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prayers or chanting. shall enjoy the liberty of practice, and, subject to certain legal
clauses, propagating and organising their own religions. This is an
Ease of Transport important provision that had allowed Buddhism, and for that matter
other religions as well, to harness its own resources and develop in
In the early days, road transport was not easy, and air transport this country.
was rare, and this hampered missionary work. With the development
of better transportation, Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda was able to bring Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda was able to make full use of this
the Dharma to every part of Malaysia, as well as abroad, in a much important policy to propagate the Dharma.
more efficient and effective manner. For example, he was able to
travel from Kuala Lumpur to Malacca on a Saturday evening, give It is interesting to note how certain public policy can influence
a talk at 8pm, and return to the Brickfields Buddhist Temple by the development of Buddhism. For example, Ven. Xin Yun started
midnight, so that he could give his Sunday Dharma talk the next Foguangshan in Taiwan in 1967 but Foguangshan did not spread
morning. worldwide until the post Chiang Kai Shek era when the Taiwan
government adopted a more liberal approach in its political policy.
Meanwhile, with more Buddhist devotees owning private
vehicles, they were also able to attend Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda’s Conclusion
talks. On Sunday mornings, for instance, many devotees would
travel from Klang or Kajang to the Brickfields Buddhist Temple In conclusion, it may be said that several external factors, both
to listen to his talks. The strategic location of Brickfields Buddhist favourable and unfavourable, have provided the right conditions for
Temple was a further advantage. Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda to carry out his missionary activities
successfully. These external factors, coupled with the personal
Public Policy qualities of Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda, resulted in a distinguished
Buddhist missionary achievement in the recent history of Malaysian
In Malaysia, the Federal Constitution stipulated that Islam is Buddhism.
the religion of the Federation where it is accorded a special position,
privileges, abundant resources and government support. The same,
however, is not extended to non-Islamic religions. This means non- (Originally published in One Dharma Many Buddhist Traditions: A Festschrift
Islamic religions have to be self-reliant. in Memory of K. Sri Dhammananda (1919-2006) Edited by Benny Liow Woon
Khin 29-6-2013)
However, the constitution of the Federation of Malaysia also
guarantees freedom of religion The Constitution stipulates that
while Islam is the religion of the federation, all other religions
176 Applied Buddhism Applied Buddhism 177
