Review: Unification and Disintegration R.Subasinghe (2011) Godage Publishers - www.godage.

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Book Review:

Unification and Disintegration

R.Subasinghe
Publisher: Godage Publishers Ltd. (www.godage.com)

...a powerful statement born out of ones intimate

experience this book profusely illustrates how this
very suffering nature can be transformed into
enlightening experiences...
- Professor Gunapala Dharmasiri Ex-Head Philosophy Dept.
University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka

Buddhism is generally considered a religion the adherents of which worship the statues of
The Buddha and follow a life style believing in a better life before death or after death. They
believe in a state called buddhahood and such concepts like karma and rebirth as
mechanisms by which life forms are governed. Not only as religion, Buddhism can be
approached in philosophical, sociological or psychological perspectives too, or as a way of
life.
In his book Unification and Disintegration, R.Subasinghe discusses Buddhism in a
philosophical and scientific approach rather than as religious or as a way of life. Even with
such philosophical scientific approach, the author has shown a practical path too for those
who want to test the practical aspects discussed. The language he uses might appeal to a
modern detached intellectual who is inquisitive, and dares to surpass the limitations in
ordinary thinking including scientific thinking. It is not for one who seeks a religion but one
who wants to probe into reality through any finding that she comes across. One who looks for
answers to the question Why Buddhism? would find this book appealing in the search for
more.
A study of buddhism would lead it to probe into deeper levels some of which extending to
probing non-material states. It is stated that, just as the ocean gets deeper when one goes
interior into it, so are discussions of Buddhism; it takes one to see deeper realities when it is
probed into deeper. Such is the uniqueness in Buddhism. It is not praying for or pleading to
higher beings, but persuading one first to use logic and reasoning regarding ones existence,
and then turning what is so learnt as truth into their practical aspects as realizations.
The approach of the author towards buddhism is non traditional though he does not deviate
from the main teachings as contained in the Theravada tradition of Buddhism. Thus, one who
wants to explore buddhism without being influenced with the religious nature in it can peruse
this book philosophically and scientifically using logic and reasoning, and if he so wants, test
some teachings in it to realize as real life experiences.

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Some areas the author deals with are his personal explorations although he cites references to
them with buddhist teachings. For example, everyone considers time as a dimension in the
universe but this author rejects it as only a creation of avidhya: (/ ij ;/) or ignorance.
Time is another sanska:ra (/ssk:r/) representing nothing in existence according to
him. Thus, when Stephen Hawking (1986.26) mentions time is not...independent of
space... an object called space time.1, such views are disputed by the author saying time is
a conceptual creation created out of ignorance or avidhya:.
Similarly, the buddhist view, everything existing within about the six feet of the physical
body is dealt with in a separate chapter titled Fallacy of The External World. When a man is
explained as an orderly arrangement of bundles of images, pains, signs, interpretations of
signs and a consciousness, the author uses modern English words in referring to the five
components by which a man is composed of according to Buddhism. Another interesting
feature in this book is the first truth of the nature of suffering is explained using traditional
English Literature as the author is familiar with them, the approach of which also would
appeal to a modern intellectual.2
An attempt has also been made to dispute the position Buddhist view of life is pessimistic.
Such a pessimistic attitude towards Buddhism is contradictory to that of one who has chosen
Buddhism as the only way of life, who finds it as the most optimistic. According to the
author, those two contradictory attitudes arise according to the nature of attachment one has
with the world created out of desires (thanha: /nh:/). When one is attached with the world
believing it gives him satisfaction, enjoyment and pleasures, he sees buddhism as pessimistic
because buddhism teaches to see the futility in seeing the world as leading to satisfaction,
enjoyment or pleasures. However, even such a person who sees life as very satisfactory is
compelled to turn to buddhism at one time in his life when he faces the inevitable,
unendurable states of suffering as any one could face at any one time and beginning to see all
satisfaction, enjoyment or pleasure disappear like bubbles on water leading to ultimate
dissatisfaction. It is then only one feels to turn to Buddhism.
Such pessimistic or optimistic attitudes towards buddhism can be compared with a person
going in one direction of a road seeing another one going in the opposite direction as going in
the wrong direction. According to Buddhism, one who has chosen to lead the life in the
wrong direction would suffer more and more, and may fall into worst states while the other
one can come out of all states of suffering and be redeemed of them.
Writing a foreword to this book professor Gunapala Dharmasiri, ex-head of the Philosophy
Department at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, says, ...this book profusely illustrates
how this very suffering nature can be transformed into enlightening experiences ... a
powerful statement born out of ones intimate experience . These comments would suffice
to show, this is not a book that contains speculations, but one that really deals with the
ultimate states of all human and animal life.

time is not completely separate from and independent of space, but is combined with it to form an object called space time.
Hawking S. (1986.26) A Brief History of Time
2 The author deals with such themes like matter Time and External World in detail in his next book Agreed truth and Absolute
Truth. He has also written a book on educational psychology titled Life Force and Emotions in the Classroom.

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_____________________
The authors next book on the same themes:

Agreed Truth and Absolute truth

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