{"id":42868,"date":"2015-04-05T00:46:15","date_gmt":"2015-04-05T07:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=42868"},"modified":"2015-04-05T00:46:15","modified_gmt":"2015-04-05T07:46:15","slug":"is-it-dhanapalas-confusion-or-dr-nalin-de-silvas-confusion-who-considers-science-mathematics-and-large-parts-of-buddhism-as-patta-pal-boru","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2015\/04\/05\/is-it-dhanapalas-confusion-or-dr-nalin-de-silvas-confusion-who-considers-science-mathematics-and-large-parts-of-buddhism-as-patta-pal-boru\/","title":{"rendered":"Is it Dhanapala’s Confusion or Dr. Nalin de Silva’s confusion? Who considers Science, Mathematics and large parts of Buddhism as \u201cPatta-Pal-Boru\u201d?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bodhi Dhanapala, Quebec, Canada.<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

Amoing the many articles that Dr. Nalin de Silva has supplied to the Lankaweb, there are two articles to the Vidusara and LankaWeb, written in Sinhala, entitled “Mr. Dhanapala’s confusion” (Lankaweb13-3-2015) and “Equal Energies and Equal Masses” (Lanka 19-3-2015).\u00a0 Here we re-examine these matters to explain my poosition. I write in English as the Sinhala version is available in the 1st<\/sup> April 2014 Vidusara issue.<\/p>\n

Dr. Silva begins his article by expounding a bizarre form of Buddhism that he seems to posit. That is, “according to Buddhism, ALL our (i.e., pruthagjana’s) knowledge including concepts and theories are Lies”. Hence, everything known to the public must be lies. However, the members of the public who have become adherents of Buddhism have to follow the precept of not telling lies (“musaavaada veramani…). If, as Dr.Nalin S\u00a0 says, all that they know are lies (Musa), they can never fulfill the precept.\u00a0 This shows that . Dr. Nalin S has mis-represented Buddhism. He has\u00a0 changed the way the word Musa (lies) is used in Buddhism heedlessly. Hence, it is of little use to further examine his analysis of perceived knowledge (Prathyaksha daneema) any further as it is based on false assumptions.<\/p>\n

He not only assaults Buddhism, but he also assaults the etymology of Sinhala words. According to Nalin, “Prathyaksha is knowledge directly perceived by the five sense organs (and constructed\u00a0 by the mind). Although the Eye (akshi) is important for its etymology, it is linked to all organs”.<\/p>\n

If he had asked the Ven. Monk of the village temple, or consulted a learned colleague of the Languages Faculty,\u00a0 or consulted a suitable book, he would have learnt that this sinhala word is connected to the first word found in the very well known Buddhist term “Patticha samuthpaadhaya”, and pati+eechya\u201d, with little to do with eyes\u201d (akshi). The book on Sinhalese grammar written by Pandith A. M. Gunasekera in the 19th century mentions this word twice though it doesn’t give a full discussion. However, the learned people can be consulted about the Pali word “paticcha”.<\/p>\n

Further mis-representing Buddhism, Dr. Nalin S\u00a0 says “since there is no ‘person’ (pudgala) in Buddhism, we create or imagine persons. According to Buddhism …. Mirisavatiya (dagaba) is a Lie”. After having said that there is no person, he immediately forgets it and says that “I do not believe in an existing world without an observer (looking at it)”. That is, an observer like himself is needed for the world to exist for him. But then, isn’t this observer a person Pudgala)? Didn’t he just say that there is no person in Buddhism?<\/p>\n

Buddhism does NOT say that\u00a0 there is no pudgala\u201d\u00a0 (person). Buddhism has said that there is no UNCHANGING person or unchanging soul.\u00a0 So, by confusing simple matters in this manner, Dr. Silva claims that there is no Mirisavatiya or Dutugamunu, and blabbers out falsehoods. A personality which is constantly changing, subject to pain and feelings, that can be considered as a functional form (i.e., an abstract concept)\u00a0 of Naama-Roopa connected by causality is often discussed\u00a0 in Buddhsim and Abhidhamma.<\/p>\n

After having virtually raped\u00a0 Buddhism as well as Sinhala Etymology, Mr. Nalin de Silva looks at “Western Science”. In his view, scientists look at a few crows and declare that all crows are black! In my view this is complete rubbish? He clearly does not know science at first hand. He has confessed to not knowing chemistry or biology in an Island Newspaper article. It appears that he\u00a0 knows about the way scientists do experiments from reading what philosophers have written about it, and not first hand, i.e., he has never stepped into the field and taken the plough into his hand and felt how it is.<\/p>\n

Although Dr. Silva may tell the truth for\u00a0 seven days from Monday to Sunday, that does not mean that he will not lie on Monday. The same is true regarding the colour of crows. Just because some philosophers have said that scientific truth is based on “induction”, it doesn’t simply hold true. I am unable to discuss this in detail here the discussions about induction\u201d and the fact that it is NOT used as an argument of establishing scientific theories. Instead I refer the reader to Dr. Dharmawardana’s book “A physicist’s view of matter and mind” as it has a modern discussion of this in Chapter 2.<\/p>\n

In having gone to discredit Science as utter lies (“Patta-Pal-Boru”) because it uses abstract concepts, Dr. Silva does not realize that he is also discrediting Buddhism which also has similar abstract characteristics. He says “The hypotheses of\u00a0 Western science that become its so-called theories are utter lies (patta-pal-Boru). They are abstract. At the minimum they cannot be imagined by the mind\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Buddhist doctrine is also full of deep abstract ideas. They too cannot be imagined by the mankind. However, in determining the validity or falsehood, according to the books, the Buddha suggested empirical observation where a metal is tested on the touch-stone to determine if it is a base metal or a noble metal like gold.<\/p>\n

They compare their abstract conclusions with empirical observations and choose the more successful hypothesis (i.e., the one more in accordance with observation) and converts it into a so-called theory. To what extent does this reveal the so-called truth?”<\/p>\n

Although Dr. Silva started his article with seeming acceptance of Buddhist thinking, by attacking the empirical method epitomized by the use of the touchstone to establish facts, Dr. Nalin S\u00a0 is attacking the Buddha’s teaching itself, perhaps without appreciating it.<\/p>\n

The first University teacher that we know of who claimed that science is an utter lie (Patta-pal-boru) is not Dr. Nalin de Silva. About 20 years before him, Dr. Basil Mendis, a Peradeniya Philosophy lecturer also claimed that knowledge directly perceived by the Eye is more trustworthy, and that all abstract ideas are constructions of the mind and mere myths. While Dr. Silva said that the truth is known only to the Arhanths, Dr. Mendis, being a Catholic, asserted that the truth can only be got from God. Since the Earth is directly perceived to be flat, he argued that the earth is flat, while the theory given by science that the earth is spheroidal is a Myth. Dr. Nalin de Silva also has to admit that according to Nalin’s own arguments too, the earth must be flat.<\/p>\n

In fact, in rejecting abstract knowledge, he has to reject not only science and large parts of\u00a0 Buddhism, but also the whole of mathematics as Patta-Pal-Boru\u201d.<\/p>\n

The very end of Dr. Silva’s March 11 article touches the question of energy and mass, but says little. But again, on March 18 Vidusara and Lanka Web article he\u00a0 returns to it. That article is aimed at the contributions from me and Prof. Amaratunga, and begins with a science title, but most of the article is wasted in displaying his mistaken ideas (Ditthupaadhana) about Buddhism. However, he devotes a few lines and leaves the matter for a future article. But we can surmise that he is trying to use the equation<\/p>\n

M=m0\/(1-v**2\/C**2)1\/2<\/p>\n

.to a photon to justify his unreasonable claims.<\/p>\n

Here m is the dynamical mass of the particle,\u00a0 m0 is the invariant mass, v its velocity, while C is as usual the velocity of light. Dr. Silva seems to accept that the invariant mass of a photon is zero, i. e., m0=0. Since the velocity v of a photon is C, according to the above equation,\u00a0 the dynamical mass m=0\/0, an indefinite quantity. Hence, either m=0, or the value of m has to be determined by other considerations consistent with the requirement that tha laws of physics remains the same for all observers, as required by relativity. Hence any assumptions must be consistent with the symmetries that govern the world.<\/p>\n

As an example, if we exchange negative charges with positive charges (charge conjugation), and exchange left with right (parity inversion), and if we exchange past with present (time reversal), all laws of physics must still remain unchanged CPT invariance). The world has an\u00a0 even more deep symmetry known as gauge symmetry. It is difficult to explain this here, an so I refer the reader to chapters 4 and 5 of Dr. Dharmawardana’s\u00a0 a fore mentioned book. If we are to include gauge symmetry in a manner consistent with the Lorentz symmetry implicit in the theory of relativity, that it becomes necessary and uniquely necessary that m=0 in every dynamical frame. However, on seeing m=0\/0, Dr. Nalin de Silva heedlessly, and without regard to the symmetries controlling the world, set m=hv\/c**2 because of his lack of comprehension of the meaning of the equation\u00a0 E=mc**2.<\/p>\n

Einsteins’ E=mc**2 equation indicates the maximum mass that can be obtained IF the energy of the photon is CONVERTED to mass.\u00a0 Modern practice is to refer only to the invariant mass, called rest-mass in older books as that alone is intrincic to a quatum particle. The relativistic mass gives the mass equivalent of the energy. A good account is given in the web-page\u00a0 dhweb.org\/sinhala\/mc2-SE.html<\/p>\n

We may be able to buy 10 bricks weighing one kilogram using a thousand rupee note. But it is wrong to conclude that the thousand rupee note weighs one kilogram. The pjhoton is pure energy and has no mass. If this energy is converted to a mass, then that mass cannot exceed E\/c**2, but this does not imply that the photon carries that mass.<\/p>\n

Both modern science, mathematics\u00a0 as well as the philosophy of Buddhism use deep abstract concepts. The object of science is to provide an understanding of the physical world. Both (Buddhism and science) use empirical observational methods. In Buddhism, most of the empirical observations are directed towards one’s own mind. Buddhist and other religious doctrines as well as Moral systems tell us how we OUGHT TO lead our lives. There is no conflict between science which describes the world without indicating “oughts”, while moral teachings describe what humans “ought to do”. Our young people should not be put off and turned\u00a0 away from Science and Mathematics on the false claim that\u00a0 they are Patta-Pal-Boru\u201d.<\/p>\n

Finally, we must say that Dr. Nalin de Silva’s sayings, be they on science, etymology, mathematics\u00a0 or Buddhism, should be taken with a very large grain of salt.<\/p>\n

Bodhi Dhanapala, Quebec, Canada.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bodhi Dhanapala, Quebec, Canada. Amoing the many articles that Dr. Nalin de Silva has supplied to the Lankaweb, there are two articles to the Vidusara and LankaWeb, written in Sinhala, entitled “Mr. Dhanapala’s confusion” (Lankaweb13-3-2015) and “Equal Energies and Equal Masses” (Lanka 19-3-2015).\u00a0 Here we re-examine these matters to explain my poosition. I write in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42868","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-forum"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42868","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42868"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42868\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}