Introduction to the Sanskrit Department

   The Sanskrit Department is responsible for research and education in Classical Sanskrit, Vedic, Pali, Middle Indic languages as well as in the philological study of the ancient Indian literature. Elementary Sanskrit is a prerequisite for those who major in Sanskrit language and literature. Students are trained in undergraduate courses to master a solid philological discipline for advanced research of Sanskrit. Also, they are required to obtain a reading knowledge of German and French, in addition to English, during the undergraduate period. Seminars are arranged primarily for graduate students on respective subjects such as phonology, morphology, syntax of Sanskrit, epic meter, indigenous grammatical theory, rhetorical theory, indian medicine, style of classical literature and others. Every year two or three lecturers are invited from institutions in and out of the Graduate School of Letters to give courses on the subjects that are not covered by the staff members of the Department. Besides the courses for Ancient and Middle Indo-Aryan languages, a course is offered annually for the study of Modern Indic languages such as Hindi, Bengali, or Tamil.
   This academic year, the Graduate School of Letters invites two distinguished Indologists from abroad: Professor Ashok Aklujkar of British Columbia University (October 2003-March 2004) and Professor Albrecht Wezler of Universitaet Hamburg (February-April 2004).

   Prof. Tokunaga, chairperson and the author of the new critical edition of The BRhaddevatA, is specialized in Sanskrit epics and the exegetical tradition of the Rgveda. Assoc. Prof. Yokochi is working on the PurANa and the Classical Sanskrit Literature. Dr. Knobl is well versed in Vedic language and literature. Thus, our Department covers, in research and education, majors areas of Sanskrit studies from the Vedic to the epic and the classical Sanskrit literature.
   This Department is managed in a close relationship with two related departments of Indology at the Graduate School of Letters, Kyoto University: the Department of the History of Indian Philosophy and the Department of Buddhist Studies. These three Departments form the Association of Indological and Buddhist Studies, Kyoto University.
   Also, the Sanskrit Department cooperates with the Department of Indian Philosophy in organizing the Association of the Study in the History of Indian Thought. This Association holds a general meeting in December and issues the Journal of the History of Indian Thought every year.
   Foreign applicants to the Sanskrit Department are required to show, besides other documents, a recommendation letter written by an established scholar of Indology or humanistic studies.

Staff Members (2003 academic year)

Professor TOKUNAGA Muneo, Ph.D. (Harvard), Epic and Classical Sanskrit
Associate Professor YOKOCHI Yuko, Classical Sanskrit and PurANic literature
Professor IKARI Yasuke (Institute of Humanistic Studies, Kyoto University), Ph.D. (Chicago), Vedic Ritual
Instructor Werner Knobl, Ph.D. (Tuebingen), Vedic Studies
Lecturer FUJII Masato (Associate Professor of the Institute of Humanistic Studies, Kyoto University), SAmaveda Tradition
Lecturer YAGI Toru (Professor of Osaka Gakuin University), Ph.D. (Paris), VyAkaraNa
Lecturer HONJO Yoshifumi (Professor of Kobe Women's College), Pali texts
Lecturer MIZOKAMI Tomio (Prof. of Osaka University of Foreign Languages), Ph.D. (Delhi), Hindi
Lecturer KANO Kyo (Prof. of Kobe Women's College), NyAya.

Students (2003 academic year)

Ms. HASHIMOTO Ryoko, DC3, JAtaka literature
Mr. KAGAYA Takeomi, DC2, VyAkaraNa
Ms. YAGI Ayako, DC1, Jaina Studies
Ms. Nariko Yamaguchi, DC1, Lalitavistara (Dept. of Indian Philosophy)
Ms. TERABAYASHI Yukari, MC1
Ms. KAWASAKI Ryoko, BC4
Ms. OSHIMA Kazusa, BC3

Courses offered in the 2003 academic year

General Lecture: Outline of the History of Sanskrit Literature by Profs. Tokunaga and Yokochi
Studies: JAtaka Literature by Prof. Tokunaga
Studies: Jaina Canon (UttarajjhayaNasutta) by Prof. Tokunaga
Studies: KAvyaprakAza by Assoc. Prof. Yokochi.
Studies: VAdhUla ZrautasUtra by Prof. Ikari
Studies: Rgveda, Hymns to Indra by Dr. Knobl
Studies : MaitrAyaNI SaMhitA (DarzapUrNamAsa and othe iSTi type rituals) by Dr. Knobl
Studies: Introduction to the PANini Grammar by Dr. Yagi
Reading: MahAbhArata, ZAntiparvan by Prof. Tokunaga
Reading: RaghuvaMza by Assoc. Prof. Yokochi
Reading: HarSacarita by Assoc. Prof. Yokochi
Reading: ChAndogya UpaniSad by Dr. Knobl
Reading: Zatapatha BrAhmaNa by Mr. Fujii
Introduction to Elementary Sanskrit by Prof. Tokunaga (open to all students of Kyoto University)
Introduction to Sanskrit and Vedic Grammar by Dr. Knobl
Introduction to Hindi by Dr. Mizokami
Primary Sanskrit Reading: Lanman's Sanskrit Reader by Mr. Kano
German Text Reading: Berthold Delbrueck, Altindisches Syntax by Dr. Knobl