What is Sanskrit and why do we chant in Sanskrit?
The word Sanskrit means cultured or refined. It is the classical language of Hinduism, is the oldest and the most systematic language in the world. The vastness and the versatility, and power of expression can be appreciated by the fact that this language has 65 words to describe various forms of earth, 67 words for water, and over 250 words to describe rainfall. Sanskrit words are comprised of bijas, seed sounds, the sounds of which actually communicate the closet approximation possible to the vibration of the thing in itself. Therefore, the correspondence between Sanskrit words and objects is much closer than any other language.
Chanting in Sanskrit:
Sound flow is the highest priority in Sanskrit chanting. We use Sanskrit because it is the language of yoga.Sanskrit is special because the vibrations of the sounds have a direct correspondence to the meanings. So even if we don't know the intellectual dictionary meanings of the words, we will be able to intuit the understanding at least in the general sense. As we recite more frequently, we recognize more words and ever greater depths of meaning become apparent to us.
