Photos: This war-weary Sri Lankan soldier becomes a monk

A Buddhist monk in ochre robes, with a black mask and a colourful umbrella, stood on the road next to the Bank of Ceylon in Colombo on Thursday, handing out blessings and goodies from a wide-mouthed steel bowl.

His hefty build is the only sign that Sugatha Sara wasn’t always a monk.

The monk says he was disturbed by the economic crisis and the growing unrest across Sri Lanka.

“I wanted to help the poor in these troubled times,” he says. “It is the command of the people that the leader should resign,” he adds.

Asked about his army days, the monk says he enlisted at 18. “I was with Regiment 346. My final mission was in Vadamarachchi (in Jaffna peninsula) on May 26, 1987. It was Sri Lanka’s largest combined services operation. Several LTTE members were killed in the massive operation,” he says.