Ramakrishna Puligandla

Ramakrishna Puligandla

Ramakrishna Puligandla, of Toledo, Ohio, passed away on June 23, 2022. He was born in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India, on September 8, 1930. After a making a miraculous recovery from double typhoid at age eight, he received home schooling from a neighbor and became a precocious student, starting college at age sixteen and teaching college courses at age twenty. His parents' (Father, Venkataraman, Mother, Seethamma, Stepmother, Ratnamma) decision to have Rama homeschooled had a profound impact on the trajectory of his life, as it gave him access to both traditional academic subjects and a variety of other subjects and activities that were unavailable to most. And his parents were a constant source of encouragement and inspiration.

Rama obtained a B.S. in physics from Maharaja College, an M.S. in applied physics from Andhra University, an M.S. in electrical engineering from Purdue University, an M.A. in philosophy from the University of South Dakota, and a PhD in philosophy from Rice University. His doctoral dissertation was entitled, "An Examination of the Copenhagen Interpretation of Quantum Theory."

Joining the department of philosophy at the University of Toledo in 1966, Rama remained there until his retirement in 1993. He taught logic, philosophy of science, phenomenology (especially as it relates to Buddhism and the Advaita school of Hinduism), eastern religions, and comparative philosophy.

Due no doubt to his originality, provocativeness, and sense of humor, Rama was extremely popular with his students, several of whom became lifelong friends of his and his family. His depth and breadth of scholarship was of the highest level. He had a complete mastery of the technical and the literary. He authored and co-authored over seventy scholarly articles and ten books on a wide range of subjects. His books have such varying titles as: "Fundamentals of Indian Philosophy," "Jnana Yoga--The Way of Knowledge, An Analytical Interpretation," "Fact and Fiction in B.F. Skinner's Science and Utopia," "Song of the Self: Poetic Reflections on Truth, Goodness, and Beauty," "Buddhism and the Emerging World Civilization," and "That Thou Art: The Wisdom of the Upanishads."

Rama was the consummate academic. In 2000, Cambridge University named him to its list of the world's top two thousand scholars. In 2005, two of his colleagues compiled and edited "Breaking Barriers: Essays in Asian and Comparative Philosophy in Honor of Ramakrishna Puligandla," a festschrift (German for "a collection of writings published in honor of a scholar") celebrating his work. To be honored by a festschrift is a rare accomplishment few professors receive. He also won two Fulbright Scholarships to lecture as a visiting professor abroad, one in India and the other in Russia, but was unable to accept the latter.

And Rama was a sought-after speaker. He lectured at many domestic and foreign universities, including in China and Germany. He had friends among academics the world over. For many years after retiring, Rama continued to teach, lecture, and write. Even before recently falling ill, he was writing a book with his son, Bertrand. Rama also was a long-time member of various organizations, including the American Philosophical Association. He also served as an editor and reviewer for various journals, such as The Philosopher's Index, and organizations, such as Choice, a publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries.

Apart from academic pursuits, Rama loved playing tennis, which he did until his mid-eighties, and watching it, as he was a huge fan of both the ATP and WTA tours. He also was a huge boxing fan. And he loved Indian classical music and jazz. Moreover, thanks to his homeschooling, he himself was a multi-talented musician, able to play the sitar, tabla, and piano, among other instruments, and had considerable ability at singing Indian ragas in the classical style. But as much as anything, Rama loved intellectual conversation with friends and family, often accompanied by music and Scotch whiskey.

Rama was generous with his time and resources. He often tutored his students in classes they were taking from others. And he donated to many charities, especially those benefitting Native Americans.

Rama was preceded in death by his loving wife, Janaki, in 2004, to whom he was married for fifty-five years. He is survived by his five children, Balaram Puligandla (Linda), Sita Wiczynski (Ken), Usha Bharatula (Dhar), Vijay K. Puligandla (Cindee), and Bertrand R. Puligandla; along with several grandchildren (Russell (Katie), Raman (Grace), Kamala, Maneka, Chandra, Renuka (Kevin), Marissa, and Reid), great-grandchildren (Makenna, Finley, Jack, Cecilia, Mila, Bruno, and Eloise); and nine of his twelve siblings: Viswanadham, Subramanyam, Laxminarasaiah, Janaki, Vijayalaxmi, Vasudevan, Chidambaram, Shankar, and Rajagopal. A special thanks to Marian Crooks for her friendship with the Puligandla family and help over the years.

A puja celebrating Rama's life will be held on July 6, 2022, at the Hindu Temple of Toledo, 4336 King Rd., Sylvania, Ohio 43560, at 5:00 p.m. Friends are welcome. All donations should be made to the University of Toledo.