Coulson M. , Gombrich R. , Benson J. Teach Yourself Sanskrit. -
McGraw Hill, 2003. - XXVI + 402p.
The plan, scope and length of this book have been determined primarily by the aim of enabling students to cope as rapidly as possible with straightforward Classical Sanskrit texts. The material has been drawn almost entirely from the Sanskrit (not Prakrit) prose dialogue of the major dramas, extracted onto cards and then graded according to the main morphological and syntactical features that required explanation. From Chapter 6 onwards all the sentences of the exercises and all the more elaborate examples given in the chapters themselves are taken without change from actual Sanskrit works. While the intention is to provide an introduction to the Classical language in general, because of the nature of the bulk of the material the book is, in the first place, a guide to Sanskrit dramatic prose; and it is probable that I have sometimes incautiously presented as generally valid points of usage that really hold good only of the Classical dramatists.
Existing Sanskrit primers tend to be admirably systematic in their presentation of the complicated morphology of Sanskrit (which includes a mass of verb forms little used by most writers) but rather cursory in their treatment of such basic facts of life as the prevalence of nominal constructions and compound formations. The student may get the misleading impression that Classical Sanskrit syntax is very similar to that of Latin and Greek, and emerge well drilled in the varieties of athematic inflexion and yet quite unprepared, for instance, for such simple discoveries as the fact that someone in a play, speaking from the heart, instead of saying 'Thank God my children are alive' can and does say (literally) Thank God I am alive-childed'. In the present book thorough drilling in all the forms of declension and conjugation has been a secondary consideration, and the student will therefore benefit from a certain self-discipline in memorising accurately the paradigms introduced into each chapter. In
part this shift of emphasis (though I think it desirable at any rate) has been dictated by the use of real Sanskrit material: second-person dual atmanepada forms are not particularly thick on the ground whether in plays or in texts of any other kind. Serious inadequacy in this respect is, however, prevented by the fact that grammatical forms once introduced continue to be illustrated and required throughout the book: each exercise contains a natural element of revision of all previous exercises.
It is particularly students without a teacher who need a fuller explanation of Sanskrit syntax and idiom than existing primers give, and so I have been happy to model this book upon the Teach Yourself volumes which I myself in the past have found so helpful and stimulating. At the same time it seemed practical to assume a somewhat greater degree of sophistication in potential students of Sanskrit than in students proposing to teach themselves a language such as French. Someone who has never previously leat a foreign language will probably find the early chapters rather heavy going unless he is fairly bright. A significant proportion of readers are likely to have some acquaintance with either Latin or Greek, and so I have cited parallels where these seemed illuminating, but knowledge of either language on the part of all readers is in no way assumed. In passing it is perhaps worth stating plainly that the present work is essentially intended to be an entirely 'synchronic' study of Classical Sanskrit: occasional references to the earlier history of the language, whether at the Vedic or Indo-European stage, have been introduced where it seemed that they might help to emphasise or clarify the point under discussion. Undoubtedly some readers would prefer more of such references, other less.
For reasons of both convenience and economy, the use of the nagari script is discontinued in the body of the text after the first five chapters. Ample practice in reading and writing the script continues to be provided in the exercises.
Many people have given help and advice during the long and laborious period of preparation of this book. A particularly deep debt of gratitude is due to the following: to Dr. Richard Gombrich, of Oxford, for detailed comment and unfailing sympathy and encouragement over many years; to Mr. C. A. Rylands, formerly of the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, for reading with a quite remarkably sharp eye much of the final draft, and for giving me in many acute observations the fruits of his years of experience as a teacher of Sanskrit; to my colleague at Edinburgh Мr. W. E. Jones, for much patient and
careful discussion of the first two chapters; and to Mrs. Elizabeth Kelsall, without whose competent editorial assistance I should still be struggling to get the book finished. Much error has been eliminated with the help of these friends and of the students with whom I have used the work in draft form. I am keenly conscious that many imperfections remain.
Edinburgh, January 1973
Note: Dr. Coulson died before this book could be published. Dr. Gombrich has seen it through the press; he wishes to thank Miss Elizabeth Christie for her help with the proof-reading.
The plan, scope and length of this book have been determined primarily by the aim of enabling students to cope as rapidly as possible with straightforward Classical Sanskrit texts. The material has been drawn almost entirely from the Sanskrit (not Prakrit) prose dialogue of the major dramas, extracted onto cards and then graded according to the main morphological and syntactical features that required explanation. From Chapter 6 onwards all the sentences of the exercises and all the more elaborate examples given in the chapters themselves are taken without change from actual Sanskrit works. While the intention is to provide an introduction to the Classical language in general, because of the nature of the bulk of the material the book is, in the first place, a guide to Sanskrit dramatic prose; and it is probable that I have sometimes incautiously presented as generally valid points of usage that really hold good only of the Classical dramatists.
Existing Sanskrit primers tend to be admirably systematic in their presentation of the complicated morphology of Sanskrit (which includes a mass of verb forms little used by most writers) but rather cursory in their treatment of such basic facts of life as the prevalence of nominal constructions and compound formations. The student may get the misleading impression that Classical Sanskrit syntax is very similar to that of Latin and Greek, and emerge well drilled in the varieties of athematic inflexion and yet quite unprepared, for instance, for such simple discoveries as the fact that someone in a play, speaking from the heart, instead of saying 'Thank God my children are alive' can and does say (literally) Thank God I am alive-childed'. In the present book thorough drilling in all the forms of declension and conjugation has been a secondary consideration, and the student will therefore benefit from a certain self-discipline in memorising accurately the paradigms introduced into each chapter. In
part this shift of emphasis (though I think it desirable at any rate) has been dictated by the use of real Sanskrit material: second-person dual atmanepada forms are not particularly thick on the ground whether in plays or in texts of any other kind. Serious inadequacy in this respect is, however, prevented by the fact that grammatical forms once introduced continue to be illustrated and required throughout the book: each exercise contains a natural element of revision of all previous exercises.
It is particularly students without a teacher who need a fuller explanation of Sanskrit syntax and idiom than existing primers give, and so I have been happy to model this book upon the Teach Yourself volumes which I myself in the past have found so helpful and stimulating. At the same time it seemed practical to assume a somewhat greater degree of sophistication in potential students of Sanskrit than in students proposing to teach themselves a language such as French. Someone who has never previously leat a foreign language will probably find the early chapters rather heavy going unless he is fairly bright. A significant proportion of readers are likely to have some acquaintance with either Latin or Greek, and so I have cited parallels where these seemed illuminating, but knowledge of either language on the part of all readers is in no way assumed. In passing it is perhaps worth stating plainly that the present work is essentially intended to be an entirely 'synchronic' study of Classical Sanskrit: occasional references to the earlier history of the language, whether at the Vedic or Indo-European stage, have been introduced where it seemed that they might help to emphasise or clarify the point under discussion. Undoubtedly some readers would prefer more of such references, other less.
For reasons of both convenience and economy, the use of the nagari script is discontinued in the body of the text after the first five chapters. Ample practice in reading and writing the script continues to be provided in the exercises.
Many people have given help and advice during the long and laborious period of preparation of this book. A particularly deep debt of gratitude is due to the following: to Dr. Richard Gombrich, of Oxford, for detailed comment and unfailing sympathy and encouragement over many years; to Mr. C. A. Rylands, formerly of the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, for reading with a quite remarkably sharp eye much of the final draft, and for giving me in many acute observations the fruits of his years of experience as a teacher of Sanskrit; to my colleague at Edinburgh Мr. W. E. Jones, for much patient and
careful discussion of the first two chapters; and to Mrs. Elizabeth Kelsall, without whose competent editorial assistance I should still be struggling to get the book finished. Much error has been eliminated with the help of these friends and of the students with whom I have used the work in draft form. I am keenly conscious that many imperfections remain.
Edinburgh, January 1973
Note: Dr. Coulson died before this book could be published. Dr. Gombrich has seen it through the press; he wishes to thank Miss Elizabeth Christie for her help with the proof-reading.