Bhagirath Prasad Tripathi (15 July 1935 – 11 May 2022), better known as Vagish Shastri, was an Indian Sanskrit grammarian,

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Lingu ...

tantra Tantra (; sa, तन्त्र, lit=loom, weave, warp) are the esoteric traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards. The term ''tantra'', in the India ...

and

yogi A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297-299, 331 Th ...

. In 2018, Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian award

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

for his work in the field of literature and education.

Life and career

Shastri was born in the city of Khurai, in

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the second ...

in 1934. His primary education was in Khurai, followed by his education in

Vrindavan Vrindavan (; ), also spelt Vrindaban and Brindaban, is a historical city in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Braj Bhoomi region and holds religious importance in Hinduism as Krishna spent most of his childho ...

and

Benaras Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic tra ...

. He started his teaching career as a lecturer of Sanskrit at Tikmani Sanskrit College, Varanasi in 1959 and soon he became the Director and Professor of the Research Institute at Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, Varanasi in the year 1970. He served this prestigious academic post for about three decades. He received his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Vyākaraņa Āchārya (1959); Ph.D. Vidyāvāridhi in

Grammar In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraints, a field that includes doma ...

and

Historical Linguistics Historical linguistics, also termed diachronic linguistics, is the scientific study of language change over time. Principal concerns of historical linguistics include: # to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages # ...

(1964), German Diploma (1966) and D.Litt. Vāchaspati (1969) from Sampurnanand Sanskrit University.

Contribution

Shastri started to write essays at the age of 19. His more than 200 essays and research papers were published in different journals nationally and internationally. He was Secretary President of one section in fifth world Sanskrit conferences. He was chief editor of many series such as Sarasvati Bhavana Granthamala he edited more than 300

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced i ...

s which took form of books. He also was chief editor of famous Sanskrit journal

Sarasvati Susama Saraswati ( sa, सरस्वती, ) is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music, art, speech, wisdom, and learning. She is one of the Tridevi, along with the goddesses Lakshmi and Parvati. The earliest known mention of Saraswati as a god ...

. He wrote books on different subjects which included grammatical and philological research work, drama, history, poetry, satire, historical research work and

metaphysical Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

writings.

Honors and awards

* Padma Shri, awarded by the Government of India

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murm ...

, 2018 * Senior Research fellowship, University Grants Commission, 1964–67. * Kālidasa Award, Highest literary Award,

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 195 ...

, 1966–67. * Honored 6 times by Uttar Pradesh Sanskrit Academy, 1968, 1971, 1981, 1985, 1995, 1996. * Mahāmahopādhyāya, Śri Kashi Pandit Parishad, 1982. * Bāņa Bhatţţ Award, Uttar Pradesh Sanskrit Academy, 1990. * Veda-Vedānga Award,

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern ...

Sanskrit Academy, 1994. * Anusansdhan Puraskāra (Research Award), Utkal Pāti trust, 1995 * Swami Vishnu Tirth Sammāna (Spiritual writing Award), Indore, 2002 * Special Award, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh Sanskrit Sansthan, 2005. * Special Award, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh Sanskrit Sansthan, 2005. * Certificate of Honour for Sanskrit, awarded by the

, 2013. * Sauhard Samman, Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthan, Lucknow, 2014 * Yash Bharati Samman, Highest Honour of U. P. Govt. Government of Uttar Pradesh, 2015 * Vishva Bharati Samman, Highest Honour in Sanskrit Work, by U. P. Sanskrit Samsthan, Lucknow, 2013 * Mahakavi Kalidas Sanskrit Vrati Samman-2016, Highest Honour in Sanskrit Work, by Kavikulguru Kalidas Sanskrit University, Nagpur * Rashtriya Chatrasal Samman-2017, by Bundeli Sahitya Parishad, Bhopal. * Sanskrit Sadhana Samman-"Maharshi VedVyas Samman 2017", by Delhi Sanskrit Academy, New Delhi. * Honorary D.Litt., 2018, Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, Varanasi.

Books authored

Whitney's principal target in accusing

Pāṇini , era = ;;6th–5th century BCE , region = Indian philosophy , main_interests = Grammar, linguistics , notable_works = ' ( Classical Sanskrit) , influenced= , notable_ideas= Descriptive linguistics (Devana ...

and Pāṇiniyas of unreliability was the Dhatupatha. He set forth his views that of nearly 2000 roots of Dhatupatha published by Westergaard and Bohtlingk more than half of these are not attested in literature. The most ambitious work in the direction noted is ''Pāniniya Dhātupātha Samikşhā'' (1965) wherein the author gives an alphabetically arranged catalogue of roots found in different Dhatupathas together with attestation – verbal and nominal forms – in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

, Apabhramsa and other

Prakrit The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...

s. BPT Vagish Shastri's professed aim is to refute Whitney's Claim. The radio drama ''Krişakānām Nāgpāshah'' is a symbolic play with the tone and tenor of patriotism which aims at common harmony, pride in one's own nation, and sacrifice for one's motherland which is highly relevant. This is a creative work from the vibrant pen of BPT Vagish Shastri.

Grammatical and philological research work

# ''Pāniniya Dhātupātha Samikşhā'', Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, 1965 # ''Taddhitantah Kechana Sabdah'',

Motilal Banarsidass Motilal Banarsidass Publishing House (MLBD) is an Indian academic publishing house, founded in Delhi, India in 1903. It publishes and distributes serials, monographs, and scholarly publications on Asian religions, Buddhology, Indology, Eas ...

, Delhi, 1967. # ''Anusandhana Paddhatih'', Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, 1969 (Presently this book is being translated into

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode ...

, by Sanskrit Department, Waltair University) # ''Dhātvartha-Vijnanam'', Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, 1980, This is the most ambitious work in the semantics of verbal roots # ''Sabda Nirvachana aur Sabdartha'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2004. # ''Gypsy language and Grammar'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2005. # ''Upsahityam'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2007.

Creative writing in Sanskrit, Hindi and English

His creative writing of drama, story, poetry, satire is present in his books # ''Krişakānām Nāgpāshah'': A drama concerned with National Awakening, Chaukhamba Vidya Bhavan, Varanasi, 1958. # ''Katha Samvartika'', (Original Sanskrit Stories), Chaukhamba Vidya Bhavan, Varanasi, 1959. # ''Tolstoy Kathasaptakam'', (Translation in Sanskrit), Chaukhamba Vidya Bhavan, Varanasi, 1970. (In Sampurnanand Sanskrit University curriculum). # ''Bharat Mein Sanskrit ki Anivaryata Kyon'', Choukhamba Vidya Bhavan, Varanasi, 1977. # ''Sri Ganga Stavana Chayanika'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 1987. # ''Sri Siva Stavana Chayanika'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 1989. # ''Narma-Saptasati'' : verse-satires, Education ministry, Uttar Pradesh Sanskrit Academy, 1994. # ''Sanskrit Vangmaya Manthanam'', Financial support by Ministry of Education, Govt. of India, 1990. # ''Atankavada Satakam'' : Verse critique on Terrorism, Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 1992. # ''Sasvata Kavya ki Atma'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2000. # ''Jagatika Prema aur Sasvta Ananda'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2004. # ''Humour in Ancient India'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2004. # ''Shabd Nirvachan Aur Shabdarth, Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2007. # ''Sanskrit Enhanced Knowledge of West'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2009. # ''Sri Vagyoga Tantram'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2010. # ''Nisargsarsanjali'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2013 # ''Anushandhan Sampadan Pravidhi'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2013 # ''NAAD SHABDIKAM'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017 # ''WHY SANSKRIT'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017. # ''Antyajon ke Prati Hinduvon ka Kartavya'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017 # ''NAAD SHABDIKAM'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017 # ''SANJYÀKRIYÀPADA-SAMSLESHIKÀ VYÀKRIYÀ'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017 # ''SANKSHIPTA SAAR VYAKARAN'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017 # ''SHIV SANKALP SUKTAM'', Vagyoga Chetna Peetham, Varanasi, 2017

Historical research work

# ''Bundelkhand Ki Prachinata (Antiquity of (Bundelkand)'', Self Publication, 1965. Here refused claim of archaeologist

Alexander Cunningham Major General Sir Alexander Cunningham (23 January 1814 – 28 November 1893) was a British Army engineer with the Bengal Engineer Group who later took an interest in the history and archaeology of India. In 1861, he was appointed to the newl ...

who suggested native place of Bundelas in

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the second-most populous state in India and the second-most populous country subdi ...

. This book describes an etymological identification of the mysterious 'pulindas' mentioned in later

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

, Epic, pauranika and inscriptional literature. # ''Gypsy Bhasha'' : An historical and grammatical study, Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 1986. # ''Mahakunmbh evam Sangama Snanana'' : Ek Vaijnanika Vivechana, Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 1988. # ''Nadiya Ek Ghat Bahutere'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2001. # Autobiography of the Vagyogi, Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2003. # ''Migration of Aryans from India'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2007. # ''Bundelkhand Ki Prachinata'', Enlarged Edition, Vag Yog Chetna Granthmala, Varanasi, 2011.

Metaphysical writing

# ''Parachetana ki Yatra (Journey to Superconsciousness)'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2000. He trained more than 1000 students from all over the world in Kundalini Meditation, Tantra, Yoga and Philosophy. # ''Shakti, Shiva and Yoga'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2000. # ''Yogachudamani Upnishad'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2004. # ''Samvit Prakasha (Vaishnav Tantra)'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2006 # ''Trayambakam Yajamahe'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2006.

New Sanskrit grammar

Shastri has published three books on his invented Sanskrit Grammar "Vagyoga Technique". # ''Sanskrit Sikahne ki Saral aur Vaijnanika Vidhi'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 1990. # ''Vagyoga : Mnemonic Sasnkrit Technique'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2000. # ''Vagyoga : Conversational Sanskrit'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2001.(Also translated in Russian language, 2009) # ''Sanskrit Made Easy : Part – I'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2012. # ''Sanskrit Made Easy : Part – II'', Yogic Voice Consciousness Institute, Varanasi, 2016.

Dictionary

# ''Vamana-Purana Visayanukrama Sabdakosa'', Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, (1996). # ''Etymological Bundeli Dictionary'', Vagyoga Chetana Prakashan, Varanasi, (2017). # ''SHABDA PARANYAM NAAM DHATUNIRBHAR SHABDAKOSHAH'', Vagyoga Chetana Prakashan, Varanasi, (2017).

Research papers

More than 200 research papers are published # Rakshnadyastadasharthakah: Root Av, All India Oriental Conference, Vol. XXVII,

Kurukshetra University Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra (KUK) is a university established on 11January 1956 in Kurukshetra, in the Indian state of Haryana, from the capital, Delhi. It is a member of Association of Commonwealth Universities. History The unive ...

, 1975 # The Science of Abbreviation in Ancient India, Third World Sanskrit Conference, Paris, 1977. # Some Pāṇinian roots used only in Persian and European languages, V world Sanskrit Conference,

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...

, 1979. # Padma Purana and Raghuvamsa, Ganganath Jha Research Journal, Vol. XXXViii, January 1982, Allahabad.

Supervision

Being Director, Research Institute, Sampurnanand Sanskrit University he has guided 53 students for PhD and 6 students for D.Litt. degree in different subjects.

Vagyoga: Natural law and mnemonic technique

Dr. Vagish Shastri has invented a unique technique of teaching Sanskrit grammar called 'Vagyoga'. This is a mnemonic method to enter in the soul of words, it is based upon natural law, which does not require learning by heart any sutras. This is a mathematical way of learning Sanskrit grammar. Many scholars from all over the world learned Sanskrit in very short time and they made translation of Sanskrit texts in their own language and many of them appointed professors.

Taught pronunciation to Madonna

Pop singer

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

sang Yoga Taravali; Dr. Vagish Shastri found mistakes in her singing. Madonna came in touch with Dr. Shastri through BBC radio and learned pronunciation.Madonna's Ray of light: Pandit suggest a touch up,

Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split be ...

, 10 May 1998.

External links

Official Site
*
Photos of Vagish Shastri in Banares, February 1996Autobiography of the VagYogi: The Life of Kundalini Experiences"Vagyoga: Kundalini Meditation: Spiritual Experiences of Meditators" by Vagish Shastri (in English)"Shakti, Shiva and Yoga" by Vagish Shastri (in English)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shastri, Vagish 1935 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Indian educators Sanskrit grammarians Sanskrit writers Writers from Varanasi People from Sagar district Indian Sanskrit scholars Scholars from Varanasi 20th-century Indian linguists Indian yogis Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education