Reminiscences of Professor Schubring with Some Glimpses of Academic Life in Germany

Summary

This personal essay by Amulya Chandra Sen recounts his experiences as an Indian scholar studying in Germany during the interwar period and pays tribute to Professor Walther Schubring. Sen describes the academic atmosphere of German universities, where rigorous philology and attention to detail formed the foundation of Indological research. He recounts how, under Schubring’s mentorship at the University of Hamburg, students engaged in meticulous textual analysis of Jain scriptures and learned Prakrit grammar. Schubring was known for his humility, his openness to students from India, and his ability to bridge cultural differences. Sen notes that Schubring’s scholarship built on the earlier work of Hermann Jacobi and Ernst Leumann, who had printed and translated Jain scriptures in the late nineteenth centurywww.soas.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2022-06/The%20Invention%20of%20Jainism%20A%20Short%20History%20of%20Jaina%20Studies%20file32517.pdf; Schubring’s magnum opus Die Lehre der Jainas (The Doctrine of the Jains) synthesised this traditionhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walther_Schubring#:~:text=Walter%20Schubring%20,examined%20later%20texts%20in%20Sanskrit. The author provides glimpses of German academic life: seminars conducted in German, a library rich with Sanskrit and Prakrit manuscripts, and an environment shaped by discipline and intellectual curiosity. He contrasts the academic freedom in Germany with the colonial context in India, noting that the financial support available to German scholars allowed them to dedicate years to editing texts. Sen also recounts informal gatherings at Schubring’s home where scholars discussed topics ranging from Jain ethics to comparative religion. The essay emphasises Schubring’s personal kindness; he and his wife hosted Indian students for meals, introducing them to German culture while learning about Indian customs. Sen concludes that Schubring’s combination of scholarly rigour and human warmth made him an ideal mentor and that his death leaves a void in Jain studies.