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Sri Lanka government orders removal of Dambulla mosque

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Sri Lanka's government has ordered the removal of a mosque from an area it says is sacred to the country's majority Buddhists.

The order comes two days after Buddhist monks led a crowd trying to storm the mosque in the central town of Dambulla.

Prime Minister DM Jayaratne says the mosque has simply been ordered to relocate to another part of the area.

 

Understanding the Qur’an: Some Initial Conditions

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By Amin Ahsan Islahi

Cleanliness and ablution are the initial conditions for the prayer. One can obtain its true blessings only if one fulfils these initial conditions before offering it. Similarly, there are some initial conditions for understanding the Qur’an. One can be blessed with this understanding only if one tries to grasp the Holy Book after fulfilling these conditions. This writer will now attempt to explain these:

Purity of Intent

Purity of intent is the foremost of all conditions. It means that one should read the Qur’an only to obtain guidance from it and not for any other purpose. If a person has some other purpose in mind, he will not only remain deprived of the blessings of the Qur’an, but he may also get further away from the Qur’an than he formerly was. If he studies the Qur’an in order to be an exegete so that he may get some fame and mundane interest, he might achieve this target but he will never get to the true comprehension of the Qur’an. Similarly, if a person studies the Qur’an to notch up some arguments for his preconceived notions, he may succeed in getting some distorted testimonies for them, but at the cost of understanding the Qur’an.

 

தம்புள்ளை பள்ளிவாசலை அகற்ற பிரதமர் உத்தரவு; 'வேறு இடத்தில் காணி வழங்கப்படும்'

Prime Minister orders to remove the mosque and provide a suitable alternative place

[Dambulla Incident Updates - Translation in brackets]

தம்புள்ளையிலுள்ள சர்ச்சைக்குரிய பள்ளிவாசலை அகற்றுமாறு புத்தசாசன மற்றும் சமய விவகார அமைச்சரும் பிரதமருமான டி.எம்.ஜயரட்ன இன்று ஞாயிற்றுக்கிழமை உத்தரவிட்டுள்ளார்.
[Prime Minister and Minister of Buddasasana & Religous affairs, D. M. Jayartne ordered to remove the controversial Mosque in Dambulla.]

   

Tense situation in Dambulla

A tense situation has erupted in Dambulla following clashes over the issue of a temple and a mosque. According to sources in the area, angry mobs have now surrounded the mosque where at least 50 Muslim devotees have gathered for the congregational Juammah Prayers today.

 

Sri Lankan mosque forced to abandon prayers by protesters

A mosque in Sri Lanka has been forced to abandon Friday prayers amid community tensions in the central town of Dambulla. About 2,000 Buddhists, including monks, marched to the mosque and held a demonstration demanding its demolition. A mosque official told the BBC he and several dozen companions were trapped inside and feared the crowd would destroy the building.

Overnight the mosque had been targeted by a fire-bombing - no-one was hurt.

The BBC's Charles Haviland in Colombo says the tensions have been growing in the neighbourhood. Shortly after the protest the mosque was evacuated and its Friday prayers cancelled.

   

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