This is a curation of my notes from the last 28 days of Sanskrit learning, put together for ease of reference. I used AI tools to help pull the notes together into this essay. If you find any issues or fixes, please comment below to help my learning journey. I am forever looking to improve in this language.
Day 1
Thinking of posting one simple sentence in Sanskrit daily as I continue my grammar classes over the next few weeks.
Learning in public may finally break my fear of using the language daily.
And I hope this lands on a Sanskrit scholar’s feed, so they can correct me and I can start following them.
Dear Substack, do your magic! ✨
I think, therefore I am.
अहं चिन्तयामि, तस्मात् अहम् अस्मि।
Day 2
A birthday wish: I wanted to say, “happy birthday,” but also try a classical-style blessing like “may abundance live in you”, the kind of abundance is up to the person 😊
May your birthday be auspicious. May prosperity always dwell in you.
जन्मदिनस्य शुभं भवतु। समृद्धिः त्वयि सदा वसतु ।
Day 3
I am going to temple.
अहं मन्दिरं गच्छामि ।
Day 4
Now this is a question I often get asked, especially when I’ve promised ghee roast or poori masala for breakfast 😁
Is the food ready? Yes, the food is ready.
भोजनं सिद्धं वा? आम्, भोजनं सिद्धम् अस्ति।
Day 5
When we make doodles of people thinking, we draw a tiny cloud above the head, but if you ask me, i don’t feel like my thoughts arise from my head. I feel like they arise from my gut.
Where do my thoughts come from?
मम विचाराः कुतः जायन्ते?
Day 6
I keep noticing this rush in me and in most people at tech these days to grab the next shiny tool and start running.
But why are we not pausing to ask for better engineering, better tools? It was a long day, and I wondered how to say:
I am tired from work
कार्यात् श्रान्तास्मि। (f) कार्यात् श्रान्तोऽस्मि। (m)
Day 7
Inspired by @Swati Thakur’s note today, I wanted to use शनैः शनैः - Gradually 😊
This is hypothetical for today, since desire isn’t going anywhere for me anytime soon. But the desire for a lot of things that never brought me meaning has quietly died out over time.
So, I’m writing this down as a small step towards eventually getting there, manifesting a version of me (in this life or the next) where desires have settled!
Desires gradually subside.
शनैः शनैः इच्छाः शाम्यन्ति।
Day 8
This sentence feels right today.
I bow to thee, Mother!
Vande is an ātmanepada verb, this means the fruit of the action is understood to return to the doer himself, not just extend outward to another.
The charm of Sanskrit ❤️
It reminds me of us, blessed to be born in Bharat. Like Sanskrit, we look simple, live simple, but we are layered in someways.
वन्दे मातरम्।
Day 9
As winter ends and the weather starts warming up here in Australia, this is something I expect to be saying often.
I also wanted to use the word kiñcit, it’s the cutest word ever ❤️
Please drink some water!
किञ्चित् जलं पिबतु।
Day 10
This week is crazy at work. If I wanted to put a status on my Teams with DnD, it would be this.
Lots of work this week.
But is there a better way to form this?
अस्मिन् सप्ताहे बहु कार्यम् अस्ति।
Day 11
I had a teacher who spoke to the class in Sanskrit. Honestly, it was very hard to follow but equally exciting 😁. He used this word a lot 👇🏾
हत्युक्त्वा (having said)
I stumbled upon this word today while reading so thought about him and decided to use it.
Having said “I am going” he left the house.
I was tempted to do sandhi but I am going to go slow for my own sake.
“अहं गच्छामि” इत्युक्त्वा सः गृहात् निरागच्छत्।
Day 12
I don’t particularly entertain crazy work timings, but a global team demands a few sacrifices. The exhaustion is not just physical but mental. The next day, I usually go easy.
Now, rest alone is the best medicine.
अधुना, विश्रामः एव श्रेष्ठम् औषधम् अस्ति।
Day 13
Separation is painful yet it is the most reliable fuel for many writers.
I think of you always. 🪷
अहं त्वां सततं स्मरामि।
Day 14
This life is full of surprises. Some good, most bad, the only way forward is through faith 🪷🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽
Therefore, I take refuge in devotion alone.
तस्मात्, भक्तिम् एव आश्रये।
Day 15
Our Onam celebration is often shifted to the nearest weekend so there’s time to cook, enjoy, and gather with the people we love 🌺
We celebrate Onam tomorrow.
I did not choose future tense to keep my focus on present tense for now.
वयं श्वः ओणम् उत्सवम् आचरामः।
Day 16
Today we made ഓണപൂക്കളം (flower carpet) with flowers from my friend’s garden as well as mine. It is a simple activity but makes one feel grounded immediately. And flowers, they always make me happy 🌼🌺🪷.
Seeing these flowers, I am happy.
एतानि पुष्पाणि दृष्ट्वा अहं प्रसन्ना अस्मि।
Day 17
Every afternoon he arrives, a beautiful Willie Wagtail, steps into the water bowl I have kept for my guests in the yard, bathes, and rests on the cloth line.
Today a new guest came to the bowl. He chased him off and quietly slipped back into the bowl again rinsing away the mischief he just made 😁 So here is a little reminder to my jealous patron.
O friend! You share the water bowl.
हे मित्र! त्वं जलपात्रं संविभज।
Day 18
Separation fascinates me. Someone appears in your life each day, then suddenly they are gone, and a strange unease takes over. It absorbs you quietly; even in the middle of other tasks, the absence keeps touching you. I often think of the gopis in that brief moment when Krishna vanished, how even their sorrow must have carried a beautifully aching stillness.
O Madhava, this separation is beautiful 🪷
हे माधव, अयं वियोगः सुन्दरः अस्ति।
Day 19
I did not form this sentence; I borrowed a part of BG 5.8. A reminder that I am not the doer 🪷
I carry this verse within me, not as a thought but as posture. It settles the noise inside and loosens the ego’s grip on my spine 🙏🏽
I do not do anything at all.
नैव किञ्चित् करोमि।
Day 20
Who am I?
I’ve used Ramana’s (my mānasa‑guru) affirmation for many years.
देहं नाहम्। कोऽहम्? सोऽहम्।
Yet I still cannot comprehend the last part, and my answer remains the same.
I do not know myself!
अहं स्वं न जानामि।
Day 21
Most days I have to search for something to reflect on to form my sentences. Today was easy with Raksha Bandhan wishes everywhere. When life slips into the same patterns, these festivals nudge the soul awake, asking us to feel life a little differently, even if only for a day.
A quick shout‑out to my grammar teacher for helping me with this sentence 🥳
Heartfelt Raksha Bandhan wishes to all!
सर्वेभ्यः रक्षाबन्धनदिनस्य हार्दाः शुभाशयाः।
Day 22
I don’t need to reflect more on this. I always like to choose simple ❤️✨
Simplicity alone is the beauty of life.
सरलता एव जीवनस्य सौन्दर्यम्।
Day 23
The Australian sky feels closer than the one I grew up under in India. Bhooma and I used to spend our Mondays out in the backyard. Open sky, distant trees, and birds he loved to chase, while I scolded him for being mean to them. And today I felt like just being outdoors like before.
By the wind, the clouds move fast and my flowers dance.
वातेन मेघाः शीघ्रं प्लवन्ते मम कुसुमानि च नृत्यन्ति।
Day 24
Today I wrote an article about a rainbow 🌈 and naturally I wanted to write something about it.
This one was especially challenging as someone who skipped through most of the vibhakti tables in her diploma 😁 so if you have suggestions, you are more than welcome to correct me 🙏🏽
Rainbows are magical circles drawn by God.
इन्द्रधनूंषि ईश्वरेण आलिखितानि मायिकानि वृत्तानि सन्ति।
Day 25
Some days gratitude feels effortless. Even when life pulls your mind elsewhere, there are moments when the sense of having enough returns on its own. Today is one of those days ✨
Today I am grateful
अहम् अद्य कृतज्ञा अस्मि।
Day 26
When a drama unfolds in front of you, excluding you or your people, you naturally become a mere witness. That’s what the word उपद्रष्टा means, the one who sees from close range, fully present, observing but not directly participating.
I wanted to use this word today after reading it in the scriptures. A reminder that we often live inside the misery we create ourselves; the Lord who is the supreme witness has also given each of us the ability to have this clarity.
I am the witness of everything.
अहं सर्वस्य उपद्रष्ट्री अस्मि। (f) / अहं सर्वस्य उपद्रष्टा अस्मि। (m)
Day 27
Today was another left-brained day. During my breaks, I kept glancing at the water bowl, wondering when the little bird will come for its bath. I didn’t see him today. I just hope he returns tomorrow 🐥
i wish for your return.
अहं तव पुनरागमनम् इच्छामि।
Day 28
Day 28: Today I am breaking the pattern a little for a special poem I wish to share as an offering 🪷. Posting this is an act of bravery as a Sanskrit student 😊
I wrote this poem earlier this year, but I had to go back and correct it many times. It’s still not perfect, but today I felt like releasing it. I will keep on trying, to get better at this 🤜🏽🤛🏽
हरिभक्तिः
केवलं भक्तिम् इच्छामि हरिभक्तिं दिनं प्रति । एतां भक्तिम् एव आश्रये हरिभक्तिं पुनः पुनः ॥
लक्ष्मी धनं दत्त्वैव स्वयं भक्तिं बिभर्ति ताम् । रुद्रोऽपि मे हितं कुर्यात् मा हर हरिभक्तिं मम ॥
मोक्षात् श्रेष्ठतरम् एव मम हरिभक्तिः सदा । तस्मात् भक्तिम् एव आश्रये हरिभक्तिं पुनः पुनः ॥
P.S I tried to write in Anushtubh meter.
Watch this space for more in this series.
Sorry don't know how i missed this.. Seeing your entire 28 day journey laid out together is fantastic. Your focus on simplicity in the daily sentences is wonderful to see.. ❤️ sanskrit used to be my favourite in my school days..🥹
Excellent Rabia! You inspired me to learn again - which I stopped 6 years back. You know I paid 3k fees for Madras Sanskrit College. Completed few assignments and left (very bad on my part :(. Anyways, i will give a one more attempt - at least daily simple usages - which my daughter and son they are master with it.