Sanskrit for Seekers

This book needs some editing. Several of the Sanskrit Devanagari characters in the charts in the back of the book are given incorrect transliteration. The cover art also bugs me. "🕉" is a combination of three sounds that are written together in this characterअ, ई and ँ. Together they form ॐ. The cover art "ॐ" writes the diacritics upside down.Despite these flaws, the book does contain some good introductory information about Sanskrit. Unfortunately the author has picked ITRANS as his preferred transliteration from Devanagari, I found it ugly and outdated.

Not what I expected. I was looking for a quick reference that I could easily use to translate sanskrit to english. This is not that! While this is a well written text be sure you research what you are getting. Steve

This is my 1st formal attempt at learning Sanskrit and Devanagari script. My goal was initially to read only, but because of the inspiration provided by the author, I think I will attempt to gain at least some knowledge of grammar as well. The book is filled with added insight into this beautiful language.

You will like this. It is a very reasonable price and it is easy to follow.

Although this can't be described as a 'quick reference' book, I have to admit I was quite stunned by how quickly I started to pick up the Sanskrit script. The author does a really thorough job on ensuring an understanding of why and how the alphabet is logically constructed. This actually helped me enormously with remembering what initially seemed quite an alien system.The author comes over as a passionate, competent and friendly one-to-one teacher, answering questions you may have and building on previous knowledge as you go along. His care for detail, and his desire for the reader to fully grasp the fundamentals makes for a lively and compelling read.I had to actually stop at one point on the first day of reading in a state of 'awe' that I had learnt so much so quickly. I was already deciphering some simple words from online texts.So not a 'quick reference' on the surface, but because of his excellent approach it is a surprisingly quick 'learn'.A very good book.

This is a great starter book for those learning Sanskrit. I find it particularly helpful for the Devanagari. I have it on my KIndle, and study it on my ipad, where I can swipe and magnify the Sanskrit letters. This is very helpful for deciphering the conjunct consonants, which are just a blur in the more serious printed grammars. There is also an excellent explanation deconstructing each of these conjuncts into its constituent letters. Without it, I think I would given up by now. I also like the fact that the author explains the seemingly minute differences between the sounds of similar consonants in terms of their effect in the body. A really helpful book, and very pleasing to the eye, at least in its Kindle edition. Thank you, Dennis Waite.

Wasntvwhat I was looking for

everything I needed to have a small knowledge of sanskrit, well set out and easy to follow

good