Sancharyoga: Approaching Communication As a Vidya in Hindu Orthodoxy (Report‪)‬

The term sancharyoga consists of two words--sanchar and yoga. Sanchar has number of meanings in Sanskrit, and one of them is the same as what is understood by communication in English. In fact, in various languages of Sanskrit origin, including Hindi and Nepali, sanchar has been the common word used as an equivalent to the word communication. It has been used here in the same manner. Yoga also is used in a variety of senses in Hinduism. Here, it denotes such means or system through which one attains moksha--the highest goal of human life in Hindu belief. Thus, sancharyoga would signify the process of communication that succeeds as a means for the attainment of moksha. Hindu society represents a civilization with a known history of thousands of years and having a distinct cultural identity of its own. It is the inheritor of a culturally rich civilization rooted in the Vedic period. As such, a communication tradition, rich and refined both in theory and practice, has been an inseparable part of Hindu society. As Dissanayake (2003) observes, "No civilization is possible without a vigorous system of communication" (p. 18). According to Dissanayake (2006),