Challenging a sacralized national majority counts as treason against the faith itself

Evidence

Like Zionism and Hindutva and other cases discussed in this volume, Sinhalese Buddhism claims Sri Lanka, with the Sinhalese constituting 75 percent of the population, as the Sinhala Buddhist country and as the “chosen repository of Buddhism.” According to this view, other citizens (about 25 percent of the population) live in the country by virtue of Sinhalese Buddhist tolerance. In addition, Sinhala language itself is inextricably linked to Buddhism, and thus language and religion as well as foundational religious texts are fused with Sinhalese nationalism and the notion that the historical destiny of Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism is to strengthen the faith, land, and race. … Obviously religion plays a central role in this exclusive nationalism (similar to the role religion plays, for example, in Hindu nationalism and in Zionism). As DeVotta explains, what follows from this ideology is “that all those who challenge the hegemonic Sinhalese Buddhist position seek to diminish the preeminence of Buddhism and Sinhalese Buddhist predominance and are, therefore, traitors.” — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized, 178

Categorization

• XREF: Directly serves the reading purpose: the fusion of religion with national identity turns political opposition into sacrilege/treason, the mechanism by which conflict becomes resistant to compromise. Connects to the reader’s existing material on Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism already in the library. — connects to: Apostasy is treason because Islam is a polity, not only a faith — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting…, 1490

Broader Connections

• Apostasy is treason because Islam is a polity, not only a faith #exemplifies (0.85) — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1490