He was in the company of Martin Wickramasinghe during the early phase of his life. He is associated with Professor Ediriweera Sarachchandra during his University days at Peradeniya. K. Jayatilaka and GB Senanayaka were contemporary writers and novelists.
The Sri Lankan writer who was like a film star in the 1960s, Gunadasa Amarasekara is still active in the Sinhala literary scene. Not only that! We agree to disagree with his vision for a new society rooted in the soil of mother Lanka! Amarasekara's poetry continues to haunt our memory. His short stories in his first two collections: Rathu Rosa Mala and Jeevana Suvanda are still alive in our memory. I wonder how many of our youth of the 1980s 1990s or the new millennium are aware of such writings! How many have come across such creations during their literary appreciation classes? The cultural life in this country is fast decaying.
Whatever happens in Sri Lankan society, Amarasekara is in the process of writing his literary creations and his social alarming! There is no purifier like knowledge in this world, time make a man find himself in his heart, according to the Bhagavadgita. In a recent publication, Viritha Ha Arutha, Professor Wimal Dissanayake and Srinath Ganewatta appreciate the Sinhala poetry of Gunadasa Amarasekara. They highlight him as a poet who has explored the traditional poetry creations of the classical periods and the folk tradition.
Rich vocabulary
Amarasekara's first novel, Karumakkarayo, is among the most interesting novels read over and over again. Gunadasa Amarasekara's Sinhala prose is nourished with his knowledge of Pali and Sanskrit languages. It always had a rich vocabulary.
His novel in four parts, Gamanaka Mula, I had the opportunity to read the manuscript and promote it to a publisher as a literary agent. I was able to organize the launching ceremony at the Girls' Guide Auditorium in Colombo with an overwhelming literary gathering! A notable participant was Lake House Investments and Printers Chairman, Ranjith Wijewardene.
In the latter part of the 1980s, Amarasekara wrote Ganaduru Mediyama Dakinemi Aruneli. It contained the essence of his social thinking. It was the most controversial book he wrote in Sinhala. Gamini Dissanayake made reference to it in Parliament too.
One of his earliest novels, Yali Upannemi, was the most controversial novel he wrote and rejected as misled thinking. He was a rebel of his own thinking. But what has he gained from the country? He once said he is more benefited from his dental profession!
Documenting the legacy
In my latest book Madhura Vasanthe I was able to include several interviews which I had done for a weekly paper. I hoped to document his thinking for the benefit of future generations. I hope some organization would take care of publishing his collected books and articles for the benefit of future generations!
When he recently met me, he remarked: "I am in the 90s… Can you imagine?"
He was in the company of Martin Wickramasinghe during the early phase of his life. He is associated with Professor Ediriweera Sarachchandra during his University days at Peradeniya. K. Jayatilaka and GB Senanayaka were contemporary writers and novelists.
As a rock unshaken by the wind, even so, the wise are unshaken by praise or blame, so says the Dhammapada. Writer, novelist and poet, literary and social critic, Gunadasa Amarasekara is Sri Lankan par excellence! Through his writings and speeches, he always tries to enlighten the people of Sri Lanka. As I mentioned earlier in this article, we agree to disagree.
