Besides being rich in content and rhythm, Sanskrit happens to be one of the oldest languages of the world. All the ancient Hindu scriptures including Vedas are in Sanskrit. It is also the “mother” of many Indian languages. For lack of use in spoken as well as written form in any specific part of the country, Sanskrit has lost its relevance to considerable extent though in terms of Hindu religious ceremonies and prayers, it continues to be used in a big way.

In recent times, there have been attempts to revive its earlier glory. Veda schools are being set up; specific Sanskrit research centres have been created. It has also found its way in modern science and technology in terms of being considered as one of the computing friendly languages. NEP 2020 talks about revival of Sanskrit as part of re-discovery of Indian heritage.

In the above context, Sanskrit offers one of the emerging areas of career opportunity for those who love the subject and want to explore it further.

Major Job Profiles:

• 1.    Teaching & Research Career: Sanskrit offers a great teaching career both at school as well as higher education. India needs many Sanskrit teachers at various levels. Veda schools are also coming up in different parts of the country and they also need Sanskrit scholars to teach Vedas. Same is true for the research positions as well that are on the rise.
• 2.    Sanskrit Translators: Many western counties are showing interest in Sanskrit literature and various Indian scriptures / books written in Sanskrit to understand the achievements of ancient Indians. They need experts in Sanskrit and therefore, there has been increasing demand for Sanskrit translators. This demand for Sanskrit translators is also on rise within India as many states are looking at the language with renewed interest.
• 3.    Allied Literary Roles: In view of the richness of language and increased demand for the same, the need for Sanskrit scholars is continually on rise for various literary assignments. These include publishing, journalism, calligraphy, etc.
• 4.    Religious Roles: All scriptures and religious books are primarily in Sanskrit. The Sanskrit scholars find great career scope in various types of roles of pujaris or priests to perform religious rituals. This is a great opportunity in the unorganized sector in India for Sanskrit knowing people.
• 5.    Sanskrit in Science & Technology: As stated earlier, Sanskrit is one of the computer friendly languages. Hence, in recent times, the demand for Sanskrit scholars has substantially gone up in the computing field who can help in coding and other related jobs.

Educational Qualifications:

A graduation degree in Sanskrit is the minimum qualification to enter the job market. However, students also need to be focused on what type of career they want to specialize in as educational qualifications need to be twinned with the same. For example, students who want to go in for teaching or research should do a master's or doctoral degree in Sanskrit. Those intending to become priests or pujaris must become conversant with various rituals or scripture that may not be part of the graduation. Those who want to go in for science avocation, should do some certification in coding.

Needed Competencies:

All jobs of Sanskrit are practical and therefore, orientation, focus, commitment, and application orientation are must. Students should be comfortable in both oral and written forms of communications in Sanskrit. The most important aspect is that they must love the language.

Future Outlook:

Dr A K Sen Gupta is the Founder and Convener, Higher Education Forum (HEF). He is former Director of SIES College of Management Studies (SIESCOMS), Navi Mumbai and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s S P Jain Institute of Management & Research (SPJIMR), Mumbai. He may be contacted at aksengupta51@gmail.com or 9821128103.