Anagarika Dharmapala
Don David Hewavitarne entered the world on the 17th of September 1864 in Colombo, Ceylon. His parents were Don Carolis Hewavitharana and Mallika Dharmagunawardhana. They stood among the wealthiest merchants of their time. The boy grew up surrounded by wealth and colonial influence. He attended Christian College at Kotte and later St Benedict's College at Kotahena. S. Thomas' College in Mutwal also claimed him as a student. The Colombo Academy, known as Royal College, completed his early education. These institutions taught him English and Western customs while he lived under British rule. The young Hewavitarne walked through streets where Christianity held sway over daily life.
Helena Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott founded the Theosophical Society in New York City during 1875. They arrived in Ceylon in 1880 to promote Buddhism. Hewavitharane changed his name to Anagarika Dharmapala during this period. He served as a translator for Colonel Olcott and worked closely with Madame Blavatsky. She advised him to study Pali and work for humanity. This alliance lasted until ideological differences tore them apart. Olcott supported a universal religion that blended all faiths together. Dharmapala rejected this compromise because it diluted Buddhist truth. He stated that Dharma alone is supreme to the Buddhist mind. He argued that Theosophy was only consolidating Krishna worship instead of honoring Buddhism. The price of assimilation into a non-Buddhist model proved too high for him. He left the society to pursue his own path as a reformer.
Anagarika Dharmapala visited Bodh Gaya on pilgrimage in 1891. He found the Mahabodhi Temple under the control of Saivite priests. The Buddha image had been transformed into a Hindu icon. Buddhists were barred from entering the sacred site. This discovery shocked him and sparked an agitation movement. He founded the Maha Bodhi Society at Colombo in 1891. The organization moved its offices to Calcutta the following year. A lawsuit against Brahmin priests began the long struggle for control. The fight continued for decades after his death. Indian independence arrived in 1947, sixteen years after he passed away. Partial restoration occurred in 1949 when management went to a committee. That committee included equal numbers of Hindus and Buddhists. A statue now stands in College Square near Kolkata to honor his efforts. The temple remains a major attraction for Buddhists today.
Dharmapala received an invitation to attend the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago during 1893. He represented Southern Buddhism, which was the term used for Theravada at that time. The session took place on the 18th of September 1893 before a crowded audience. He met Swami Vivekananda there and formed a strong connection with him. Media attention followed his speeches throughout the event. By his early thirties, he had become a global figure. He traveled widely to give lectures and establish viharas around the world. His paper titled The World's Debt to Buddha addressed science and the European Enlightenment. He presented Buddhism as superior to Western philosophy while using familiar terms. This talk helped introduce Theravada Buddhism to Western audiences for the first time.
Scholar Gananath Obeyesekere coined the term Protestant Buddhism to describe Dharmapala's approach. It reflected freedom from religious institutions and focus on individual experience. The movement protested against claims of Christian superiority and colonialism. It arose among the literate middle class centered in Colombo. Dharmapala emphasized consistency between Buddhist doctrine and modern science. Darwin's theory of evolution stood as cutting edge science during his lifetime. He wrote Evolution from the Standpoint of Buddhism in 1926 to address this directly. Critics often portrayed Buddhism as pessimistic or passive in the West. He countered such claims by highlighting rationality and de-emphasizing supernatural aspects. His works included Message of the Buddha published in 1925 with an anti-Christian tone. These writings illustrated how laity could lead the revival of traditional practices.
Dharmapala traveled extensively across Asia and America over forty years. He established viharas and temples in India including one at Sarnath. Mary E. Foster, a descendant of King Kamehameha, donated over one million rupees to him. This sum exceeded $2.7 million in 2010 dollars due to low labor costs in India. He converted Miranda de Souza Canavarro who became Sister Sanghamitta. She helped establish a school in Ceylon following her conversion. Maha Bodhi Society centers opened in many Indian cities raising local consciousness about Buddhism. Converts emerged mostly among educated groups but also some low caste Indians in the south. He built schools and hospitals within Ceylon while traveling abroad. His voluminous diaries have been published alongside his memoirs for future generations.
He visited Ceylon again in 1931 during the last years of his life. That year he established the Dharmapala Trust to manage his affairs. Two years later he took higher ordination as a Buddhist monk named Sri Devamitta Dharmapala. He died on the 29th of April 1933 at the Mulagandhakuti Viharaya in Sarnath. Uttar Pradesh in India marked the location of his passing. He was sixty-eight years old when he left this world. Earlier in life he had taken eight precepts for life including celibacy. He wore a yellow robe that differed from traditional bhikkhu patterns. He did not shave his head because vinaya rules would hinder his global work. This unique status made him the first anagarika in modern times.
India and Sri Lanka issued postage stamps in 2014 marking his 150th birth anniversary. The Central Bank of Sri Lanka released a commemorative coin to honor him. A road in Colombo bears his name as Anagarika Dharmapala Mawatha. The biographical film Anagarika Dharmapala Srimathano appeared in 2014 with Palitha Silva playing the lead role. His influence inspired mass movements among South Indian Dalits half a century before B.R. Ambedkar. Scholars continue to study his contributions to Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism. His rhetoric praised Buddhism while blaming British imperialists and Christian missionaries. Fear of extinction drove much of his activism alongside hope for rejuvenation. Today statues stand at College Square near Kolkata and other sites worldwide.
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Common questions
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.
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.