Senanayake's UNP and his opponents in the left wing parties all promoted the idea of Sri Lanka as a secular state with a plural multi-racial society. This alienated some of the ethnic Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists who believed Buddhism should have the status of state religion (which it had historically enjoyed) and that Sinahala should be the sole national language (this was seen as an equally important element of Sinhalese Buddhist culture). These nationalists were influenced by the idea (first articulated by Anagarika Dharmapala) that Sri Lanka was the holy land of Buddhism (the "Island of Dhamma", "Dhammadipa") and that the Sinhalese were the noble protectors of Buddhism, while all other foreigners on the island were a corrupting and dangerous influence. The nationalists also saw the UNP elite as alienated from traditional Sinhalese culture. These Buddhist ethno-nationalists were consolidated under S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike's Freedom Party (SLFP), which defeated the UNP in 1956 on a nationalist and anti-Tamil platform.