Remove ‘culture’ tag from Sanskrit: Gopalaswami

Is the tag ‘window to Indian culture’ doing more harm than good to the Sanskrit language? Is its link to ‘tradition and culture’ robbing the language of its true potential to emerge as a subject of serious multi-faceted study?

Yes, says ‘Padma Bhushan’ N. Gopalaswami, former Chief Election Commissioner, who has recently taken over as the Chancellor of Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati.

General perception

While Sanskrit is about anything from astronomy to surgery, cryptography to literature, there is still a general perception lingering at the back of one’s mind that Sanskrit students end up becoming priests and purohits.

It is this myth that Dr. Gopalaswami wants the academia to shatter.

In an exclusive interview to

The Hindu on his maiden visit to the varsity campus here on Wednesday after assuming office, Dr. Gopalaswami explained the roadmap ahead of the premier institute, wherein he mentioned the need to look beyond the traditional areas of study.

Paninian grammar

While Paninian grammar has been recognised as an effective tool in crypto-communication, he suggested to the academicians to pursue serious research on those lines, by involving technocrats and students pursuing M.Tech. “Sanskrit has a lot of role to play in defence research. Knowledge of Paninian grammar will certainly be a value addition for those involved in cryptography,” he said.

The Chancellor also suggested to the academics to focus on high-end research based on the repository of information available in Sanskrit, pointing out that the world had started recognising path-breaking studies made through traditional knowledge. While the B.A. students study a little of mathematics and nothing about botany, a change in the curriculum to expose the students to newer areas of study would be helpful, he said.

At the other end of the spectrum is the arena of school education, where there is a great need to promote Sanskrit study.

Sanskrit has a lot of role to play in defence research. Knowledge of Paninian grammar will certainly be a value addition for those involved in cryptography

N. Gopalaswami

Chancellor, Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha

Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha Chancellor Gopalaswami sees promising role for Sanskrit in areas of defence. He says Knowledge of Paninian grammar will certainly be a value addition for those involved in cryptography