President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena yesterday issued condolence messages on the death of renowned intellectual and philosopher Dr. Nalin de Silva.
The President’s message: “I am deeply moved by the news of the passing away of Dr. Nalin de Silva, a theoretical professor, physicist and philosopher. Professor Nalin de Silva is a former member of the Marxist Trotskyist Lanka Sama Samaja Party and the Nawa Sama Samaja Party (NSSP). Later, as a theoretical physicist, he was motivated to question the foundations of Marxism and Western science. He further developed the concept of thought as the basis of human knowledge in relation to the senses, culture and mind.
The works written by Dr. de Silva, the lectures and the Explorers organization that he gave guidance to and the Philosophy Forum where he held the position of secretary have had a definite impact on the Sri Lankan society. Also, his philosophy had a decisive influence on the creation of the modern Sinhala Buddhist national vision. Dr. De Silva is a scholar who has performed his duties with great dedication as the President of Sri Lanka University Teachers Association (FUTA) as well as Kelaniya University Teachers Association.
I express my condolences to his wife, two sons and daughter, as well as his relatives and students, who are mourning his death.”
The Prime Minister’s message: “The demise of Dr. Nalin de Silva, who has rendered a great service to our country, its people and to the Sinhalese, will be a great loss for the nation. We pay our great respect to Dr. de Silva, a scholar of the highest level, who made our nation proud by rendering a great service to Sri Lanka.
He is a rare scholar, who has bravely devoted himself to the nation through the most difficult decades of the motherland and has awakened the nation creatively. At this moment, I remember with respect and gratitude that I got the opportunity to associate and work with him very closely for a long time. I express my condolences to his beloved wife, children, relatives and friends of Dr. Nalin de Silva.”
