[Assam] Sanskrit and Assamese

Tue Mar 17 17:04:00 PDT 2009

At 2:54 PM -0700 3/17/09, Dilip and Dil Deka wrote:
>The blinders ( certain Hindus of Assam and 
>outside to make the claim that Assam is Indian 
>property because of the connection to the 
>Sanskrit language ) are causing the problem here.
>If you remove the blinders, you will see Dr. 
>Ahmed's admiration of Sanskrit language and 
>literature in a better light.

**** The point of contention is NOT the Sanskrit 
language. No one has attempted to devalue 
Sanskrit, the language, or deny its influence on 
the development of subcontinental languages.

If Ahmed thought that someone was trying to do 
that, devalue Sanskrit, the language, it must 
have been his own creation -- of a straw-man.

We should be able to agree that a language does 
not have a mind of its own. It is a tool  that 
man uses for communication. And since it is used 
by man, it is possible then man can use it for 
political ends. That Sanskrit in this instance 
has been used by some for political ends is not 
the fault of Sanskrit, the language. It is man's 
doing.

Therefore Ahmed's contention is a non-sequitur. 
One has nothing to do with the other.

>
>
>
>________________________________
>From: Chan Mahanta <cmahanta at charter.net>
>To: A Mailing list for people interested in 
>Assam from around the world <assam at assamnet.org>
>Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 3:58:58 PM
>Subject: Re: [Assam] Sanskrit and Assamese
>
>>  I liked his statement, "On the issue that some 
>>sections perceive Sanskrit as an extension of 
>>Hindu >culture, Dr Ahmed called it an 
>>unfortunate misconception. "Sanskrit language 
>>and literature have an >audience in Indonesia, 
>>they attract students in Japan, and research 
>>continues in countries like >Germany and the 
>>US. All because it is a body of precious 
>>knowledge that is much more than being 
>>a >medium of religious instructions."
>
>
>*** What is missing from this statement is the 
>FACT of certain Hindus of Assam and outside to 
>make the
>claim that Assam is Indian property because of 
>the connection to the Sanskrit language.
>
>The former cannot and does not exclude the 
>latter.  Both can be operative  and have been. 
>Thus Prof. Ahmed's claim of "--  unfortunate 
>misconception" is  an untenable one.
>
>Dr. Yashmin Saikia alluded to it as well and she 
>is accurate in her observation, even though she 
>did NOT  mention the Sanskrit language, which is 
>a tool of the Hinduttwa movement, albeit on the 
>sly.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>At 6:45 AM -0700 3/17/09, Dilip and Dil Deka wrote:
>>   I liked his statement, "On the issue that 
>>some sections perceive Sanskrit as an extension 
>>of Hindu culture, Dr Ahmed called it an 
>>unfortunate misconception. "Sanskrit language 
>>and literature have an audience in Indonesia, 
>>they attract students in Japan, and research 
>>continues in countries like Germany and the US. 
>>All because it is a body of precious knowledge 
>>that is much more than being a medium of 
>>religious instructions."
>>
>>  It is so true - Sanskrit is a body of precious 
>>knowledge. The language is difficult for 
>>everyday use but its grammar structure and 
>>wealth of literature are hard to beat.
>>
>>  Is there anyone in this net who had the 
>>fortune of being a student of Rajeshwar 
>>Tarkatirtha of Cotton Collegiate School? 
>>Tarkatirtha sir had a "twl" on the side.. He 
>>was so enthused about Sanskrit that he used to 
>>recruit some of his better students in Cotton 
>>Collegiate School to his "twl" and teach them 
>>more of Sanskrit on Saturdays. His gain - the 
>>students of his "twl" used to do very well in 
>>the exams conducted by the Assam Sanskrit Board.
>>  Dilip Deka
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>  ________________________________
>>  From: Alpana B. Sarangapani <absarangapani at hotmail.com>
>>  To: assam at assamnet.org
>>  Sent: Monday, March 16, 2009 11:16:13 PM
>>  Subject: [Assam] Sanskrit and Assamese
>>
>>
>>  Here is a nice write-up on Dr. S. Ahmed, a PhD 
>>in Sanskrit from Gauhati University. He sounds 
>>like a knowledgable person when it comes to 
>>history, language, culture and real life, very 
>>interesting.
>  >
>>
>>
>>  http://www.assamtribune.com/dec2306/at07.html
>>
>>
>>
>>  "Another reason, he cites is Sanskrit could 
>>provide students with better grasp of history 
>>as almost all the ancient texts and 
>>inscriptions in India are written in that 
>>language. Even to know the Assamese language 
>>better, or learn the roots of many words, 
>>Sanskrit is the language of choice, he claims."
>>
>>
>>
>>  It would be great if scholars like him also come and join Assam Net.
>>
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