Sanskrit and Bharat (संस्कृतं भारतञ्च)
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Sanskrit was not just the medium of communication, it was the language of Science, knowledge, education and more in Ancient Bharata. With the emergence of Macaulay's minutes in 1835, Sanskrit was replaced by English.
Bharata was never a single language speaking nation. It was always a multi-lingual civilization. All Indian languages co-existed, complemented and supplemented each other. There was a give and take, not just of words but even thoughts.
Many words in Indian languages have a Sanskrit origin. Their sentence construction, phonetics, arrangement of letters, were all similar. There was oneness amongst the languages that facilitated homogeneity in knowledge. Thus, from the time of creation until now, Sanskrit has been the thread binding the civilization of Bharata together.
Sanskrit literature, Adhyatmik knowledge and Indian knowledge systems are the binding agents of Bharata. Sanskrit language and the common thoughts across Indian languages are foundational to the unity and integrity of Bharata. Though the languages are many, the sentiments are unified. And Sanskrit is instrumental in unifying Bharata.
Sanskrit is important to understand the nation of Bharata.
’भा’ इत्युक्ते प्रकाशः ज्ञानम् वा । भायां नाम ज्ञाने रतः तल्लीनः वा इति भारतशब्दस्य व्युत्पत्तिः ।
Bharata is always ज्ञाननिष्ठ/ज्ञानरत; it is essentially a society immersed in knowledge.
Therefore, the revival of Sanskrit language is the reawakening of the knowledge tradition.
What is the Indian Knowledge System ?
Different systems like Nyaya Vyavastha, Arthika Vyavastha, Prashasana Vyavastha, Shikshana Vyavastha, Samajika Vyavastha, Kutumba Vyavasta, etc. hold a civilisation together. And knowledge stands as the atman within these syatems.
What is that knowledge ?
It is the knowledge of adhyatma or bharatiya darshana. And that resides within the systems of the society in the form of 'Prana'.
What is a shastra ?
It is a branch of knowledge. There are various branches of Indian knowledge such as Vedanta, Ayurveda, Yoga, Natya, Artha, etc. The one amsha or characteristic common to these is adhyatma or darshana that inclusive of the knowledge of creation, paramatma-jivatma sambhandha, etc. Darshana pervades all branches of knowledge be it music, dance, yoga, ayurveda or vedanta itself. It brings about balance in the society.
Adhyatma and dharma are indigenous to Bharata; it stands on the foundation of Dharma.
Dharma is the behaviour required for a well-run and happy society. It is that which is required for the peaceful and happy living of everyone in the society. It is said, धारणात् धर्मः इत्याहुः ।
Meaning: That which holds viz. the person, family, society, institution, country, science, all living beings, the creation and the environment. That which enables the sustenance of all living beings, environment, the creation itself is dharma. Accordingly, dharma manifests in various forms such as personal, societal, special, national, etc.
The motto of the Parliament is धर्मचक्रप्रवर्तनाय ।
The Supreme court's slogan says, यतो धर्मस्ततो जयः ।
In chapter 18 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says, धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय ।
This dharma is to be protected and followed. But first, that dharma is to be understood.
It is a non-translatable with no synonym.
Infact, many Sanskrit words do not have synonyms in other languages.
For eg. Papa is sometimes loosely translated as sin. But what is the english counterpart to Punya ? There is none. For, the concept itself is alien to the English culture.
Similarly, Naivedya, Prasada, Abhisheka, Tirtha etc are all indigenous to Bharata. They are thoughts and principles stemming from Sanskrit and do not have english counterparts. Thousands of such concepts are unique to Sanskrit and dharma is one among them that is to be understood. And having understood the intricacies of dharma, it is to be implemented in individual, familial and social life.
By dharmasamsthapana is meant reinstating dharma in all shastras like science, education, governance, trade and commerce, etc.
(This can be achieved through studying Sanskrit.)
Through the medium of Sanskrit and by studying the sanskrit language we must understand and propogate the Bharatiya Jnana Parampara.
(Sanskrit was not just the medium of communication, it was the language of Science, knowledge, education and more in Ancient Bharata. With the emergence of Macaulay's minutes in 1835, Sanskrit was replaced by English. It is not about a resistance to English. The multi-lingual heritage of India is proof that Bharata has never been a language-despiser (despised languages). May all languages exist. However,)
Since Sanskrit-based learning system has fallen behind in the formal education system, there is a gap that has arisen between Sanskrit and modern learning. That needs to be filled. Sanskrit schools, colleges and universities should engage in the teaching of modern subjects while the modern educational institutes should teach Sanskrit.
Navotthana, Purautthana
Social, Samskrtika, Arthika, Dharmik, Adhyatmik, Educational Renaissance - multifaceted reformation.
1835 - Macaulay minutes
2035 - 200 yrs of Macauly
To change that before 2035 - 10 yrs action plan.
What encompasses Sanskrit learning?
- Language
- Arthashastra
- Arogyashastra
- Nyaya
- Vidhi
- Shilpa
- Sangeeta
- Kala
All branches of knowledge have sanskrit texts of ancient times. They should be studies.
In ancient times the groupings (of knowledge texts) were different as compared to the groupings of knowledge texts today.
Puranas - we think it is a collection of stories on gods and goddesses; they were created to acquaint common people with the tattvas darshanas siddhantas and vicharas in the Vedas.
When we study the Puranic shlokas
shlokas relating to 18 modern subjects were found in the study on Agni Purana carried out in Shringeri.
like Mathematics, Geography, environment, psychology, vedanta, shilpa, medicine, etc.
When scholars from these fields study the Puranas carefully, many more such fields can be identified; those shlokas that seem to be an instance of adhyatma or vedanta in the first reading, when read sukshmatya, their hidden meanings may ne revealed.
Until now, veda mantras and shastra granthas have been studied from the perspective of adhyatma, but there is a need to be re-studied them from the scientific lens with the needs of the current times in mind.
Jnana anveshana vyavastha, Jnana anveshana paddhati - thats there in the vedas can be useful even today.
eg. lakshana parishkara - in nyaya shastra.
lakshana of a padartha should be dosha rahita.
3 types of dosha in definition
avyapti
ativyapti
abhava
modern definitions should be rdefined on the basis of lakshana parishkara - it is a defining tool (nyaya shastra). Similarly many such thought can be mined.
Sambhashanatah Shastra paryantam adhyayanam bhavet and through the study of Sanskrit language, the heart and atman of bharata may be revived making it samrddha, sashaktam, guru sthanam prapnuyat - that should be our aim. On the foundation of sanskrit, dharma, adhyatma and language we should bring one and all together and facilitate the bhava aikya to bharata, bhasha punarutthanam, samskritika punarutthanam will follow. Bharata's navotthanam bhavet
Sanskrit was once the most influential literary language in India, and texts written in the language could be understood by millions of people throughout the South Asian world. These texts contain profound meditations on every point on the spectrum of human concern: existence, reality, God, love, duty, marriage, war, death, violence, laughter, beauty, perception, nature, anatomy, urbanity, ritual, desire, food, purpose, meaning, and language, among hundreds of others. Moreover, Sanskrit texts are the repository of non-modern modes of thought, and they present distinct conceptions of the world that are often at odds with the understanding we have today. By learning how people used to think, we better understand both ourselves and the world we have inherited.