Sanskrit Language is
Divine; Is Tamil too ?
(Compilation
for a discourse by N. R. Srinivasan, Nashville, TN, USA, September 2014)
PREAMBLE
Sanskrit is the only language that is not named after the people who speak the language and therefore is not a mother tongue of anybody and is Divine. Historians say People during the Vedic period transacted in this language and tradition maintains that it is the language of the Devas or Gods. Subhashita Ratna says: “Bhaashaasu mukhyaa madhuraa divyaa geervaana bhaaratee”--Among all the languages Sanskrit is the sweetest, most important and divine. The word geervana bharatee refers to Sanskrit.
The art of writing was known even during the Vedic age though
memorization was preferred and encouraged.
It is presumed that Braahmee script as well as Kharoshthi existed even
before the Vedic period. Both Sanskrit referred as Devanagari and Tamil scripts
are evolved out of Braahmee script. Braahmee is presumed to be introduced by
Brahama the creator called Brahmalipee to the celestial sages who developed
grammatical Sanskrit. The word Samskrit is made from two words Sam+krit. Sam means completely or perfectly and krit means done. It has been anglicized
to Sanskrit. Sanskrit is celebrated as celestial language or Deva-vaani and the
script Devanaagari.
Since the Vedas employed words in aphorisms or sutras being
brief and tight in linguistic logic for easy memorization as means of knowledge,
great care was taken to evolve a system of phonetics, grammar, prosody,
etymology etc., built into the language to make it perfect to convey the
original intent of the aphorisms. Thus Sanskrit language is unique compared to
the latter ancient and scriptural languages like Greek,
Hebrew and Latin etc. Sages developed Vedangas literally meaning the limbs of
Vedas or assist that made possible proper understanding of Vedas. Of the six
Vedangas four relate to language direct. These are Siksha (phonetics),
Vyaakarana (Grammar), Prosody (Chandas) and Etymology (Nirukti).
Lord Siva in his cosmic dancing form of Nataraja produced
fourteen different sounds in succession as stated in Puranas. These fourteen beats revealed fourteen
aphorisms known as Maheswara sutras in letter form. They contain forty three
Sanskrit letters organized in particular order. Do they represent forty three
Triangles of Srichakra? I can’t tell! These letters again are believed to be of
divine origin. These Sutras or aphorisms are the foundation of Panini’s Grammar
on which modern Sanskrit Grammar is based.
Manusmriti says all world languages originated from Sanskrit
and even today some words in all languages can be traced back to Sanskrit.
Sanskrit is therefore called Mother of all Languages. Phonology and morphology
of Sanskrit is Unique for the following reasons:
1.
- 1. Sanskrit was the first language of the world with absolute perfection by its own nature and formation of vowels, consonants and conjunct-consonants. Modern languages are also based on this concept.
- . Its morphology of word formation is unique with dhatu (root), noun and pronoun forms and verb forms.3.
- Sanskrit Grammar has withstood the test of times from where Panini established it for the first time needing little or no modification.
- Vedic Sanskrit language started before all other ancient languages of the world—Greek, Hebrew, Latin etc.
- . Sanskrit words are found in all languages of the world not vice-versa which shows other languages heavily depended on Sanskrit language for their development.
SANSKRIT ALPHABETS
One of the most intriguing and interesting aspect of Hindu Vedic thought relates to Philosophy of numbers and alphabets. Vedas, Upanishads and Bhagavadgeeta glorify alphabet as Supreme Being (Brahman). Mantras on deities are expressed as mantras in number form or letters. We have several mantras called Ekaaksharee (one letter), Panchaaksharee (five letters), Ashtaaksharee (eight letters), Dwadasaksharee (12 letters), Shodasaaksharee (16 letters), Chatur-vimsat-aksharee (twenty-four letters) etc., which every religious Hindu is familiar with. Scriptures (Chamakam, Bhagavadgeetaa etc.) ask us to meditate on letters (Om; Hreem) and numbers (odd and even) as mystery of Brahman is hidden in these mantras that call for proper explanation and understanding. Since the Vedas are in Sanskrit these are Sanskrit letters only. Numbers became universal in application which had their origin in Hinduism including zero or Poornam out of which 1 to 9 were taken away and popularized by Arabs. They were called Arabic numbers to distinguish them from Roman numbers by Westerners at that time. We are dealing with alphabets only in this discourse. We have dealt on the divinity of numbers elsewhere. Some of the mantras and couplets that refer to divine nature of Sanskrit letters and its grammar are:
One of the most intriguing and interesting aspect of Hindu Vedic thought relates to Philosophy of numbers and alphabets. Vedas, Upanishads and Bhagavadgeeta glorify alphabet as Supreme Being (Brahman). Mantras on deities are expressed as mantras in number form or letters. We have several mantras called Ekaaksharee (one letter), Panchaaksharee (five letters), Ashtaaksharee (eight letters), Dwadasaksharee (12 letters), Shodasaaksharee (16 letters), Chatur-vimsat-aksharee (twenty-four letters) etc., which every religious Hindu is familiar with. Scriptures (Chamakam, Bhagavadgeetaa etc.) ask us to meditate on letters (Om; Hreem) and numbers (odd and even) as mystery of Brahman is hidden in these mantras that call for proper explanation and understanding. Since the Vedas are in Sanskrit these are Sanskrit letters only. Numbers became universal in application which had their origin in Hinduism including zero or Poornam out of which 1 to 9 were taken away and popularized by Arabs. They were called Arabic numbers to distinguish them from Roman numbers by Westerners at that time. We are dealing with alphabets only in this discourse. We have dealt on the divinity of numbers elsewhere. Some of the mantras and couplets that refer to divine nature of Sanskrit letters and its grammar are:
1. Aksharaanaam akaarosmi dwandah saamaasikasya
cha | (Bhagavadgeetaa)
Of letters I am The
first short vowel a
in Sanskrit alphabet and of
compound words I am dwanda-samasa (Dual-words compound) in
Sanskrit Grammar.
2. Om ityekaaksharam
| Om tad Brahma || (Mahanaarayana
Upanishad or MNU)
The single syllable Om (in Sanskri) is Brahman.
3. Aksharam Brahmasamhitam |--Praatar-aaposana mantra (MNU)
This appears as a part of praatar-aaposana
(sipping of water in the morning) mantra of Sandhyavnadana
(daily prayer). This mantra refers
to letters as Brahman meaning “this one of the form of Varna or letters is
equal to Brahman”
4.
aa
idam tadakshare parame Vyoman
(MNU)
Here parama vyoman
refers to Akshara (letter) Brahman which has no other cause or support. Aa in the mantra is the vocabulary aah in Vedic mantra which is the Vedic variant
of Aaseet pronounced while offering
oblation Swaaha. Aah is vowel aa
accompanied by half-moon- period as in Om.
5.
Ksharah sarvaani bhootaani kootasthah akshara uchyate | (Geetaa)
All creatures together constitute the Kshara-purusha or
constant changing entity and the Changeless in all creatures is the A-kshara-purusha,
Changeless Entity or Imperishable or Brahman.
Brahman being a Changeless Entity is addressed as Aksharah.
Legal minded people always say put it in writing. When anything is written down
it becomes a permanent record or imperishable proof. So the alphabets in Sanskrit are called
Akshara or that which is not perishable with which attribute we glorify Brahman
and meditate on Brahman.
6. Aham Brahama, Brahma=aham (Mahavakya says aham means Brahma. In reality aham itself is Symbolic. Sanskrit
letters beginning with vowel a
and ending with
consonant
ha which includes Ardhachandra Bindu (Half Moon period)to close
the sound is send to be the field (Kshetra) of Kshetrjna (Brahma).
The immanent spiritual energy manifests itself as fifty
letters of the Sanskrit alphabet (panchaasad-varnaroopinee).
The vowels, also known as matrices (maatrikaas) are of the nature of Sakti, while the consonants
(varnas) are of the nature of Siva. The union of the two is illustrated in the
seed-syllable (beejaakshara) which is employed in the mantras. The letters
themselves are mantras.
Akaarah sarva-varnaargyah
prakaasah paramah sivah |
Hakaaro antyah kalaaroopo
vimarsaakhyah prakeertitah ||
Ato akaara hakaarabhyam
ahamitya prithaktayaa |
Prapancham sivasaktibhyaam
kreedeekritya prakasate ||
Kakaaradi
kshakaaraantaa-varnaas-te sivarooppinah
Akaaraadi visargaantaa svaraaha
shodasa saktayah ||
Sivasaktimayaah
varnaahsabdhaartapratipaadikaah |
Sivah svara paraadheenoe na
swatantrah kadaapyasau ||
The universe is bound by the dimensions of its un-manifest
origin Siva on the one hand and by the dimension of its manifest passing out
and absorption (Sakti) on the other hand,
are illustrated by letters
beginning with alphabet a and ending with ha. The initial letter stands for the manifesting
consciousness (prakaasa) of Siva and
the final letter for the reviewing energy (vimarsa)
of Sakti.
The consonants by themselves are impossible to articulate
meaningfully vocalize without the aid of vowels. That is why the vowels are
called Uyir
Ezhuttu or life letter
in Tamil. The Consonants accommodated in the alphabet are therefore are
invariably dependent on vowels as Sakti on Siva (ik+a=ka; im+a=ma etc.). They are called Mai Ezhuttu or body (sarira) letters in Tamil.
Consonants are dependent on vowels as Siva on Sakti to be effective. The vowels provide power to the consonants
which are in the nature of mere seeds (beeja).
Going through the discourses on even and odd numbers in
Chamakam as well as the transcendental mathematical symbol Pi my
thoughts began to focus on Sanskrit alphabets. Sanskrit letters are called
Devanagari Script and hailed as Varnamaalaa. Deva means divine and naagari that which comes from city. So Devanaagri
means the language of divine citizens. Varnamaalaa means garland of letters. We are
often told that the mantras chanted in Sanskrit alone take us to divine
heights. Also we know words are
identified with numbers in Hindu scriptures often. It all started with Tadekam (that ONE) in Rigveda. Here one
stands for Brahman, Supreme Being. It is
then worth examining why Hindus consider Sanskrit as divine? Of course Tamils
have their own pride. They say Tamil is also of Braahmee origin. Sanskrit came much later and Tamil is quite
independent of Sanskrit. They have their
own Tamil Vedas too. A Tamil poet laments:
“Chaturmarai
Aariyar varumun sahamuzhutum ninadaayin mudu-mozhi nee anaathaiyena kaanbadum
viyappaame”—long before
the Aryans of four Vedas came whole world was pervaded by you. It is a pity you are an orphan today. Indians believe all other languages are
dependent on Sanskrit or they are dialects of Sanskrit.
Sanskrit alphabets in grammar contain 13 vowels (achah or swaraah) and 33 consonants (halah
or Vyanjanaani) making it 46. Besides
the above 46 letters there are two more sounds known as Anuswara (period or dot
on the letter) and Visarga (:). That brings the total to 48. Hindu scriptures talk
of 50 or 51 letters in Sanskrit. Some like Arsha Vidya Gurukul mention even 54
letters.
48 letters consist of 13 vowels+25 consonants+4 semi vowels (ya,
ra, la, va) called Antahstaah + 3 sibilants (s.a as in sankh, sha, sa) called Ushmaanah + 1 Aspirate (ha). Scriptures added to them cerebral
hard ‘la’ which you find in the Tamil word aval
and conjunct consonant Ksha.
Making it 50. Some scriptures also add the sound of the semi-circular dot (ardha chandra bindu) or half-moon-dot (hereafter referred to as hmb)
nasal sound which you usually find on the sacred symbol letter Om. 54 letters consists of adding two
more conjunct consonants tra, jnya and a lengthened vowel of lr. Japamaala
(meditational
beads held together in a circular
form by a string) contains 108 beads or 54 beads. “The Sanskrit alphabet called Aksharamaala contains 54 letters to some. Repeated forward and backward, the total is
108 in a 54 bead necklace. As any name
of the Lord, whether known or unknown, is included within these letters (ashtottara sata naamaavali) the number
108 represents the Lord” says the instructional book of Balvihar of Arsha Vidya
Gurukulam. Though a bit over-stretched there are many who feel so. 54 letters
of Sanskrit are supposed to be represented by the Japamaala which contains often 54 beads or occasionally 108 but worn short practically in two rounds of 54
which are held together with a central bead
called Meru bead. In Pradosham
worship circumambulation is done by
going forward and backward in a semicircle as in 54 beads Japamala to count 108
and so going forth and backward is permitted. Even otherwise Bhagavdgeeta says: “aksharaanaam akaarosmi” among the
alphabet I am the first letter “a”. Brahman is addressed as “Aksharah”
and “Aham” (aham brahmaasmi) in Upanishds and Vedas. So we have
references to Sanskrit alphabet as containing 48, 50, 51 and 54. Lalitaasahasranaamam contains two mantras; “Om Maatrikavarna-roopinyai Namah” (577)
and “Om Varnaroopinyai Namah” (850)
thereby addressing Goddess as the very form of all the letters in Sanskrit.
Out of the 13 vowels five vowels are called short vowels a, i, u, ri, lr or hrasvah and the rest eight long vowels called deerghah. The thirty three consonants (halah or Vynjanas) are in
eight groups: 1) Gluttarals or Kanthyaah or Ka-varga;
2) Palatals or Taalbyaah or Cha-varga; 3) Linguals or Moordhnyah or Ta-varga; 4) Dentals or Dantyaah or Tha-varga; 5) Labials or Oshathyah or Pa-varga 6) Antahsthaah or semi-vowels (ya ra,la and va) 7) Ushmaanah or Sibilants and 8) Aspirate ha going with Visargah. The consonants assume their full form only
with the help of Vowels. For example, im+a=ma
VOWELS ARE BACKBONE
OF LETTERS AND AUM IN TURN BACKBONE OF
VOWELS
The philologists believe all the vowels have emerged from AUM.
They strongly assert that if one concentrates
and repeats the vowels A E I O U, the sound AUM can be heard resonating very clearly. The consonants are
considered to be images and reflections only of the primordial sound AUM. AUM is considered to be the source of all alphabets in Sanskrit and
the source of all the languages. The views of philologists on vowels and consonants
agree with that of spiritual thinkers. “Aum is the universal formulation of the
energy of sound and speech, that which contains and sums up, synthesizes and
releases, all the spiritual power and all the potentiality of Vak (speech) and Sabda (sound)” says Aurobindo.
DIVINITY OF LETTERS
Bhagavadgeeta says that God is in everything sentient and
non-sentient echoing Upanishads: “Yo maam pasyati sarvatra sa
sarvancha mayi pasyati”--He
who sees me everywhere sees everything exists in me. This view is well expressed in the Hindu
thought on Philosophy of Language. Aksharamaala
or Varnamaala of Sanskrit is considered divine by the scriptures as revealed in
Srichakra and Vishnuchakra described at length in the discourses “Srividya and
Sri Lalita” and “Srichakras of Sri Lalita and Brahmachakra of Prabrahman”. 50 or 51 letters in Mantra Rahasya of
Srichakra are called Matrikaas. These
are 16 vowels and 33 consonants and transcendental (hmb m). The first letter is short a and the last letter is ha. First letter (a) represents Siva and last letter (ha) represents Sakti. Together along
with transcendental (hmb m) they constitute aham (ahamtaa, the
concept of I), which is Supreme Reality. The vowels from the short a to the unmodified nasal m (in
aham), fifteen or sixteen in number, are considered as male principle of
Siva, the foundational and content-less Consciousness. The first letter is
crystal colored representing all pervasiveness and the last letter is red representing creativity.
Ya eko a-varno bahudhaa saktiyogaan varnaan anekaan nihitaartho dadhaati
|| Sv. Up. 4.1 ||
The one a-kaara in which the Supreme Brahman is enshrined creates many letters on account of its association with power. a is the origin for all consonants(ik+a is ka). Akaara (the letter a ) signifies Supreme Brahman. All speech is said to have letter a as its source. Just as akaara produces different letters the Supreme Brahman creates the world of many varnas.
From the five of the short vowels mentioned above the first
five groups of consonants (Ka- varga to Pa-varga) are evolved.
The first five groups of consonants represent the twenty-five Principles of existence as follows:
Kavarga—reprents Pancha Mahabhutas or five elements—earth, water, fire, air and space (aakaasa).
Chavarga—represents the pure condition of the same five elements called Tanmatras in bare form.
Tavarga—represents five organs of action—speech, prehension, locomotion, excretion and reproduction.
Thavarga—represents five sense organs—vision, audition, olfaction, gustation and tactual.
Pavarga— represents Manas (mind), Ahamkara (ego), Buddhi (intellect), Prakriti the female principle of action and Purusha (male principle of undifferentiated and inspiring Consciousness).
The semi-vowels ya
and s.a (as in Siva) are formed from Cha; la, and sa are
formed from Tha; va is formed from ta and pa together; and the soft breathing ha is formed from Visargah (:). That is why ha is called aspirate being formed from
visargah.
Of the four semi-vowels ya
represents raaga (attachment), ra represents Vidya (knowledge), la represents
Kalaa (art) and va represents Maaya
(illusion). The three sibilants s.a, sha,
sa and aspirate ha represent the
Principles Mahaamaaya, Suddhavidya, Isvara and Sadaasiva.
The Sanskrit word Aham
formed by the first short vowel a and
the lost consonant ha pervaded by the
ardha chandra bimba nasal sound (hmb m)
means (aham--I) or ego which pervades the entire
visible world of expression and experience.
Brahma
chakra described in Svetasvatara Upanishad identifies 50 Sanskrit letters with
50 spokes of the wheel. The rim of the wheel is Prakriti (that is Sakti or
primordial matter). In fact
it is strongly believed Brahma Chakra and Sri Chakra are the same and Sri
Chakra is an enlarged three dimensional view of Brahamachakra. Ashokachakra in Indian National Flag has 24
Spokes. Asoka Chakra is an adoption of
Dharmachakra of Buddha. Asoka Chakra
which appears in the Indian National Flag has 24 spokes. Later Buddhists followers during Asoka’s time
interpreted 12 out 24 spokes as representing twelve casual links to life taught
by Buddha. These are: 1. Avidyaa (lack of spiritual knowledge; 2) Samskaara
(sacrament); 3) Vijnaana (Consciousness);
4) Naamaroopa (name and form); 5)
Shadyaatana (six sense including mind); (6) Sparsa (contact); (7) Vedanaa
(Pain); (8) Trishnaa (Thirst); 9) Upaadaana
(Seeking alms); 10) Bhaava (existing) 11) Jaati (Birth in specific
society) and 12) Jaraa-marana (old age and death). These 12 together with the reflection on the
other side constituted 24 Dhamma or Life (in Pali language). Probably these 24
represents 24 aspects of the Sun.
Buddhist explanation of 24 spokes in Ashoka Chakra is actually 12 on one
side and the mirror image of 12 on the other side, making it, 24.
Extending this
Buddhist explanation above to Asokachakra
Hindus may explain this twenty-four spokes to be representing 48 letters
of Sanskrit which 48 symbolizes Supreme Principle (Kshetra of Akshara of Ksherjana).
Svetasvatara Upanishad describes Brhamachakra of 50 spokes which includes in
addition to 48 alphabets Bindu (.) and Visarga (:) which are not alphabets.
Sanskrit language has 48 alphabets from A to Ha which represents Supreme Principle
who is described as aksharah and aham as contained in Mahavakya aham Brahmaasmi. The consonants ka to Bha containing 24 alphabets are also
said to symbolize 24 aspects of Sun according to Hindu Scriptures. 16 vowels
represent Moon the transcendental aspect of Brahman. The consonants from ma to the last letter ha are ten aspects of Fire. Parabrahman is also called Rudra and
glorified with Panchabrahma Mantras in MNU. Sun, Moon and Fire are the three eyes of
Parabrahman or Rudra praised in Vedas in Rudraprasna. It is therefore logical
to conclude that Asokachakra lends itself more towards Brahmachakra than Buddhist
Dharmachakra. The forty-eight spokes of the wheel back and forth together represent
48 alphabets of Sanskrit or Parabrahman. 24 spokes could also represent 24
hours in a day and the wheel Kaalachakra whose custodian is Kaala or Time that
is Brahman which is in continuous forward motion as a wheel. It is likely 24
aspects of Sun represented by consonants Ka to Bha might have given the idea for
Western astronomers to divide a day into 24 equal divisions moving away from 30
Muhurtas for a day as originally thought by
ancient Hindu astrologers.
In Sakta concept the first short
vowel a is Siva and the last letter ha is
Sakti. Together they constitute aham
with transcendent hmb
(half-moon bindu) expressive of Supreme Reality. This should be differentiated
from aham characteristic in individual often translated
as ego. When it refers to individual the aham
contains Bindu Anuswara sound which
closes the lips and not the transcendental half-moon bindu m
referred in Srichakra. In Srividya there is neither Vachya nor Vaachaka,
expression or expresser. Both expression and expresser are considered as one
entity. The fifteen vowels that include nasal sound m are considered as one entity or
Taatva. The thirty-six letters
containing 35 consonants and all vowels taken as one of the Sanskrit alphabet
correspond to the 36 Principles or Tattvas that constitutes the universe and
its function. That is why Bhagavadgeeta
says that Brahman is Alphabet or Akshara. The vowels are said to provide power
(Sakti) to the consonants which are in the nature of seeds or Beeja. All the fifty letters from a to ksha represent Sakti while ka to ksha are specifically beejaaksharas
representing Siva. ik+a =ka represents Siva and Sakti union. So consonants are also
associated with vowels all the time for their articulation.
We have fifteen days in a fortnight. These are fifteen vowels. The thirty seventh sound hmb-m makes the letters energized
to Maatrika (mother like). That is why this sound is called Chandra bindu, the
moon period, as the one you see in symbol Om which is transcendental. Moon has fifteen phases or Tithis during each
fortnight, the sixteenth phase being transcendental and unchanging which is
responsible for his repeated
The letters of the alphabet are also identified with various aspects of the divinity. The short vowel a constitutes head the long vowel aa face and back of the head. The short
e and the long ee the two eyes; the short u and the long oo
the two
ears: the short ri and the
long ree the two nostrils; the short lr and long lrr the
two cheeks; ae and ai the two sets of teeth; oe and
ou the two lips; the period am
the tongue and the visarga ah the neck. The consonants constitute
the body (in Tamil Mai or body); the tavarga
and thavarga feet; pa and pha the two arm pits; ba, bha
and ma tactile sensations, navel and heart. The other consonants are vital
currents (Pancha Praanas) inside the
body. Thus Microcosm (human body) is identified with Macrocosm (divinity).
Bindu in Srichakra is in the form of a triangle. The three
angles of the triangle also represent three forms of speech—Pasyanti, Madhyama
and Vaikharee. The triangle is therefore called Vagbhaava or speech born reflecting
the concept of language. The form of the triangle, representing the union of
Siva and Sakti, is suggested by the way in which the diphthong vowel ae (e as in end
bit lengthened, aye) is
written in Sanskrit. This vowel is formed by combining two vowel sounds a and e. The letter ae in the written form symbolizes the triangle of
Vidya comprehending the
three-fold liberations: voidness,
wishless and signless.
The conception of the Mother as the Supreme Principle brought
into worship a complex of mother goddesses, as Maatrikas. Devanagari script is believed to be divine and its first vowel
letter a
is considered as Purusha and the last consonant ha is Prakriti as revealed in Vedas and Geeta, where Brahman is addressed as Akshara or the alphabet. The entire 50 letters are
considered as Universe are as Kshetra of Kshetrajna adding two more letters
hard la and
Ksha
to 48 letters of Sanskrit Grammar. Sakta
followers in Kerala and Tamil Nadu who follow a middle path called this wheel
Srichakra and the letters Matrikas. 43
triangles +1 circle+ 1 Square+ 4 gates+ 1 period correspond to 50 Letters or
Matrikas in Sanskrit. Similarly 50 Spokes of Brahma chakra and one rim in
Svetasvatara Upanishad refer to 51 letters of Sanskrit. Soundarya
Lahari is a divine scripture of Sri Lalita by Sankara edited and enlarged by
him. It is effectively employed in
Sakti worship of Srichakra with Vedic approach based on Atharva Veda
mainly and also on Yajurveda. It throws light on the 50 Matrikas or 50 Sanskrit
letters. Please note the emphasis on
Akshara (letter) in all these nomenclatures. There are number
of just letter-mantras (not words of letter like the above mentioned mantras)
for Srividya worship. South India is
strong in Srividya while Kashmir is in Kaula Sampradya. Perhaps many of you may know good
many Kashmir Pandits are called Kauls meaning thereby followers of Kaula
Sampradya or Tradition of Siva-Sakti Worship. In Lalita Sahasranaama, out of 51 letters of
Sanskrit which they call Matrikas only 32 letters have been used, first five
vowels along with (hmb) m and the rest consonants.
WHY TAMIL IS DIVINE
Tamils also think their Tamil language is divine. They always
compare the Tamil letter O with the
trunk of Ganesha and make their own version of symbol Om with Tamil O and
Half-moon Period. Tamil has 36 letters after absorbing 5 letters from Grantha
to facilitate quoting terms of Sanskrit Veda. The last vowel in Tamil language
is called akh. This is in the form of a triangle with single
dot as apex and bottom two dots separated from each other equal distance from
the top dot. This represents the eye of
Siva as fire, Moon and Sun. This is the mystic letter of Tamil. Tamil has no
separate sound anuswara (.) but
anuswara is invariably used on all consonants as in Tamil word Avan. This is achieved by the convergence
of three dots to one in the last sound letter vowel Akh. Akh is also the symbol
of Devi as it represents Moon, Sun and Fire symbolizing Icchasakti, Kriyaasakti
and Jnaanasakti. The long vowel ae (as eni in Tamil) is similar to Sanskrit
long vowel ae. Sanskrit ae resembles triangle and symbolizes power of Brahma the
creator and Mother Goddess Sakti. Tamil equivalent ae letter is even better and resembles
triangle and so is divine say the Tamils.
Tamil language has 12 vowels and one sound known as akh in the form of three periods in
triangular form. It has in all 18 consonants making 31 letters.
Later 5 letters have been added ja,
sha, sa, ha, ksha to bring divinity
into it. Ksha here is necessary to
depict akshra (Brahman) among the
alphabet as the ruling Principle and make letters divine representing Universal
Brahman. With short vowel a and consonant ha and nasal akh, its aham depiction is also complete. Surprisingly Tamil has ideally 36 letters to
represent 36 Tattvas unlike Sanskrit which has packed all vowels to one to make
the total 36. Its total alphabet of 36 letters
may be interpreted as the thirty-six principles
(tattvas) that underline the constitution and function of the Universe as
described in Srichakra. In Srividya concept all letters are Maatrikas. Perhaps
the one alphabet that does not fall within the scope is the sound of alphabet zha in Tamil. The alphabet akh of three
dots is more powerful than bindu or visargah of Sanskrit. Tamil of late has
welcomed to its fold half-moon bindu to accommodate Onkaara. The akh is in its triangular dot form that converges to a single dot representing
transcendental Brahman or diverge to a circle of Srishti, Sthiti and Laya creation, sustenance and dissolve; it also
represents three eyes of Siva with its apex pointing upwards signifying
male Principle. In fact, the central point in Srichakra is composed of three
dots like the Tamil sound Akh or three fires: 1) Moon (soma) red in color
representing Ida Nadi channel in Kundalini nerve system; 2) Sun (Soorya), white
in color, representing Pingala Nadi; and, 3) Fire (Agni) of mixed color
representing Sushumna Nadi, the central channel. Sometimes fire can also be black. The top dot in akh symbolizes the head of the
deity and the pair of dots at the bottom symbolizes the breasts of the mother
goddess. Red, white and dark color may also mean Sattava, Tamas and Rajas the
three characteristics symbolizing Creation, Sustenance and Dissolution. Now you
know why Tamils pride over their language as equal to Devanagari, the language
of divine citizens.
It is worth recalling here the lyrics: “Agar
mudal ezhuttellaam” famous
Tamil song of sage Tiruvalluvar in
Tirukkural paying obeisance to Devi for gifting the alphabets—Vowels,
consonants and conjunct consonants,
numbers, language and the voice initiated by Omkaara which otherwise would have
made us meaningless like many animals with mere voice. Only
humans are capable of expression and meaning through the letters, language,
medium of poetry, music, drama and above all intelligence and sixth sense. It also compares the first letter “A” with the Supreme Power Parasakti. Appropriately
Tamil calls its vowels as “Life-Uyir”, Consonants as “Mei or Body” and conjunct
consonants as “Uyir-mei or life-body
complex” of letters. Sanskrit calls vowels as “achah”, consonants as “vyanjana”
and conjunct consonants as “samyukta”: Tamil Song
agara
mudhala ezhuththellaam ariya vaiththaai devi
aadhi baghavan mudhalendrae unara vaiththaai devi iyal isai naadaga theebam yetri vaiththaai neeyae eendravar nenjai indru kulira vaiththaai thaayae uyir mei ezhuththellaam theriya vaiththaai oomaiyin vaai thirandhu pesa vaiththaai,ammaa pesa vaiththaai ennum ezuththenum kan thirandhaai yetram tharum kulumai aatral thandhaai aiyam theliya vaiththu arivu thandhaai oli thandhu mozhi thandhu kural thandhaai Omkaara isai thandhu uyara vaiththaai devi |
48 IN CHAMAKAM MAY SIGNIFY SANSKRIT 48 ALPHABETS
This discourse in a way offers another logical explanation as
to why Chamakam should end in odd 33 and even 48. Odd 33 represents 33 Vedic deities—11
Rudras + 12 Aadityas + 8 Vasus + Indra + Prajapati. Odd group beginning with 1 in even group ending in 48 indicates Purusha and Prakriti pervading the entire
Universe as it represents Sanskrit letters 48 as Kshetra (field) and Brahman as
(Kshetrajnya) the Supreme Lord. Any number chanted in Chamakam falls within 1
and 48.
Sanskrit and the Science of Consciousness
By David Frawley
[Sanskrit is to experiential spirituality what mathematics is to science. Sanskrit can unlock the mysteries of universal Consciousness just as mathematics is decoding the structure of the universe.This means that for a genuine science of Consciousness to be credible we should learn the mantric language of Sanskrit and its cosmic implications, not simply at an academic level but at a level of meditation.]
Sanskrit provides the precise terminology for understanding the workings of cosmic law, karma and all forces in the universe. The Sanskrit alphabet is used as a blueprint for universal forces from the stars and the planets to the chakras of the subtle body. Sanskrit reflects the vibratory patterns that govern the universe as a whole on individual, collective, global and universal levels which are all interrelated.
Sanskrit is not just a manmade devised historical language. It holds all the potentials of cosmic sound. It links the human brain and mind to the vibratory field of Cosmic Intelligence that guides the universe as a whole. Sanskrit is a human emulation of cosmic sound that links the human mind to the Cosmic Mind. Just as we can link with the internet and download information via information technology, we can use Sanskrit in the meditative mind to link with Cosmic Intelligence and access its deeper knowledge and wisdom.
Sanskrit, OM and the Big Bang
Sanskrit is the language closest to the Divine Word, the original Cosmic Sound and Light vibration behind the entire universe. This Divine speech begins with OM and primal sound, the vibratory pattern that creates the time/space continuum.
Modern physics begins with the Big Bang, the original singularity from which the entire universe expands. Sanskrit similarly begins with OM as the original singularity behind the cosmos, which all other mantras create as the vibratory energies from the Big Bang.
From the OM vibration the universe is created through the sounds of the Sanskrit alphabet and its Shakti mantras as primary energy sounds and patterns. The ancient Vedic Rishis entered into Para Vak or Transcendent Speech beyond all name and form and revealed the secrets of creation through the Vedic mantras. That is why the Vedas are said to be the means through which the universe arises, is sustained and is dissolved, which happens at every moment, as well as in longer cycles of cosmic time. Yet such mantras are not merely human speech but cosmic powers, others of the entire universe.
Vedic Sanskrit
The Vedas are mantric texts of cosmogenesis behind the various lokas or realms of manifestation from pure light to gross matter. Yet they also replicate the same code in the human soul (Jivatman) that is a replica of the entire conscious Universe, the individual reflection of the cosmic person. Yet this deeper mantric connection must be understood with a mantric mind, not simply an academic intellect or modern linguist. It requires a profound sadhana of Vedic mantras on a daily basis for many years.
Western academic scholarship to date has only scratched the surface of the monumental teachings of the Vedas. It remains caught in the outer mind, brain and physical reality missing the multidimensional mantric language of the Rishis and its secret code of universal knowledge.
Without understanding the mind of the Rishi, the Vedas remain a closed door to the outer mind and its superficial opinions. Vedic deities of light and fire, like Agni, Surya, Soma, Indra are not just personifications of the forces of nature, as they are often reduced to, but of the powers of cosmic light operative from the macrocosm to our own minds and hearts, imbued with consciousness and a multidimensional action, not restricted to a single form. In this regard all the forces of nature on Earth are but local manifestations of universal forces.
Vedic Sanskrit, we should note, is more fluid, symbolic and less grammatically strict than classical Sanskrit. It cannot be understood by the rules or formations of Sanskrit grammar alone. Its meanings and etymology have more variabilities, levels and hidden dimensions than classical Sanskrit which has many of these of its own.
Vedic Sanskrit requires a Rishi vision to appreciate, not just technical linguistic expertise. Can hold the entire universe in every syllable. The ultimate yogic power of Sanskrit is found in the oldest Rigveda which holds the main mantras of the Rishis. Vedic Sanskrit has a depth and density that often exceeds even classical Sanskrit, without all its beauty, complexity, intricacy and power. Panini’s Sanskrit grammar is an extraordinary codification of language and sound for rational and poetic application, but the Vedic language is at a higher level of universal creative sound prior to its manifestation into fixed forms and objects. Its words are more like waves on the sea than defined objects in the outer world.
There are a few great modern Rishis through whom we can approach the depths of the Vedic language. These include Sri Aurobindo, Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni, Kapali Shastri, Brahmarshi Daivarata, Sri Anirvan and Swami Veda Bharati.
Conclusion
Sanskrit is not as difficult to learn as many people think it is. For those speaking English it is much easier to learn than Chinese or even European languages like Russian or French. But going to its depths is another matter. Yet even beginners in Sanskrit can learn various mantras and terminology that will greatly expand our understanding of ourselves, other creatures and the entire universe.
Vedic Sanskrit is more difficult to learn than Classical Sanskrit because it is a seer language with hidden dimensions, a complex poetic combination of sound and meaning with the abstract and concrete blended together. Even if one learns Vedic grammar these meanings will not be accessible.
Relative to classical Sanskrit one can at least learn the key terminologies of Yoga, Vedanta and Ayurveda, which have many special terms for understanding different aspects of universal knowledge and have no adequate English equivalents. Such are the three gunas, the three doshas, the five koshas, the seven lokas, the four aspects of the mind, different types of samadhi, yogic principles and practices. Even without knowing much Sanskrit grammar one can benefit greatly from these.
It is not difficult to benefit from a few key Vedic mantras like the Gayatri Mantra. Tantric Bija mantras like Hrim are even easily to learn to use, though their secrets are profound. For more detail note my books Vedic Yoga: The Path of the Rishi and Mantra Yoga and Primal Sound.
REFERENCES:
1. Ramachandra Rao S.K., Sri Vidya Kosha, Satgu
Therefore
we can safely conclude that Chamakam refers to forty-eight letters of Sanskrit
which are all divine as explained above. Anything written or spoken in Sanskrit
is thus divine. So the prayer odd and
even numbers in Chamakam are all
directed to Brahman only with possible other explanations in my discourses,
“What do the odd and even numbers in Chamakam Signify?” and “Why did Chamakam
end in numbers 33 Odd and 48 Even?”
ru
Publications, Delhi, India.
2. Sastry, K.L.V., Sabdamanjari, R.S.Vadhyar & Sons,
Palghat, India.
3. Swami Bhaskarananda, Essentials of Hinduism, Ramakrishna
Math, Chennai, India
4. Ananta Rangacharya, Prinipal Upanishads, Bengaluru. India.
5. Ramananda Prasad,
Srimad Bhagvadgeetaa, American Gita Soc iety, CA, USA.
6. Swami Chinmayananda, Vishnu Shasranaamam, Central Chinmaya
Mission Trust, Mumbai,
India.
7. Sunita Ramaswamy & Dr. Sundar ramaswamy, Vedic
Heritage Teaching Program, Sri Gngadhareswar Trust, Rishkesh, India.
[This is a prepared
lecture compiled from above references and others for a discourse at Sri
Ganesha Temple, Nashville to benefit those who are not able to attend the same
in person. You are free to download and use it for your reading and reference
as well as circulate to others to spread the wisdom of Vedas and Hindu values
which good act will be appreciated.]
Sanskrit Language
Nandinagari script is the western variety of the archaic Nagari script of northern India. Nandinagari is also found in the inscriptions and manuscripts available in the western part of a few southern states; for example, south Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. That is why Nandinagari is also known as southern variety of Nagari.
APPENDIX
Sanskrit Language
Posted by The Editor | Feb 19, 2012 | 543 views
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Sanskrit
is the oldest and richest language in the world, and recorded history shows the
study of Sanskrit has continued for over five thousand years. The oldest known
form of this language is found in the Rigveda. In Vedic culture, the language
was used in the public domain and was called bhasha. It later passed through a
process of reform or purification, it became known as San(gs)krita (Sam -kri +
ta).
There
are two stages of Sanskrit from the chronological point of view — Vedic and
later Vedic (or Laukika). The later Vedic language is also called Classical Sanskrit.
The main difference between these two languages is in their instinctive
accents. In Vedic vowel sound there are three kinds of pronunciation — udatta
(high), anudatta (low) and svarita (mixed) — but in Sanskrit this distinction
is not maintained.
Panini’s
Astadhyaayi is the main Sanskrit grammar book. In a later period, Astadhyaayi
became even more authoritative through the contributions of Vartikakara
Vararuchi (or Katyayana) and Bhashyakara (the commentator) Patanjali. So the
complete Ashtadhyaayi is called Trimunivyaakarana (contribution of three
grammarians). The rules, which have been compiled in Ashtadhyaayi, are
considered to be essential for Sanskrit language and literature. Besides Ashtadhyaayi
there are many other famous grammars in Sanskrit. Among them Katantravyakarana
by Sharvavarman (100 AD), Chandravyakarana by Chandragomin (c 700 AD),
Vakyapadiya by Bhartrhari (700 AD), Katantrasutravrtti by Durgasingha (900 AD),
Siddhahemachandranushasana by Hemachandra (1050-1100 AD), Mugdhavodhavyakarana
by Vopadeva (1200-1250 AD), Jaumaravyakarana by Kramadishvara (1200-1250),
Saupadmavyakarana by Padmanabha Datta (1300-1350), Harinamamrta by Rupagosvami,
(c 1470-1559), and Siddhantakaumudi by Bhattojidiksita (1700 AD) are worth
mentioning.
According
to academics, Sanskrit is a language in the Indo-European family of languages.
It belongs to a sub-branch of Indo-Iranian. From the philological and
geographical point of view, Indo-European languages are divided into two groups
Satam and Kentum. Sanskrit falls under the Satam group. It has some startling
similarities with Greek and Latin. For this reason, academics believe that
these languages originated in the same place and they are thus known as basic
Aryan or basic Indo-European languages.
Sanskrit
is also known as an Old Indo-Aryan language. The Aryan language is divided into
three stages: Old Indo-Aryan Vedic and Sanskrit; Middle Indo-Aryan Pali,
Prakrta and Apabhrangsha, and New Indo-Aryan languages like Bangla, Odia,
Hindi, Marathi, etc.
The
Sanskrit language has no particular alphabet. Wherever the language studied,
the alphabet of that area is adopted for it. But the Nagari or Devanagari
alphabet is widely used and internationally accepted for Sanskrit.
Sanskrit
is an inflectional language. In this language the role of case-ending and of suffix and prefix is very significant.
A word used in a sentence with an inflection is called pada. A word without
inflection cannot be used in a sentence. For this reason, the change of the
position of a pada in a sentence does not alter the meaning, and for this
reason there is no rigid rule for the positioning of a word in sentence
constructions.
There
are three genders in Sanskrit (masculine, feminine and neuter) and are three
numbers (singular, dual and plural). In the verb form there is no change of
gender but it has three numbers and three persons (third, second and first). To
indicate the tense and mood (including past, present and future tense), there
are ten classes of verbal forms. In brief these are known as ten la-karas. The
roots are divided into three groups: parasmaipada, atmanepada and ubhayapada.
Sanskrit is an ornate language and numerous meters are seen in Sanskrit verse.
Initially,
the geographical area of Sanskritic studies was confined to the northern part
of India and then it extended to Western and Eastern India. Gradually its use
spread among the neighboring Dravid, Austric and Sino-Tibetan peoples. Its
influence also spread to the neighboring countries, e.g., China and Tibet.
Sumatra, Borneo, and even to neighboring Western countries. Sanskrit is related
inseparably to ancient Indian religion, philosophy, literature and culture. Knowledge of Sanskrit is very essential for
analyzing the structural nature of the language of the region and for searching
the origins of new Indo-Aryan languages.
At
present the study of Sanskrit is mostly confined to India. In Bangladesh,
Sanskrit has been studied from the ancient period, though at present its study
is limited to a few areas. In many schools and colleges under the Board of
Dhaka, Chittagong, Barisal, Jessore Sanskrit language and literature are
studied. In the University of Dhaka, Chittagong and Rajshahi, Sanskrit is
studied in BA (Hons), MA, MPhil and PhD courses. In the National University too
there is provision for study of Sanskrit in BA and MA classes. Moreover, in
various tols and chatuspathis under the Sanskrit and Pali education board,
Sanskrit is studied according to the traditional system. In this Board there is
provision of examination in Adya, Madhya and Upadhi in different branches of
Sanskrit.
Sanskrit Literature
All
branches of literature including poetry, prose and drama are to be found in
Sanskrit. Innumerable books have been written in Sanskrit on different
subjects, including philology, comparative grammar, philosophy, rhetoric,
logic, physiology, astronomy, astrology, chemistry, algebra, geometry, medical
science, zoology, social welfare, sexology, etc.
Sanskrit
texts can be divided into literature, philosophy, tantra, scriptures, science,
etc. The ancient books of the Hindu religion were written in Sanskrit. Sanskrit
literature can be divided into four stages: Vedic, epic, puranic and classical.
Vedic literature is divided into Sanghita (rk, saman, yajus and atharvan),
Brahmana, Aranyaka and Upanisad. The Brahmana, relating to sacrifices or
rituals, is called karmakanda, and the Upanisad is called the jnanakanda
(philosophical part) of the Vedas. vIn the Vedic period a kind of literature
was written in the form of aphorism (sutra) and was known as sutra-literature.
It is divided into four parts: Shrauta, Grhya, Dharma and Shulvasutra. The
rules of Shrauta sacrifice were written in Shrautasutra. The subject matter of
Grhyasutra is the sacrificial rites to be followed by householders. The
commandments and prohibitions relating to religion and secular affairs, the
rules about the four castes (chaturvarna) and four stages of life
(chaturashrama) were written in Dharmasutra. The rules regarding the
measurement of land at the time of making sacrifices in altars are to be found
in Shulvasutra. Sutra-literature is considered as a source book for acquiring
knowledge about ancient Indian civilization and social life.
There
are six Vedangas that have been written for the convenience of the study of the
Vedas; these are Shiksa, Kalpa, Nirukta, Vyakarana, Chhandas and Jyotisa.
Shiksa is actually on phonetics. The subject matter of Shiksa is varna, svara,
matra, vala, sama, Santana, etc. Every Veda has its unique Shiksa. Kalpa is
sutra literature; because sacrificial rites are confirmed through it, its name
is kalpa. Nirukta was composed by Yaska (c. 600 BC).
The
words of the Vedas are collected and explained in Nirukta. Vyakarana is a very
essential Vedanga. The Vyakaranarnava of Vyasadeva and the Maheshavyakarana of
Maheshvara are known to be very ancient grammar texts, but none of them have
been found. For the reading of metrical Vedic hymns, Chhanda is essential.
Vedic hymns are composed in syllabic meters; they are not like the
gana-chhandas of Sanskrit. There are seven meters in the Vrhaddevata of Shaunaka and the rsi,
chandas, devata and viniyoga related to Vedic hymns are discussed in
Anukramani.
The
Ramayana and the Mahabharata were composed in the epic period. In these two
vast epics, the essence of India is reflected. Valmiki is the writer of the
Ramayana, and he was believed to be the first creator of worldly meter, and the
first poet. In his Ramayana, written in anushtup meter, Valmiki wanted to
celebrate the glorious deeds of the ideal man, who is Lord Ramachandra. There
are seven kandas in the Ramayana glorifying Lord Rama’s pastimes.
The
Mahabharata is massive in its size and scope. Krsna-dvaipayana Vedavyasa
composed the Mahabharata in eighteen parvas (chapter) about the war between the
Kauravas and Pandavas. In course of time, compositions of many unknown poets
were added to it. More than one lakh verses can be found in the present
Mahabharata. The Bhagavad-gita falls under the Bhismaparva of Mahabharata. The
Gita, composed in eighteen chapters, is recognized as an independent and
excellent book, where Lord Krsna instructs Arjuan in gaining perfection in life
through Bhakti yoga.
Puranic
literature is very vast. Eighteen mahapuranas and eighteen upa-puranas are
considered as the main puranas. The Puranas were composed in different times,
but Vyasa is known as the only composer of the Puranas, regardless. Mahapuranas
have been classified according to the supremacy of three gods: Lord Brahma,
Visnu and Shiva. The subject matter of the Puranas includes the creation,
existence, destruction, and regeneration of the universe; the stories of the
Manus, gods, kings and dynasties, etc. are also discussed. In addition,
philosophy, scriptures, rhetorics, etc. are also included in the Puranas as subjects.
To know the political and social history of ancient India, the Puranas are
indispensable.
Classical
Sanskrit is mainly divided into two parts: drshyakavya and shravyakavya.
Dramatic literature is under drshyakavya and prose-poetry is under shravyakavya.
The greatest poet of this period is Kalidasa (100 BC). His predecessor was the
famous dramatist Bhasa (500-400 BC) and Shudraka (300 BC) and a successor poet
was Ashvaghosa (100 AD). Bhasa wrote thirteen plays including
Svapnavasavadatta, Charudatta, Urubhanga. The plays of Bhasa are celebrated for
the diversity of their themes and techniques, and are written based on the
Ramayana, the Mahabharata and folktales. Shudraka’s Mrchchhakatika is very
remarkable in Sanskrit dramatic literature.
The
main works of Kalidasa are two mahakavyas, Raghuvangsha and Kumarasambhava; two
khandakavyas – Rtusanghara and Meghaduta; three plays – Malavikagnimitra,
Vikramorvashiya and Abhijnanashakuntala.
The important works of Ashvaghosa are
Buddhacharita and Saundarananda, the two mahakavyas and the play
Shariputraprakarana.
Among
subsequent works, mention may be made of the Kundamala of Dinnaga (500 AD),
Kiratarjuniya of Bharavi (600 AD), Bhattikavya or Ravanavadha of Bhatti (600
AD), Shishupalavadha of Magha (700 AD); Ratnavali of Shriharsa (700 AD);
Uttararamacharita of Bhavabhuti (700/800 AD); Venisanghara of Bhattanarayana
(800 AD), Mudraraksasa of Vishakhadatta (800/900 AD), Balaramayana of
Rajashekhara (1000 AD); Gita-govinda of Jayadeva (1200 AD), Naisadhacharita of
Shriharsa (1200 AD), Pravodhachandrodaya of Krsnamishra (1100 AD),
Chaitanyachandrodaya and Chaitanya-caritamrta of Kavi-karnapura (1600 AD)
Some
noteworthy mahakavyas based on history are the Navasahasankacharita of
Padmagupta (1100 AD), Vikramankadevacarita of Vihlana (1100-1200 AD),
Kumarapalacarita of Hemachandra (1080-1173 AD), Rajatarangini of Kahlana (1200
AD), and ramacharitam of Sandhyakar Nandi (1200-1300 AD). Following the
instructions of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Srila Rupa Goswami and Srila Jiva
Goswami have also contributed a great many nectarian texts to Sanskrit
literature.
A
great many of the fundamental books of Indian philosophy were written in
Sanskrit. Indian philosophy is generally divided into two groups: theism and
atheism. These divisions are based on the acceptance or denial of the Veda. The
six systems of astika philosophy are the Nyaya of Gautama, Vaishesika of
Kanada, Sankhya of Kapila, Yoga of Patanjali, Mimamsa of Jaimini and the
Vedanta of Vadarayana. The nastika systems are Buddha, Jain and Charvaka. In
Bengal the Navyanyaya and the Vaisnava philosophy (based on Radha-Krsna) were
widely studied. Tantra is a different stream of literature. Its various
divisions are mantra, jnana, yoga, kriya, charya etc.
Dharmashastra
and Smrtishastra were written based on religious and social rituals, and dealt
with atonement, caste-system, king’s duties, and different laws. It is also
known as smrti. Dharmashastras composed under the name of Gautama, Vaudhayana
and Vashistha merit mention. These books were composed in approximately 600
BC-300 AD. Among the smrti books, Manusanghita and Yajnavalkyasmrti are worth
mentioning. Among smrti-writers of Bengal, Raghunandana’s name stands out.
In
science and other subjects some remarkable books are Vatsyayana’s (c. 300-400
AD), Charaka and Sushrutasanghita on medical science (called as Ayurveda), and
Arthashastra on political science by Kautilya or Chanakya. In addition, many
books were written on chemistry, botany, astronomy, mathematics, music, learning
of theft, cooking, agriculture, elephant breeding, animal breeding, human breeding, etc.
Sanskrit Study in Bengal
It
is difficult to ascertain when the study of Sanskrit began in Bengal, but it is
certain that its history is very old, as is proved by an inscription found
around 350 AD in the Gupta period. A clear picture of the study of Sanskrit in
the region can be traced from 700 AD. The writing style of Bengal scholars was
known as Gaudi to rhetoricians.
Sanskritic
studies developed considerably in the Pala and Sena periods. At the beginning
of Muslim rule, Sanskrit study faced some checks, but in later periods its
development was once more worth mentioning. In particular, the practice of
Nyaya that centered around Navadvipa is noteworthy. Bengal was very famous for
navyanyaya from 1500-1700 AD. At the time of British rule in 1800-1900 AD
Sanskrit study revived again. However, in the last part of the twentieth
century, the study of Sanskrit declined in popularity although it is still
studied seriously.
The Pala Period (750-1161 AD)
Though
the Pala kings were Buddhist, during their reign the practice of Sanskrit
language and literature is noteworthy. Notable works of the period include the
Venisanghara of Bhattanarayana (800 AD), Mudraraksasa of Vishakhadatta (800/900
AD), Ramacharita of Abhinanda (900 AD), Anargharaghava of Murari (900-1000 AD),
Kaulajnananirnaya of Matsyendranatha (first part of 1000 AD), of Noakhali,
Chandakaushika of Ksemishvara (c 1000 AD), Bodhimargapanjika and Bodhipradipa
of Atisha Dipankara (980-1050 AD), of Vikrampur, Chhandomanjari of Gangadasa
(1000-1100 AD), Herukasadhana of Divakarachandra (1000-1100 AD),
Chikitsasarasanggraha of Chakrapani Datta (1100 AD), Kichakavadha of Nitivarman
(1100 AD), Ramacharita of Sandhyakara Nandi (c 1084-1155 AD), Shabdapradipa and
Vrksayurveda of Sureshwara (1100-1200 AD).
The Sena Period (1097-1260)
The
Sena kings were Hindu. In this period, Sanskrit language and literature as well
as the texts of the Hindu religion were studied widely. Many people believe
that this was the golden era of Sanskrit studies in Bengal. Vallalasena
(1159-1185) and Laksmanasena (1185-1206) were both scholars and fond of
literature. In the court of Laksmanasena there were the five celebrated
Sanskrit poets: Jayadeva, Umapati, Dhoyi, Govardhana and Sharana. Vallalasena
himself wrote Danasagara, Amrtasagara, Pratisthasagara, Acharasagara and
Vratasagara.
Other
books of the period that merit mention are Vyavaharatilaka,
Karmanusthanapaddhati, Prayashcittakarana of Bhavadevabhatta (1100-1200);
Naisadhacharita of Shriharsa (1200 AD); Aryashaptashati of Govardhanacharya,
Pavanaduta of Dhoyi, Gitagovinda of Jayadeva, Saduktikarnamrta of Shridharadasa
(1200 AD), Haralata and Pitrdayita of Aniruddhabhatta, a preceptor of Vallalasena;
Brahmanasarvasva, Mimangsasarvasva, Vaisnavasarvasva, Shaivasarvasva,
Panditasarvasva of Halayudha Mishra, the court-judge of Laksmanasena;
Bhasavrtti, Haravali, Ekaksarakosa of Purusottamadeva (1200 AD); Durghatavrtti
of Sharanadeva (1200 AD) etc., Kalikapurana (1000-1100),
Vrhannandikeshvarapurana (1100-1400) and Devibhagavata were also composed in
this period.
The Muslim Period (1206-1757)
In
this period Sanskrit was widely studied. Many books were written in every
branch of literature and philosophy. The main books were written by the
Vaisnava poets. Navadvipa, the sacred place of the Vaisnavas, became the main
centre of Sanskrit study. Some notable books of this time are Padyavali,
Harinamamrtavyakarana, Ujjvalanilamani of Rupa Gosvami; Shrikrsnachaitanyacharitamrta
of Murari Gupta (1500-1600); Vrhadbhagavatamrta, Vaisnavatosini of Sanatan
Gosvami (c 1465-1555); Danakelichintamani of Raghunath Das (c 1490-1577);
Suktimuktavali of Vishvanath Siddhantapanchanan (1500-1600); Bhramaraduta,
Pikaduta of Rudra Nyayavachaspati (1500-1600); Satsandarbha, Harinamamrta of
Jiva Gosvami; Chaitanyacharitamrta, Chaitanychandrodaya, Gauraganoddeshadipika,
Alangkarakaustubha of Kavikarnapura; Shurjanacharita of Chandrashekhar
(1600-1700), Padyamuktavali of Govinda Bhattacharya (1700 AD); Vikhyatavijaya
of King Laksmanamanikya (1600-1700); Vaikunthavijaya of Amaramanikya,
Apadeshashataka of Chandramanikya; Kautukaratnakara of Raghunath Kavitarkika,
the court poet of Laksmanamanikya (these Manikyas are the kings of bhulua, the
present Noakhali of Bangladesh); Anandalatikachampu of Krishnanath Sarvabhauma
and his wife Vaijayanti (1700 AD); Shyamarahasya of Priyangvada (1700 AD);
Shrikrsnabhavanamrta of Vishvanath Chakravarti (1700 AD), Padankaduta of
Shrikrsna Sarvabhauma (1700-1800), etc.
Notable
books about Navyasmrti are Dayabhaga of Jimutavahana (c 1050-1150),
Prayashchittaviveka of Shulapani (c 1375-1460), Smrtisagara of Kullubhatta
(1500 AD), Krtyatattvarnava of Shrinath Acharyachudamani (1500-1600),
Astavingsatitattva, Dayabhagatika of Raghunandan Bhattacharya (1500-1600), etc.
These books influenced the Hindu society of that time deeply, and continue to
do so today.
Other
important books on philosophy are Anumanapariksa of Vasudeva Sarvabhauma (c
1430-1540), Pratyaksamanididhiti, Anumanadidhiti of Raghunath Shiromani
(1500-1600), Nyayarahasya of Ramabhadra Sarvabhauma (1600 AD), Advaitasiddhi,
Vedantakalpalatika, Advaitamanjari of Madhusudan Saraswati (1525-1632),
inhabitant of Kotalipara, Gopalganj (the greater Faridpur); Vijnanamrtabhasya
of Vijnanabhiksu (1600-1700), etc.
On
Vyakarana notable books are Mugdhavodha of Vopadeva, Sangksiptasara of
Kramadishvara (1500 AD), Katantrapradipa of Pundarikaksa Vidyasagara
(1500-1600); on the lexicon Abhidhanatantra of Jatadhara (1500 AD), of
Chittagong, Padachandrika of Vrihaspati Rayamukuta (1500 AD),
Ekavarnarthasanggraha and Dvirupadhvanisanggraha of Bharat Mallick,
Trikandaviveka of Ramanath Vidyavachaspati etc are books worth mentioning.
Noteworthy
books on rhetoric and prosody are Kavyavilasa and Vrttaratnavali of Chiranjiv
Bhattacharya (1700-1800); on tantra the Tantrasara of Krsnananda Agamavagisha
(1600 AD), Shaktanandatarangini of Brahmanandagiri (1600 AD), and
Shyamarahasya, Satkarmollasa, Tattvanandatarangini of Purnananda Paramahangsa
Parivrajaka (1600 AD) are considered important.
During
the British Period, a revival in Sanskrit studies took place, accompanied by a
renaissance in education, society and culture not only in Bengal, but across
the whole of India. Though only a few fundamental works were written, the
reading, teaching and translation of Sanskrit works were evident throughout the
period.
Navadvipa
was well-known in history for the study of Navyanyaya. In addition, Bhatpada or
Bhattapalli, Guptipara, Burdwan, Triveni, Bali of Howrah, Vishnupur of Bankura
in West Bengal and Vikrampur, Kotalipara, Chittagong, and Sylhet in East Bengal
were famous for the study of Sanskrit. A centre for the study of Sanskrit was
traditionally known as tol. From various Government reports it can be
ascertained that there were many tols in Bangla and sufficient students studied
in them.
Bengalis
made major contributions to the study of Navyasmrti. During this period many
scholars contributed significantly to smrti. Jagannath Tarkapanchanan
(1694-1807), son of Rudra Tarkavagisha, an inhabitant of Triveni compiled a
large book of smrti, entitled Vivadabhangarnava. Sir William Jones (1746-1794)
inspired him to write this book. In 1796 Colebroke (1765-1837) translated some
parts of this book into English, and this became known as Colebroke’s Digest.
This book was very much useful in solving disputes involving Hindu Law all over
India.
Vivadarnavasetu
is also a famous collection of smrti pieces. Vaneshvara Vidyalangkara (c
1700-1788) compiled this work with the help of ten more Bengali pundits at the
request of Waren Hastings. This book proved to be very useful in solving the
disputes according to Hindu Law. It was first translated into Persian. Then
Halhed (1751-1830) translated it into English from Persian (A Code of Gentoo
Law, London, 1776). In addition, Vaneshvara also wrote Chitrachampu,
Rahasyamrta, three Khandakavyas and a play entitled Chandrabhiseka.
Kasichandra Vidyaratna (1854-1917) was
a famous scholar of Navyasmrti. He was born in a Brahmin family at Vikrampur,
near Dhaka. Uddharachandrika is his most important book. The subject of the
book is about the re-entry of a Hindu into society, who has travelled to a
western country on ships. He wrote the commentary of twenty Dharmashastras,
including Manusanghita.
Mahamahopadhyaya
Chandrakanta Tarkalankar (1836-1910) of Sherpur (greater Mymensingh) wrote some
major books on Navyasmrti. His Udvahachandraloka is well known among scholars
of Bengal. Two other books by him are Shuddhichandraloka and
Aurdhvadehikachandraloka. In addition to smrti he also wrote books on grammar
and literature. The name of his grammar book is Katantrachhandahprakriya.
Beginning
in the last part of the nineteenth century and continuing to the second part of
twentieth century, Haridas Siddhantavagish (1876-1961) contributed
significantly to the study of Sanskrit. He was born at Unashiya, a village of
Kotalipara in Gopalganj district. Haridas wrote Smrtichintamani. Navyasmrti
includes a Bangla translation containing directions for following all kinds of
rules and regulations of the Hindus governing conduct from birth to death.
Besides smrti he had masterd kavya and grammar. He had also translated many
Sanskrit books and provided them with his own commentaries.
In
the study of Navyanyaya and Navyasmrti some other notable works are Krsnakanta
Vidayavagisha (1800 AD), Golokanath Nyayaratna (1806-1855), Harinath
Tarkasiddhanta (1829-1889), Mahamahopadhyaya Krsnanath Nyayapanchanan
(1833-1911), Mahamahopadhyaya Kamakhyanath Tarkavagisha (1843-1936), the famous
Naiyayika of Navadvip, Kamalakrsna Smrtitirtha of Battapalli etc.
Nyayaratnavali, Nyayapatri, Nyayaratnaprakashika, Tarkamrtatarangini of
Krsnakanta; Nyayaprakasha, Vedantaparibhasatika, Arthasanggraha, Tattvakaumudi
of Krsnanath; Sangkhyadipani, Nyayatattvavodhini, Nyayasaptapadarthi,
Nyayakusumanjalitika of Kamakhyanath; Danakriyakaumudi, Krtyaratnakara,
Rajadharmakaustubha (edited by Kamalakrsna) have had a remarkable influence on
the study of Nyaya and Smrti.
During
colonial rule, many native kings and zamindars made significant contributions
to the study of Sanskrit. Among them were Krishnachandra Roy, the king of
Nadia; Kirtichand and Tilakchand, the kings of Burdwan; Ramakanta and Bhavani,
the king and queen of Natore respectively; Gopal Singh, the Malla king of
Vishnupur; Rajavallabh Sen of Rajanagar, Dhaka etc. Krishnachandra Roy donated
money for the study of Sanskrit in different parts of Bengal.
The
accounts of Sanskrit study in tols, chatuspathis and colleges of Bengal are
recorded in various Government reports of that time. Among these, William
Adam’s Report (1835-1838) and Reverend James Long’s Report (1868) are worth
mentioning. A clear picture of the study of Sanskrit in Bengal can be deduced
from these reports.
The study of Sanskrit by Europeans during the Company and
British rule in India
Foreigners
felt that to run business and administration, knowledge about native language
and literature was very essential. For this reason and to satisfy the eagerness
of many about Oriental language and literature, a new era started in the field
of Sanskrit studies. In this area the contribution made by some European
administrators, scholars and linguists is very significant. Among them are Sir
William Jones, Sir Charles Wilkins (1749/50-1836), Henry Thomas Colebrooke,
Horace Hayman Wilson (1786-1860) and James Princep (1799-1840). Through
research, translation, collection and editing of manuscripts, and
archaeological surveys they performed an important role in preaching and
spreading Sanskrit and introducing Sanskrit to the world.
William
Jones came to Kolkata as a judge of Supreme Court in 1783. Expert in many
languages, Jones noted for the first time that the Sanskrit language had a
unique relation with Greek and Latin and that all these languages originated
from one language. Under his leadership in 1784, the Asiatic society was
established in Kolkata for research on Oriental language, history and culture.
Through Asiatic Researches, the journal of this institution, he attracted the
attention of the western world to the education, culture, history, philosophy,
etc. of India. In 1789 he published Abhijnanashakuntalam, a Sanskrit drama by
Kalidasa, from Kolkata, titling it Fatal Ring.
Colebrooke
came to India as a writer of the Bengal service in 1783. In 1786, at the time
of his employment as a collector at Trihut, he was attracted to the study of
Hindu religion and culture and begun to learn Sanskrit. After Jones,
Colebrooke’s contribution to Sanskrit study must be mentioned. He read Vedic
and Puranic literature and Sanskrit grammar carefully. He wrote Grammar of the
Sanskrit Language and compiled the Sanskrit Dictionary. By reading his book,
The Translation of Two Treaties on the Hindu Law of Inheritance, foreigners
were able to get a clear idea about Hindu Law. He played an important role in
the institutional study of Sanskrit and its spread as President of the Asiatic
society and as Professor of Hindu Law and Sanskrit at Fort William College.
In
the spread of Sanskrit studies, the name of Wilkins is significant for a number
of reasons. He came to India in 1770 as a writer of East India Company. He
earned proficiency in Persian, Bangla and Sanskrit and became an expert in
making types of these languages. He established a printing press at Hughli and
made Bangla and Sanskrit types. So he is called the founding father of printing
in Bengal. He translated the Sanskrit Hitopadesha into Bangla and deciphered
some copper and stone inscriptions composed in Sanskrit. In 1785 the
Bhagavadgita translated by him was printed in England. He published many
valuable essays in Asiatic Researches. Among them are: A Grammar of the
Sanskrit Language, Radicals of the Sanskrit Language, Compilation of Jones
Manuscripts etc. He also translated some portions of Manusanghita.
Throughout
the 19th and 20th centuries, a long line of scholars have kept the Sanskrit
language alive, inspiring students and teachers alike in their continual
efforts to understand, utilize and master Sanskrit.
Many manuscripts written in Sanskrit on
various subjects are preserved in different institutional and personal
libraries of the country including Dhaka University Library. In the 1920’s and
30’s of the last century, Sushil Kumar De, Radhagovinda Basak (1885-1982) and
Rajendra Chandra Hazra edited some manuscripts, e.g., Kichakavadha (1929),
Padyavali (1934), Krsnakarnamrta (1938) and Ghatakarparakavya. After a long
time in the 90’s, teachers and researchers have resumed work on a few
manuscripts, e.g. Apadeshashataka (1993), Kautukaratnakara (1998),
Apadeshiyashatashlokamalika (1998), Kirtishataka etc. The first two of these
have been published in the book form with Bangla translations and the third one
has been published as an article. At present some researchers are continuing to
research on Sanskrit manuscripts in the regions.
A project for collecting and developing
manuscripts was conducted from 1984-1988 under the supervision of Dhaka
University Library. Then thousands of manuscripts were collected from different
collections of the country and their microfilms, accompanied by short
descriptions, were preserved in the library. In addition, thousands of
manuscripts from the library’s own collection have also been identified
briefly. All these manuscripts have been compiled in three volumes.
Palaeographical
Importance of Nandinaagari
Posted by The Editor |
Feb 18, 2012 |IndiaDivine.Org
Nandinagari script is the western variety of the archaic Nagari script of northern India. Nandinagari is also found in the inscriptions and manuscripts available in the western part of a few southern states; for example, south Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. That is why Nandinagari is also known as southern variety of Nagari.
Origin
Nandinagari is a descendent, as all indigenous scripts of India and Southeast
Asia are, of the Brahmi script. This script was developed through various
stages. It is closely related to northern Nagari which took its identifiable
shape as early as the tenth century A.D. The modern Devanagari, which is now
used for writing and printing Sanskrit, Hindi, Nepali, Rajasthani and Marathi,
is a refined and standardized form of old or archaic Nagari script. Most
probably, since the refined Nagari is used for writing Sanskrit which is
venerated as devabhasha (language of divinities), it is called ‘Devanagari’.
Nandinagari
has never been used for printing and hence it lacks the necessary refinement
and standardization. Nevertheless, its importance in the areas of epigraphy
can’t be ignored. There are innumerable manuscripts written in Nandinagari,
covering vast areas of knowledge, such as Vedas, philosophy, religion, science
and arts. These are preserved in the manuscript libraries, particularly those
in the southern regions of the country.
Nomenclature
It
is difficult to present any exact etymological meaning of the name
‘Nandinagari’. The first part of the term ‘nandi’ is rather ambiguous in the
present context. It may mean ‘sacred’ or ‘auspicious’ (cf. Nandi verses in
Sanskrit drama). Nandi is the name of Lord Siva’s brisha vahana (bull vehicle).
Nandi bull is widely worshipped in the South, particularly in Karnataka. As a
matter of fact, the sculpture of Nandi bull has become a cultural symbol of
Karnataka. The name ‘Nandinagari’ may, therefore, mean ‘a script which is
prevalent in a region where Nandi bull is venerated’. The second constituent of
the term, that is ‘nagari’, indicates that Nandinagari is a variety in the
family of Nagari. It is quite probable that first the Saivites adopted the Nandinagari
script and thereafter it was accepted by Vaisnavites as well.
Epigraphical Use
As
regards the period of epigraphical use of Nandinagari, it may be said safely
that Nandinagari is found to have been used since the tenth century A.D. But
the script of a few inscriptions of much earlier time (say, 6th, 7th and 8th
century A.D.) may be identified as archaic form of Nandinagari.
As
regards the epigraphical use of the Nandinagari script, it may be mentioned
that majority of the inscriptions, particularly the Sanskrit ones, of the
period of Vijayanagara Empire are inscribed in Nandinagari. A. C. Burnell held
that Nandinagari was used exclusively for writing on palm leaf. This view is
supported by Shivaganesha Murthy also. But the existence of innumerable inscriptions
in Nandinagari invalidates this view altogether. We can only say that, there
developed two types of Nandinagari, slightly differing from each other – one
used in the inscriptions, inscribed with chisel and the other used in palm leaf
manuscripts written with the help of stylus. Obviously the latter type is
rather cursive.
Some
of the modern epigraphists opine that Nandinagari is less legible. But this
view is also not correct. To one, who can read the Nagari of medieval
inscriptions and manuscripts, Nandinagari is perfectly legible and transparent.
It seems to be practical to furnish a chart of the basic letters of the
Nandinagari alphabet before discussing the characteristics and variations of
the script. The characters are given below:
The
system of adding medial vowels in Nandinagari closely resembles that of Nagari.
Here are a few examples:
It
may be noticed from the chart that the difference between Nandinagari and
Devanagari in the style of adding medial vowels is found only in one case. That
is in adding the short-i where the vertical stroke (f) is present in Devanagari
it is missing in Nandinagari. The other small difference is in adding long-u.
In Nandinagari a slanting tie is added at the bottom of the letter, whereas in
Devanagari a cursive loop (w) is found.
Since
the Nandinagari script was never been standardized, and it had been used in a
vast area during a long period of several centuries, obviously variations in
forms in case of a few letters could be discerned.
The
constituents and ligatures in conjunct consonants in Nandinagari are easily
identifiable as they are in Devanagari. There are, however, a few exceptions.
Though Nandinagari script is no longer in vogue, neither for printing nor for
writing, no scholar of Sanskrit language and literature can afford to remain
ignorant of this script. For the students of Indian epigraphy and palaeography,
learning Nandinagari is a must. It is also proved to be very useful for those
who are engaged in in-depth textual study of Virasaiva and Madhva Vaisnava
works. Nandinagari is helpful in another way: one who is proficient in it can
read or learn Jain Nagari script with less effort.
Exploring Consciousness with 10 Sanskrit Words in Ways
That English Can’t
Posted
by Vyasa Houston M. A. | Nov 27, 2015 | IndiaDivine.Org
The
extraordinary thing about Sanskrit is that it offers direct accessibility to
anyone to that elevated plane where the two —mathematics and music, brain and
heart, analytical and intuitive, scientific and spiritual become one. – Vyasa
Houston M. A.
Panini,
in roughly 500 BC, standardized Sanskrit as a language through his extensive
book titled ‘Ashtadhyayi’. An ambiguous version of the language existed for
almost a millennium before Panini. The semantics of the language has been
scientifically derived by logic & the grammar has been worked out using
proper mathematics & algebraic algorithms. The language has also been
claimed by NASA scientists to be the most suitable language to communicate with
AI.
However,
my claim here about the language is the following beautiful & powerful set
of words which pay great respect to higher states of consciousness. With no
English equivalents, the sad part here is that these words fail to find a
commonplace of acceptance in our modern-day culture.
Atman: The spiritual life
principle of the universe, especially when regarded as immanent in the
individual’s real self (talks about the unconscious part of ‘me’ as if it
belongs to the Cosmos or somehow is connected to the Universe around by a
string)
Akasha: A supposed
all-pervading field in the ether in which a record of past events is imprinted
(not just a word, this phrase looks like a principle of Science in itself. We
started relating to this only after Einstein’s theory of relativity)
Dharma: One’s personal path
in life the fulfillment of which leads to a higher state of consciousness.
(This is as close as religion has been defined in the language)
Dhyana: The focusing of
attention on a particular spiritual idea in continuous meditation.
Ishwara: Personal
manifestation of the supreme; the cosmic self; cosmic consciousness. (We are
all cosmic citizens, aren’t we?)
Maya: The illusions the
physical world generates to ensnare our consciousness. (Yeah, we see the
capitalistic world spearheading one such illusion)
Moksha: The attainment of
liberation from the worldly life. (Moha+Kshaya=Moksha)
Nirvana: The
transcendental state that is beyond the possibility of full comprehension or
expression by the ordinary being enmeshed in the concept of selfhood.
Samadhi: State
of enlightenment of Super-consciousness. The union of the individual consciousness
with the cosmic consciousness.
Soma: A plant, probably
with psychedelic properties, that was prepared and used in ritual fashion to
enable men to communicate with the gods.
We
very well see the reason why the exploration of consciousness has been
developed to an incredible degree in the Indian culture. It is a Science and
more than that it is a beautiful way of life to be one with the consciousness
of the Cosmos.
India and Sanskrit: The Source of
World Literature
Posted by Stephen Knapp | Dec 21, 2015
Sanskrit,
if it is the original language since the creation, is also the source of world
literature. Laura Elizabeth Poor observes in her book, Sanskrit and Its Kindred
Literature-Studies in Comparative Mythology, “I propose to write about the
literature of different nations and different centuries. I wish to show that
this literature is not many but one; that the same leading ideas have arisen at
epochs apparently separated from each other; that each nation however isolated
it may seem, is, in reality, a link in the great chain of development of the
human mind; in other words to show the unity and continuity of literature…”
“The
histories of Phoenicians, Cartheginians, Romans or Greeks, were so many
detached pieces of information…But the moment the mind realizes…that one nation
is connected with all others, its history becomes delightful and inspiring…And
it is to the Sanskrit language that we owe this entire change…Sanskrit was a
spoken language at the time of Solomon, 1015 B.C., also of Alexander, 324 B.C.”
In
this same line of thought, it has been determined that the Sanskrit Rig-Veda is
the oldest piece of literature in the world. Reverend Morris Philip, in his
book The Teaching of the Vedas (p.213), concludes, “After the latest researches
into the history and chronology of the book of Old Testament, we may safely now
call the Rigveda as the oldest book not only of the Indian community, but of
the whole world.”
A.
A. Macdonell provides a few more details in his book, India’s Past, about how
various literature in the world are all connected. In fact, he explains that
many of the world’s fairy tales come from India. “The history of how India’s
fairy tales and fables migrated from one country to another to nearly all the
people of Europe and Asia, and even to African tribes from their original home
in India, borders on the marvelous. It is not a case of single stories finding
their way by word of mouth…from India to other countries, but of whole Indian
books becoming through the medium of translations the common property of the
world…many fairy tales current among the various people can be traced to their
original home in India.”
When
we begin to compare the ancient legends and stories of one country with
another, and one time period with another, we can recognize how similar and yet
different they are. The conclusion is that they had to have come from one basic
source, one people that later became divided and spread out over a wide area.
Each part of this society must have brought with them into the new lands their
old legends that were once common to all. Many of these stories were later
shaped and altered according to the place they lived, and the natural aesthetic
and artistic preferences they acquired, while the primary legends have been the
most likely to maintain their storyline. Though various mythologies may have
similarities, the most common traits can be seen between any of them and the
Vedic traditions. These kinds of similarities between these myths and the Vedic
legends make it clear that the Vedic tradition is the original from which all
others are derived.
An
example of this is the Indian classic Ramayana; from India the Ramayana has
travelled to many other countries who now claim their own versions of the epic.
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, even Jamaica and Africa have versions of the
Ramayana that have slight differences from the Indian Ramayana. Thus we can see
how this early Sanskrit literature travelled throughout the world and became
local versions of what originated in India.
CULTURE ANDE GLORY OF SANSKRIT
Many people do not know that in 1949 Dr. B R Ambedkar as the Law
Minister tried his best to make Sanskrit our national language. This had
received full support from even Tamil Nadu, known to be anti-Sanskrit. There
are records available about the press statement given by Dr B R Ambedkar on 11
September 1949 stating: “What is wrong with Sanskrit?” Not only that, in
this regard, he prepared a draft bill to amend the constitution; but the same
was opposed by his own followers. One among them, the main opponent, B P Mourya
stated in a recent letter (dated 14 February 2001) that “because of my
inexperience I opposed the resolution.” Added to that, he praised the merits of
Sanskrit and reflected the importance of the events happened. After
Independence when India was clueless about which language should be made its
national language, several western scholars had asked with surprise – Why this
laughable and meaningless search when you have Sanskrit?
In the Vedas, it is said that the Sanskrit language itself is
the nation. It is the means to all prosperity (अहं राष्ट्री संगमनी वसूनां चिकितुषी प्रथमायज्ञियानाम्। तां मा देवा व्यदधुः पुरुत्राभूरिस्थात्रां भूर्यावेशयन्तीम्॥– Ṛgveda-saṃhitā
10.125.3).
In the Tolkappiyam, the first grammatical treatise of the
Tamil language, it is said that Sanskrit is equally applicable to all regions
of the country (வடசொல் எல்லாத் தேயத்திற்கும் பொதுவாகலானும்).
Though these examples and incidents are enough to write a book, we
would complete this by reiterating the words of our beloved Kannada poet
Kuvempu in his poem ‘ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತ ಮಾತೆ’ (‘Mother
Sanskrit’) –
“At the dawn of the earth, in the unknown past, a faded historical
vision could recognize, you played as a new born in the cradle of the eternal
white Himalayan slopes of Mother Earth! You, the Goddess of Words, are the
sculpture carved out of the first refined utterances in the hymns of the Āryamātā!…
We, the civilized, can’t live without your milk, how can this Bharata-khaṇḍa
live without you?”
When Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister, the Central Government
declared the full moon day (pūrṇimā) of the month of Śrāvaṇa as ‘Sanskrit
Day.’ It is not just a day for remembering, but a day to get initiated into
Sanskrit. It is the day to determine to spend our rest of our life per the
values learnt from Sanskrit and to work for the same. This is an
auspicious day popularly known as Śrāvaṇi in Kalpa-sūtras and known for the upākarma
(day of re-commencing the study of the Vedas). It is the day we must listen (śrāvaṇa).
It is said, “उपाकृता वै वेदाः” (“We are initiated to the quest of knowledge”) and this is indeed a day to initiate our quest of knowledge. Now the Central Government has
declared the entire week as “Saṃskṛta sapthāha.” With all these
efforts, throughout the nation we need to celebrate Sanskrit, serve
Sanskrit, and take the culture of Sanskrit to all corners.
Today [c. 2005] we have about three crore (thirty million) students
studying Sanskrit at schools and there are eleven Sanskrit universities. More
than two hundred and fifty universities conduct graduate courses, post-graduate
courses, and doctoral research in Sanskrit. Not only in India but in forty
other countries, Sanskrit is being studied deeply. Around sixty daily,
weekly, monthly Sanskrit magazines are available. We have more than
ten thousand people writing in Sanskrit today. We have more than five thousand
Sanskrit gurukulas.
Millions of people are using this language like their mother tongue. This being
so, Sanskrit, our pride, will it vanish? No, certainly not!
Kanchi Vijayendra Saraswati came up
with the statement “Sanskrit has been proved to be the most suitable language
for Artificial Intelligence/ Computer Programming”. A NASA researcher, named Rick Briggs,
published a research paper titled "Knowledge Representation in Sanskrit
and Artificial Intelligence" in 1985. (https://www.aaai.org/…/inde…/aimagazine/article/view/466/402),
where he attempts to justify that a natural language (especially a language
with certain unique attributes) has qualities to be blended and used for the
purpose of Artificial Intelligence. To
enhance his justification, he took Sanskrit just as a case study to derive his
final claim in this paper. Further, he discusses that every language
(especially the classical language) has certain unique qualities and likewise,
Sanskrit has certain excellent beautiful qualities that makes it unique in its
own style. Among its unique qualities, the highlight is its order-free
grammatical style which makes it ideal for Artificial Intelligence. For
example, the words in a sentence can be mixed in more than one way and still we
get a logical meaning. But more research
is needed to establish the uniqueness of Sanskrit language. Perhaps Malayalam
which is Sanskritized Tamil may prove
even better.
Traditional Agrahara
In
and around the village, you can explore the temple town of Sringeri and Remains of Kelady Kings
at Ikkeri & Keladi.
A Neuroscientist Explores the
"Sanskrit Effect"
MRI scans show that memorizing
ancient mantras increases the size of brain regions associated
with cognitive function
By James Hartzell on January 2, 2018
A hundred dhoti-clad young men
sat cross-legged on the floor in facing rows, chatting amongst themselves. At a
sign from their teacher the hall went quiet. Then they began the recitation.
Without pause or error, entirely from memory, one side of the room intoned one
line of the text, then the other side of the room answered with the next line.
Bass and baritone voices filled the hall with sonorous prosody, every word
distinctly heard, their right arms moving together to mark pitch and accent.
The effect was hypnotic, ancient sound reverberating through the room,
saturating brain and body. After 20 minutes they halted, in unison. It was just
a demonstration. The full recitation of one of India´s most ancient Sanskrit
texts, the Shukla Yajurveda, takes six hours.
I spent many years studying and
translating Sanskrit, and became fascinated by its apparent impact on mind and
memory. In India's ancient learning methods textual memorization is standard:
traditional scholars, or pundits, master many different types of Sanskrit
poetry and prose texts; and the tradition holds that exactly memorizing and
reciting the ancient words and phrases, known as mantras, enhances both memory
and thinking.
I had also noticed that the more
Sanskrit I studied and translated, the better my verbal memory seemed to
become. Fellow students and teachers often remarked on my ability to exactly
repeat lecturers’ own sentences when asking them questions in class. Other
translators of Sanskrit told me of similar cognitive shifts. So I was curious:
was there actually a language-specific “Sanskrit effect” as claimed by the
tradition?
When I entered the cognitive
neuroscience doctoral program at the University of Trento (Italy) in 2011, I
had the opportunity to start investigating this question. India's Vedic
Sanskrit pundits train for years to orally memorize and exactly recite
3,000-year old oral texts ranging from 40,000 to over 100,000 words. We wanted
to find out how such intense verbal memory training affects the physical
structure of their brains. Through the India-Trento Partnership for Advanced
Research (ITPAR), we recruited professional Vedic pundits from several
government-sponsored schools in the Delhi region; then we used structural
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at India’s National Brain Research Center to
scan the brains of pundits and controls matched for age, gender, handedness,
eye-dominance and multilingualism.
What we discovered from the
structural MRI scanning was remarkable. Numerous regions in the brains of
the Pundits were dramatically larger than those of controls, with over 10
percent more grey matter across both cerebral hemispheres, and substantial
increases in cortical thickness. Although the exact cellular underpinnings
of gray matter and cortical thickness measures are still under investigation,
increases in these metrics consistently correlate with enhanced cognitive
function.
Most interestingly for verbal memory
was that the pundits' right hippocampus—a region of the brain that plays a
vital role in both short and long-term memory—had more gray matter than
controls across nearly 75 percent of this subcortical structure. Our brains
have two hippocampi, one on the left and one on the right, and without them we
cannot record any new information. Many memory functions are shared by the two
hippocampi. The right is, however, more specialized for patterns, whether
sound, spatial or visual, so the large gray matter increases we found in the
pandits’ right hippocampus made sense: accurate recitation requires highly
precise sound pattern encoding and reproduction. The pandits also showed
substantially thickening of right temporal cortex regions that are associated
with speech prosody and voice identity.
Our study was a first foray into
imaging the brains of professionally trained Sanskrit Pundits could not
directly address the Sanskrit effect question (that requires detailed
functional studies with cross-language memorization comparisons, for which
we are currently seeking funding), we found something specific about intensive
verbal memory training. Does the pundits’ substantial increase in the gray
matter of critical verbal memory organs mean they are less prone to
devastating memory pathologies such as Alzheimer's? We don't know yet,
though anecdotal reports from India's Ayurvedic doctors suggest this may be
the case. If so, this raises the possibility that verbal memory
“exercising” or training might help elderly people at risk of mild cognitive
impairment retard or, even more radically, prevent its onset.
If so, the training might need to be
exact. One day I was filming four senior pundit teachers demonstrating the
different recitation speeds. Partway into one session all four suddenly
stopped. “What’s wrong?” I asked. “One of us made a slight error," came
the response. "I don’t mind," I said. "Yes, but we do," and
they restarted the entire recitation from the beginning.
The views expressed are those of the
author(s) and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.
Tamil
Deified as Personification of Subrahmanya(Murugan)
Subrahmanya,
called Murugan in Tamil, along with his father Shiva is credited with finding
The Tamil Language. He is described as the Tamil God.
The
Tamil word for Subrahmanya is Murugan. Murugu in Tamil means ‘exceptionally
beautiful’
Sanskrit and Tamil literature describe Subrahmanya as
personification of Beauty. Tamil is represented as the personification of
Subrahmanya, Murugan, Skanda. Subrahmanya appears with two of His two consorts,
Valli and Devasena,- 3
Tamil
has these broad divisions -3.
Iyal,
Prose, Isai,Music and Natakam, Drama. Each of these has a different Form and
Grammar.
Tamil letters are divided into three
groups, Vallinam, Idayinam and Mellinam and these determine the pronunciation in Tamil. Three.
க ச
ட த ப
ற –வல்லினம்--Hard sound; ங
ஞ ண ந
ம ன-இடையினம்--Medium sound ; ய ர
ல வ ழ
ள—மெல்லினம்--Soft sound
Tamil
has Uyir Ezhuthukkal, Base Alphabets-12.
Subrahmanya
has twelve hands ((12).
Tamil letters are divided into three
groups, Vallinam, Idayinam and Mellinam and these determine the pronunciation
in Tamil.
These
together is 18.
Subrahmanya
has Six faces and Twelve hands.
Tamil
base letters represent His hands (12) and the Tonal difference of Groups of
Tamil letters is 18.
His
image with Valli and Devasena, with his mount Peacock, form the Tamil Pranava.
Puranas say Aiyappan in
Sabarimali is the cousin brother of Lord Subhramanya born to Siva and Mohini.
The present image of Aiyappan in Sabarimalai is 18 inches in height and
is made from five different metals (panchaloha). A devastating fire destroyed
the old temple in 1951 A.D. One of the special features of the temple is the
flight of eighteen steps. This is supposed to be the ladder to heaven. 18 is a
mystic figure: Bhagavadgeeta has 18 chapters; Mahabharata contains 18
parvas(chapters); Mahabharata war was fought for 18 days with 18 Akshauheenees
of the armies (11 from Kauravas and 7 from Pandavas); Mahabharata contains
180000 slokas. 18 represents 18 principles--5
sense organs, 8 internal enemies like lust and greed, 3 gunas (satva, rajas and
tamas), and Vidya (knowledge of Brahman) as well as Avidya (knowledge of the
world).
--From Ramani's Blog
Mattur
The Sanskrit Speaking Village Of Karnataka
-
Mattur has been on my wishlist since I first
heard that all the people of this village can speak Sanskrit. Something that
might have been a norm in good old days, but is a rare exception in 21st CE,
has to be intriguing.
Mattur Sanskrit
Speaking Village of Karnataka
I wondered if it would be like visiting
India that existed 2000 or more years ago. Wanted to know if these people speak
other languages or not. I was curious to know if they inherited this Sanskrit
speaking or they learned it like we learn languages that are not our mother tongues.
So finally, last month I got an opportunity to visit Mattur village and spend a
few hours there.
I was in Shivamogga for a wedding in
the family. In between the rituals, I took out time to drive to Mattur village,
just on the outskirts of Shivamogga city. A dust road through the fields and
Arecanut plantations took us to the village. We were looking for Sh Ashwath
Avadhani Ji, who had kindly agreed to show us the village. We did not have his
contact number, but we were told to ask anyone in the village. That is vintage
style visiting an Indian village, where everyone knows everyone.
Village walk
We walked around the village that has
traditional south Indian houses with pillared corridors opening into the wide
streets between them. Platforms below the old trees indicated that
conversations still happen there. Young and old, all men wore Veshtis – the
traditional south Indian attire. The feel of the place was very different, it
had a homogeneity that we now miss in most places. Trust was in the air, as we
saw most houses had left their front doors open. Everyone welcomed us inside
their homes without any hesitation, without knowing who we are and what is our
purpose of visit.
We sat with Ashvath Ji on an open
platform after listening to him converse with people in the street in Sanskrit.
Personally, for me, it was watching a living dream. I had to pinch myself and
tell that I am listening to this Sanskrit Samvad in everyday life in real.
History of Mattur
village
Laxmi Narayan Temple
Mattur village was given to the Sanketi
Brahmins by Vijayanagara Kings who came here from Tamil Nadu some 500 years ago.
Yes, Mattur – the Sanskrit speaking village is an Agrahara, which the families
living here received as a royal grant. Trayambaka Rai, a minister in the
Krishnadevaraya King’s court set up the Trayamkeshwara temple and the village
came up around the temple. You can still see the marking of three segments of
land around the temple – each one marked for 40 families in the Agrahara.
There are about 120 families and 600
people in this Agrahara, although the total village population is about 2000.
They all belong to the same Brahmin caste. No wonder homogeneity exists.
No one really knows how the village got
the name. Guess is that it comes from Mahat + Uru which would roughly mean an
important place or a big place.
Mattur and Sanskrit
Samvad or Daily conversations
in Sanskrit at Mattur village
Most of the people are engaged in
Sanskrit in some way. There is a school that teaches in Sanskrit to the kids.
There is a Ved Pathshala where scholars learn the Indian scriptures. We met
students from across south Indian states who were here to learn Sanskrit and
scriptures.
When I asked Ashwath Ji, how did
Sanskrit speaking begin in this village, his quick answer was – Parampara. It
is our tradition. Our ancestors who were well versed in Vedas spoke in
Sanskrit. However, in the recent past, the credit goes to a course conducted by
Sanskrit Bharti.
When I asked that the tradition must
have existed in many parts of the country if not throughout the country, then
how did they manage to keep it alive. He said, we are very content people and
we are happy with what we have. He also gives credit to the youth who are
engaged in nurturing Sanskrit, without whom it would have been difficult to
sustain.
Today all the people in the Agrahara
and many in the village can speak Tamil which is their mother tongue, Kannada
which is the local language and Sanskrit which is the chosen language of the
village.
Young Students of
Sanskrit & Scriptures
Ashwath Ji told me about a few more
villages in South India like Radhakrishna Nagar near Dharwad where Sanskrit is
being revived as a spoken language. He also believes that languages are lost
when youth migrates to cities. If we stay in villages, the languages will
sustain naturally.
It is heartening to see that the
village has adopted technology to teach Sanskrit to the world. Many young
entrepreneurs here teach Sanskrit online from Mattur village. How I wish more
youth could find their livelihood within their homelands
Must See in Mattur
Sanskrit Village
Ashwath Ji took us for a walk around the
village. In a small village of 600 people, we could see so many things. I loved
the streets that had a sense of community and openness.
Bank of River Tunga
On the banks of River Tunga, there is
an open space where Agnihotras or Havans are performed. I visited in the
afternoon and missed attending one. I am sure I would visit it again just to
witness this on the banks of an ancient river.
Temples
There are 7 temples in this small
village. 3 of them Keshav, Sri Ram and Laxmi Narayana Temple are dedicated to
Vishnu. Another three Trayambakeshwara, Gowri Shankar, Someshwara are dedicated
to Shiva. There is another temple dedicated to Anjaneya or Hanuman.
We visited the Laxmi Narayan Temple
located at the entrance of the village and hence also called Durga temple. It
is a small one-room temple where women come and do kirtan every evening
Vedshala and Gurukul
Sanskrit Library
The part of the village that I enjoyed
the most was visiting Gurukul. A simple old style home where you enter after
taking your shoes off has young boys living and learning Indian Scriptures.
Gurukul at Mattur also has a small
library that has Sanskrit scriptures and books. I wish they had funds to create
a beautiful library that people can refer to. As of now, they are steel
almirahs that store the manuscripts as well as Sanskrit books.
Village School
A Sanskrit student
reciting Yajur Veda
Visiting the school in the village was
fun, where I interacted with the 5th-grade students and they surprised me with
their knowledge of Sanskrit. May they lead us to a future rooted in our own
culture.
The most fascinating part of visiting
the village is listening to the conversations in Sanskrit. If you know at least
one Indian language, you can follow the conversations to a large extent.
Veergal or Hero Stone
Hero Stone or Veergal
Outside one of the temples, we saw a
hero stone erected. Such hero stones commemorating the local heroes are found
quite commonly found in this region. Given the limited time, I could not gather
the story behind the stone. It does tell me that this Sanskrit speaking village
does not live in isolation despite being unique in its own way.
How to reach Mattur
village
You can easily drive to the village
from Shivamogga, that is well connected by road and rail to Bengaluru.
Plan to go either early morning to
around evening when you can see Agnihotras being performed, Scriptures being
chanted by the river.
You can easily cover it in an hours
time unless you decide to sit and chat with the people there.
Sanskrit and the Science of Consciousness
“Sanskrit is to experiential spirituality what mathematics is to science. Sanskrit can unlock the mysteries of universal Consciousness just as mathematics is decoding the structure of the universe.
This means that for a genuine science of Consciousness to be credible we should learn the mantric language of Sanskrit and its cosmic implications, not simply at an academic level but at a level of meditation.
Sanskrit provides the precise terminology for understanding the workings of cosmic law, karma and all forces in the universe. The Sanskrit alphabet is used as a blueprint for universal forces from the stars and the planets to the chakras of the subtle body. Sanskrit reflects the vibratory patterns that govern the universe as a whole on individual, collective, global and universal levels which are all interrelated.
Sanskrit is not just a manmade devised historical language. It holds all the potentials of cosmic sound. It links the human brain and mind to the vibratory field of Cosmic Intelligence that guides the universe as a whole. Sanskrit is a human emulation of cosmic sound that links the human mind to the Cosmic Mind. Just as we can link with the internet and download information via information technology, we can use Sanskrit in the meditative mind to link with Cosmic Intelligence and access its deeper knowledge and wisdom.
Sanskrit, OM and the Big Bang
Sanskrit is the language closest to the Divine Word, the original Cosmic Sound and Light vibration behind the entire universe. This Divine speech begins with OM and primal sound, the vibratory pattern that creates the time/space continuum.
Modern physics begins with the Big Bang, the original singularity from which the entire universe expands. Sanskrit similarly begins with OM as the original singularity behind the cosmos, which all other mantras create as the vibratory energies from the Big Bang.
From the OM vibration the universe is created through the sounds of the Sanskrit alphabet and its Shakti mantras as primary energy sounds and patterns. The ancient Vedic Rishis entered into Para Vak or Transcendent Speech beyond all name and form and revealed the secrets of creation through the Vedic mantras. That is why the Vedas are said to be the means through which the universe arises, is sustained and is dissolved, which happens at every moment, as well as in longer cycles of cosmic time. Yet such mantras are not merely human speech but cosmic powers, and others of the entire universe.
Vedic Sanskrit
The Vedas are mantric texts of cosmogenesis behind the various lokas or realms of manifestation from pure light to gross matter. Yet they also replicate the same code in the human soul (Jivatman) that is a replica of the entire conscious Universe, the individual reflection of the cosmic person. Yet this deeper mantric connection must be understood with a mantric mind, not simply an academic intellect or modern linguist. It requires a profound sadhana of Vedic mantras on a daily basis for many years.
Western academic scholarship to date has only scratched the surface of the monumental teachings of the Vedas. It remains caught in the outer mind, brain and physical reality missing the multidimensional mantric language of the Rishis and its secret code of universal knowledge.
Without understanding the mind of the Rishi, the Vedas remain a closed door to the outer mind and its superficial opinions. Vedic deities of light and fire, like Agni, Surya, Soma, Indra are not just personifications of the forces of nature, as they are often reduced to, but of the powers of cosmic light operative from the macrocosm to our own minds and hearts, imbued with consciousness and a multidimensional action, not restricted to a single form. In this regard all the forces of nature on Earth are but local manifestations of universal forces.
Vedic Sanskrit, we should note, is more fluid, symbolic and less grammatically strict than classical Sanskrit. It cannot be understood by the rules or formations of Sanskrit grammar alone. Its meanings and etymology have more variabilities, levels and hidden dimensions than classical Sanskrit which has many of these of its own.
Vedic Sanskrit requires a Rishi vision to appreciate, not just technical linguistic expertise. Can hold the entire universe in every syllable. The ultimate yogic power of Sanskrit is found in the oldest Rigveda which holds the main mantras of the Rishis. Vedic Sanskrit has a depth and density that often exceeds even classical Sanskrit, without all its beauty, complexity, intricacy and power. Panini’s Sanskrit grammar is an extraordinary codification of language and sound for rational and poetic application, but the Vedic language is at a higher level of universal creative sound prior to its manifestation into fixed forms and objects. Its words are more like waves on the sea than defined objects in the outer world.
There are a few great modern Rishis through whom we can approach the depths of the Vedic language. These include Sri Aurobindo, Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni, Kapali Shastri, Brahmarshi Daivarata, Sri Anirvan and Swami Veda Bharati.
Conclusion
Sanskrit is not as difficult to learn as many people think it is. For those speaking English it is much easier to learn than Chinese or even European languages like Russian or French. But going to its depths is another matter. Yet even beginners in Sanskrit can learn various mantras and terminology that will greatly expand our understanding of ourselves, other creatures and the entire universe.
Vedic Sanskrit is more difficult to learn than Classical Sanskrit because it is a seer language with hidden dimensions, a complex poetic combination of sound and meaning with the abstract and concrete blended together. Even if one learns Vedic grammar these meanings will not be accessible.
Relative to classical Sanskrit one can at least learn the key terminologies of Yoga, Vedanta and Ayurveda, which have many special terms for understanding different aspects of universal knowledge and have no adequate English equivalents. Such are the three gunas, the three doshas, the five koshas, the seven lokas, four aspects of the mind, different types of samadhi, and yogic principles and practices. Even without knowing much Sanskrit grammar one can benefit greatly from these.
It is not difficult to benefit from a few key Vedic mantras like the Gayatri Mantra. Tantric Bija mantras like Hrim are even easily to learn to use, though their secrets are profound. Please benefit from my book: The Path of the Rishi and Mantra Yoga and Primal Sound.--Vamadeva Shastri
Very well-written article based on deep research. Congratulations!
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