Abstract:
Such studies as have been done on the interaction between scholar monks of Sri Lanka
and western academics in the emerging field of Buddhist Studies in the West in the 19th
century have looked at these matters in the context of the development of Buddhist
studies and the consequences of the interaction for Sri Lankan Buddhism and Sri
Lankan political developments, particularly the independence movement and resistance
to the impact of British colonial rule. This paper will look at the subsequent impact of the
input of Buddhist scholar monks of Sri Lanka on UK politics more broadly by looking at
the on-going fortunes of the Childers’ family, who had received assistance particularly
from Waskaduwe Subhuti Thera, and how each generation reflected the unraveling of
British colonial rule.
