I write this after reading the news item in the on-line edition of your esteemed newspaper of September 6, under the heading "For forthcoming Vas Pinkam season: Bhikku Front seeks permission to use loud speakers".

At the very outset, let me say that I am a Buddhist who strives to live a life according to the teachings of the Buddha, in my own quiet way, while refraining from proclaiming to the wide world that I am a good Buddhist.

When I lived in Sri Lanka, the land of my birth, my home was located close to a Buddhist temple and almost every full moon day and no-moon day, I and the members of my family could not sleep at night due to loudspeakers blaring all night through.

The temple only catered to a small following of devotees. But it thought that Buddhism was a consumer product to be advertised.

When my children were preparing for public examinations,they had to suspend studies on the days when there was a Bana preaching or a Pirith chanting at the said temple.

This was not an experience unique to us. I believe that residents of many parts of the country, particularly the urban areas, had to undergo the ordeal of Bana preaching and Pirith chanting when not in the mood for spiritual sustenance. There is time for meditation and contemplation!

Therefore, the recent Supreme Court ruling banning the use of loudspeakers between 10.00 pm and 6.00 am. is timely and meaningful.

A Buddhist monk has broken the law, perhaps, under the misguided belief that Buddhist monks are above the law, and has had the audacity to disregard the summons issued to him to appear before the Supreme Court to answer why he should not be punished for his action.

A panel of judges of the Supreme Court, headed by a devout Buddhist, has deemed it unlawful and rightfully, remanded him.

The attitude that Buddhist monks are above the law should be debunked. No citizen is above the law. The saffron robe does not give anyone immunity It could be abused widely.

Now the Bhikku Front wants "Permission to use loudspeakers during the forthcoming Vap Season". As far as I am aware, Buddhism, unlike some other religions does not lay down a rule that its rituals should be performed at particular times of the day.

There is no religious edict preventing the adjustment of the schedule of rituals to be performed during the "Vap Season" so that these observances would not to fall within the eight hours during which the use of loud speakers is banned.

"Vap" rituals should not prevent people sleeping peacefully at night. I sincerely hope that the Mahanayake theras of the various nikayas will explain this to their particular flock and ask them to refrain from making unjust demands.

Sri Lanka is a secular state which has to treat all religions alike. If special concessions are granted for a Buddhist festival, the same goes for festivals of other religions also.

I have no doubt that the the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka headed by a Chief Justice, who is a devout Buddhist with an indepth knowledge of the Dhamma, will hold the scales of justice equitably, without creating any impediment to the practice of Buddhism, in keeping with the teachings of the Blessed One. Buddhist monks should not be abrasive or confrontational. Buddhism appeals to the mind and inner spirit. It is not a showy religion with consumer appeal, but something to be consumed in body, mind and spirit.

The courts of law should not grant special exemptions in the application of the laws of the land to any section of the citizenry and should punish all law breakers, without regard to their positions in society.

Once such punishments are meted, the Executive should not use its privilege of grant-ing pardons, which is now the norm.

Some notorious law breakers are been openly shielded by the executive arm of the state, which the international community is concerned with. Our image on the international stage has been tarnished to a great extent.

It is high time that the state began to reverse the process so that Sri Lanka can face the world with its head held high, while Buddhist monks realised the saffron robe symbolised tolerance and humility.