FIREMAND POSTMAN CHERRY, etc.

[Vidyasankar Sundaresan]

>I wonder if it is still spoken much, liturgically or academically.  As
>recently as the early sixties, my father, who was educated by Jesuits in a
>Catholic seminary in the U.S., learned all his philosophy in Latin: only
>Latin was spoken in the classroom-- lectures, discussion, etc.--, his oral
>dissertations and examinations were in Latin.  Is the same true in Indian
>universities?

Not so much in the accredited universities, but elsewhere.

Ritually, such directions as "apa upa spRZya" and "prANAn Ayamya" are
supplemented with explanations in the local language. There are some people
who would understand the ritual actions involved without waiting for a
translation.

If you go to the more select traditional Veda schools, or attend the not
very infrequent vidvat-sadas meetings of pundits, you can find people
conversing in Sanskrit. However, the topics discussed in such places/events
may not necessitate the coining of new words at all.

Vidyasankar