This study attempts to analyse the interaction between the religious and political systems in Sri Lanka over the past 2,500 years since Buddhism was introduced in the island. It traces the evolution of the Sinhalese Buddhist system and its relationship with the sources of political power from the early era of Kandyan kingdoms through the colonial rule of the Dutch, the Portuguese and the British, right up to the contemporary period.

Against this background, the author appraises the structure and func­tions of the Sangha in order to identify the continuities and discontinuities in the religious system and assesses the impact of the dominant social, economic and political factors on it in different periods of history. She also examines the role of the professional elites in electoral politics and their influence on the religious policies of various political parties since the country achieved independence in 1948.

Based on Sinhalese and English sources and on extensive interviews with both the Bhikkus and the lay leaders in Sri Lanka, the work is the first in-depth probe into the role of Bhikkus as pressure groups in the formulation and implementation of cultural, economic, political and foreign policies.

Finally, the study evaluates the changes in the religious system itself because of its involvement in secular affairs. It also spells out the cha­l-lenges confronting the monastic order in modern Sri Lanka and its varied responses in the context of similar dilemmas facing the professional religious elites in the ‘third-world’ countries.