Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s2.t3.13

v2.c10.s2.t3.13

Recognising Sanskrit’s position in the world and the great value of Sanskrit literature, Su Manshu compiled *Sanskrit Grammar”*, which was not anything out of his imagination, but was a translation of *A Sanskrit Grammar for Beginners* by Max Müller (1866). As he stated in the preface, “Henceforth, communication between Chinese and Sanskrit will commence”, he translated and compiled this book with a clear purpose to arouse the interest towards Sanskrit, restore India-China cultural links that had been interrupted for many years, and revive the rapidly sinking spirit of Buddhism and interest in Indian culture. He was of the opinion, “India is the origin of philosophy and culture, which is superior to Greece”, and he even believed that, “in terms of beauty and conciseness, Sanskrit is the best, and next to it is Chinese, and then after that are the European languages.” This shows how he admired classic Sanskrit literature. The translation