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Thread: Question about languages...

  1. #1

    Question Question about languages...

    I am interested in studying a language as part of my spiritual/religious pursuits.
    At present, it looks like my path is going to be that of Shiva Siddhantha. My understanding is that Shiva Siddhantha originates in a region of India (south) where Tamil is the spoken language.
    But I also know that many scriptures originate in Sanskrit.
    And I believe that the majority language of India is Hindi.

    Please do correct me if I am wrong on any of these points.

    Which of these languages would it be best for me to study? And why would you recommend it?

    Thank you in advance for your thoughts and assistance.

    Aum nama sivaya.

  2. #2

    Re: Question about languages...

    Is there one language from India which I am most likely to encounter among Hindus who have emigrated to the U.S.? Is Hindi most common?

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    Re: Question about languages...

    It seems to vary by region of the country as far as where most indian immigrants are from. I know that in my area, it seems like the vast majority of indian americans are gujarati. I would suggest personally that as a saiva, tamil (or if you have shakta leanings like me, bengali) might be most useful for assimilating into the hindu community, but then south indian worship tends to be less congregational so language may not be as much of a factor. I would figure out where the majority of indians in your community are from before deciding on a language either way, as that could trump everything I said before in this post. What does the fact that south indians tend to worship Shiva matter if the majority of hindus in your area speak kannada, gujarati, or even kota? You might not even need to learn a new language. I know one of our most respected white hindus on this forum gets by perfectly fine speaking only english.

  4. #4

    Re: Question about languages...

    Thank you, Ashvati. That is very helpful information.

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    Re: Question about languages...

    Vannakkam Ashoka: Many of the great Saiva Siddhanta texts such as the Tirumantiram and the Tiruvacagam are written in Tamil. But it is not necessary to learn a language to learn Saiva philosophy.

    Best wishes.

    Aum Namasivaya

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    Smile Re: Question about languages...

    http://www.shaivam.org/sen.htm

    Many Saiva devotional literature and scriptures are available in Tamil and Samskrit. You can see a collection at above site in English. You may go through and study in English as well.

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    Re: Question about languages...

    Dear All: It is my first post here...Have been a silent lurker for a while...Myself a Tamizh Hindu born, living and practising Sanatana Dharma in India. I felt I could contribute to this thread...Yes Saiva Sidhantham had/has a strong presence in many parts of South India, especially Tamizhnadu. There is a decent English translation of some aspects of Saiva Sidhantham published by the Ramakrishna Mutt (Chennai) called the "Periya Puranam". The book provides examples of the path of devotion adopted by devotees towards one's Ishta Daivatam (although the book's primary Ishta Daivatam is Sivan). "Ondre kulam, oruvane deivam" (There is but one human race, and one Brahman) originates from the philosophy of Saiva Sidhantham.

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    Re: Question about languages...

    Vannakkam wundermonk: Welcome to these forums. Its always good to get more diversity and contacts who can provide ideas as the ones you did. Is there a link?

    Aum Namasivaya
    Last edited by Eastern Mind; 03 December 2010 at 01:04 PM. Reason: add

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    Re: Question about languages...

    Vanakkam EM:

    The link provided earlier seems to be the online source of Periya Puranam. For those of us (of a generation or half a generation earlier) who may prefer a hard copy, http://www.chennaimath.org/catalog lists Periya Puranam as being available for sale for Rs. 150.

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