THE GREATNESS AND GLORY OF SANSKRIT
Indeed, it is with ineffable trepidation that I rise to speak on the greatness and glory of Sanskrit. I know only too well that Sanskrit is often hailed as a divine language - Deva Bhasha. Therefore, only celestials are qualified to expatiate on the matchless splendour of that language, and not mere mortals like me. Therefore, even if I attempt to do it, can I render full justice to the subject on hand? The answer is an emphatic No. By the way, is it possible to describe vividly in words the incomparable splendour of the Sun? Well, Sanskrit is as resplendent as the Sun. Therefore, its intrinsic worth and value cannot be brought out in full measure in words. It is no hyperbole to say that even if I have all the trees in the world as my pens, all the water in the oceans and seas as my ink and the entire earth as my writing sheet, I cannot adequately bring out in words the extraordinary richness and grandeur of that priceless and peerless language.
Having candidly accepted my woeful inadequacy in rendering full justice to the immensity of the task undertaken by me, I shall speak a few words about the history of the growth and development of Sanskrit in ancient India.
How old is Sanskrit? Well, it is as old as the hills. The exact antiquity of Sanskrit cannot be established with any degree of certainty. This is because, we have written records only for the past 5000 years. Therefore, history beyond that period is in the realm of fancy and conjecture. The Rig Veda, the oldest among the Vedas, is said to be 10,000 years old, if not older. But, there are no written records to prove this fact. But, the fact remains that Sanskrit was the lingua franca of India for thousands of years.
Sanskrit grew from strength to strength, so long as India was ruled by Hindu Kings It reached te pinnacle of its glory during the Golden Age of Guptas. Indeed, the Golden Age of Guptas was also the Golden Age of Sanskrit. Kalidasa, the tallest literary figure in Sanskrit and author of plays like Meghaduta, Abhijnana-Sakunthalam, Kumara Sambava, Raghuvamsa etc. lived during the Golden Age of the Guptas. It is not only literature, but also all forms of art and science had a luxuriant growth and development during the Gupta rule. Varahamihira, an eminent scientist, lived during the Gupta age and wrote brilliant works on various faculties like astronomy, geography and botany. His brilliant works include Brihat Samhita and Loghu jataka. Arya Bhatta, the great mathematician, laid the foundation of the Number system. Zero was invented by him. He was also a great astronomer who wrote Surya Siddhanta, in which he proved that the earth revolved round its axis. Many such examples can be cited to prove that it is not only arts and literature, but science and technology also made rapid strides during the Golden Age of the Guptas. Decimal system, for example, was invented only during the Gupta period.
There were standard books in Sanskrit on almost all the disciplines in ancient India including science, technology, mathematics, astrology, astronomy, medicine etc. So, it is not as if Sanskrit is literature alone, including devotional literature, and nothing else.
But the decline of Sanskrit began with the establishment of the Muslim rule in India. Mohamed Ghazni was a marauder who invaded India seventeen times only to despoil India of its wealth. He had no intention of establishing Muslim rule in India. But, Mohamed Ghori, not only invaded India, but established Muslim rule in India in the twelfth century. He replaced Sanskrit with Persian, as the language of administration. Since then, Sanskrit was on the wane, though it did not become extinct, thanks to God's grace.
The British rule came as deliverance to the Hindus who were oppressed, suppressed and depressed because of the tyrannical and ruthless Mughal rule. The British, no doubt, introduced English as the official language of India in 1835 but they did not discourage the learning of Sanskrit. In fact, many Englishmen learnt Sanskrit with avidity and realized its immeasurable value. One such distinguished Englishman was Sir William Jones, Chief Justice of India, Calcutta. It must be remembered that till 1911, Calcutta was the capital of India during the British regime. It was only in 1911 that New Delhi became the capital of India.
The British rule also enabled Western scholars to learn Sanskrit and appreciate its intrinsic worth. Max Mueller of Germany was undoubtedly the greatest among them. He became such an erudite scholar in Sanskrit that he was able to translate Rig Veda, the oldest among the Vedas and ten principal Upanishads into English.
When India became independent on August 15, 1947, Sanskrit should have been adopted as the official language of India. Instead, Hindi was adopted as the official language of India in 1950. It was an egregious blunder, because Hindi is an undeveloped language and also a Creole. Except, for Tulasidasa's Ramayana, there is no outstanding literary work in Hindi. Besides, there are no standard works in Hindi on various disciplines, as in Sanskrit.
Cynics and skeptics may well ask whether Sanskrit, a language which fell into disuse eight centuries ago can be revived and made the official language of India and medium of instruction in education. They must cast their eyes wide and see what happened in Israel. Hebrew was the language of the Jews for thousands of years. But, it fell into disuse because the Jews did not have a homeland of their own for a long time and were persecuted in several countries for mote than tow thousand years.
But, the Jews had their own homeland when the State of Israel came into existence in 1948 and Ben-Gurion became the first Prime Minister of Israel. It was Hebrew, and not any other language which was adopted as the official language and medium of instruction in education in Israel. But, Israel is none the worse for having adopting Hebrew as the official language, and medium of instruction in education. On the contrary, it had made rapid strides in various realms of human endeavor. Emulating the shining example of Israel, we too can adopt Sanskrit as the official language instead of Hindi, a hybrid language, in a phased manner. But, English should continue to be an associate official language or link language, as well as the medium of instruction in education, especially higher education. But Sanskrit can be introduced as an alternate medium of instruction in education by and by so that in course of time, it can become an effective alternate medium of instruction in education.
Why I suggest this course is based on sound commonsense. A person who has been fasting for several days should not be given solid food immediately after he breaks his fast. He should be given fruit juice, preferably orange juice, immediately after he ends his fast. Likewise, since Sanskrit fell into disuse eight centuries ago, it cannot be made either the official language or the alternate medium of instruction in education overnight. It will take about 50 to 100 years for Sanskrit to become an effective official language as well as an alternate medium of instruction in education. Therefore, my suggestion is based on ground realities, and not on emotion.
Is Sanskrit a scientific language? Is it not an anachronism in this age when science and technology has made rapid strides? Instead of answering these questions myself directly, I shall quote what Western scholars say about the scientific value of Sanskrit.
A German magazine, which deals with world history of facts about India, has recorded the following facts about the scientific advance of India in ancient times, when Sanskrit was the medium of instruction in education.
I think all of you will agree with me that medicine is a science. The German magazine says:
(1) "Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine known to humans.
Charaka, the father of Ayurveda, consolidated Ayurveda 2500 years ago." Today, Ayurveda is gaining ground in the U.S and other countries. I may add that Sanskrit was the medium of instruction in Ayurveda in ancient times and there are several standard books on Ayurveda in Sanskrit.
(2) Again, the German magazine of Germany says:
"Susruta, is the father of surgery. 2600 years ago, he and health scientists of his time conducted complicated surgeries like caesarians, cataract, artificial limbs, fractures, urinary stones and even plastic surgery and brain surgery. Usage of anaesthesia was well-known in ancient India. Over 125 surgical equipments were used. Deep knowledge of anatomy, philosophy, etiology, embryology, digestion, metabolism, genetics and immunity is also found in many texts." I may add that Sanskrit was the medium of instruction in medicine in ancient times.
(3) You will agree that astronomy is a science. The Forbes magazine
says: "Bhaskaracharya calculated the time taken by earth to orbit the sun
hundreds of years before the astronomer Smart." As stated earlier, Sanskrit
was the medium of instruction in astronomy too during the Golden Age of the
Guptas.
(4) Forbes magazine brought out from the U.S. had published a report in its issue of July 1987 that of the languages in the world, Sanskrit is most suitable for computer software, which means that is is most useful for modern technology. Therefore, when Western scientists and technologists say that Sanskrit will fill the bill as a scientific language, doubting Thomases must give up their imaginary misgivings and accept the reality as it is.
Sanskrit and the growth of Indian culture and civilization had been
indissolubly bound together in ancient and medieval India. The German magazine says that the world's first university was established in Takshasila (Taxila) in 700 BC, and more than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects. The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was one of the greatest achievement of ancient India in the field of education. I may add that Sanskrit was the medium of instruction in both these universities.
However, we have lost our moorings after the advent of independence and relegated Sanskrit to the background. This is a sophoclean tragedy. One Western scholar who had mastered Sanskrit recently bewailed that "Sanskrit is slowing dying in India". But, the silver lining in the dark cloud is that more and more Western scholars are learning Sanskrit with avidity, and realizing much to their pleasant surprise that is a veritable treasure trove.
So, if thousands of foreign scholars well-versed in Sanskrit wax eloquent on the glory of Sanskrit and also write a number of books on the greatness and glory of Sanskrit, explaining in detail that it will be a valuable vehicle of thought even in science and technology, then our Indian politicians will sit up and take notice and eventually veer round to the view that Sanskrit can be introduced as the official language of India and also as an alternate medium of instruction in education. Therefore, till enlightenment dawns on our Indian politicians, a number of whom are either semi-literature or illiterate, we must wait patiently for the restoration of Sanskrit to its pristine glory. There is a famous saying in English: "Those who wait shall also serve". Therefore, if we wait patiently, then at least our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren will serve the cause of Sanskrit, as and when it is introduced both as the official language of India and as alternate medium of instruction in education. Hindi, will soon be drowned by the weight of its own inherent weakness and inadequacies, not to speak of its innumerable dialects, making confusion worse confounded and Sanskrit, which is now like the resplendent Sun completely obscured by the dark clouds, will re-emerge from the dark clouds and scintillate lustrously with re-charged luminosity like the Phoenix, the mythical bird which burnt itself on the funeral pyre and re-emerged from the ashes with renewed vim and vigor. Let us, therefore, pray to God with unflinching faith and what is wishful thinking at present will become a tangible reality in the foreseeable future.
