About Tara Lanka
Tara Lanka Study Group began in Sri Lanka in 2016 with a focused but sensitive objective: to bring Buddhist teachings to Sri Lankan audiences that reflected traditions and perspectives no longer widely represented in the contemporary religious landscape.
Our work aimed neither to disrupt nor to provoke, but to raise awareness of Sri Lanka’s historically plural Buddhist past—shaking walls where necessary, and building bridges wherever possible. Dialogue, historical continuity, and mutual respect have been central to this effort.
During this journey, Tara Lanka became directly aware of a far more urgent and pervasive issue: the long-term consequences of child abuse in Sri Lanka, particularly for girls placed in institutional care.
In response, we began supporting a girls’ shelter housing 56 residents. Although the institution had operated for 28 years, it had focused almost exclusively on containment rather than recovery, development, or future integration. There were no meaningful success outcomes, no trauma-informed care, and no pathways beyond shelter life.
With no external funding beyond the limited and meager resources of participants, Tara Lanka introduced targeted mental health support, educational assistance, and individual development planning. Often the girls were able to respond to simple and sincere listening, but that was not enough. These limited interventions still produced measurable outcomes: for the first time, shelter residents passed Ordinary Level examinations, and several went on to vocational training and higher education. Just as importantly, the girls began to see themselves as having a future beyond institutionalisation.
Other activities are outlined in the Annual Reports on this website. They include helping jungle villages dealing with elephant attacks, other villagers dealing with Covid lockdown, water supply and other difficulties. Pastoral care and teaching have also been intense.
In 2014 Tara Lanka Foundation was officially constituted.