Sanskrit Text Society (STS, संस्कृतविद्यासदनम्) is an academic and cultural initiative established in Oxford with the support of Sanskrit connoisseurs, enthusiasts, and scholars specialising in diverse traditional knowledge systems of India. The Society is dedicated to the study, preservation, and wider appreciation of Sanskrit textual traditions across Vedic/Hindu, Bauddha, and Jaina intellectual lineages, encompassing both canonical and non-canonical works. Its activities engage with Sanskrit texts in their original language as well as through modern translations, primarily in English and, where appropriate, in major Asian languages.
A central aim of the STS is to foster the training of a new generation of Sanskrit scholars in Oxford and in South Asia, particularly in India and Nepal, with a strong focus on philological rigour, critical edition, and scholarly translation of Sanskrit texts. By promoting sustained engagement with primary sources, the Society seeks to support high-quality research and responsible transmission of Sanskrit knowledge systems within contemporary academic contexts.
The STS also serves as a platform for intellectual exchange and collaboration between Oxford-based and international specialists in Indian and South Asian Studies, and the wider South Asian scholarly and cultural community in Greater London and beyond. Through dialogue, cooperation, and shared scholarly endeavour, the Society aims to strengthen connections across institutions, disciplines, and regions.
In order to share and collectively relish the cultural and intellectual heritage of early South Asia as preserved in Sanskrit, the Society will organise regular gatherings, lectures, discussions, and cultural events for scholars, students, and interested members of the public in and around Oxford and London. In the longer term, the STS envisages the establishment of a Sanskrit House in Oxford, conceived as a space to commemorate and celebrate classical Sanskrit poets, authors, and scholars, as well as influential figures from the modern period.