The Dhamma for the Future & The Future of the Dhamma -- By Ven. Omalpe Sobhita Thero

While Buddhists all over the world were celebrating Vesak, Ven. Sobhita, Founder of Sri Bodhiraja Foundation, Embilipitiya, Sri Lanka, addressed the audience at the 2550 Buddha Jayanthi International Conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka on May 17th about the future of the Dhamma.

Most Venerable Mahanayaka Maha Theras, Venerable members of the Mahasangha, Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis, His Excellency The President of the Republic of Sri Lanka, Upasikas and Upasakas, distinguished guests.

First of all, let me express my deep gratitude to His Excellency Mahinda Rajapakse for all his support and opinion, given to the Ministry of Religious Affairs for their efforts in organizing this historic event to commemorate 2550 years of Buddhism.

I also wish to express my gratitude to the late Foreign Minister Honorable Laxman Kadiragamar for his dedication in bringing Vesak to international recognition through the United Nations.

Our theme for this conference - The Dhamma for the Future and the Future of the Dhamma - itself suggests that we are at a critical juncture in the development of Buddhism.

Let us be bold enough to ask ourselves: After fifty years, would we still be celebrating Vesak in the same manner?

As custodians of the Dhamma, what is our foremost duty to ensure the future of our great tradition? The answer can be found within the Buddha's teachings itself.

One day, Mara came to the Buddha and told him that he should pass away since his dispensation is in order. Buddha replied: "No". Mara asked why. Buddha explained: "Parappavadam Sahadammena Niggahitun." "Of course, my disciples are very qualified and virtuous. But until my disciples are able to rebut all counter-beliefs with the most skilful means, leaving no room for doubt, I will not go."

It is clear that the protection of the Dhamma is of utmost importance to the Buddha. Hence, that too should be our objective.

All of you gathered here need no lessons on the history of Buddhism. And you are aware of the counter elements threatening our great religion. Of course, enemies to Buddhism are of course nothing new. But the threats that we are facing today are more powerful, more alarming and more dangerous. Unless we act now to find ways of tackling the Adhamma forces, Buddhism would become a relic in the museum of world's religions.

The first and most obvious threat is one shared by all mainstream religions - that is the decline in spirituality and moral standards throughout the world, generated by modern consumerism and mass media.

The second, and even more alarming threat, is religious fundamentalism and intolerance. Even as we gather here, Buddhists are being victimized in the hill tribes of Bangladesh and other parts of the world. In some poor village in Thailand, Cambodia or Laos, innocent villagers are being forced into conversion with the temptation of money or other material benefits. This is especially the case after the tsunami where aid is often mixed with religious conversion.

At the Millennium Conference in New York, Acarya S.N. Goenka Ji said that we welcome conversion - conversion from darkness to light, from ignorance to wisdom, from misery to happiness. Yes we too welcome that. But sadly, the kind of conversion that is taking place now is the other way round.

Here in Sri Lanka, the issue of unethical conversion has drawn much contention. As we have emphasized many times before, we are not against any genuine change of faith, but against the exploitation of the poor and vulnerable, of forced conversion with the temptation of money or other material means. The motives behind such conversion are often to destroy the peace and harmony, and eradicate the indigenous cultural values of a society.

Unlike other religions, there is no provision in the Buddha's teachings to defend itself against these dangerous forces.

In the past few decades, we witnessed a significant decline in the number of Buddhists in countries where Buddhism had a long history. If we do not act now, Buddhism would soon become only a relic in the museum of world's religions.

Historically, Buddhism flourished under the patronage of the contemporary rulers, such as during the reign of Emperor Asoka of India in the 3rd century BC. We hope that this would be the example for His Excellency President Mahinda Rajapakse and all other Buddhist leaders to uphold this legacy.

Therefore, Venerable monks and nuns, and all friends of the Dhamma, this is the urgent message of today's conference - we need to overcome our differences, and work together, to protect our common heritage.

Let us remind ourselves of the order given by the Buddha in the Makhadeva Sutta of Majjhima Nikaya: 'Ananda, at any certain time, when my teachings are disrupted, those people will be the last generation of the Dhamma. Because of this, I say to you: Follow and protect my teachings. Do not become the last of my people".

Thank You.