Abstract
This article aims to provide an overview of the status of Buddhist Studies in Sri Lanka’s higher education system. It begins by tracing briefly, the historical evolution of the study of Buddhism from pre-modern times to the colonial period and after, and finds that what has turned out to be an academic study today was initially begun with the study of Pali texts, wherein the teachings of the Buddha are recorded from a soteriological perspective. Today, however, Buddhist Studies is taught, as any other field of academic study, at a number of higher education institutes, both public and private, and enjoys considerable popularity among students, in particular, among monastic students. But it remains an open question as to whether the quality of teaching and research has improved corresponding to this increase in numbers. The article argues that possible reasons for this not-so-satisfactory state of affairs are, lack of skills in languages and the paucity in philosophical thinking and logical reasoning among academics. The article ends with some observations and suggestions for improvements to teaching, research and learning in the field.