> Given these
>facts, does it make sense for someone like me to (a) do Sanskrit
>first then move on to Pali, (b) do Pali first (as it is easier, in
>principal?) then move on to Sanskrit, or (c) figure what the heck and
>just try doing both at once?

Dear Mark,

Nice to meet you. I'm something of a lurker here, but you just asked
a question which I'm full of opinions about, since I've been in a
similar situation myself. So here comes more than you probably ever
wanted to hear about the subject :-)

About alternative (c) I would recommend studying just one language at
a time. This is based on my experience of language learning, where it
seems to me that more is going on than just mastering a set of
grammatical rules and memorizing vocabulary (which is hard enough in
itself). The language needs to be assimilated as well in order to get
to any kind of reading fluency. For me, this assimilation process
only activates if I work hard at it, on a daily basis, for weeks on
end. Trying to do this with two languages at once would be very
difficult, at least for me. Apart from not having the time, I'd feel
that they were interfering with each other. It could be like trying
to learn Norwegian and Danish simultaneously. Yikes! Add to this that
Sanskrit has it's own writing system and a very copious grammar and
you've got quite a challenge.

That said, it might work for you to do both if you constantly relate
the Pali to the Sankskrit forms, and make a special point of studying
precisely that relationship. Since you've worked with Latin you're
not entirely green, and as a professional philosopher you've probably
got the analytical knack. Still, that would be an extra effort, and
I'm not sure how it would impact the learning process. It probably
depends on exactly who you are.

Back to alternatives (a) and (b), I believe the best choice would be
to take the language that you feel most motivated to read in first.
If that doesn't decide it then I'd say take Sanskrit first, and stick
with it until you've at least reached the level where you can work
your way through epic text (like the Mahabharata, which includes the
Bhagavad Gita) with a dictionary. That is fun reading, and once it is
consolidated you'll find that Pali vocabulary, sentence structure and
idiom are very familiar. Also, many phonetically-reduced forms in
Pali will make sense if you can relate them to the fuller Sanskrit
form. This doesn't work the other way around, so Sanksrit is a kind
of a key to Pali.

For what it's worth, I started out with Pali, working on my own in
Warder. Then I studied Sanskrit for several years, which I worried
might be something of a detour. When I went back to the Pali I found
that the time spent on Sanskrit was very well spent. It helps with
the Pali every step of the way. One warning though. Despite all those
years spent I still feel like a beginner. These languages are huge!

Hope this helps,

--Rett