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← Older revision		Revision as of 05:12, 19 June 2022
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	{{Short description\|Indian scholar and author (~~1893 – 1963~~)}}		{{Short description\|Indian scholar and author (1893–1963)}}
	{{EngvarB\|date=August 2014}}		{{EngvarB\|date=August 2014}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=December 2018}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=December 2018}}
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	\| name = Rahul Sankrityayan		\| name = Rahul Sankrityayan
	\| image = Rahul_Sankrityayan_bust_Darjeeling.JPG		\| image = Rahul_Sankrityayan_bust_Darjeeling.JPG
	\| image_size = ~~240~~		\| image_size = 240px
	\| alt = Rahul Sankrityayan		\| alt = Rahul Sankrityayan
	\| caption = Statue of Sankrityayan in Darjeeling		\| caption = Statue of Sankrityayan in Darjeeling
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	\| birth_name = Kedarnath Pandey		\| birth_name = Kedarnath Pandey
	\| birth_date = {{birth date\|1893\|4\|9\|df=y}}		\| birth_date = {{birth date\|1893\|4\|9\|df=y}}
	\| birth_place = [[Pandaha]], India		\| birth_place = [[Pandaha]], [[United Provinces of Agra and Oudh]], [[British India]]
	\| death_date = {{death date and age\|df=yes\|1963\|4\|14\|1893\|4\|9}}		\| death_date = {{death date and age\|df=yes\|1963\|4\|14\|1893\|4\|9}}
	\| death_place = [[Darjeeling]], [[West Bengal]], [[India]]		\| death_place = [[Darjeeling]], [[West Bengal]], [[India]]
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	}}		}}

	'''Rahul Sankrityayan''' (born '''Kedarnath Pandey'''; 9 April 1893 – 14 April 1963) was an Indian [[Indian independence movement\|independence activist]], writer and a polyglot who wrote in [[Hindi]]. He played a pivotal role in giving travelogue a 'literary form'. He was one of the most widely travelled scholars of [[India]], spending forty-five years of his life on travels away from his home.<ref name="Sharma2009">{{cite book\|last=Sharma\|first=R. S.\|title=Rethinking India's Past\|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]\|year=2009\|isbn=978-0-19-569787-2\|author-link=Ram Sharan Sharma}}</ref> Sankrityayan is often called the "father of Indian travelogue".		'''Rahul Sankrityayan''' (born '''Kedarnath Pandey'''; 9 April 1893 – 14 April 1963) was an Indian [[Indian independence movement\|independence activist]], writer and a [[polyglot]] who wrote in [[Hindi]]. He played a pivotal role in giving travelogue a 'literary form'. He was one of the most widely travelled scholars of [[India]], spending forty-five years of his life on travels away from his home.<ref name="Sharma2009">{{cite book\|last=Sharma\|first=R. S.\|title=Rethinking India's Past\|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]\|year=2009\|isbn=978-0-19-569787-2\|author-link=Ram Sharan Sharma}}</ref> Sankrityayan is often called the "father of Indian travelogue".{{Citation needed\|date=May 2022}}

	He travelled to many places and wrote many travelogues. He is known for his authentic descriptions about his travel experiences, for instance in his travelogue ''Meri Laddakh Yatra'' ({{Lit\|My [[Ladakh]] Journey}}) he covers the regional, historical and cultural aspects of that region judiciously. He became a Buddhist monk (''[[Bhikkhu]]'') and eventually became a [[Marxist]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> Sankrityayan was an Indian patriot, having been arrested and jailed for three years for his anti-British writings and speeches.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He is referred to as the 'Greatest Scholar' for his scholarship.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He was both a [[polymath]] as well as a [[polyglot]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 1963.<ref name="Padma Shri Awards">{{cite web\|date=2015\|title=Padma Awards\|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf\|url-status=live\|access-date=21 July 2015\|publisher=[[Ministry of Home Affairs]], [[Government of India]]}}</ref>		He travelled to many places and wrote many travelogues. He is known for his authentic descriptions about his travel experiences, for instance in his travelogue ''Meri Laddakh Yatra'' ({{Lit\|My [[Ladakh]] Journey}}) he covers the regional, historical and cultural aspects of that region judiciously. He became a Buddhist monk (''[[Bhikkhu]]'') and eventually became a [[Marxist]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> Sankrityayan was an Indian patriot, having been arrested and jailed for three years for his anti-British writings and speeches.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He is referred to as the 'Greatest Scholar' for his scholarship.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He was both a [[polymath]] as well as a [[polyglot]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 1963.<ref name="Padma Shri Awards">{{cite web\|date=2015\|title=Padma Awards\|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf\|url-status=live\|access-date=21 July 2015\|publisher=[[Ministry of Home Affairs]], [[Government of India]]}}</ref>

	==Childhood==		==Childhood==
	He was born as Kedarnath Pandey to a [[Bhumihar Brahmin\|Bhumihar brahmin]] family<ref>{{Cite web\|title=Rahul Sankrityayan's Work on Caste Is Necessary But Also Invokes Questions of Dalit Agency\|url=https://thewire.in/caste/rahul-sankrityayan-on-caste-ambedkar-dalit-agency-upper-caste\|access-date=2022-01-16\|website=thewire.in\|language=en}}</ref> on 9 April 1893 in [[Pandaha]] village.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=[[Meri Jeevan Yatra]]\|volume=1\|pages=~~1-4~~; ~~465-488~~}} </ref> His ancestral village was Kanaila Chakrapanpur, [[Azamgarh district]], in Eastern [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref name="Machwe1998">{{cite book\|author=Prabhakar Machwe\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kPPlgMiM388C&pg=PA12\|title=Rahul Sankrityayan (Hindi Writer)\|date=1 January 1998\|publisher=[[Sahitya Akademi]]\|isbn=978-81-7201-845-0\|pages=12–}}</ref> He went to a local primary school. Later he studied and mastered numerous languages independently, as well as learning the art of photography.		He was born as Kedarnath Pandey to a [[Bhumihar Brahmin\|Bhumihar brahmin]] family<ref>{{Cite web\|title=Rahul Sankrityayan's Work on Caste Is Necessary But Also Invokes Questions of Dalit Agency\|url=https://thewire.in/caste/rahul-sankrityayan-on-caste-ambedkar-dalit-agency-upper-caste\|access-date=2022-01-16\|website=thewire.in\|language=en}}</ref> on 9 April 1893 in [[Pandaha]] village.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=[[Meri Jeevan Yatra]]\|volume=1\|pages=1–4; 465–488}} </ref> His ancestral village was Kanaila Chakrapanpur, [[Azamgarh district]], in Eastern [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref name="Machwe1998">{{cite book\|author=Prabhakar Machwe\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kPPlgMiM388C&pg=PA12\|title=Rahul Sankrityayan (Hindi Writer)\|date=1 January 1998\|publisher=[[Sahitya Akademi]]\|isbn=978-81-7201-845-0\|pages=12–}}</ref> He went to a local primary school. Later he studied and mastered numerous languages independently, as well as learning the art of photography.

	==Philosophy==		==Philosophy==
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	==Soviet Union==		==Soviet Union==
	Although he had little formal education, in view of his knowledge and command over the subject, [[Saint Petersburg State University\|University of Leningrad]] appointed him Professor of [[Indology]] in 1937–38 and again in 1947–48.		Although he had little formal education, in view of his knowledge and command over the subject, [[Saint Petersburg State University\|University of Leningrad]] appointed him Professor of [[Indology]] in 1937–38 and again in 1947–48.{{cn\|date=June 2022}}

	==Personal life and family==		==Personal life and family==
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	Rahul was married when very young and never came to know anything of his child-wife, Santoshi. Probably he saw her only once in his 40s as per his autobiography: ''[[Meri Jeevan Yatra\|Meri Jivan Yatra]]''. During his stay in Soviet Russia a second time, accepting an invitation for teaching Buddhism at Leningrad University, he came in contact with a Mongolian scholar Lola (Ellena Narvertovna Kozerovskaya). She could speak French, English, and Russian and write Sanskrit. She helped him in working on Tibetan- Sanskrit dictionary. Their attachment ended in marriage and birth of son Igor Rahulovich. Mother and son were not allowed to accompany Rahul to India after completion of his assignment due to restrictions imposed by Stalin regime.		Rahul was married when very young and never came to know anything of his child-wife, Santoshi. Probably he saw her only once in his 40s as per his autobiography: ''[[Meri Jeevan Yatra\|Meri Jivan Yatra]]''. During his stay in Soviet Russia a second time, accepting an invitation for teaching Buddhism at Leningrad University, he came in contact with a Mongolian scholar Lola (Ellena Narvertovna Kozerovskaya). She could speak French, English, and Russian and write Sanskrit. She helped him in working on Tibetan- Sanskrit dictionary. Their attachment ended in marriage and birth of son Igor Rahulovich. Mother and son were not allowed to accompany Rahul to India after completion of his assignment due to restrictions imposed by Stalin regime.

	Late in life, he married ~~Dr.~~ [[Kamala Sankrityayan]], who was an Indian writer, editor and scholar in Hindi and Nepali of the 20th century. They had a daughter Jaya ~~Pathak~~,<ref>[https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/sankrityayans-daughter-protests-shifting-of-patna-museum-collection-in-letter-to-cm-nitish/articleshow/60501272.cms Sankrityayan’s daughter protests shifting of Patna Museum Collection, Times of India, Sept 13, 2017]</ref> ~~two sons~~, Jeta ~~and Jayant~~. Jeta is a professor of Economics at North Bengal University.<ref>Roles of Rahul Sankrityayan in Nepalese Cultural Tourism is an analysis of Nepalese, BP Badal, Nepal Journal of Development Studies, 2019~~]</ref> Jayant is a Pune-based automotive designer.<ref>[https://serenademagazine.com/author/jayant-sankrityayana/ JAYANT SANKRITYAYANA, Serenade Magazine, 2021~~]</ref>		Late in life, he married [[Kamala Sankrityayan]], who was an Indian writer, editor and scholar in Hindi and Nepali of the 20th century. They had a daughter Jaya Sankrityayan Parhawk,<ref>[https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/sankrityayans-daughter-protests-shifting-of-patna-museum-collection-in-letter-to-cm-nitish/articleshow/60501272.cms Sankrityayan’s daughter protests shifting of Patna Museum Collection, Times of India, Sept 13, 2017]</ref> one son, Jeta. Jeta is a professor of Economics at North Bengal University.<ref>Roles of Rahul Sankrityayan in Nepalese Cultural Tourism is an analysis of Nepalese, BP Badal, Nepal Journal of Development Studies, 2019]</ref>

	==Death==		==Death==
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	* ''Kaptan Lal'' – 1961		* ''Kaptan Lal'' – 1961
	* ''Simhal ke Vir Purush'' – 1961		* ''Simhal ke Vir Purush'' – 1961


	'''Some of his other books are''':-		'''Some of his other books are''':-
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	* ''ī hamār laṛāi'"		* ''ī hamār laṛāi'"
	* ''Dhunmum Netā''		* ''Dhunmum Netā''
	* [[Naiki Duniya\|''~~Naiki Duniya~~'~~']]~~		* ''[[Naiki Duniya]]''
	* ''Jonk''		* ''Jonk''
	* ''[[Mehrarun ke Durdasa]]''		* ''[[Mehrarun ke Durdasa]]''
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	== See also ==		== See also ==
	* [[Hindi literature]]		* [[Hindi literature]]
			* [[List of Indian writers]]
	* [[Dharmananda Damodar Kosambi]]		* [[Dharmananda Damodar Kosambi]]
	* [[Bhadant Anand Kausalyayan]]		* [[Bhadant Anand Kausalyayan]]

	== References==		== References ==
	<references/>		<references/>

	== Further reading==		== Further reading ==
	{{Commons category\|Rahul Sankrityayan}}		{{Commons category\|Rahul Sankrityayan}}
	* [[Ram Sharan Sharma]], ''Rahul Sankrityayan and Social Change'', [[Indian History Congress]], 1993.		* [[Ram Sharan Sharma]], ''Rahul Sankrityayan and Social Change'', [[Indian History Congress]], 1993.
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	{{Sahitya Akademi Award For Hindi}}		{{Sahitya Akademi Award For Hindi}}
	{{Indian independence movement}}		{{Indian independence movement}}
			{{portal bar\|Biography\|India\|Literature}}

	{{Authority control}}		{{Authority control}}

>Pranesh Ravikumar: Please refer the link where it states that "Rahul Sankrityayan (originally Kedar Nath Pandey) was born on April 9, 1893 in a Brahmin family in Azamgarh"

2022-01-16T15:08:54Z

Please refer the link where it states that "Rahul Sankrityayan (originally Kedar Nath Pandey) was born on April 9, 1893 in a Brahmin family in Azamgarh"

New page

{{Short description|Indian scholar and author (1893 – 1963)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = Rahul Sankrityayan
| image = Rahul_Sankrityayan_bust_Darjeeling.JPG
| image_size = 240
| alt = Rahul Sankrityayan
| caption = Statue of Sankrityayan in Darjeeling
| pseudonym =
| birth_name = Kedarnath Pandey
| birth_date = {{birth date|1893|4|9|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Pandaha]], India
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1963|4|14|1893|4|9}}
| death_place = [[Darjeeling]], [[West Bengal]], [[India]]
| occupation = {{hlist|Writer|essayist|scholar|}}
| nationality = Indian
| awards = 1958: [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] <br>1963: [[Padma Bhushan]]
| subject = {{flatlist|Sociology, Indian nationalist history, [[Indology]], [[Buddhism]], [[Tibetology]], lexicography, philosophy, grammar, textual editing, folklore, science, drama, politics}}
| spouse = Santoshi, Ellena Narvertovna Kozerovskaya, [[Kamala Sankrityayan]]
}}

'''Rahul Sankrityayan''' (born '''Kedarnath Pandey'''; 9 April 1893 – 14 April 1963) was an Indian [[Indian independence movement|independence activist]], writer and a polyglot who wrote in [[Hindi]]. He played a pivotal role in giving travelogue a 'literary form'. He was one of the most widely travelled scholars of [[India]], spending forty-five years of his life on travels away from his home.<ref name="Sharma2009">{{cite book|last=Sharma|first=R. S.|title=Rethinking India's Past|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2009|isbn=978-0-19-569787-2|author-link=Ram Sharan Sharma}}</ref> Sankrityayan is often called the "father of Indian travelogue".

He travelled to many places and wrote many travelogues. He is known for his authentic descriptions about his travel experiences, for instance in his travelogue ''Meri Laddakh Yatra'' ({{Lit|My [[Ladakh]] Journey}}) he covers the regional, historical and cultural aspects of that region judiciously. He became a Buddhist monk (''[[Bhikkhu]]'') and eventually became a [[Marxist]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> Sankrityayan was an Indian patriot, having been arrested and jailed for three years for his anti-British writings and speeches.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He is referred to as the 'Greatest Scholar' for his scholarship.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He was both a [[polymath]] as well as a [[polyglot]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 1963.<ref name="Padma Shri Awards">{{cite web|date=2015|title=Padma Awards|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=21 July 2015|publisher=[[Ministry of Home Affairs]], [[Government of India]]}}</ref>

==Childhood==
He was born as Kedarnath Pandey to a [[Bhumihar Brahmin|Bhumihar brahmin]] family<ref>{{Cite web|title=Rahul Sankrityayan's Work on Caste Is Necessary But Also Invokes Questions of Dalit Agency|url=https://thewire.in/caste/rahul-sankrityayan-on-caste-ambedkar-dalit-agency-upper-caste|access-date=2022-01-16|website=thewire.in|language=en}}</ref> on 9 April 1893 in [[Pandaha]] village.<ref>{{Cite book|title=[[Meri Jeevan Yatra]]|volume=1|pages=1-4; 465-488}} </ref> His ancestral village was Kanaila Chakrapanpur, [[Azamgarh district]], in Eastern [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref name="Machwe1998">{{cite book|author=Prabhakar Machwe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kPPlgMiM388C&pg=PA12|title=Rahul Sankrityayan (Hindi Writer)|date=1 January 1998|publisher=[[Sahitya Akademi]]|isbn=978-81-7201-845-0|pages=12–}}</ref> He went to a local primary school. Later he studied and mastered numerous languages independently, as well as learning the art of photography.

==Philosophy==
Initially, he was a keen follower of [[Arya Samaj]] of Swami [[Dayananda Saraswati]]. Then Buddhism changed his life. After taking [[Diksha]] in Sri Lanka he became [[Rāhula|Rahul]] (son of [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]]) also used his [[gotra]] ([[Sankriti|Sankritya]]) with his name and was finally called “Rahul Sankrityayan”. He lost faith in God's existence but still retained faith in reincarnation. Later he moved became a Socialist and rejected the concepts of reincarnation and the afterlife. The two volumes of ''Darshan-Digdarshan'', a collected history of the world's philosophy give an indication of his philosophy where the second volume is much dedicated to [[Dharmakirti]]'s [[Pramanavarttika|Pramana Vartika]]. This he discovered in a Tibetan translation from Tibet.

==Travels==
Sankrityayan's travels took him to different parts of India including [[Ladakh]], [[Kinnaur]], and [[Kashmir]]. He also travelled to several other countries including [[Nepal]], [[Tibet]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Iran]], [[China]], and the former [[Soviet Union]]. He spent several years in the Parsa Gadh village in the [[Saran district]] in [[Bihar]]. The village's entry gate is named "Rahul Gate". While traveling, he mostly used surface transport, and he went to certain countries clandestinely; he entered Tibet as a [[Bhikkhu|Buddhist monk]]. He made several trips to Tibet and brought valuable paintings and [[Pāli|Pali]] and [[Sanskrit]] [[manuscript]]s back to India. {{Citation needed|date=May 2021}} Most of these were a part of the libraries of [[Vikramshila]] and [[Nalanda]] Universities. These objects had been taken to Tibet by fleeing [[Bhikkhu|Buddhist monks]] during the twelfth and subsequent centuries when the invading Muslim armies had destroyed universities in India.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}} Some accounts state that Rahul Sankrityayan employed twenty-two mules to bring these materials from Tibet to India. [[Patna Museum]] has a special section of these materials in his honor, where a number of these and other items have been displayed.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

==Books==
Sankrityayan was a [[polyglot]], well versed in several [[language]]s and [[dialect]]s, including [[Hindi]], [[Sanskrit]], [[Pāli|Pali]], [[Bhojpuri]], [[Magahi]], [[Urdu]], [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Arabic language|Arabic]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]], [[Kannada]], [[Standard Tibetan|Tibetan]], [[Sinhalese language|Sinhalese]], [[French language|French]] and [[Russian language|Russian]].<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He was also an [[Indologist]], a [[Marxist]] theoretician, and a creative writer.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He started writing during his twenties and his works, totaling well over 100, covered a variety of subjects, including sociology, history, philosophy, [[Buddhism]], [[Tibetology]], [[lexicography]], [[grammar]], textual editing, [[folklore]], science, drama, and politics.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> Many of these were unpublished.<ref name="Sharma2009" /> He translated [[Majjhima Nikaya]] from [[Prakrit]] into [[Hindi]].<ref name="Sharma2009" />

[[File:Rahulji's Tombstone.jpg|thumb|Rahul's Tombstone at [[Darjeeling]].This tombstone is established at a place called "Murda Haati" which is a cremation ground downtown in the lower altitudes of Darjeeling around 25 minutes drive from the ChowRasta. The same place also has the tombstone of [[Sister Nivedita]].]]

One of his most famous books in Hindi is ''[[Volga Se Ganga]]'' (''A journey from the [[Volga river|Volga]] to the [[Ganges]]'') – a work of historical fiction concerning the migration of [[Aryan]]s from the [[steppe]]s of the [[Eurasia]] to regions around the [[Volga river]]; then their movements across the [[Hindukush]] and the [[Himalaya]]s and the sub-Himalayan regions; and their spread to the [[Indo-Gangetic plain]]s of the [[Indian subcontinent|subcontinent of India]]. The book begins in 6000 BC and ends in 1942, the year when [[Mahatma Gandhi]], the Indian nationalist leader called for the [[Quit India|Quit India movement]]. It was published in 1942. A translation into English of this work by Victor Kiernan was published in 1947 as ''From Volga to Ganga''.<ref>Rahul Sankrityayana ''[[Volga Se Ganga|From Volga to Ganga]]'', Rahula Publication, [[Mussoorie|Mussorie]], 1947.</ref> It was translated by K. N. Muthiya (Tamilputhakalayam) into Tamil as ''Valgavil Irundu Gangai Varai'' and is still considered a best-seller. The Kannada translation was carried out by B. N. Sharma and called ''Volga Ganga''. The Telugu translation, ''Volga Nunchi Ganga Ku'', inspired many readers. ''Volga Muthal Ganga Vare'', the Malayalam translation, became immensely popular among the young intellectuals of Kerala and it continues to be one of the most influential books of its times. The [[Bengali language|Bengali]] version is ''Volga Theke Ganga'', which is still acclaimed by the critics.

His most important travelogue literature is
*''Tibbat Me Sava Varsha'' (1933)
*''Meri Europe Yatra'' (1935)
*''Athato Ghumakkad Jigyasa''
*''Volga Se Ganga''
*''Asia ke Durgam Bhukhando Mein''
*''Yatra Ke Panne''
*''Kinnar Desh Mein''

More than ten of his books have been translated and published in Bengali. He was awarded the [[Padmabhushan]] in 1963,<ref>{{cite web|title=Padma Awards Directory (1954–2013)|publisher=[[Ministry of Home Affairs (India)|Ministry of Home Affairs]], Government of India|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf}}</ref> and he received the [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] in 1958 for his book ''Madhya Asia Ka Itihaas''.

He maintained daily diaries in Sanskrit which were used fully while writing his autobiography. In spite of profound scholarship, he wrote in very simple Hindi that a common person could follow. He wrote books of varied interest. He was aware of limitations of Hindi literature and singularly made up the loss in no small measure.

The historian [[K.P. Jayaswal|Kashi Prasad Jayaswal]] compared Rahul Sankrityayan with [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]]. Rahul's personality was as impressive and memorable as are his achievements. He travelled widely and wrote in five languages – Hindi, Sanskrit, Bhojpuri, Pāli and Tibetan.

==Soviet Union==
Although he had little formal education, in view of his knowledge and command over the subject, [[Saint Petersburg State University|University of Leningrad]] appointed him Professor of [[Indology]] in 1937–38 and again in 1947–48.

==Personal life and family==
[[File:Rahul Sankrityayan 1993 stamp of India.jpg|thumb|Sankrityayan on a 1993 stamp of India]]
Rahul was married when very young and never came to know anything of his child-wife, Santoshi. Probably he saw her only once in his 40s as per his autobiography: ''[[Meri Jeevan Yatra|Meri Jivan Yatra]]''. During his stay in Soviet Russia a second time, accepting an invitation for teaching Buddhism at Leningrad University, he came in contact with a Mongolian scholar Lola (Ellena Narvertovna Kozerovskaya). She could speak French, English, and Russian and write Sanskrit. She helped him in working on Tibetan- Sanskrit dictionary. Their attachment ended in marriage and birth of son Igor Rahulovich. Mother and son were not allowed to accompany Rahul to India after completion of his assignment due to restrictions imposed by Stalin regime.

Late in life, he married Dr. [[Kamala Sankrityayan]], who was an Indian writer, editor and scholar in Hindi and Nepali of the 20th century. They had a daughter Jaya Pathak,<ref>[https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/sankrityayans-daughter-protests-shifting-of-patna-museum-collection-in-letter-to-cm-nitish/articleshow/60501272.cms Sankrityayan’s daughter protests shifting of Patna Museum Collection, Times of India, Sept 13, 2017]</ref> two sons, Jeta and Jayant. Jeta is a professor of Economics at North Bengal University.<ref>Roles of Rahul Sankrityayan in Nepalese Cultural Tourism is an analysis of Nepalese, BP Badal, Nepal Journal of Development Studies, 2019]</ref> Jayant is a Pune-based automotive designer.<ref>[https://serenademagazine.com/author/jayant-sankrityayana/ JAYANT SANKRITYAYANA, Serenade Magazine, 2021]</ref>

==Death==
Rahul accepted a teaching job at a Sri Lankan university, where he fell seriously ill. Diabetes, high blood pressure and a mild stroke struck him. Most tragic happening was the loss of memory. He died in [[Darjeeling]] in 1963.

[[File:Rahul Nivas.jpg|thumb|Rahul Nivas in September 2015]]

==Legacy==
Many of Rahul's personal collections including the ones he gathered from his multiple trips to Tibet were distributed across to multiple Universities and Museums. [[Patna Museum]] has an extensive collection of Buddhist manuscripts and paintings which he assimilated through his journeys across Tibet. Many of these are considered rare gems of Indian scriptures translated into Tibetan.

[[Rahul Sankrityayan Inter College Rajesultanpur]] is an [[intermediate college]] located in [[Rajesultanpur]], [[Uttar Pradesh]]. It was named in honour of the writer.<ref name=jag>{{cite web | title = दस टीमों के बीच रोमांचक रही कबड्डी प्रतियोगिता - Kabbaddi competition |work=[[Dainik Jagran]]|language=Hindi| url = http://www.jagran.com/uttar-pradesh/ambedkarnagar-10763482.html |date=30 Sep 2013| accessdate = 2014-09-12 }}</ref>

===Eponymous awards===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Awards
! About
! Awarded By
|-
| [[Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan Award|Rahul Sankrityayan National Award]]
| Contribution to Hindi travel Literature (also called Travel Litterateur's Honour).
| Kendriya Hindi Sansthan, [[Government of India]]
|-
| Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan Paryatan Puraskar
| Awarded for contributing significantly in the field of travelogue and Discovery and Research in Hindi, for books written originally in Hindi on Tourism related subjects.
| Ministry of Tourism, [[Government of India]]
|}

==Works==
{{Expand list|date=August 2008}}

=== In Hindi ===
'''Novels'''
* ''Baaeesween Sadi'' – 1923
* ''Jeeney ke Liye'' – 1940
* ''Simha Senapathi'' – 1944
* ''Jai Yaudheya'' – 1944
* ''Bhago Nahin, Duniya ko Badlo'' – 1944
* ''Madhur Swapna'' – 1949
* ''Rajasthani Ranivas'' – 1953
* ''Vismrit Yatri'' – 1954
* ''Divodas'' – 1960
* ''Vismriti Ke Garbh Me''

'''Short Stories'''
* ''Satmi ke Bachche'' – 1935
* ''[[Volga Se Ganga]]'' – 1944
* ''Bahurangi Madhupuri'' – 1953
* ''Kanaila ki Katha'' – 1955–56

'''Autobiography'''
* ''[[Meri Jeevan Yatra|Meri Jivan Yatra I]]'' – 1944
* ''[[Meri Jeevan Yatra|Meri Jivan Yatra II]]'' – 1950
* ''[[Meri Jeevan Yatra|Meri Jivan Yatra III, IV, V]]'' – published posthumously

'''Biography'''
* ''Sardar Prithvi Singh'' – 1955
* ''Naye Bharat ke Naye Neta (2 volumes)'' – 1942
* ''Bachpan ki Smritiyan'' – 1953
* ''Ateet se Vartaman (Vol I)'' – 1953
* ''Stalin'' – 1954
* ''Lenin'' – 1954
* ''Karl Marx'' – 1954
* ''Mao-Tse-Tung'' – 1954
* ''Ghumakkar Swami'' – 1956
* ''Mere Asahayog ke Sathi'' – 1956
* ''Jinka Main Kritajna'' – 1956
* ''Vir Chandrasingh Garhwali'' – 1956
* ''Mahamanav Budha'' – 1956
* ''Akbar'' – 1956
* ''Simhala Ghumakkar Jaivardhan'' – 1960
* ''Kaptan Lal'' – 1961
* ''Simhal ke Vir Purush'' – 1961

'''Some of his other books are''':-
* ''Mansik Gulami''
* ''Rhigvedic Arya''
* ''Ghumakkar Shastra''
* ''Kinnar desh mein''
* ''Darshan Digdarshan''
* ''Dakkhini Hindi ka Vyaakaran''
* ''Puratatv Nibandhawali''
* ''Manava Samaj''
* ''Madhya Asia ka Itihas''
* ''Samyavad hi Kyon''

===In Bhojpuri===

'''Plays'''

* ''Japaniya Rachhachh''
* ''Des Rachchhak''
* ''Jarmanwā ke hār nihichay''
* ''ī hamār laṛāi'"
* ''Dhunmum Netā''
* [[Naiki Duniya|''Naiki Duniya'']]
* ''Jonk''
* ''[[Mehrarun ke Durdasa]]''

===Related to Tibetan===
* ''Tibbati Bal-Siksha'' – 1933
* ''Pathavali (Vol. 1,2 & 3)'' – 1933
* ''Tibbati Vyakaran (Tibetan Grammar)'' – 1933
* ''Tibbat May Budh Dharm''-1948
* ''Lhasa ki or''
* ''Himalaya Parichay Bhag 1''
* ''Himalaya Parichay Bhag 2''

== See also ==
* [[Hindi literature]]
* [[Dharmananda Damodar Kosambi]]
* [[Bhadant Anand Kausalyayan]]

== References==
<references/>

== Further reading==
{{Commons category|Rahul Sankrityayan}}
* [[Ram Sharan Sharma]], ''Rahul Sankrityayan and Social Change'', [[Indian History Congress]], 1993.
* ''Himalayan Buddhism, Past and Present: Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan centenary volume'' by D. C. Ahir ({{ISBN|978-81-7030-370-1}})
* Prabhakar Machwe: "Rahul Sankrityayan" New Delhi 1978: [[Sahitya Akademi]]. [A short biography including a list of Sankrityayan's works]
* Bharati Puri, Traveller on the Silk Road: Rites and Routes of Passage in Rahul Sankrityayan’s Himalayan Wanderlust, China Report ([[Sage (publisher)|Sage]]: New Delhi), February 2011, vol. 47, no. 1, pp. 37–58.
* Alaka Atreya Chudal, ''A Freethinking Cultural Nationalist: A Life History of Rahul Sankrityayan'', [[Oxford University Press]], 2016. ({{ISBN|978-01-9946-687-0|}})

{{Modern Buddhist writers}}
{{PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 1960–69}}
{{Sahitya Akademi Award For Hindi}}
{{Indian independence movement}}

{{Authority control}}

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