पाठकीय प्रतिक्रिया : मैथिली लेखनक एकफेंड़ा गाछकें चारू दिस चतरब आवश्यक

पाठकीय प्रतिक्रिया : 

मैथिली लेखनक एकफेंड़ा गाछकें चारू दिस चतरब  आवश्यक 

'मैथिली लेखनक एकफेंड़ा गाछकें चारू दिस चतरब  आवश्यक ' नामक हमर ब्लॉग पर  प्रसिद्ध वैज्ञानिक आ काँच उद्योगक विश्वप्रसिद्ध नेता डाक्टर मनोज कुमार चौधरी, ओहायो राज्य अमेरिकासँ,  अपन सम्मति  एक लेख केर  रूपमें पठओ लनि. ई प्रतिक्रिया,  मैथिलीमे वैज्ञानिक लेख कोना लिखल जाय ताहि विषय पर  एक  विचारोत्तेजक लेख थिक. संपूर्ण लेखकें पाठकीय प्रतिक्रियाक रूपमे प्रकाशित करब संभव नहि भेल अस्तु डाक्टर मनोज    कुमार चौधरीक लेख एतय यथावत् प्रस्तुत अछि:

Reflections on Scientific Writing in Maithili and Musings on Miscellany 

Dr. Manoj K. Choudhary

This brief article is a response to a request from my esteemed friend Dr. Kirtinath Jha to provide comments on his thought-provoking blog titled “मैथिली लेखनक एकफेंड़ा गाछकें चारू दिस चतरब आवश्यक” ("The Necessity of Expanding the Mono-limbed Maithili Literary Tree"). In his customary erudite style, Dr. Jha eloquently argues for transformation of the mono-limbed (एकफेंड़ा) tree that is the contemporary body of Maithli writings into a thriving and expansive banyan tree. Indeed, Dr. Kirtinath Jha's choice of imagery, comparing the body of Maithili writings to an "एकफेंड़ा गाछ" (mono-limbed tree), is both vivid and highly appropriate. 

This response will focus primarily on two pivotal themes: the promotion of Maithili as a proficient medium for scientific and technical education and the imperative development of scientific and technical literature in Maithili. I have chosen to write in English as it allows me to articulate my thoughts on these subjects more fluently and naturally. However, I will also touch upon other aspects related to Maithili.

In my experience, even in languages that have historically served as the medium of instruction, such as Bengali, the creation of scientific and technical texts can be a formidable challenge. The debate on whether using English as a medium of instruction (EMI) for science is detrimental to the development of scientific knowledge among non-English speakers remains inconclusive, at least to my knowledge. The quality of students' learning outcomes is profoundly influenced by numerous variables, including teacher competency, the quality of pedagogical tools and techniques, the learning environment at school and at home, and, importantly, students' motivation and diligence. Nevertheless, it intuitively appears that, all else being equal, learning in one's native language should offer certain advantages. While I won't delve into specific research findings on EMI for science, drawing from my own experiences of being exposed to both Hindi and English as mediums of instruction for high school-level science, I would like to share the following observations.

 

·         Start with general scientific writing, say, for up to the middle school level. One cannot (and should not attempt to) build a durable superstructure on a weak foundation.

·         Use bilingual terms even for items that have well established counterparts in Maithili/Sanskrit.  Some examples are: Molecule (अणु),  Atom (परमाणु), Gravitation (गुरुत्वाकर्षण), Momentum (संवेग), acceleration (त्वरण),  Hypotenuse (कर्ण), Pollen (पराग), Double Helix (दोहरी कुंडली),  Matter (पदार्थ), Perpendicular (लंब), Circumference (परिधि), Refraction (अपवर्तन), Cell (कोष), Electricity (विद्युत) etc. This will ensure that students learning science in Maithili are not put at a disadvantage later in their educational pursuits.

·         It is best not to create artificial Maithili terminology for scientific terms that are well established.  So, use terms like radioactive, spinal cord, isotope, longitudinal wave, transverse wave, nervous system, nucleus, and plate tectonics, artificial intelligence, as they are.

·          Science books for children should never be just a compilation of facts and a collection of terms to be memorized.  They should arouse curiosity, and encourage discovery.  They should contain eye catching illustrations.

 

When it comes to creating scientific content in Maithili for the purpose of popularizing science (rather than for instructional purposes), a critical requirement is to present and explain concepts at a high level while avoiding unnecessary complexities and technical details. In essence, this involves providing a view of the forest without delving into the specific details of individual trees. Achieving this balance demands that the writer possesses a dual expertise: a deep understanding of science (or the specific scientific topic they are addressing) and a mastery of the Maithili language. Furthermore, the writer should have refined literary sensibilities.

 

Finding individuals who possess this unique combination of attributes may be challenging, but those who do can play a pivotal role in making science more accessible to the general public. A good example of a well-executed book on science meant for a broad audience is J. V. Narlikar's "The Lighter Side of Gravity." This demonstrates how effective communication of scientific concepts can engage and educate the public about the wonders of science.

No matter how simplified the contents of popular books on science are made, understanding them, nevertheless, demands at least a first year college (or advanced high school) level of scientific training and sophistication on the part of a reader. Such a reader could easily avail of numerous books of this type in English. So why would he/she search for popular science books in Maithili? It would be because of his/her love for and commitment to the mother tongue.   And, that is the main challenge our community needs to face and address. For a community so proud (justifiably) of its heritage of learning and scholarship, and which gets so passionate and incensed about any  attacks and insults, real or imagined, against Maithili, we, regrettably, are not forthcoming in support of our mother tongue in a manner that matters most, namely, to put it bluntly, by not putting “money where our mouth is”.   

I do not find many Maithil households of even educated and well-to-do people containing stacks of Maithili books.  It may be my own limited experience and perhaps reality is different. If so, I would very much appreciate to be corrected. It is a peculiar and not particularly healthy feature of our community that the passion for writing literature does not seem to be matched by the passion for reading literary creations on the part of a broad section of the community! No language can prosper under such conditions. If this is the situation with the so called popular writing (short story, poetry, novel, essay, etc.), one can readily imagine how daunting it would be for a prospective author to even contemplate writing a book on scientific / technical topics, or for that matter a book on economics or psychology or myriad other specialized branches of knowledge.   

     I hope my comments are taken in the proper spirit. They emanate from a person deeply connected with and committed to his mother tongue.