The Human Soul: Essays in Honor of Nalin Ranasinghe

When I was asked to review “The Human Soul”, I hesitantly agreed. I was newly retired, and I didn’t really want to read a philosophical tome paying tribute to Nalin Ranasinghe, someone I didn’t know about. But I knew the editor of the collection of essays written in honor of him, and so I agreed to read and review the book. I’m glad I did.

“The Human Soul” opens a dimension of philosophy that is widely neglected in contemporary American thought even though the essays follow very much the most honorable aspects of the philosophical traditions of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. The essays written in honor of Nalin Ranasinghe would make an excellent introduction to philosophy for a freshmen honors seminar. They challenge common approaches to philosophy and offer various understandings of the soul, even to those who, like myself, have often been skeptical that souls exist. These challenges are uplifting, informative, and insightful in personal, social, and political contexts.

Three or four essays, in particular, grabbed my attention and provided new insights into Plato and Aristotle. Another essay opened my mind to areas I’d never considered before, where I can apply my work in ethics and nonviolence. And taken together, all the essays paint such a colorful and expansive portrait of Nalin Ranasinghe that, upon completing the book, I liked this man I never met and felt as though I knew him.

I enjoyed reading the book, and I am grateful for a number of new insights it provided me. As I read the book, I kept thinking that this is the sort of introduction to philosophy that advanced new students should be offered. It’s different from anything else out there, and even though it’s not intended as an introductory text, at least as far as I know, some professors and students might find it very valuable as such.

Barry L. Gan

Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Center for Nonviolence

St. Bonaventure University