Ramayana - Some Interesting Facts

वाल्मीकिरामायणे आसीतापहरणपट्टाभिषेकपर्यन्तं कथासंग्रहः
(Collection of interesting facts from Seeta's abduction to Rama's coronation in Valmiki Ramayana)

वाल्मीकिरामायणे नैकेषु स्थलेषु श्रीरामस्य विष्णुदैवत्वमतिस्पष्टतया विदितमुक्तं चास्ति | सीतायाः लक्ष्मीत्वमपि | तथापि पितामहब्रह्मणा रावणाय प्रदत्तं देवदानवावध्यत्वमाद्रियमाणः परब्रह्म भगवान् विष्णुः मानुषरूपेण भूलोके अवततार | "परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृतां धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय संभवामि युगे युगे" इति कृष्णावतारे जोघुष्यमाणः महाविष्णुः रामावतारे तु देवतागणैः स्तूयमानोऽपि "आत्मानं मानुषं मन्ये रामं दशरथात्मजं..." इति कथयन् संपूर्णमानुषत्वं प्रदर्शयति |

निष्पापजनपीडालोलुपः लङ्कापतिरावणः जानकीहरणकन्दरपतितः पापपर्वतोत्तुङ्गमवाप | प्राणप्रणयिनीं मार्गयमाणः सलक्ष्मणः श्रीरामः विभीषणसुग्रीवमरुदादिभिः यातुधाननगरीं प्राप्य निशाचरपमावहार्थं जुहुवे | ततस्सञ्जातं परमभीकरयुद्धं रावणहननं जगज्जनितं वाल्मीकिरामायणे सविस्तरमाख्यातमेव |

रावणवधबीजं स्त्रीमूलं सीताहेतुजातमिति बहवः कथयन्ति | परन्तु शूर्पणखायाः निस्त्रपाटोपभ्रष्टचेष्टाः एव एतन्महायुद्धकारणा इति दरीदृश्यते | विकृताङ्गस्वसुः पापवचनैरुद्दीप्तमनाः रावणः प्रतीकारबुद्धिरभूत् | अकम्पननामकात् सेनापतिमुखात् खरदूषणादिहनने रामबलमाकर्ण्य उदासीनोऽभवत् | ततःपुनः शूर्पणखाप्रलपनात् सः स्वबन्धुं मारीचं प्राप्य साहाय्यं ययाचे | रामबाणपरिणामसुविज्ञातः मारीचः रावणं समुपदिश्य लङ्कां निवर्तयामास | तच्छ्रुत्वा शूर्पणखाक्रन्दनं गुरुतरमसह्यं च जातम् | कुलघ्नप्रायं सीतहरणनिश्चयं कृत्वा पौलस्त्यः पुनः मारीचेन मिलित्वा प्रसभं योजनां रचयामास | स्वर्णमृगो मारीच एवेति लक्ष्मणेनोक्तोऽपि सुवर्णमृगलालसयापहृतचेतया जानक्या प्रचोदितः रामः मायामृगमार्गयमाणोऽन्वधावत् | ततः सीताकठोरवचनाल्लक्ष्मणोऽप्याश्रमान्निर्गतः | तदेवावसरं नीरिक्ष्य रूपान्तरे भैक्ष्यं याचमाने रावणे सीता विमलमना सत्कारपूर्वकं रामवृत्तान्तमशेषेणाकथयत | रावणेनापहृतां मित्रवधूं प्रपश्य खगोत्तमः जटायुर्विव्हलः राक्षसेन युद्धं कृत्वा व्रणितः मरणप्रायो जातः | तस्मिन्नवसरे ततः पलयमानां सीतां भीतां राक्षसेन्द्रः पुनराकृष्याकाशमार्गेण लङ्कामवाप | तत्र तां स्वभवने स्थापयित्वा मृदुवचनैः प्रसादयितुं यतित्वा विफलीभूतः रावणः सीतामशोकवनं निर्यायितवान् |

एतस्मिन्नन्तरे सलक्ष्मणः रामः वैदीहीमन्विष्यन् रक्तसिक्तवदनं धराशायीं जटायुमवलोक्य तत्पक्षिणैव सीता भक्षितेति संदिहन् तं हन्तुमुद्युक्तः | तदा पक्षिणो मुखाद्दशरथमर्मरमाकर्ण्य विस्मितः रामः तं सान्त्वयित्वा सीताहरणविषयेऽपि मनागवागच्छत् | तदनन्तरं पम्पाप्रदेशे हनुमन्मेलनप्रीतः रामः क्षरजपुत्रस्य सुग्रीवाग्रजस्य वालिनः वधाञ्चकार | सुग्रीवाज्ञया चोदिताः हरिगणाः दिक्षु सर्वासु परिभ्रमन्तः दक्षिणसमुद्रतीरे जटाय्वाग्रजेन सम्पातिना सीतादेव्याः स्थानं श्रुत्वा परिहृष्टा बभूवुः |

पवनसुत आञ्जनेयो महाजलधिं लङ्घित्वा सीतदर्शनकृतकृत्योऽभिज्ञानसहितः लङ्कादहनसन्नादः पुनराजगाम ऋष्यमूकं रामसमीपम् | रामलक्ष्मणसुग्रीवाङ्गदनलनीलजाम्बवद्धनूमदूर्मिभिरलंकृता हरिवाहिनी सुग्रीवनगरात् प्रस्थाप्य वरुणालयस्योत्तरतीरमासादयामास | तत्रागतः रावणानुजो विभीषणः रामाश्रयमुपापद्यत | रामक्रोधाद्भीतेन वरुणदेवेनादिष्टः वानरप्रमुखो नलः समुद्रोपरि महासेतुं निर्ममौ | जलं तीर्त्वा दशकोटिसंख्याका वानराः युद्धाय सिद्धा अतिष्ठन् | ततस्सञ्जाते सङ्ग्रामे प्रहस्तादयः राक्षसगणप्रमुखाः मृत्युमुखा अभवन् | तदा मायायुद्धनिपुणः रावणसुतः इन्द्रजित् रणाङ्गणेऽवतीर्य वानरान् बहुधा सम्पीडयन् रामलक्ष्मणावपि युद्धभूमौ पातयित्वा तौ नागपाशेन बबन्ध | सः शक्रारिः विमाने सीतामानय्य तद्दृश्यमदर्शयत | हताशा सीता परिक्रोशन्ती राक्षसीष्वेकया समाश्वासनमलभत | रामलक्ष्मणयोर्बन्धः गरुडदेवेन मोचितः |

अमोघशक्तिसंचयनार्थं इन्द्रजिति निरते सति रावणः स्वयं समराङ्गणमागत्य पराक्रममद्भुतवीर्यं प्रदर्शयन् सर्ववानरवीरान् त्रासयामास | लक्ष्मणः रावणेन घातितो निश्चेष्टितोऽभवत् | तदा लक्ष्मणं बाहुशक्त्या उत्थाप्य अपहर्तुं प्रयतमानः रावणः विफलो बभूव | मारुतेर्मुष्टिप्रहारात् रुधिरं वमन् रावणः पराङ्मुखोऽभवत् | तदनन्तरं रावणिः पुनः युद्धभूमिं प्रविश्य बलवद्भिरस्त्रैः संपूर्णकपिसैन्यं क्षोभायमानः रामलक्ष्मणौ संज्ञाविहीनावकुरुत | वानरवैद्यसुषेणेच्छानुसारेण ओषधीरवचेतुं पवनात्मजः हिमालयप्रदेशं प्रति उत्पुप्लुवे | विलम्बमनिच्छन् महामतिस्सः सुमहापर्वतखण्डमेव हस्ते गृहीत्वा प्रत्यागमत् | ओषधिप्रभावेण प्रबोधितौ राघवभ्रातरौ दृष्ट्वा कपिसेना हर्षोल्लासेन ननाद | सीताराममिलनोत्सुकाः वानरवीराः रात्रिसमये लङ्कानगरीं प्रविश्य तस्य बहुभागमग्निसाच्चक्रुः |

क्रोधमूर्छितेन रावणेन शयनादुत्थापितः रणङ्गमो महागात्रः कुम्भकर्णोऽपि युद्धे रामेण मारितः | ततश्शक्रजिदपि भयङ्करयुद्धे लक्ष्मणेन हतः | तद्वार्तामाकर्ण्यासमाहितावगुणमूर्खा शूर्पणखा रावणमुपगम्य रणे तस्यापयशमुद्दिश्य भर्त्सनवाक्यानश्रावयत् | नष्टबन्धुबान्धवः स्वसृभर्त्सनकर्शितः दशाननस्तदा प्राणपण्यं युद्धं कर्तुं निरचिनुत | ब्रह्ममहेश्वरेन्द्रादिदेववृन्दः महर्षिगणश्च रामरावणयोर्युद्धं दिदृक्षवः अम्बरे समाविष्टाः | रक्षसाधिपः वीरोचितयुद्धं कुर्वाणः मन्त्रास्त्रप्रयोगबलात् शत्रुगणे हाहाकारमवर्धयत | दशाननप्रयुक्तेन विशिष्टबलसमन्वितेन शक्त्यस्त्रेण रामानुजः मूर्छितः | रामे विलपिते सति सुषेणेन पुनरुक्तो हनुमान् सत्वरेण पुनरेकवारं हिमगिरिं प्राप्य गिरिभागमानयत् | तद्वनस्पतिकारणाल्लक्ष्मणो जातस्सलक्षणः |

सर्वलोकाधिरामे विजिगीषमाणः सुराधिपतिरिन्द्रः स्वामिसेवार्थं स्वरथं सारथिमातलियुक्तं प्रेषयामास | श्रीरामः तद्रथोत्तमं प्रणम्य रथोपस्थः अरुणोदितभानुरिव विरराज | इन्द्रध्वजरामस्य मुण्डध्वजरावणस्य संघर्षस्तत्तुमुलोऽभवत् | निशितैः रामेषुसहस्रैः प्रव्यथितः राक्षसः रथे निपपात | स्वस्वामिनः दुस्थितिमवेक्ष्य रावणसारथिः रथमपानयत रणाङ्गणात् | अचिरेण लब्धसंज्ञः राक्षसपतिः रणोपरमयमानं स्वसारथिं भृशं तर्जयामस | युद्धक्षेत्रं पुनः प्राप्य तपोबलप्राप्तानि नानाविधान्यस्त्राणि प्रकटयितुमारभत | तदा अगस्त्यमुनिः श्रीरामं विजयप्रदायकम् आदित्यहृदयस्तोत्रमुपादिशत् | शत्रुविनाशकं सूर्यदेवताकस्तोत्रमनुसन्दधच्छ्रीरामः तीक्ष्णसायकेनैकेन रावणहृदयभेदनमकरोत् | रावणभयान्मुक्ताः तुतोक्षमाणाः देवर्षिगणाः रामं संस्तुष्टुवुः | रामोऽपि इन्द्रेण सर्वान् मृतवानरान् पुनरुज्जीवयामास |
रामस्तदनन्तरं रावणस्य और्ध्वदैहिकक्रियां कारयित्वा विभीषणाय लङ्काधिपत्यं प्राददात् | रामादेशात् जानकी स्नात्वा शुभवस्त्राद्यलंकृता बाष्पनेत्रगद्गदा राममुपागमत् | पुरुषोत्तमरामेण रावणे निर्जिते यथेष्टं गन्तुमुक्ता सा अनिन्दिता स्वेच्छया अग्निप्रवेशं चकार | प्रकटीभूतेनाग्निदेवेन परमपवित्रेति उद्घोषितया सीतया तथा विभीषणवानरादिभिस्सह श्रीरामः पुष्पकविमानमारुह्य अयोध्यानगरीं प्राप्य पुरजनैः समादृतः सुमुहूर्ते ससीतः पट्टाभिषिक्तोऽभवत् |

रामाय रामभद्राय रामचन्द्राय वेधसे |

नाथाय रघुनाथाय सीतायाः पतये नमः ||

Learning to Unlearn - for Sanskrit

When learning a new language, after getting familiar with some common words and basic grammar, one starts getting to know about the idiosyncrasies of that language - the phrases, idioms, the style of usage. While the initial learning of words and grammar can be done through resources like books and the internet, the nuances of the language come with practice and are greatly enhanced by living among the natives of that language. Many times, this step involves unlearning some of the ways in which the learner's native tongue is used. This unlearning could be a big challenge and many times a mental block as the learner's mind is conditioned for a long time. Language learning is influenced by the native culture, as languages are deeply interwoven with the cultures of the people who are native to it.

Learning Sanskrit is no exception to this. There are numerous books - ancient, old and new - available on the subject of grammar and meanings of words. Once those basics are learnt, however, a Sanskrit learner faces a big problem - namely, absence of people whose native language is Sanskrit. Though almost all the languages in India have their origin or relation to Sanskrit, each language has its own distinct and definitive culture. Sanskrit language has a big disadvantage here, as it has no "real speaking natives". So a Sanskrit learner, after the basic learning, is left wondering on how to go about the next steps of learning the nuances.

With the given history of Sanskrit's disappearance as a spoken or mass language for quite some time, any efforts to revive the language is bound to be an uphill task, aggravated by the encompassing influence of today's languages and people speaking them. Naturally, change is difficult.

Fortunately, Sanskrit has lots (really lots) of olden (say before 1950) literature still preserved to-date. And that is golden for us. That vast amount of literature gives us the idea of the language usage and its style. The expectation out of the learners and practitioners is to keep an open mind, shed the egos,  respect the language, and stop trying to impose the localized cultures.

All the talk so far would not be complete without some illustrations on how the local cultures are influencing Sanskrit usage in recent times. Here are some examples.

1. वा: Mostly heard at the end of any question - भवान् गच्छति वा? त्वं पठसि वा? As वा means "or" (alternatively), these sentences mean - (do) you go or? (do) you read or? Instead, it is better to use भवान् गच्छति किम्? त्वं पठसि किम्?
2. Vibhaktis: The seven types of vibhakti suffixes (declensions) in Sanskrit are used on a noun primarily to indicate the noun's relationship with the action (verb) in a sentence. The style of usage may be different compared to other languages. For example:
   Rama is angry towards Ravana. रामः रावाणाय क्रुध्यति |
   The use of 4th declension on रावण may throw some off.
3. Showing respect: In most of the Indian cultures, a person is considered to be treated respectfully only if a plural form is used to address the person. If addressed in singular, it is considered disrespectful. But in English language, the singular or plural indicates just the number. It has nothing to do with showing respect. For example: When a president of the nation arrives in the city, it is said "President arrives in the city", not "Presidents arrive in the city". The second sentence clearly means there are more than one presidents. If some respectful attributes need to be added, it could be "Mr. President...", or "His highness..." But the number never changes. Same thing goes with Sanskrit. वचन of a शब्द is just a number indicating the quantity, having no relationship with show of respect. Use of plural word for one person as a mark of respect is not the Sanskrit way. This is a big mental block in the Indian speakers of the recent times. So we hear bizarre usages like: for a teacher comes: अस्माकं गुरवः आगच्छन्ति, for a pontiff speaks: स्वामिनः भाषणं कुर्वन्ति | On the other hand, there is a widespread myth that the word भवान् implies respect and त्वम् does not. On top of that, there are usages heard like: भवन्तः आगच्छन्तु for one person. Double respect! Additionally, there is this Hindi effect too - suffixing a name with जी - मोहनजी, कृष्णाजी, सीताजी, especially while addressing.
4. स्वागतीकरोमि: Sanskrit has these not very uncommon usages like स्वच्छीकरोमि, भस्मीकृत्य, शुद्धीकुरु, सज्जीभव etc. Such usages are clearly defined in Sanskrit grammar. Let us take an example in a sentence. अहं वाहनं स्वच्छीकरोमि | Meaning: I clean the vehicle. It is implied that the vehicle was not clean, and becomes clean. Note that it is the वाहनं which is turning (into the state of) स्वच्छ. Similarly, त्वं सज्जीभव - you become ready - meaning you (त्वम्) are not ready (सज्ज), but you turn ready. That is how this usage works. However, incorrect usages like एकत्रीकरोमि, स्वागतीकरोमि are in seen and heard. अहं फलानि एकत्रीकरोमि - I turn fruits into (a thing/state called) एकत्र (at one place, not oneness). अहं अतिथिं स्वागतीकरोमि - I turn the guest into welcome. Oops! Not desirable for the guest.
5. Past tense alternates: Sanskrit is a language where every letter, every sound has its purpose. In this fast-paced world, many students go through fast-paced introductions to Sanskrit, with the usages such as गतवान्, उक्तवती (क्तवतु forms) as the replacements for actual past tense verb forms as अगच्छत्, अवदम्. The challenge here is that most of these learners find it difficult to transition from क्तवतु forms to the verb forms and remain under the impression that those forms totally mean the same thing. What is the problem in using them interchangeably? क्तवतु forms are adjectives to nouns. Let us take an example:
   बालकः शालां गतवान् | In this case, the verb अस्ति is assumed and the complete sentence becomes बालकः शालां गतवान् अस्ति which may be translated as the boy has gone to the school. Where as with the verb form - बालकः शालाम् अगच्छत् may be translated as the boy went to the school. The usage बालकः शालां गतवान् आसीत् is also correct, which would mean the boy had gone to the school or the usage बालकः शालां गतवान् भविष्यति which would mean the boy would be going to the school. These usages are possible because गतवान् is the adjective of बालक and the actual verb could be in any tense - अस्ति, आसीत् or भविष्यति. Compare this with बालकः शालाम् अगच्छत् - which is purely in the past tense. Other example:
   अहं देवालयम् आगतवान् अस्मि - I have come to the temple. अहं देवालयम् अगच्छम् - I went to the temple.
   In most of the works written and published recently, क्तवतु forms are seen to be the only words used to represent the past tense, thankfully sparing आसीत् अभवत्. 
6. Present tense mess up: If that was about the past tense traps, the botch up with present tense is even bigger. This time with शतृ and शानच् forms. Example: बालकः गच्छन् अस्ति | रामः वदन् आसीत् | पिता वीक्षमाणः अस्ति | - supposed to mean: boy is going, Rama was talking, father is looking. Such incorrect usages stem from the fact that the Indian regional languages have different usage forms for present/past/future continuous tense,  whereas Sanskrit does not. In Sanskrit, there is only one present tense form. So to get that feeling of continuity, such combination of शतृ/शानच् with the verb root अस्  are coined. These usages are so widespread that even some of the grammarians somehow try to find support in grammatical treatises for such usage. But one only has to only look at the literature (contemporary to the age when Sanskrit was in vogue). It also helps to understand how the शतृ and शानच् suffixes are applied. Note that शतृ and शानच् word forms are adjectives. These are to be used as attributes of the doer (कर्ता) in conjunction with another action being performed by the doer. For example:
   रामः गच्छन् वदति = गच्छन् रामः वदति = रामः गच्छति, रामः वदति | Rama, who is going, speaks. Note that the going action happens in the same tense as that of the speaking action.
   पिता वीक्षमाणः अहसत् = वीक्षमाणः पिता अहसत् = Father, who was looking, laughed. Note that the looking action happens in the same tense as that of laughing.
   So, what do the following sentences mean then?
   बालकः गच्छन् अस्ति = बालकः गच्छति, बालकः अस्ति = Boy, who is going, is (just exists).
   रामः वदन् आसीत् = वदन् रामः आसीत् = Rama, who was speaking, was.
   पिता वीक्षमाणः अस्ति = Father, who is looking, is.
   Does not make sense. अस्ति is useless in these sentences and they should just be बालकः गच्छति, रामः अवदत्, पिता वीक्षते.

The present age is fortunate enough to have many great Sanskrit grammarians and literary minds. But they need not be passive onlookers in the pretext that the language is owned and developed by people and correcting the usage is not their purview. But those days of Sanskrit are gone, well in the past. No native speakers now. While the zeal of the Sanskrit enthusiasts is commendable, let our guide be the unadulterated, beautiful Sanskrit literature and its heritage. We can do it, together.

|| ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय ||

Bhishma Story in Short - संक्षिप्तभीष्मकथा

पत्न्या चोदितः द्युनामकवसुः ब्रह्मर्षिवसिष्ठस्य कामधेनुं चोरयामास | ततः वसिष्ठशापग्रस्तः वसुः स्वर्गच्युतः भूमौ अवततार | देवव्रत इति नामाङ्कितः तस्य जननी महाशिवशिरोभूषिता गङ्गादेवी | कुरुवंशजः हस्तिनापुरस्य राजा शन्तनुः तस्य जनकः | तस्य जननसमये एव गङ्गादेवी कारणान्तरेण शन्तनुं परित्यज्य स्वधामं स्वर्लोकं निर्जगाम | बाल्यकाले देवव्रतः देवगुरुबृहस्पतिप्रभृतिभ्यः वेदादिशास्त्राध्ययनं कृतवान् | भगवतः परशुरामात् सर्वशस्त्रास्त्रपारंगतो बभूव |

विद्याभ्यासानन्तरं देवव्रतः शन्तनुराजेन सह हस्तिनापुरे वसति स्म | एकदा नदीतीरविहाररतः शन्तनुः दाशराजकन्यायां सत्यवत्यां अनुरक्तो बभूव | परन्तु सत्यवतीसंतानमेव हास्तिनपुराधिपः भूयादिति दाशराजवचनात् परित्रस्तः शन्तनुः खिन्नो विवाहविमुखश्च जातः | पितुः मनोदशामवगत्य शान्तनवः दाशराजं प्राप्य सत्यवत्यपत्याय राजपदवीप्रदानं तथा स्वयमाजीवनब्रह्मचर्यव्रतपालनमिति भीषणप्रतिज्ञाद्वयं घोषयाञ्चकार | तद्दिनात् सः भीष्मः इति प्रख्यातोऽभवत् | सत्यवत्या विवाहितश्शन्तनुः पुत्र अतिप्रसन्नः भीष्माय इच्छामरणवरमददात् |

शन्तनौ दिवङ्गते भीष्मः सत्यवतीपुत्रं विचित्रवीर्यं सिंहासने अभिषिच्य तस्य विवाहमपि कारितवान् | विचित्रवीर्येऽपि पञ्चत्वंगते तस्य सुतः पाण्डुः राजा बभूव | पाण्डोः निधनानन्तरं तस्याग्रजो दृष्टिहीनो धृतराष्ट्रः राज्यभारमावहत् | भीष्मः पाण्डुपुत्राणां तथा धृतराष्ट्रपुत्राणां साकल्येन शस्त्रशास्त्रविद्याभ्यासं द्रोणाचार्यमुखतः पर्ययोजयत् |

पाण्डवाः धार्तराष्ट्राश्च प्राप्तयौव्वनाः राज्येप्सवः घोरयुद्धं कृतवन्तः | दारुणे तस्मिन् महाविग्रहे सत्यधर्मपालितॄणां पाण्डवानां विजयमिच्छन्नपि द्विपपुरराजनिष्ठः भीष्मः पापनुगामिनि धार्तराष्ट्रपक्षे स्थितः | भीकरसंख्ये अद्भुतपराक्रमं प्रदर्शयन् भीष्मः पार्थसारथिं भगवन्तं श्रीकृष्णमपि विस्मापयामास | दशमे दिने अप्रतिहतः सः स्वेच्छया पाण्डवमध्यमस्य अर्जुनस्य बाणासारेण विक्षतः | संपूर्णशरीरे इषुभिः व्योषितः भीष्मः वीरक्षत्रियोचिते शरतल्पे शयितवान् | इच्छामरणी स उत्तरायणपुण्यकालं प्रतीक्षमाणः भगवद्ध्यानतत्परोऽभूत् |

सङ्ग्रामे विजयीभूताः पाण्डवाः सायकासनं पितामहभीष्ममुपगम्य तस्मात् आशीर्वचनं ज्ञानभिक्षां च प्रायायाच्यन्त | श्रीकृष्णप्रसादात् भीष्मः रुधिरसिक्तोऽपि भाषणक्षमः राजनीत्यादिकानि शास्त्राणि विस्तरेण उच्चचार | तत्सन्दर्भे तस्य मुखकमलात् त्रिलोकपावनं विष्णुसहस्रनामस्तोत्रं समुद्भूतम् | एवं जगदादर्शजीवः भीष्मः माघमासस्य शुद्धाष्टम्यां तिथौ देहत्यागं चकार |

Sanskrit: Best Language for Computer-True or False?

We all hear this in many places, in different forums, websites - that Sanskrit is the best suited language for computers; that there are many studies and research in this regard, and even NASA has endorsed it; NASA to echo Sanskrit in space (really?). There was even a petition on change.org regarding this. How much of this true? What are the basis of these statements? Let us explore a little bit.

First, there is no evidence of NASA's endorsement or its study of Sanskrit. Second, there is no need of NASA or anybody's approval to prove the greatness of Sanskrit language. So, why is that the Sanskrit-computer relationship meme so widespread?

Apparently, this relationship has stemmed out of the notion that Sanskrit is a scientific, logical or mathematical language. And computers too are based on logic and mathematics, with some aura of mystery or smartness around them. Let us look at different aspects in play here.

Computer Programming Languages

When we say "language for computers", it is not clear whether it is a language used to program a computer (that is to build a logic to tell a computer what to do), or is it a language that a computer can speak? Some of the computer programming languages are C, C++, PHP etc. Programming of computer logic needs very precise keywords, syntax and semantics. Sanskrit is a contextual language, and not suited for this purpose. This is because computers are dumb machines without contextual understanding. In Sanskrit, the usage and meaning of a word or sentence depends on the context and needs proper interpretation.

Precision in Sanskrit

The closest association of Sanskrit with NASA appears to be in the form of a paper presented in 1985 by Rick Briggs (of NASA) in the AI Magazine (not affiliated to NASA), titled Knowledge Representation in Sanskrit and Artificial Intelligence. In this paper, the author puts forth the challenges of artificial intelligence (like robots) in understanding the natural (human) language. The paper explains the shortcomings of English language in adequately establishing the relationship between verb, subject, object and other words in a sentence. Then it mainly dwells upon the simplicity of usage of words in Sanskrit sentences using vibhakti endings (विभक्ति-प्रत्यय) and karakas (कारक). The author posits that this approach could make the human language understandable to the machines. This might work if machines can figure out the context of a sentence.

What matters

Historical and cultural inferences strongly indicate that Sanskrit was once a very widely spoken language in a large geographical area. Panini (around 600 BC - 400 BC) did a great job of compiling various usages in Sanskrit language and devising a set of rules to derive the different forms of nouns and verbs. Though there are some texts by other grammarians suggesting some additions to Panini's work, the original work is almost complete in covering the grammar of Sanskrit. Panini's algorithms established a baseline that is almost strictly adhered over centuries, till today. Based on Panini's work, many computational engines have been written that can spit out different forms of a Sanskrit word on a computer screen. The real wonder here is Panini and his work. Computer is just a tool to translate his algorithms. Artificial intelligence with Sanskrit is totally a different subject, although Panini's work may play a part in that, if the concept ever moves forward.

However, isn't it just wonderful that while Sanskrit can be made to fit within a rigorous grammatical framework, it can also linguistically scale up to the infinite quest of humans in exploring and understanding the universe and self?

Rani Chennamma - राज्ञी चेन्नम्मा

चेन्नम्मा १७७८तमे क्रिस्तशकाब्दे अक्तोबरमासस्य २३तमे दिने भारतदेशे कर्णाटकराज्यस्य काकतिनामकग्रामे जाता | बाल्ये एव सा धनुर्विद्यायां खड्गचालने अश्वारोहणे प्रशिक्षिता निपुणा च अभवत् | यूनावास्थायां कित्तूरुप्रान्तस्य राज्ञा मल्लसर्जेन सह तस्याः विवाहः समपद्यत | सः कालः भारते आङ्ग्लानां शासनकालः | शासनविस्तरपिपासवः ते येनकेनापि मार्गेण प्रान्तीयराज्यान् गिलन्ति स्म |

अचिरादेव पुत्रवती चेन्नम्मा राजकार्येषु राज्ञः मल्लसर्जस्य साहाय्यं कुर्वती सा जनप्रिया मुमोद | विधिलिखिता अन्या एव आसीत् | १८१६तमे वत्सरे मल्लसर्जः अनारोग्यात् पञ्चत्वमवाप | वैधव्येन कुण्ठितमनापि धीरचित्ता राज्ञी चेन्नम्मा बालपुत्रं यौव्वराज्ये अभिषिच्य राजशासनं चकार | 

यदुच्यते
दुःखान्यापतन्ति सपदि वर्षाभ्रसंघा इव |
तरणं कर्तुमर्हन्ति धीरास्ते लोकसत्तमाः ||

दौर्भाग्येन १८२४तमे वत्सरे तस्याः पुत्रोऽपि मरणं गतः | तस्मिन् वत्सरे एव राज्यसंहवनार्थं चेन्नम्मा शिवलिङ्गप्पनामकबालकं दत्तकपुत्ररूपेण स्वीकृतवती | एतस्य दत्तकविधेः आङ्ग्लशासनस्य सहमतिर्नासीत् | यत्र राज्यस्य औरसोत्तराधिकारी नासीत् तद्राज्यं आङ्ग्लवशे भवेदिति पूर्वभारतसंस्थायाः (East India Company) स्वप्रकाशितनियमः आसीत् | अनेन दुर्व्याजेन भारते नैकानि राज्यानि आङ्ग्लवशीभूतान्यासन् | अत्रापि सा आङ्ग्लसंस्था साहमत्यमदर्शयन्ती कित्तूरुराज्यं समर्पयितुं चेन्नम्मां अभ्यसूचयत | चेन्नम्मया पत्रमुखेन कृताः शान्तिप्रयत्नाः विफला अभवन् | स्वातन्त्र्यस्य स्वजनगौरवस्य रक्षणार्थं युद्धः अनिवार्यः अभवत् |

१८२४संवत् अक्तोबरमासे आङ्ग्लसेना कित्तूरुदुर्गं परिवृत्य शतघ्नीभिः सह आक्रमणमकरोत्| वीरचेन्नम्मायाः नेतृत्वे कित्तूरुसेना शौर्यसामर्थ्येण तस्य प्रतिभटनमकरोत् | कित्तूरुसेनायाः सेनापतिः आमतूरु-बालप्पः आङ्ग्लसेनायाः नेतारं थ्याकरेनामकमहाशयं निहत्य द्वयोः मुख्यसैन्याधिकारिणयोः बन्धनं कृतवान् | आङ्ग्लसेना पराभूता ततः पलायिता | तौ बन्दिनौ मुक्त्यर्थं युद्धविरामं तथा शान्तिसन्धिं प्रास्तौत् चेन्नम्मा | आङ्ग्लसंस्था तदङ्ग्यकरोत् |

परन्तु अनतिकाले एव आङ्ग्लसेना बृहद्बलसंपन्ना पुनः कित्तूरुदुर्गं पर्यावृणोत् | तदापि चेन्नम्मा तथा तस्याः सेना अतिपराक्रमेण युद्ध्यन्ती बहुधा शत्रुसैन्यमत्रासयत् | किन्तु चेन्नम्मायाः पक्षे मल्लप्पः वेङ्कटः इति नामकौ स्वदेशघातकौ शतघ्नीसामग्र्यां पशुमलस्य मिश्रणं कृतवन्तौ | चेन्नम्मायाः शतघ्न्यः निष्क्रियाः बभूवुः | कित्तूरुदुर्गः आङ्ग्लवशीभूतः चेन्नम्मा कारागृहे निपातिता च | चेन्नम्मा १८२९संवत् फ़ेब्रुवरिमासे कारागृहे एव देहत्यागमकरोत् | 

यदुच्यते
इतिहासे सुदुर्लभाः पराक्रमेण पराजिताः |
पिशुनेन च द्रोहेण प्रायः घाताः चमूवराः ||

राज्ञ्याः चेन्नम्मायाः वीरगाथा अद्यापि जनमनसि देशप्रेमभावनां जागरयती सुस्थिरा वर्तते |

Freedom - Beauty or Challenge?

How was the name "India" derived for the country? Here is a quick line of derivation of the word.

India <-- Indus <-- Hindustan <-- Hindu <-- Sindhu

The people living around the Sindhu river in the northwest part of the Indian subcontinent were probably referred by Persians as Hindus which in the language of other foreigners changed to Indus. The land itself came to be known as Hindustan and India. What was the name of the country before it was known as Hindustan or India? Well, most of us know it was Bhaarata (भारत). Today also, the name Bhaarata is used in different contexts. How did this name come? As a popular belief, the country gained its name after the famous Bharata (भरत), son of King Dushyanta and Shakuntalaa. But most ancient scripts state that Bhaarata country was named after the Emperor Bharata, son of Rishabha Deva (ऋषभदेव), the first theertankara in Jainism, also believed to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Before Bharata ruled, what was this land known as? Not many people might know that it was known as Anjanaabha (अञ्जनाभ).

Well, that is an interesting tidbit. But what was/is the religion of the people living there? What were/are their holy books? What language did they speak? It is generally known that the religion of the people there is Hinduism. Vedas are their most sacred holy books. Sanskrit was the common language used among them.

Sanaatana Dharma
However, identification of Hinduism with these people is a modern phenomenon. Unlike other religions and people, at the core of the Hinduism, there is no concept of religion - that it was founded by a person, or a group or even a god. In fact, it is not a religion. It is called Sanaatana Dharma (सनातन धर्म) which literally means the practice being followed (exists) eternally. A religion defines a set of rules one has to follow in order to achieve an objective or god. Dharma goes beyond religion. There are no set rules. It is a framework of loose guidelines to realize one's own potential - physically, mentally and spiritually. In this quest, emphasis is on seeking one's own nature, nature of the universe and its creator, relationship of self with the universal forces. This makes it very personal for every individual. The high level principles are subject to one's own adaptions. The abstraction at the high level has manifested into hundreds of communities and sub-communities within the Sanaatana Dharmaa with their own rules, practices and rituals. The whole group of these communities is now known to be Hindus. Even there, some communities want themselves to be called Hindus, while others do not. With very diverse rules and rituals, there is often a varying degree of friction between these communities too.

Sanskrit Language
The ancient language that the followers of Sanaatana Dharma spoke had also no name. It was just bhaashaa (भाषा) - meaning a means to communicate. Probably, as the other languages evolved in the society, this bhaashaa came to be known as Sanskrit - meaning refined. And it continued to be the link language between different communities in the Indian subcontinent for thousands of years. In this phonetic language, there are only guidelines and a word is mostly made up of letters or sub-words based on the function or meaning of the referred object. Each sound (or letter) might have multiple meanings and when these letters are combined to form a word, that word might have multiple meanings. Many times, a word can have hundreds of meanings. Though this structure greatly enhances the beauty of the language, it could pose a challenge while adapting the language to everyday use. For a common man's everyday use, the objects or things in the real world need to be identified by finite and specific words. Since in Sanskrit the same object can be referred to by a host of words, and the same word can refer to many objects, it is left to the listener or the reader to discern what the speaker or writer is trying to say. For example, to refer to the Sun, there are many words like: रवि, भानु, खग, पूषन्, दिवाकर, दिनकर, सूर्य, आदित्य, भास्कर etc. Each of these words may mean other things too. सूर्य = a knowledgeable person, आदित्य = any person/god born to Aditi, भास्कर = anything that makes something shine, पूषन् = anything that supports, खग = anything that moves in the sky. How many words one can think for the Sun in English? In such a situation, coining new words in Sanskrit and their adaptation by the masses becomes a challenge. Could this be the reason that Sanskrit lost its favor with the vast public and remained as the language of scholars - गीर्वाणभारती or the language of the gods?

Vedas
Similar argument can be made about the Vedas - the ultimate sacred scriptures of the Hindus. The contents of these scriptures, as the Hindus believe, are not the creation of any human, but were revealed to humans through seers or well-accomplished sages. The Vedas are in Sanskrit and as posited above, each word is subject to various interpretations. And the Vedic meaning of many words and their current meaning may be totally opposite. For example: अन्तरिक्ष in Vedas may mean sea, but its meaning in current Sanskrit usage is space or sky. Given this situation, there have been hundreds of interpretations for Vedas, many of them with complete opposite meanings, resulting into different branches and schools of thought within Hinduism - and some even disproving the existence of God with the words of these scriptures!

The Challenge
While it is great to have the freedom to explore one's spirituality, dive into the beauty of the language, and experiment and experience the Vedic facts, the community as a whole faces the challenge of identity. While Hindu is the word that should be used for anyone living in the Indian subcontinent, Sanaatana Dharma, Sanskrit language and the Vedas cannot be attached to one community. The principles and guidelines in them are very much universal in nature. However, to preserve, practice, enhance and to spread the awareness to the mankind, unity in diversity on all these fronts is needed, especially in these modern times and the times to come.

Painting by: Casey Vogt

Mahatma Gandhi Anecdotes - गान्धिमहात्मनः उपकथाः

विमला - अयि कमले उत्तिष्ठ शयनात् | आरुणो दारुणो भवत्यचिरात् |
कमला - किमिदं विमले | मा विस्मर अक्टोबरमासे द्वितीयमद्य तु न पाठशाला | इतोऽपि स्वपिमि |
विमला - अहो अनुजे, अतिशयनात् बुद्धिहानिः यतोऽहि उच्यते -

अपठनेऽपि संग्राह्यं ज्ञानं सदा हि पूजितम् |
क्षणशः कणशश्चैव विद्यामर्थं च साधयेत् ||

कमला - महात्मनः गान्धिवर्यस्य कथां को न जानाति | भारताद्यन्तं स्वतन्त्रताभावं उद्बोध्य आङ्ग्लशासनविरोधाय जनसंघटनं कृतवान् | तस्य असहकारान्दोलनं हिंसारहितं जगत्प्रसिद्धं जातम् | तस्य महाप्रयत्नेन एव भारतदेशः आङ्ग्लशृङ्खलाभ्यः मुक्तोऽभवत् | ततः एव भारतस्य राष्ट्रपिता इत्युच्यते सः किल |
विमला - आम् आम् | तच्चरित्रं तु सर्वविदितमेव | अतः एव वैज्ञानिकस्य ऐन्स्तीनमहोदयेन एवमुदीरितम् -

भविष्यकाले ह जनैरचिन्त्यं सारल्यमूर्तिश्च सत्यावलंबी |
गान्धीमहात्मा च सरक्तमांसे मनुष्यदेहे धरणीं चचार ||▲

परन्तु महात्मनः जीवने केचन स्वारस्यमयघटनाः अपि संभूताः | श्रोतुमिच्छसि किम् ?
कमला - अवश्यम् | उच्यताम् |
विमला - गान्धिमहोदयः सामान्यजनप्रेमी आसीत् | सरलजीवनं इच्छति स्म | आन्दोलनकाले सर्वदा देशप्रवासं धूमशकटे (train) अवरायां तृतीयकक्ष्यायां (3rd class) करोति स्म | तदवलोक्य विस्मितः एकः वार्ताहरः एकदा महोदयं अपृच्छत् - एतावान् प्रभावशाली पुरुषः त्वं किमर्थं प्रथमकक्ष्यायां न प्रवासं करोषि इति | महोदयः स्मयमानः अब्रवीत् - किमित्युक्ते चतुर्थकक्ष्या न वर्तते !
कमला - गान्धिमहोदयस्य परिहासप्रज्ञापि आसीदिति न ज्ञातं मया | अन्यदाख्यानं श्रोतुमिच्छामि |
विमला - तर्हि शृणु | यदा महोदयः बालक आसीत्तदा स्वभ्रातुः कनकाभरणात् किञ्चित् सुवर्णकणिकामचोरयत् | केनापि एतदकार्यं ज्ञातुं शक्यमपि नासीत् | तथापि स्वापराधेन पीडितः बालकः प्रायश्चित्तरूपेण स्वपितरं पत्रं लिखित्वा कम्पमानेन हस्तेन दत्तवान् | तस्य पिता तत्पत्रं पठित्वा पुत्रस्य सत्यनिष्ठाकारणेन हृष्टः सगद्गदोऽभवत् |
कमला - इतोऽपि श्रावय | नूनमेतानि रोचकानि |
विमला - अस्तु | एकदा प्रवासार्थी गान्धिमहोदयः चलनोद्युक्तं धूमशकटं त्वरया आरोहत् | तदा पादत्राणमेकं तस्य पादान्निसृत्य भूमौ पतितम् | तदा तूर्णमेव सः अन्यपादत्राणमपि अपातयत् | सहयात्रिकः विस्मयेन महोदयं कीदृशमियं चेष्टा इत्यपृच्छत् | महोदयः अवदत् - एकेन पादत्राणेन किं मे प्रयोजनं, कश्चित्तत् युगलं प्राप्य उपभोक्तुमर्हति इति |
कमला - आहा! अत्युच्चाः महोदयस्य वृत्ताः | अस्तु भगिनि | महानसात् पाकपरिमलो जिघ्र्यते | बुभुक्षिताहं गच्छाम्यधुना | त्वमपि त्वरस्व |

▲“Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth. (said of Mahatma Gandhi)” - Albert Einstein