[Advaita-l] Need information on learning Vedas online

[V Subrahmanian]

On Thu, Aug 22, 2013 at 12:35 AM, Vidyasankar Sundaresan <
svidyasankar at hotmail.com> wrote:

> Dr. Bharadwaj:
>
> Finally, I agree with your observation that understanding the content of
> the
> Sastra texts is not going to be an outcome of acquiring ability for
> conversational
> saMskRta, but at least it is a start. All depends on how the learners
> apply their
> language lessons beyond their immediate focus.
>

I would like to point out that Samskritha Bharati is quite into promoting
traditional style studying of classical texts.  For instance, they conduct
a (mostly) annual shalAkA-parIkShA where the texts from different
disciplines are announced *a priori.*  At the appointed time, the
candidates are subjected to a thorough examination, in the Samskrita
medium, on these texts and assessed.  I witnessed one such event in
Bangalore at the Aksharam, Girinagar.  Candidates come from traditional
pAThashAla-s.  On that occasion, it was the tarka sangraha with a
particular commentary, the siddhanta kaumudi in parts and the Raghuvamsham
for the kAvya section.

>
>
> I have come to expect this sort of reaction every time some such issue
> crops
> up for discussion. Our Mathas, especially the ones that are run by
> traditional
> standards, are doing a lot for propagating dharma and the saMskRta
> language.
> We fail to appreciate and support them in tangible ways. Instead, we sit
> and
> criticize them for not doing enough. The disconnect is really between the
> Indian culture of old and the urban, educated people like us. A pity.
>

In fact the Sringeri Matha has a separate body: the surasaraswati sabhA,
which conducts exams at various levels in Sanskrit language.  The Kanchi
maTha too has an institution for this purpose.  Many Madhva and
srivaishnava maThas too do their lot in this direction.

>
>
>
>
>
> That said, let me add a caveat from living experience, that in a
> pedagogical
> context, nothing can beat face to face contact with a teacher. The personal
> contact also helps establish rapport, so I would recommend doing the first
> couple of lessons in person and then continuing online. Many music teachers
> ask their long distance students to get a few weeks of in-person classes
> per
> year, to augment the online learning. It can work for music and it can work
> for veda recitation as well, provided you and a teacher can make it work.
> If
> you are willing to put in the time and effort, you can indeed have some of
> the cake and eat the rest of it too.
>

Vidwan S.T.Nagaraj who retired from the Sanskrit College, Bangalore, after
teaching VyakaraNa for decades has settled down in his native Somapura,
near Shimoga, Karnataka.  He has established a (Datta) gurukula where he
can take students who dedicate themselves for study of vyakarana/veda. As
suggested above one willing to spend time with him for a certain period
learning the fundamentals can approach him and I am sure he will be most
happy to take them for the initial grounding.   That way, there are other
scholars from other disciplines too who would be willing to endorse this
scheme/method/concept.

subrahmanian.v

>
>
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