Intermediate Sanskrit (SRK 2201/6905), Spring 2008  

 

Instructor: Jason Neelis

Office: 130 Anderson

Office Hours: Wednesday 2-5 pm

Office Phone: (352) 392-1625, ext. 240 or 273-2935

e-mail: jneelis@religion.ufl.edu

 

Description:

This course in Sanskrit is designed for students who have already taken the previous semester of Intermediate Sanskrit (SRK 2200). Students develop more rapid reading and translation skills in a wide variety of literary genres.

 

Goals:

Students will read selections from classical Sanskrit texts in A Sanskrit Reader by Charles Rockwell Lanman before proceeding to texts related to their own individual interests without the aid of the notes and glossary in Lanman’s Reader. The aim of this course is to be able to read Sanskrit texts with the aid of a dictionary.

 

Required Books:

A Sanskrit Reader: Text and Vocabulary and Notes, by Charles Rockwell Lanman. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA: 1884 (an Indian reprint edition published by Motilal Banarsidass is available from South Asia Books: http://www.southasiabooks.com/)

 

Recommended Books (optional):

Roots, Verb Forms & Primary Derivatives of the Sanskrit Language, by William Dwight Whitney.

Sanskrit Grammar, including both the Classical Languages and the Older Dialects of Veda and Bràhmaõa, by William Dwight Whitney.

A Sanskrit Grammar for Students, by Arthur A. MacDonell.

A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, by Monier Monier-Williams.

 

Requirements:

Prepare for in-class recitation and analysis of reading passages by identifying verbs, subjects, and compounds; note cases (vibhaktis) and syntactic functions of recognized words, and make a list of vocabulary to look up in the glossary in the back of the book; develop translations to share with the class if called upon, and be prepared to answer questions and to ask questions about the other students’ translations.

 

Evaluation:

Participation and Homework Assignments                                         25%

Quizzes                                                                                               25%

Midterm Exam                                                                                    25%

Final Exam                                                                                          25%

 

Policy for late or make-up assignments:

Students may take an exam early or receive an extension on an assignment only in extraordinary circumstances and with prior approval from the instructor.

Attendance policy:

Absences can be excused if written requests are submitted in advance or if written explanations are submitted with valid documentation.

Academic Honesty guidelines at the University of Florida:

http://www.dso.ufl.edu/judicial/honestybrochure.htm

Students with Disabilities should register with the office of the Dean of Students:

http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drp/

 

Tentative Schedule

 

Week 1 (Jan. 9): Review Nala and Damayantī sarga 4, vv. 14-24, and read vv. 25-31

 

Week 2 (Jan. 16): Nala sarga 5, vv. 1-21

 

Week 3 (Jan. 23): Finish Nala sarga 5

 

Week 4 (Jan. 30): Nala quiz; begin reading Hitopadeśa introduction (pp. 16-20)

 

Week 5 (Feb. 6): Hitopadeśa III (20-23)

 

Week 6 (Feb. 13): Hitopadeśa  IV (23-27)

 

Week 7 (Feb. 20): Hitopadeśa V-VI (27-30)

 

Week 8 (Feb. 27): Hitopadeśa VII-XI (31-34)

 

Week 9 (March 5): Midterm exam on Hitopadeśa selections

 

March 8-16: Spring Break

 

Week 10 (March 19): Selected primary text (i.e. Upaniṣad passages)

 

Week 11 (March 26): Selected primary text (i.e. Yogasūtra)

 

Week 12 (April 2): Selected primary text (i.e. Aśvaghoṣa, Buddhacarita or Saundarananda)

 

Week 13 (April 9): Selected primary text (i.e. Kālidāsa’s Meghadūta)

 

Week 14 (April 16): Selected primary text to be determined

 

Week 15 (April 23): Final Exam