Buddhism and British Colonialism

The Transformation of Buddhism during British Colonialism Author(s): Yarina Liston Source: Journal of Law and Religion, Vol.
14, No. 1 (1999 - 2000), pp. 189-210 Published by: Journal of Law and Religion, Inc. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1051784 . Accessed: 29/09/2013 10:37
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THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM DURING BRITISHCOLONIALISM

Yarina Liston t INTRODUCTION
In orderto understand the changes that occurredin the Buddhist Sangha (monastic community) in Sri Lanka during and after colonialization by the British, it is first necessary to understandthe situationof Buddhismpriorto colonialization as well as the relationship of Buddhismto secularpower and the idea of civil law. Location is crucialto understanding the position of Buddhismin Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Buddhism definitively changed the Indian model's relationshipof the Sangha to the political order. From the earliesttimes Sri LankanBuddhismwas connectedto kingship and to the geographic space of the island of Sri Lanka, in a way that seems unique in Buddhist history. In Sri Lankathe Buddhist king was not answerableto a 'god', but was elected by the Sangha and other high ministersand was requiredto patronizethe Sanghaand enforce social
stability.'
In his critiqueof CliffordGeertz,Talal Asad claims thatreligion is notjust a symbolic systembut a system of power, in many cases, one thatis totalizingin character.2 Asad's argument can be demonstrated in Sri Lanka, where the implantationof a 'secular government' during colonialtimes by the Britishprofoundly alteredthe relationship between Buddhism and the inhabitantsof Sri Lanka. The modem idea of religion as divorcedfrompower succeededin dislodging the influence that Buddhismhad over Sri Lankanpolitics, but only for a shorttime. In India, the British codificationof customarylaw alongside the implementation of British legal procedure succeeded in making
t Yarina Liston is a graduatestudent in the Religion Departmentat Temple Universityin Philadelphia. She is workingon women in early Buddhisttexts for her dissertation. She lives in New York City and is currently teaching Buddhist philosophy at SUNY/Purchase. 1. Tilak Hettiarachchy, Historyof Kingshipin Ceylon(Lake House Investments Ltd Book Pub, 1972). 2. Talal Asad, Genealogies of Religion 35 (JohnsHopkins U Press, 1993).
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jurisprudenceappearharsherand more inflexible.3 In the case of Sri Lanka, the Buddhist Sangha, which had always held considerable power, was left on the outside of this process and was deprivedof its traditionalfunctionas intermediary between the king and his subjects. I suggest that once the Sangha lost its ability to influence the sovereign, and the laity began to infringe on the social roles of the influenceof W. Sangha,the Sanghawas an easy targetfor the orientalist of the Sangha function Davids and The Buddhist Olcott. Rhys Henry as intermediaryand educator was forever altered by the colonial presence; and a new social identity was formed. Modem bhikkhus (monks) as political agents were initiated into their roles by the dialectical relationship between the colonial rule and the Buddhist Sangha. The transformation of Buddhism in Sri Lanka came from the breakbetween legitimate rule from political authority. In a situation similarto thatin Indiawhen the MughalEmpirewas crumbling,the Sri Lankan Kingdom of Kandy was falling apart prior to British colonialization.This allowedthe Britishto enterinto the political arena but of Sri Lankaand establishthemselvesnot only as powerfultraders, as the sovereignpower.
BUDDHISMAND LAW
EarlyBuddhism,as establishedin NorthernIndiaaroundthe 6th centuryB.C.E. made a clear distinctionbetween the worldly and the supermundane.4 The path to ultimate salvation was trod upon by monks/nunsalone.5 The laity looked forwardto heaven, but theirlives were too caughtup with worldly mattersfor final release.6 The gods, were partof the mundaneworld whom most Buddhistsstill worshipped, (grantingmaterialboons) but were irrelevantfor final release.7 This cultural pattern brings up the interesting question of who was a Buddhist. Buddhismholds up the model of a fourfoldcommunity,consisting
3. Kishwar Madhu, Codified Hindu Law, in Economic and Political Weekly (August 13, 1994). IndianBuddhism 4. A.K. Warder, 43-80, 157-287 (MotilalBamarsidass,1970). 5. Id. 6. Id. 7. Id.
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of monks,nuns, laymenand laywomenas a social ideal.8 The Buddhist laity appearsto be a more fluid concept thanthe Sanghain Sri Lankan religion. The laity are expected to supportthe Sangha, and listen to teachingsby monks;andthenmay takecertainvows. The bhikkhusand bhikkhunis(monks and nuns) are much more clearly set off from the rest of society by their renunciation of householder life, chastity, separatecommunitiesand their adherenceto the Vinaya.9 The Vinaya is what one would call "Buddhistlaw."'? After the death of the Buddha, the Sangha gathered together to collect the teachingsof the Buddhaandthe rulesthey were to live by (Dharmaand Vinaya)." Since the Buddha did not establish a succession of leadership,the Sanghaneeded the teachings and rules to guide them. The Vinaya is composed of lists of hundredsof rules in vignette form that regulate the lives of individual monks and nuns, but it did not encompasssociety as a whole."2Nor was the idea of a reformedsociety ever a Buddhistgoal, for in Buddhisthistory social conditions are not but are secondaryto individualfreedom.13 The completelyunimportant individualrenunciantis the basis for Buddhistthought, as well as the This distinction distinction betweenthe worldlyandthe supermundane. betweenthe lay people andthose who have renounced the world creates a spatial division in the social world between what we would call the religious and the worldly. Aside fromthe Vinaya,the monks also abidedby local customary laws.'4 In this way, the Vinayaaddedto the alreadyexisting laws of the land. Thus,the Buddhistmonks/nunswere ruledby two realmsof law, the one governingsociety as a whole, the otherconveying specific rules of the Vinaya for Buddhistmonasticism. Fromthis we can also see that the BuddhistDharmais not completely self-sufficient. Secular law is necessary. As it grew into a religiousinstitution, the Sanghaultimatelyrested on the economic support from a prosperous, peaceful, and stable
8. Id. 9. Id. 10. John CliffordHolt, Discipline, the CanonicalBuddhismof the Vinayapitaka (Motilal Banarsidass,1981). 11. Id. 12. Id. 13. Id. 14. Id.
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society.'5 The Sangha received patronagefrom the local kings and Buddhists accepted the idea of kingship as a normal and appropriate his own formof government.'6 The Buddhahimself,thoughrenouncing claim to political power, never denied the necessity of having a 'civil' government.'7This kind of worldly power was useful for the sake of order,but was less religiously meaningful. The Sangha, though, was forbidden to transversethe division between the two. "Their rule forbids them to assume other religious roles and other worldly This distinctionreinforced the two parallelformsof law occupations."'8 and power, one worldly and one supermundane. Buddhistmonasticshadrenounced worldlyaffairs,but were never completely isolated from local politics. Several of the Buddha's sermons advised the monks not to speak of kings and wars, but kings monks for theiradvice on social would often go and seek out influential had matters.'9Once the Buddha passed away, the Sangha decided its of the own matters,usuallyby meansof voting.20As the disagreements with their members increased growing membership,the along Sangha possibility of a division in the Sanghaperiodically appeared. Only a king could enterinto ecclesiasticaffairsandhelp settle these disputes.21 The king's role in relationto the Sanghawas to be a righteousrulerof society, a patron and also sometimes an overseer/purifierof the The Sangha'srole in relationto the king was to give the king Sangha.22 religious legitimacy, to serve as a model moral people, and to educate the populace in BuddhistDharma.23 in the Sanghawas by The most famouscase of royal intervention the Indian EmperorAshoka, who aroundthe second century B.C.E. At this time, therewere some convened the ThirdBuddhistCouncil.24
Buddhism Indian 15. Warder, (citedin note4). 16. Id. 17. Id. 43 Buddhism & Gananath Gombrich 18. Richard Transformed Obeyesekere, U Press,1988). (Princeton 19. UrmilaPhadnis, Books, Religionand Politicsin Sri Lanka24 (Manohar 1976). Buddhism Indian 20. Warder, (citedin note4). 21. Id. 22. Id. 23. Id. 24. Id.
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monks who would not performtheir purificationceremony together with other monks (due to perceived Vinaya infringements). Ashoka united and purifiedthe Sanghaby beheading some heterodoxmonks. This act became an oft-repeated precedentfor the relationshipbetween South Asian kings and the BuddhistSangha.25
ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDDHISMIN SRI LANKA
Sri LankanBuddhists are in the unique position of having been the first to write down the Buddha's teachings (1st century C.E.) and were the firstgroupto createa Buddhisthistoricalrecord(2-4th century C.E.) which continues to this day.26 Their two main historical chronicles are the Mahavamsa and the Dipavamsa.27 These are importantnot only for their vision of ancient Buddhism, but also for the modem reinterpretation of Buddhismduringand after understanding independencefrom the British. The Dipavamsa and the Mahavamsarelate a two-part story of how Buddhismcame to Sri Lanka. Partone begins aroundthe time of the Buddhaand tells the story of how the Sinhalese, as descendantsof one prince, came to the island that had been preparedfor them by the Buddhahimself.28The second partgives the accountof how Emperor Ashoka sends a delegation of monks to the Sri Lankan king Devanamapiya (247-207 B.C.E.) along with Buddhistrelics such as the Buddha's tooth and a branchof the Bo tree.29This story is critical in understanding Sri Lankan Buddhism, which evolved not from a groundswell of popular religious sentiment, but through a "trickledown"model of religiousconversionfrom a royal system. In this way, in the formationand spreadof the Buddhist kingshipwas instrumental Sanghain Sri Lanka. These two storiesportrayBuddhismnot only as a worldview and mythology, accountedfor in Buddhistdoctrines,but as a "continuous The Sri politicalhistorythatbindsthe islandraciallyandreligiously."30
25. Id. 26. RichardLester, TheravadaBuddhismin SoutheastAsian 66-77 (U of Mich Press, 1973). 27. Wilhelm Geiger, The Mahavamsa (Asian Edu Serv, 1986) and Hermann Oldenberg,TheDipavamsa (Asian Edu Serv, 1982). 28. Id. 29. Id. 30. AnandaWickremeratne, Buddhismand Ethnicityin Sri Lanka82 (Viaks Pub
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LankanSangha wrote down Buddhist scripturesfor the first time in what has come to be laterknown as the Theravada canon. In so doing, they connected Buddhismto ". . . a political identity of the Sinhalese nation and a nationalreligion . . . of a politically defined territory."3' The Sri Lankan king was placedat the headof the Buddhistcult because of his possession of the Buddhistrelics (given to him by Ashoka).32 This strong symbolic connection of the king to Buddhism later The his image into thatof a bodhisattva, a futureBuddha.33 transformed king then acted as if he practicallywas the Buddha in his ability to oversee and controlthe Sangha.34 On the otherhand, kingship in Sri Lankawas bestowed through the Sangha. Yet even though the king was beholden to the Sangha, giving them great sums of the kingdom's wealth and grantingthem many immunities,the Sanghacouldneverrivalthe king's power. It had no consolidated authority,either in a head monk or in a centralized monasticism;also, the prohibitionsof the Vinaya kept it from direct political involvement.35 Historically,conflictsbetweenthe Sanghaandthe king aroseover the issues of property andprivileges. Sri Lankan Buddhismdiffersfrom early Indian Buddhism because of the initial and constant royal The Sri LankanSanghaalso owned land(given to it by the patronage.36 king) and operatedtenantfarms,which were specifically prohibitedto the earlyIndianmonks.37 This gave Sri Lankan Buddhismthe nickname "landlordBuddhism."38Ownership of land seems to have directly affectedwho could become a Buddhistmonk or nun in Sri Lanka. The Sanghain Sri Lankais very much tied to the land-holding"goyigama" caste, which also goes against the supposed breakdown of caste distinctionsof early IndianBuddhism.39 The bestowal of authorityto the king invested the king with the
House, 1995). 31. Phadnis,Religion and Politics in Sri Lankaat 8 (cited in note 19). 32. Id. 33. R. Gunawardara, Robe and Plough 175 (U of Ariz Press, 1979). 34. Id. 35. Id. 36. Phadnis,Religion and Politics in Sri Lankaat 42 (cited in note 19). 37. Id. 38. Id. 39. Id at 40.
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duty to defend the Sangha.40 When the Sangha felt the king had oversteppedboundariesof his privileges as king, it could rouse the to revolt.41 This gave it a powerfulace-in-the-hole peasantry againstthe kings. The Sangha's closer connection to the peasantryalso allowed it some control over adjudication on monasticproperty. The monastery was often used as a place of refuge for political exiles, criminals,etc.42 The monksrestricted the king's powerby theirabilityto keep the king's officials off their land.43 The only crime over which the king could overridethe Sangha's interventionwas murder.44This points to one importantsocial function of the Sangha as intermediarybetween the king and his subjectsand its ability to act as judge over petty crimes if the guiltypartysoughtrefugeon monastery lands. The Sanghawas also used by the kings as emissaryto otherkings on the island to negotiate disputes and help keep peace between kingdoms.45 In the course of explicatingthe Buddha's injunctionto obey the king, a fifth century monk, Buddhaghosa,wrote commentaryon the the proviso:"Theking may be obeyed as regard Vinaya andintroduced no one, whoever it righteousacts; but in the cases of unrighteousness, should be may be, obeyed."46
THEBRITISH RULE(1796-1948)
British rule of Sri Lanka was quite different from both the Portuguese(1505 - 1658) andthe Dutch (1658-1796) who came before them.47The othertwo colonial powers were mostly interestedin trade and the export of spices. These two previous colonialists only controlled the maritime provinces and did not radically alter the prevailingindigenousadministrative systems, althoughall threegained
40. Marshall Elite 15 (M.I.T. Press,1964). Singer,TheEmerging 41. Id. 42. TheMonasteries wereevena havenforthe Portuguese Catholics who were the Dutch. Buddhism andEthnicity in SriLanka at206 Wickremeratne, persecuted by (citedin note30). 43. Gunawardana, RobeandPloughat 190(citedin note33). 44. Id. 45. Id at 205. 46. Id at 171. 47. Robert Crane & N. Gerald British Barrier, Imperial Policyin IndiaandSri Lanka Pub,1981). (Heritage
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power in a similar way.48
In a time of social upheaval,a Sri Lankanking (or in the case of the British, the Kandianelite) turnedto the foreign tradingpower to help them solve their political problem.49This engagementwith the outsiders led to the three differentcolonial rules on the island. The British took control over the island in 1796 when they were asked to step into the Kandianroyal succession dispute.50 When the British finally signed the treatywith the Dutch againstthe French, Sri Lanka was relinquishedto the East India Company.51For the first time, not only was the whole island under one administration,but the last Buddhiststrongholdin the Kandiankingdomfell to a colonial power.52 The Britishwere initiallyinterested in makingthe islanda military base in case of an IndianOcean battle with France.53To secure their foothold the British immediately created a professional civil service with the executive andjudicial branchesin one office.54 The British were mostly ignorantof local customs and institutions and wrongly believed that many partsof Sri Lankahad been governed by RomanDutch law.55 who They also soughtto createnative headmen/overseers would be trainedintermediaries thatwere loyal to the British Crown.56 The British,though,never trustedthese headmenand were constantly tryingto curtailtheir authorityand influence.57 The BuddhistSanghahad less a problemwith British"laws"than with the positionof the Britishas "rulers" of Sri Lanka.58 By politically controlling the island, the British in one fell swoop destroyed the Sangha's social function as the educatorof the peasantryand the link between it and the king, as well as severing its influence over royal The Sangha'sroyal functionwas a key politicallegitimacyandpower.59
48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 1982). 59. Id. Kandy was a large kingdom in the centerof Sri Lanka. Id. Id. Id. Id. Id. Id. Idat 111. Id. Id. Duncan Derrett,Religion, Law and the State in India 290 (Faber & Faber, Id.
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to understanding the balance of power in Sri Lanka,suggests Duncan Derrett.60 This institutional called the whole Buddhistsymbolic rupture and cosmologic orderinto question even though Buddhism's special status as the state religion was supposedly guaranteedthrough the KandianCommissionof 1815:61 "[T]heReligion of Boodhoo professed by the Chiefs and inhabitantsof the Provinces is declared inviolable, and its Rites, MinistersandPlaces of worshipare to be maintainedand protected."62 The fifth clause of the KandianCommission of 1815 stated that the protectionof the BuddhistSanghawas similarto what the king had done for Buddhism.63However, GeneralBrownrigg felt that without this clause the Britishwould never have been able to maintaincontrol of Sri Lanka: the superstition of theBoodhooin a manner [t]hefifthconfirms thanwouldhavebeen my choice. But as the moreemphatical reverence felttoward it atpresent by all classesof theinhabitants is unbounded and mixedwith a strongshadeof jealousy,and doubt about itsprotection-and thatin ourwaysecure possession of thecountry it necessary to quiet hinged uponthispoint.I found uneasiness of guarantee couchedin more it, by article respecting terms.64 qualified What this actually meant to the Sri Lankans though was the "[m]aintenanceof a certain orthodox interpretationof (Buddhist) of religious authorities,the guardingof the Dharma,the appointments tooth relic and the patronageof temple schools."65 After a riot broke out againstthe British in 1818, the British felt it necessaryto even add to the fifth clause: "[a]s well as the priests all the ceremonies and processions of the Buddhistreligion shall receive the respectwhich in formertimes was shown to them."66 The irony of havingan Anglicanroyaltythousandsof miles away overseeingBuddhismin Sri Lankawas resentedby both the Churchof
60. Id. 62. Id at 178. 63. Id. 64. TessaBartholemeuzs, Women Underthe Bo Tree30 (Cambridge U Press, 1994). 65. Houtart, andIdeology in SriLanka at 181(citedin note61). Religion 66. Bartholemeuzs, Women Under theBo Tree(citedin note64).
61. Francois andIdeology inSriLanka 180(Hansa Houtart, Religion Pub,1974).
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England and the Sangha. The British then tried to break up the remainingpockets of authorityby disassociatingthe Sangha from the in a way thathad not existedpreviously.67 Throughthe use aristocracy the Britishdeprivedlocal chiefs of their of different1818 proclamations Through powers and integratedthem into the British administration.68 who was worriedaboutthe influence the Governor, these proclamations the Sangha had over the aristocracy,sought to put them at odds with each other:69 "[t]hepriestsappearto be the grandmovers of these plots, influence over the chiefs. They are dangerous and secret their by enemies with whom it is difficult to cope."70 The Governorwas a keen politician as well and not only tried to discouragethe Sangha'sinfluencebut also soughtto win the Sanghato the side of the British: of desirous of showingthe adherence Article21: TheGovernor of the in favor of the to its Government religion stipulations of the people, exemptsall landswhich now are the Property whatever.71 (Thelocal chiefs' lands Templesfromall Taxation weretaxed.) At first, the statusof the Sanghaas a protectedinstitutiondid not change. The British Governorkept the key to the tooth reliquaryand were In fact, many of the Governors the armyprotectedtemplelands.72 even sympatheticto Buddhism and enjoyed playing little "kings."73 to the Britishgovernment becameproblematicin the Theirrelationship 1840s when a Methodistmissionary,the Rev. R. Spence-Hardyfrom India, arguedthat the "principleof non-collusion"between the East India Companyand Hinduismshould apply to Sri Lankaas well. He associatedBuddhismwith a formof Hinduism,anddesiredto make the Britishprotectionof it illegal.74He portrayedthe collusion between a Christian government and an idolatrous religion as sinful, as a sanctificationof Buddhismand a violation of the law of God.75
67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lankaat 185 (cited in note 61). Id. The Sanghawas often of the same family and/orcaste as the aristocracy. Id at 186. Id. Id at 208. in Sri Lankaat 194 (cited in note 30). Buddhism and Ethnicity Wickremeratne, Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lankaat 209 (cited in note 61). F. Houtartsuggests that other British Missionaries were less interested in
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The Sangharefused to accept any modifications in its protected status, even though the British government began to pass disestablishment policies in 1846: First . . . the Government is to withdrawfrom all direct in theirreligiousobservances. Second, . . . the interference of therelicis to be givenupto themselves.Third,... no custody morepriests will be appointed Fourth,... all by thegovernment. to thepriests will cease. Fifth,... all lands pecuniary payments as templeproperty will be entirely recognizedand registered fromtaxation.76 exempted Local British governors began to refuse to participate in the of the temple positions and consideredfor awhile stealing appointment and destroyingthe toothrelic.77The Britishformaldisassociationfrom Buddhismcame aboutin 1852: of thetoothrelic)theBritish By thisgesture (thereturn authority andits powerwithdrew andforeverfromanyactive completely of paganism; the sanctionof a Christian Government support couldnot upholdand enforce,or even tolerate, the errorsof a pagancultdevoidof hope.78 After this gesture, the government kept itself separate from Buddhistceremonies,confiscatedsome temple lands and claimed that the Buddhistswere on theirown.79Anglican churcheswere built right next to Buddhist temples for a short time until Anglicanism was disestablished in 1880, supposedly leaving a completely "secular" British government.80 The governmentthen tried to establish an organizationfor the This council,composed Sanghawhich would help it controlits affairs.81 of membersof the aristocracyand important Buddhistmonks, was the recipientof the above mentionedtooth relic. The British,by giving up
non-Christian thanin creating a spacewhereallreligions suppressing religions might
confrontone anotherwithoutthe state supportingone. They wantedthe "[a]bolition of the generalizedprotectionover all religiousgroups,in orderto guarantee protection of their own privileged status." Id at 210. 76. Bartholemeuzs,WomenUnderthe Bo Treeat 31 (cited in note 64). 77. Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lankaat 212 (cited in note 61). 78. Id. 79. Id. 80. Gombrichand Obeyesekere, BuddhismTransformed at 202 (cited in note 18). 81. Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lanka(cited in note 61).
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the toothrelic, unknowinglyalso transferred the symbolic authorityfor ruling the island to the council as well.82 The relic was no longer the actualsymbol for politicalpower, but it came to be associatedwith the historicalcontinuityof the Dhammadipa.83 This bindingof Sanghaand council provedto be ineffective and slowly laity into an administrative witheredaway since it confused the Buddhistsocial dichotomy of the monk and the lay person and made the two groups competitive for social influence.84 As in India, the British publicly claimed that they were not involved in the "religions" of Sri Lanka, but they were actually instrumentalin molding a new social model. After the Napoleonic wars, the British became frantic for economic advancement and industrialization.85 The colonies (such as Sri Lanka)now had to produce goods and produce lots of them.86 The entire social web was again throwninto turmoilas landwas redistributed into large plantationsfor new crops(coffee, indigo,cottonandsugarcane) anda Tamilworkforce was importedfrom India.87
THEREINTERPRETATION OFBUDDHISM
In the post-disestablishment period, the Sangha, strugglingwith the Sri Lankanelites for power, was influencedby two orientalists,W. Rhys Davids and Henry Olcott in regards to their other traditional function, education. The British governmentwas interestedin both material as well as moral progress for Sri Lanka. Most British colonialists felt it was the government'sduty to 'civilize' the natives Educationwas necessary for social mobility, for througheducation.88 civil The general servants, and for spreadingChristianity.89 training stateof educationin Sri Lankashowedthe Britishgovernment thattheir
82. Id. 83. The tooth relic now became a symbol of the Mahavamsa's concurrenceof Buddhismwith Ceylon andwith the Sinhalesepeople. Wickremeratne, Buddhism and Ethnicityin Sri Lankaat 193 (cited in note 30). 84. Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lanka(cited in note 61). 85. Crane& Barrier, BritishImperialPolicy in India and Sri Lanka(cited in note 47). 86. Id. 87. Id. 88. Ananda Wickremeratne, The Roots of Nationalism. Sri Lanka 16, 86 & Sons Ltd, 1995). (Karunaratne 89. Id.
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own state schools were proving to be completely inefficient and put them in the uncomfortable positionof tryingto find someone to educate Beside the state, the only organizededucatorswere the Sri Lankans.90 The Britishdid not want to favor any one religious the missionaries.91 groupand so they endedup giving aid to all missionaryschools (based on how many studentspassed certainexams).92 Unlike India where indigenous schools were used, the British government did not make use of the Sri Lankan pansala schools (Buddhist)nor did the Sanghafight for its fair shareof the government its The lack of interestin educationby the Sanghaguaranteed grants.93 demise in the educational arena.94 The cause of the Sangha's is confusing. Wickremeratne indifference suggeststhatalthoughmonks the merit by educating populace, throughouttheir history they gained had to be pushed into teaching by kings who felt that they were too preoccupiedwith land management.95 Educationin Sri Lankaduringthis time was a complex situation missionarygroups,variouslevels of consistingof competingProtestant governmental interference,and bookfuls of confusing policy. The colonial government,althoughit did not want to subsidize missionary activity, ended up doing just thatby using the missions to educate the Sri Lankans. The British governmentwas more concerned with the education problemsof the missionaries'proselytizationand vernacular than the Sinhalese, who were primarilyinterestedin English language acquisition. Christiancriticism of Buddhism began very early on with the arrivalof the Portuguese, but did not take on a strategicqualityuntil the time of the British when many public debates were staged between Christian missionariesandBuddhistmonks. The Christian missionaries bent on exactinghostility from the Buddhists. The Sangha's appeared equanimity frustratedthem, but with the persistent critique and the of theirschools, the missionariesfinally forceda response establishment from the Sangha.
90. 91. 92. 93. 94. 95. Id. Id. Id at 48. Id. Id. Id at 103.
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By 1860 a fledglingBuddhistrevivalmovement,led by the monk triedto instill a sense of pride in traditional Gunananda, Miguettuwatte cultureas a response to Christianpropaganda.96 Many Buddhists felt thatChristianity was so successfulbecauseof the diverseculturalforms it took and the organizationof its institutions, and so their initial responseswere constrained by Christianideas and forms. Gunananda and other Buddhists responded with what Wickremeratne called a "counteroffensive" to Christianitywith their own printingpresses andpublictracts.97 The availabilityof the Bible in the vernacular to attackChristianity gave the monksreadyammunition in its own words, whereasthe missionariescould not do the same with the Buddhist Dharma. Wickremeratne says that the Buddhists were the fascinated and the New not Old Testament, by latchingonto the idea of a "[j]ealousvengeful god to please whom a man might be prepared to offer his own son in sacrifice."98 With missionaries as examples, the Sangha began to study the of the Westerners.The monksdecidedthatthe Christian laity "religion" in the West were alienatedfrom their religion, which didn't seem to have anythingto offer them.99The Sangha,relying on its own history of scholasticism and interpretation,saw the British separation of political policy from the principlesof theirreligion as a form of moral alienation.00??Buddhist interest and access to popular western newspapers and pamphlets seems, in retrospect,remarkable. These publications kept illustrating to the Sangha how Christians were desperatelyinterestedin secularism (not religion), how science kept winning arguments in Victorian England, and how major western thanChristianity.'0' The Sangha Buddhismrather thinkersappreciated be the which it could be intimate that to West, actually might began 102 convertedto Buddhismand not vice versa. The most useful tools for the Christianmissionaries were the English translations of Buddhist texts made by Thomas W. Rhys
at 219 (cited in note 18). BuddhismTransformed 96. Gombrichand Obeyesekere, 97. Idat231. 98. Id. 99. Id. 100. Id. 101. The major western thinkers who appreciated Buddhism were A. H.G. Wells, and CarlJung. Id at 232. Schopenhauer, 102. Id.
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Davids.'03Rhys Davids (1843-1922) has left one of the most definite marks on early Buddhist scholarship. He was one of the very first westernwritersto interpret Buddhismfor both a Europeanas well as a Sri Lankanaudience, and books by him are still found in Sri Lankan
homes.l04
Rhys Davids was born in Englandto a congregationalminister who was the local historianfor the Non-conformistsof Essex. He later spent three years in Germanyearningmoney as an English tutor and learningSanskritso thathe couldjoin the IndianCivil Service. Instead of India,he was sent to Ceylonin 1864 with a writership appointment.'05 His constant complaining and a few political blunders cut short his tenurein Sri Lanka,and he was sent back to England.'06 While he was still in Sri Lanka,he becameinterestedin philology and studiedPali with a local monk in orderto read the inscriptionson ancient ruins in his area.'07 He deemed particular sites of the area as exemplaryof the Sri Lankan 'golden age' and Anuradhapura petitioned the government to preserve them, which caused him to become known as some sort of orientalscholar among other English officials.'08 to Englandhe studiedlaw, but gave it up in order Upon returning to publish BuddhistPali texts.'09The prospectsfor this type of career seemed quite bleak since therewere no universitydepartments for this nor was there His languagestudy, any popularsupport."l0 firstworkwas on the "essence"of Buddhistthoughtcalled simply Buddhism(1878) and was published for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge."' It weaved togethermany differentaspects of Buddhism into a Gospel-like format, and became the modem textbook on Buddhism."2The publicationof Buddhism was intendedto educatethe
103. 1984). 104. 105. 106. 107. 108. 109. 110. 111. 112. AnandaWickremeratne, The Genesis of an Orientalist(Motilal Banarsidass, Id at 17. Id. Id at 113. Id. Id. Id. Id. Id. Id.
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apatheticVictorianpublic aboutthe merits of Buddhism as well as to instill interestfor the missionarycause.113 Rhys Davids consideredthe ancient Pali manuscriptsto be the purestform of Buddhismand any recentmaterialor modem practices to be degenerate."4 He began the Pali Text Society in order to systematicallypublish all the Pali texts in Roman script and translate them into English."5 This seemed to interesthis monk friends in Sri Lankawho found reason to fund Rhys Davids' work in England!"6 Thereby,the Sanghanot only gained for themselves the authorityof a Western scholar, but bestowed on Rhys Davids' translations the of Buddhist seal of approval."7 This allowed for one interpretation Buddhism to become the common parlance of debate between the Sangha and the Missionaries, as well as among English speaking Buddhists. As the secretaryof the Royal Asiatic Society, Rhys Davids even pushedto have Pali and Sanskrit,insteadof local dialects,made partof the civil service examinations."8 His idea was to make orientalistslike himself into something like an intelligence departmentfor political controlof the East.119 Part of the orientalist discourse was the idea that the western presence in Asia was not only for trade but for the promotion of were supposedly civilizationandmorality.'20 The Sri Lankans Christian becausetheirreligious system had failed them, or could not "deficient" by its very natureproducea superiorperson. Yet, Buddhism,taken as an ethicalsystem, was focused around the idea of the perfectlyvirtuous man (Buddha)andthe struggleto emulatethis person. This posed a big problem for the Christianmissionaries in Sri Lanka. The Sangha claimed ethical superiorityto Christianityand Rhys Davids had aided them by portrayingBuddhaas a courageousman, facing life head on,
113. Id. 114. Id. all overthe islandandno one monastery textswerescattered 115. TheBuddhist hadall of them. Id. 116. TheKingof Siamalso gaveThePaliTextSocietymoneyto publish. Id at 154. 117. Idat 151. 118. Id. 119. Idat 172. 120. Id.
189]
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while searchingfor salvationthroughproperbehavior.'21 Unfortunately, Rhys Davids also felt that the Sinhalese had betrayedBuddhismandtheiridolatrycausedthem to make Buddhainto a god.122 He felt they needed to returnto the purePali Buddhismof his translatedtexts.'23 Rhys Davids made Buddhism look like a form of Protestantism.Sri LankanBuddhismforevermore was divided into the cult of the people. 24 "pure" philosophyof the texts andthe "idolatrous" As Christianmissionaries and the Buddhist Sangha were using English translationsof Buddhist texts (such as the books of Rhys Davids) to argue the merits of Buddhism, an American entered the colonial scene and shiftedthe focus once again. HenryS. Olcott(18321907) was bom in New Jersey,andworkedfor a varietyof social causes until he co-founded the Theosophical society with Madam H.P. Blavatsky in 1874.125 Theosophy is based to some extent on a mix betweenpopularspiritualism andcertainreadingsof Eastern religions.126 Olcott's and Blavatsky's attempt to deal with religious pluralism conflated all religions into one general form of philosophical mysticism.127 The theme of earlyTheosophywas: "ourBuddhismwas that of the Master-AdeptGautamaBuddhawhich was identically the Wisdom Religion of the Aryan Upanishads and the soul of all the ancientworld-faiths."'28 Olcott was able to acquire and read some early books on Buddhism, possibly even some by Rhys Davids.129 He accepted the common distinctionbetweenthe trueBuddhismof the ancientsand the modem degenerate version.'30 Olcotttook the idea of trueBuddhismas being of Aryan origin, but he then equated it with all other wisdom religions, because he saw that it had an esoteric content.'3' This
121. 122. 123. 124. 125. 126. 127. & Co, 128. 129. 130. 131. Idat 197. Id. Id. Id at 200. StephenProthero,The WhiteBuddhist,in 6 Tricycle 1 (1996). Id. The Theosophical Movement1875-1925. A Historyand a Survey(E.P. Dutton 1925). Prothero,The WhiteBuddhistat 14 (cited in note 125). Id. Id. Id.
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of Buddhism,though,was contraryto the Theosophicalunderstanding one Rhys Davids portraysin his texts as a simple religion of basic ethical development.'32 Olcott visited Ceylon in 1880 and publicly took Buddhist lay vows.'33He was warmlyreceivedandwas able to foundmanybranches of the BuddhistTheosophicalSociety on the island. Olcott based these branches on Christian missionary models considering them the best form of promotion.'34 Olcott also immediately started the first Buddhist school, taught in English, schools.135 Olcott"begana national specificallyto combatthe Christian fund for the establishmentof Buddhist schools, compiled a Buddhist catechism, designed a Buddhist flag, and laid the foundations of a Buddhisteducationmovement."'36 He and Blavatsky literallybecame Ceylonese folk heroes by helping to begin a reform of Buddhism throughwestern-stylededucation.137 Olcott impressedthe Ceylonese with his hard work as an antiChristianmissionary by crossing the island and fundraising for his Education Fund.'38 In thesetravels,Olcottbecamequitebothered by the lack of about Buddhism (his general knowledge among Ceylonese standard based, of course,on Rhys Davids' books) andby the Buddhist lack of unity on political matters.139Like Rhys Davids, he decided that the understandingof "real" Buddhism was lacking and what the Ceylonese desperately needed was to be educated in his Buddhist schools. Olcottput togethera catechismof Buddhism,which has been translated into twenty languagesand still is used in Ceylonese schools today.'40It was only in 1961 that the Sri Lankangovernmentfinally took over Olcott's Buddhistschools.'4' Like Rhys Davids' books, most of Olcott's Buddhist education system emulated Christianmodels: his Buddhist catechism, Young
132. 133. 134. 135. 136. 137. 138. 139. 140. 141. The Genesis of an Orientalistat 141 (cited in note 103). Wickremeratne, Phadnis,Religion and Politics in Sri Lanka(cited in note 19). Id. Id. Id at 68. Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lankaat 215 (cited in note 61). Prothero,The WhiteBuddhistat 15 (cited in note 125). Id. Id. Id.
189]
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Men/Women's Buddhist Associations (YMBA/YWBA), Buddhist This is why E. Phadnis Sundayschool andBuddhistarmychaplains.142 that Buddhism of this suggests Ceylonese time, influencedso strongly Buddhism."143 Sri Lankan by Olcott, came to be called "Protestant Buddhism was also "protestant" in that it was a "protest"against it began to focus on the laity insteadof the Sangha,and it Christianity, was situatedsquarelyin the middle classes. The true initiatorand founderof the Sri LankanBuddhistrevival was a disciple of Olcott's. This disciple was an upperclass Sinhalese lay Buddhist who took the name, Anagarika Dharmapala.'1 modeled himself on what he consideredas the epitome of Dharmapala the "archetypal Buddhistideal."'45 This ideal was a radicalinnovation not seen before in Buddhisthistory: a non-monkrenouncerwho was called "anagarika."'46 This new politicallyinvolved,which Dharmapala Buddhistsocial role, halfwaybetweenembracing the role of a layperson and the role of a monk, was based on combination of a Buddhist This new Buddhistrole was a chaste upasakaanda Hindubrahmacarin. student but one who could also work in the world. Most scholars suggestthatthis movementwas the catalystfor the laterpoliticalmonks who probably emulated Dharmapala,and it was also the model for many lay Buddhists. Around the time of Dharmapala,the Buddhist laity were beginningto cross over into many of the Sangha'straditional functions. By the 1890s therewere quite a few lay Buddhistswho had put on robes, preached publicly and even chanted at religious ceremonies.'47Dharmapala'swork furtherblended the line between monks and devout lay persons. set up a code of conduct,like Olcott's catechism,for Dharmapala SinhaleseBuddhistsandhelped formulatea new vision for Sri Lankan Buddhism.'48 Dharmapala, following on the heels of Olcott, preached andwrotepamphletsaboutthe demiseof modem Buddhism,but he also new idea:Buddhistnationalism andhatredfor what emphasizedanother
142. 143. 144. 145. 146. 147. 148. Phadnis,Religion and Politics in Sri Lankaat 68 (cited in note 19). Id. The Genesis of an Orientalist(cited in note 103). Wickremeratne, Id at 204. Id. Bartholemeuzs,WomenUnderthe Bo Treeat 38 (cited in note 64). Gombrichand Obeyesekere, BuddhismTransformed at 214 (cited in note 18).
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he called the Tamil exploiters.149Olcotthad begun a fairlywell crafted the auspicesof Theosophy,criticizing plan for Buddhistrevivalthrough modem Buddhismagainstthe textualsourcespresentedby orientalists like Rhys Davids. Dharmapala, picking up where Olcott left off, also Lankan but as a victim Sri Buddhism as not only degenerate, interpreted of persecution by the British, the Tamils and almost everyone in between. After some years, Dharmapala began to see the limits of his association with Theosophy and declaredthat the Theosophists were leadingmanyBuddhistsastraywith theirstrangeesotericinterpretations of Buddhist doctrine.'50He was worried that Sri LankanBuddhism might become just a handmaid of Theosophy.'51 Wickremeratne suggests that it might have been Rhys Davids who suggested that renounceTheosophy,but it also might have been Olcott's Dharmapala pronouncementthat the Buddha's Tooth Relic was really an animal
bone! 152
The Buddhistsof Sri Lankawere the patronsof these venturesby Rhys Davids and Olcott with their money, time and interest. They obviously felt thatthese enterpriseswere for their own benefit, giving over themthe tools they neededto competewith andultimatelytriumph of Buddhist texts and the missionaries. This western interpretation schools perhaps helped spark the nationalist revival that sought to in the reestablishindigenous values and gain Buddhistrepresentation government.
CONCLUSION
The Sanghahad been the traditional intelligentsiaand educatorof Sri Lankansociety. The laity had no way of getting to the Buddhist scripturesunless they went to the Sangha for teachings. The Pali scriptures,now translatedand printedinto many languages are much more accessible,allowingfor moreinterpretation by manymorepeople. The Sinhalese Buddhist elite now joined the Sangha in interpreting the Sangha's former Buddhisthistory,which has helpedto disintegrate monopoly on BuddhistDharma. The Sinhala elites soaked up the Buddhism of Rhys Davids'
149. 150. 151. 152. Id. Id. Id. The Genesis of an Orientalistat 224 (cited in note 103). Wickremeratne,
189]
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teachers books, takingon his biases, andhelpedsend Theosophy-funded into the villages to teach this version of Buddhismto the peasants.'53 The laity did not stop there but continuedto challenge the Sangha by taking on the social role of monks themselves. This new Buddhism had a strong anti-colonial bias, which provided a value system for Sinhala upper-classes. The Sangha still supposedlyembodiedthe values of society owing to the dignity it was but it also hadto respondto fiercecriticismfromthe Christian accorded, missionaries as well as power usurpationby its own elites. This undermining of traditional Sri Lankan Buddhism ended up by redirectingthe Sangha'srole in society. For instance,the Sanghawas now expectedto come to the laity, as the missionariesdid, andperform rites it was once excluded from (that is, marriages). Some of the new social roles for the Sangha had historical precedent, but the halfwas entirely new. The Sangha was monk/half-layman(Dharmapala) exampleandthe rule thatmonks were caughtin betweenDharmapala's declaredthatmonks should not to be political actors(even Dharmapala not take part in politics). The Sangha was also caught between its traditional role as a companyof recluses andthe modem critiquethatit should serve society pastorallyas chaplainand schoolteacher. The Sinhalese Sangha refused to be "privatized" by the British Lankan elites. and the Sri Using its overpoweredby government, immense historicalknowledge,the BuddhistSanghatook its totalizing vision of Sri Lankan society public with pamphlets and preaching, leading up to the 1940's Colombo college-monks' movement called "Vidyalankara."'54In 1956, The Buddhist Committee of Inquiry published a text called the "Betrayalof Buddhism",laying out their political ideology, which was implemented by the election of Bandaranaike to PrimeMinisterthe same year.155By 1972, Buddhism and regainedits recognitionas the majorityreligion(in the constitution) the new social role of the Sanghanow has monks runningfor seats in the parliament.156 Independencemade it clear that the old "irenic"Buddhism had the Sanghais presentlyinterestedin rectifying historical disappeared;
153. 154. 155. 156. BuddhismTransformed at 210 (cited in note 18). Gombrichand Obeyesekere, Id. Id. Id.
210
grievances. The present is, of course, colored by past glories as the of colonial rule. Sanghatries to erase the historicalinterruption as The king has gone, but the Buddhaand the gods remained more unbalanced partsof a system,whichhadevolvedthrough of for the restoration thantwo millenniums.Politicaldemands of the Sinhalization as well as for to its "rightful Buddhism place" to finda new thebalance, areall endeavors to restore Government cultural theme.'57 variation on an ancient socialandpolitical Historically, the Buddhist ideal of kingship entailed the of religions. As the king was stabilizationof society andthe patronage the paragonof lay manhood,so the Buddhawas the paragonof religious manhood. Without the king or the support of the state, Buddhism seemed to have no internalway of maintainingits old position. to compromises F. Houtart suggeststhatBuddhismis "susceptible Thatis, by allowing certainpolitical with spontaneous productions."'58 Buddhismhas changed accidentsto overrulethe moreessentialDharma, itself and is now seeking to be the paragonof both the religious and political arenas. Sri Lankan society might have betrayed Buddhism by not functions. The Buddhismto its dominant place andtraditional restoring could also be the Sangha's own forgetfulnessof its role as "betrayal" of the BuddhistDharmaandVinaya,which it is now breaking guardian If one of the centraltenets of throughnationalismand ethnichatred.'59 betweenthe worldlyand Buddhismhas been the distinction Theravadan form of Buddhism is modem Lankan then the Sri the supermundane, Buddhism that something entirely different. It is a "Protestant-like" "decorous and other tolerance of the traditional style religions foregoes of presentationfor a polemical stance."160
157. Hans-DieterEvers, Monks,Priests and Peasants 15 (E.J. Brill, 1972). 158. Houtart,Religion and Ideology in Sri Lankaat 94 (cited in note 61). 159. StanleyTambiah,Buddhism Betrayed?Religion,Politics and Violencein Sri Lanka(U of Chi Press, 1991). at 218 (cited in note 18). BuddhismTransformed 160. Gombrichand Obeyesekere,

Buddhism and British Colonialism

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The Transformation of Buddhism during British Colonialism Author(s): Yarina Liston Source: Journal of Law and Religion, Vol.

THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM DURING BRITISHCOLONIALISM

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM

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power in a similar way.48

THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM

61. Francois andIdeology inSriLanka 180(Hansa Houtart, Religion Pub,1974).

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

JOURNAL OF LAW & RELIGION

THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM

JOURNAL OF LAW & RELIGION

THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

THE TRANSFORMATION OF BUDDHISM

JOURNALOF LAW& RELIGION

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