to Kumari and Linda and all about why I try to learn Sanskrit

[Guest guest]

Namaste Kumari and Linda and all,

 

our discussion of how to learn Sanskrit and the difficulties we encounter, has

made me think of why I would want to in the first place. I would like to share

my thoughts and perhaps you would add your comments and what you think?

 

At first I thought it was necessary in order to 'really understand' the texts

(and, I admit, to check Swamiji's translation to see if it was correct. Oh, the

deviousness of Conceit...). So I set myself to work with grammars and

dictionaries and quickly realized that this would not be an easy matter. I got

very frustrated at my failure to 'master' Sanskrit within a 'reasonable' period.

At one point, I even stopped doing sadhana with the excuse that the language was

the obstacle in this path, trying to learn was a wasted effort and I had better

stick to what I know. Which was not a wise decision because I soon found myself

lost in the woods, wondering what went wrong:))

 

Fortunately, Swamiji has provided for people like me. He has gone before, done

an incredible amount of work and generously shared the fruits of his labour in

order to help those who follow. In publishing his books, he has given us such

wonderful translations, so rich in meaning, and a transliteration which makes it

so easy to recite and enjoy the sheer beauty of the sound and melody of the

mantras, that one cannot help but be drawn to the texts again and again. And

Shree Maa has gracefully allowed her songs and recitations to be recorded. When

our beloved Shree Maa sings the words...all thoughts of difficulties and effort

vanish. So I may have tried to leave Sanskrit alone, but it will not leave me..

 

So, slowly slowly, I learn. Repetition breeds familiarity, and with familiarity

comes understanding of structure and meaning, which in turn facilitates

recitation and recognition of letters and words, and then more understanding.

Swamiji has said that there are many levels of meaning in Sanskrit. Only a small

part can be found in the dictionary, so I don't worry so much about 'correct

understanding' anymore. I find that Swamiji's translations are much more than a

translation of words; they have the capacity to awaken ever new levels of

understanding in the reader, and all those levels are 'correct'. I still get all

hot and bothered sometimes about a particular word I don't 'get', but I now see

the problem is not the Sanskrit:))

 

There is something about learning Sanskrit that is more than just learning a

foreign language. In the first Chapter of the Chandi, the Creative Capacity

sings to Divine Mother, from His heart: " You are the eternal essence of all the

letters " . So I think all our efforts to learn are in fact efforts to get closer

to Her. Hers is not a 'foreign' language, but our very own. She comes to us in

the form of mantra because all mantras are Hers (have you ever noticed how, when

a mantra just seems to come floating into your mind, Shree Maa seems to come

too?). To me, learning Sanskrit, reciting Sanskrit, playing with Sanskrit; it

all makes me feel as if I am allowed to enter Her palace, in the midst of which

Mother is waiting..When it comes down to it, I feel our desire to learn Sanskrit

is one of Mother's ways to draw us close. And She will never give up, no matter

how long it takes,

 

jai Maa! jai Swamiji!

 

Henny

 

 

 

 

, Joan Fisher <mjfisher2005 wrote:

>

> I am so grateful too, Henny that Swamiji has provided all these

transliterations and interpretations as well as Srini giving us the Sanskrit

words bit by bit from the Cosmic Puja.  I tried years ago to transliterate some

hymns to the Goddess and it was an onerous task.  I managed to complete the

Lakshmi Ashtakam, but that is a relatively short one.  Part of the problem, too

is there are so many letters in Sanskrit that you have to keep in mind.  I was

never able to memorize them all and I am very rusty now.  I would not wish

Sanskrit were any less complicated, that is what makes it such a rich language,

but I just wish I was more of an apt pupil!

>  

> Jai Shree Maa, Jai Swamiji!

>  

> Kumari

>

> --- On Tue, 9/1/09, jaisanatanimaa <jaisanatanimaa wrote:

>

>

> jaisanatanimaa <jaisanatanimaa

> [www.ShreeMaa.org] Re: to Linda re:to Henny about Devanagari

>

> Tuesday, September 1, 2009, 11:42 AM

>

>

>  

>

>

>

> Dear Linda,

>

> the Devanagari is the beautiful script which we cannot read:)))

> I have tried, and am still trying to learn the letters and the combinations of

letters in which Sanskrit is written. If you know the letters, or if you look

them up in a list, you can decipher the words via the transliteration (the way

it is said is the same as the way it is written, no funny business like 'you

write x but you pronounce y').

> So then you can see where in the Devanagari words begin and end, and compare

this with the transliteration. Sometimes in the transliteration this is a little

different, so I tried to find a word in the dictionary under the first letter of

the word, which turns out to be not a separate word at all.

> It is very difficult to find out where Sanskrit words begin and end because

they tend to write many words together, and letters change due to the

combinations of words and conjugations. So it is a puzzle, and I fail to find a

word many times. That's why I am so happy with Srini's contribution!

> If you wish to find out more: there is an article 'Devanagari' in Wikipedia (I

found it via Google), where you can learn about the history and there you can

also see the letters (with their pronunciation) .

>

> hope this helps,

>

> with love,

> Henny

>

> , nierika@ wrote:

> >

> > Dear Henny is the Devanagari the transliterated script of the sanskrit?

> > (And after that the English...) Is there any way to learn more about

> > Devanagari? I would like to learn enough about it to understand what I'm

reading

> > without having to then also read the English. Thank you as always ~ Linda

> > Jai Ma Jai Swamiji

> >

> >

> > Henny wrote:

> >

> > my thoughts are that your are doing us all a great service. It is only now

> > that I understand 'shutulya' is not a word, and that I should take a look

> > at the Devanagari if I cannot find something in the dictionary. Apparently,

> > sometimes words that are one in Devanagari are separated in the

> > transliteration at a seemingly illogical place (illogical to me, that is)...

> >

>