Chandra R. De Silva, … with highlighting emphasis added by The Editor, Thuppahi
I write to add a few words to the outpouring of appreciations of Gananath Obeyesekere, a scholar whose research in anthropology, religion, myth, and cultural practices has won him accolades across the world. I will not comment on the advances in knowledge and the discussions he provoked by his many scholarly works of which among the best known are Land Tenure in Village Ceylon, The Cult of the Goddess Pattini, Buddhism Transformed (co-author), The Work of Culture, The Apotheosis of Captain Cook: European Mythmaking in the Pacific, and The Doomed King. There has been much written on this world renowned scholar, and there will undoubtedly be more comments by experts in the years to come.
I would, however, like to record something about Gananath’s willingness to encourage and help his fellows. Many of his university contemporaries have benefited from this at various times in their careers. He is widely known for inspiring and supporting the Ceylon Studies Seminar at the University of Peradeniya. For those who are not familiar with the academic scene in Sri Lanka in the late twentieth century, it is worth noting that in this time well before the advent of the internet, there were few venues where scholars could freely exchange ideas and information. You could read books or academic journals, but except on rare occasions when researchers presented their view at a public lecture and invited comments, or published rebuttals of accepted views, academic discourse was not abundant, certainly not across disciplines. It was in this context that Gananath Obeyesekere advanced and implemented the idea of a university seminar at Peradeniya where new research was presented and debated.
To ensure that there would be meaningful discussion, scholars from various areas of the humanities and social sciences were invited to provide written papers which were then typed and reproduced (cyclostyled) and distributed well before the date of discussion. Gananath, who at that time was teaching in the Department of Sociology, somehow provided the space for the meetings (in his department) and the personnel (for typing and reproduction of papers). For relatively young academics like me, who had just returned after completing their graduate training outside the country, this proved to be a wonderful stimulant, not only because the papers were from many disciplines, but also because they included presentations by visiting foreign scholars.
As has been recorded also elsewhere. the Ceylon Studies Seminar, starting in November 1968, was a major success, stimulating research productivity among younger academic staff, enabling them to receive feedback and revise their papers before sending them for publication in a scholarly journal. The younger scholars led by Michael Roberts and others soon took over the organization of the meetings, ensuring a succession of discussions after Gananath left Sri Lanka for an academic post in the USA (See https://www.elanka.com.au/nationalist-studies-and-the-ceylon-studies-seminar-at-peradeniya-1968-1970s-by-michael-roberts-2/ ). In the twenty years after 1968 there were over 100 papers presented at the Ceylon Studies Seminar.
As a historian, I have personally appreciated Gananath Obeyesekere’s acuity and critical vision. His ability to be “critical of the way modern historians have dealt with Sri Lanka’ pasts. . .” and willingness to carefully examine source material afresh, from critical examinations of stories in the Mahavamsa to British source materials on nineteenth century history have opened up new areas of inquiry about our past. He was also generous with his time. I recall that in 1990, when our son was looking for places to apply for his first degree, Gananath offered to spend time to show him round Princeton, where he was teaching, although I had not regularly kept in touch with him. I simply record this because at this time, we need to remember not only his unusual academic accomplishments, but his wonderful personal qualities.
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ALSO NOTE
- https://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=79&artid=
- Punsara Amarasinghe: ………………………………………….. https://www.lankaweb.com/news/items/2018/12/28/relevance-of-re-reading-protestant-buddhism/
- Gamini Seneviratne: …. https://island.lk/professor-gananath-obeyesekere/
- Uditha Devapriya: …………………… https://thuppahis.com/2022/04/04/obeyesekeres-new-book-on-the-kandyan-kingdom/
- Raja De Silva: …………………. https://thuppahis.com/2020/08/25/interpreting-sigiriya-confronting-gananath-obeyesekeres-distortions-2/
- Jolly Somasundaram: .………………………………….. https://thuppahis.com/2017/05/18/obeyesekeres-study-of-sri-vikrama-rajasinha-and-his-downfall/
- ‘Sid’ Perinpanayagam: ………………………… https://thuppahis.com/2010/08/31/tribute-to-gananath-obeyesekere/
AGLOW to the FINAL STAGE OF LIFE …. a recent photo of Gananath with hsi wife, Ranjani, and Siri Hettige presented by the latter with this NOTE in Facebook: “Passing of Emeritus Professor Gananath Obeyesekere, a world renowned, Sri Lankan anthropologist leaves a huge gap that cannot be filled. The influence of his extensive and critically important research and publications is evident in many parts of the world, not just in this region. Though he spent many years in the USA doing teaching and research there, he maintained his close connections to Sri Lankan universities and his colleagues, initiating critical academic discourses on issues that were very close to his heart. I have been part of a few of these since the mid 1980’s. I was fortunate to meet him and Ranjani at his residence in Kandy a few months ago and engage in yet another important and passionate conversation with him. RIP.”
