By Dhammika Fernando
One day in 1989, as very new immigrants, we visited the Melbourne Sri Lanka Buddhist Vihara in Springvale. It was a quiet afternoon, and the two monks spent some time talking to us. I told the senior monk that we had been foreign students in Canada, and that my husband, Saman, had a Ph D in Mechanical Engineering. He smiled, but was more interested in my two young children and teaching them how to pay obeisance properly.
My ego was somewhat bruised, but Saman said he liked the monk, Ven. Soma, so we paid several more visits. Ven. Soma spoke entirely from the Tripitaka, and could cross-reference at will from many discourses to provide a comprehensive picture.
Once, after a sermon, Ven. Soma was posed a query, which Saman offered to answer. He gave a smile of pure joy when he heard Saman's answer, and asked him to stay behind after the sermon. Thus began a life-long comradeship.
So, what made Soma Hamuduruwo special? For starters, he always called us by name, which to me meant that he remembered it, he cared enough to do so! Instead of the impersonal 'mahattaya', or a title (which, contrary to popular belief, meant nothing to him), he used each dayaka's given name thereby demonstrating a commitment to them. He appreciated the action, not the person, thus reinforcing a fundamental Buddhist principle.
As our hamudhuruwo, he considered it his role to point out ways in which our behaviour could be changed to make life more pleasant for us. This he did sometimes quite bluntly, and although it alienated the less edified, those who stuck with him found their lives much enriched and enhanced. We learned quickly that the bluntness disguised a lot of karuna and metta, and accepting advice given with such compassion could do us only good.
There was a foul period in his life when some dayakas who did not appreciate his strength and straight-talk wanted to evict Ven. Soma from the Springvale temple. Stanley, Jayantha, Mangala and Saman, amidst strong and loud discouragement from their 'friends', spent many sleepless nights at the temple trying to make sense of that calamity. Through it all, Ven. Soma concentrated on the Virtues of the Buddha, and meditated on them. Two very good things resulted from that time - the Buddhist Vihara Victoria in Noble Park, and the esteemed book Buddhastupa.
Ven. Soma believed that Buddhism was for everyone, not just people of his own community. He presented the Buddhist way of life through emphasising the cultivation of the Five Precepts. He very rarely spoke of abhidhamma although he had a thorough knowledge and understanding of it. He believed that we should practise seela (virtue) within the Five Precepts, and that alone would put us on the path to nibbana.
In the early 90s we started a monthly bana program with a few families who lived far from the temple. Soma hamudhuruwo would visit on a Friday evening, and hold a Buddha pooja and a children's sermon in the living room of one family. Then he would present a prepared sermon to the adults, often presenting very controversial concepts. He enjoyed the interactive sessions as much as we did. He had developed this style, using controversy as bait to engage the audience. However, we feel that he may have alienated other audiences with this type of presentation!
The following day would be for dana. The children participated in these events with interest - perhaps initially for the lollies he gave out! But the children have developed values we can be proud of. Why wouldn't they be, they grew up eating pappadams out of the paththraya!
He was there when we needed him, even when he was overseas. He was especially available in time of bereavement or sickness. I am sure many would remember occasions when Ven. Soma had to be driven back to the temple via a hospital to provide solace to the sick!
If he had to make a choice, he prioritised according to the need of the dayakas. Sometimes this meant that he would postpone a function of a close devotee. I can remember ringing invited friends three times to reschedule the one dana! I couldn't help remarking on that when the event finally took place, and he smiled and said that he knew us too well to think we would be offended!
The thing that made Ven. Soma stand out was his vision. He looked at events through the Eye of the Dhamma, and planned accordingly. He always set his goals high, a literal example of this is the flagpole at the Berwick Vihara. Saman suggested an 8m pole, but Ven. Soma insisted on the 15m pole that flies the flag today! He never compromised the value of the Dhamma, and never sweetened or altered it to satisfy the listener. He presented it as it was, and we could take it or leave it. A common reply to opposition was, "This is not something I say, this is what Lord Buddha said. If you have any complaints, you should sort it out with Lord Buddha!" This was usually said in jest, but once I took him up on it and inspected the sutra in question. Taken in context, what he had preached made perfect sense.
What impressed me most was his constant striving for improvement. He wanted very much to communicate with the younger generation. On the drive up to Bendigo to attend the funeral of my uncle, the Reverend Canon Sydney Weragoda of the Anglican Church, he spent the time listening to a taped version of some pertinent English vocabulary, practising the pronunciation as well.
He was sometimes accused of creating religious disharmony. Those who knew Ven. Soma and his beliefs would never agree. What he did was point out facets or interpretations of belief systems that were detrimental to society. He was an active and popular member of the Multi-Faith organization in Victoria. However, he did not support the view that Buddhism is the same as all the other religions. He always emphasised that only Buddhism talks about the Four Noble Truths, and that there is no omniscient, omnipotent being.
Saman telephoned Ven. Soma in Russia a few days before his death. When Saman expressed his frustration at not being able to be there for him, he said that there was nothing for us to do anyway, as his life was now in the hands of his doctors. He said he was quite happy, whichever way things went. The only thing we could do for him now, Ven. Soma emphasised, was to live life the way he had shown us.
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