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CHEST PAINS TWICE, ONE AFTER ANOTHER, BUT REV. JAYASEKERA FAILED TO CALL PARAMEDICS FOR VENERABLE SOMA IN RUSSIA

In one of the last pictures taken in Russia the late Venerable Gangodawila Soma, whose untimely death still surrounds controversy, is seen in the center. On his right is seen Rupasiri Perera, the President of a Moscow Buddhist Society and a Sri Lankan student Hemantha Sirisena of St. Petersburg is seen on his left. Both of them visited him in the sanatorium and joined him in the daily walk recommended by the doctors for the heart patient on this day , Rupasiri Perera claimed. The late thero was cheerful and confident until the last known moment, Perera also claimed in an unpublished article written in Sinhalese, a copy of which this correspondent obtained. The photo was taken by a stranger who used Sirisena’s camera to take the picture on their request. The picture was taken on a cold winter day in front of the Regina sanitorium, Perera said. (caption by Walter Jayawardhana )

By Walter Jayawardhana reporting from Los Angeles

January 12, 11.15 PM: The late Venerable Gangodawila Soma Thero suffered severe chest pains just before his plane touched Moscow airport and then during his immediate second flight from Moscow to St. Petersburg and neither at the Moscow airport nor at the St. Petersburg airport , his host Rev. Shanti Pushpakumara Jayasekera quickly responded by calling paramedics or immediately transporting him to a nearby hospital, Moscow’s Sri Lankan Buddhist Association President revealed

In an article , unpublished so far, and obtained by this correspondent the President of the Sri Lanka Buddhist Association in Moscow said Rev. Jayasekera met Venerable Gangodawila Soma at the Moscow Airport and was told about the possible unbearable angina pains but he put him in a second plane to St. Petersburg in which he got a second attack. According to the article written by Buddhist Association President Rupasiri Perera there was no indication that Rev. Jayasekera called paramedics at St. Petersburg Airport as soon as the plane landed there, the careful examination of the document, by this correspondent revealed.

The facts were bared after analyzing what was recorded in the conversation between Rupasiri Perera and the Late Venerable Gangodawila Soma Thero in a St. Petersburg sanatorium where the late monk was waiting for a second heart surgery

A question rises, why Rev. Jayasekera who runs a medical school attached to his International University of Fundamental Studies did not have the basic knowledge to quickly react to a heart attack , one after another , or simply unbearable angina pain at both these airports by calling paramedics or transporting the patient immediately to a hospital.

According to what was reportedly told to Rupasiri Perera by the late monk, instead of a hospital the late monk was transported in a car to a house, which he called a temple (pansala) and the paramedics were called when the late Thero demanded for a an ambulance. The late Thero reportedly told Rupasiri Perera that the “doctors” who came in the ambulance were amazed that he was still alive as his condition was so bad.

When Moscow’s Buddhist Association President Rupasiri Perera told the late Gangodawila Soma Thero in a St. Petersburg sanatorium that as Rev. Shanti Pushpakumara Jayasekera who invited the late monk was disliked by many due to his past and those Sri Lankans would like him to move to a Moscow hospital for a surgery by the most eminent surgeons there the late Thero shrugged away the suggestion and said compassionately , “Who in this world had not committed faults in the past.?”

Rupasiri Perera claimed as having told the late Soma Thero ,”Venerable Sir, You know that many others are not very happy about Jayasekera and that’s why they would like you to move to Moscow.”

Then Venerable Soma reportedly told Perera, “It is very difficult to find out somebody without faults His past may have been bad. But here , I get all what I want. Until this moment he has taken care of everything. Right now all of us should do things united.”

Perera said in his article , ‘Since I understood his compassionate words and universal love I kept mum.”

Rupasiri Perera said that the late monk told him that Rev. Jayasekera held his PhD award ceremony for Venerable Soma in a sanatorium hall and not at his International University of fundamental Studies. Perera said he saw in a drawer in the room the certificate of the late Thero’s PhD appellation and with the late Theros permission he read it

Apart from the Rev. Pushpakumara Jayasekera , who kept him in this sanatorium allegedly in preparation for a by pass heart surgery Rupasiri Perera with another friend Hemantha Sirisena were two of the last few Sri Lankans in Russia who visited the monk before his passing away. Rupasiri Perera , apparently disturbed over the monk’s stay under the protection of the Rev. Shanti Pushpakumara Jayasekera wrote in his article that when he first heard that Venerable Soma was being hosted by one Professor Shanti Pushpakumara his memories went back to a struggling businessman many years ago in St. Petersburg who held a trade show in that city and not to a academician . When he phoned his friend Hemantha Sirisena in the same place even he did not know about any Professor named Shanti Pushpakumara Jayasekera . Rupasiri Perera said in his Sinhala language article that he joined Sirisena at St. Petersburg railway station after a train journey of 650 kilometers from Moscow. Both visited Soma Thero together at the Regina Sanatorium. Even Sirisena, who spent many years in St. Petersburg had never heard about any Professor Jayasekera in the Sri Lankan community. Both of them met the Thero at 10.25 a.m. The Venerable Thero lived in a well furnished and comfortable sanatorium room.

The late monk told the two friends that he suffered the crusing heart pain when his plane was closing in on Moscow. He said he immediately started chanting stanzas that declared the supreme qualities of the Buddha and the unbearable pain disappeared. At first he was suffering from the fear of death. “ But I felt later so happy when I was chanting those stanzas I even thought it was alright for me to die. I immediately thought I must preach about this great experience next time I deliver a sermon.”.

Perera said according to the late Venerable Soma, Rev. Shanti Jayasekera met him at Moscow Airport and was told about the unbearable Chest pains. But sying he would seek medical assistance for Venerable Soma at St. Petersburg he put him in a second plane to that city. In the second plane too he once again suffered angina pains.

Thereafter Venerable Soma said he reached a Pansala (a temple), most probably some shelter provided by Jayasekera in St. Petersburg. Then only he told Jayasekera that it was imperative for him to have an ambulance to go to a hospital. The “doctors” who came in the ambulance were amazed that he was still alive since his condition was so bad, the late Venerable Soma told Rupasiri Perera.

When he reached hospital the doctors were all ready to operate on him. But Rupasiri Perera failed to describe what kind of operation he underwent.

He said the offer by Sri Lankan businessmen in Moscow to move him to a better Moscow hospital was also rejected by him.

Perera said he offered Buddhist Society money to Sirisena to buy telephone cards for the late Venerable Soma but refusing money Sirisena took over the responsibility

Perera said both of them joined the late Thero in his recommended evening walk for exercise and Sirisena was able to obtain a photo of three of them by asking a stranger to take a photo using Sirisena’s camera.

Rupasiri Perera said from Sirisena’s hostel in St. Petersburg he called Rev. Shanti Pushpakumara Jayasekera and offered financial assistance for the monk’s surgery. He reportedly asked Rupasiri Perera to raise 12,000 to 10,000 us dollars for the surgery.

He said Moscow’s Sri Lankan Buddhist Association which met with the ambassador’s participation collected 9000 US Dollars immediately to pay the medical bills of the late Venerable Soma. When they contacted Rev. Shanti Pushpakumara Jayasekera on the speaker phone so that everybody could hear the conversation he said he had already paid US $ 3300 as an advance.

Rupasiri Perera said December 4 , Ambassador Wijekoon showed invoices sent by Jayasekera. Now, only there was a balance of $5600 to be paid to the hospital

Carrying the balance money Rupasiri Perera and Dr. Karunaratne, a Sri Lanka born Russian medical practitioner once again made a train journey to St Petersburg to visit Venerable Soma. But this time they went to a hospital since Venerable Soma had been transferred from the sanatorium. Jayasekera was waiting there for the money and Sirisena could not join them since he had prior engagements for the day. At this meeting they also met an old Russian couple and the late Venerable Soma introduced them as very helpful to him. A retired Russian doctor couple, they were acting as coordinators between the hospital and the patient . In fact they were also serving as teachers at Jayasekera’s school.

During the visit Dr. Karunaratne also thoroughly examined the patient.

The late Thero said that the doctors would decide on the day of the second surgery , December 8.

Rupasiri Perera said when they left Venerable Soma that day he was cheerful and confident.

He said when he phoned up Sirisena , December 12, to inform him about the sudden demise of Venerable Soma he was shocked as even on the previous day he was phoning up to give pin numbers of a phone card. . To thank him , he said the greatful monk called him twice and he sounded alright

(go2lanka.com)