When and where was Anagarika Dharmapala born?
Anagarika Dharmapala entered the world on the 17th of September 1864 in Colombo, Ceylon. His parents were Don Carolis Hewavitharana and Mallika Dharmagunawardhana.
Questions about Anagarika Dharmapala
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Why did Anagarika Dharmapala leave the Theosophical Society?
Anagarika Dharmapala left the society because ideological differences tore them apart over his rejection of a universal religion that blended all faiths together. He argued that Dharma alone is supreme to the Buddhist mind and stated that Theosophy was only consolidating Krishna worship instead of honoring Buddhism.
What organization did Anagarika Dharmapala found to reclaim the Mahabodhi Temple?
Anagarika Dharmapala founded the Maha Bodhi Society at Colombo in 1891 after finding the Mahabodhi Temple under the control of Saivite priests. The organization moved its offices to Calcutta the following year to begin a lawsuit against Brahmin priests for control of the site.
How did Anagarika Dharmapala introduce Theravada Buddhism to Western audiences?
Anagarika Dharmapala represented Southern Buddhism at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago on the 18th of September 1893 before a crowded audience. His speeches helped introduce Theravada Buddhism to Western audiences for the first time while presenting it as superior to Western philosophy.
When did Anagarika Dharmapala die and where did he pass away?
Anagarika Dharmapala died on the 29th of April 1933 at the Mulagandhakuti Viharaya in Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh in India. He was sixty-eight years old when he left this world after taking higher ordination as a Buddhist monk named Sri Devamitta Dharmapala two years prior.