Sanskrit Gallery
Below are examples of texts that the First Year students will be able to read at different stages of the introductory training. The last example in this gallery is the text and translation of the Rāmacaritam (simplified version of the Rāmayaṇa). This is the work of a student, Vivek Bakshi, after the first semester. The preceding example from the Nalopākhyānam of the Mahābhārata is the work of the same student at the end of the second semester. This text is authentic and unaltered.
The rest of the examples are by the faculty of the Sanskrit language. The example from the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad is by Patrick Olivelle. The examples of both the different beginnings of the Bhagavadgītā and of Śaṅkara are by Edeltraud Harzer.
The Bhagavadgītā, the traditional beginning.
धृतराष्ट्र उवाच--
धर्मक्षेत्रे कुरुक्षेत्रे समवेता युयुत्सवः ।
मामकाः पाण्डवाश्चैव किमकुर्वत सञ्जय ॥6.23.1॥
सञ्जय उवाच – दृष्ट्वा तु पाण्डवानीकं व्यूढं दुर्यॊधनस्तदा ।
आचार्यमुपसंगम्य राजा वचनमब्रवीत् ॥6.23.2॥
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca:
dharmakṣetre kurukṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ
māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāś caiva kim akurvata saṃjaya. 6.23.1.
saṃjaya uvāca:
dṛṣṭvā tu pāṇḍavānīkaṃ vyūḍhaṃ duryodhanas tadā
ācāryam upasaṃgamya rājā vacanam abravīt. 6.23.2.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra asked:
What did my army and the Pāṇḍavas do when they gathered, eager to fight on the battlefield, the field of righteousness? 6.23.1.
Saṃjaya replied:
King Duryodhyana, then observing the Pāṇḍava army ready, approached the teacher (Droṇa) and spoke the words. 6.23.2.
The Bhagavadgītā, the original beginning.
वैशंपायन उवाच ।
अथ गावल्गणिर्धीमान्समरादेत्य सञ्जयः ।
प्रत्यक्षदर्शी सर्वस्य भूतभव्यभविष्यवित् ।।६.१४.१॥
ध्यायते धृतराष्ट्राय सहसोपेत्य दुःखितः
आचष्ट निहतं भीष्मं भरतानाममध्यमम् ॥६.१४.२॥
Vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca:
atha gāvalgaṇir dhīmān samarād etya saṃjayaḥ
pratyakṣadarśī sarvasya bhūtabhavyabhaviṣyavit. 6.14.1.
dhyāyate dhṛtarāṣṭrāya sahasopetya duḥkhitaḥ
ācaṣṭa nihataṃ bhīṣmaṃ bharatānām amadhyamam. 6.14.2.
Now Saṃjaya, the wise son of Gavalgaṇa,
knowing the past, present and the future, with a direct insight into
everything, coming from the battle,
depressed, he approached in haste the ponderous Dhṛtarāṣṭra
announced that Bhīṣma, uncomparable among the Bharatas, was struck down.
Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 2.3.4-5.
स होवाच याज्ञवल्क्यः। प्रिया बतारे नः सती प्रियं भाषसे । एह्यास्स्व। व्याख्यास्यामि ते । व्याचक्षाणस्य तु मे निदिध्यासस्वेति। ॥४॥
स होवाच । न वा अरे पत्युः कामाय पतिः प्रियॊ भवत्यात्मनस्तु कामाय पतिः प्रियोः भवति । न वा अरे जायायै कामाय जाया प्रिया भवत्यात्मनस्तु कामाय जाया प्रिया भवति । न वा अरे पुत्राणां कामाय पुत्राः प्रिया भवन्त्यात्मनस्तु कामाय पुत्रा: प्रिया भवन्ति । न वा अरे वित्तस्य कामाय वित्तं प्रियं भवत्यात्मनस्तु कामाय वित्तं प्रियं भवति ...
आत्मा वा अरे द्रष्टव्यः श्रॊतव्यॊ मन्तव्यॊ निदिध्यासितव्यॊ मैत्रेयि । आत्मनॊ वा अरे दर्शनेन श्रवणेन मत्या विज्ञानेनेदँ सर्वं विदितम् ॥५॥
sa hovāca yājñavalkyaḥ: priyā batāre naḥ satī priyaṃ bhāṣase. ehy āssva. vyākhyāsyāmi te. vyācaksāṇasya tu me nididhyāsasveti. ॥4॥
sa hovāca: na vā are patyuḥ kāmāya patiḥ priyo bhavaty ātmanas tu kāmāya patiḥ priyo bhavati. na vā are jāyāyai kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavaty ātmanas tu kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavati. na vā are putrāṇāṃ kāmāya putrāḥ priyā bhavanty ātmanas tu kāmāya putrāḥ priyā bhavanti. na vā are vittasya kāmāya vittaṃ priyaṃ bhavaty ātmanas tu kāmāya vittaṃ priyaṃ bhavati...
ātmā vā are draṣṭavyaḥ śrotavyo mantavyo nididhyāsitavyo maitreyi. ātmano vā are darśanena śravaṇena matyā vijñānenedaṃ sarvaṃ viditam ॥5॥
Yājñavalkya said in reply: “You have always been very dear to me, and now you speak something very dear to me! Come and sit down. I will explain it to you. But while I am explaining, try to concentrate.” || 4||
Then he spoke: “One holds a husband dear, you see, not out of love for the husband; rather, it is out of love for oneself (ātman) that one holds a husband dear. One holds a wife dear not out of love for the wife; rather, it is out of love for oneself that one holds a wife dear. One holds children dear not out of love for the children; rather, it is out of love for oneself that one holds children dear. One holds wealth dear not out of love for wealth; rather, it is out of love for oneself that one holds wealth dear...”
“You see, Maitreyī-it is one's self (ātman) which one should see and hear, and on which one should reflect and concentrate. For by seeing and hearing one's self, and by reflecting and concentrating on one's self, one gains the knowledge of this whole world. ||5||
Ref.: Patrick Olivelle's translation of Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 2.3.4-5
Śaṅkara, A Thousand Teachings. (Upadeśasāhasrī)
अहं ब्रह्मास्मि सर्वोऽस्मि शुद्धो बुद्धोऽस्म्यतः सदा ।
अजः सर्वत एवाहमजरश्चाक्षयॊऽमृतः ॥
[Śaṅkara's Upadeśasāhasrī 2.1.13.18.]
ahaṃ brahmāsmi sarvo 'smi śuddho buddho 'smyataḥ sadā
ajaḥ sarvata evāham ajaraścākṣayo 'mṛtaḥ.
I am brahman, I am all, I am pure, I am awakened, hence always
unborn, yet ageless, indestructable, and immortal.
Nala and Damayantī. (Nalopākhyānam of the Mahābhārata.)
सा तान् अद्भुतरूपान् वै दृष्ट्वा सखिगणावृता ।
हृष्टा ग्रहीतुं खगमांस् त्वरमाणोपचक्रमे ॥२४॥
अथ हंसा विससृपुः सर्वतः प्रमदावने ।
एकैकशस् तदा कन्यास् तान् हंसान् समुपाद्रवन् ॥२५॥
दमयन्ती तु यं हंसं समुपाधावद् अन्तिके
स मानुषीं गिरं कृत्वा दमयन्तीम् अथाब्रवीत् ॥२६॥
sā tān adbhutarūpān vai dṛṣṭvā sakhigaṇāvṛtā
hṛṣṭā grahītuṃ khagamāṃs tvaramāṇopacakrame.24
atha haṃsā visasṛpuḥ sarvataḥ pramadāvane
ekaikaśas tadā kanyās tān haṃsān samupādravan.25
Damayantī tu yaṃ haṃsaṃ samupādhāvad antike
sa mānuṣīṃ giraṃ kṛtvā damayantīm athābravīt.26
Surrounded by her friends, she (Damayanti) seeing the birds of wondrous beauty, was excited, she approached the birds hurrying to catch one of them.
Now the geese dispersed in every direction in the pleasure grove. One by one the young women ran after the geese.
Damayanti ran toward a goose which assumed a human voice, saying to Damayanti.
N.B.: Text as given in Lanman Sanskrit Reader
Sample of a student's work after the second semester of Sanskrit.
Rāmacaritam
(simplified Rāmāyaṇa) from Goldman's
Devavāṇipraveśikā.
अस्ति नृपॊ दशरथॊ नाम । सॊ ऽतीव धार्मिकॊ भूमिपः सुखं जीवति । नृपस्य दुःखं नास्तीति भाषन्ते जनाः । एकदा दशरथॊ वनं गच्छति । तस्मिन्वने ब्राह्मणस्य पुत्रॊ वसति । अहॊ सुन्दरं मृगं पश्याम्यहमिति चिन्तयति नृपः । बालकं च तीक्ष्णेन शरेण हन्ति । ब्राह्मण आगच्छति हतं पुत्रं पश्यति च । सॊ ऽतीव कुपितो भवति नृपं शपति च। त्वमप्यहमिव पुत्राच्छॊकमनुभवसीति ।
asti nṛpo daśaratho nāma. so 'tīva dhārmiko bhūmipaḥ sukhaṃ jīvati. nṛpasya duḥkhaṃ nāsti bhāṣante janāḥ. ekadā daśaratho vanaṃ gacchati. tasmin vane brāhmaṇasya putro vasati. aho sundaraṃ mṛgaṃ paśyamyaham iti cintayati nṛpaḥ. bālakaṃ ca tīkṣṇena śareṇa hanti. brāhmaṇa āgacchati hataṃ putraṃ paśyati ca. so 'tīva kupito bhavati nṛpaṃ śapati ca. tvam api aham iva putrāt śokam anubhavasīti.
There is a king named Daśaratha. That very righteous king lives happily. People say that the king does not have sorrow. Once upon a time, Daśaratha goes to the forest. A brahman’s son lives in that forest. The king thinks: Aha, I see a beautiful deer. And he kills the boy with a sharp arrow. The brahman comes and sees the killed son. He becomes very angry and curses the king: “You too will feel sorrow on account of your son.”
Sample of a student's work after the first semester of Sanskrit.
