Sikkim Mahinda Thero: A national hero of Sri Lanka

Sikkim Mahinda Thero

BY SHITAL PRADHAN

I first heard about S Mahinda Thero in 2005 while in Kolkata when I was asked by one of the stamp dealers whether I was interested in a 20 paisa stamp of S Mahinda Thero issued by the Sri Lankan Postal Department in the early 1970s. I collected philatelic items on Buddhism, but I never understood who he was talking about. He told me, as I was from Sikkim, I might be interested to know more about the person, and he went on to add it was Sikkim Mahinda Thero, a Buddhist monk who is regarded as a national hero, a famous poet in the Sinhalese language whose poetry promoted patriotism and the revival of Buddhism to this part of the Island. He promised to send me the stamp of S Mahinda Thero from Colombo through the mail, but I have never heard from him since then. However, regarding my limited concern, it was enough to know that such a person keeps the name Sikkim with honor and pride in Sri Lanka.

I had the name of S Mahinda Thero within me but never got an opportunity to look at him more until a year back when my younger brother told me about his pen pal friend from Sri Lanka. I believe she could help me increase my knowledge about S Mahinda Thero. A letter arrived from Gayani Amarasinghe after a month I had penned down. She was more than curious about my inquiry about their national hero; according to her, they call him "Tibbet Jathika Sikkimmhe Mahinda Thero," which means The Mahinda Thero of Sikkim the Tibbetian. She even added that his poems can also be found in the school textbooks. My fascination with this Buddhist monk cum poet was growing.

Gayani writes in her letter that her father would remember the uncertain death of S Mahinda Thero on March 16th, 1951, which was little expected when the country needed more of his patriotic poetry then. Her father would sing lullabies of the great poet for his younger brother, and even she had heard her father sing for her when she was a child. Gayani shared her favourite S Mahinda Thero poem (English translation) she liked the most:

"Freedom is a diamond crown

Religion is a diamond lamp

If (someone is) able to protect these

It's you, my child."

More than fifty years after his death, he is still remembered as a nation's delight. S Mahinda Thero's role in invoking national pride among the locals through his writings was widely appreciated. Until today, some have described him as being more Sri Lankan than the Sri Lankans themselves. His writing, along with the revival of Buddhism, also promoted patriotism, national pride, equality, and national independence.

Here I reference an article "Tibet and Sri Lanka" written by Venerable Dhammika, where a small background about S Mahinda Thero is shared. According to the article S Mahinda Thero was born into a noble family in Gangtok as Tashi Namgyal in 1901. This cleared my earlier confusion about the name of S Mahinda Thero, where Gayani wrote he was born Vasilingal, I was rather confused and to similar extent I found the other name of the great reverend where he is referred as Tasilmgal, so these names are nothing but poor version of Tashi Namgyal. Nevertheless, of his four brothers, one was the Prime Minister of Sikkim, another became a professor of the Tibetan language at Calcutta University, while the third brother Mahinda, became a monk and joined him to Sri Lanka. The monk's brother later got his name Punnaji.

There is an interesting incident about how Mahinda came to Sri Lanka; it was a German monk, Nyanatiloka, on his tour in Australia during the breakout of the First World War, who was denied permission to Sri Lanka, his resting place then. Instead, he left for Tibet, which was another Buddhist hub. But to his surprise, Tibetan borders were closed to the visitor, and he landed at Sikkim, then an unknown mountain country. He was helped by the royal family of Sikkim, where he was involved in the matters of the state of Sikkim's Sangha. It took very little time for a German monk to convince sending monks to Sri Lanka would help reform the religious fronts in the Sikkim State itself. Thus Tashi Namgyal and his other brother came to learn Buddhism in Sri Lanka. The two brothers went on to settle in Sri Lanka for the rest of his life and became known as Ven. Sikkim Mahinda Thero and Ven. Sikkim Punnaji. Well, little is known about the Ven. Sikkim Punnaji!

In 1914, they arrived at Nyanatiloka's Island Hermitage at Dodonduwa. Later, they studied at Mahabodhi College and Vidyodaya Pirivena. In 1930, Mahinda took his lower ordination under the great Venerable Lunupokune Dharmananda and his higher ordination in 1931. He quickly mastered the Sinhalese language and later used his considerable facility in it to write a large amount of fine poetry. His writings exposed and condemned the existing national apathy and were fervent appeals to awaken patriotic feelings.

In his lifetime, he wrote over 40 books, both prose and verse, in Sinhala. He passed away on May 16, 1951, and it is believed that his ashes are still kept in a pot hanging on the roof of the Mahabellana Temple. When Mahinda came to Sri Lanka, he was a layman, but after his death, he is regarded as a national hero. A man with a single cloth to wrap his body has a statue after him at a temple in Panadura, a road named after him 'S. Mahinda Himi Mawatha and finally honouring him with a postage stamp.

S Mahinda Thero was born in Sikkim, but he was often referred to as from Tibet simply because Tibet was a more popular name than Sikkim in those days. Here, I am sharing the words of Venerable Dhammika, who states, "He (S Mahinda Thero) is mainly remembered today for the religious poems and verses that he wrote for children, a genre virtually unknown before him. He also wrote rousing patriotic poetry urging Sri Lankans to be proud of their own culture and religion and to struggle for independence from Britain. Recently some erotic love poetry has come to light as well. Mahinda's other literary works include a translation from Pali into Sinhalese of the classical poem Sadhammopijana and a biography of King Prakamabahu."

A popular anecdote on S Mahinda Thero says a few years back, a Chinese scholar was sent to Sri Lanka from China to research the writings of the Mahinda for the purpose of highlighting the Chinese contribution to Sinhalese literature. However, when it was discovered that Mahinda was from Sikkim and not Tibet, the research was closed down. Out here can this not be a fitting tribute if we (?), from Sikkim collect his memoirs and preserve it, what more can be done about a person who speaks pride to be a Sikkimese?

Nidahasa Maha Muhudak ve
Ehi Ulpata Puta numba ve
Ebawa Sihikota Melove
Yutukama Itukalayutu ve,

(If the ocean is the freedom, its fountain is the baby in the cradle. When the son is told that it is his responsibility to protect the motherland from various challenges, the motherly lover's affection also flows along with it.)