Gunnar Gällmo wrote thus at 03:54 AM 26-10-09:

>--- Den sön 2009-10-25 skrev Kumâra Bhikkhu <kumara.bhikkhu@...>:
>
>>Good Lord! Looks like those guys are trying to become like the Vatican.
>
>Rather like the Vatican as it used to be, not as it is now.

Ah... yes... they've wised up. The Srilankan high priests (They really call themselves that.) are way behind, aren't they? :-)

>Or can you imagine Benedict writing to Berlusconi with such a request?

He'd be laughed at!

><Odd, isn't it, to say that "some books published recently had distorted the life of the Buddha, his doctrine and the life and times of Buddha and Buddhism"? 'Recently'? Aww... come on... Orthodox Buddhisms (Theravada included) have been quite generous with distortions for a long, long time.>
>
>A problem would be where to put the limit. Would the Ven. Buddhadasa's books be permitted? Or Sulak Sivaraksa's?

Right. Btw, I used to find Ven. Buddhadasa's books weird. That's more than 10 years ago and I haven't read his stuff till recently when I came across one of his books (No Religion) again when I was putting up in a Buddhist temple in Singapore. Now I can appreciate his teachings.

>>Oh... just another manifestation of worldly weirdness. :-)
>
>Of course, but a threat against freedom of expression is always dangerous. That freedom does include the right to publish rubbish, but I think it is vital for the survival of Buddhism in places where Buddhists are a minority (and for its vitality where they are a majority).

I don't think it's going to work out anyway. Even if the government (for some insane reason) decide to implement it, how is it possible in this Internet age? Even in the Roman Catholic book burning days people still manage to hide the "forbidden" stuff. And I believe that it wouldn't take long for people who might support it (perhaps incl. the nayakatheras themselves) to realise that it's rather silly, or at least 'immatur'.

kb

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