Page:A Sanskrit Grammar.pdf/6

iv could vie with the wonderful mechanism of his eight books of grammatical rules. But unrivalled as that system is, it is not suited to the wants of English students, least of all to the wants of beginners. While availing myself therefore of the materials collected in the grammar of Pâṇini and in later works, such as the Prakriyâ-Kaumudî, the Siddhânta-Kaumudî, the Sârasvatî Prakriyâ, and the Mâdhavîya-dhâtu-vṛitti, I have abstained, as much as possible, from introducing any more of the peculiar system and of the terminology of Indian grammarians than has already found admittance into our Sanskrit grammars; nay, I have frequently rejected the grammatical observations supplied ready to hand in their works, in order not to overwhelm the memory of the student with too many rules and too many exceptions. Whether I have always been successful in drawing a line between what is essential in Sanskrit grammar and what is not, I must leave to the judgment of those who enjoy the good fortune of being engaged in the practical teaching of a language the students of which may be counted no longer by tons, but by hundreds. I only wish it to be understood that where I have left out rules