SRI LANKA AND WALDORF EDUCATION
By Aban Bana
The lovely little island country of Sri Lanka to the south of India, with a population of 20 million, has always been favoured by tourists from all over the world, who visit the serene beaches, national parks and ancient cultural centres. Until 1972 the country was called Ceylon; the most ancient name was Taprobane. The majority of the population in Sri Lanka follows the Buddhist religion, while there are Hindus, Muslims and Christians in smaller numbers. Buddhism has been preserved in the Theravada tradition, and some of the oldest scriptures in Pali have been written on this island. The main language is Sinhalese, which is an Indo-European language, while the second language is Tamil. Most people speak English too, though not too well.
Until the 16th century, Sri Lanka was ruled by many local kings. Then came the Portuguese and later the Dutch colonials, who gradually took control of the entire country. In 1815 the power went into the hands of the British, and finally on February 4, 1948 Ceylon got its independence and became a democratic republic, although the people had enjoyed voting rights from 1931 onwards. Since 1983 Sri Lanka has had an intermittent civil war between the government and the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or Tamil Tigers), who want to create an independent Tamil state in the north and north-east of the country. In recent times the government has succeeded in regaining control of most of the occupied areas. It seems that an end to the conflict is in sight, and that peace will finally be restored in this calm land of gentle people.
There are no Waldorf schools in Sri Lanka, whereas in the other countries of South Asia (the Indian subcontinent) like India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan, Waldorf education has been established for many years. Some time ago I met Mr. Dagobert Ossa from Frankfurt, an Anthroposophist who is also active in circles which encourage dialogue between various religious groups in the city. Mr. Ossa knows Buddhist monks from Vietnam and Sri Lanka who live in a temple complex in Frankfurt. A Vietnamese child monk from this temple is presently studying in the FrankfurtWaldorfSchool, and through him the Buddhists have become acquainted with Waldorf education.
A Sri Lankan Buddhist monk, Bhante Punnaratana Ratmale, and Mr.Ossa are in charge of an NGO called Karuna Samadhi, which helps school children in Sri Lanka. They invited my sister Dilnawaz and me to visit Sri Lanka and to give introductory courses in Waldorf Education and Eurythmy. In March 2009 we had the opportunity to conduct courses in Sri Lanka for over 200 Buddhist nuns and teachers in Kadugannawa and Polonnaruwa. The participants attended the courses with a great deal of interest and enthusiasm. They listened intently and concentrated whole heartedly on the various subjects. The nuns were dressed in the orange habits with shaven heads, and the lady teachers in beautiful sarees which are draped in an elegant fashion.
A group of 14 people from Germany were also present at the course. They had come to Sri Lanka as part of the NGO Karuna Samadhi e. V., which gives financial help to poor children to attend good schools in their own country.
There is good scope for Waldorf Education in Sri Lanka, going by the very positive response of the participants. A follow up workshop would be useful so that the subject matter can be deepened. Whether there will be a WaldorfSchool in Sri Lanka or not, only time will tell. The first step has been taken.