary line. The novel is very much a private exercise whereas movie-making requires a good deal of team effort. However, both mediums offer inspiration to the creative artiste. That was so for Professor Atugala. The CoViD pandemic came forth as a blessing in disguise. Confined to home, inspiration was overflowing in him so as to feel a vacuum of something left unexpressed. Words and thoughts began to tumble over one another that he felt the visual medium could not express the whole he wanted to.The four young rebels in Saho, two male and female each, mourn the death of their Saho (vernacular for comrade or chum) who was sacrificed in their struggle. The death comes as a shock for the mourning group. Education and finance issues spring up in the bemoaning. Extramarital affairs and drug addiction are yet another facet. In the subtext, Atugala touches on what numerous social science theses could have taken up.

Yet the issue is how he struck a balance between the two mediums: novel and film. There is more to it than mere home-confinement inspiration. It is a universally acknowledged truth, with due respect to Jane Austen, that the novel is a medium much richer than film in terms of expression. Thoughts transformed into words bring the readership into an infinity – something an audience in a theatre is deprived of. This same phenomenon cannot be applied to the cinema medium. It will not only make the cinematic work boring, but it would also no longer be a cinematic expression at all. Harangue-like paragraphs are unique to the novel which will lead us into a delightful infinity of a welcome stratosphere.Saho plot was brewing in Atugala for many years. Halfway through the editing of the movie, Atugala thought why not give the literary expression a try. The most sensitive expression he had been deprived of now surfaced on pages one by one.

Be that as it may. We shall not hasten to weigh the novel against the film or vice versa. That would not only be unfair by the two different genres but the author himself. Atugala has finished his work. The Saho that remains before us is a profound meditation on youthful frustration fused into innocent dreams undone by known and unknown exterior forces. It is their story.

Let us then read, watch and savour their story.

Hey chum, hey Saho, wait up!

Monumental moment!

This article was originally published in Daily News on August 6.

When the 45-year old journalist who had already made his career as a filmmaker entered Asoka Hall in 1964, he sensed the limelight. He was a mere Lester James Peries with no credentials to his name. Yet he could reach for many trophies with much ease. The limelight was soon to be in his favour.

The strange turn of fate brought another audience member who was only 20 years back then. 54 years later, he graced the occasion as the country’s Prime Minister to recall how things unfolded back then a few metres away from the conventional VIP lecture pedestal. The 34th Cargills Sarasaviya Film Festival, held at the BMICH on August 3, was themed to pay tribute to Dr Lester James Peries. Dr Peries is known not only for his meteoric rise to the ecclesiastical echelons of local cinema but also for the illumed presence right throughout the Sarasaviya Film Festival chronology.

The country’s oldest film festival returned to the stellar gallery following a brief spell of absence. The return was not easy as quite a few festivals have already joined the ring to steal the show. The Sarasaviya fest was nevertheless armed with superior weaponry. The cultural segments were choreographed meticulously with a subtle aesthetic sense. The souvenir issued to coincide with the ceremony remains unique and would last for at least a century. The 3D revival of Dr Peries bidding his farewell (with his voice aired in the background) is simply mind-boggling.

As two armchairs sink to the ground and the lampshades evaporate into thin air, the traditional ancestral mansion setting fades into oblivion to pave the path for contemporary upholstery on the BMICH stage. With that, the players come to the fore to breathe life into the much-celebrated short narrative which made a long way to the much-talked-about film, Nidanaya (The Treasure). The creative stimulus of Lester James Peries and Tissa Abeysekara was deconstructed into a ballet-like tale.

The souvenir was devoted to the memory of Dr Lester James Peries. It is unique on several grounds. The souvenir which is, in fact, a coffee-table book, compiled by Dr Nuvan Nayanajith Kumara and Hemali Wijeratne, provides a comprehensive account of the Lester James Peries filmography with no eye-sore advertisements in between. In his lifetime, Dr Peries often stressed the need for a film archive. The coffee-table book is one step taken in that long journey.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, flanked by other eminent invitees, presented a special award to Sumitra Peries for her lifelong inspiration on Dr Lester James Peries in his epic journey.

The panel of judges (chaired by Gamini Weragama) was tasked with watching close to 50 films to handpick the best works of 2016 and 2017. The Sarasaviya 2018 had a special focus on most films overlooked at other festivals. Sayapethi Kusuma, Dekala Purudu Kenek and Bahuchitavadiya were among the host of lesser known, yet artistically ingenious, works introduced to the spotlight thanks to the jury attention.

Rest assured

This article was published in Daily News on August 3.

Innovation and exchange are not only the integral element of the fast-paced society, but they are the major elements of modern economic strategy as well. In today’s world of sciences, destruction has become the catchphrase in an optimistic sense.
When he pointed out the word ‘destruction’, Science, Technology, Research, Skills Development, Vocational Training and Kandyan Heritage Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama apparently did not refer to either physical or mental plain. He pointed at the virtual destruction of the old form to deliver a new model. This form of destruction, Dr. Amunugama added, leads to innovation and exchange in the knowledge society.

“But the innovation itself won’t suffice. It requires a certain certification. Such a guarantee is a vital ingredient in the world of consumption. Before we consume something, someone must assure that it is good or fit for consumption. If it is not good, then you can complain. You can raise the red flag to say something has gone wrong,” Dr. Amunugama explained.

Such a process, in a clear and a transparent manner, is exactly what the public demands. Before making the purchase, they are entitled to have an idea of the worth of the product. To achieve that end, proper research must be done on time in a transparent manner. What is called into question is whether the certification is executable in time to cater to the public demand.

“The competitors have an edge when the certification process takes time. If certification does happen on time, more countries will open doors to our experts and exports. It makes the certification really vital. For instance, the United States needs certification for our exports. This is simply because they need some assurance. It is a vital organ of administration. Whatever comes in and go needs certification in a transparent manner catering to the public demand as we live in a highly competitive world,” Dr. Amunugama elaborated.

From that well-known sphere, Dr. Amunugama shifted into a lesser-known territory: accreditation. He expressed these sentiments at a seminar on Accreditation – Delivering a Safer World held in Colombo organised by Sri Lanka Accreditation Board in collaboration with UNIDO, International Trade Centre and European Centre recently. Accreditation is a third-party attestation related to a conformity assessment body conveying formal demonstration of its competence to carry out the tasks of conformity assessment.
The process is duly accredited to the Sri Lanka Accreditation Board for Conformity Assessment (SLAB), the national accreditation authority established under the Science, Technology and Research Ministry. Strengthening the quality infrastructure and conformity assessment procedures in Sri Lanka and enhancing the recognition and acceptance of products and services in international and domestic markets are the main objectives of SLAB activities. SLAB offers accreditation for different types of conformity assessment bodies (laboratories, certification and inspection bodies, GHG validation and verification, good laboratory practices) in accordance with international principles.
Quality and reliability of test reports are the prime concern of the customers. SLAB Accreditation scheme is an excellent tool to instil these essential characteristics into the service. This scheme is instrumental in upgrading the competence of testing towards international level. The SLAB Accreditation for testing and calibration laboratories is based on ISO/IEC 17025 standard, which is used to assess the testing and calibration laboratories throughout the world.

According to Tung-Lai Margue, Ambassador and Head of European Union Delegation to Sri Lanka, the world of 9 billion people is facing a critical challenge with limited access to resources. How can they have sufficient access to the limited resources? That’s not a simple solution.

“We have issues such as climate change on one side. That is why we need legislation policies to change platform. The accreditation or certification process caters to that need. It is the Sri Lankan way of thinking globally,” Margue said.

Work-related diseases or occupational accidents take a toll on 2.78 million people on an annual basis. Worse, about 125 million workers are prone to asbestos-related conditions such as lung cancer. One in eight of total global deaths, around 7 million people annually die as a result of air pollution exposure. Plus, 1.25 million has been recorded as road traffic deaths, on a global scale, in 2013. About 374 million non-fatal work-related injuries and illnesses each year add insult to injury resulting in extended absences from work. This finally affects not only the humans but the economic impact as well stemming from poor occupational safety and health practices (which is estimated to be 3.94 per cent of the global gross domestic product or about US$ 2.8 trillion, in direct and indirect costs of injuries and diseases each year).

Recent problems with tainted food, drugs, electronic devices and other consumer products have made clear that more needs to be done to protect consumers. Injury statistics indicate that design problems, defects and inadequate safety information for consumer products are associated with many injuries.

In a wider social scope, the products, especially the electrical goods and the children’s toys, are expected to be hazard-free. On the contrary, the same commodities pollute the environment smashing the hopes of water without contaminants and air free from harmful pollutants. The large-scale infrastructure projects such as road, bridges, and public transportation systems are no longer safe to use. The daily sources of energy such as gas or electricity should also be accessible without risk of injury or harm. The business titans have a responsibility to ensure that their employees, visitors and customers are able to enjoy freedom from injury or disease. They should also ensure that they provide for a sense of mental, physical and social well-being.

Wong Wong Wah, Assistant Commissioner, Innovation and Technology Commission, Hong Kong and Immediate Past Chairperson of Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC), stressed on the conforming assessment. The process has an international definition. The certification is an in-house verification.

“How can I tell you that I am what you expected? There should be a reliable proof of compliance required. We make decisions on a regular basis. We make decisions every day on what to eat when to eat where to go and how to do a certain thing.”

The completed projects, raw materials, products, services, management systems and personnel can be evaluated against a standard, code of practice or regulatory requirement by testing and calibration laboratories, inspection bodies and certification laboratories, inspection bodies and certification bodies (collectively known as conformity assessment bodies). Conformity assessment bodies are used to check that products and services are safe for use.

Accreditation is the independent solution to this predicament.

The evaluation of the conformity assessment bodies against recognised standards to carry out specific activities to ensure their integrity, impartiality and competence. Through the application of national and international standards, government departments, businesses and wider society can, therefore, have confidence in the calibration and test results, inspection reports and certification provided. Accreditation bodies are established to ensure that conformity assessment bodies are subject o oversight by a competent body. Internationally recognised accreditation bodies, which have been evaluated by peers as competent, sign international arrangement that enhances the acceptance of products and services across borders, thereby creating a global infrastructure to support health and safety related processes.

Dr. Sapumal Dhanapala, Director Environment, Occupational Health and Food Safety of Health Ministry focused on food safety.

“When we have food, we have the natural question of how safe they are. For that, we need to strengthen the analytical capacity. Our food is good on par with the international platform. But we are not in a position to show that. The international audience might think that our food is not safe,” Dr. Dhanapala explained.

The Health Ministry has implemented some regulations to ensure that the hotels can carry on business only if they meet certain regulations. The National Food Policy is being drafted in order to certify food safety. Dr. Dhanapala also hinted how the food imports from the developing countries are subject to a thorough inspection procedure in developed countries.

“We need to apply security measures on bottled water as they are in high demand. More products in this category enter the market. We need to check whether they are up to the standard and whether it is safe,” Dr. Dhanapala added.

The biggest stumbling block used to be waterborne diseases. The figures decline but indicate the growth of food poisoning on a parallel track. Dr. Dhanapala urges proper farming and animal husbandry habits to make sure that the food does not get contaminated. Most importantly, the food produce must not be mixed with animal faeces. The human sewage, on the other hand, must never be used as manure.

“Even in slaughterhouses hygiene needs to be maintained. Then, of course, storing and transport of the meat or vegetables must be done in a proper manner using the correct temperature. Kalmunei is where the food poisoning happens a lot. Comparatively, it is much lesser in Colombo. The Colombo residents are better equipped with food-analytical knowledge,” Dr. Dhanapala elaborated.

Professor Ajit de Alwis, Project Director, Coordinating Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation (COSTI), emphasised on the safer environment.

“Safer environment and a clean environment are an essential requirement in today’s milieu. We have come up in the global climate risk index because we are not prepared for disasters,” he said.

Professor de Alwis also made reference to climate departure which marks the point at which the earth’s climate begins to cease resembling what has come before and moves into a new state. It is the core point where heat records are routinely shattered and what once was considered extreme will become the norm. That means to essentially enter a carbon-neutral era for the first time.

Designing a chain reaction is essential, but ensuring the standard is equally important. Maintaining quality is the first step followed by cost assessment. It gives a clear idea of the productivity. Cost assessment and productivity together leads to a stable stay in the market.

For SLAB Chairman Namal Rajapaksha, 2018 is a memorable year. The Board has completed 12 years of accreditation in Sri Lanka.

“Up to now, SLAB has received nine international recognition for accreditation schemes for testing, calibration, medical testing, inspection, product certification, food safety management systems, quality management systems and environmental management systems certification and greenhouse gas validation and verification bodies. Sri Lanka Accreditation Board has accredited above 100 conformity assessment bodies which include all categories including personnel certification bodies. In the near future SLAB intends to expand its services into other areas like Good laboratory Practices, Proficiency testing service providers and reference material producers, personnel certification while enhancing the effectiveness of current accreditation schemes,” Rajapaksha elaborated.

Once every four years, the SLAB faces a comprehensive peer evaluation conducted by regional accreditation corporations to maintain this international recognition.

“We are grateful to all our assessors, committee members, professionals and academics who are currently engaged with SLAB activities and present and previous SLAB staff, for their collective efforts which contributed to the present success of the organisation,” Rajapaksha added.

As Science, Technology, Research, Skills Development, Vocational Training and Kandyan Heritage Ministry Secretary Sandhya Wijayabandara said, in most of the current regulations in Sri Lanka, mechanisms for implementation are not adequately addressed.

“No proper regulatory impact analysis was done so far. It is a requirement of good regulatory practice to carry out regulatory impact analysis to make sure that regulations are effectively implemented while giving intended results. In many cases, the implementation is not effective due to lack of resources and policies and rules which are not suitable and not comply with current trade practices,” Wijayabandara said.

She went on to add that the developed countries and emerging economies in the region such as Vietnam, Bangladesh are transforming their systems in line with current world requirements to strengthen their economies.

“According to WTO principles, Accreditation and Conformity Assessment could be used as an effective supporting tool to implement technical regulations. Therefore, it is very much important to complete review of technical regulations and carry out a proper regulatory impact assessment to align our current regulations to meet national and international requirements. Under this background, I strongly believe that all institutions of the National Quality Services Department, all regulatory agencies and Sri Lanka Accreditation Board should work very closely in identifying and implementing strategies to improve the quality of products marketed in the domestic market and produced for the export market,” she added.

With the increasing variety of products and services on offer, there is an increasing demand for intervention by the state to assure public safety and protection of consumers.

In 2016, in order to implement proposals of Cabinet of Ministers, State regulatory authorities were requested to make accreditation mandatory in implementing technical regulations covering products and services related to health, safety, consumer protection, fraud prevention and market fairness.

As Wijayabandara placed it on record, the requirement to assess was based on associated risks and prevalence of unfair, unethical practices. This could ensure the effective use of limited resources to the maximum benefit of the society.

“State intervention should be planned in areas where it is identified as necessary. Strategies adopted and implementing mechanisms should be effective in achieving the identified objectives. All state regulatory authorities need to give serious consideration to these aspects in formulating regulations and implementation mechanisms for public safety, environmental protection and consumer protection,” Wijayabandara said.

Deadly Innocence

This article was originally published in Daily News on July 31, 2018.

Soon to be well-lit, the abode is ready for the battle. The guru steps into the ground and lights the brass lamp and burns the incense sticks to pay reverence to the Buddha statue. In the well-lit abode, the disciples prepare for the battle with meditation. Following meditation, the disciples take a few vows. The game they are about to practise is deadly, but the disciples vow never to use it for ungainly needs. The game is an art studied only for self-defence – and yes, self-defence alone!

Mere interest in this art would not qualify you to enter this abode. With the brass lamp well lit, Master Karunapala will penetrate into your mind and body to assess your eligibility. Tougher than any written or oral examination, you cannot afford to cheat here. Utter falsehood, and you will no longer be eligible to unearth this ancient art, angampora, which trains you to handle your own body with amazing dexterity.

G Karunapala is the eldest surviving angampora guru in Sri Lanka. Although the art comes under the martial art category, Guru Karunapala does not quite agree with it. It is a deadly art, yet you do not kill people.

“We take a vow not to engage in any misdeed before the training. You train yourself to kill someone in one blow, yet you cannot do it unless your life is in grave danger,” Guru Karunapala insists.

Angampora is a vanishing art simply because the masters have chosen not to pass it down. The disciple must earn trust in addition to dedication. No disciple is privy to the subject in its entirety, though they will be entitled to the nitty-gritty.

“Most artists are familiar with all kinds of martial arts. They learn bits and pieces of everything and claim to be angampora veterans. But none of them knows the real subject in entirety. It is easy to differentiate the genuine ones from the fake ones,” Master Karunapala warns.

One basic question on how many elements that the subject has is enough to drive the so-called angampora veterans crazy. The number of elements remains a secret confined to the angampora caucus. Anyone can dance. Anyone can play with the clubs. The angampora is an admixture of all this, yet remains unique as every weapon used serves a specific purpose.

The run-of-the-mill artiste chooses the easiest path of raking in money. What they engage in for the sake of a few rupees does not offer anything worth in return to the country, Master Karunapala emphasizes.

Guru Karunapala is the only academic at the Sri Jayewardenepura University who teaches angampora as a subject.

“I ask my students not to engage in the malpractices. Learn the right kind of art. If you don’t know the art, learn it somewhere. But don’t do anything bad. People teach karate and wushu in the guise of Angampora,” Karunapala laments.

His journey to protect the much-hallowed subject is filled with challenges and dare beyond the physical dexterity. On principle, Guru Karunapala never gets along with the swathe of so-called angampora artistes.

“I had to face a few angampora fighters at the request of the Cultural Affairs ministry. Before dealing with them, I invited them for a getapoottuwa (an angampora element) challenge. None of them accepted the challenge. I realized that I had nothing to do with such a crowd. It was a government-mediated event, but I backed off. I told them I deal only with the genuine angampora veterans who can accept any challenge,” Guru Karunapala recalls.

The art runs in the family. Master’s father was a veteran. His grandfather paid reverence to the sun and the moon and got certain work done. Guru Karunapala follows their footsteps and continues to pay reverence to the sun.

“This is the best art form in the world. You witness the best civilisation here. You see the unique costumes here. The royalty dwells in this art. If someone seeks to distort the art, they would not do well,” Master Karunapala insists.

He likens the subject of angampora studied today to a Malay pickle, a mixture of everything. The angampora that most artistes claim to be well versed in is not the genuine subject, as the master clarifies. The art form is used as a defence mechanism to fight any death threat. The art is pure in three kinds. First, it could be followed only in a Buddhist background. Second, it should be studied in Sri Lanka. Third, the disciples should be the Sinhalese. It is not studied to fight against each other. The foreigners approaching Grand Guru Karunapala would not get the complete training.

The collapse of the most civilized art form began with the British intervention. Following the Kandyan convention, the colonial rulers imposed a ban on the angampora practice. They used physical arms to ensnare the mental strength of the Sinhalese. The angampora training centres were polished off. Anyone caught in the angampora practice was shot under the knees. The art faded into oblivion, yet did not perish. A few families preserved the art form in secrecy until the country finally gained Independence.

The tradition was preserved. But the British act took a heavy toll on the authenticity. Like any other subject, the angampora began to resurface albeit with dilutions and distortions.

78-year old grand guru never utters filth. Nor is he into falsehood and other vices. He firmly believes that the art has to be passed down to the next generation before he breathes his last. Yet, he is very much careful and meticulous in choosing the disciples. Only a handful of disciples have been privy to the art form in its entirety.

Meditation is an essential ingredient of the Angampora. Your mind needs to remain in the centre. That ensures firmness. When the mind is focused on one point, then you will be able to grasp the art.

Yet, master warns, you cannot master the art with temper issues.

“A genuine Angampora artiste never steals. Plus they can control their temper. If you have temper issues, it will be your weakest point. When you speak to each other, you should be mindful not to hurt the other party.”

Angampora exists everywhere, Master Karunapala declares, but in many fake forms. Even the street drama artistes claim knowledge on angampora. The snake-charmers are no exception either. Anyone familiar with karate and wushu easily steps into the angampora territory and claims proficiency.

Angampora is also deemed as a human gym with no liabilities. You are prone to no injuries. Even if there is an injury, the art form has the healing therapies within itself. This well-fed art form must be practised slowly. The slowness ensures the steady mastery.

Monstrous milestone

This article was originally published in Daily News on July 24, 2018.

TripAdvisor once offered a tip for budget travellers: fly on rickety old planes for less. If you have come across that tip and given it a thought, go watch Hotel Transylvania 3 first. It will transport you to the horrors of flying on rickety old planes. The monster-driven aircraft goes into many spasms before finally reaching its destination. The destination is marked by the ships piled on top of each other. Before that takes you to the good old days of Titanic movie, you feel ripped apart within as you hear the lines: “Welcome to the Bermuda Triangle.”

That itself is the paradox. How can someone be welcome to somewhere that sounds terrific? But that’s the gist of this movie, Hotel Transylvania 3, directed by Genndy Tartakovsky.
Before the opening credits, the movie introduces us to two lead figures: Dracula and a human who calls himself Professor Van Helsing. Following a series of Jack-and-Jill fashioned encounter between Van Helsing and Dracula, the vampire wraps up the deal. But Van Helsing vows to avenge. Van Helsing shares many similarities with Professor Moriarty of the Sherlock Holmes saga. Like Helsing, Moriarty was a fictitious character produced to create a rift between Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. He is the criminal mastermind whom Holmes describes as the Napoleon of crime. The writers, Michael McCullers and Genndy Tartakovsky, must probably have been largely inspired by Sir Arthur’s darling mischief-maker, Professor Moriarty.

Hotel Transylvania 3 is, of course, a silly animated movie that offers you a great deal of fun. That said, the production has a few interesting themes running underneath. First, it stirs up our memory of the Hitlerist fascism that wished to see a world purged of Jews. Second, the battle between the monsters and humans can relate to many oriental as well as occidental aspects. The orientalism, in fact, is brimming with such bi-partisan battles. Suras and asuras, manussas and amanussas can count in as a few examples in orientalism whereas the battle between good and evil is an ever-present phenomenon in the occidental lore.

Tartakovsky’s attempt is to erect a new platform to the already-prevailing themes. He poses the question of good and bad. How can we define the good and the bad? Who are we to define the good and the bad (and forget about the ugly)? The good is not superior and the bad is not inferior. Hotel Transylvania 3 is Tartakovsky’s attempt to celebrate monsterism or place it on part with humanity.

Van Helsing in a Hitleric wavelength is giving a chase to the monsters. But then at the end, his own life was saved by a monster itself. When he questions why he was saved, the monster (Dracula) responds the obvious: “Because we are the same!” Dracula voices similar concerns in the opening scene by saying that hate should not be entertained to which Van Helsing turns a deaf ear. He never forgets his revenge and continues the scheming with his great-granddaughter. Following the opening credits, Van Helsing becomes a distant memory until we are halfway through. On that note, we see how Dracula makes every step to save Ericka without knowing she is the daughter of his eternal enemy. This humanity of the monster finally leads Erica to change her attitude towards the monsters. Though she admits, at first, that the monsters are disgusting to her great-grandfather, she later changes that attitude with teary eyes.

It rips apart our thinking which seems to stagnate on a conservative plane. It leads us to believe that we need to crack down our own attitudes towards monsters. Who are the monsters? We need to crack down all the monsters in the fairytales. Perhaps the future of humanity might change on this wheel. That change will be the antidote to the current chaos. The so-called die-hard Hitler followers will be forced to abandon their fascist attitudes because of its obvious catastrophic murderousness. In terms of Hotel Transylvania, it is the cluster of monsters that are equipped with over-powerfulness in contrast to the intellectual prowess of the humans.

We live in a maybe monstrous world that it’s hard to imagine a phenomenon without monsters. We have to employ the monstrous tone to make our voice count – it is part of who we are in the global population, especially in Sri Lanka. Hotel Transylvania 3 weaponises that part of the human condition.

Throughout the production, the monsters seem to share all the human features: a fondness for entertainment, being emotional and looking for soft companions. Ultimately it is the socialization that steps to the fore. Monsters are supposed to be anti-social. But inside Hotel Transylvania all the monsters ache for socialization. Only Count Dracula is without a partner. Even his daughter has a partner, a human.

Dracula, though a monster, teaches us the core values of family. He places family over and above everything else. He applies the element in love as well. The crux of the plot unfolds with the relationship between Dracula and Erica the captain of the ship who is also the great-granddaughter of Van Helsing. At first, Erica feigns her romantic feelings for Dracula as she wants to implement her great-grandfather’s scheme. At a certain point, she admits that a relationship between a human and a monster is unthinkable.

Interestingly, and incidentally, Dracula takes us to Edwin Markham’s famous lines from ‘Outwitted’:

He drew a circle that shut me out-

Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.

But love and I had the wit to win:

We drew a circle and took him In!

Both Van Helsing and his great-granddaughter detested Dracula because he is a monster. For them, Dracula was a heretic, rebel and a thing to flout. But Dracula and his love had the wit to win. He drew his own circle and took both great-granddaughter and great-grandfather in.

It was Erica who entered his circle first. Her feigned love turned out to be a feigned attempt to revenge. But she could not go on with either. She gave in. Finally, she was the one to save the life of Dracula who had almost given up hopes in the death throes.

Van Helsing’s attempt to crush Dracula with the mystic music that awakens the death giant is another core element. Each time, Dracula’s party had to outscore Van Helsing with a positive note of music to lull the death giant into a softer move. Even the most horrible creatures can be calmed down with the aesthetic sense.

Funny enough, the contest between the Van Helsing and Dracula’s party reaches the bottom line with the ‘Macarena’. Van Helsing himself begins to dance to the tune of that song.

When it comes to fun, yes, Hotel Transylvania 3 is absolutely a thumbs-up experience. When it comes to themes, the production deserves a heavier yes as we leave the theatre with much to meditate on.

Beat that beat

This article was originally published in Daily News on July 17, 2018.

Sri Lanka’s dance narrates an extraordinary tale. Its timeless allure continues to inspire us. It does not just show us the move. It celebrates the move of the country’s aesthetic wheel.
Long before the Indian edition of this perpetual art called dance reached the shores, this land housed its own traditions. Kandyan and Low-Country dance traditions have been spoken of in the same breath. Though not spoken of in the same weight, the Sabaragamuwa dance tradition has also completed some chapter in Sri Lankan aesthetic history.

The Sabaragamuwa tradition has received the step-motherly treatment though. It remains largely undocumented to this date. Interested in studying this less-spoken tradition? No direct flight is available, unfortunately. Unless you pick Saman Kumaratunga’s latest research work.

Apart from being a practical dancer, Kumaratunga is Head of Sabaragamuwa Dance Studies Department of University of Visual and Performance Arts. Years of his experience and experiment with the subject is now available in the form of two books: one dealing with the history of the tradition, while the other dealing with the instrumental instrument of the tradition, davula.

“The three major dance traditions of Sri Lanka, upcountry, low country and Sabaragamuwa are significant because of their unique features. The Sabaragamuwa tradition originates from jith thong nan. The uniqueness of the Sabaragamuwa tradition depends on the physical features, drum tunes, davul tunes, melodies and theatre costumes,” Kumaratunga assesses.

Davula is an instrument unique to the Sabaragamuwa dance tradition. The instrument has its own share of contributions at ceremonial occasions such as Shanthikarma (rituals performed for healing purposes), dance and temple processions.

The Sabaragamuwa dance tradition is stretched across Ratnapura and adjunct areas such as Ruwanwella, Deraniyagala and Yatiyantota. Much akin to its counterparts, the Sabaragmuwa tradition is named after the place of its origin – the Sabaragamuwa province.

“You cannot find any specific or specialised group interested in the Sabaragamuwa tradition, unlike the other traditions. That is why this tradition is not quite popular,” Kumaratunga notes.

But that’s not the only reason. The intricate rhythmic structure of the tradition has made itself the unsightly lass. A vast swathe of students seems to be satisfied with the five mainstream melodies of the tradition though there is more to it than they could imagine. The subject is much larger than you think. So to say, it needs a deeper crackdown. This call for a deep study does not hold much water in the popular territory. If your knowledge on the subject is half-baked, then the need to delve deeper into the subject recedes.

The genesis of the Sri Lankan dance rests in the healing rituals. However, the Sabaragamuwa tradition goes beyond the mere rituals, Kumaratunga anatomises. The tradition had also been practised in the presence of the royalty. However, a profound research is yet to take place on the real genesis of the tradition. If someone does not take up that responsibility, the tradition will soon die away, Kumaratunga warns. That is exactly why the Sabaragamuwa dance has become his sole preoccupation.

“That fear led me to compile these two books. I opened the pathway. Anyone can delve into deeper studies.”

Although choreography is a marked presence in many functions, Kumaratunga points out that the traditions are not properly upheld.

“The traditional artistes preserved it. But that preservation does not seem to take place in today’s context. Therefore the University of Visual and Performance Arts has initiated that project of preserving the traditional dances. Yet most traditional dancers have shied away from the art,” Kumaratunga laments.

Although the healing ritual of the good old times is not prevalent today in abundance, various other methods of practice used for exorcist-related activities could still be seen in certain domestic environments. Yet whether these rituals are conducted in the proper way remains a question.

“Any expert drummer of an offering ritual artiste should be able to recite the verses for 60 hours in one go. There are no repetitions in the ritual literature. You are required to memorise the verses of every kind. But most of the younger generation is lazy to memorise them,” Kumaratunga explains.

Laziness is not the only aspect. The supply of the rituals has no social demand. That said, no stimulation or catalyst is available for the modern generation to take up the ritual studies seriously. On the contrary, the dancer of the yesteryear was versed not only in singing, instrumental music and dance, but he was also a master of medicine, carpentry, architecture and engravings.

The ancient dancers have used various medicinal techniques. A ritual is beyond a mental relief. But what is required of the modern dancers is to have a traditional procession or some choreographic event for a special function. Even if it is a special occasion, they pay special attention to the upcountry dance.

“If Sabaragamuwa dance tradition prevails that is mostly because it is a subject taught at the university. There is a considerable growth in the Sabaragamu tradition since 1980. But the knowledge does not disseminate properly,” Kumaratunga said.

Knowledge falters when interest dies down. But when someone comes forward to re-ignite a dying interest, exclusivity barges in and finds its own way to a novel uniqueness. May Kumaratunga’s work offer chapter and verse to that phenomenon!

Loosing voice

​​The train stopped suddenly.
I heard a loud wail.
In an old female voice.
Is it a brawl?
An old woman blasting someone?
But that wail continued.
Some of my fellow commuters moved away from the window.
A few moved closer.
Why this sudden change of ambience?
I wondered.
I moved towards the window.
Right down there…
A girl is struggling…
Silently.
As if she has lost voice
Probably she is a girl with hearing impairment.
Her body was motionless.
But her face was moving.
I felt hairs stand straight
In a crowd helpless
With a little girl silently struggling for life
With an old lady still wailing
In a gap of a few inches
Between the shanty and the train apartment
I moved back
To see teary eyes
That knew no gender difference

Her mothers' voice

“I haven’t got a father.”

She said and took a pause to watch over her friend’s face.

“But thank you. You need not pity me.”

She stressed the thank-you part as if she does not care a hoot about those two words. She did not want the friend to respond either. Like in a monologue she continued.

“I have no father, because my mother chose not to have one.”

There was a pause, once again.

“She was lesbian.”

She wanted the pause to give emphasis to her own statement.

“I have two mothers. And I don’t think I will ever need a father. You may be wondering about my biological father though.”

She took a sip before resuming. She saw her friend’s nod as an approval.

“He should be somewhere. But a medical student for sure. My mothers wanted to have medical student genes in me, because they are doctors too.”

She smiled with her friend. She was relieved. She felt relieved because she could come out with some heavy burden. She could not get herself to come out with this burden of truth anywhere else. After all, this is Colombo, not some Las Vegas. They won’t accept any hippie culture down here.

She thought of her mothers. Why should she call them, when she could conveniently – and confidently – call them mothers? Her mothers are brave. They are brave not to care a hoot about what others would think of them. But will she have the same courage? Isn’t it a bit unfair by her for having to undergo all this stigma burden?

Her lifestyle was not accepted among her relatives. In fact, she had no relatives. No relatives would welcome either her or mothers. 

Back in the box

The grandson used to play Monopoly with his grandmother every year. But he never had a single chance to win the game. Grandma was monopolizing the win. This puzzled him. Plus, it was humiliating.

Grandson once inquired his grandma how that happens.

“Son,” grandma said, “it’s all about acquiring and owning things. In this game, I try my best to acquire and own properties and houses as much as possible. That is the success of my life too.”

Grandson listened in silence. He took care not to forget a single word. When they played the game next year, grandson won the game.

“Look grandma, I listened to your words last time and this time I could beat you.”

Grandma smiled.

“Son, I am so proud of you. You have done so well in the game. But son, you got to keep this in mind too. Whatever you acquire and own, you have to put them back in the box when the game is over.”

I remember my whole family (my wife and parents) was present when my brother narrated this tale. That was the day when he gifted me a saffron-coloured notebook. My brother wanted to encourage us all, but the story inspired me in particular. It encouraged me to practise letting go.

True, there are things you cannot simply let go. But in my life, there is only a few that is hard to let go.