Focus on books:
Religious communication as a creative discourse
Professor Sunanda Mahendra
Sadaham Sitmalyaya - 1 (A collection of feature writings from
Silumina)
Compiled by Tanuja Dharmapala
An author publication 2008
This book is designed in the form of a series of discussions with Ven.
Kiribatgoda Gnanananda Thera, one of the foremost Buddhist monks known
for his religious communicative innovations over radio and television
channels.
These discussions appeared as a series of articles because of this
reason. I think the writings became instantly popular among the readers
as they were written in lighter vein containing nevertheless hard
doctrinal facts as laid down by the Buddha as guidances to day-to-day
life. The central issues of the articles aimed to bring about a clearer
view of some of the pressing problems like the reasons for stress and
strain and frustration as well as worries etc.
The book is packed with examples as drawn from canons and day-to-day
life. The interviewer or the interlocuter Tanuja Dharmapala goes on to
ask at times some of the questions submitted from time to time by the
readers.
Then the discourse becomes quite intimate and the impact is shown as
lively. There are examples drawn from working places such as the need to
overcome animosities, harshness and jealousies that become driving
forces of self inflation and egoism.
There is an example, in the first instance of a certain young girl
who becomes a victim of harsh rumour and self deception, who later comes
to know that they are all unfounded and the only answer to get rid of
the worry is meditating kindness towards all those who spread such
rumours to all around her.
Then she finds that her mind is at peace while the persons who so
spread the ill-will and rumours failed to achieve what they wanted. This
is an age-old simple method, but a hard form of inculcating the
mindfulness resulting the achievement of a higher form of sanctity. It
is shown as seeing one's self through a mirror and gauging ones own
errors.
In a shorter manner the reader encounters the value of meditation
with the main subject as spreading kindness even to those who bring
disaster to others. In the first instance the victim in this example was
shown as unhappy and frustrated, but eventually she overcomes the
disaster knowing the solution.
In this manner there are positive ways of overcoming one's own
suffering. The venerable monk teaches the value of spreading metta or
all pervading kindness to beings in order to overcome worries. Anger is
shown as a condition that burns one's body and mind and is shown as a
force that should be overcome with the understanding as to how the anger
came to be.
The venerable monk says that it is like a painful wound that should
be cured by taking medicine and not by neglecting. Hatred too is similar
and the reasons for becoming a hateful character by all means should be
evaded and eradicated with an understanding the solution for the same.
The story of the prince Ajatasatru who with a hateful mind killed his
father king Bimbisara, is shown as one example of the misunderstanding
of the entity known popularly as misguided power.
The learned monk shows why people are craving for power and succumb
to killing and bring overall suffering to others. This may be a subject
that had been discussed over the centuries but it still remains in our
life as an irreversible and ineradicable measure.
These religio-historical narratives are quite interesting even to
re-narrate in modern terms as they will be regarded as examples that
stand for all times.
The learned monk requests the reader to be vigilant about things that
happen around such as the impact of mass media in our life. Sometimes it
so happens that violence is not regarded as a socially erupted force.
But they are shown in an intensified mood over the mass media channels.
As such the children too are made to be victims of violence.
These points are discussed at length with examples. There are quite a
lot of facts relating to the working of the mind and being mindful. As
the Buddha once declared the state of the mind is fickle and runs about
like a monkey from tree to tree.
But if the very same mind is well balanced, guarded or well
protected, the very same mind ought to bring peace to oneself and
well-being (47pp). The learned monk too underlines the value of being
honest and the value of being self contented.
Though these happen to be simple factors over-discussed, perhaps over
the mass media channels, these days, they still remain as concepts to be
guided correctly.
The story of the pious queen Visakha is depicted and relaid in this
book as an example of the manner in which she tried her best to overcome
the painful state of her mind as a result of the over attachment of
over-loving nature towards her departed niece.
The Buddha had asked a series of questions which enlightened Visakha
to the point that she had understood that over attachment to a person or
a place or a concept is not the real state of living it is the balanced
understanding that matters.
The reader is also taken down the track to the understanding of such
factors as birth, rebirth, love marriage, the merits and demerits of
one's actions of good and bad (Kamma) love, chastity, decay, sickness
and death. There are references to the concepts of unforeseen forces
such as the powers of spritualism which one can cultivate via
meditation.
At this juncture I am reminded of a certain concept I read a few
years back. It is about meditation where many of us are interested in
the practice of meditation as a need to understand ourselves and the
need to clarify the confusion we live in.
We take up the practice of meditation not to perceive the world at
large, but to gauge the self perceptions. The learned monk gives many
insights to the subject. There are also references to supernatural
beings such as gods and goddesses.
The standpoint of the modern day man is discussed widely. The state
of living today is disturbed according to the learned monk, mainly due
to the lack of self discipline which should be part and parcel of one's
living condition and the book is mainly projected to help those in need
of that condition.
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