Parliament Question: Translation of Ancient Buddhist Texts

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-1293 ANSWERED ON 27.07.2026 TRANSLATION OF ANCIENT BUDDHIST TEXTS

1293. MS. MAHUA MOITRA:

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government is aware that several university-commissioned and private websites in China and Europe are publicly hosting the English language translations of ancient and medieval Buddhist texts which were originally composed in Sanskrit;

(b) if so, whether these translations have been done in collaboration with Sanskrit universities in India;

(c) whether the Government is implementing any scheme for publishing translations of ancient and medieval Sanskrit texts into other Indian languages included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution; and

(d) if so, the details of the institutions involved in the implementation of such a scheme along with the progress made till date? ANSWER MINISTER OF CULTURE AND TOURISM (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

(a) & (b): The Ministry of Culture has not received any such reference and does not maintain a centralized database regarding such translation projects. Further, the Ministry does not host the English language translations of ancient and medieval Buddhist texts composed in Sanskrit.

(c) & (d): The Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies (CIHTS), Sarnath, established with the mandate of restoring ancient Indian knowledge preserved in Tibetan sources and translating Buddhist texts into Sanskrit, Hindi, English, Tibetan and other modern languages, has restored and critically edited over 77 Indo-Buddhist Sanskrit works. The Institute has published more than 340 scholarly titles, including over 60 volumes of the Dhīḥ Journal.

Nava Nalanda Mahavihara (NNM), Nalanda while primarily devoted to the study and promotion of Pali language and literature, has also contributed to the publication of English translations of important Buddhist philosophical works, including Pramāṇavārttika of Dharmakīrti.

Functioning of Sanskrit Universities does not fall within the ambit of Ministry of Culture. ******