Sunday, June 15, 2008
Summer Camps Revive India's Ancient Sanskrit, an article in washingtonpost.com by Rama Lakshmi covering aspects of the debate over importance of learning Sanskrit and its implementation. Apart from portraying commonly fashionable "Hindu-bashing" stance, there are some important statements in the news report that need personal attention, such as : "It is critical to understand Sanskrit in order to study ancient Indian civilization and knowledge"; "We are nothing without Sanskrit"; "Sanskrit is a beleaguered language in India today, caught in a web of widespread apathy and questions about its utility"; "In the name of so-called secularism, it has become fashionable to attack any attempt to promote Sanskrit"; "To talk about Sanskrit is very political in India today, that is the plight of the language." "When I learn any language, I learn about its history and its literature, but when I study Sanskrit, I learn who I am. It is my identity."
For the contents of the profound literature, can Sanskrit be taken closer to one's heart and learned for personal enrichment?
For the contents of the profound literature, can Sanskrit be taken closer to one's heart and learned for personal enrichment?
Saturday, June 14, 2008
The Gospel of Matthew in Sanskrit is newly added on Ulrich Stiehl's sanskritweb.net. The file includes Devanagari text, Roman transliteration, and English translation. It was translated two hundred years ago into Sanskrit by William Carey, who also spoke Bengali and numerous other languages.