PLEASE HELP ME TO OVERCOME THIS STUFF

Anthony the Great, Pachomius the Great, Shenoute
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testsuda
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PLEASE HELP ME TO OVERCOME THIS STUFF

Post by testsuda »

Dear all,

I now have about 10 years learning classical languages. First I learnt Pali and now am teaching Pali for Buddhist monks/nuns and laypeople. I could read biblical Latin, Greek, Old English fluently and improving my Syriac skills. By chance I know about Coptic Sahidic which seems very interesting for me, but I have not much time and being busy for my Syriac. Syriac is good but seems a little bit simple in terms of syntax compared with Latin or Greek. So I wonder if I should abadon Syriac for Coptic otherwise; cause the syntax of Coptic is apparently complex with many more formulas. Is that right? What should I do? Please help, all dear!

Sincerely yours,
Khanh

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mahasacham
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Re: PLEASE HELP ME TO OVERCOME THIS STUFF

Post by mahasacham »

What are you trying to read in Syriac?

I too am learning Pali, primarily to learn about the Buddadhamma.

So one of the reasons I am studyng Coptic is to read the Gnostic Gospels because of their similarity to Buddhist teachings. Also, I would like to read some of the magical papyri and also to study the hieroglyphs eventually......

So once you figure out what your want to read, that can be a guide.

Shenoute
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Re: PLEASE HELP ME TO OVERCOME THIS STUFF

Post by Shenoute »

I would say that the average Coptic text has a rather simple syntax, closer to the Vulgate than to Cicero.

Coptic literature also cannot compare with Syriac literature in terms of richness.

testsuda
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Re: PLEASE HELP ME TO OVERCOME THIS STUFF

Post by testsuda »

mahasacham wrote: Fri Sep 30, 2022 7:24 am What are you trying to read in Syriac?

I too am learning Pali, primarily to learn about the Buddadhamma.

So one of the reasons I am studyng Coptic is to read the Gnostic Gospels because of their similarity to Buddhist teachings. Also, I would like to read some of the magical papyri and also to study the hieroglyphs eventually......

So once you figure out what your want to read, that can be a guide.
Dear language-friend!

I am a Buddhist of Theravada, so that why I chose to learn Pali. And the reason for my studying Latin, Greek, Syriac etc is also my religion. I want to learn scientific/language/research methods from those fields and until now I can say with confidence my study-direction bears many fruits. Compared with Latin or Greek, Pali is just a minor field with much less scholars active within it. So there are many rooms for applying from the West; for example: there are many instances of rhetoric within the Pali Canon, but no special Pali documents/textbooks mentioning about it - according to my knowledge until now - and I have learnt about the rhetoric topic from Latin and Greek.

Thanks so much, anyway, I still feel Coptic very interesting! :D

testsuda
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Re: PLEASE HELP ME TO OVERCOME THIS STUFF

Post by testsuda »

Shenoute wrote: Fri Sep 30, 2022 8:53 am I would say that the average Coptic text has a rather simple syntax, closer to the Vulgate than to Cicero.

Coptic literature also cannot compare with Syriac literature in terms of richness.
Aha, thanks so much friends. I always feel syntax-topic to be very sexy. That is the most important thing when I explore or evaluate a language.

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