Dr. CA. Viswanathan P
Co-founder and CEO, Vyoma Linguistic Labs Foundation
There is an interesting story about how ‘Pañcatantra’ came to be composed.
A famous king named Amaraśakti had three sons. Clever boys, all of them, but completely uninterested in learning.
Tutors came and left. Years passed, and the king grew old worrying that he would hand his kingdom to three young men who understood nothing about how the world works.
An elderly scholar named Viṣṇu Śarmā heard of this and made an offer. Give me the boys for six months, he said, and I promise not to teach them a single lesson.
He told them stories instead. A lion and a bull. A crow and a snake. A tortoise who could not stop talking. Six months later those princes understood loyalty, patience, betrayal, and judgement better than years of tutoring had managed. Not one of them had sat through a class.
Through teaching the Rāmāyaṇa for many years now, we have come to believe Viṣṇu Śarmā was right about something the rest of us keep forgetting.
Nobody has ever been argued into loving a text. They are only ever drawn in, usually by a story, usually before they realise it is happening.
Being a father, I have also realized that we cannot sit our children down and explain why this matters. The moment we try, we have lost.
That is really the whole idea behind Vyoma’s ‘digitalsanskrit.com‘: to make Sanskrit learning accessible, enjoyable and fun. Stories, chants, rhymes, games, epics, searchable e-books, things that play while you cook and things your children ask to watch again.
My brother, Venkat anna, will show you what is on it next week.
Your Vyoma Sevāvratī.
विश्वम्
Vishwam
If you are new here, digitalsanskrit.com is a home for Sanskrit you can listen to, read and play with: chants, stories, the epics, the Gita, e-books, audiobooks, podcasts and learning games, gathered across collections like World of Chants, Stories and Subhashitas, Kids, Gita, Vedanta, Grammar, and Epics and Puranas. A good deal of it is free to begin with.
- Curious to see it for yourself? Visit digitalsanskrit.com
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- Learn Life Skills through Panchatantra – 1: Mitrabheda
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Excellent. Another great thought by vyoma.pranam
Ram Ram Ram
Thank you so much for your comment. It motivates us to do our best.
Such a wonderful history of the origin of the marvellous stories of Panchatantra !
It is indeed true that learning needs to be made interesting for understanding, retention and practice in life.
Dhanyavadah!
Ram Ram Ram
Thank you so much for your kind words. Our audience and learning community truly motivates us to do our best. If you would like to revisit the Panchatantra stories, you can access them here: https://bit.ly/4x8lQ7f
DhanyavadaH.
Since this is coming again and again now writing a comment. Actually seeing the name panchatantra I was attracted but I’m looking for the stories. Canu tell me where to locate them…🙏🙏
Ram Ram Ram
Namaste Bhagini,
Thanks for your interest. You can access them here:
https://bit.ly/4x8lQ7f