Prof. N. Veezhinathan, well known Sanskrit scholar and professor and prolific writer and speaker, passed away on June 9. He was a resident of CIT Colony, Mylapore and father of Dr. V. Kamakoti, the current director of IIT, Madras. He was 86 years old.
He was the head of the department of Sanskrit at University of Madras. His scholarship was focussed on Advaita.
Having studied Sanskrit since the pre-teen years, he continued formal studies in Sanskrit and complete his doctorate in it – his thesis was on Advaita philosophy.
He joined Madras University’s philosophy department as a lecturer; exposed to Western philosophy helped him express Advaitic thoughts in English.
Veezhinathan studied Advaita for 12 years under S. R. Krishnamurthi Sastri, professor at the Madras Sanskrit College.
Veezhinathan was also a student of navya nyaya, which helps scholars explain Hindu philosophy.
After 11 years in the philosophy department, Veezhinathan moved to the Sanskrit department at the University , where he taught Advaita, Dvaita and Visishtadvaita.
Veezhinathan had many books and a multitude of research papers to his credit. He wasa. recipient of many honours, the tallest being the President’s award for Sanskrit, he received in 2002.
