From a mud hut to international fame
by Soma KALUBOWILA

Ven. Kuppiyawatte Bodananda Thera
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Ven. Kuppiyawatte Bodananda Thera is to celebrate his birthday on
November 26. As usual the celebrations start in the evening on the 25th
with a Bodhi Pooja and a Dharmadeshana and ends on the 26th with an
almsgiving at Kanduboda Meditation Centre where he was ordained.
Who is Kuppiyawatte Bodananda Thera? Some might think he is a
talented, erudite and eloquent Dharmadeshaka and a disciplined disciple
of the Lord Buddha. Ven. Bodananda Thera is all that and much more.
Although he is little known in Sri Lanka, Kuppiyawatte Bodananda Thera
is well-known, respected loved and talked of almost all over three
fourths of the globe.
Ven. Bodananda Thera fondly called Ven. Bodi by the International
Community is the founder and the Director of the world famous Mithuru
Mithuro Movement; an NGO for treating drug abusers. Ven. Bodananda Thera
an illustrious son of Nalanda Vidyalaya, Colombo opted to enter the
monastery rather than the University after his Advanced Level
Examination although he had obtained good results. The young Bodananda
Thera started his social service while he was a trainee at the Pathaka
Buddhist Training Centre for Novice Monks.
According to his ideology 'Evil doers cannot be corrected by
punishment' he proposed to the authorities that the convicted prisoners
be sent to a religious environment where they could be guided
spiritually, instead of keeping them in jail. As a result 106 convicted
persons were handed over to be rehabilitated only six out of them had
failed in the training. All the others passed out successfully as good
citizens.
Encouraged by this success Ven. Bodananda Thera moved on to a small
hillock called Rilhena in Palmadulla where a thicket of 10 x10 in extent
had been donated to him by a philanthropist. It was here that the
present giant Mithuru Mithuro Movement originated in a wattle and daub
hut in 1987. Mithuru Mithuro is the only organisation in Sri Lanka that
rehabilitates, better talk of as correct or heal the unfortunate
youngsters suffering from various addictions, manias and all other kinds
of trouble making mental disorders via Therapeutic Community System (TC).
Thanks to the Colombo Plan Secretariat Ven. Bodananda Thera was sent
to the USA to undergo a comprehensive training in the novel approach TC
for treating drug addicts; at the Day Top Headquarters in New York in
1996. On his return the enthusiastic Thera who is rich in revolutionary
ideas adapted the TC concept to suit the ethnic, socio and religious
environment in Sri Lanka. Using the teaching of Lord Buddha as the
basis. Thus paved the way to the new concept of 'faith based' treatment
of the drug abusers. This versatile Sri Lankan model of the TC is the
first of its kind and now it has become the role model to 79 countries
following the TC system.Ven. Bodananda's vision is a society where
people disdain all that is harmful to others. A society where
compassion, tolerance, gentleness, honesty, wisdom and equanimity thrive
to the fullest a society where virtue reigns supreme. Hence Ven.
Bodananda Thera's service is multi-faceted. Mithuru Mithuro Sevena in
Rilhena; the haven for anybody who needs help is the hub of many
activities, such as rehabilitating street children, and programs like
Pre school vocational training, Community Water Project, Susaviya
Savings, Community Environment Conservation Project, Mental Health
Education, Infrastructure Facilities Development Program and Women's
Skill Development Program.
Ven. Bodananda has not forgotten his duties as a Buddhist monk. He
has established a Buddhist Hermitage with a view to promote meditational
activities and to build up a religious minded society. Being a talented
and a knowledgable preacher, he extends his services regularly teaching
and preaching Dhamma both at home and abroad.To this date Ven. Bodananda
Thera has won many international and national awards for his services
untiring efforts and everlasting success of the MMM. The recent award
was from his Alma Mater. International Conferences he had attended and
addressed keeping the audiences spell bound are numerous and the
knowledge, expertise and experience he has accumulated from his travels
far and are wide unfathomable.
Long live Ven. Bodananda Thera to carry out his illustrious service
for many more years.
(The writer is a member of Mithuru Mithuro Parent Support Group).
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