Hindu religious leaders have called for the establishment of a formal mechanism bringing together Hindu priests from across the country to work collectively on national and community-related issues.
The proposal was made when a group of Hindu priests representing Colombo, Batticaloa, Jaffna and the Hill Country met President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat.
The priests commended the President and the Government for their efforts to promote coexistence, peace and reconciliation among all communities, while also expressing support for the Government’s national programme to eradicate the threat posed by narcotics.
They stressed that religion should serve to promote love and harmony among people and strongly opposed attempts to spread racism based on religious or cultural differences.
The issue of combating the narcotics menace was also discussed extensively during the meeting. The priests emphasised that eliminating the drug problem cannot be achieved by an individual or a single institution and should instead be treated as a collective national responsibility.
They called for the active participation of all sectors of society in the fight against narcotics and expressed their blessings for the President and Government to continue the programme in a sustained and strengthened manner.
The Hindu religious leaders also requested the President to establish a formal mechanism through which Hindu priests from different parts of the island could work together, particularly when addressing matters of national importance.
They said such a mechanism would also provide an avenue to discuss and resolve issues affecting Hindu devotees, including matters concerning Hindu religious schools.
Responding to the proposal, President Dissanayake noted that Hinduism encompasses diverse religious traditions, beliefs and identities and does not have a single leadership structure. He said this diversity should be respected rather than brought under a single structure.
However, the President agreed on the importance of establishing a joint mechanism for priests to work collectively on common social objectives, while preserving the different religious identities and traditions within Hinduism.
Accordingly, President Dissanayake instructed that a programme be formulated to establish common social action involving all relevant parties, while respecting the diversity of Hindu traditions.
The initiative will be coordinated under the direction of the President’s Senior Additional Secretary.
Among those present at the meeting were Chief Priest of the Colombo Centre of the Ramakrishna Mission, Sri Swami Aksharatmananda Maharaj; Chief Priest of the Colombo Centre of the Chinmaya Mission, Gunantitananda Saraswathi; Brammasri S. Sivaneshan Sarma; and Saththyaseelan Umakanth Sivachchariar.
President’s Senior Additional Secretary Roshan Gamage and several others also attended the meeting.
