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| Saturday, 13 December 2003 |
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The only way by Nemsiri Mutukumara Religious leaders across the world are discussing the possibility of presenting a new approach to combat the tyrannically spreading HIV-AIDS menace. In Sri Lanka already the Bhikkhu Sangha led by the Most Venerable Madihe Pannasiha Maha Nayaka Thera, the Uttaritara Sanghanayaka of the Samasta Lanka Amarapura Maha Sangha Sabha warned the countrymen as far back as the 1960s the wrong policies adopted by the State and certain commercial outfits for population control by different dubious methods extremely harmful to people. The Roman Catholic Church for similar or any other reason better known to the Church abhorred the use of contraceptive devices to prevent conception. At the outset, all contraceptive materials were sold only to married people. Shop-keepers took extra care to confine this particular "Contraceptive Counter" in a corner without any public glare. Disciplined and respectable customers felt ashamed to shop that way, boutique owners murmured. On the contrary, those Western multi-national business tycoons introduced different kinds of products and services to lure people to use artificial contraceptives as a must to prevent a population explosion which is now on the bend. Another invention was a new lesson on "Population", introduced to the school curriculum. Regrettably, the "Population" Chapter had nothing much to do with population as such but it was pure and simple "safe-sex", "unsafe sex" and such other lessons taught by 'teachers' who are neither competent nor suitable to handle the subjects.Many Non-Government Organisations mushroomed in different parts of the world as population control patronises on dollars doled out by big-business houses. Those NGOs was hell-bent on stepping into economically developing countries in Asia, Africa and South American organising seminars, workshops and population control training programs in economically developed and advanced countries in the West. These seminars and junkets provided ample fodder for the NGOs to indoctrinate a set of young men and women on birth control activities. All the monetary and material resources lavishly spent on population control by all the business companies concerned have miserably and totally failed to check the population growth. While all their activities have created a monster in HIV-AIDS a menacingly killer disease which so far none in the world have been able to provide either a medicine - a remedy. Since these unscrupulous pattern of events are continued in many areas. Still, a large groups of Buddhists have organised themselves both within their own countries and extended internationally to introduce the sure and the effective method - the only way to prevent HIV-AIDS and lead healthy and handsome way of life. In the Republic of Korea, Dr. Dong Ki-Park, a University Professor launched "Panca-sila Samadana" a moral and ethical movement for people to live healthy lives. Within the last five years, Korean Buddhists have popularised the principles of panca-sila across the country so effectively, that every Korean who observe and follow panca-cila have tattooed on their hand that they strictly abide by the panca-sila. Led by the Bhikkhu Sangha, Buddhist leaders and major Buddhist institutions have made representations to their respective governments to provide panca-sila a proper place to solve the country's burning problems including, political, cultural, religious and social. Giving pride of place to the deadly disease, those groups have shown the sprawling continent of Africa as an example where the HIV-AIDS victims have topped the highest figure in the world. Those poor and helpless, neither have medicine, nor do they get any food or beverages. They perish daily by the dozen on streets. The Bhikkhu Sangha will utilise the dharmasanaya in their own Vihara and explain to their audiences the real necessity to lead praiseworthy family life with husband and wife dedicating themselves to each other which can be a pride to their children and be an admiration to society. The Samaneris - the Ten Preceptors - who prefer to continue in that manner teamed up together countrywide to enlist the cooperation of all segments of the population to wean away people from unhealthy exercises and practices. The million-dollar question paused from our educational, cultural and religious authorities committed to present to the people the sanctions of moral conduct clearly defined in the Dhamma so that they will learn that the only way is available for us to follow. According to Buddha's own words, "A wise man should avoid unchastity as if it were a pit of cinders. One who is not able to live in a state of celibacy should, at least, not break the purity of another man's wife". According to Buddhism, religious celibacy is considered to be the highest conduct of life. "Among the evil consequences resulting from unlawful sexual intercourse, people suffer in unhappy states for a long period of time, when reborn as a man by virtue of merit acquired in a previous existence, the birth would occur in a lower form of mankind. Such a person would have many enemies, would be disliked by the people, would be destitute, unable to procure comfortable lodgings, food and clothes and would be full of anger and rage". (Saddhammopayana ed. Richard Morris, Pali Text Society). |
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