Dr. Pandurang Vaman Kane (1880-1972) was a famous Indologist and Sanskrit scholar. He was born in a conservative Chitpavan Brahmin family. He hails from the Ratnagiri district in Maharashtra, India. 1880 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... Indologist is a derivative of the word indology, which refers to study of India, particulary ancient India. ... The Sanskrit language ( संस्कृता वाक्) is one of the earliest attested members of the Indo-European language family and is not only a classical language, but also an official language of India. ... Konkanastha (or Kokanastha) Brahmins, are the Brahmins who hail from the Konkan region of Maharashtra, India. ... A Brahmin (less often Brahman) is a member of the Hindu caste. ... Ratnagiri is a district in Maharashtra, India. ... Maharashtra (महाराष्ट्र) is Indias third largest state in terms of area and second largest in terms of population after Uttar Pradesh. ...

Famous work

Dr. Kane is famous for his magnum opus in English, History of Dharmasastra subtitled Ancient and Mediaeval Religions and Civil Law in India. This work researched the evolution of code of conduct in ancient and mediaeval India by looking into several texts and manuscripts compiled over the centuries. It was published in 5 volumes; the 1st volume was published in 1930 and the last, in 1962. It runs to a total of more than 6,500 pages. Dr. Kane used the resources available at prestigious institutes such as the Asiatic Society of Bombay and Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, among others. The work is known for its expanse and depth – ranging across diverse subjects such as the Mahabharat, Puranas and Kautilya – including references to previously obscure sources. The richness in the work is attributed to his in-depth knowledge of Sanskrit. His success is believed to be an outcome of his objective study of the texts instead of deifying them unlike other Indian Indologists. Magnum opus (sometimes Opus magnum), from the Latin meaning great work, refers to the best or most renowned achievement of an author, artist, or composer. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Prehistory The prehistory of India goes back to the old Stone age (Palaeolithic). ... A manuscript (Latin manu scriptus written by hand), strictly speaking, is any written document that is put down by hand, in contrast to being printed or reproduced some other way. ... 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Asiatic Society of Bombay is a public state library in the city of Mumbai, India. ... The Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, also known as BORI is located in Pune at the junction of Law College Road and Bhandarkar Road. ... The Mahabharata (Devanagari: महाभारत, phonetically Mahābhārata - see note), sometimes just called Bharata, is the great religious, philosophical and mythological epic of India. ... The Puranas (Sanskrit purāṇá ancient, since they focus on ancient history of the universe) are part of Hindu Smriti; these religious scriptures discuss varied topics like devotion to God in his various aspects, traditional sciences like Ayurveda, Jyotish, cosmology, concepts like dharma, karma, reincarnation and many others. ... Chanakya (c. ... The Sanskrit language ( संस्कृता वाक्) is one of the earliest attested members of the Indo-European language family and is not only a classical language, but also an official language of India. ... In Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic theology, theosis, meaning deification or divinization or, becoming gods, or even becoming God, is the call to man to become holy and seek union with God, beginning in this life and later consummated in the resurrection. ...

Kane wrote the book Vyavaharamayukha and was in the process of writing an introductory passage on the history of Dharmasastra for this book, so that the reader would get an overall idea apart from the subject of the book. One thing led to another and this project snowballed into the major work that it is. All the same, he was categorical in saying that it is difficult to find an English equivalent of the word “Dharma.” His output in the form of writings across the three languages of English, Sanskrit and Marathi span nearly 15,000 pages.

Recognition

Dr. Kane was revered as Mahamahopadhyay (Etymology: Maha+Maha+Upadhyay = The greatest among the great teachers), usually shortened to MM as a prefix in the writings that refer to him. He served as the Vice-Chancellor of Bombay University. His services were requisitioned and enlisted for establishing Kurukshetra University in Indic studies. He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi award in 1956 for History of Dharmasastra Volume IV for his research under the Sanskrit translation category. He was also an honorary member of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. A Vice-Chancellor (commonly called the VC) of a university in the United Kingdom, other Commonwealth countries, and some universities in Hong Kong, is the de facto head of the university. ... The University of Mumbai is one of the outstanding universities of India. ... Kurukshetra is the name of a district in the present-day Indian state of Haryana. ... Indology refers to study of India. ... The Sahitya Akademi is an Indian organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. ... 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

He was nominated to the Rajya Sabha as a member of Parliament for his distinguished record in the field of academics. The highest accolade bestowed upon him was the Bharat Ratna in 1963. Executive President Vice-President Prime Minister Dy. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district to a parliament; in the Westminster system, specifically to the lower house. ... Bharat Ratna is Indias highest civilian award. ... 1963 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Miscellaneous

Kane believed that the Indian constitution made a complete break with the traditional ideas prevalent in India by engendering a false opinion among the people that they have rights, but no obligations. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

Given the encyclopaedic and authoritative nature of his work, it is often used in debates in Polity. One such issue that cropped up during Atal Bihari Vajpayee government was whether ancient Indians ate beef and both the groups quoted extensively from Kane’s work to support their viewpoint. This issue became important as the Hindus traditionally revere Cow as a mother and hence eating of Beef is prohibited. Another such issue was whether the girls in the ancient times had the right to wear the Yajnopavita (the sacred thread), restricted only to the men folk in the recent past. Atal Bihari Vajpayee (often wrongly spelt Behari; अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी in Devnagari) (born December 25, 1924) was the Prime Minister of India in 1996 and again from 1998 until May 19, 2004. ... Hinduism (सनातन धर्म; also known as Sanātana Dharma, and Vaidika-Dharma) is a worldwide religious tradition that is based on the bedrock of the Veda scriptures. ...

Legacy

To commemorate him, Asiatic Society of Bombay has established Mm. Dr. P.V. Kane Institute for Post Graduate studies and Research in 1974 to promote, encourage and facilitate research in oriental studies. Also, MM Dr. P.V. Kane Gold Medal is given once every three years to a scholar for outstanding contribution to the study of Vedic, Dharmashastra or Alankara Literature. The Asiatic Society of Bombay is a public state library in the city of Mumbai, India. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ...

Also see

Dharmasastra and Dharma Dharma (sanskrit, roughly (natural) law or way) is the way of the higher Truths. ...

References

1. A write-up on MM Dr. P.V. Kane
2. Publication dates of volumes
3. Sahitya Akademi Award
4. Honorary member of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan
5. Evolution of MM Dr. P.V. Kane’s Magnum Opus
6. Constitution making a complete break with traditional ideas of India
7. A viewpoint: Dr. P.V. Kane’s work proves that ancient Indians ate beef
8. A viewpoint: Dr. P.V. Kane’s work does not prove that ancient Indians ate beef