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Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism is a political ideology which combines a focus upon Sinhalese culture and ethnicity with an emphasis upon Theravada Buddhism, which is the majority belief system of most the Sinhalese in Sri Lanka. It mostly originated in reaction to the colonization of Sri Lanka by the British Empire, and became increasingly assertive in the years following the independence of the country. Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism has also been a driving force of interest in the Sri Lankan Civil War against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
Anagarika Dharmapala was one of the contributors to the Buddhist revival of the 19th century that led to the creation of Buddhist institutions to match those of the missionaries, and to the independence movement of the 20th century. He illustrated the first three points in a public speech:
He once praised the normal Tamil vadai seller for his courage and blamed the Sinhalese people who were lazy and called upon them to rise. He strongly protested against the killing of cattle and eating of beef.
Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism has a fractious relationship with other religious communities like Christians, with protests often being organized by Buddhist nationalist organizations against the perceived interference of Christians in the country.[2] Relations between Buddhist nationalists and Hindus are more nuanced, with numerous Hindu figures, including Kandiah Neelakandan and T. Maheswaran working with Buddhist groups on the anti-Conversion bill.[3] Also, D. B. S. Jeyaraj noted that both Sri Lankan Hindu nationalism and Buddhist nationalism rose as reactions to Christianity.[4] Hindu-Buddhist collaboration is growing more prevalent in Sri Lanka, with the rise of groups such as the Hindu-Buddhist Friendship Society.[5] Since the time of British rule of Sri Lanka the Sinhala Buddhists nationalists have been in a contentious relationship with Muslims, with the Muslims being at the receiving end of racially incited riots.[6] With the conclusion of the civil war with the LTTE in 2009, the Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists' campaign against the Muslim population has become prominent. Incidents of vandalism of Muslim shrines[7] have occurred.
Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan Civil War, Tamil Eelam, Sri Lanka Army, Bbc
Fascism, Liberalism, Politics, Socialism, Irredentism
Hindutva, Indian National Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party, Indian Independence movement, Hinduism
Colombo, India, United Nations, Maldives, Western Province, Sri Lanka
Buddhism, Sri Lanka, Pāli Canon, Gautama Buddha, Anuradhapura
Tamil Eelam, Tamil Nadu, Nationalism, Tamil language, Sri Lanka
India, Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan Civil War, All Ceylon Tamil Congress
Nationalism, Indian independence movement, Karnataka, Gujarat, Bihar
Nationalism, Hindu nationalism, Pakistan, India, Karachi