Towards Diligence (रचनासौष्ठवम्)

Rachana Saushtavam (रचनासौष्ठवम्)

Rachana Saushtavam (Samskrit : रचनासौष्ठवम्) refers to the adeptness (skillfulness, excellence) in composing the topics of relevance with the required academic rigour and quality of the work.

Dharmawiki compositions are essentially compilations of subject matter on particular topics. Rachana (रचना । creation) Sausthavam (सौष्ठवम्) here refers 'not to the well being of a new creation' as there is no object of creativity in the Vedas. Numerous concepts available in the ancient texts, hardened over years by commentaries of several maharshis, have to be rightly explored and put together with reference to present days' society and relevance.

Rachana Saushtavam in Dharmawiki refers to the quality goals of the narratives being compiled after Samshodhana (samyak shodhayati) or thorough examination of the original sources. It includes the many 'checks and balances' to prevent bias both in understanding the concepts and the writing (presentation) style. Articles are compiled in simple English and Hindi languages with concepts having references to (as many appropriate) particular pages of primary sources (samskrit texts) directly. Readers can access these sources and verify any reference themselves. The presentation style should

• Be thorough and comprehensive
• Be clear in expression
• Refer to original samskrit source of information
• Carefully weed out extrapolations and psychoanalysis
• Have contextual explanation and references

Any new additions to the reference section may be presented in the Talk and Discussion pages of that article and the team will add them to the main article following a verification process after due diligence. Thus here an academically discussed seed content is presented. A particular example, Karna in Mahabharata is said to be a Suta (सूतः). Suta in the context of Mahabharata is to be taken as "Charioteer" and not "Carpenter" as described in few English translations of Mahabharata.{citation needed}

It may be noted that due to Kalpantara (different kalpas, a time period of Brahma) there exist many versions of the stories mentioned in Itihasas and Puranas. For example we fall back on Valmiki Maharshi's Ramayana as the ultimate reference even though there are many versions of Ramayana. Similarly Vyasa's texts are considered as the standard reference in case of difference of opinions arising in a discussion.

• In the anecdote of Shabari in Ramayana, many folklore versions talk about Shabari offering the fruits to Rama after tasting (and testing) them first. However the Ramayana of Valmiki does not mention it as such. Here while the leading part of the article according to Valmiki Ramayana is taken as a standard, other versions are additionally mentioned.
• The story of Shakuntala has been widely discussed by many scholars. Shakuntala, the lead female character of Kalidasa's Abhijnana Shakuntala is portrayed as a helpless, cursed person dependent on destiny. However in the original story of Mahabharata, Shakuntala is a strong person able to raise her child to be the future Maharaja Bharata. In an article about Shakuntala, the story from Mahabharata forms the primary content. However, the poetic excellence of Mahakavi Kalidasa is highlighted under a separate section with due reference and a note saying that changes in storyline has been made.

So the context has to be brought out appropriately from the original texts, and the other versions may be referred in the main article. However, care should be taken such that the original perspectives of the event or episode is not hijacked by the popular story (thus distorting the original). In light of such appropriate contextualization the Indian Woman is accurately defined by Shakuntala of Mahabharata and not by the Shakuntala of Kalidasa.

Care should be taken to avoid the language used in translations of colonial times as readability is affected. Comprehensiveness of the concept as well as the article is required to ensure academic rigour, where articles are refined over time with many scholarly inputs. Detailed guidelines for Dharmawiki Editors as well as Guest Authors are put in place and are refined over time.