Front matter
pailTCET. N
ntC. APR 1884
Divlsltn
Dedication
it spoke against me, than for any amount of empty praise or empty abuse. Sincere d votion to his studies and an unswerving love of truth ought to furnish the true scholar with an armor impermeable to flattery or abuse, and with a visor that shuts out no ray of light, from whatever quarter it may come. More light, more truth, more facts, more combination of facts, these are his quest. And if in that quest he fails, as many have failed before him, he knows that in the search for truth failures are sometimes the condition of victory, and the true conquerors often those whom the world calls the vanquished.
You know better than anybody else the present state of Sanskrit scholarship. You know that at present and for some time to come Sanskrit scholarship means discovery and conquest. Every one of your own works marks a real advance, and a permanent occupation of new ground. But you know also how small a strip has as yet been explored of the vast continent of Sanskrit literature, and how much still remains terra incognita. No doubt this exploring work is troublesome, and often disappointing, but young students must learn the truth of a remark lately made by a distinguished member of the Indian Civil Service, whose death we all deplore, Dr. Burnell, “that no trouble is thrown away which saves trouble to others.” We want men who will work bard, even at the risk of seeing their labors unrequited ; we want strong and bold men who are not afraid of storms and shipwrecks. The worst sailors are not those who suffer shipwreck, but those who only dabble in puddles and are afraid of wetting their feet.
It is easy now to criticise the labors of Sir William Jones, Thomas Oolebrooke, and Horace Hayman Wilson, but what would have become of Sanskrit scholarship if
Contents
PAGE
Dedication-, iii
Introduction-, xiii
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The end
You’ve reached the end of India: what can it teach us?.