Report
A seven-day National Workshop was organised by the Shri Shankar Shikshayatan Vaidik Shodh Sansthan from 17 to 23 August 2026, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., through an online platform. The workshop was based on Pratyantaprasthana Mimamsa, a significant work authored by Pandit Madhusudan Ojha.
The work is a remarkable treasure of the Indian knowledge tradition. It examines the question of sea voyages and their relevance within the framework of the shastric tradition. It also demonstrates how a tradition of scriptural debate and reasoning has been systematically presented in textual form. Eminent scholars discussed this important subject over the course of seven days.
Day One
Prof. Meera Dwivedi, Professor, Department of Sanskrit, University of Delhi, delivered the opening lecture on the prescribed text. She explained that, according to certain ancient traditions, a person undertaking a sea voyage was considered to incur three kinds of sin: the sin arising from undertaking a sea voyage, the sin associated with travelling to distant lands, and the sin arising from contact with people of foreign lands.
She observed that the ancient restriction on travelling to distant countries was primarily based on the consideration that a person might not be able to observe the prescribed code of conduct properly while living in another country. This forms one of the central issues examined in the text.
Dr. Dhananjay Vasudev Dwivedi, Head, Department of Sanskrit, Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee University, Ranchi, stated that the shastras prescribe purification or samskara for a person who visits Anga, Vanga or Kalinga. He discussed the context in which this statement has been cited as an authoritative source and examined whether such purification was required for everyone who travelled to these regions. The text discusses this question in detail in the context of sea voyages.
Day Two
Prof. Satyaprakash Dubey, former Dean of the Faculty of Arts and former Head of the Department of Sanskrit, Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur, explained that sea voyages could be undertaken for six different purposes:
- Sea voyages undertaken as an act of penance
- Sea voyages undertaken for pilgrimage
- Sea voyages undertaken for education, warfare, trade, business and related purposes
- Sea voyages undertaken on the orders of a king
- Sea voyages undertaken for livelihood
- Sea voyages undertaken for recreation or pleasure
Dr. Yaduveer Swaroop Shastri, Assistant Professor, Department of Grammar, Kameshwar Singh Darbhanga Sanskrit University, Darbhanga, discussed the approval and prohibition of sea voyages in different ages. He pointed out that sea voyages were undertaken even during the Dvapara Yuga, for which statements from the Puranas have been cited.
The kings of Tamralipta, Karvata and Suhya are mentioned as having undertaken sea voyages. Even in the Kali Yuga, the great poet Kalidasa is said to have travelled to the court of Kumaradasa, the king of Singhala. Similarly, in the drama Ratnavali, the minister Yaugandharayana is described as having undertaken a sea voyage. None of these persons is said to have undergone any prescribed penance for doing so.
Day Three
Prof. Rajdhar Mishra, Professor, Department of Grammar, Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Rajasthan Sanskrit University, Jaipur, stated that six types of sea voyages are mentioned in the text. Among these is travel undertaken for pilgrimage. It is stated that a sea voyage to the city of Dvaraka for the darshana of Lord Krishna is entirely prescribed and commendable. He therefore raised the important question of how sea travel could at the same time be regarded as improper, and suggested that this apparent contradiction deserves careful examination by scholars.
Prof. Harish, Professor, Department of Sanskrit, Kirori Mal College, New Delhi, observed that the prohibition of sea voyages is not presented uniformly in all contexts under the doctrine of Kalivarjya. In some passages, the prohibition is stated from a general perspective, whereas in others it is presented with reference to particular circumstances. These differing contexts give rise to questions that require further examination.
Day Four
Prof. Dharmadatta Chaturvedi, Professor, Department of Sanskrit, Faculty of Shabdavidya, Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, Deemed University, Varanasi, while teaching the text, drew attention to an authoritative statement found in a Purana. The same statement is also found in an Upapurana. The discussion examined whether an Upapurana can possess the same degree of authority as a Purana and considered the issue from this perspective.
Dr. Ayush Gupta, Assistant Professor, Department of Vedic Studies, Dr. Harisingh Gour Central University, Sagar, explained the significance of the word samudrayayi occurring in the text. He examined its possible meaning as well as that of the term samudraga. He explained that the suffix Nin conveys the sense of inherent disposition or habitual nature. Thus, one whose natural or habitual activity is to undertake sea voyages may be designated samudrayayi. The question of sea travel was therefore examined on the basis of grammatical analysis of the stem and suffix.
Day Five
Prof. Pankaj Kumar Vyas, Professor and Head, Department of Grammar, Rashtriya Sanskrit University, Tirupati, stated that in the Kali Yuga, a person who has undertaken a sea voyage is subject to a prohibition concerning the performance of his shraddha. However, a person who partakes of food at such a shraddha does not thereby incur any fault. The distinction between these two aspects was discussed in detail.
Prof. Suman Kumar Jha, Professor and Head, Department of Sahitya, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri National Sanskrit University, New Delhi, explained that the subsequent interpretation is developed on the basis of the principle known as Durjananyaya. Just as, in ordinary discourse, the position of an opponent may first be provisionally accepted, so in shastric debate the purvapaksha is temporarily accepted before the siddhantin establishes his own position.
In this section of the text, the purvapakshin accepts the statement of Manu and Marichi. The siddhantin then takes that statement as the basis for further reasoning. The conclusion established is that, according to Manu’s statement, the prohibition in the Kali Yuga applies specifically to the performance of shraddha in relation to a person who has undertaken a sea voyage, and not to sea travel in all circumstances.
Day Six
Prof. Maitrayee Kumari, Professor, Department of Sanskrit, Kamala Nehru College, New Delhi, stated that a person undertaking a sea voyage is, in certain contexts, prescribed a penance lasting three years. In some places, the performance of a samskara or purification is also discussed.
She pointed out that the shastras contain passages in which sea travel is considered permissible and others in which it is prohibited. Reconciling these apparently divergent positions is one of the principal concerns of the text.
Dr. Thakur Shivalochan Shandilya, Assistant Professor, Department of Sanskrit, Faculty of Arts, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, explained the argument through examples of regional variations in social practice. Certain practices, such as dining together, dining with one’s wife, consuming previously prepared food, and particular forms of marriage, are stated to be accepted in the southern regions but not in the northern regions. The question of sea travel has similarly been examined with reference to regional differences in customary and shastric practice.
Day Seven
Prof. Anil Pratap Giri, Professor and Head, Department of Sanskrit, University of Allahabad, Prayagraj, explained that the proposition under consideration is that, in the Kali Yuga, sea travel is generally prohibited for the intellectual and scholarly classes. He noted that the author establishes the relevant rule by distinguishing between northern and southern India.
Dr. N. Vaiti Subrahmanyan, Assistant Professor, Department of Sanskrit, Pali and Prakrit, Central University of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala, observed that the statements of Narada and Parashara prohibit sea travel in the Kali Yuga, whereas statements attributed to Baudhayana and Vyasa support it. It is therefore necessary to reconcile these apparently divergent statements.
He explained that the author of the text, after carefully examining the chronological and contextual relationship of these authorities, makes a considered case for the acceptability of sea travel.
Prof. Santosh Kumar Shukla, Professor, Institute of Sanskrit and Ancient Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, presided over the seven-day National Workshop. He observed that the lectures delivered by all the scholars were clear and substantive. He described Pratyantaprasthana Mimamsa as a valuable repository of knowledge.
He emphasised that the central question is not whether sea travel is appropriate or inappropriate in the modern age. Rather, the remarkable feature of the work lies in the manner in which its author presents the subject through the method of purvapaksha and uttarapaksha, making the process of shastric reasoning itself worthy of close study.
Dr. Durgasharan Rath, Assistant Professor, Department of Veda, Central Sanskrit University, Shri Raghunath Kirti Campus, rendered the Vedic Mangala-charana in traditional recitation.
The proceedings of the workshop were conducted by Dr. Lakshmi Kant Vimal, Research Officer, Shri Shankar Shikshayatan Vaidik Shodh Sansthan.
The seven-day National Workshop witnessed enthusiastic participation by professors, scholars, research students and others interested in Sanskrit learning from universities and colleges across several states. Their active participation contributed significantly to the success of the workshop. Approximately 200 scholars participated over the seven days of the workshop.