Indian Languages and Grammar: In this lecture, we will discuss how India has always attached the highest value to knowledge and as all knowledge is constituted in language, great value has been attached to the study of language in all its dimensions: sounds, words, sentences, metres, etymology and meaning. For the older Indian civilization, Grammar (vyākaraṇa) is the core science and therefore there is a long-attested tradition of texts and grammarians in India.
Indian Literature: In this lecture, we will delve into various aspects of literature. India has the largest pantheon of written texts in the world along with one of the most vibrant of oral cultures. A piece of literature often functions both as a written text and an oral tradition. First of all, there are the Shastras. The Vedas and the Upanishads are the most fundamental spiritual texts of India with many Puranas and Agamas adding different aspects to this ever growing pantheon. Added to this, there are Dharma Shastras advising on ethics and morality of the society. Then comes the Kavya Literature of India. India has the longest epic in the world, The Mahabharata, as well as The Ramayana.
