Monks in Sri Lanka to counter Valentine's Day celebrations

Sri Lankan Buddhist monks plan to counter Valentine's Day celebrations in the island with programmes to lure the youth away from romantic love which they denounce as an undesirable Western concept.

The Jathika Sangha Sammelanaya (JSS), a national organisation of monks, will hold 'Adishtana' and 'Ashirwada' prayers Valentine's Day Thursday in a bid to make the youth love the country and the security forces battling Tamil Tigers.

The Daily Mirror Wednesday quoted JSS president Venerable Induragare Dhammaratana Thero as saying that Valentine's Day involved 'marketing love' as a commercial product. It also meant that love should be shown only on a particular day. All this was against Sri Lankan culture, he pointed out.

While special prayer ceremonies to foster love among all living beings were being performed on this day since 2004, this year the accent would be on showing love for the security forces, Dhammaratana Thero said.

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