Migettuwatte Gunananda Thera

Ven. Migettuwatte Gunananda Thera or Mohottiwatte Gunananda Thera (9 February 1823 – 21 September 1890) was a Sri Lankan Sinhala Buddhist orator. He is known for leading the Buddhist side in debates between Buddhists and Christians in Baddegama, Udanwita, Waragoda, Liyanagemulla, Gampola, and Panadura, where the most famous of the debates took place. As a result of the debates, Buddhism in Sri Lanka saw a revival.

Early life Gunananda Thera was born in 1823 to a rich Buddhist Sinhala Salagama caste family in a village called Migettuwatta or Mohottiwatta, near Balapitiya. His secular name was Wanigamuni Miguel Mendes Wimalarathna. Taught first by his parents, he exhibited oratorical skills from a young age. He had close contact with a Roman Catholic priest, who resided in a nearby church, and gained knowledge of the Bible and Christian doctrine. Originally intending to become a priest, he changed his mind after coming into contact with Buddhist monks from the nearby temples. He was ordained while in his twenties in the Dodanduwa Gala Uda Vihara by Venerable Thelikada Sonutthara Thera, the chief incumbent of the temple. His eloquent first sermon was given on the night that he was ordained; the people gathered in the temple exclaimed that the young Thera would cause Buddhism to prosper in the country and pledged their support for his religious work. From there, Gunananda Thera began his speeches defending Buddhism against the arguments of the Christian missionaries.

Debates

Christian missionaries propagated their religion through pamphlets and books. Rev. D. J. Gogerly of the Wesleyan mission published Christian Pragnapthi (Doctrine of the Christians) in 1849. Gunananda Thera replied with Durlabdi Vinodini (Satire of Falsehood) in 1862 for Buddhists. Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangala Thera wrote Christiani Vada Mardanaya (Destruction of Christian Doctrine) and Samyak Darshanaya (Affirmation of Right View) in 1862–1863. Soon after, these publications were replaced by public debates.

The Baddegama debate originated from an argument arising between a young monk named Sumangala and a Christian priest in the temple of Baddegama. The editor of Ceylon Times newspaper, John Cooper, arranged for Edward Perera to write a summary of the debate; thousands of copies of which were published. This translation was also published as a book, Buddhism and Christianity Face to Face by J.M. Peebles in the United States with an introduction in 1878. After reading a copy of the book, Henry Steel Olcott, the co-founder of the Theosophical Society, came to Sri Lanka on 17 May 1880. the activities of the revival movement accelerated. Olcott described Gunananda Thera as: "The most brilliant Polemic Orator of the Island, the terror of the missionaries, with a very intellectual head, most brilliant and powerful champion of the Sinhalese Buddhism.

Gunananda Thera died on 21 September 1890 at about 11:00 am at the age of 67.