Bhikkus to be trained to preach in English, Tamil

S M Wijayaratne, Kurunegala corr

Novice Buddhist monks will be trained in propagating the teachings of the Buddha in English and Tamil languages and 500 such Bhikkus would be sent to foreign countries to propagate the teachings of the Buddha during the next three years, said Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne.

Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne

He was addressing the gathering at Ganegoda Maliga Raja Maha Vihara in Bingiriya, Kurunegala after laying the foundation stone for the two-storeyed Dhamma preaching hall at the temple.

Foreigners are greatly interested in studying and practising Buddhist teachings as it is a universal religion. Buddhist parents should be generous enough to offer their beloved sons to be ordained at temples since there is a shortage of Buddhist monks in remote temples in the country. "It is a great meritorious deed and that is why emperor Asoka in India ordained his own son and daughter and later sent to our motherland to establish the Buddhasasana," the Prime Minister said.

Dhamma schools will be established in all Buddhist temples next year and it will be made compulsory for all schoolchildren to attend Dhamma schools, Prime Minister Jayaratne said.

"Our motherland should be blessed with a disciplined future generation with positive attitudes and noble human values that are propagated in the teachings of Buddhism, Islam, Christianity and Hinduism, he said.

A country cannot be called developed without spiritual development. Noble human beings are created only through practising their faiths with devotion. The present government headed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa is dedicated to build a Sri Lanka that is blessed with a civilized and morally developed future generation, the Prime Minister added.

"Parents too should live exemplary lives as children imitate their elders during their childhood.

"School teachers too should be encouraged to dedicate themselves in practising their faiths with enthusiasm as teachers greatly influence students," Prime Minister Jayaratne said.

Chief Organizer of SLFP for Bingiriya A. M. Munidasa Pemachandra and MP for the NWP-PC A. M. Somasiri Gunathilake also participated.