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Now, crash courses in Sanskrit

 

NINA MARTYRIS

 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ TUESDAY, JULY 02, 2002  11:35:33 PM ]

 

MUMBAI: English in 72 hours! Indian and American accent guaranteed! The

deadpan walls of Mumbai’s local trains have long been abused by the weight

of such post-colonial enterprise.

But what would really startle them out of their complacency would be the

appearance of ads announcing "Sanskrit in 72 hours" plastered alongside the

English ones.

The language of civilisation isn’t about to give the language of empire run

for its money, but those wont to dismiss Sanskrit as a dead tongue would be

surprised to know that not only do such crash courses exist, they enjoy a

following in the city.

Sixteen years ago, in an attempt to give back to society, a gentleman called

D.V. Karandikar started his first Sanskrit class. To his surprise, 85 people

signed up. Today, Mr Karandikar’s Sanskrit Bhasha Sanstha conducts ‘Learn

Sanskrit in 72 hours’ classes in Dadar, Dahisar, Thane, Mulund and Badlapur,

and soon classes will commence in Pune and Ahmednagar as well. Each class

has around 30 pupils ranging from housewives to engineers, with doctors,

businessman and retired folk in between.

For those looking for a deeper bond with this ancient mother-language, the

Sanstha— which now boasts 150 life members—has started ‘college classes’ at

Dadar, Dahisar and Thane. Not only do Sanskrit school teachers looking for a

refresher course make a beeline here, but students from these courses have

also found jobs as school teachers. Who would want to learn Sanskrit today?

"Two kinds of people," says Mr Karandikar. "There are the students who learn

it because it is a scoring subject, and there are the others who do it

because they love the language or because a knowledge of Sanskrit gives them

access to the scriptures."

Indeed, the spiritual pull of Sanskrit is the real hook. "I wanted to know

about what our rishis had said," says Jigna Danani, 29, a chartered

accountant. Ms Danani attends the Maharashtra Seva Sangh’s appreciation

classes conducted by Prabhakar Bhatkhande. "I’ve finally been able to read

the Upanishads," she says proudly.

The Maharashtra Seva Sangh is a 20-year-old institution which holds classes

every Thursday night for those who want to touch base with Sanskrit

literature and Hindu scripture. Over the years, the little room in Mulund

has witnessed expoundings on ancient texts like the Ramayana, Upanishads,

Vedas, the stotras of Adi Shankaracharya and readings of plays like

Mrchchkatika, Shakuntala and Raghuvansha. The class of six is now 35-strong

and, in response to the demand, another course has been started for women

who can’t attend the night class. In an effort to popularise the language,

the Sangh also produces Sanskrit plays. "Initially we used to do Kalidas,"

says Mr Bhatkande, "but now we tackle more modern themes. I’ve written plays

on the environment (Vruksha Rakshanam) and on the mechanisation of man

(Yantra Manav), a tamasha, a farce and even a thriller called Kara which was

greatly appreciated by police officers. We’ve found that if you go to people

with something that has both entertainment and ethical value they are sure

to respond."

O V Srinivasan, a 57-year-old businessman, is enthralled by the beauty and

richness of Sanskrit. "Whether it’s mathematics or software programming or

how to manufacture planes, Sanskrit is the language best suited," he says.

"It’s a perfect language, and one that hasn’t changed.

Today, even if you know English or Tamil, it’s hard to understand

Shakespearean English or ancient Tamil literature, but the Sanskrit Panini

used is still the Sanskrit used today. There’s been no change." Dr A.B.

Bakre, head of the Sanskrit Department at the University of Mumbai, says

that the Central government has done its bit to promote Sanskrit. The year

1999-2000 was declared ‘Year of Sanskrit’ and the UGC has given the

university a Rs 1 lakh grant and sent a trained teacher to run a spoken

Sanskrit class which has become very popular. The Centre has matched the

amount with another grant to organise lecture series and cultural

programmes. While only three city colleges offer a six-paper degree course

in Sanskrit—Ramnarain Ruia, Wilson and Somaiya- -three others—Jhunjhunwala,

Patkar and Bhavan’s—offer a three-paper degree course.

"It’s a pity that people only see Sanskrit as a Brahminical language," says

Mr Karandikar. "It’s also sad that it’s thought of as a difficult language,

when in fact it isn’t so. However, I firmly believe that Sanskrit, which had

a grand past, will definitely have a grand future." Who would want to learn

Sanskrit today? "Two kinds of people," says Mr Karandikar. "There are the

students who learn it because it is a scoring subject, and there are the

others who do it because they love the language or because a knowledge of

Sanskrit gives them access to the scriptures."

 

 

 

 COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE

Dear Nina, Its been very interesting ... - raiyogendra

Cool Article. For NRI's however tis the ... - asitvyas1

That's great, at least Indians should st... - arvind_chauhan

It is an excellent effort by the sanstha... - ramvv

Sanskrit is a great language. Thanks t... - sriganeshb

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Now, crash courses in Sanskrit