Clarification about Spoken Sanskrit

[Ganesan]

Dear Sanskrit Lovers,
It is so strange that Sanskrit is called a dead language by its own student 
!! It is not at all a dead language as it has been declared as 'mother 
tongue' by some people though they are very few. Further, other than its 
liturgical usage literature of big and small sizes is still produced in that 
language in the Bharatadesa . There are many Sanskrit journals, periodicals 
and daily newspapers such as SUDHARMAA, AMRITABHAASHAA,etc. which are even 
now read by many Sanskrit lovers in India.
A person living in far away europe or America may not be able to understand 
the situation and much less appreciate.
Comparison with Latin does not hold good at all as production of literary 
works in Latin is practically nil now.
As very strickingly put forth by Jan Houben, "In 1,000
years time, Sanskrit will still be the same, but every other language will 
have changed beyond recognition." Sanskrit is chiranaviinaa-ever new and 
youthful !

Ganesh

Dr.T.Ganesan
Chargé de Recherches
French Institute
11, St. Louis Street
PONDICHERRY-605001
INDIA

Tel: +91 - 413 - 233 4168 ext. 123
E mail: ganesan at ifpindia.org
Web: www.ifpindia.org
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Stella Sandahl" <ssandahl at SYMPATICO.CA>
To: <INDOLOGY at liverpool.ac.uk>
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2008 8:35 PM
Subject: Clarification about Spoken Sanskrit


> Dear all,
> I seem to have stepped on many tender toes by making fun of a certain 
> type of Spoken Sanskrit.  My main objection is entirely practical.   Over 
> the years I have noticed that those who have been taught spoken  Sanskrit 
> seem to have real difficulties reading even simple classical  Sanskrit 
> such as the Kathasaritsagara and the Hitopadesa, not to  speak about the 
> epics. It is important that there still are a few  students who wish to 
> learn the language of Kalidasa et alii - and it  is a real pity that 
> alamkarashastra is not given much attention among  scholars of comparative 
> literature to give just one example.
>
> Spoken Sanskrit can be quite an intellectually stimulating pass- time. 
> Like playing chess. But trying to revive a dead language by  creating 
> words for nuclear submarines, supermarkets, tennis  tournaments  etc.  is 
> in my view a rather useless enterprise. Mass  Sanskrit is  of little 
> interest for the large Indian population  trying to eke out a meagre 
> living to get  one meal a day. Languages  are living organism that 
> constantly change - bhasha calti nadi.  Sanskrit has a normative 
> unchangeable grammar since around 400 B.C.  So can't we let it be what it 
> is, a beautiful dead language?
> Nobody has tried to revive Latin in Italy since the days of  Mussolini. 
> However, Latin is still used in Western universities to  harangue 
> recipients of honorary doctorates and such things.
> And it is of course used by the Vatican. There is no reason not to  use 
> Sanskrit in a similar way to inaugurate dams, swearing in  cabinets, 
> taking ministerial oaths, and of course in solemn rites of  passage.  But 
> trying to take a bus in Bombay/Mumbai or disputing the  taxi fare in 
> Sanskrit is probably not going to have much effect  except amusing the 
> drivers and the ever-present surrounding crowd.
>
> However, I do believe it is important that students do regular  exercises 
> translating into Sanskrit, not just the other way around.  At the Sorbonne 
> we did "themes et versions" on alternating weeks (the  "themes" were 
> Sanskrit texts translated into an often bizarre French  which we 
> translated back into Sanskrit), and that was very useful.  More useful 
> than chatting in Sanskrit about tea and iddlis.
>
> Best to all
> Stella Sandahl
>
> P.S. I do know how to transliterate - I just do not like the e-mail 
> transliteration. And in the few cases above all members of the list  can 
> surely supply them.
> P.P.S. Does anyone have the full text of Sacchidanandan's wonderful  poem 
> about the dinosaurs who "died out because they spoke Sanskrit"?
> --
> Professor Stella Sandahl
> Department of East Asian Studies
> 130 St. George St. room 14087
> Toronto, ON M5S 3H1
> ssandahl at sympatico.ca
> stella.sandahl at utoronto.ca
> Tel. (416) 978-4295
> Fax. (416) 978-5711
>