First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading [Hardcover]

Judith Tyberg (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0930736028 | ISBN-13: 978-0930736026 | Publication Date: June 1, 1977

This text-book, First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading, is a revision and combination of several efforts to present the Sanskrit language in a simplified, yet comprehensive form to students of the West. Quite a history can be told regarding the final set-up of this Sanskrit Grammar and Reading book.! The basic material and arrangement of the grammar and exercises are taken from James R. Ballantynes First Lessons in Sanskrit printed in India in 1851. The reading lessons : "An Introduction to the Hitopadesha" have been taken completely (with some corrections) from Ballantynes Seventh Edition of his work printed in 1908 in London. In 1941 the Theosophical University Press at Point Loma, California, printed an edition of First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar based on this Ballantynes grammatical text (omitting the Hitopadesha section). This edition had been prepared with many changes and additions by L.A. Ware of Iowa State University and myself. I was at that time instructor in Sanskrit at the Theosophical University in Point Loma, where I had been receiving training in Sanskrit from Dr. Gottfried de Purucker. Geoffrey A. Barborka, chief linitype operator at the Theosophical University Press designed a keyboard specially for the composition of Sanskrit in the Devanagari (the written script) on the linotype, and this keyboard, with slight modifications was accepted by the Mergenthaler Linotype Company. The Devanagari type then made by them was used in the printing up of the sanskrit portions of the book. This Devanagari was the first ever printed by linotype. In 1944 another edition of this last book, still further revised by me, was printed by the Theosophical University Press in Point Loma, California. Then in 1950 after returning from a 3-years scholarship in India, I was asked to be the Professor of Sanskrit at the newly-founded American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. There being no copies left of the last two editions of the Sanskrit Grammar, I prepared another arrangement of the book with still further additions based on actual teaching experience. Included in this edition were Ballantynes very fine studies and and selections from the Hitopadesha, and hence the book was called First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading. This newly prepared work was lithographed by the Litho-Print Press in San Francisco in 1951. In 1953 I founded the East-West Cultural Center in Los Angeles, California, and have been teaching Sanskrit along with many other cultural and religious and philosophical subjects of Eastern Civilization. requests for a simplified Sanskrit text oriented to Sanskrit sacred scriptures has been progressively in demand by Oriental bookstores and western centers interested in eastern culture. However by 1960 the 1950-edition of the Sanskrit book was sold out. So in 1961 I set out to work again to prepare another even larger and more complete Sanskrit Grammar and Reading book along with various quotations and passages from Sanskrit scriptures. These included verses from the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads. These quoted lines appended to each lesson have been arranged to suit the grammatical content of each chapter. The Mother, the spiritual head of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, South India, has kindly arranged to have this edition printed at their Press. Not only do I feel grateful for this, but also very honored. This book is offered to all lovers of Sanskrit who wish to delve into the richness and spiritual profundity of the ancient scriptures of India, without being too lost in the grammatical difficulties of the Language. My God bless your studies as He has mine!

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

This text-book, First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading, is a revision and combination of several efforts to present the Sanskrit language in a simplified, yet comprehensive form to students of the West.

Quite a history can be told regarding the final set-up of this Sanskrit Grammar and Reading book.! The basic material and arrangement of the grammar and exercises are taken from James R. Ballantynes First Lessons in Sanskrit printed in India in 1851. The reading lessons : "An Introduction to the Hitopadesha" have been taken completely (with some corrections) from Ballantynes Seventh Edition of his work printed in 1908 in London.

In 1941 the Theosophical University Press at Point Loma, California, printed an edition of First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar based on this Ballantynes grammatical text (omitting the Hitopadesha section). This edition had been prepared with many changes and additions by L.A. Ware of Iowa State University and myself. I was at that time instructor in Sanskrit at the Theosophical University in Point Loma, where I had been receiving training in Sanskrit from Dr. Gottfried de Purucker. Geoffrey A. Barborka, chief linitype operator at the Theosophical University Press designed a keyboard specially for the composition of Sanskrit in the Devanagari (the written script) on the linotype, and this keyboard, with slight modifications was accepted by the Mergenthaler Linotype Company. The Devanagari type then made by them was used in the printing up of the sanskrit portions of the book. This Devanagari was the first ever printed by linotype.

In 1944 another edition of this last book, still further revised by me, was printed by the Theosophical University Press in Point Loma, California.

Then in 1950 after returning from a 3-years scholarship in India, I was asked to be the Professor of Sanskrit at the newly-founded American Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco. There being no copies left of the last two editions of the Sanskrit Grammar, I prepared another arrangement of the book with still further additions based on actual teaching experience. Included in this edition were Ballantynes very fine studies and and selections from the Hitopadesha, and hence the book was called First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading. This newly prepared work was lithographed by the Litho-Print Press in San Francisco in 1951.

In 1953 I founded the East-West Cultural Center in Los Angeles, California, and have been teaching Sanskrit along with many other cultural and religious and philosophical subjects of Eastern Civilization. requests for a simplified Sanskrit text oriented to Sanskrit sacred scriptures has been progressively in demand by Oriental bookstores and western centers interested in eastern culture. However by 1960 the 1950-edition of the Sanskrit book was sold out.

So in 1961 I set out to work again to prepare another even larger and more complete Sanskrit Grammar and Reading book along with various quotations and passages from Sanskrit scriptures. These included verses from the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads. These quoted lines appended to each lesson have been arranged to suit the grammatical content of each chapter.

The Mother, the spiritual head of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, South India, has kindly arranged to have this edition printed at their Press. Not only do I feel grateful for this, but also very honored. This book is offered to all lovers of Sanskrit who wish to delve into the richness and spiritual profundity of the ancient scriptures of India, without being too lost in the grammatical difficulties of the Language. My God bless your studies as He has mine!

(March 1962) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Judith M. Tyberg had her early education at the Raja Yoga School and at the Theosophical University, Point Loma, California, with special study in Sanskrit with the late Dr. G. de Purucker. From this university, she received her M.A., Ph.D. and M.Th. She became the Vice-Principal of the Raja Yoga School (1932-35). She travelled and lectured all over Europe during 1935-36. On her return she became Dean of Studies at the Theosophical University (1937-45), where she was also Professor of Sanskrit and Eastern Religions.

In 1945, she founded the Sanskrit Center and Bookshop in Glendale, California. A three-year scholarship took her to Benares Hindu University in 1947 where she studied Sanskrit, Pali, Indian Religions and Philosophies and the Cultural History of India, receiving the Masters Degree from the University, in Indian Religion and Philosophy. In 1947, she visited Indias great modern sage, Sri Aurobindo and was accepted by him as her disciple and given her spiritual name, Jyotipriya, which means Lover of Light. after living for some time at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, she returned to the U.S. in 1950.

In 1950-52, she was Professor of Sanskrit and Indian Religions at the American Academy of Asian Studies, San Francisco, and also lectured at Stanford University and San Francisco State College.

In 1953, she became the Founder-Director of the East-West Cultural Center in Los Angeles, a religious- educational center , where for twenty-eight years she conducted a school for gifted children from first grade through high school. She also taught and lectured on Sanskrit, Pali, Hindi, Indian Religions, Yoga and Comparative Religions. In 1973, she joined the College of Oriental Studies, Los Angeles, Ca. as Professor of Sanskrit and of Indian Religion, Philosophy and Literature; and in 1974, she was appointed to the Field Faculty for Graduate Studies of Goddard University, Plainsfield, Vermont.

During her lifetime, Dr. Tyberg lectured widely across the world and is the author of several books and has written many articles for various academic, cultural and spiritual magazines. Her published books include "The Language of the Gods" and "Sanskrit Keys to the Wisdom Religion". She died in 1981. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 264 pages
• Publisher: East West Cultural Center (June 1, 1977)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0930736028
• ISBN-13: 978-0930736026
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,058,773 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

70 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Caveat emptor, June 1, 1999

By 

IM Taylor (Canberra, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading (Paperback)

I was very disappointed with this book. The main problem is the Devanagari script is so small that it is barely legible, especially for a beginner. Strangely, the current edition has hand-written corrections in the margins! This book must have been quite an improvement on Lanman and Whitney when it was first published in the 1940s (?), but there are many better Sanskrit introductions available now, for example Egenes. This book is of no use to me. I have put it away on a very high shelf.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent beginner's book, November 23, 2002

By 

Adolf Von Wurttemberg "aschvetahata" (Lawrenceville, GA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading (Paperback)

I began using this text at Emory University, Atlanta, GA, in 1973 and continue to use it at Hindu University of America in Orlando, FL. It is a very simple introduction to a very complex language. It assumes no prior knowledge of any language but English and almost no knowledge of English grammar beyond the most elementary level. There is no better book for a beginner. One area of improvement: the printer should have used a larger point Devanagari font. For example, in an ancillary text that I use in the classroom, the 24-point font is all that I use for the Devanagari characters. This makes it much easier for the beginner to read the vowel signs.

24 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars And I'm being perfectly objective about this..., February 26, 2001

By 

Rafael Espericueta (Bakersfield, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: First Lessons in Sanskrit Grammar and Reading (Paperback)

Back in 1972 I studied Sanskrit using this book, under the tutelage of the author herself, Dr. Judith Tyberg. The notes in my margins were hand written by Judith herself. I haven't seen the currently available edition, but I have many fond memories of happy hours spent studying this primer. If the copious mystical spiritual treatises originally written in this ancient yet beautiful language inspired your interest in Sanskrit, then this book I'm sure will be a welcome addition to your library. Dr. Tyberg's companion book "The Language of the Gods" is especially useful in exploring the extensive spiritual terminology of Sanskrit. Enjoy!!