Dharmapala’s conviction that Sri Lanka had a special role to maintain Buddhism in a pure form that rejected influences from outside ultimately promoted estrangement from non-Buddhists such as Tamil Hindus in Sri Lanka.
This led to increased public discord and war in Sri Lanka between the Singhalese Buddhists and Tamil Hindus in the 20th century.
Dharmapala also established an organization, the Mahabodhi Society, to spread this reformed Buddhism elsewhere in the world.