Csoma's life

the adventures of
ALEXANDER CSOMA De KRS

Aleander Csoma de Kr!s" the famous
#un$arian s%holar" &as 'orn in ()*+ in a
tin, little -rans,lvanian villa$e %alled
Kr!s.
#e &as the third %hild in his famil,. #is
father &as a 'order $uard in eastern
-rans,lvania.
1
Even as a %hild he &as tireless. No'od,
%om/ared &ith him in lon$0distan%e &al1in$.
#e trained his 'od, and soul in the mountains
of -rans,lvania.
At the a$e of (2 he left his villa$e to stud, at
the the reno&ned 3rotestant %olle$e of
Na$,en,ed" 455 1ilometres a&a,.
-his &as the /la%e &here he 6rst heard of the
#un$arians' Asian ori$in.
2
#e de%ided to sear%h for the remains of the
an%ient #un$arian land for the rest of his
life.
#e started to /re/are for the $reat 7ourne,
to the eastern lo&land /lains of Asia.
Csoma %onsidered it im/ortant to develo/ his
'od, as &ell as his soul and mind.
Out of all s%ien%es he &as interested in
lan$ua$es" histor, and $eo$ra/h, the most.
3
#e had an in%redi'le talent for learnin$
lan$ua$es. Durin$ his lifetime he mastered as
man, as (2 lan$ua$es8 Latin" 9ree1" 9erman"
:ren%h" En$lish" Russian" Ser'ian" Croatian"
#e're&" 3ersian" Ara'i%" -ur1ish" -i'etan"
Sans1rit and #indi.
After 6nishin$ his studies in Na$,en,ed" he
&ent on to stud, at the ;niversit, of
9!ttin$en" in 9erman,.
<n (*(=" at the a$e of 42" he set off for Asia &ith
onl, a sa%1 and his essential oa1 %ane in
order to sear%h for the #un$arian land of
ori$in.
#e travelled more than (> 555 1ilometres"
mainl, on foot.
4
<n Kashmir" he met Moor%roft" the En$lish
of6%er" &ho en%oura$ed Csoma to 'e$in to
stud, the -i'etan lan$ua$e and %ulture.
Csoma s/ent * ,ears in different monasteries
in Lada1h and studied &ith the hel/ of
edu%ated lamas. #e 'e$an &ritin$ his En$lish0
-i'etan di%tionar, in the remote &illa$e of
?an$la.
#e read 4>5 -i'etan s%ienti6% 'oo1s and
%olle%ted +5 555 -i'etan &ords.
5
Some of his master/ie%es8
the 6rst s%ienti6% '-i'etan0En$lish Di%tionar,'
the '9rammar of -i'etan Lan$ua$e in En$lish'"
'-he Life and -ea%hin$ of @uddha'.
After -i'et he %ontinued his &or1 and studies
in Cal%utta" <ndia" &here he 'e%ame the
Li'rarian of the Asiati% So%iet, of @en$al.
6
<n (*+>" he started out a$ain to rea%h Lhasa"
the -i'etan %a/ital %it,.
he &anted to %ontinue his resear%h in the
famous li'rar, of #is #ol,ness" the Dalai
Lama.
#is road" ho&ever" lead him throu$h a
s&am/" &here he $ot infe%ted &ith malaria.
#is 'od, %ould not 6$ht this fatal disease
and unfortunatel, he /assed a&a, in A/ril"
(*+>" in Dar7eelin$.
7
#is tom'stone &as ere%ted in the %emeter, of
Dar7eelin$ ', the Asiati% So%iet, of @en$al.
Over the ,ears his $rave 'e%ame a /la%e of
/il$rima$e.
Althou$h Csoma failed to attain his ori$inal
/ur/ose" his name 'e%ame 1no&n as the 6rst
Euro/ean s%holar to stud, the -i'etan
lan$ua$e and %ulture and o/en u/ this land
of mira%les for the rest of the Aorld.
his life and &or1 ins/ires future $enerations
even toda,.
8
-his 'oo1let &as /re/ared in >5(5 at Kr!si Csoma SBndor
s%hool C(()4 @uda/est" A1B%virB$ St. +=." #un$ar,D
-he tet &as %reated ',8 KrisEtina Kul%sBr" DFra Na$," ErEsG'et
SEatlF%E1, SEalF1inG" Ol$a Na$, and @alBEs <rimiBs.
-he /i%tures &ere dra&n ', the follo&in$ students8 -ilda
KBrol," Emma Somos" ?sF6a -eodFra Na$," DFra 9elen%sGr" RG1a
SEa'F" ?sF6a #orvBth" Katin1a Mis1ol%i" @ri$itta @essen,ei"
Laura @Bnhidi" 3etra MolnBr" @ian1a #aa$.

Csoma's Room :oundation
@uda/est
>5(5
9