The Sanskrit Library

Courses/courses

Current

Current courses

Below are the courses the Sanskrit Library is offering this summer.

For an overview of the Sanskrit Library courses with links to all planned course offerings please click here.

  • Introduction to the {f}gveda.
    • CG10.
    • The Vedic literature is the principal pillar on which the Indian tradition rests. The {f}gveda, being one of the most ancient extant literary works and being of great historical and linguistic significance, has always been a worthy subject of research for scholars worldwide. Various fascinating aspects of this work will be dealt with in the course. Though designed for a general audience interested in literature in general or in Sanskrit literature in particular, the course may also be of interest to students in an academic program in Sanskrit.
    • Instructor: Tanuja P. Ajotikar.
    • Schedule: 10th September – 19th November 2022.
    • Course meeting times: Saturday 9:30–10:30am U.S. Central Time (8:00–9:00pm IST; 9:00–10:00pm IST after 6th November 2022).
    • Prerequisite: None.
    • Course fee: $300.
    • Course fee for residents of India: ₹3,000.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
    • Register (residents of India).
  • Introductory Sanskrit Ia
    • US101a.
    • US101--102 aim to provide a linguistically rich study of the world's most fascinating language equivalent to a first-year university course. Exercises introduce the extensive literature, profound philosophy and rich mythology of ancient India which has and continues to influence over a quarter of the world’s population today. Live weekly meetings are supplemented by recorded lectures with slide presentations that introduce each topic. Homework exercises use a uniquely designed pleasant interactive Web-based platform that provides vocabulary and reference material at one's fingertips and immediate feedback thereby enriching the students knowledge with each item and eliminating doubt and frustration.
      US101a is the first of four quarters of ten weeks each. This quarter presents a rich introduction to the Devanāgarī script and Sanskrit phonology, and introduces the intricate and highly organized structure of the grammar, including the present and imperfect tenses of verbs and the declension of a-stem nouns and adjectives. The quarter culminates in the reading of a short story.
    • Continued in US101b, US102a, and US102b
    • Instructor: Peter M. Scharf.
    • Schedule: 11 September – 17 November 2022.
    • Course meeting times: Sunday and Thursday 10:00-11:00am U.S. Central Time, or by arrangement with course participants.
    • Course fee: $1,500 per quarter. A discount of $200 is available for enrollment in two-quarters for $2,800. A discount of $1,000 is available for enrollment in all four-quarters for $5,000.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
  • Introductory Sanskrit Ib
    • US101b.
    • This course continues the linguistically rich study of the world's most fascinating language to complete the equivalent of a first-semester university course by proceeding with the survey of the intricate and highly organized structure of the grammar and by including readings adapted from Sanskrit literature.
    • Prerequisite: US101a
    • Continued by US102a–US102b.
    • Instructor: Peter M. Scharf.
    • Schedule: 4–15 December 2022, 15 January – 9 March 2023.
    • Course meeting times: Sunday and Thursday 10:00-11:00am U.S. Central Time, or by arrangement with course participants.
    • Course fee: $1,500.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
  • Introductory Sanskrit IIa
    • US102a.
    • This course continues the linguistically rich study of the world's most fascinating language proceeding with the survey of the intricate and highly organized structure of the grammar and by including readings adapted from ancient Indian narratives.
    • Instructor: Peter M. Scharf.
    • Prerequisite: US101, US101a–US101b, or equivalent introduction to Sanskrit.
    • Schedule: 19 March – 1 June 2023.
    • Course meeting times: Sunday and Thursday 10:00-11:00am U.S. Central Time, or by arrangement with course participants.
    • Course fee: $1,500. A discount of $200 is available for enrollment in two-quarters, i.e. also the last quarter US102b, for $2,800.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
  • Introductory Sanskrit IIb
    • US102b.
    • This course completes the survey of Sanskrit grammar with readings adapted from ancient Indian narratives.
    • Instructor: Peter M. Scharf.
    • Prerequisite: US102a or equivalent introduction to Sanskrit.
    • Schedule: 4 June – 10 August 2023.
    • Course meeting times: Sunday and Thursday 10:00-11:00am U.S. Central Time, or by arrangement with course participants.
    • Course fee: $1,500.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
  • {s}aMkziptamahABAratam: The {m}ahABArata in brief
    • US110.
    • Students read an original selection from the great Indian epic {m}ahABArata that tells the whole story in 43 verses. Each verse is accompanied by several sentences each of which paraphrases the verse or some part of it to elucidate its meaning and syntax. Translation exercises are presented in an engaging interactive just-in-time learning environment that provides immediate feedback and help.
    • Instructor: Peter M. Scharf.
    • Prerequisite: US101–US102 or equivalent introduction to Sanskrit.
    • Schedule: 10 September – 12 November 2023.
    • Course meeting times: Saturday 10:30-12:30am U.S. Central Time.
    • Course fee: $1,500.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
  • Selected readings in the {s}idDAntakOmudI
    • US201.
    • The {s}idDAntakOmudI is a 16th CE commentary on the {a}zwADyAyI. It is widely used by beginners in the study of {p}ARinian grammar to understand rules in the {a}zwADyAyI. It is important to read the selected parts of this text in order to understand the {p}ARinian grammar. This course offers to read some of the important parts in the Siddhāntakaumudī, i.e. sandhi, nominal morphology, compounds etc.
    • Prerequisite: Advanced Sanskrit with CG20 Introduction to the {p}ARinian tradition, or equivalent.
    • Instructor: Tanuja P. Ajotikar.
    • Schedule: 9th September -- 9 December 2022.
    • Course meeting times: Wednesday and Friday 10:30--11:30 am U.S. Central Time; 9:00 pm IST (10:00 pm IST after 6th November).
    • Prerequisite: Introductory Sanskrit.
    • Course fee: $1500.
    • Course fee: INR 15000.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
    • Register (residents of India).
  • Advanced reading workshop in {r}aGuvaMSa sarga 2 and the {s}idDAntakOmudI ({v}iBaktyarTaprakaraRa).
    • US210.
    • The {r}aGuvaMSa by {k}AlidAsa is one of the Sanskrit {m}ahakAvyas. This great poem is a part of the traditional syllabus of learning Sanskrit. The {s}idDAntakOmudI is a 16th CE commentary on the {a}zwADyAyI. It is widely used by beginners in the study of {p}ARinian grammar to understand rules in the {a}zwADyAyI. The {v}iBaktyarTa section is important from the point of view of learning the syntax and semantics of Sanskrit. In this course, we read the second canto of the {r}aGuvaMSa and analyze it thoroughly in the light of the {v}iBaktyarTa section of the {s}idDAntakOmudI (114 rules nos. 532–646).
    • Instructor: Tanuja P. Ajotikar.
    • Schedule: 8 September--15 December 2022.
    • Course meeting times: Tuesday and Thursday 9:00--10:00 am U.S. Central Time (7:30 pm IST; 8:30 pm IST after 6th November 2022).
    • Prerequisite: advanced level of Sanskrit.
    • Course fee: $1,500.
    • Course fee: ₹15,000.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
    • Register (residents of India).
  • {D}AtupAWa: The {m}ADavIyaDAtuvftti
    • US310.
    • Students are introduced to the structure and content of the {p}ARinian {D}AtupAWa and study the beginning of the {m}ADavIyaDAtuvftti with detailed exploration of the sUtras of the {a}zwADyAyI cited in the derivation of the speech forms mentioned in it with the {k}ASikA and other commentaries on them.
    • Instructor: Peter M. Scharf.
    • Prerequisite: advanced Sanskrit, a thorough introduction to {p}ARinian grammar, and permission of the instructor. Prospective students are advised to contact the instructor before registering by email to: info@sanskritlibrary.org
    • Schedule: 12 September – 19 December 2022.
    • Course meeting times: Monday 10:00-12:00am U.S. Central Time.
    • Course fee: $3,000.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register.
  • Introduction to Digital Philology
    • UT101
    • With the current transition of knowledge transmission from the printed to the digital medium, it is essential that students of Sanskrit, as students of every discipline, learn to use the technologies of this new medium. While the written manuscript and the printed book dominated as the principal media of knowledge transmission it was essential for students to learn how to read and write and to use pen and paper, and the facilities that help to navigate books such as tables of contents, alphabetical indices, and page numbers. In the digital age now there are new facilities to navigate knowledge in the digital medium: Web-pages, links, and search interfaces. Yet the digital medium offers many more complex methods of discovering knowledge relevant to one’s interests, such as automated information retrieval and information extraction. Conversely, the facilities available for interlinking resources and the expectations of users now in the digital age demand greater attention to various facets of the preparation of knowledge for distribution. The course offered here prepares students to make such preparations for Sanskrit.
    • Instructor: Tanuja P. Ajotikar and Peter M. Scharf
    • Schedule: 9th September – 9 December 2022.
    • Course meeting times: Wednesday and Friday 9:30 am U.S. Central Time; 8:00 pm IST; from 6 November 2022 9:00 pm IST.
    • Prerequisite: Basic knowledge of Sanskrit.
    • Course fee: $1500.
    • Course fee for Indian residents: INR 15000.
    • Syllabus.
    • Register (Non-Indian residents)
    • Register (Indian residents)