MODULE 2

Evolution of script and languages in India: Harappan Script and

Brahmi Script,
The Vedas, the Upanishads, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata,
Puranas, Buddhist And Jain Literature in Pali, Prakrit And Sanskrit,
Kautilya’s Arthashastra, Famous Sanskrit Authors,
Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam , Sangama Literature
Northern Indian Languages & Literature, Persian And Urdu ,
Hindi Literature

Dr. Twinkle Razdan

Dept. of Applied Sciences and Humanities
ABES Engineering College ,Ghaziabad, U.P.
 HARRAPAN SCRIPT
 A script refers to a collection of characters used to write one or
more languages. Scripts are writing systems that allow the
transcription of a language, via alphabet sets.
 Writing system can be seen on the seals and sealings of
Harappan period. Most inscriptions containing these symbols are
extremely short (5 symbols), making it difficult to judge

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whether or not these symbols constituted a script used to

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record a language, or even symbolize a writing system.

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 The long inscriptions are found in Gujarat particularly Dholavira

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where we find slabs of stone inscribed with inscriptions with 24

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to 34 symbols.
 The characters are largely pictorial but include many abstract
signs. The inscriptions are thought to have been written mostly
from right-to-left, but they sometimes follow a
boustrophedonic (sarphalekhana) style. The number of principal
signs is about 400. Since that is considered too large a number
for each character to be a phonogram, the script is generally
believed to be logo-syllabic (character that represents a word).
 There were arguments that the Indus script is non-linguistic, but
others have argued that it is a linguistic system and the debate
shifted to whether it is the predecessor of Dravidian script or
the Brahmi script.
 BRAHMI SCRIPT
 Brahmi is the originator of most of the present Indian scripts,
including Devanagari, Bengali, Tamil, and Malayalam etc. It developed into
two broad types in Northern and Southern India, in the Northern one
being more angular and the Southern one being more circular. It was
deciphered in 1838 by James Prinsep. The best-known Brahmi inscriptions
are the rock-cut edicts of Ashoka in north-central India, dated to 250–232

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BCE.

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Many scholars support that Brahmi probably derives from Aramaic

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(Northwest group of the Semitic language) influence and others support that

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the Brahmi language can have some Indus script influence.
 The Brahmi script confirms to the syllabic writing system and was used more
for writing Prakrit, the language spoken by ordinary people initially
and later Sanskrit also was written in this script.
 According to the epigraphers- All Indian scripts are derived from Brahmi.
There are two main families of scripts:
1. Devanagari, which is the basis of the languages of northern and western
India: Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, Marathi, Dogri, Panjabi, etc.
2. Dravidian which shows the formats of Grantha and Vatteluttu.
 Vedic Literature
The Vedas are said to have been passed on from one generation to
the next through verbal transmission and are, therefore, also
known as Shruti (to hear) or revelation. The term Vedic literature
means the four Vedas in their Samhita and the allied literature
based on or derived from the Vedas. We classify the Vedic literature
into the following categories:

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I. The four Vedas i.e., the Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva and their
Samhitas.

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II. The Brahmanas attached to each Samhita.
 The Brahmanas are the prose texts which explain the hymns in
the Vedas, give explanation and applications and related stories
of their origin.
 They also have some stories related to the certain persons
related to the Vedic Text.
Vedic Literature(cont….)
III. The Aranyakas.
 The Aranyakas were written in Forests and are
concluding parts of the Brahmans. Aranyakas are the

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concluding portion of the Brahmanas or their
appendices.

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 They lay emphasis not on sacrifices but on

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meditation. They are in fact, opposed to sacrifices
and many of the early rituals. Their stress is on
moral values. They form a bridge between way of
work (karma marga) which was the sole concern of
the Brahmanas and the way of knowledge (gyan
marga) which the Upanishads advocated.
 Vedic Literature
IV. The Upanishads.
Shruti Literature and Smriti Literature: The Vedic literature is divided into two:
Shruti and Smriti.

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 Shruti is “that which has been heard” and is canonical, consisting of revelation and

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unquestionable truth, and is considered eternal.
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Shruti describes the sacred texts comprising the central canon of Hinduism viz.

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Vedas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas, & Upanishads.
Smiriti literally means "that which is remembered, supplementary and may change
over time”.
 It is authoritative only to the extent that it conforms to the bedrock of Shruti, and
it is entire body of the post Vedic Classical Sanskrit literature.
 It comprises Vedanga, Shad darsana, Puranas, tihasa, Upveda, Tantras, Agamas &
Upangas
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c u l tu r e
 RIG VEDA
 Rig-Veda is known as the oldest religious text in the world. It is also known as “First
testament” of mankind.
 It was composed around 1700 BC. Last hymns were composed between 1500-1200 BC.
 It is organized in10 books which are called Mandalas.

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 The Rig-Veda contains 1017 (1028, including 11 hymns of the Valakhilya recession)

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hymns (Sukta) and is divided into ten mandalas. It has 10600 verses
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The first and tenth Mandalas are the youngest and the longest books.
The first and the tenth Mandalas are said to have been added later as their language
differs slightly from the other eight Mandalas.
Second to Seventh Mandalas are oldest parts of Rig-Veda but the shortest books.
 Rig-Veda is neither a historical nor a heroic poem but is mainly a collection of hymns
by several priestly families. These were recited at the time of sacrificial rites and
other rituals with utmost devotion.
 YAJUR VEDA
 “Yajus” means "sacrificial formula" and Yajurveda is the book of sacrificial prayers.
It contains the rituals of the Yajnas.
 It is estimated to have been composed between 1,400 and 1000 BC.
 It prescribes the rituals for performing different sacrifices.

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Distinction between Black and White Yajurveda
i.

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There are two distant forms of this Veda. In the oldest, the instructions about

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rituals are mingled with the verses from the Rig-Veda. The chief recession of this

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is that taught by a school of teachers called the Taitttiriyans. This was called
Black/Dark (Krishna) Yajurveda. It has unarranged , unclear verses.
ii. The Krishna Yajurveda includes the Brahmana prose discussions within the Samhita
(i.e., it has no separate Brahman text) .
iii. At a later date other scholars called the Vajasaneyins separated the explanatory
matter from the verses to be recited and hence were called white/Bright (Shukla)
Yajurveda. It has arranged and clear verses.
iv. The Shukla Yajurveda has separately a Brahmana text, the Shatapatha Brahmana.
 SAM VEDA
 “Saman” means melody and it contains the Rhythmic compilation of
Hymns of Rigveda.
 There are 1549 verses (except 75 verses, all have been taken from
Rigveda) which are meant to be sung at the soma sacrifice by a

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special class of Brahmans called "Udgatris".
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It is considered as the storehouse of the melodious chants

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 Samaveda is categorised into two parts – Part-I includes melodies

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called Gana & Part-II includes three verses book called Archika.
 Samaveda Samhita is not meant to be read as a text, it is like a
musical score sheet that must be heard
 Gandharveveda is Samveda’s Upveda is is a technical treatise on
Music, Dance and Drama. Bharat’s Natyashashtra is based upon
Gandharvaveda.
 ATHARVA VEDA
 Atharva-Veda is entirely different from the other three Vedas and is
the last of the four vedas.
 Atharvaveda stands to mean a tatpurusha compound of Atharvan, an

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ancient sage, and knowledge (atharvan+ knowledge) and it dates back

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to 1000-800 BCE.
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It has 730 hymns/suktas, 6000 mantras, and 20 books
It is called a Veda of magical formulas, it includes three primary
Upanishads – Mundaka Upanishad, the Mandukya Upanishad, and the
Prashna Upanishad
 Atharvaveda contains the magic spells, incorporates much of early
traditions of healing and magic that are paralleled in other Indo-
European literatures.
 UPANISHADS
 “Upa” means nearby and “sada” means sit. So, Upanishads contain the knowledge
imparted by the gurus to their disciples.
 Eventually the word began to be used for the secret knowledge imparted by the guru to
his selected pupils.
Upanishads specify philosophical knowledge and spiritual learning. The main motto of

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the Upanishads is “Knowledge Awards Salvation”
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Upanishads are called Vedanta (the end of the Veda) firstly, because they denote the last

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phase of the Vedic period and secondly, because they reveal the final aim of the Veda.
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There are over 200 Upanisads, including such recent works as the Khristopanisad and the
Allopanisad. Around 108 Upanishads are known.
There are 12 major Upanishads, which fall into three groups
I. Brhadaranyka, Chandogya, Is’a, Kena, Mandukya, Aitereya, Taittiriya, and Kausitiki are
the ones, which come under the early Upanishadic period.
II. Mundaka and Katha fall into the mid-Upanishadic period.
III. Prasna and Svetasvatara belong to the later Upanishadic period.
Muktikā refers to the collection of 108 Upanishads available in printed form since 1883 CE in the Telugu
language
 PURANAS
 Purana is a Sanskrit word that means "ancient." Puranas (Smriti texts) were first created by
Sage Veda-Vyasa
 There are eighteen major puranas, as well as a similar number of minor or subordinate puranas.

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One method of the classification of puranas deploys the traditional division of the gunas or

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qualities which tend toward purity (sattva), impurity or ignorance (tamas), and passion (rajas).
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There are those puranas where the quality of sattva is said to predominate, and these are six

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in number: Vishnu; Narada; Bhagavata; Garuda; Padma; and Varaha.
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Second (6 in number) describe exhibiting qualities of ignorance or impurity (tamas), and in
these Shiva is the God to whom devotion is rendered: Matsya; Kurma; Linga; Shiva; Skanda; and
Agni.
In the third set of six puranas, the quality of rajas or blind passion prevails: Brahma;
Bramanda; Brahmavaivarta; Markandeya; Bhavishya; and Vamana.
 The list of eighteen is sometimes enlarged to twenty, to include the Vayu Purana and the
Harivamsa.
 In another scheme of classification of the puranas Vishnu appears as the Supreme Being.
 PURANAS
The Puranas contain five sections, each focusing on different matters:
1. Sarga: Sarga describes why and how the universe was created
2. Pratisarga: The focus of Pratisarga is the creation of a new universe after
the destruction of the old one. Every creation ends in destruction, and every

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destruction is followed by a new creation. The god of every new creation is

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Brahma.

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3. Vangsha: The Vanshaga/vamsa segment contains the genealogies of deities

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and rishis and then goes on to the families of the Manus, ending with the

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family trees of historical kings.
4. Manvantara : Manvantara contains the genealogies of the Manus. Every time
the universe is destroyed, a new man appears from whom human society
grows. He is called Manu. The changeover from the age of one Manu to the
next is called manvantara.
5. Vangshanucharita: Vamsanucharita narrates the lives of deities, rishis, and
kings.
 The Mahabharata
 It is generally believed that the Mahabharata had attained its present form by about the fourth century A.D
 The Mahabharata contains the famous Bhagavad Gita which contains the essence of divine wisdom and is
truly a universal gospel.
 Jaya had 8,800 Shlokas, Bharata with 24,000 Shlokas and Mahabharata were composed in 100,000 Shlokas.
These all are same and composed by Veda Vyasa aka Krishna Dvaipayana

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 The Mahabharta is attributed to Maharishi Vyas and the tale known as Bharta is a shorter version of 24,000

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verses, while the Mahabharta contains 1 Lakh verses and 1.8 million words which makes it 4 times of

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Ramayana.

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 It is divided into total 18 parvas (chapters) plus the Harivamsa supplement. Bhagavad Gita is part of Bhishma

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Parva of Mahabharata. The largest chapter in Mahabharata is Shanti Parva.
The kernel of the Mahabharata story is briefly this:
 The Pandavas, headed by Yudhisthira, and the Kauravas, headed by Duryodhana, descended from common
ancestors. Duryodhana becomes jealous and, coveting the crown invites Yudhisthira to a game of dice.
 Yudhisthira loses his kingdom to Duryodhana and is then forced to go into exile, together with his brothers
and Draupadi, the common consort of the Pandavas, for twelve years, followed by one year during which
they must live incognito.
 But even when the stipulated period is over, Duryodhana refuses to give even a fraction of his territory to
Yudhisthira, the rightful owner. A grim battle ensues. The Kauravas are routed and ruined, and the Pandavas
regain their lost kingdom.
 The Ramayana
 Created by Maharishi Valmiki. Consists of 24,000 verses in seven books (Kandas) and
500 sargas and tells the story of Rama. Valmiki is also regarded as India's First Poet.
 It inspired Tulsikrita Ramayan “Ram Charit Manas” in 1576 by Tulsi Das.
 The main story of the Ramayana is briefly this: Dasaratha, king of Ayodhya, is about

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to install his eldest son, Rama, on the throne. Kaikeyi, Rama’s step-mother, wants

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her own son Bharata to be crowned king, and Rama to be sent into exile for

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fourteen years. The old and infirm king, though reluctant, has to agree. Rama goes

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to live in the forest, accompanied by Sita, and his brother, Laksmana. The demon-

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king of Lanka, Ravana, abducts Sita. Rama, determined to rescue Sita, wages a
dour war against Ravana who is ultimately vanquished and killed. Rama comcs back
to Ayodhya and assumes his position as king, with Sita as queen. The story of the
genuine portion of the epic ends here.
 In the last Book, which is suspected by many modern scholars to be spurious, it is
narrated that the people of Ayodhya speak ill of Rama for taking back Sita from
Ravana’s custody and Rama banishes her in deference to public opinion. In fact,
most of the artistic drawbacks of the Ramayana are attributable to the later
versifiers who added to and altered the original production by Valmlki.
 The Ramayana
 Verses in the Ramayana are written in a 32-syllable meter called anustubh and ranges in 50000 lines
in total. Ramayan is known as Adi Kavya (first poem of India) and Valmiki is also regarded as India’s
First Poet.
 Ramayana is one of the two major epics in Sanatan Dharma. Mahabharat is the second one. These two
together form the primary part of our Itihaas from the Treta and Dwaparyuga. There are ten primary

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Avatars of Bhagwan Vishnu that are also known as Dashavtara. Bhagwan Ram is his seventh Avatar,

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who incarnated after Bhagwan Parshurama.

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 There are total 7 Kands as mentioned in the Valmiki Ramayana:

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Bal Kand: The birth and childhood of Bhagwan Shri Ram and his marriage to Mata Sita

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1)

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2) Ayodhya Kand: The preparation of Shri Ram's coronation, his exile in forest and regency of his
brother Bharat
3) Aranya Kand: The forest exile of Shri Ram with Wife Sita, Brother Lakshman, and kidnapping of Mata
Sita by Ravana
4) Kishkindha Kand: Rama and Hanuman met in Kishkindha and became friend with Sughreva
5) Sundar Kand: Journey of Shri Hanuman to Lanka where he met Mata Sita
6) Yudha Kand: The Battle between Ram and Ravana
7) Uttara Kand: Mata Sita went to Valmiki Ashram in forest, birth of Luv and Kush. Fulfilment of Shri
Ram's Dharma
Note: There are several other versions of Ramayan. In some of the versions Uttara kand and Bal Kand are
not mentioned.
 Tamil or Sangam Literature
 Poets, bards and writers, authors came from various parts of South India to
Madurai to create sangamas. Such assemblies were called ―Sangamas or Cankams,
and the literature produced in these assemblies was called ―Sangama literature
 Three sangams were held. The poems collected in the first sangam have been
lost. In the second Sangam about 2000 poems have been collected

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Thirukural’ is written by Tamil saint Thiruvalluvar .which has been translated into

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many languages
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Thiruvallurar‘s work Kural‘ is divided into three parts. The first part deals with the
epics, the second part with polity and government and the third part with love.
Silappadikaram and Manimekalai are called twin epics
Tolkappiyam is the Tamil grammar text and the oldest surviving work of Tamil
literature. Tolkappiyanar is the author of Tolkappiyam
 Tamil devotional poems are written by Nayanmars (saints who sang in praise of
Shaivism) and Alvars (saints who sang in praise of vaishnavam)
 The five major epics-Silappadikaram, Manimekalai, Jivaka-cintamani, Valaiyapati,
and Kundalakesi-are the outstanding contributions of the post-Sangam period
 Telugu and Malayalam Literature
Telugu Literature: The Vijayanagara period was the golden age of Telugu literature. Krishnadevaraya (1509-1529),
the greatest of the Vijayanagara emperors, was a poet of great merit. His work Amukta Malyada is regarded as an
excellent prabandha in Telugu literature. Eight Telugu literary luminaries, popularly known as ashtadiggajas
adorned his court
Among them, Allasani Peddana, the author of Manucharitram, was the greatest. He was known as Andhra
kavitapitamaha. The other seven poets of the group were Nandi Timmana, the author of Parijathapaharanam,
Madayagari Mallana, Dhurjati, Ayyalaraju Ramabhadra Kavi, Pingali Surana, Ramaraja Bhushana and Tenali

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Ramakrishna.

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Nachana Somanatha, a court poet of Bukka I, produced a poetical work titled Uttaraharivamsam.

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Dhurjati, a devotee of Shiva, composed two poetical works of great merit known as Kalahasteeswara Mahatmayam

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and Kalahasteeswara Satakam, Pingali Surana composed two works Raghavapandaviyam and Kalapuranodayam.

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Ramakrishna was the author of Panduranga Mahatmayam which was considered one of the greatest poetical works
of Telugu literature. Ramarajabhushana was the author of Vasucharitram. He was also known as Bhattumurti. His
other works include Narasabhupaliyam and Harishchandra Nalopakhyanam. It is a poetical work on the model of
Raghavapandaviyam.
Madayagari Mallana’s work Rajashekharacharitra is a prabandha dealing with the wars and loves of Rajashekhara,
king of Avanti. Ayyalaraju Ramabhadra was the author of two works Ramabhyudayam and Sakalakathasara
Sangraham.

Malayalam Literature: The language of Malayalam emerged around the eleventh century AD. By fifteenth century
Malayalam was recognised as an independent language.
Bhasa Kautilya, a commentary on Arthashastra and Kokasandisan are two great works. Rama Panikkar and
Ramanujan Ezhuthachan are well known authors of Malayalam literature.
 Kannada Literature
 Apart from Telugu, Vijayanagara rulers extended their patronage to Kannada and Sanskrit writers as well.
 Jain scholars Madhava wrote Dharmanathapurana on the fifteenth tirthankara and Uritta Vilasa, wrote
Dharma Parikshe.
 Kannada language developed fully after the tenth century AD. The earliest known literary work in Kannada
is Kavirajamang by the Rashtrakuta King, Nripatunga Amoghavarsha I.

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Pampa, known as the father of Kannada wrote Adi Purana and Vïkramarjiva Vijaya in the 10th century AD.

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Ponna wrote Shanti Purana and Ranna wrote Ajitanatha Purano. Pampa, Ponna and Ranna earned the title

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ratnatraya (the three gems).
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In the 13th century Harishvara wrote Harishchandra Kavya and Somanatha Charita whereas Bandhuvarma
wrote Harivamshabhyudaya and Jiva Sambodhana.
Mallikarjuna’s Suktisudharnava, the first anthology in Kannada and Kesirja’s Shabdamanidarpana on
grammar are two other standard works in the Kannada language.Kunura Vyasa wrote Bharata and Narahari
wrote Tarave Ramayana. This is the first Rama Katha in Kannada composed on the basis of Valmikis
Ramayana.
 Lakshamisha wrote Jaïmini Bharata and earned the titled of Kamata-Karicutavana-Chaitra (the spring of
the Karnataka mango grove).
 The great Sarvajna, popularly known as the people’s poet. His aphoristic tripadi (three-lined) compositions
serve as a source of wisdom and ethics.
 Honnamma, perhaps the first outstanding poetess in Kannada. Her Hadibadeya Dharma (Duty of a Devout
Wife) is a compendium of ethics.
 Sanskrit Authors in Ancient India
 Ashwaghosha (80 AD to 150 AD) wrote Buddhacharita, Mahalankara (Book of Glory) and the
Saundaranandakavya.
 Bhasa —worte works like Swapnavasavadattam, Panch-Ratra, Madhyama-Vyayoga, DutaGhattotkacha,
Duta-Vakya, Urubhanga, Karna-Bhara and Bal Charita
 Kalidasa — Kalidasa is the immortal poet and playwright of India and a peerless genius whose works
became famous worldwide in modern world.

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 Sudraka —composed three Sanskrit Plays and Vatsyayana was the author of Nyaya Sutra Bhashya
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Vishakhadatta —wrote Mudrarakṣhasa and the Devichandraguptam

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 Bharavi — Bharavi is best known for Kiratarjuniya, written around 550 CE

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 Magha — Sisupala-Vadha was written by Magha in 7th Century AD
 Aryabhatta —He wrote Aryabhattiya (Sketches of his mathematical, planetary, and cosmic theories)
 Bhaskara: He was the author of Siddhanta Shiromani(arithmetic, algebra, astronomy)
 Varahamihira —wrote Panchasiddhantaka (on astronomy)
 Pingala —used binary numbers in the form of short and long syllables which is much similar to today’s
Morse code.
 Bhaskaracharya — wrote Sidhantshiromani (references of many of the instruments used by the
astronomers)
 Madhava —developed a procedure to determine the positions of the moon every 36 minutes, also
methods to estimate the motions of the planets.
 Kautilya’s Arthashastra
 The Arthashastra is an Indian treatise on politics, economics, military strategy, the function of
the state, and social organization attributed to the philosopher and Prime Minister Kautilya
(also known as Chanakya, Vishnugupta, 350-275 BCE) who was instrumental in establishing the
reign of the great king Chandragupta Maurya (321-297 BCE), founder of the Mauryan Empire
(322-185 BCE).
 The name comes from the Sanskrit words Artha (“aim” or “goal”) and Shastra (“treatise” or

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“book”) and the goal is a comprehensive understanding of statecraft which will enable a

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monarch to rule effectively.

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 The work was known through later references to it in other pieces but was considered lost

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until a later copy was discovered in 1905 CE by the Sanskrit scholar Rudrapatna Shamasastry

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(1868-1944 CE) which he published in 1909 CE and then translated into English in 1915 CE.
 The Arthashastra has since enjoyed international fame as one of the greatest political
treatises ever written and is frequently compared to The Prince (published 1532 CE) by the
Italian political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli (l. 1469-1527 CE) of Renaissance fame.
 Although the work is commonly credited to Kautilya, this claim has been challenged. The text
itself alludes to three authors: Chanakya, Kautilya, and Vishnugupta and some scholars claim
these are three separate individuals while others maintain they are all the same person.
 This latter view asserts that Kautilya/Chanakya was his family name and Vishnugupta his
personal name. Scholarly consensus accepts this claim as valid noting that, although each
name does appear separately at different points, all three clearly refer to the same person in
one of the books.
 BUDDHIST LITERATURE
 The earliest Buddhist works were written in Pali, which was spoken in Magadha and South
Bihar. Pali means ‘row’ (pankti), ‘text’, ‘sacred texts, and ‘reading’. Pali always signifies the
text of the Buddhist scriptures. Prakrit is related to Sanskrit language.
 The Buddhist works can be divided into the canonical and the non-canonical.
 The canonical literature is best represented by the “Tripitakas”, represents 3 baskets ( pitaka

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means basket )

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Vinaya Pitaka: It deals with rules and regulations of daily life

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Sutta Pitaka : It contains dialogues and discourses on morality and deals with Dharma
Abhidhamma Pitaka: It deals with philosophy and metaphysics. It includes discourses on
subjects such as ethics, psychology, theories of knowledge and mataphysical problems.
 The non-canonical literature is best represented by the Jatakas. Jatakas are the most
interesting stories on the previous births of the Buddha. It was believed that before he was
finally born as Gautama, the Buddha practising Dharma passed through more than 550 births,
in many cases even in the form of animals. Each birth story is called a Jataka.
 The Buddhist literature, both Hinayana and Mahayana, is preserved in Pali, Buddhist Sanskrit,
and Pure Sanskrit.
 JAIN LITERATURE
 The Jain texts were written in Prakrit and were finally compiled in the sixth century
AD in Valabhi in Gujarat.
 The important works are known as Angas, Upangas, Prakirnas, Chhedab Sutras and
Malasutras.
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Mahavira’s teachings were arranged in twelve Angas (parts) by his disciples. These

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Angas formed the earliest literature on Jainism
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Amongst the Jains, the earliest work in Sanskrit devoted to religious writing is the

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Tattvarthadhigama- Sutra of Umasvamin which epitomizes the whole Jaina creed in
about 375 sutras arranged in ten chapters.
 The work occupies a unique position in Jaina literature as it is recognized as
authoritative equally by the Digambaras and the Svetambaras with a few variations
in the readings and is very widely studied by both.
 Among the important Jain scholars, reference may be made to Haribhadra Suri,
(eighth century AD) and Hemchandra Suri, (twelfth century AD). Jainism helped in
the growth of a rich literature comprising poetry, philosophy and grammar. The Jain
texts refer repeatedly to trade and traders.
Northern Indian Languages and Literature
 The studies have indicated that all the scripts of present northern Indian languages, except
that of Urdu, have had their origin in old Brahmi. A long and slow process had given them
this shape.
 If we compare the scripts of Gujarati, Hindi and Punjabi, we can easily understand this
change. As for the spoken word, there are over 200 languages or dialects spoken in India at

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present. Some are widely used while others are limited to a particular area.

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 Out of all these, only twenty-two have found their way into our Constitution. A large number

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of people speak Hindi in its different forms that include Braj Bhasha, and Avadhi (spoken in

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Oudh region), Bhojpuri, Magadhi, and Maithili (spoken around Mithila), and Rajasthani and

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Khadi Boli (spoken around Delhi). Rajasthani is another variant or dialect of Hindi.
 This classification has been made on the basis of literature produced by great poets over a
length of time.
 Thus, the language used by Surdas and Bihari has been given the name of Braj Bhasha; that
used by Tulsidas in the Ramacharitamanasa is called Avadhi and the one used by Vidyapati
has been termed as Maithili. But Hindi, as we know it today is the one called Khadi Boli.
Though Khusrau has used Khadi Boli in his compositions in the thirteenth century its
extensive use in literature began only in the nineteenth century. It even shows some
influence of Urdu.
 Urdu Literature
 Urdu emerged as an independent language towards the end of the 4th century AD. Arabic
and Persian were introduced in India with the coming of the Turks and the Mongols. Urdu
as a language was born out of the interaction between Hindi and Persian.
 After the conquest of Delhi (1192), the Turkish people settled in this region. Urdu was
born out of the interaction of these settlers and soldiers in the barracks with the

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common people. Originally it was a dialect but slowly it acquired all the features of a

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formal language when the authors started using Persian script.

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 It was further given an impetus by its use in Bahamani states of Ahmadnagar, Golkunda,

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Bijapur and Berar. Here it was even called dakshini or daccani (southern). As time

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passed, it became popular with the masses of Delhi.
 The earliest Urdu poet is supposed to be Khusrau (1253-1325). He started writing as a
poet in the reign of Sultan Balban and was a follower of Nizam ud-din Auliya. Important
works composed by Ameer Khusrau are Laila Majnun and Ayina-I-Sikandari (dedicated to
Alauddin-Khilji)
 Among other well-known poets are Ghalib, Zauq, and Iqbal. Iqbal’s Urdu poetry is
available in his collection called Bang- i - dara. His Sarejahan se achcha Hindostan
hamara is sung and played at many of the national celebrations in India
 Among the best prose writers were people like Pandit Ratan Nath Sarshar, who wrote the
famous Fasanah- i-Azad. Even in the early days, Munshi Prem Chand, who is supposed to
be a doyen of Hindi literature, wrote in Urdu.
 Persian Literature
 Persian was introduced in India with the coming of the Turks and the Mongols. Persian
remained the court language for many centuries
 Babar wrote his tuzuk-i-baburi (autobiography) in Turkish language, Akbar got it
translated into Persian

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 The Mahabharata was translated into Persian at Akbar's orders, by Faizi and Abd al-

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Qadir Badauni and named Razmnama.
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Jahangir‘s autobiography (Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri) is in Persian
Abul Fazl‘s Akbarnamah and Ain-e-Akbari is a fine piece of literature
Padmavat written by Malik Muhammad Jayasi in Persian
 As Persian was the language of the court, much of the literature produced in this
period was written in Persian. Amir Khusrau and Amir Hasan Dehelvi wrote superb
poetry in Persian. Historians like Minhas-us-Siraj and Zia Barani and Ibn Batuta who
came to India during those days wrote accounts of rulers, important political events
and incidents in this language.
 Persian literature has been produced by the courtiers of the Mughals. Abul Fazl’s
Akbarnamah and Ain-e-Akbari is a fine piece of literature.
 Hindi Literature
 Hindi literature, with its supra-regional character, attracted Namdev (Marathi)
and Guru Nanak (Punjabi) and others to write in Hindi, which by then had
developed into a conglomeration of many languages and dialects, and came to
be known as an umbrella language.

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The centrality of Hindi and its vast geographical area was the reason for it.

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

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Surdas, Tulsidas and Meera Bai (15th to 16th Century A.D.) point to the great

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heights of Vaishnavite lyricism achieved by Hindi.

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Tulsidas (1532 A.D.) was the greatest of the Rama-bhakti poets who wrote his
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famous epic, the Ramacharit Manas (the lake of the deeds of Rama) in Hindi
based on Valmiki‘s Ramayana . In fact, epics like the Ramayana and the
Mahabharata received a rebirth in the new languages.
 Prithviraj Raso (written by Chand Bardai) is supposed to be the first book in
the Hindi language. It is an account of exploits of Prithviraj Chauhan
 Sur Sagar (Krishna infant life) written by Surdas
 Bharatendu Harishchandra (Father of modern Hindi literature)was one of the
earliest to produce dramas in Hindi. Nirala’ written by Suryakant Tripathi.
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Key Take Away
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