A shining lamp dispelling darkness

Sith Pahana
Author: Sheng Li

Reviewed by Chandana Thilakarathna

Once there were a Samanera and a Bhikkhu in a temple. One day the Bhikkhu noticed that the Samanera sitting with a long face in a corner. He called the Samanera and asked him to bring some salt and a glass of water. When the Samanera returned, the Bhikkhu asked the Samanera to mix a spoonful of salt in the glass of water and drink it. So did the Samanera.

“How do you feel now?” the Bhikkhu asked the Samanera.

“I feel very uncomfortable Nayaka Hamuduruwane,” the Samanera explained the uneasiness he felt after drinking the salt water.

“Then come with me with another spoonful of salt,” the older Bhikkhu took the Samanera to the pond in the temple garden. “Now, mix the spoonful of salt in the pond,” the Bhikkhu ordered. When the Samanera mixed the salt in the pond the Bhikkhu ordered the Samanera to drink some water from the pond. “Now take a sip of water from this.”

Pond

When the Samanera drank water from the pond he felt eased and he explained the feeling to the Bhikkhu.

“Did you notice the difference? You mixed the same amount of salt in both the glass and the pond,” the Bhikkhu said.

“When your mind is troubled, make it a pond, not a glass. Then you won't feel it much,” he explained to the little Samanera.

This is a story taken from the new Sinhala book, Sith Pahana, which will be launched on September 7. The speciality of Sith Pahana is that it is written in Sinhala by a Chinese. The author of the book is Sheng Li, the current director of Sinhala Service of China Radio International. Sith Pahana is undoubtedly a shining lamp that chases away the darkness.

I got the opportunity to read the book before publishing. The contents of the book are a reflection of the author's thoughts. It is no surprise for a person steeped in Buddhist teaching oriented culture to write such stories, but this author is not from such a background.

In China, the impact of Buddhism is less. Then how did Sheng Li become so familiar with Sinhalese and Buddhism?

Buddhism

I first met Sheng Li through a telephone conversation in 2008. Ravimal Handuwala who was working at the CRI Sinhala service at the time, spoke to me one day and asked whether I could help a colleague, a Chinese radio journalist to collect information about the Sri Lankan FM Culture. “What would a Chinese want with Sri Lankan radio culture?” I asked Ravimal. ”She can speak Sinhala well,” was the only thing Ravimal said in reply.

After two days, Sheng Li spoke to me. She addressed me in an amiable manner and her Sinhala pronunciation was excellent. That wasn't something I expected. The Sinhala words she used surprised me. And the questions she asked were profound.

Trends

“How do you know so much about Sri Lanka?” I questioned her. “I don't know much about Sri Lanka. I was asking about the world's trends,” she said. “All these have similarities. Maybe that is why you felt that I know about Sri Lanka,” Her reply rendered me speechless.

“She must have been born in Sri Lanka in one of her previous lives,” I told Ravimal the next day. He laughed at my ignorance.

“Come here and see, there are many people like that.” This was the pivotal point in which I started to think seriously about the ‘Sinhalised’ Chinese people who work in China Radio International (CRI).

I also got the opportunity to meet Sheng Li's husband, Wang Xiao Dong, former director of CRI Sinhala Service, before I joined. Seelarathna Senarath, who was working there at that time, brought him to me with plans to start a joint program with Lakhanda radio. At that time also Wang's Sinhala astonished everyone at Lakhanda promises.

All of them appreciated him.Their son, who is still in his early childhood also greets us with Ayubowan, each time he comes to see us. I feel like it is fair to think that they must have had a relationship with a Sinhalese in a previous birth.

When I joined the CRI Sinhala Service, Wang advised me to start a Sinhala pronunciation training program. I noticed that Sheng Li was a student who showed more enthusiasm in this.

This made me look into her history. She has studied Sinhala as a foreign language at the Kelaniya University and has worked as a Sinhala language lecturer in Beijing Foreign Studies University in China.

Most of the Chinese journalists in CRI Sinhala service are her students. But she was humble enough to study and get trained again with people who were once her students.

Training program

After some time Sheng Li became the head of the CRI Sinhala service. Wang got transferred to another division with a promotion. The late President S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike once said, “If people have created a place for me, I am there as their servant not the leader.” I don't know whether Sheng Li has heard this saying, but the way she works implies her liberal and sympathetic manner.

She is not afraid of change but knows how to adapt to new situations. This is one of the leadership qualities I see in her. Sheng Li is an excellent leader and I often wonder how she managed to acquire all these qualities.

Sage

There is another story in her book, Sith Pahana, which tells about a sage. Once he asks his students about the end of the night. “

At what time the night gets to its end?” he asked. His followers give him many answers but none of the answers satisfy him.

“The night comes to an end when you feel the man and the woman you see is your own brother and sister,” he tells his followers.

“Until then all your hearts are in the dark.” Similarly, many stories in Sith Pahana speak about trust and devotion within the human race. After working at the China Radio International (CRI) for years, I can say that this similar to Sheng Li's personal vision.

Sheng Li's book – Sith Pahana will soon be available for Sinhala readers. The National Youth Council of Sri Lanka organised the launch of Sith Pahana under the guidance of Youth Affairs and Skills Development Minister Dullas Alahapperuma.

The writer is Consultant, Sinhala Service, China Radio International, Beijing.