Sanskrit is an ancient language used in India. An early member of the Indo-European language family, Sanskrit was the language of the ancient Vedas in the second millennium BCE. Over millennia, Sanskrit ceased to be used as a spoken language, but it continued as the main literary language of India until the modern era. The Mahayana and Vajrayana canons were originally written in Sanskrit. Today, Sanskrit continues to be studied as a liturgical language among Hindus and Newari Buddhists, and Sanskrit-language mantra and dharani are chanted in rituals all across the Buddhist world.