Sanskrit is the ancient language of India. It has a documented history of nearly 3,500 years, is said to be the primary liturgical language of the Hindu culture. World Sanskrit Day is celebrated on Shravana poornima which is Poornima day of Shravana month as per the Hindu calendar. This year, Sanskrit Day falls on August 3.
This Indo-Aryan language has been declared as a classical language that’s identified for its scientific construction and is in excessive demand throughout the world.
For a language that draws its origin to India, Sudharma is the only Sanskrit daily newspaper in the world. The newspaper has been published since 1970 from Mysore in Karnataka, India, and is also available online. For its offline readers, the paper is circulated mainly through posts.
History of World Sanskrit Day:
Also known as Sanskrit Diwas, the day was first celebrated in 1969 and comprises various events that talk about the impact and importance of Sanskrit. Some Europeans were impressed by the Sanskrit language. One of them was an English Scholar Sir William Jones who came to India as a judge of the British Supreme Court in Calcutta in 1783. He was the founder of the Asian Society. He translated Abhijnana Shakuntala and Ritu Samhara (which had been written by the Sanskrit poet Kalidasa) and Gita Govinda (written by the poet Jayadeva) into English. Jones also translated Manusmriti into English.
Significance of World Sanskrit Day:
The primary objective of this day was to promote its use outside the conventional puja mandaps – in conversational speech. This language is known to be one of the oldest languages in the world. Also, many languages find its roots in Sanskrit including Hindi, Gujarati, and Bengali. Furthermore, many also believe that the Latin language arose from the Sanskrit language.
Nevertheless, its significance lies in the vast plethora of literature and other works available in Sanskrit. This language is synonymous with flow, spirituality, and perfect grammar.
Lesser-known facts about Sanskrit Language:
- Sanskrit has inspired music across various genres like Hindustani and Carnatic classical, and even pop numbers.
- The ancient language has the largest vocabulary. 102 Arab 78 crore 50 lakh words have been used till now in Sanskrit.
- It is the most computer-friendly language. NASA scientist Rick Briggs once said that Sanskrit is the only unambiguous language in existence.
- Fourteen universities in Germany offer Sanskrit as a subject.
- Sudharma is the only Sanskrit newspaper in the world.
