How many know that Today is the 88 death anniversary Hara Prasad Shastri (6 December 1853 – 17 November 1931), an Indian scholastic, Sanskrit researcher, and history specialist of Bengali writing. He is famous for finding the Charyapada, the earliest Bengali literature 
Shastri passed entrance exam in 1871, First Arts, the college degree, in 1873, got a BA in 1876 and Honors in Sanskrit in 1877. Afterwards, he was given the title of Shastri when he got a MA degree.
The Shastri title was presented on the individuals who secured a top class and he was the only one in his batch to get a first class. Hara Prasad Shastri held various positions.
He became a teacher at the Sanskrit College in 1883. In 1895 he headed the Sanskrit division at Presidency College He became Principal of Sanskrit College in 1900, leaving in 1908 to join the government's Bureau of Information.
Additionally, from 1921–1924, he was Professor and Head of the Department of Bengali and Sanskrit at Dhaka University. Shastri's first research article was "Bharat mahila", distributed in the periodical Bangadarshan when he was an understudy.
Afterward, Shastri turned into a standard contributor of a periodical edited by the prominent Bengali writer Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay He penned ~30 articles on various topics.
Shastri also got keen on gathering old Bengali literature and manuscripts and wound up visiting Nepal a few times, where, in 1907, he found the Charyageeti or Charyapada compositions.
His careful research on the original copy prompted the foundation of Charyapada as the earliest known proof of Bengali language.
Shastri expounded on this finding in a 1916 paper titled-Hajar bochhorer purono Bangla bhasay rochito Bouddho gan o doha) signifying "Buddhist tunes and stanzas written in Bengali a thousand years ago".
A portion of his outstanding works were: Balmikir jai, Meghdoot byakshya, Beneyer Meye (The Merchant's Daughter, a novel), Kancanmala (novel), Sachitra Ramayan, Prachin Banglar Gourab, and Bouddha dharma.
Pranams to this great son of India.
@Sanjay_Dixit @sankrant
Pranams to this great son of India.
@Sanjay_Dixit @sankrant
