Vidyalankara, Sastrachudamani, Vedantanidhi, Sangitakalaratan[1]

S. K. Ramachandra Rao
S. K. Ramachandra Rao
S. K. Ramachandra Rao
BornSaligrama Krishna Ramachandra Rao
(1925-09-04)4 September 1925
Hassan, India
Died2 February 2006(2006-02-02) (aged 80)
Bangalore, India
OccupationAuthor, Psychologist, Sanskrit scholar
NationalityIndian
CitizenshipIndian
Alma materUniversity of Mysore

Vidyalankara Saligrama Krishna Ramachandra Rao (4 September 1925 – 2 February 2006[2]) was an Indian author, Sanskrit scholar and professor of psychology.[3]

His books, most of them in Kannada and English, deal with Indian culture, philosophy, art, music, and literature.[4] They are based on research he conducted on ancient Indian texts and rare manuscripts. He was working on a thirty-two volume project on the Rigveda in English at the time of his death.[5][6]

Early life

Saligrama Krishna Ramachandra Rao was born in a Kannada Madhva Brahmin family[7][8] on September 4, 1925, in Hassan, a small town in South India. He spent his early childhood with his grandparents in Bangalore, where he started school. He also started learning Sanskrit from Agnihotri Yajnavitthalachar, a scholar. This training in Sanskrit would help him write numerous books later in life.[9]

When his grandfather died, he moved to Nanjanagudu, a small town, where his parents were staying at the time. He soon moved to Mysore to finish school. In 1949 he graduated with a master's degree in psychology from University of Mysore.[10]

Work

He first worked as a research assistant at the Indian Institute of Science and rose to become head of its department of Psychology. From 1954 to 1965, he was Professor of Psychology at the All India Institute of Mental Health (now NIMHANS).[11]

In 1962, while at NIMHANS, he wrote a book The Development of Psychological Thought in India.[12] He also created an Indian version of the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) cards and conducted experiments based on them.[13] He was also instrumental in revising the syllabus that was taught at NIMHANS to include aspects of Indian philosophy that had influenced the study of psychology.

He left NIMHANS in 1965, and worked as a visiting professor in various institutions in Bangalore, lecturing and teaching courses in psychology, indology, philosophy, social work and education.

In later life, he divided his time between public speaking, writing and teaching students at home.

Author

His books deal primarily with Indian culture, philosophy, art, music, and literature. They are based on research he conducted on ancient Indian texts and rare manuscripts.

He has also written a play in Sanskrit, a commentary in Pali on Visuddhimagga, a book by Buddhagosha.[14] He has also written a treatise in Pali called Sumangala-gatha which was published in the journal The Light of the Dhamma.

At the time of his death, he was working on a thirty-two volume project on the Rigveda in English. Volume sixteen was published two years after his death in 2007.

Other work

He was also a painter and a sculptor. One of his works is on permanent display at Ravindra Kalakshetra in Bangalore.

Death

He died on February 2, 2006, in Bangalore. He is survived by his wife and two children.[15]

References

  1. ^ S. M. Srinivasa Chari (1997). Philosophy and Theistic Mysticism of the Āl̲vārs. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 11. ISBN 978-8120813427.
  2. ^ The Astrological Magazine, Volume 95. Raman Publications. 2006. p. 67.
  3. ^ Tumuluri Seetharama Lakshmi (1994). A study of the compositions of Purandaradāsa and Tyāgarāja. Veda Sruti Publications. p. xiv.
  4. ^ Richard Wolf (3 September 2009). Theorizing the Local: Music, Practice, and Experience in South Asia and Beyond. Oxford University Press. p. 392. ISBN 9780190450236.
  5. ^ K. R. Srikanthamurthy (2000). Illustrated Suśruta Saṃhitā: Sūtrasthāna and Nidāna sthāna. Chaukhambha Orientalia. p. xxii.
  6. ^ Karnataka State Gazetteer: Mysore. Director of Print, Stationery and Publications at the Karnataka Government Press. 1988. p. 690.
  7. ^ https://profskr.com/about/
  8. ^ Winand M. Callewaert; Rupert Snell (1994). According to Tradition: Hagiographical Writing in India. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 185. ISBN 9783447035248.
  9. ^ Saligrama Krishna Ramachandra Rao (2005). Encyclopaedia of Indian medicine. Vol. 3. Clinical examination and diagnostic methods. Popular Prakashan. p. 5. ISBN 978-8171542574.
  10. ^ Psychologia, Volumes 1-3. Kyoto University. 1958. p. 91.
  11. ^ K. R. Srikanthamurthy (2000). Illustrated Suśruta Saṃhitā: Sūtrasthāna and Nidāna sthāna. Chaukhambha Orientalia. p. xxii. S.K. Ramachandra Rao is an M.A. in psychology from Mysore University (1949). He joined the department of Psychology of Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and served as the head of that department for some years. Next he was appionted Professor of Psychology at NIMHANS (1954) and served there till 1965.
  12. ^ K. Ramakrishna Rao; Anand C. Paranjpe (3 September 2015). Psychology in the Indian Tradition. Springer. p. 363. ISBN 978-8132224402.
  13. ^ Oscar Krisen Buros (1975). Personality Tests and Reviews II: A Monograph Consisting of the Personality Sections of the Seventh Mental Measurements Yearbook (1972) and Tests in Print II (1974). Gryphon Press. p. 275.
  14. ^ The Mysore Orientalist, Volumes 1-4. Oriental Research Institute, University of Mysore. 1967. p. 54.
  15. ^ The Astrological Magazine, Volume 95. Raman Publications. 2006. p. 67. S.K. Ramachandra Rao, well known scholar, 78, passed away on February 2, 2006 after a brief illness.

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