An interview with Dr McComas Taylor during the 19th World Sanskrit Conference

In this interview, Dr McComas Taylor, Professor of Sanskrit at the Australian National University and Secretary General of the International Association of Sanskrit Studies, shares his personal journey with Sanskrit, beginning with a transformative viewing of Peter Brook’s Mahabharata in 1995. He describes his self-study and eventual academic path, emphasizing the depth and beauty of the Mahabharata as an encyclopedia of traditional Hindu knowledge. Taylor discusses the historical origins of Sanskrit, noting the significance of the Ashoka pillar inscription in Nepal for dating the Buddha, and explains Pāṇini’s codification of classical Sanskrit around 500 BCE, which has remained grammatically unchanged. He contrasts classical Sanskrit with the earlier Vedic language, highlighting its regularization. He touches on the evolution of Sanskrit vocabulary to include modern terms like ’electricity’ and ’email’, and reflects on the current renaissance of spoken Sanskrit in India and Nepal, driven by a search for cultural identity. Taylor also praises the warm atmosphere of the conference in Kathmandu and underscores the importance of the community of scholars. He mentions the unique manuscript of Aśvaghoṣa’s Buddhacarita preserved in Nepal, calling it a major contribution to world scholarship. He concludes with reflections on the future of Sanskrit studies, noting a decline in the West but vitality in South Asia, and expresses optimism about the language’s endurance.