This is the site of the Caitanya Sanskrit Tol
(Academy). Tol refers to the traditional kind of school common
in
India before the British. Few tols
survive these days. This
school offers a variety of courses of study centered
around
Caitanya Vaisnavism, but broad enough to satisfy a global
community.
Traditional subjects like darsana (philosophy), alankara
(literary criticism), vyakarana (Sanskrit grammar), and kavya
(poetry) will be joined with a subset of the Great Western Books
program
to provide a unique, but balanced learning experience.
The Bhaktisastri, Bhaktyacarya, and Bhaktividyavaradhi degrees
will be granted at the successful completion of the various levels of
study at the Tol. The curriculum will include the following texts:
Vaisnava Vyakarana (Samksepa and Sampurna Hari-namamrta-vyakarana)
Sankhya (Sankhya-karika with comms.)
Yoga (Yoga-sutra with comms.)
Vedanta (Vedanta-sara, Vedanta-paribhasa, Catuhsutri with Sankara and Vacaspati comms.)
Vaisnava Vedanta (Prameya-ratnavali, Vedanta-syamantaka, Siddhanta-ratna, Vedanta-sutra with Govinda-bhasya, etc.)
Mimamsa (Mana-meyodaya, etc)
Alankara (Dhvanyaloka, Kavya-prakasa, Rasa-sutra with comms.)
Vaisnava Alankara (Alankara-kaustubha, Ujjvala-nilamani, Kavya-kaustubha)
Vaisnava Darsana (Bhagavata-sandarbha, Laghu and Brhad-bhagavatamrta)
Great Books (Greek Tragedies, Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, Augustine, Aquinas, etc.)
Kavya
(Raghuvamsa, Kumara-sambhava,
Sakuntala,
etc.
Vaisnava Kavya and Nataka (Gita-govinda, Krsna-karnamrta, Lalita-Madhava, Vidagdha-Madhava, Caitanya-candrodaya, etc)
Purana (Bhagavata, Visnu, Padma, Brahma-vaivarta, etc.)
The
Great Epics (Mahabharata
and Ramayana)
The Sri
Caitanya Sanskrit Tol is now
open.
This is an experiment in alternative education. The
course
of study will take approximately eight years, after which successful
students
will be granted the title of Bhaktisastri
(equivalent
to a Bachelor of Arts). There are
three
stages in the course of study. The first or introductory level (prathama)
lasts three years and is the stage in which one will begin the study of
the Sanskrit language through the grammar of Jiva Goswami, develop
a Sanskrit
vocabulary by study of the Amara-kosa, master the basics of
Indic philosophy
(Vedanta and Nyaya), be introduced to literary criticism and
literature,
begin reading the great Sanskrit Epics and Purana (primarily the Ramayana
on this level), study some of the Vaisnava rites and practices through
the Hari-bhakti-vilasa,
explore the foundations of Vaisnava theology and philosophy through the
introductory texts of Sri Jiva, Baladeva and Visvanatha and, in the
interest of
becoming well rounded citizens of the world, begin study of some of the
world's other great classical works of literature, religion, and
philosophy
(the so-called Great Books).
The intermediary
stage (madhyama),
also lasting three years, will involve the continued study of the
Sanskrit
language and the study of more advanced and difficult works in all of
the areas
mentioned above. Students in this stage will study intermediate
texts in Vedanta and Nyaya and also take up the Sankhya and Yoga
schools.
Parts of the Mahabharata will be undertaken in this stage with
special
focus
on the Bhagavad-gita and its commentaries. More of
the classic texts of the Western tradition and some from the
Chinese-Japanese tradition will be studied as well.
The final
stage
(two years) will focus on advanced texts of the Vaisnava tradition
such as the Sandarbha of Sri Jiva, the Bhagavata with
commentaries,
the plays and poetry of Rupa, Kavi Karnapura, Krsnadas Kaviraja, and
Sri Jiva, and the Vedanta-sutra
with commentaries.
Students who complete
the course will have
studied
many of the most influential works of the Caitanya tradition and will
be
equiped to continue their exploration of the Sanskrit works of the
Caitanya
tradition
and of other great Indic traditions on their own. The program is
designed
to produce a generation of well grounded, thoughtful scholars and
theologians of
the
rich and complex literary and philosophical
traditions of India with special focus
on the Caitanya tradition. There
are
abbreviated programs for those who already have degrees from college or
graduate work, as well. Prospective students should inquire about
them in their letters of application.
The
Caitanya Sanskrit Tol is located in the small, quiet town of
Kirksville, Missouri. Students who
apply and are accepted into the Tol will be expected to come and live
in Kirksville for the duration of their studies. The school year
is divided into three semesters (four months each, January-April,
May-August, September-December) with a two week break at the end of
each (that is, the last two weeks of each trimester there are no
studies). Classes will be held for a minimum of three hours each
day, six days a week, and students will be expected to spend an
additional 3
to 4 hours a day studying on their own or with other students outside
of class. The rest of the student's time is his or her own.
Since classes sizes will be kept small, students will get lots of
personal attention from the instructors.
The
fees are currently set at $1000 for
each trimester ($3000 per school year), paid partially in advance (50%) two weeks
before each semester. This does not include room and board.
Those are to be taken care of by the students themselves. Since
Kirksville is the home of Truman State University and the Kirksville
College of Osteopathic Medicine, there is plenty of inexpensive student
housing. There are also plenty of employment opportunities around
Kirksville for students. At present there are no scholarships
available, but perhaps those will become available in the future.
Some reduction in fees can be worked out for students on the basis of
their willingness to work at the Tol or in its publication wing.
Acceptance
into a higher stage is contingent on passing
the prior stages with high marks. Examinations will be given at
the end of each semester over the materials studied during that
semester and a final at the end of the school year (December) covering
work done during the year. Students will receive
certificates
of achievement and recognition for each level in the program
successfully
completed.
Students who complete all three level will be granted the degree of
Bhaktisastri
by the faculty of the Caitanya Sanskrit Tol. In the future
advanced degrees (Acarya and Vidyavaradhi)
will be offered by the
Tol for the training
of teachers of the Caitanya tradition. All current instructors
hold
doctoral degrees from accredited universities in areas related to the
study of Sanskrit, Vaisnavism,
and Indic philosophy and religion.
If you are interested in being among the first to study at the Caitanya Sanskrit Tol, send a letter of interest to admissions, with information about your prior education, your current level of knowledge of Sanskrit, and your specific interests in the program.
Here
is a tentative curriculum for
the first year.