Sanskrit is a beautiful language, sweet to the ear and easy to learn and speak too. In Sanskrit the words are pronounced exactly as they are spoken. The language has remained unchanged since times immemorial. Most of the ancient Indian scriptures are written in Sanskrit and so its necessary to learn the language to enjoy study of Bhagavad Gita and Upanishads as well as various works of Adi Sankaracharya which are all originally in Sanskrit.
A wonderful organisation called Samskrita Bharati teaches conversational Sanskrit in a very easy to understand and learn manner. There are regular 15-day courses conducted by them and taught by their volunteers, virtually for free. No textbooks are required. I attended one of these ‘shibir’ and within the first 3-4 days all of us were able to speak basic sentences and converse with each other. It was heartening to see persons of all age groups in the class. College students, Young professionals, I would strongly recommend attending one of these classes which are run in all cities in India and also in some foreign countries like UK and USA. One gets a working knowledge of the language and the pleasure of being able to converse too. No grammar is taught and no written notes are required, unless of course you wish to do so. More info can be had from these websites in India and USA.
After completing the “Sambhashana Shibir” (Conversational Course) one can pursue further study through correspondence course of 4 modules of 6 months each. I completed the 1st such module (Praveshika) and must say it was most enjoyable and easy to do. Its so well structured and the study material is perfectly set up for easy study.
Hope readers will take up the study and conversation of Sanskrit. I would be delighted to assist with any info.
Pranaam