________________
Sanskrit Course Textbooks
9
exercises and readings are based on the Rāmāyaṇa, as the authors are General Editor and Associate Editor of the Valmiki Rāmāyaṇa Translation Project.
A Rapid Sanskrit Method was written by then University of Wisconsin (Madison) teacher George Hart (now teaching Tamil at University of Califonia, Berkeley) drawing largely on Harvard teacher Daniel Ingalls' method. It is designed for the first semester of a two semester school year. Much of the method referred to pertains to study after the first year, so is not found in this book: "while class study is essential for a Sanskritist, it is equally essential that he supplement his study with extensive Sanskrit reading on his own after the first year." This method emphasizes gaining fluency in reading "simple Sanskrit" by the rapid reading of texts such as the Mahābhārata (including the Bhagavad Gita) and the Kathāsaritsāgara. “I would stress that no matter what field of Sanskrit a student wishes to investigate, fluency in simple Sanskrit is a prerequisite. I have found that students who cannot read easy Sanskrit with facility simply cannot handle more difficult texts, no matter how much effort they put forth, for they lack an intuitive model for the structure of the language, something which can be acquired only by extensive rapid reading of the sort which cannot be carried on in the more technical subjects." (p. vii). This book, as stated, does not contain this rapid reading material, but covers the basic elements of grammar (as does the Devavāṇīpraveśikā), in preparation for it.
A Sanskrit Manual for High Schools by R. Antoine is used extensively in India, including by pandits hired to teach Western adults. It is designed to be taught very slowly over about four years of high school, though of course an adult can go through it much more quickly. It is unique in that it lays greater stress on translation from English to Sanskrit than on translation from Sanskrit to English. Ability to compose in a classical language has long been seen as the real test of its mastery. These volumes include many useful charts, and clear explanations of elements of grammar such as the special uses of the cases, and sentence constructions using passive verb-forms.
Sanskrit: An Introduction to the Classical Language was written by Edinburgh University teacher Michael Coulson, for
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
