By Amar Raj Naharki, Tanahun, Jan. 25: The traditional belief that Sanskrit education should be studied only by the people from the Brahmin caste in Hindu social hierarchy has been gradually fading away.

It is because students belonging to other religious groups are also being inclined towards Sanskrit education.

It has been observed that the majority of students studying Sanskrit education belong to another religious group than the Brahmin community in Maharshi Ved Vyas Secondary School located at Damauli, headquarters of Tanahu district.

The attraction of Muslim students in Sanskrit has been on the rise.

According to Toyanath Niraula, principal of the school, a total of 35 students belonging to the Muslim community are taking Sanskrit education classes in the school at present.

According to him, there is an increasing flow of students not only from the Muslim community but also from other religious groups such as Buddhism and Christianity.

The school principal informed that 95% of the students in the school belong to the dalit and Janajati groups in a total of 281 students.

There is less probability of being unemployed after receiving the Sanskrit education, said the principal, adding there are ample opportunities to enter higher education in any field.

This also opens the door for opportunities to conduct Hindu rituals on both happy and tragic occasions, from birth to death, and even in the teaching field as well, he said.

Many students come to get the Sanskrit education by understanding the fact that it is a need of time, the school principal viewed.

In this school, we teach the Sanskrit language, grammar, Karmakanda (ritual performance rules), and Ayurveda.

Similarly, Madhav Khanal, former principal of the school, said that as the society was realizing the importance of Sanskrit education, the number of students studying Sanskrit was increasing, and also because of rising interest of the non-Hindus in Sanskrit education.

Ruksan Khatun, a student of 10th grade, who is a permanent resident of Bara district and is living in Damauli, said that Sanskrit was a must for life and that she has been studying it from grade 1.

Though my aim is to be a nurse in the future, I am studying Sanskrit because it is important for life, she added.

Because of my interest and desire in learning Sanskrit, I have not faced any problem while studying Sanskrit, said Khatun.

Najir Miya, who is a 10th grader, said that he aims to be a Sanskrit teacher in the future.

Rustam Miya, a 9th grader, said, "I have started learning Sanskrit because it carries the whole history and is a necessity for life as well. I started it with a strong desire to contribute to preserving and promoting the Sanskrit education."

Assistant principal Bishnu Hari Bhattarai said that students from the Muslim community were more interested in studying Sanskrit than students from other communities.

Saying that Sanskrit education is being taught in other countries with the newfound knowledge that Sanskrit is the king of languages, teacher Narendra Neupane said that people of all castes and religions had become attracted to the Sanskrit education in Nepal as well.