E-Paper
Don’t link language to religion, says Muslim scholar of Sanskrit
Expressing anguish over the protest against the appointment of a Muslim as an assistant professor in department of sahitya at Faculty of Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vijnan,
Expressing anguish over the protest against the appointment of a Muslim as an assistant professor in department of sahitya at Faculty of Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vijnan, BHU, noted Sanskrit scholar Dr Mohammad Hanif Khan Shashtri, a Padma Shri awardee, said language should not be linked to religion.
“I liked Sanskrit since childhood. I studied it and worked for it. I wrote many books and got many awards for my works in the Sanskrit language. Language has no religion, so language should not be linked to religion. Linking any language to religion is totally wrong because language will be the worst sufferer. Language is for all.”
Shastri said learning any language was entirely a matter of one’s personal interest. “I liked Sanskrit and worked for it. Raghupati Sahay aka Firaq Gorakhpuri liked Urdu and served Urdu,” he said.
Prof Shastri said the protest against the appointment of a Muslim as a teacher in the faculty of SVDV was not good because such an incident would leave a long and wrong impression.
“We must ensure that diversity in learning flourishes always,” he said.
He said he enjoyed respect and love of his students throughout his career as a teacher of Sanskrit.
Prof Shastri said he did MA in Sanskrit and then Acharya in the history of Puran and PhD in comparative religion with special reference to Hinduism and Islamic thoughts of spiritual depth.
After doing PhD, Prof Shastri said he started teaching Sanskrit and later joined the Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, New Delhi where he taught for over three decades. “I have written many books. The most popular among them are Mohangita, Gita aur Quran Me Samanjasya, Ved Aur Quran se Mahamantra Gayatri aur Surah Fatiha, and Vedon Mein Manav Adhikar and Meljol,” he said.
Prof Shastri said he tried to promote communal harmony by highlighting similarities between Hindu and Muslim religions through his unique literary contribution.
