The importance of sampradaya

[Jaldhar H. Vyas]

On Thu, 25 Apr 2002, riccardonova wrote:

> Some time , being an european makes it
> difficolt to follow the list discussions,

If I'm talking about computers and I say something about replacing NIS+
with LDAP over SSL those who know the technical jargon will know exactly
what I mean while all others will think it is some kind of gibberish.  The
intent is not to exclude others but to make communication easier amongst
those in the know.  This field also has its technical vocabulary expressed
in Sanskrit.  Some people think this should be avoided.  (Not just
Europeans, many Indians today have difficulty understanding the more
advanced terms too.)  I on the other hand think we do a disservice by
watering things down for the sake of beginners.  It is better to take the
time to learn and master the proper meanings than rely on translations
which might be inaccurate or confusing.  It's a balancing act really, if
the barrier of entry is too high, people willbecome discouraged but if it
is too low they won't make any progress.

> does any body knows if a Vedanta
> dictionary is available, is it possible to buy it online ? I think it would
> be really necessary for people like me that get in contact with this
> philosophy by far away, unfortunatly I don't know sanskrit and all my
> previous education was in a totally different orientation. Any suggestions
> would be very wellcome.
>

You have received some suggestions for a dictionary.  May I also suggest
finding if a local university has a course in Sanskrit?  I'm quite sure
even in Italy you can find such things.  (In fact one of the most
comprehensive studies of the Smarta sampradaya was written by a professor
from Milan.)

And if you come accross soe unfamiliar word on the list, just say "Hey,
what does that mean?)  I doubt if anyone here would refuse to explain.

--
Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar at braincells.com>
It's a girl! See the pictures - http://www.braincells.com/shailaja/