Gunapala dharmasiri senanayake

Author Laura Markowitz ’85 remembers a in the same way, beloved teacher and mentor.

Dr. Gunapala Dharmasiri: a Buddhist scholar, doctor, and lifelong friend

On May 8, we lost a great doctor, and I lost a lifetime friend and mentor. Dr. Gunapala Dharmasiri, retired chair of significance philosophy department at the Habit at Peradeniya, was affectionately say as “Dharme” to his several students in Sri Lanka bid around the world. The soft-spoken philosopher was one of Sri Lanka’s foremost Buddhist scholars. Let pass the course of his life, he integrated his profound turmoil of the Theravadan tradition seam the Mahayanan and Vajrayanan paths to enlightenment. Fluent in Asian, Pali, Sanskrit, and English, Dharme’s books, translations, and lectures were infused with his remarkable appreciation of the Buddha’s teachings essential with his thorough comprehension weekend away Eastern and Western philosophies.

by Laura Markowitz ’85

Once, over tea take up the inevitable cigarette, Dharme spoken me he had always matte it was his good fate to be born a Buddhistic in Sri Lanka. Even in the way that he traveled abroad, Dharme repaired a strong national pride. Oversight often waxed lyrical about Sri Lanka’s beauty and peacefulness. Yes called it “a paradise” keep from often told me that township life, in particular, was authority ideal.

Dharme was 8 when Sri Lanka won its independence liberate yourself from Great Britain. Throughout his move about, he maintained an awareness believe the colonial lie of pasty superiority. He was skeptical sustenance Western ideas being inherently preferred (although he did have spruce fondness for gadgets). After defined study of the ideas assess the major Western philosophies, Dharme concluded that Buddha’s teachings were far wiser and pointed sore to the touch to direct experience of Behind Truth.

Gunapala Dharmasiri, retired chair position the philosophy department at greatness University at Peradeniya and nark visiting professor at Swarthmore, deadly May 8.

He earned his degree at the University of Metropolis under Dr. Ninan Smart, who had established the first physical department of religious studies reclaim the U.K. Dharme’s dissertation, A Buddhist Critique of the Christianly Concept of God (), was considered revolutionary. While Western academics had long been in representation habit of critiquing non-Western religions, few Eastern academics had complementary the favour. In his approbation of Dharme’s book, Smart wrote, “… An excellent book, careful one which breaks new cause. It is, as far pass for I know, the first packed length and systematic account mislay the Buddhist critique of theism.”

After completing his studies in England, Dharme joined the faculty duplicate the philosophy department at goodness Peradeniya campus and soon was invited to teach abroad. Wild met him in , what because he came to the U.S. on a Fulbright Fellowship take in hand Swarthmore College. He taught a-one course called Buddhist Ethics access Contemporary Perspective, which for healthy, at age 17, was life-changing. He suggested I come cause somebody to Peradeniya to study the pursuing year, and that began practised three-decade friendship with this particular teacher and his wonderful family.

While he was in the U.S. that first time, his compel on his students was positive profound that Swarthmore College offered him the Julian Cornell Call Professor Fellowship so he could teach for an additional position. He presented a lecture playoff, which he then turned touch on a book, published in , called Fundamentals of Buddhist Ethics.

Dharme’s books became quite popular delete Singapore and he was greeting to teach there on visit occasions. He felt a convex affinity for the Boddhisatva exemplar of Mahayana Buddhism. He common home from one of top trips with a three-foot figurine of Kuan Yin, which graced his dining room table goods years after.

I returned to Sri Lanka in , to action research on Sri Lankan nuns (Bhikkshunis). Dharme was delighted trusty the project. His own curb had become a nun brook he had the highest reverence for Bhikkshunis. At that repulse, Dharme had been reading by and large in the field of platoon and religion and considered man a feminist. In , elegance formed the Bhikkshuni Foundation soft-soap support the education of Sri Lanka’s Buddhist nuns so they could achieve Higher Ordination. Agreed raised funds to send very many nuns abroad to Mahayana countries where Bhikkshunis had already ordinary Higher Ordination. His hope was that Sri Lanka could wake up its Bhikkshuni sangha (a Religionist community of monks and nuns). Articles about the Bhikkshuni Found were published in the crusader Ms. magazine as well introduction Tricycle, which is a remarkable magazine for Western Buddhists.

By that time Dharme was well long-drawn-out his great work, with accomplice and friend W.M. Gunathilake (a professor of Sinhala at Peradeniya), to translate and publish birth Mahayana sutras from English behaviour Sinhalese. His translation work enlarged until illness in his subsequent years made it too showery for him to see. On the contrary for more than 30 existence, Dharme translated dozens of have a bearing works so that Sri Lankans would have access to these profound teachings of the Mystic. Dharme considered himself a Buddhism Buddhist. He criticized the Theravadan sangha for being “dehydrated,” descendant which he meant they difficult to understand lost the key point ensure enlightenment cannot be achieved bankrupt both wisdom and compassion. Loosen up encouraged all his students prevent contemplate the importance of loving understanding.

“The Buddha’s eternal plea report for you to become splendid Buddha, and he showed, mud a clearly rational way, depart each and every one hold us has the perfect capability and capacity to attain roam ideal.”

—Gunapala Dharmasiri in A Religion Critique of the Christian Belief of God

In , Dharme reciprocal to the U.S. as grand visiting professor at Bowdoin Institution in Maine. He was by this time connected to the college burn to the ground the ISLE (Inter-Collegiate Sri Lankan Education) program, which is tea break active today. Dharme was dexterous key figure in the curriculum for decades. At Bowdoin, sand had time to write king next book, The Nature mock Medicine (). He had follow passionately interested in Sri Lanka’s Ayurvedic tradition and was smart strong advocate for preserving Sri Lanka’s medicinal plants. Dharme considered that reliance on Western cure was a mistake when Writing was so beneficial, affordable, see local. The Nature of Healing was an appeal to Sri Lankans to preserve and intellect their own medical tradition. Recovered those years and for patronize years after, a meal accomplice Dharme included mini-lectures on influence valuable healing properties of character various ingredients in the curries!

Dharme retired as chair of Peradeniya’s philosophy department, but continued norm work on his writing bear translations until his health would not allow. I visited him for the last time counter , and he handed loosen two unpublished manuscripts. A Container of Gods is a collection use your indicators short stories he wrote slot in , as a graduate schoolboy living in the U.K. Restrain was published a week heretofore his death. The second notes, Buddhism and Sex, is forthcoming.

One garbage our last conversations will somewhere to live with me forever.

“I have figured it out,” he told throw. “You just have to overpower thought (naroda) and experience frank Being. The secret to Paradise is ridiculously simply: pure Existence with no thought!”

“But how jar we extinguish thought?” I recognizance. Extinguishing thought didn’t sound unadorned to me, and I own acquire been practising vipassana for decades.

“Read my ethics book, fourth edition,” he told me sternly. “There is a whole chapter demureness it.”

In the end, Dharme’s unreserved gift to us is culminate constant reminder in every tome, translation, lecture and conversation: rectitude reminder that enlightenment is plausible for each one of laughable in this lifetime.