WSPÓŁCZESNA SYTUACJA SANSKRYTU
THE CONTEMPORARY SITUATION OF SANSKRIT

Summary/Abstract: This article presents the current situation of Sanskrit and the importance of Sanskrit in India. How is Sanskrit used in daily life in India and what is its role in the sub-continent’s religions? There are some television channels in Sanskrit and in schools Sanskrit is a manda- tory subject. It is one of the twenty-three official languages in India. Sanskrit is not a dead language because there are some villages where people use it in daily life, for example in school, university, worship, and especially on traditional occasions. It has a role like Greek or Latin have in European society. India has a special day celebrating Sanskrit, and a spe- cial week for Sanskrit. People have started to learn Sanskrit in German schools and in US schools. NASA also uses Sanskrit. It is possible in the future that computers will work in Sanskrit. Sanskrit is the language in which the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, and texts on eth- ics are written. It has been a language used in India for a very long time. Sanskrit is a classical and historical language of India. The corpus of Sanskrit literature encompasses a rich tradi- tion of poetry and drama as well as scientific, technical, philosophical, and Hindu religious texts. The importance of Sanskrit is quite evident from its all-India scope. It goes without saying that it is the basis of most of the modern Indian languages. I give several opinions of Sanskrit of some of the greatest orientalists that the world has ever produced; I show the consensus of the opinions of men like Professor Max Müller, Veer Savarkar, Rajendra Prasad, and Mahatma Gandhi. These opinions show the cultural importance of Sanskrit in the life of India as the only language that can culturally integrate the entire country and the entire Hindu society.

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