Other Literature

 Classical Sanskrit Literature

• Most of the work has been divided into- Vedic and Classical categories
• The two epics: Mahabharata & Ramayana are part of the Classical category
• Irrespective of their centrality to the Hindu religion, these epics can also be considered to be the precursors of Sanskrit kavya (poetry), nataka (drama), etc.
• Most of the Sanskrit literature was bound by the rules of grammar that have been explained brilliantly in Panini’s Ashtadhyayi

Sanskrit drama

• Includes romantic tales whose sole purpose was to entertain the public
• Usually written in the form of stories
• The rules regarding the performance, direction, acting etc. have been illustrated in the Natyashastra by Bharata

Major dramas of the ancient period:

Kalidasa	Malvikagnimitra- love story of the Queens’ maiden, Malvika & Pushyamitra’s son, Agnimitra
	Vikramorvasiya- love story of Vikram & Urvasi
	Abhigyana Sakuntalam- Recognition of Sakuntala
Sudraka	Mricchakatika- love affair of young Brahmin Charudatta with a wealthy courtesan
Visakhadutta	Mudrarakshasa- political drama, narrates the ascent of king Chandragupta Maurya to power
	Devi Chandraguptam
Bhavabhuti	Uttara Ramacharitam- later life of Rama
Bhasa	Swapnavasavadatta, Panchatantra, Urubhanga
Harshavardhana (wrote 3 Sanskrit plays)	Ratnavali- love story of Ratnavali & King Udayana Nagananda- in this drama, there is an invocation to Lord Buddha in the Nandi verse Priyadarsika- union of Udayana & Priyadarsika, daughter of King Dridhavarman

Sanskrit poetry

• Also called kavya, here the main focus of the text is form, style, figure of speech
• Kalidasa wrote Kumarasambhava, Raghuvamsa, Meghaduta, Ritusamhara
• Harisena wrote during the Gupta period
• He wrote several poems in praise of valor of Samudragupta and it was so well appreciated that it was inscribed on the Allahabad pillar
• Jayadeva wrote Gita Govinda- concentrates on the life and escapades of Lord Krishna
• Other major poets:
• Bharavi- Kirartajuniya (kirat, the hunter & arjun)
• Magha- Sishupalavadha (killing of Sishupal)

Other major Sanskrit texts

• Dharmasutras- books on law compiled alongside smritis known as Dharmashastras
• These are the basis of laws governing the subjects of most Hindu kingdoms
• Manusmriti- defines the role of man and woman in a society, their interaction and code of conduct
• Kautilya’s Arthashastra- concentrates on the economic and social conditions, including the military strength, of the Mauryan empire
• While Sanskrit was the preferred language of the courts, it got an impetus in the Gupta period
• Some scientific texts of the ancient period include:

Pingala	Chandasastra- Book on Mathematics
Charak	Charak Samhita- Book on Medicine
Sushruta	Sushruta Samhita- Book on Surgery
Madhava	Madhava Nidana- Book on pathology
Varahamihira	Pancha-Siddhantika- Book on Mathematical Astronomy
	Brihat Samhita- included a wide range of subjects
Aryabhata	Aryabhatiya- Book on Astronomy & Mathematics
Lagadha	Vedanga Jyotisha

• Two most notable Sanskrit works in medieval times, from Kashmir-
• Kalhan’s Rajatarangini (detailed account of King of Kashmir)
• Somadeva’s Katha-sarit-sagar (poetic work)

Literature in Pali and Prakrit

• Prakrit is a term which is loosely attached to any language from the standard one (Sanskrit)
• The Buddhist literature can be broadly classified into canonical & non-canonical ones. Canonical work consists of the Tripitakas:
• Vinay Pitaka: rules and regulations to be followed by the Buddhist monks
• Sutta Pitaka: dialogues and speeches of Buddhha related to morality and dharma
• Abhidhamma Pitaka: concentrates on philosophy and metaphysics
• Best example of non-canonical work: Jatakas. These are compilation of stories from the previous births of Buddha; includes stories of Bodhisattvas (available in both Sanskrit & Pali)
• The great epic Buddhacharita by Asvaghosha is another example of buddhist literature in Sanskrit
• Jainism produced texts in Prakrit, most important- Agamas
• Some Jain texts written in Sanskrit- Upamitibhava Prapancha Katha of Siddharasi
• Shantinatha Charita is an important Jain text of the 16th Tirthankara, Shantinatha, written in Sanskrit
• Prakrit texts have some elements of erotica through texts like the Gatha Saptasathi by Hala. A large number of female poets have contributed- Pahai, Roha, Sasippaha, etc.
• Other Buddhist literary texts:

Dipavamsa	Composed in sri Lanka, mentions about Buddha’s visit to Sri Lanka and arrival of tooth relic of Buddha
Milinda Panho	Dialogue between King Menander & Buddhist monk, Nagasena
Mahavamsa	Epic poem similar to Dipavamsa, in Pali; contains account of Buddha’s visit to Sri Lanka
Mahavastu	Contains Jataka & Avadana tales; written in Sanskrit, Pali & Prakrit
Lalitavistara Sutra	Important Mahayana text; contains various stories about Buddha till his first sermon at Sarnath
Udana	Oldest Thervada text; contains the famous story of Blind Men and the Elephant
Bodhi Vamsa	Prose poem, written in Sanskritised Pali, by Upatissa
Mahavibhasa Shastra	Contains discussion about other non-Buddhist philosophies; essentially a Mahayana text
Visuddhimagga	Written by Buddhaghosha, a text of the Thervada doctrine; contains discussion on the teachings of Buddha

Jain Literature

• Apart from writing in Prakrit & Ardha Magadhi,
• The Jains wrote in Tamil during the Sangam Age
• Also wrote in Sanskrit, Shauraseni, Gujarati & Marathi
• Two major categories:
• Canonical or religious texts, called Jain Agamas or Agams
• Non-canonical literary works
• Jain Agamas:
• Sacred texts said to be the teachings of Tirthankaras
• Originally compiled by Ganadharas, Chief Disciples of Mahavira
• Re-compiled by the Monks of Svetambara sect, after a council held in Vallabhi (Gujarat)
• The Digambaras reject the originality of the recompilation
• Agamas comprise of 46 texts- 12 angas, 12 upangas, 10 prakirnakasutras, 4 mulasutras, 6 chedasutras, 2 culikasutras
• Written in Ardha-Magadhi Prakrit language
• Digambaras gave sacred status to two works: Karmaprabhrita and Kashayaprabhrita.
• Other important works:

Bhadrabahu	Teacher of Chandragupta Maurya, wrote Uvasaggaharam Stotra, Kalpa Sutra; a pioneer of the Digambara sect
Acharya Kundkund	Samayasara and Niyamasara
Samanta Bhadra	Ratna Karanda Sravakachara and Aptamimansa
Ilango Adigal	Silappadikaram, a moralistic discourse
Tirutakkatevar	Civaka Cintamani
Umaswati	Tattvartha-sutra, in Sanskrit, accepted by both Svetambaras and Digambaras
Jinasena	Revered Digambara monk, wrote Mahapurana & Adipurana
Haribhadra Suri	Svetambara Jain author, who wrote in Sanskrit
Hemachandra Suri	Wrote grammars of Sanskrit and Prakrit; awarded the title of Kalikalasarvajna. Nalatiyar, ancient Tamil text composed by Jain monks

• Important learning centres- Universities of Vallabhi & Kalinga

Zoroastrian Literature

• It refers to the religion developed from the teachings of the Persian prophet Zoroaster
• It was the first religion to believe in angels, the day of judgement, demonic figures, and a battle between good and evil
• Most important text- Avesta; written in the (now extinct) Avestan language, similar to Sanskrit
• In the book, Yasna is the most important ceremony of faith
• Other important texts:
• Denkard: Encyclopedia of Zoroastrians
• Bundahishn: details about the theory of creation in the religion

Sikh Literature

• The beliefs and philosophies are written in the sacred scripture, Guru Granth Sahib
• Gurbani is the composition of hymns of Sikh Gurus and the Guru Granth Sahib
• Other important works:
• Adi Granth: compiled by Bhai Gurdas under the aegis of the 5th Guru Arjan Dev
• Guru Granth Sahib: further expansion of Adi Granth under Guru Gobind Singh.
• Written in Gurmukhi script in a language called Sant Bhasha. It contains the
• teachings of bhakti saints, Bhagats
• Dasam Granth: hymns written by Guru Gobind Singh; some of which are offered in the daily prayers called Nitnem
• Janamsakhis: contain mythological and exaggerated stories of the first Guru Nanak
• Ardas: set of prayer performed as a daily ritual in the gurdwara

Dravidian Literature

Tamil Sangam Literature

• Sangam means fraternity and this literature was very popular among the masses
• Two major schools:
• Aham/Agam: inner field, discusses abstract human aspects (love, sexual relations)
• Puram: outer field, discusses human experiences (social life, ethics)
• Name derived from the Assemblies, known as Sangamas; organized by the Pandyas, where poets, bards & writers joined from all across South India

Sangam	Kingdom	Place organised	Chairman	Books
First or head	Pandya	Madurai	Agastya or Shiva	No book has survived. Used Agattiyam as grammar
Second or Middle Sangam	Pandya	Kapatapuram	Initially, Agastya Later, Tolkappiyar	Tolkappiyamtextbook on Tamil grammar
Third	Pandya	Madurai	Nakkirar	Most of the existing corpus of Sangam Literature

• Around 30,000 lines of poetry have been arranged in 8 anthologies, known as Ettuthogai
• Saint Thiruvalluvar has contributed the Tirukkural to the Sangam literature
• Another famous female saint- Avvaiyar
• Two major texts: Silappadikarm by Ilango-Adigal, and Manimekalai by Satthanar.
• These texts focus on the Tamil society and the economic and political changes it was experiencing
• Final turn came in with the Vaishnava Bhakti movements
• 12 Alvars or saint poets who were immersed in devotion to Vishnu, wrote several texts. One female Alvar saint was named Andal
• Another group was called Nayanars, who sang the praise of Shiva
• In secular writings, there were two major poets called Periya Puranam and Kambaramayanam

Malayalam Literature

• Usually spoken in Kerala and surrounding areas
• Two major works: Kokasandisan and Bhasa Kautilya (commentary on Arthashastra)
• Ramacharitam: an epic poem written by Cheeraman
• Ezhuthachan: a strong proponent of the Bhakti movement; also known as the Father of Malayalam Language

Telugu Literature

• Linguists argue that Nannayya was the first Telugu poet
• Reached its zenith during the Vijayanagara period, also known as the Golden Age of Telugu literature
• Uttaraharivamsan: composed by Nachana Somanatha; court poet of King Bukka I
• Amuktamalyada: poetry composed by King Krishnadevaraya.
• During his reign, 8 learned poets were attached to his court, known as Ashtadiggajas
• He patronised Kannada poets, the Tamil poet Haridasa; and himself, wrote treatises in Sanskrit and Kannada, too
• Out of these, the following deserve a special mention

Poets	Work
Allasani Peddana	Manu Charitra
Nandi Thimmana	Parijatapaharanamu
Tenali Ramakrishna	Panduranga Mahatmayam
Ramaraja Bhushanudu	Vasucharitam Narasabhupaleeyamu Harishchandra Nalopakhyanamu
Madayyagari Mallana	Rajasekaracharitra
Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu	Ramabhudayamu

Kannada Literature

• Jain scholars made the first foray
• Best example is DHarmanathapurana, by Madhava on the life of the 15^th Tirthankara
• One of the first recorded texts in Kannada is Kavirajamarga, by Amoghavarsha I, a very powerful Rashtrakuta king
• Three unparalleled gems:
• Pampa: Father of Kannada, wrote Adipurana and Vikramarjuna Vijaya. He mastered the rasa, wrote poetry
• Ponna: Shanti Purana
• Ranna: Ajitha Purana
• Grammar of the language was written in Shabdamanidarpana by Keshiraja
• Religious texts: Narahari composed Torave Ramayana; Jaimini Bharata by Lakshmisha
• Sarvajna was given the title of People’s Poet; he composed the tripadi (three-lined poems)
• The first poetess in Kannada called Honnamma wrote the Hadibadeya Dharma (duty of a devout wife)