The Greatness of Sanskrit
A Lecture on the Sanskrit Day
at Kuppuswamy Sastri Research Institute, Chennai
on Sep.5, 2000
As early as the sixth century B.C. Panini wrote his famous grammar on the Sanskrit language. Eeven today
it is the standard authority on Sanskrit Grammar. It has been described by even the westerners
as one of the greatest productions of the human mind. The Vyakharana
bhashya of Patanjali of the Sutras of Panini is called a mahabhashya. No other bhashya is called a mahabhashya It is even termed by comparative philologists as the
ideal scientific work. Grammarians have identified Sanskrit to be the mother of
most European languages and traced their development back to this fascinating
language. It is still a live language even though it strictly keeps within the
framework of the grammar prescribed 2600 years ago. Unlike English, Sanskrit has a highly
inflected grammatical structure, which contributes to a great conciseness of
the language What one can express in Sanskrit in one word, an English speaker
often would need four to six or even more words to express the same idea. Try
translating the words: SastrAcAryopadeSa-Sama-damAdi-samskRtaM, gItAmrta-mahodadhih
or even as simple a word as pitR-vAkya-paripAlanam
into English or any other language. It is the root of all Indo-European
languages. In the English language itself we can trace several words back to
Sanskrit. Mosquito from maSaka, sugar
from Sarkara, camphor from karpUra, cash from kArsha, cassiterite (the technical name for tin) from kAnsya and many more. It has no syllable which is indistinct or
unclear. It has no word which cannot be traced to its root. Whatever the word
it can be broken into its syllables to elucidate its meaning. It is a perfectly
refined language and that is why it is called samskRtam.
It is an amazingly rich language, full of luxuriant growth of all kinds.
It is the efflorescence of language. The capability of Sanskrit for precision
can be seen by the numerous bhashyas
and glosses on the various darsanas. Examples from even outside of
religion and vedanta are many. Just to suggest two, here is one on rAga, given by Matanga's brihaddeSI, a musical treatise of the 4th
century A.D.
Yosau
dhvani-viSeshastu svara-varNa-vibhUshitah /
ranjako
jana-cittAnAM sa ca rAga udAhRtaH //
A rAga is that which is
decorated by the tonal excellence of svaras and varNas which decoration gives
pleasure to the mind of the listener.
Here is one on ‘guru’.
gukAraSca
guNAtIto rukAro rUpa-varjitaH /
guNAtItaM
arUpaMca yat-tatvam sa gurus-smRtaH //
The syllable gu stands for guNAtIta, that is, one who transcends
the guNas. The syllable ru stands for rUpa-varjitaH, that is, one who is devoid of form. So that
principle which is guNAtIta and rUpa-varjita is called guru.
The derivation of words from their root syllables is a very fascinating
and instructive exercise. Sanskrit
literature, particularly the religious ones, is replete with such derivations
for almost every word that it uses. It
is in this style that sahasra-nAmas
of the divine for each of its forms arise. Nowhere else in the world literature
do we have anything to match the long streamlined poems , like the Vishnu sahsranAma or lalitA-sahasra-nAma densely packed with
meaning and seemingly endless recitals of the Lord's names glories and
splendours with no sacrifice of poetic grace or elegance. The rhythmic sound
effects and the elevatinbg moods that these stotras generate must be heard and
experienced to be believed. Each name of God in these is a capsule of Divinity
and a scriptural epitome.
It is such a rich language that we always have several words which can
express the same thing or even the same abstract idea. There are several ways
in which this richness reflects. Let me tell you just one instance, by means of
an anecdote, which will also relax you a little from the dense content of this
topic.
The concept of
ambodhir-jaladhiH-payodhir-udadhir-vArAnnidhir-vAridhiH.
The funny (riddle) part of this proposition is that there are six words
in this line of verse, but they all mean the same, namely, ‘ocean’!. The poets of
the assembly including Kalidasa dispersed for the day carrying the uneasy
burden of this nonsensical-like challenge which required to fill three lines of a verse
which in its fourth line did nothing but to repeat the word ‘ocean’ six times. Naturally all except Kalidasa failed to bring
back any worthwhile composition the next day when the assembly reconvened. But
Kalidasa brought a delightful verse which not only filled the King’s
requirement of poetry but also had an enjoyable imagery involving Lord Shiva
and
ambaa kupyati
taata gahane gangeyam utsRjyataaM
vidvan
shhaNmukha kaa gatir-mama-shiras-yaavac-ciraat-aadhRtaat /
kopaaveshhaad-asheshha-vadanaiH
pratyuttaraM dattavaan
ambodhir-jaladhiH-payodhir-udadhir-vaaraanidhir-vaaridhiH
//
Subrahmanya, the little son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, goes and
complains to his father. ‘Father, please get rid of this
In addition to the literary value of this beautiful verse. There is a
certain rlevance here to the concept of One Godhead in Hinduism, inspite of the
many names and forms of God. If the
Sanskrit language had only one word for ‘ocean’ the tantalising riddle of King
Bhoja and the enchanting solution of the poet Kalidasa would both have been
non-existent. It is only when there is multiplicity, diversity, variety there
is life, there is challenge, there is enjoyment. The challenge may be demanding but Hinduism
has not only learnt to live with it but also enjoys it as is evident from the
endless festivals and colourful celebrations with a convenient mixture of
devotion and extravagance, connected with the temples all over India.
Well, let us come back to our main topic of Greatness of Sanskrit. In
the ka-Ta-pa-yA-sankhyA which goes
back to Vararuci, (Cf. AyurarogyasaukhyaM
is the last word of the nArAyaNIyaM, in ordinary Sanskrit means: Longevity, Health
and Happiness, but in the codeed scheme it gives a number. From this they
calculate it was completed on the 17,12,210 th day of
kaliyuga). the same numeral is
represented by more than one consonant so that in the use of the sankhyA the freedom to use any one of
the different consonants for the same numeral enables the user to
introduce a touch of poetry in his symbolism.
So even in subjects like Mathematics which are far removed from poetry
the subject matter is fully dealt with
using good poetry.
The influence of the two great epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, from the
originals themselves is great. Valmiki and Vyasa are the two great authors in
the whole history of mankind who have influenced the largest number of people
for the longest period of time. Not only that. In translations and adaptations
and in innumerable ways of spreading tradition and legends they have become a
part of the texture of people's life in
Take Sanskrit Drama. Even in the
3rd century Natya Sastra had been written. It could only have been
written if the dramatic art was fully developed and public representations of
the art were common even before that time. This itself shows not only the
ancientness but the greatness of the Sanskrit drama. Life in
Indian art and Sanskrit poetry have been
appreciated in superlative words
by every one over the centuries who have understood the ideals behind them. There was a parallel intention in all these to make the central ideas of religion and
philosophy intelligible to the masses. That this is so can be inferred from the
fact that the Indian peasantry, though illiterate in the Western sense are
among the most cultured of their class anywhere in the world. To express the
essential harmony of man with nature and the universe - this is the
undercurrent of much of art and poetry.
Remember culture and language are inseparable. Reviving Sankrit is to
rejuvenate Indian culture. It is well known that
The momentous invention of zero and the place value system was not just
the erratic invention of some crazy individual. It evolved over a long time and
it was a product of the social milieu and the demands of the times. Even as far
back as the vedic times, the powers of ten upto 17th power was in vogue.
The very fact that they thought in terms of powers of 10 itself shows that the
idea of representing everything with ten symbols for the ten digits must have
been in the air.
The richness of Sanskrit in technical literature is certainly obvious by
the storehouse of knowledge, in the Sanskrit language, of Ayurveda, Music,
Dance, chemical engineering (as shown in the manufacture of crystal cane sugar,
making of camphor), building and architecture, and algorithmic calculations (as
exemplified by calculations almost like modern algorithms in computer science,
very easily done by the works on astronomy and astrology, and certainly
Mathematics). Just as an illustration of the profuseness of technical
mathematical literature, let me cite Aryabhatiya of the 5th century
A.D. for which, in the next seven centuries seven commentaries sprang up, each
one great in its own way. The first was by Bhaskara I, 7th century,
the next by Somesvara (available in the Bombay University Library), the next by
Prabhakara of the 8th century, the next by Suryadeva Yajva, the next
by Paramesvara, published and printed in Holland, and the next by Nilakanta
Somayaji publ;ished by Trivandrum Sanskrit Series.
The legacy that Sanskrit has left us is not just
Even the very verbs that are used emphasize the stable state rather than
the moving vibrational dynamic restless stage. For example, the root bhU
denotes being rather than becoming. Being is existence. Becoming is
changing, to a state from which we have to come back to the stable stage once
again. To express the idea of change
with the root bhU one has to say
something like anyathA bhavati. In Sanskrit an adjective is used that is static in feeling to express an idea which
might take a verb in English or other languages. For example to bring the idea
of a sense of flux English would use a specific verb, saying: All things flow.
The corresponding idea would be expressed in Sanskrit as sarvam anityam meaning: all existences are impermanent. Thus
everything is comprehended through their static aspects. This reflects the
whole philosophy behind the culture. What separates, what changes is not
emphasized. What is stable what is
unchanging through time, that is focussed.
Today there is tremendous international interest in the science of yoga,
meditation, eastern philosophy, stress management, holistic medicine -- all of
which has roots in Sanskrit literature. Recently in July 81 adults and children
gathered for 9 days in
The Atharva Veda has a beautiful couplet on the true spirit of
humanness. Expressed three millenia ago it is still valid and is as fresh as if
it was said on the birth of this new millenium, that started only a few months ago:
We are the birds of the same nest;
We may wear different skins;
We may speak different languages;
We may believe in different religions;
We may belong to different cultures;
Yet we share the same home - OUR EARTH.
Born on the same planet
Covered by the same skies
Gazing at the same stars
Breathing the same air
We must learn to happily progress together
Or miserably perish together,
For man can live individually,
But can survive only collectively.
It is this spirit of humanness that has been the undercurrent. It is
this spirit which has found expression in the philosophies, in non-violence,
religious tolerance, renunciation and also in temporal achievements in all areas
of science and technology - Achievements which did not remain limited to
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