Shree Somnath Sanskrit University


Shree Somnath Sanskrit University is located in Veraval, Gir Somnath district, Gujarat. It was established by the Gujarat government by passing the Shree Somnath Sanskrit University Act, 2005.
Sanskrit scholar Dr. Gopabandhu Mishra is currently serving as the Vice Chancellor of the University.

History

Shree Somnath Sanskrit University, located in Veraval, Somnath district, Gujarat, is the only Sanskrit University in the state of Gujarat. This public university was established in 2005 by the state of Gujarat’s passage of the Shree Somnath Sanskrit University Act for the scientific research and teaching of Sanskrit literature. The university’s objectives include the preservation of India’s cultural and linguistic heritage, promoting the appreciation of this heritage within India, and integrating traditional and contemporary knowledge systems. The Shree Somnath Sanskrit University Act stipulated that the languages and literatures of Prakrit, Magadhi, Ardhamagadhi, and Pali should be considered a part of the broader Sanskrit linguistic heritage that the university should seek to nurture. Moreover, the university’s founding charter specified that to fulfill the mission to integrate traditional and contemporary knowledge systems, the university should develop classes exploring the connections between Ayurveda and modern medicine, Vastu śāstra and modern architecture, Arthaśāstra and modern economics and political science, and Vyākaraṇa, and modern grammar and linguistics. The university seeks to promote an ethos emphasizing the attainment of completeness and excellence as embodied by the motto, “Pūrṇatā Gauravāya”, literally, wholeness begets excellence, articulated in Sanskrit poet Kalidasa’s famous poem, Meghaduta.

Academics

Degree Programs

The university blends both traditional and modern forms of Sanskrit education. The languages of instruction are Hindi, Sanskrit, Gujarati, and English for lower-level courses, which gradually transitions to Sanskrit as the sole medium of instruction for higher-level courses. The university confers nine different degrees, including certificate, diploma, B.A., B. Ed., M.A., M. Phil, and Ph.D. The B.A. and M.A. degrees are also known as Shastri and Acharya degrees, respectively.
In the B.A. degree,  students are required to study: Sanskrit, English, Digital Literacy, Hindi or Gujarati, Sociology, Economics, History, and Political Science. In addition, students choose a primary and secondary emphasis from the following: Navya-Vyākaraṇa, Sarvadarśana, Rāmānuja Vedānta, Swāminārāyaṇ Vedānta, Navya-Nyāya, Sāhitya, Purāṇa, Dharmaśāstra, Veda, Jyotiṣa, Vāstuśāstra, and Paurohitya.
In the M.A. degree, the following subjects are studied: Sanskrit, three primary textual emphases chosen from within the fields of Navya-Vyākaraṇa, Sarvadarśana, Rāmānuja Vedānta, Swāminārāyaṇ Vedānta, Navya-Nyāya, Sāhitya, Purāṇa, Dharmaśāstra, Veda, Jyotiṣa, Vāstuśāstra, and Paurohitya, and a secondary textual emphasis chosen from Navya-Vyākaraṇa, Sarva-Darśana, Sāhitya, Purāṇa, Dharma-śāstra, Veda, and Jyotiṣa.
The university offers a PhD in the following fields of study: Sāhitya, Veda, Purāṇa, Jyotiṣa, Vāstu-śāstra, Paurohitya, Nyāya, Vedānta, and Vyākaraṇa. The university is developing plans to offer a M.Ed. degree and open a College of Ayurveda in collaboration with other institutions.

Academic Departments

Shree Somnath Sanskrit University has seven main academic departments, or faculties, in which the following courses and degrees are offered. In its Veraval campus during the 2019-2020 academic year, under the leadership of Vice-Chancellor Dr. Gopabandhu Mishra, 50 faculty and staff taught approximately 318 students.
In 2020, the academic departments at the Veraval campus were:
In 2019, Shree Somnath Sanskrit University signed a memorandum of understanding with Heidelberg University, Wurzburg University, and Leipzig University--three German universities that have a long tradition of Sanskrit scholarship. The MoU specifies that the universities will foster academic exchange of cultural and religious studies, Sanskrit, and other South Asian languages between faculty and students.

Campuses

Veraval campus

The Veraval Campus is the main branch of Shree Somnath Sanskrit University.

Student facilities

SSSU provides free lodging and boarding to all its students. The campus also has a gymnasium and a large area for indoor and outdoor recreation.

Library

The SSSU library, called Sharada Bhavan, was established in 2007. The Triveni Reference Library, a reading room, was inaugurated in October 2013. The library houses approximately 22,000 books and 25 serial publications. The library is open to students, faculty, non-teaching staff, affiliated colleges, and daily visitors.

Affiliated Colleges and Centers

The university also offers various degree, diploma, and certificate courses across a number of campuses in Gujarat. The courses include temple management, paurohitya, jyotisha, vastu śāstra, yoga, spoken Sanskrit, and a post-graduate diploma in computer applications. These courses are conducted through academic affiliation with 110 colleges, universities and research institutes across Gujarat. These include:

Publications

Somajyoti is a quarterly publication created by the University to share news about the academic and cultural events of the University. The publication includes articles in Sanskrit, Hindi, and English. The chief editor in 2020 was Gopabandhu Mishra.

Conferences

Shree Somnath Sanskrit University frequently organizes local, state-level, national, and international conferences to promote scholarship on Sanskrit language and literature by faculty and other eminent scholars.
The “Traditions of Commentary and the Dynamics of Knowledge” international conference was held in February 2020. The conference included papers in Hindi, Sanskrit, and English on topics covering the definition and interpretation of commentaries as well as digital methods and standards for analyzing Sanskrit texts.
The university organizes an annual conference on Sanskrit grammar to discuss new research on specific texts from within the university’s curriculum. In the September 2018 conference, participants discussed selections from the Laghu-śabdendu-śekhara, a Sanskrit text by Nagesh Bhatt commenting on the aphorisms of the Ashṭādhyāyī, the seminal text of Paninian Grammar containing approximately 4000 aphorisms. The conference featured ten presentations, each of which elaborated on an aphorism from a section of the text along with the sajñā-prakaraṇa of the Ashṭādhyāyī.
In May 2018, SSSU organized the All India Oriental Conference, which has been a national forum for scholars interested in Indological studies since 1918. The conference brought together scholars of Vedic studies and Classical Sanskrit, along with scholars of Iranian, Islamic, Arabic, and Persian studies.
In September 2017, a national conference was hosted by SSSU entitled the “Vaidika-sangoṣti”. The three-day conference featured presentations focused on the methods of Vedic rituals and ceremonies. The research conducted by the presenters was compiled into a book published following the conference.
From January 20 to January 22, 2016, SSSU organized a conference entitled Darśana-Saṅkāya whose purpose was to promote and discuss new research on traditional Hindu scriptures. Of the nine main presentations, one led

Workshops

SSSU also organizes regular workshops in order to inspire students, faculty, and other scholars to inquire more deeply into their research areas and broaden their interests
In January 2019, a five-day workshop was held that focused on various discussions within the field of Jyotiṣa. Approximately 35 scholars of Jyotiṣa, along with many students, attended the workshop. Scholars from several Indian institutions participated, including authorities in Jyotiṣa studies like Vinay Kumar Pandey of the Banaras Hindu University and Devendranath Pandey of SSSU.
In August 2017, a workshop entitled “alaṅkāra-nirṇaya” was organized, in which about 25 students participated. The workshop featured sessions on how rhetorical elements are used in Sanskrit belles-lettres and texts that elucidate the aesthetic qualities of poetry. To increase students’ familiarity with how Sanskrit poets have employed figurative language and rhetorical elements, excerpts of their works were discussed.
In July 2017, the university organized a workshop on English speaking and writing, as a part of its broader mission to ensure that students gain a comprehensive education, becoming proficient in languages and skills in addition to Sanskrit. The workshop involved interactive sessions on English grammar, speaking, and writing.