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AN
HISTORICAL SKETCH
OF
SANSCRIT LITERATURE,
WITH COPIOUS
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES
OF
SANSCRIT WORKS AND TRANSLATIONS.
FROM THE GERMAN OF ADELUNG,
WITH NUMEROUS ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS.
OXFORD, D. A. TALBOYS.
M DCCC XXXII.
IND BROWNE.
Stack
Annex
CONTENTS.
Page
ON THE SANSCRIT LANGUAGE.
1. Its Origin . . . . . . . .1
2. Its Antiquity 4
3. Its Name 6
4. Signification of Name 7
WORKS ON THE SANSCRIT LANGUAGE IN GENERAL . 8
ON THE SANSCRIT ALPHABET AND CHARACTER . 12
SANSCRIT GRAMMAR 16
1. Ancient Grammars 17
2. Modern Grammars . ... . . .24
3. Treatises on particular parts of Grammar . . 30
DICTIONARIES 32
1. On Sanscrit Roots ib.
2. Ancient Dictionaries . . . .33
3. Modern Dictionaries . . . .36
COMPARISON OF THE SANSCRIT WITH OTHER LAN- '
GUAGES 38
1. With the Indian Languages . . . .40
2. With the Bohemian or Gypsy . . . .43
3. With the Zend ib.
4. With the Persian ib.
5. With the Chinese 44
6. With the Arabic ib.
7. With the Greek 45
8. With the Latin 47
9. With the Celtic 49
10. With the Irish or Erse, Welsh, etc. . . . ib.
11. With the Gothic ..... . . .50
12. With the German . ... . . . ib.
13. With the Scandinavian 51
14. With the Sclavonic . . . . . . ib.
15. With various other Languages . . . .52
CHRESTOMATHIES . ... . . .53
PROVERBS . 54
VI CONTENTS.
Page
ANCIENT INSCRIPTIONS AND BOOKS.
Inscriptions 54
Works in Sanscrit . 60
A CATALOGUE OF SANSCRIT WORKS
AND TRANSLATIONS.
SACRED WRITINGS.
ON THE VEDAS IN GENERAL 66
1. Rig Veda . . . . . . .72
2. Yajur Veda . . ... . . .73
3. Sama Veda . . ... *' . . 77
4. Atharvana Veda . . . . . .78
5. Extracts from the Vedas 79
6. Vedantas . ..... . .80
7- Upanishads . 82
8. Upavedas . . ... . . . 85
9. Vedangas . . . _ . . . . 86
10. Upangas . . . . ' . . . . ib.
PURANAS . . . .... . . . ib.
1. BHAGAVATA . .. . . . . . 89
a. Dialogue of Narada with Brahma . . 90
f3. Marriage of Rukmini . . . . . ib.
2. MAHABHARAT . . . . . . ib.
a. Introduction and separate books . . .92
ft. Episodes and Extracts . . . .93
aa. Bhagavat-Gita ib.
bb. History of Nala, king of Nishada, and his
Wife Damayanti . . . . , ; .96
cc. History of Dushmanta and Sakuntala . . 109
dd. The Fight with the Giants . . . . ib.
ee. Discourse of Dhritarashtra to his charioteer
Sanjaya . . . . . . .110
ff. Death of Sisupala ib.
gg. Arjuna's Journey to Indra's Heaven . .111
hk. Arjuna's Return to Indra's Heaven . . ib.
ii. Death of Hidimba Ill
CONTKNTS. VJ1
Page
kk. The Brahman's Lament ..:.'-. .111
//. The Deluge - 113
mm. Sundas and Upasundas . . . . ib.
nn. Bahikavarnana . . . ib.
oo. Rape of Draupadi . ... . .114
pp. Other Episodes and Extracts . . . ib.
3. HARIVANSA . . . . . . .115
4. RAMAYANA . . .. .. .117
a. Death of Yadnadatta . . . . .121
/3. Penances of Visvamitra . . . . ib.
y. Combat of Atikaya 122
S. Descent of the Ganges ib.
e. Uttra Candum 123
4. VlSHNU-PURANA ib.
5. MARKANDAYA PURANA . . . . . ib.
6. BRAHMA VAIVARTIKA PURANA . . . 124
7. AGNI PURANA ib.
8. BHAVISHYAT PURANA 125
9. SHEEVE PURANA ...... ib.
10. PADMA PURANA ib.
11. KURMA PURANA ib.
12. UFA PURAN! . . ... . . ib.
13. Other Writings connected with the Puranas . 126
SASTRAS . . . . . . ... 128
JURISPRUDENCE.
OF ANCIENT HINDOO LEGISLATION IN GENERAL . 129
LAWS OF MENU . . ..,'.. . 131
Extracts from the Institutes of Menu .' . .136
Law of Inheritance . ..... . . . 137
Adoption . ... .... ' .' ' . . 138
Other Treatises on Jurisprudence i.t> .-.. . . 139
PROFANE LITERATURE.
PHILOSOPHY.
Literature 'j .. 140
Various Schools of Hindoo Philosophy . . .141
1. The Prior Mimansa, founded by Jaimini . .142
Vlll CONTENTS.
Page
2. The Vedanta 146
3. The Nyaya, or System of Logic . . . ib.
4. The Vaiseshica 147
5 and 6. The two Sanc'hyaya . . . * . 148
The Jainas and Bauddhas 162
ETHICS 163
MATHEMATICS 165
. Astronomy ....... ib.
0. Arithmetic 167
y. Algebra 169
HISTORY . . ... . . . . 170
GEOGRAPHY . - . ; . . . . . 173
MEDICINE . . . 176
FINE ARTS.
POETRY.
, ON SANSCRIT POETRY IN GENERAL .... 179
SANSCRIT WORKS ON POETRY AND RHETORIC . . 186
a.. On Metre and Prosody . . . . .187
|3. Epic Poetry . . . . .... 189
y. Erotic Poetry . . . . . . .191
8. Lyric Poems . . . . . - . 192
e. Elegy . . . . . . . . ib.
g. Idyls . . . . . . . .193
i). Didactic Poetry ib.
FABLES . 194
a. Pancha-Tantra ib.
j8. Hitopad^sa, or The Friendly Instructor . .197
Editions of the Original 198
Translations ........ ib.
. Pahlvi . . . . .' . .199
/S/3. Persian ib.
yy. H\ndoostanee ib.
88. Bengalee 200
ee. Mahratta ib.
&. Arabic 201
in. English 202
60. French ib.
CONTENTS. ix
Page
u. German 203
KK. Danish ' . . . . . . ib.
XX. Latin ........ ib.
THE DRAMA.
ON THE DRAMATIC POETRY OF THE HINDOOS . 204
COLLECTIONS OF INDIAN PLAYS .... 209
SEPARATE PLAYS.
Mythological Drama 210
aa. Sakontala ib.
Pf}. Gitagovinda, or the Songs of Jayadeva . .211
Metaphysical Drama ...... 212
Historical Drama 213
Comedies. 214
TALES . 220
Appendix 223
PREFACE.
THE foundation of a professorship of Sanscrit in this
University, and the late election, which has raised Mr.
Wilson to the professor's chair, could scarcely have
taken place without giving, at least for the time, an ad-
ditional impulse to the curiosity of the learned respect-
ing the nature and literature of that language. Some
enquiry began to be made for Sanscrit books. Hence
it will appear very natural that a bookseller, who aims
at being something more than the mere go-between of
author and reader, should desire to gain some inform-
ation respecting a subject now likely to form a new
department of his calling. It was with some pleasure,
therefore, that he took up apd read the German work
of Adelung; and, with the hope of its being interesting
and useful to others, he undertook the translation of it
into English.
In doing this, he cannot but feel aware that he has,
.in some degree, laid himself open to the charge of pre-
sumption, for attempting to translate a treatise con-
cerning a language of which he knows not even the
alphabet. Had he indeed foreseen, at the commence-
ment of his task, the extent of labour, which, from the
nature of the work he has had to undergo, the follow-
ing pages would probably never have seen the light.
He trusted too much, however, to the great name of
Adelung ; and, anticipating but little trouble in turning
'his German into English, was not aware of the pains
xii PREFACE.
and research necessary to correct the mistakes, and
supply the omissions, almost unavoidable in a work of
this kind. This he has attempted to* do as far as lay
in his power, and with such helps as he could procure.
The corrections and alterations he has made, it would
be almost impossible to point out ; perhaps there is
scarcely a page in which some emendation does not
occur.
Besides these corrections, many alterations and ad-
ditions have been made, which will not perhaps be so
readily admitted as improvements. These indeed are
so numerous, that they give the work the character ra-
ther of a new compilation than of a mere translation.
The first part of the essay has been entirely re-mo-
delled; as after the first two sheets had been printed
in its original form, their appearance was so crude
and foreign, that it was deemed advisable to cancel
them. Besides this, full one half of the matter now pre-
sented to the public is not to be found in the original
German. Of these additions, the greater part relate
to subjects essentially connected with the work, and
therefore requiring no apology; others, which have
been inserted with a view of placing the subjects to
which they refer in a stronger light, and of enlivening
the dulness of a catalogue, must be left to the taste
and indulgence of the reader. They consist, for the
most part, of short extracts from the works referred to,
and brief sketches of the various departments of San-
scrit learning into which the work is divided. It was
intended at one time to distinguish them from the ori-
ginal work; but their number made it inconvenient,
and the design was abandoned. Examples will be
found under the heads of Philosophy, Poetry, Medi-
PREFACE. xiii
cine, the Drama, etc. : reference being invariably made
to the sources from which they are taken.
In this part of his work the translator has been
greatly assisted by the kindness of Dr. Bandiriel in
allowing him the use of the Bodleian Library, and by
the generous attention of the other gentlemen con-
nected with that establishment. It is to him a pleasing
duty to make this public acknowledgement of their
liberality.
In the orthography of the Sanscrit and other oriental
words, he has been favoured with the assistance of a
scholar in this branch of learning, without which he
would have been unable to proceed. Still, exact uni-
formity in this respect is not to be looked for. Eu-
ropean scholars seldom agree in the manner of repre-
senting Sanscrit sounds by Roman letters ; and the
writers of different nations vary considerably in their
orthography of the language: indeed they are fre-
quently inconsistent even with themselves, and to such
a degree, that the same word will often be found writ-
ten several different ways in the same page. Add to
this an observation made by Professor Wilson in the
preface to his Sanscrit dictionary ; viz. that " the va-
rious readings arising from confounding the different
nasals and sibilants, and above all from the perpe-
tual interchange of the letters B and V,'are innumer-
able and of almost impracticable adjustment." And
when it is known that this arbitrary substitution of one
letter for another is further sanctioned by a convenient
rule 8 , the learned reader will perhaps be more disposed
a " The letters R and L, D' and L, J and Y, B and V, S' and S, M and
N ; a final visargah or its omission, and a final nasal mark or its omission,
are always optional, there being no difference between them." Wilson's
Dictionary, Preface, p. 41.
xiv PREFACE.
to pardon an occasional error or two in the orthogra-
phy, and not be surprised should he even find the same
word differently written in different places. In the
titles of books and quotations, the original ortho-
graphy has been adopted where it could be ascer-
tained 1 *, in other cases uniformity has been aimed at,
but it is feared with but moderate success.
The usefulness of the present publication must of
course chiefly depend upon the importance of the sub-
ject of which it treats a question that seems suffi-
ciently decided by the foundation and intention of the
Boden professorship , and the new impulse which this
has given to the culture of Sanscrit literature. The very
fact, indeed, of a gentleman's bequeathing an immense
property for the promotion of this object, from a con-
viction, resulting from his own experience, of its being
the best means of extending the knowledge of Chris-
tianity to a hundred millions of our fellow-creatures,
should, and must engage in its interest every one who
feels the value of this blessing ; while its recommend-
b This has in some instances led to mistakes : as for example at p. 96,
etc., where Damayanti has been improperly spelt Damajanti, in conse-
quence of the compiler trusting to the correctness of the Quarterly
Reviewer.
c The late Joseph Boden, esq., Colonel in the Honourable the East
India Company's service, bequeathed the whole of his property to the Uni-
versity of Oxford for the foundation of a Sanscrit professorship, and the en-
couragement of Sanscrit learning; being of opinion " that a more general and
critical knowledge of the Sanscrit language will be a means of enabling
his countrymen to proceed in the conversion of the natives of India to the
Christian religion, by disseminating a knowledge of the sacred scriptures
amongst them, more effectually than all other means whatsoever." Oxford
Calendar, 1832, p. 48. Horace Hayman Wilson, esq., perhaps the first
Sanscrit scholar of the present age, and highly distinguished for his taste
and learning in general literature, was elected to this chair in the present
year.
PREFACE. xv
ations of a more worldly nature, though but a feather
when weighed against this paramount one, are still other-
wise of a high and powerful character. Both, no doubt,
have operated in producing the rapid and accelerated
motion with which the cultivation of Sanscrit literature
has advanced within these very few years in Europe ;
and it appears a striking argument in its favour, that
the interest taken in it has increased in proportion to
the information obtained respecting it, and that each
step has been regarded but as a new position from
which to make a farther advance* 1 . Some of its warmest
admirers have, indeed, gone so far, as to predict that it
would exercise the same influence upon the learning
and general tone of European society, as the intro-
duction of Greek did in the fifteenth century ; and,
though few readers may go so far as these enthusiasts,
it must, at least, be admitted, that the curious structure
of the language, its close analogy with those already fa-
miliar to scholars 6 , its great antiquity, and its pre-
sumed connection with the religion, the arts, and the
sciences of Greece and Rome, are all well calculated to
excite a fond and anxious research into its literary re-
mains remains equally wonderful for their extent and
the harmonious language in which they are composed f ,
d Adelung, in his preface, mentions it as a matter of surprise, and as
proving a great predilection for this language, that in the short space of
thirty years seven hundred works should have been published relating to it,
while not above a hundred persons in all Europe have applied themselves
to its study, and of these there certainly are not fifty who know it ac-
curately.
e See below, p. 39, etc.
f Professor Wilson says, " The music of Sanscrit composition must ever
be inadequately represented by any other tongue." M. Chezy, in his open-
ing discourse, calls it the celebrated dialect, perhaps spoken by the gods of
Homer, and if not, worthy to be so. The praise indeed which Sanscrit
xvi PREFACE.
and containing treatises, written at various periods
from a hundred to three thousand years ago, on philoso-
phy, metaphysics, grammar, theology, astronomy, ma-
thematics, jurisprudence, ethics, poetry, rhetoric, music,
and other sciences cultivated among the Hindoos, at a
time when Europe lay buried in the deepest shades of
ignorance 8 .
To those who study the history of man, Sanscrit
literature offers a surprising mass of novel information,
and opens an unbounded field for speculation and re-
search. A language, (and such a language !) which,
upon the most moderate computation dates its origin
beyond the earliest records of profane history, and
contains monuments of theology, poetry, and science,
and philosophy, which have influenced perhaps a hun-
dred millions of human beings through a hundred ge-
nerations, is a phenomenon in the annals of the human
race which cannot fail to command attention. Common
sense and experience suggest that these facts only
require to be known to excite a more general interest
in this new department of literature. The following
scholars bestow on this language is not at all inferior to what Gibbon says
of the Greek: " In their lowest servitude and depression, the subjects of
the Byzantine throne were still possessed of a golden key that could unlock
the treasures of antiquity ; of a musical and prolific language, that gives a
soul to the objects of sense, and a body to the abstractions of philosophy."
Gibbon's Rome, vol. viii, p. 162, Oxford edit.
B The number of Sanscrit works described in the work of Mr. Adelung,
amount to upwards of three hundred and fifty ; many others have been
added in the following pages. This, however, affords but a faint sketch of
the copiousness of Sanscrit literature. The reader may perhaps form a
more adequate notion by being informed, that Col. Kirkpatrick, in his ac-
count of Nepaul, quotes an instance of a single private library at Blat-
go'ng, the Benares of the Ghoorkali territoiy, amounting (according to
his information) to fifteen thousand volumes. See also Col. Tod's preface
to his splendid work on the Annals of Rajast'han, passim.
PREFACE. xvii
pages show that it has afforded subjects of sufficient
interest to exercise the talents of writers of the highest
reputation for taste and genius ; and that Sanscrit liter-
ature still contains inexhaustible mines of wealth for
those who have the industry to work them.
Compilers and translators have been somewhere de-
signated as the pioneers of literature ; and it will afford
the compiler and translator of the following pages much
satisfaction if they should clear the road, or lessen the
toil of any more deeply engaged in the study of San-
scrit literature The very liberal indulgence with which
his translation of Heeren's Researches has been re-
ceived, emboldens him to hope for the same favour for
the present attempt, which, as Mr. Adelung observes,
will at least fill up a gap in bibliography, and abridge
the labour of any one who may attempt a more com-
plete work on the subject.
D. A. T.
Oxford, June, 1832.
THE SAVSCRIT LANGUAGE, AS A LATER PRINCIPLE OF INTERPRETATION,
STANDS AS IT WERE AT THE END OF A WHOLE SERIES OF LANGUAGES,
AND THESE ARE BY NO MEANS SUCH AS BELONG TO A COURSE OF STUDY
WHICH FOR PRACTICAL PURPOSES IS IN A CERTAIN DEGREE UNSERVICE-
ABLE : ON THE CONTRARY, THEY COMPREHEND OUR OWN MOTHER TONGUE
AND THAT OF THE CLASSICAL NATIONS OF ANTIQUITY, AND CONSEQUENTLY
THEREFORE THE TRUE AND DIRECT SOURCE OF OUR BEST FEELINGS, AND
THE FAIREST PART OF OUR CIVILISATION ITSELF.
W. VON HUMBOLDT.
AN HISTORICAL SKETCH
SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
ORIGIN, ANTIQUITY, AND NAME OF THE SANSCRIT
LANGUAGE.
OF the origin of the Sanscrit language, the parent
stock of nearly all those now in use among the follow-
ers of Brahma, nothing is known with certainty but
that it is lost in the gloom of remote antiquity. His-
torical data are entirely wanting respecting the first
peopling of India; hence numerous conjectures have
been formed concerning the introduction of the San-
scrit into the plains of Hindoostan.
It is the opinion of Klaproth, that, at a very remote
period, Japhetic tribes from the north-west settled in
these provinces, into which they carried their own
language, the stock of the Sanscrit, and blended with
it, or rather absorbed into it, at least in the northern
districts of the peninsula, the dialects of the aborigines
whom they found there a .
a On the origin of the different written characters of the ancient world,
by Klaproth, in Asiatic Journal, April, 1832. See also Edinb. Review,
vol. xiii, p. 369.
2 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Some learned men, on the contrary, would derive
the Sanscrit from the Semitic family of languages.
This opinion, however, is now very generally exploded.
The alphabet, as M. Klaproth observes, in reply
to Dr. Schleiermacher and others, bears no affinity
to those of Semitic origin ; but differs from them
altogether, as well in the shape and sound of the
letters as in their systems of arrangement. Bopp
also very pertinently remarks, that whilst in the
Semitic family a variation of vowels is of no etymo-
logical consequence, in Sanscrit and its cognate dialects
such a change totally alters the force of the word : a
sufficient proof of there being little or no connection
between them b .
According to Colebrooke, Sanscrit derives its origin
(and some steps of its progress may even now be
traced) from a primeval tongue, which was gradually
refined in various climates, and became Sanscrit in
India, Pahlavi in Persia, and Greek on the shores of
the Mediterranean . Many scholars, however, in the
very highest rank of learning, trace the origin of this
language in the Zend. Among these are Sir William
Jones d , the father of Indian learning, Paulinus a St.
Bartholomaso e , and the learned Dr. Leyden.
The Zend, however, would seem to be rather a
twin sister of the Sanscrit than its parent ; and, ac-
cording to Hammer, a celebrated oriental scholar, the
affinity is so close, that out of ten Zend words, six or
seven will be found to be pure Sanscrit f . Here too
may be noticed an observation cited by Langles, in
b See Klaproth, 1. c. and Asiatic Journal, January, 1832, p. 2.
c Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, p. 199.
> Works, vol. i, p. 26.
e In his tract, De Affinitate Lingua? Samscrdamicae cum Zendica.
f Wiener Jahrbuch der Liter. 1818, ii, s. 275, in which he follows Sir
William Jones.
ORIGIN AND ANTIQUITY. 3
the Frencli translation of the Asiatic Researches,
from Mohammed Fany, a Persian writer, " that In
very early times the Persians and the Indians formed
but one people, and had but one religion, government,
and, probably, but one language ;" an assertion which
Othm. Frank does not fail to quote in his Comment,
de Persidis Lingua et Genio.
Later writers on this subject (colonel Vans Ken-
nedy and others) award a still higher honour to the
Sanscrit language, and make it the common parent of
the Greek, and Latin, and Teutonic languages ; and,
consequently, of the English, French, German, and all
the other modern ones to which these have given birth.
They conceive Babylonia to have been the original
seat of the Sanscrit, and that Asia Minor was peopled
at an early period by a race from that country, whose
language became the common parent of the Greek
and Latin, and of the Thracian, now extinct, but from
which descended the Teutonic languages h .
A writer also in the Edinb. Rev. No. cii, sums up his
observations on this subject by saying, " We are free
to confess that the result of our enquiries has been, to
produce a conviction in our minds that the affinities
known to subsist between the Sanscrit, Greek, Latin,
and German languages, are perfectly irreconcileable
with any other supposition than that of their having
all been derived from a common source, or primitive
language, spoken by a people of whom the Indians,
Greeks, Latins, and Germans, were equally the de-
scendants". It is certain that intimations are given by
ancient historians, that the Babylonians were in pos-
session of a sacred language ; but it seems almost im-
possible that this could have been the Sanscrit in its
h Colonel Vans Kennedy, On the Origin and Affinity of the Languages
of Asia and Europe, 4to. p. 34 and 122. See also Raffles'* History of
p. 369.
4 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
present polished state; and Col. Kennedy, together
with Klaproth and many others, believes that it was
introduced into Hindoostan by Japhetic tribes from
the north-west, where it gradually obtained its high
state of perfection '. According to Langles k , it seems
most likely that it was brought into Hindoostan from
Western Asia, probably from Bactriana, by the
Magians, whom Darius expelled the Persian empire.
But whatever may have been the origin of this lan-
guage, all writers are agreed in ascribing to it a very
high antiquity. Volney calls the Sanscrit, that language
of a Scythian race which even the Egyptian acknow-
ledged as its legitimate rival in antiquity '. And, extrava-
gant as may be considered the assertions of Mr. Halhed,
they still serve to prove the very remote antiquity of this
language and its literature; so that few, after a careful
examination of the subject, and leaving the inspired
writings out of the question, will withhold their assent
to his assertion, " that the world does not now contain
annals of more indisputable antiquity than those de-
livered down by the ancient Brahmins" 1 ."
The whole character of the Hindoo nation and its
institutions bears testimony in favour of this remote
antiquity of their language. Their religion and laws,
their mythology and science, all carry us back to times
beyond the reach of history ; while their magnificent
but ruined temples, appear to be the work of no
1 Tradition makes the Sanscrit to have travelled from the north to the
south of India ; hence it acquired in India the name of Vaddamozhi, the
language of the north. Adelung.
* Revue Encyclop. 1820, Aofit, p. 330.
In his Lettre sur 1'Alphabet Ph6nicien, in the Revue Encyclop.
vol.ii, Livr. 6, p. 511.
m See Halhed's preface to his translation of the Code of Hindoo Laws ;
and the preface to his Grammar of the Bengal Language : and Q. Craw-
ford's Researches concerning India, vol. ii, p. 181 183, in which the
objections to the high antiquity of the Sanscrit are stated and answered.
ORIGIN AND ANTIQUITY. 5
superstition more modern than that of Egypt or
Assyria".
The century before the Christian era is regarded as
one of the Augustan ages of this language, which,
having been progressively refined, became fixed in the
classic writings of many elegant poets, most of whom
are supposed to have flourished about this period. It
is now become almost a dead language ; and, what
may seem rather extraordinary, its numerous inflec-
tions, which are more anomalous than those of any other
language, and still more so in the obsolete dialect of
the ancient vedas than in the polished style of the
classic poets, have led many persons to believe that it
was constructed by the concerted efforts of a few
priests, who set themselves about inventing a new
language. The rules have been supposed to be ante-
rior to the practice ; but the supposition is gratuitous :
in Sanscrit, as in every other known tongue, gram-
marians have not invented etymology, but have only
contrived rules to teach what was already established
by approved usage .
All the enquiries, however, respecting this language
prove that it must have obtained fixed grammatical
inflections at a very early period. The opinion just
cited, and repeated by Crawford in his Researches
concerning Ancient and Modern India, that the num-
ber of its declensions and conjugations, and the com-
plication of its rules, must have prevented it from
having ever been in use as a national language, is
opposed to all experience respecting the formation of
languages. The Sanscrit was certainly at one time
the language of the greater part of India, especially
n Edinburgh Review, vol. v. p. 289.
Colebrooke on the Sanscrit and Pracrit Languages, in Asiatic
Researches, vol. vii, p. 199.
6 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
in the regions near the Ganges ; and, above all, in
Bahar, in which the scene of so many of the most
ancient Indian poems is laid. It is revered as the
national language ; and the oldest works in Indian
literature are composed in it. Indeed it bears much
the same relation to the vernacular languages now in
daily use between the Indus and the Ganges, that the
Latin does to the Italian, the classical Greek to the
modern, or the Saxon to the English. The names, too,
of all the most ancient Indian cities (as Colebrooke
observes, 1. c.) are derived from it p .
Further, the Sanscrit may be regarded, with the ex-
ception of a few mountain dialects, as the parent of
all the Indian languages, from the Indus to the farthest
part of Araean, and from Ceylon to Chinese Tartary.
Indeed Hammer q says, "so far as the etymological in-
vestigations of the Sanscrit have hitherto afforded satis-
factory results, it may certainly be considered as the
parent stock of all the known languages which form
the variation of their words, their declensions, con-
jugations, etc. by inflection ; while the northern and
western Asiatic languages, in which these are denoted
by the addition of particles, must be derived from
another origin than the Sanscrit," Colonel Kennedy
accounts for the difference of number in the tenses
between the Teutonic verb and the Sanscrit, from the
experience we have, " that a rude people prefer the
use of auxiliary verbs for the formation of tenses, to
the more artificial mode of inflecting the verb for this
purpose."
The name of this language has been written and
pronounced in various ways : we find, for example,
P See Asiatic Researches, vii, p. 199, etc. Thus, for example, the name
of Serampoor is a contraction of the Sanscrit S'rirdmaptira, the city of
the divine Rama.
i Wiener Jahrb. d. Liter. 1818, ii, s. 275.
NAME. 7
Hanscred, Samscredam, Samscrudon, Samscrudam,
Samscret, Sanscrit, Shamcrit, Sungskrit*, Sungskritu,
Sonskrito, Sanscroot, Sankrita, Sangskrida.
In India it is called Sura bdni, Sura bhalcha, and
Dewa bdni, the language of the heavenly regions s .
The Jesuists, most corruptly, have introduced the
word Grantham, as well as Grandam, Grandom, Gran-
t/ion, and Grandonicum, which, as Colebrooke remarks,
is probably derived from the word Grant ha, a book ;
and this shows the Sanscrit to be the peculiar language
of the sacred writings.
From Grandonicum is formed Kerendum, as the
Sanscrit has been likewise sometimes miscalled.
The word Sanscrita is the passive participle of a
compound verb, formed by prefixing the preposition
sam to the crude verb cri, and by interposing the
letter * when this compound is used in the sense of
embellishment. Its literal meaning then is, adorned;
and when applied to language, polished*.
* As is most usual in the books printed at Serampoor, according to the
early custom of pronouncing the short Sanscrit a as a short o, which the
English express by . Sanscrit, as the word was written by Sir William
Jones and Dr. Wilkins, is the form now generally adopted.
5 The Indian writers on poetry, rhetoric, and grammar, make Sanscrit
the language of the gods ; Prucrit that of the benevolent genii ; Paitachi
that of wicked demons ; and Magadhi that of men.
1 The word Sanscrit is a compound participle, literally signifying, alto--
gether or completely made, done, or formed (Lat. confectus), from the
inseparable preposition sam, altogether or together (Lat. cum), and krita,
done, with the interposition of a silent s, which letter being a dental, re-
quires that the labial nasal which precedes it should be pronounced as a
dental also, namely, as n. The word in its common acceptation, denotes a
thing to have been composed or formed by art, adorned, embellished,
purified, highly cultivated or polished, and regularly inflected as a lan-
guage. WILKINS'S S. Gram. p. 1.
SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
WORKS ON THE SANSCRIT LANGUAGE IN GENERAL.
Colebrooke's Dissertation on the Sanscrit and Pracrit
Languages, in Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, p. 199. A
brief account of this is given in the Monthly Re-
view, 1805, March, p. 265. It is reviewed more at
length in the Edinburgh Review, vol. ix, p. 289 ; and
is abridged in Vater's Proben deutscher Volks-
mundarten u. s. w. No. ix, s. 171. It is everywhere
spoken of as a work of great merit.
There is a treatise in Chinese on the origin of the
Sanscrit language, written A. D. 1020, and another
by the emperor Kien Lung, composed in 1749, on the
Sanscrit, Thibet, and Mongul languages. Transla-
tions of these it is said would throw much new light on
the language and literature of the Hindoos. See
Quarterly Review, vol. v, p. 395.
" To acquire a perfect knowledge of the Sanscrita
language, requires a longer period of diligence and
exertion than to attain a similar degree of proficiency
in any vernacular tongue." A declamation by Mr.
T. Clerk, at the public disputation at the college of
Fort William, July 17th, 1816 (? in Sanscrit).
A Dissertation on the Orthography of Asiatic
Words, in Roman Letters, by Sir W. Jones. In
Asiatic Researches, vol. i, p. 1.
"It is more probable that the Sanscrit, as it at
present exists, is a mixture of various dialects than
that it should have descended so rich and artificially
formed from one original language," Calcutta, 1814,
4to. One of the declamations of the students of the
college of Fort William in Bengal. It is written
in Sanscrit.
La Croze refers, in his Hist, du Christianisme des
WORKS. 9
Indes, torn, ii, p. 303, to a Tamulic work, Divagarum,
written in the twelfth century, which treats of the
richness and excellences of the Sanscrit.
Ziegenbalg's Account of the Danish Missionaries,
vol. i, p. 116,429, 627.
Du Pons in the Lettres edifiantes, ed. 2, torn. xiv.
Ueber die Shanscrita von M. Hismann. In the
.Gotting. Mag. 1780, St. v, p. 269293.
Ueber die Samskrdamische Sprache, vulgo Sam-
skrit, von Fr. K. Alter, Wien, 1799, 8vo.
Mithridates von J. C. Adelung, vol. i. p. 134, etc. ;
vol. iv, p. 5462, and 482485.
Geschichte der neuern Sprachenkunde von Joh.
Gotfr. Eichhorn, Erste Abth. s. 228256.
Ueber die Sprache und Weisheit der Indier, nebst
metrischen Uebersetzungen indischer Gedichte von
Friedrich Schlegel, Heidelberg, 1818, 8vo. ; and, Notae
quaedam necessariae ad prima capita libri primi operis
Germanici: The Philosophy, etc. of the Indians, in
Othm. Frank's Comment, de Persidis Lingua et Genio,
Heidelb. 1809, 8vo.
De lingua Sanscrit, Diss. auctore Frid. Wilh.
Eckenstamm, partes iii, Lundce, 1810, 4to. ; pars iv et
v, ibid. 1811. See Othm Frankii Chrestom. Sanskrita,
vol. i, p. xii.
Heeren's Ideen iiber den Handel, die Politik u. s. w.
vol. ii, s. 394, etc u .
Discours sur les Avantages, la Beaute, la Richesse
de la Langue Sanskrite, et sur 1'Utilite et les Agremens
que Ton peut retirer de son etude, par M. A. L.
.Chezy, in the Mag. Encyclop. Mars, 1815, p. 5 27;
see also a review of the same by Silvestre de Sacy, in
the Moniteur, 1815, No. xxiii. An English translation
u Several volumes of an English translation of this work have been
printed and published by the compiler of this essay. The volume here
referred to on the Indians is now in progress.
C
\
10 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
is printed in the Asiatic Journal, May, 1817, p. 334
437.
Ueber das Sanskrit, seinen Zusammenhang mit den
davon ausgehenden ostindischen Sprachen und sein
Verhaltniss zum Latein, Persischen, Germanischen,
von J. S. Vater. In his Proben deutscher Volksmun-
darten u. s. w. s. 169194.
On the importance of cultivating a knowledge of
Sanscrit, in Dr. Wilkins' Grammar of the Sanscrit
Language.
Account of the Sanscrit Language, by Q. Crawford,
esq. in his Researches concerning the Laws, Manners,
etc. of Ancient and Modern India, London, 1817, 8vo.
vol. ii, p. 161 163, (almost entirely taken from Cole-
brooke's Essay) ; and, Importance of the Sanscrit
Language as a Key to every other Language, in the
same, p. 236238.
Upon the writing and pronunciation of Hindoo
names, in Aug. Wilh. v. Schlegel's Ind. Bibliothek,
s. 4649; and, Heidelb. Jahrb. 1815, No. Ivi.
The Hindee Roman Orthoepigraphical Ultimatum ;
or, a Systematic Discriminative View of Oriental and
Occidental Visible Sounds, on fixed and practical
Principles, for speedily acquiring the most accurate
pronunciation of many Oriental Languages, by John
Borthwick Gilchrist, London, 1820, 8vo.
Die literarischen Bestrebungen in Indien bis zur
Mitte des achtzehnten Jahrhunderts, oder Ubersicht
iiber Europa's allmahliche Bekanntschaft mit der
Sanskrit-Literatur bis zum Jahre 1750. Eine Ein-
leitung zu Vorlesungen iiber die indische Literatur,
von N. Nyrup, Kopenhagen, 1821, 4to.
Uebersicht sammtlicher bisher mit und ohne Ueber-
setzung durch den Druck bekannt gemachter Sanskrit-
ischer Schriften, Grammatiken, Worterbvicher u. s. w.
by Prof. Bernstein. Leipz. Lit. Zeit, 1820, No. ccxci.
WORKS. 11
On the present state of Indian learning, by A. W.
v. Schlegel, in the Jahrbuche der Preuss. Rhein-
Universitat, Bonn, 1819, I Bd. 2 tes Heft. This is also
printed separately. In French: in the Bibliotheque
Universelle, 1819, Decembre, p. 349370; and in the
Revue Encyclop. 1820. The same essay is likewise
inserted in A. W. v. Schlegel's Indischer Bibliothek,
St. i, s. 128.
On encouraging the cultivation of the Sungskrita
language among the natives, in The Friend of India,
1822, Serampore, No. v, p. 5.
On the Sanscrit language, in Alex. Murray's His-
tory of the European Languages, Edinburgh, 1823,
8vo. vol. ii, p. 220.
Ant. Theod. Hartmann's biblisch-asiatischer Weg-
weiser u. s. w. Bremen, 1823, Svo. s. clxx clxxvii.
Viasa. Upon the Philosophy, Mythology, Literature,
and Language of the Hindoos, by Dr. Othmar Frank,
Munchen, 1826, 4to.
Die Urwelt, von Link, s. 162172.
Among the Sanscrit writers the Suraseni is consi-
dered as a refined sort of Sanscrit, which, according
to Dr. Leyden, may be identified with the Zend. See
Vaters Proben deutscher Volksmundarten u. s. w.
s. 216 x .
* The Sanscrit language is now publicly taught in many of the first
universities of Europe, namely, in Germany> at Berlin, Breslau, Bonn, etc.
At Cambridge it is expounded by professor Sam. Lee, one of the most distin-
guished linguists of the present day. He is acquainted with Arabic, Latin,
Greek, Hebrew, Syriac, Chaldaic, Samaritan, ^Ethiopic, Coptic, Persian,
Hjndostan, Malay, Sanscrit, Bengalee, French, German, and Italian, alto-
gether seventeen languages ! The Abb6 Mezzofante of Bologna speaks or
understands thirty-three.
12 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
ON THE SANSCRIT ALPHABET AND CHARACTER.
THE Sanscrit differs from all other languages 'in its
alphabet and its structure.
There is no trace in history of the origin of the
Sanscrit alphabet; and all that can be said of it is,
that the Hindoos having succeeded at a very early
period in raising the Sanscrit, their classical and
written language, to the highest pinnacle of perfection,
wrote it, with an alphabet equally perfect, and so
admirable, that they attribute it to divine origin, and
call it Deva-ndgari, or, the writing of the gods y . We
are equally uninformed whether those people who
brought into India the basis of this language had a writ-
ten character or not. Colonel Vans Kennedy remarks,
that the Sanscrit alphabet is too artificial to have been
original and unimproved, and believes that the Brah-
mins migrating to India probably adapted it to the
sounds there in use. '
The square character of Hindoostan, which is used
in preference to all others for writing the sacred
language, the Sanscrit, still retains the name of Deva-
ndgari. It is composed of fourteen vowels and
diphthongs, and thirty-four consonants. Some authors
increase the number of letters to fifty, and make
sixteen vowels. The compounds of these letters, called
phala, form above eight hundred characters. The
Devanagari is also called, Baulobund*.
y Klaproth on the origin of the different written characters of the An-
cient World. In Asiat. Journ. N. S. vol. vii, p. 265. April, 1832.
z See Asiatic Journal for April, 1822, p. 317. Professor Schleier-
macher laid before the Asiatic Society of Paris a treatise upon the
Semitic origin of the Devanagari alphabet, and some other subjects con-
nected with Sanscrit literature. Volney much earlier had derived the
ALPHABET AND CHARACTER. 13
Sanscrit is also written in the Telinga and Mala-
bar character, each of which has fifty-three letters.
The Sanscrit is said to be most perfectly expressed
by the latter, which is also called Grundrum (Gran-
dam?}. See above, p. 7, and Asiatic Journal, April,
1822, p. 317 a .
Besides these, the variety of characters used in the
inscriptions, still partly unexplained, in the temple
grottos at Salsette, Kennery, Mavalipuram, etc., "show
that in India various alphabets were in use at a very
early period. See Heeren's Ideen, Th. ii, p. 383
386.
All the inscriptions hitherto deciphered are read
from left to right, and contain particular signs for the
vowels as well as the consonants.
The Sanscrit alphabet is found in the following
works :
Athan. Kircheri China illustrata, Amstelod. 1661,
folio, P. iii, cap. vii, p. 162.
Millii Diss. de Lingua Hindustanica, in his Disser-
tatt. sel. Lugd. Batav, 1743, 4to. p. 455288.
Th. Siegfr. Bayer's treatise in the Commentatt.
Petropol. torn, iii, p. 389.
Sanscrit alphabet from the Phoenician. " If in modern India," says he,
" the eighteen or twenty existing alphabets derived from the ancient San-
scrit, are all, like their model, constructed on the syllabical principle, in
which the consonant alone expresses the vowel sound necessary to its pro-
nunciation, shall we not be led to believe that the Sanscrit had originally
a Phoenician type ; and especially as the Sanscrit itself is as indisputably
constructed syllabically as the Arabico-Phcenician 1" See Lettre de
Comte Volney sur l'Antiquit6 de 1'Alphabet Phenicien, in Revue Ency-
clop. 1819, Aout, p. 334. The origin of the Sanscrit alphabet is also
traced to the Chaldaic. See Alex. Murray's Hist, of the Europ. Lan-
guages, vol. ii, p. 392 ; and Ulr. Friedr. Kopp in his Bilder und Schriften
der Vorzeit, Bd. ii, p. 367 375.
* Here also deserves notice that Devanagari which the Tibeflans and
Mongols call Landscha, and with which are written, in Sanscrit (not in
Pali) the sacred records of the Tibetian and Mongol Bauddhas. It is
older and far more cursive than the Devanagari character now in use.
14 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
A Code of Gentoo Laws, etc., published by Nath,
Brassey Halhed, London, 1777, 8vo.
Alex Dow's History of Hindoostan, translated from
the Persian of Casim Ferishta, pref. p. xxx.
Crabb's Technological Dictionary.
Alphabetum Grandonico-Malabaricum seu Sam-
scrudonicum, auctore Clemente Peanio Alexandrine,
Romce, 1772, 8vo.
Alphabeta Indica, i. e. Granthamicum, seu Sam-
scrudamico-Malabaricum, Indostanicum s. Varanense
(Benares), Nagaricum vulgare et Talenganicum,
Romce, 1791, 8vo. ; with a preface by Fra Paolino a
S. Bartholomaeo.
Sir William Jones's Dissertation on the Orthography
of Asiatic words in Roman letters, in Asiatic Re-
searches, vol. i, and Works.
Memoire sur les Alphabets et sur les ecritures des
Indous du Sanscrit, par le Comte Lanjuinais. Lu a
Tlnstitut. in the Mag. Encyclop. 1812, Sept. p. 30 b .
Sur la Valeur des Lettres Sanscrites, in Yadjna-
dattabada, ou la mort de Yadjnadatta, episode extrait
du Ramayana, traduit par A. L. Chezy, Paris, 1826,
4to. Preface, p. v xviii.
An Essay upon the best manner of expressing the
Indian Language in European characters, by Rask.
though it is evident they are essentially the same. A specimen of it may
be found in J. J. Schmidt's Forschungen im Gebiete der Bildungsges-
chichte der Vb'lker Mittel-Asiens; and in the Asiatic Museum of Peters-
burgh there is the Lord's prayer very elegantly written in it, exactly con-
formable with Dr. Schmidt's interpretation, but which has erroneously been
taken for Multan.
b The author divides the Indian forms of writing into the northern
and southern. The former are distinguished by their square and angular
shape, the latter by their curve lines. This variety is explained by the
difference of the instruments made use of, and the materials written upon.
Lanjuinais cites, in his M6moire, two treatises in the Chinese language,
upon the origin of the Indian character. One of these was written in the
eleventh century, the other in the year 1749.
ALPHABET AND CHARACTER. 15
Written in English for the first volume of the Acts
of the Literary Society at Colombo. See also the
preliminary note to Mrichchakati, or, the Toy Cart,
in professor Wilson's Hindoo Theatre, vol. i.
The Sanscrit alphabet in the Bengalee character,
in Chezy's Yadjnadattabada.
Rudimenta lectionis literarum quae Devanagaricae
dicuntur, in Othm. Frankii Chrestomathia Sanskrita,
Monad, 1820, vol. i.
Cognatio literarum Sanskritarum, ibid.
Orthoepia vocalium Sanskritarum, ibid.
Specimen novae typographicae Indicae. Litterarum
figuras ad Codd. Bibliothecae R. Paris, exemplaria
delineavit, coelandas curavit Aug. Guil. Schlegel. Lut.
Par. 1821, 8vo.
Besides these, the Sanscrit characters are to be
found in the modern grammars of this language al-
ready mentioned ; and particularly beautiful in that
of Wilkins, which have been copied in G. H. Bern-
stein's Hitopadesi particula, Breslau, 1823, 4to. The
most beautiful alphabet of the Bengalee language is to
be found in Haughton's Grammar, and Chrestomathie.
Respecting the division of certain Sanscrit words,
which W. v. Humboldt first brought into notice in
the Asiatic Journal, 1827, and which became the
subject of much dispute, but was adopted by Bopp and
others, the arguments for and against it will be found
collected by that ingenious philologist in the Jahrb.
fur wissenschaftl. Kritik, 1829, No. Ixxiii, p. 581
592 ; No. Ixxv, p. 593595.
The best account of the writing materials of the
Hindoos, will be found in the enquiry of Fra Paolino,
in his Institutio Linguae Samscrdamicae, p. 327, etc.
16 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
SANSCRIT GRAMMAR.
THE peculiar and wonderful structure of the San-
scrit language has almost as much recommended it
to the notice of the learned, as the interesting literary
monuments it is said to contain . "It is the most
regular language known, and is especially remarkable,
as containing the roots of the various languages of
Europe, and the Greek, Latin, German, of Sclavonic 11 ."
The Sanscrit possesses one very striking peculiarity.
It is that of extending to Syntax the rules for the per-
mutation of letters in Etymology. Similar rules for
avoiding incompatible sounds in compound terms
exist in all languages ; but, in the Sanscrit language,
words merely in sequence have an influence upon each
other in the change of terminations, and sometimes of
initial letters. The rules for this permutation' of
letters have been more profoundly investigated by
Hindoo grammarians than by those of any other
nation ; and they have completed a system of orthogra-
phy which may be justly termed euphonical. They
require all compound terms to be reduced to this
standard ; and Sanscrit authors, it may be observed,
c Edinburgh Review, vol. xiii, p. 366. Wilh. von Humboldt ( Jahrb. fur
wissenschaftl. Kritik, 1829, No. Ixxiii, p. 580), speaking of the remarkable
grammatical construction of the Sanscrit, says, "No language in the
world, that we are acquainted with, possesses, in an equal degree with
the Sanscrit, the secret of moulding abstract grammatical ideas into such
forms, as by means of simple and closely allied sounds still leave evident
traces of the root, which often of itself explains the variation of sound
(inasmuch as it essentially remains the same) amid the greatest com-
plication of form : nor has any other language, by means of its inherent
euphonic amalgamation of inflection, the power of forming such accurate
and well-adapted symbols for expressing the conceptions of the mind."
11 Baron Cuvier's Lectures on the Natural Sciences.
ANCIENT GRAMMARS. 1?
delight in compounds of inordinate length : the whole
sentence too, or even whole periods, may, at the
pleasure of the author, be combined like the elements
of a single word e .
An excellent and ample history of Indian gram-
marians is given by Colebrooke in the Asiatic Re-
searches, vol. vii, p. 202, etc. This is copied by
Crawford into his Researches concerning Ancient and
Modern India, London, 1817, 8vo. vol. i, p. 163176.
A list of the Sanscrit grammars in manuscript, con-
tained in the Royal library of Paris, by Indian writers,
will be found in the Catalogue des MSS. Sanscrits,
p. 27, 67, 68, 72, 75, 77, 8487.
The Sanscrit grammars must be divided into ancient
and modern.
1. Ancient Grammars.
The grammatical institutes, Vyaharana, in Sanscrit
literature are classed among the Angas. They belong
in a certain measure to the sacred writings, among
which they take their place immediately after the
Vedas.
Upon the Sanscrit grammatical institutes of the
Brahmins see Du Pons, in Lettres Edifiantes, torn,
xiv, p. 67, second edition ; Paulinus a S. Bartholomaeo
in Vyacarana, p. 14; and Asiatic Researches, vol. vii,
p. 119.
The most ancient grammars are named after deities
to whom they are ascribed, Maheshwara, Indra, and
Chandra. But the most celebrated of all is the Sidd 1
hanta Kaumudi of Panini, whom the Hindoos call the
father of Sanscrit grammar. He lived in so remote
e Colebrooke's Essay Prichard's Eastern Origin, p. 28.
D
18 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
an age, that he ranks among those ancient sages,
whose fabulous history occupies a conspicuous place
in the Puranas, or Indian theogonies. The name is
properly a patronymick, indicating his descent from
Pdnin; but, according to the Paurdnica legends, he
was the grandson of Devala, an inspired legislator.
Whatever may be the true history of Panini, to him
the Sutras, or succinct aphorisms of grammar, are
attributed by universal consent. His system is founded
on a profound investigation of the analogies in both
the regular and anomalous inflections of the Sanscrit
language. He has combined these analogies in a
very artificial manner, and has thus compressed a
most copious etymology into a very narrow compass.
His work consists of three thousand nine hundred
and ninety-six soolras, or precepts, framed with the
utmost conciseness ; and this great brevity is the
result of very ingenious methods, which have been
contrived for this end, as well as to help the student's
memory.
Ancient as is the work of Panini, he still cites the
works of Sacalya, Gargya, Casyapa, Galava, Saca-
tayana, and others who had preceded him f .
A very learned review and exposition of the system
of Panini will be found in Crawford's Researches, vol.
ii, p. 163 166 g .
A copious commentary on the work of Panini
was compiled at a very early period, by an unknown
author, but is ascribed to Saptanjali, a fabulous per-
f The various ancient grammars of the Sanscrit tongue, as enumerated
in a memorial verse, are eight in number, and ascribed to the following
authors, viz. Indra, Chandra, Casd, Critsnd, Pisdli, Sdcutdyana, Panini,
and Amera Jinendra. Colebrooke.
8 The reader may also consult Colebrooke on the Sanscrit and Pracrit
languages, in Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, p. 199, whence Adelung has
borrowed the account which I have here amplified, and whence Crawford
has copied, verbatim, the account referred to in the text.
ANCIENT GRAMMARS. 19
sonage, to whom mythology has assigned the shape of
a serpent. The title of this voluminous exposition
is Mahdbdshya, or, The Great Commentary h .
Catyayana, or, Cattijana, an inspired saint and
lawgiver, whose history, like that of all the Indian
sages, is involved in the impenetrable darkness of
mythology *, corrected the inaccuracies of the Paniniya
grammar. His annotations, entitled Farticas, restrict
the rules of Panini where too vague, enlarge others
which are too limited, and point out numerous ex-
ceptions which had escaped the author. These im-
proved rules of grammar have been formed into
memorial verses by Bhartri-Hari, entitled, Carica,
which have almost equal authority with the precepts
of Panini and the emendations of Catyayana. The
grammar of Panini, and the two commentaries just
mentioned, are among the manuscripts of the Royal
Society of London, to whom they were presented by
Sir William Jones.
Casica Vritti, a much esteemed commentary on
Panini, composed at Benares, was printed at Seram-
poor, in the year 1800, in the Devanagari character;
but only the text, without a translation or notes k .
h See also Colebrooke, in Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, p. 205. He says,
' In this commentary every rule is examined at great length ; all possible
interpretations are proposed ; and the true sense and import of the rule are
deduced through a tedious train of argument, in which all foreseen objec-
tions are considered and refuted ; and the wrong interpretations of the text,
with all the arguments which can be invented to support them, are obvi-
ated or exploded."
' He is said to have lived in the century before the Christian era ; and a
beautiful poem has been composed in his name, containing moral re-
flections, which the poet supposes him to make on the discovery of his
wife's infidelity. See Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, p. 204.
k Adelung seems to have fallen into a mistake here, as he makes
Varanasi the author of this comment. It is spoken of by Colebrooke ex-
pressly as the work of an anonymous author. Varanais, I am informed,
is the Sanscrit appellation of Benares, from which the common name
has been corrupted by transposition .
20 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
The anonymous author of this work explains his
design in a short preface, " to gather the essence of a
science dispersed in the early commentaries, in the
Bhdshya, in copious dictionaries of verbs and nouns,
and in other works." He has well fulfilled the task
which he undertook. His gloss explains, in per-
spicuous language, the meaning and application of
each rule. He adds examples, and quotes, in their
proper places, the necessary emendations from the
Varticas and Bhdshya.
These voluminous commentaries upon Panini's work
still left many obscurities unexplained, a defect which
numerous modern grammarians have endeavoured to
supply. The most celebrated among these are the
work of Cairata, a learned Cashmirian, and the Pada-
manjari of Haradatta Misra.
The annotations of the former are almost equally
copious with the Bhdshya itself; yet these, too, are
loaded with glosses, among which the old and new
Vivarands are most esteemed. The Padamanjara,
which is a commentary on the Casica Vritti, is also
much esteemed, and the authority of its author held
nearly equal to that of the original work '.
The Grammatical Sootras, or, Aphorisms of Panini,
with selections from various Commentators, Calcutta,
1809, 2 vols. 8vo. in the Nagari character. The
following is the title as given in Roebuck's Annals of
the College of Fort William, Calcutta, 1819. Panini
Sutra Vrittri, the Grammatical Aphorisms of Panini,
with a Commentary in Sanscrit ; published by H. T.
Colebrooke, esq., Calcutta, 2 vols. 8vo. Printed
entirely in Sanscrit.
A modified arrangement of Panini's work for those
who study the rudiments of the language, has been
1 Colebrooke.
ANCIENT GRAMMARS. 21
compiled within these few centuries by Ramachandra,
an eminent grammarian, entitled, Pracrya Caumudt;
and another still later by Bhattoji Dicshita, called Sidd 1
hanta Caumudi.
An analysis of Ramachandra's treatise will be found
in Mr. Colebrooke's Essay on the Sanscrit and Pracrit
Languages : he says, the rules are Panini's, and the
explanation of them abridged from the ancient com-
mentaries ; but the arrangement is wholly different.
The order in which Ramachandra has delivered the
rules of grammar, is certainly preferable ; but the
sootras of Panini, thus detached from their context, are
wholly unintelligible. Without the commentator's ex-
position, they are, indeed, what Sir William Jones has
somewhere termed them, ' dark as the darkest oracle.'
Bhattoji Dikshita is also spoken of as an able gram-
marian. He made some useful changes in the ar-
rangement of the Pracriya, amended the explanation
of the rules, suppUed many omissions, enlarged the ex-
amples, and noticed the most important points upon
which the elder grammarians disagree.
This author also wrote an argumentative commen-
tary upon his own grammar. It is called Pranta meno-
ramd. And besides this, he composed a very volu-
minous commentary on the Eight Lectures of Panini,
and gave it the title of /S 'abda Caustubha. The only
portion of it Mr. Colebrooke had seen, reaches no far-
ther than to the end of the first section of Panini's
first lecture. But this, he says, is so diffusive, that, if
the whole had been executed on a similar plan, it must
triple the ponderous volume of the Mahdbhashya it-
self; he had reason, however, for doubting whether it
was ever completed m .
The Sidd" 1 hanta Kaumudi, a grammar conformable
Colebrooke.
22 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
to the system of Panini, by Bhattoji Dikshita, Calcutta,
1812, 4to. in the Nagari character, published by Ba-
buram Pandit, proprietor and superintendent of the
Sanscrit printing establishment.
The commentaries upon these two works are very
numerous : several abridgements also have been at-
tempted, the most valuable of which is, Mad'hya Cau-
mudi ; and this is accompanied by a similar compendium
of annotations, entitled Mad'hya Menorama.
The Laghu Kaumudi, a Sanscrit Grammar, by Va-
daraja, Education Press, Calcutta, 1827, royal 12mo.
The most celebrated grammarian after Panini is
Vopadeva, whose popular grammar, which is in high
repute at Bengal, is entitled Mugdhabbdha. It con-
sists of one thousand one hundred sootras, or short
grammatical rules, accompanied by a commentary en-
titled Vrith, which comprise all that it is necessary for
a learner of the language to know n .
In the whole, eight commentaries upon this work are
enumerated. But a great drawback, according to
Colebrooke, to the use of Vopadeva's Grammar, is,
that he has not been content to translate the rules of
Panini, and to adopt his technical terms, but has, on
the contrary, invented new terms, and contrived new
abbreviations. Hence, the commentaries and scholia
written to elucidate poems and works of science, must
be often unintelligible to those who have studied only
his grammar ; and the writings of his scholars must be
equally incomprehensible (upon all that relates to gram-
mar) to the students of the Paniniya. Accordingly,
the pandits of Bengal are cut off, in a manner, from
communication on grammatical topics with the learned
of other provinces in India. Even etymological dic-
" Adelung : see also Colebrooke in Asiat. Researches, vol. vii, 213 ; and
Catalogue des MSS. Sanscrits, p. 84, where, (p. 85,) is mentioned a com-
mentary on the same, by Ramana Atcharia, entitled Mtigdabodhatika.
ANCIENT GRAMMARS. 23
tionaries, such as the commentaries on the metrical
vocabularies, must be unintelligible.
The Mugdha Bodha, a Grammar by Vopa Deva,
Serampoor, 1807, 12mo. ; in Bengalee, Calcutta, 1826,
12mo. Devanagari character.
The Sungskrit Grammar, called Moogdboodha, by
Vopa Deva, Serampoor, 1817, 8vo. See Catal. de la
Bibl. de M. Langles, p. 116, No. 999.
The Mugdabodha, or Sanscrit Grammar of Vopa-
deva, in the Devanagari character, Calcutta, 1826,
12mo; 1828.
Carey has published Vopadeva's work at Serampoor
in two volumes ; and Forster, an English version of it,
accompanied with paradigms, and a treatise upon the
Sanscrit roots, under the title of, A Translation of the
Mugdabodha, a celebrated treatise on Sanscrit gram-
mar, by G. H. Forster, Calcutta, 1810, 4to.
Viakarana, or Grammar, a treatise on the formation
of simple and compound words of the Sanscrit lan-
guage, of their changes, and of the manner of using
them in speech.
The royal library at Copenhagen possesses a manu-
script commentary upon the Mugdabodha, in Sanscrit,
by Padmanabadatta, in Bengalee character, under the
title of Subadhini. See Dansk Litter. Tidende for
1819, p. 122.
Vira Metra daya, a Sanscrit Grammar, Calcutta,
1815, 4to. A poem in the Sanscrit language, in Par-
bury, Allen, and Co.'s Catalogue, for 1831.
The Rhatta-Kavya, a Sanscrit Poem illustrative of
Grammar, with a commentary, Calcutta, 1826, Svo.
and 1828. The author of this was named Bhartri-Hari.
He gives in a poem of twenty-two stanzas, the rules of
grammar and rhetoric, the materials for which he
has drawn from the history of Rama.
Sabadasacti Prakariti, Tractatus Argumenti Gram-
24 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
matici. A manuscript in the royal library at Copen-
hagen. See Dansk Litter. Tidende for 1819, p. 122.
Another grammar much esteemed is the Saraswata,
together with its commentary, named Chandrica. It
seems to have been formed on one of the Caumudis,
by translating Panini's rules, into language that is in-
telligible . There is also the Nama Par ay ana, etc.
The Ancient Hindoo literature contains altogether one
hundred and twenty-six works upon Sanscrit grammar,
ninety-six of which treat only of separate portions of it.
2. Modern Grammars,
Sidharubam, seu Grammatica Samscrdamica, cui ac-
cedit dissertatio historico-critica in linguam Samscr-
damicam, vulgo Samxcret dictani, in qua hujus linguae
existentia, origo, praestantia, antiquitas, extensio, mater-
nitas ostenditur, libri aliqui in ea exarata recensentur,
et simul aliquae antiquissima? gentilium orationes litur-
gicae paucis attinguntur et expjicantur, auctore Fr.
Paulino a S. Bartholomaeo, Romce, 1790, 4to; in Ty-
pogr. congreg. de propag. fide. See Gotting. gel. Anz.
1796, p. 16581664; Nouv. Melanges Asiat. par M.
Abel. Remusat, vol. ii. p. 306.
Vyacarana, seu locupletissima Samscrdamicae linguae
institutio, in usum fidei praeconum in India orientali, et
virorum litteratorum in Europa adornata, a Paulino a
S. Bartholomaeo, Carmelita discalceato, Romce, 1804,
4to. In Typogr. congreg. de propag. fide.
The author of these two grammars was a German,
whose proper name is said to have been Wesdin. He
resided as a missionary on the Malabar coast of India,
from 1776 till 1789, and died at Rome in 1805. An-
quetil du Perron, in the French translation of the
Travels of Fra Paolini, and professor Chezy, in the
Colebrooke.
MODERN GRAMMARS. 25
Moniteur, 1810, No. cxlvi, both question his know-
ledge of the Sanscrit ; and Dr. Leyden calls his manner
coarse, acrimonious, and offensive, and adds, that the
publication of his Vyacarana has given a deathblow
to his vaunted pretensions to profound oriental learn-
ing, and shown that he was incapable of accurately
distinguishing Sanscrit from the vernacular languages
of India P. It is proper, on the other hand, to state
that Paolini himself thankfully acknowledges, in many
passages of his Systema Brahmanicum, the great as-
sistance he had received in his labours from P. Hanxle-
den. But, at all events, it would be a waste of time to
study these three grammars now, when they have been
so entirely superseded by the more modern and well-
established works of English and German scholars;
though they are still curious for the undisguised spite
and hostility which the author takes every occasion of
exhibiting towards the opinions of English Sanscrit
scholars, and particularly the learned contributors to
the Asiatic Researches. The particular character in
which he has chosen to write Sanscrit is a remarkable
proof of his obstinate prejudice ; as are also the dog-
matic, yet groundless assertions, with which he has at-
tempted to support his choice.
A Grammar of the Sungskrit Language, composed
from the works of the most esteemed grammarians ; to
which are added examples for the exercise of the stu-
dents, and a complete list of the dhatoos or roots, by
William Carey, teacher of the Sungscrit, Bengalee,
P See Asiat. Researches, vol. x, p. 278, where proofs are given of his ig-
norance of Sanscrit; and Edin. Review, vol. i, p. 30, in which the same
opinion had been already published. Paolino's work is also reviewed and
criticised in professor Wilson's preface to his Dictionary, in the Gb'tting.
gel. Anz. 1805, No. cxlv ; in the Moniteur, 1810, No. cxlvi; and in
Schlegel's Indischer Bibl. i, p. 9.
26 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
and Mahratta languages, in the college of Fort Wil-
liam, Seramjjoor, printed at the Mission Press, 1806,
2vols. large 4to; Calcutta, 1808, 4to; London, 1813,
4to. This work is compiled from original treatises,
and is highly esteemed. It is reviewed in the Quar-
terly, vol. i, where it is said to be everywhere useful,
laborious, and exact. It is now scarce, and its high
price, seven guineas, is rather against it. Besides this,
as it is principally founded on the grammars called
Mugdabodha, in use in Bengal, it is liable to the ob-
jections, urged above, to the treatise of Vopa deva q .
An Essay on the Principles of Sanscrit Grammar,
with tables of inflections, by H. P. Forster, esq. senior
merchant of the Bengal establishment, Calcutta, 1810,
4to. vol. i. This work has the merit of being the first
written of all the Sanscrit grammars compiled by Eu-
ropeans; it was not, however, published till the year
mentioned. Its continuation was interrupted by the
death of the author, in 1815. There is an ample notice
of this grammar, by Bopp, in the Heidelberg. Jahrb.
1818, No. xxx.
In the year 1810, a Complete Grammar of the San-
scrit Language, by a Catholic missionary at Sira,
was published at Calcutta.
A Grammar of the Sanscrit Language, by H. T.
Colebrooke, esq. vol. i, Calcutta, printed at the Hon.
Company's Press, 1805, fol. ; London, 1815, fol. ; Cal-
cutta, 1825, fol. In his preface to this work the au-
thor gives a catalogue of more than a hundred Sanscrit
works and treatises on grammar.
A Grammar of the Sanskrita Language, by Charles
Wilkins, L. L. D. F. R. S. London, 1808, 4to ; 1813, 4to;
1815, 4to. Wilkins, the author of this grammar, was
i See above p. 22 ; and Edin. Review, vol. xiii, p. 367.
MODERN GRAMMARS. 27
the first European who successfully studied the Sans-
crit language, and the first who introduced its litera-
ture to the acquaintance of the western world. The
Mugdha-bodha, the Sutras of Panini, together with
the works of Bhattoji Dikshita and Ramachandra, as
well as several other native grammarians, have been
consulted in the construction of this work, which in all
quarters has been spoken of with the highest praise.
The author's complete knowledge of the structure of
the Sanscrit has enabled him to discard the technical
terms and arbitrary arrangements of the Indian gram-
marians, unless where these really facilitate the study
to an intelligent European. In short, Mr. Wilkins's
performance seems to unite the appropriate excellences
of a grammar accuracy, conciseness, and perspicuity ;
and may be regarded as the most clear, methodical,
and useful grammar of the Sanscrit language that has
yet appeared'.
Terms of Sanscrit Grammar, with references to Wil-
kins's Grammar, London, 1815, 4to.
Sungskrit Grammar, with examples for the exercise
of the student, London, 1813, 4to.
A Grammar of the Sungskrit Language, on a new
plan, by William Yeates, Calcutta, 1820, 8vo. See
Classical Journal, No. xlvi, p. 413, etc. An unfavour-
able opinion is given of this work in Ind. Bibl. II. i, p.
11, etc. and in the Asiat. Journal, Jan. 1832, p. 18, it
is said that a more jejune and imperfect grammar was
never compiled of a language.
W. S. Majewsky o Slawianach i ich pobratymasch,
Warschau, 1816, 8vo. Part I, on the Sanscrit language,
' See Edin. Review, vol. xiii, p. 366 ; and Quarterly Review, vol. i,
p. 53, where this grammar forms the subject of two interesting essays on
the Sanscrit language. Wilkins's work is also noticed at some length by
Chezy in the Moniteur, 1810, No. cxlvi : see likewise Giitting. gel. Anz.
1815, st. 113.
28 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
a sketch of its grammar, tables of Sanscrit characters,
a brief vocabulary, etc. ; principally taken from Pauli-
nus a S. Bartholomaeo.
Institutiones ad fundamenta veteris Linguae Indica?,
quae Sanscrita dicitur, auctore Em. Fr. Car. Rosen-
miiller, Lipsite, 1818, 4to.
Grammatica Sanscrita, nunc primum in Germania
edidit Othmarus Frank, Wirceburgi et Lipsice, 1823,
4to. with numerous lithographic tables. See Jenaische
Allg. Lit. Zeit. 1827, No. cxcix.
Ausfiihrliches Lehrgebaude der Sanskrita Sprache,
von Friedr. Bopp, Berlin, 1824, large 4to. Erstes
Heft; Zweites Heft, 1825; Drittes Heft, 1827. Of
this work, which is generally spoken of as an excellent
performance, there is a copious review, by Burnouf, fils,
in the Journal Asiatique, Cah. xxxiii, p. 298 814; xxxvi,
p. 359372. See also Erganz. Bl. zur Jen. Allg. Lit.
Zeit. 1826, Nos. xxviii, xxix. This grammar by Bopp,
in the German language, is now out of print and rare;
the first part of it, however, has been republished in a
language which will render it more generally available
to English scholars, among whom it is much recom r
mended, under the following title :
Grammatica Critica Lingua? Sanscritae, a Francisco
Bopp. Fasciculus prior, quo continentur euphoniae
leges una cum declinationis et conjugationis doctrina,
BeroL 1829, 4to. 15s. The remainder of this work
is anxiously looked for. Bopp's grammar, as indeed
is the case generally with German philologists, is bu-
sied too much about the bare form and grammatical
inflections of words, and the philosophy of the lan-
guage, rather than the objects of the language itself;
and on that account, excellent and accurate as it is in
the above respects, it is by no means so inviting to
general students as those grammars which have been
compiled less with a view of exhibiting the abstract
MODERN GRAMMARS. 29
niceties of inflection and construction, than with the
more useful object of enabling the learner to derive
practical information, which is the more legitimate end
of studying languages.
Elements of the Sanscrit Language, or an easy Guide
to the Indian Tongues, by W. Price, London, 1827,
4-to.
Tabulae quaedam ad Orthographiam et Grammati-
cam Linguae Sanscritae spectantes. In Othm. Frankii
Chrestomathia Sanskrita, Monad, 1821, 4to.
Analyse Grammaticale, en Anglais, du commence-
ment de 1'ouvrage Sanscrit, intitule, Hitopadesa, in
4to. vide Catal. de la Bibl. de Mr. Langles, p. 117,
No. 1008.
Under this head must be noticed the following work
by Lebedeff, although it does not enter very deeply
into the Sanscrit :
A Grammar of the Pure and Mixed East Indian Dia-
lects, with Dialogues affixed, spoken in all the Eastern
Countries, methodically arranged at Calcutta, accord-
ing to the Brahmenian system of the Samscrit lan-
guage, comprehending literal explanations of the com-
pound words and circumlocutory phrases, necessary
for the attainment of the idiom of that language, etc.
together with a Samscrit Alphabet ; and several speci-
mens of Oriental poetry published in the Asiatic Re-
searches, by Herasim Lebedeff, London, 1801, 4to s .
Grammatica Granthamica*, seu Samscrdamica. An
extract from the Sidharubam, by a missionary named
See Mithridates, vol. iv, p. 5961. The learned author of the Ueber-
sicht der oriental ischen Literatur im Brittischen Indien, which is inserted
in the Leipz. Lit. Zeitung, 1817, No. Ixxii, pronounces the following judg-
ment upon LebedefFs performance : this volume contains scarcely any-
thing of what its long title promises. See also Asiat. Annual Register,
1802, p. 41 ; and Catal. de la Bibl. de M. Langles, p. 1 17, No. 1009.
1 See the explanation of this word above, p. 7.
30 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Job. Ernst Hanxleden, (f 1732) a manuscript in the
library of the Propaganda at Rome u .
Langles cites in the Catalogue des MSS. Samscrits,
p. 94, Grammaire Samscrite et Latine abregee, suivie
de YAmara Kocha, traduit en Latin en grande partie,
et d'un Dictionnaire des Verbes Samscrits, avec leur
signification egalement en Latin. A manuscript in the
Royal Library at Paris.
Respecting the announcement of a Sanscrit Gram-
mar, by General Boisserolle, of Paris, see below, p. 37.
3. Treatises on Particular Parts of Sanscrit Grammar.
Ueber die Sprache und Weisheit der Indier, von
Fr. Schlegel. In the first section.
Ueber einzelne Theile der Sanskrit-Grammatik, in
Heeren's Ideen, Indier, p. 93, sqq. edit. 1824.
Grammatical Tables, in Othm. Frankii Chrestoma-
thia Sanscrita, Monad, 1820, 4to.
De la Declinaison Sanscrite, in Yadjnadattabada, ou
la Mort de Yadjnadatta, episode extrait du Ramayana,
traduit par A. L. Chezy, Paris, 1826, 4to. ; Preface,
p. xix xxi.
Ueber das Conjugationssystem der Sanskrit Sprache
in Vergleichung mit jenem der griechischen, lateinis-
chen, persischen und germanischen Sprache. Nebst
Episoden des Ramajan und Mahabharat, in genauen
metrischen Uebersetzungen aus dem Originaltexte und
einigen Abschnitten aus den Veda's, von Franz Bopp.
Herausgegeben und mit Vorerinnerurig begleitet von
Dr. Karl Jos. Windischmann, Frankf. a. M. 1816, 8vo.
The same work was published in English by the
author himself, improved and enriched with many ad-
ditions, Lond. 1820, in the first part of the Annals of
u The report spread abroad in the French and German periodicals, that
the celebrated linguist Raske published a newly arranged Sanscrit Gram-
mar, during his abode at .St. Petersburgh in 1820, is without foundation.
TREATISES. 31
Oriental Literature, p. 1 65, under the following title:
Analytical Comparison of the Sanskrit, Greek, Latin,
and Teutonic Languages, showing the original identity
of their grammatical structure. The Persian is here
omitted, but is promised in a larger work : see Getting,
gel. Anz. 1821, St. 54, 55.
De la Conjugaison Sanscrite, in Yadjnadattabada,
trad, par Chezy, Preface, p. xxi xxvi.
Tableau comparatif des Supins Latins et des Infini-
tifs Sanscrits. Par le Compte Lanjuinais, in the Mer-
cure de France, 1814, Juin, p. 490.
Upon the Sanscrit Infinitives in Alex. Murray's His-
tory of the European Languages, Edinb. 1823, vol. ii,
p. 410.
Ueber die in der Sanskritsprache durch Suffixa ge-
bildeten Verbalformen, von Wilh. Freid. von Hum-
boldt ; in A. W. von Schlegel's Ind. Biblioth. I. iv, p.
433467 ; and ii, p. 71134.
Ueber die Prrefixa die Sanskritsprache, in Fr. Bopp's
Ausf. Lehrg. der Sanskrita-Sprache, i, p. 71 83.
On the effect of emphasis on the persons of the sub-
junctive in Sanscrit verbs, in Al. Murray's Hist, of the
Europ. Languages, vol. i, p. 340.
A complete catalogue of the Sanscrit words for the
cardinal and ordinal numbers, will be found in Haugh-
ton's Bengalee Grammar and Chrestomathie, Calcutta,
1825.
Memoire sur la Separation des Mots dans les Textes
Sanscrits, par M. G. de Humboldt, in the Journ. Asiat.
Sept. 1827, No. Ixiii, p. 163172.
Ueber den Dualis in der Sanskrit-Sprache, in Wilh.
v. Humboldt Ueber den Dualis, Berlin, 1828, 4to.
Sur un Usage Remarquable de 1'Infinitif Sanscrit;
par Eugene Burnouf, fils, in the Journ. Asiat. vol. v,
p. 120.
32 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
DICTIONARIES.
FOR information respecting Sanscrit dictionaries and
grammars, see Colebrooke's preface to his edition of
Umuru-Coshu ; Wilson in the introduction to his dic-
tionary ; and J. S. Vater in his Proben deutscher
Volksmundarten u. s. w. s. 172.
1 . On the Primitive Words of the Sanscrit.
A treatise upon Sanscrit primitives, written in this
language itself, in the royal library at Paris, under
the title, Kavi Kalpa Druma, i. e. Plant of the Poet's
Wish, by Bopa Deva, or Vopadeva. See Catalogue des
mss. Sanserifs, p. 78. This Kavikalpadruma is quoted
by Carey in his Sanscrit Grammar.
The number of Sanscrit roots does not amount,
according to Langles, to more than ten thousand :
see Catalogue des mss. Sanserifs, etc. p. 25. Ac-
cording to Rosen, there are only about two thousand
three hundred and fifty, and, if taken strictly, much
less.
Sri Dhatumanyari, by Kasinatha. The Radicals of
the Sanscrita Language (by Charles Wilkins), London,
1815,4to.
Upon the Sanscrit roots see Bopp's Ausfiihrliches
Lehrgebaude der Sanskrita Sprache, i, p. 71 83.
A Dissertation on Sanscrit Roots, by H. G. Forster,
hi his translation of Mugdabodah, a celebrated treatise
on Sanscrit grammar, Calcutta, 1810, 4to.
View of the principal significations of the radical
words in the European languages, and in the Persic and
Sanscrit, in Alex. Murray's History of the European
Languages, Edinburgh, 1823, vol. i, p. 229254.
Corporis Radicum Sanscritarum Prolusio. Auctore
Frid. Rosen, Berolini, 1826, 8vo. Analysed by Eu-
gene Burnouf, fils, in the Journ. Asiat. ix, p. 374.
ANCIENT DICTIONARIES. 33
Radices Sanscritae, illustratas edidit Fridericus
Rosen, Berolini, 1827, large 8vo. A detailed review of
this work, by P. von Bohlen, is to be found in the
Jahrbiichern fur wissenschaftliche Kritik, Berlin, 1828,
No. ix xii.
2. Ancient Dictionaries.
The most ancient Sanscrit dictionary is called
Nama parayana. It is superseded by the Amra cosha
or Ameracasha, the treasure of Amara, a dictionary
in verse, according to the order of subjects, with
numerous commentaries.
From Wilson (Preface to his Dictionary) and W.
Ward (Account of the History of the Hindoos) we
learn that there are, altogether, seventy-six ancient
Sanscrit dictionaries, many of which are as old as the
Amera cosha (see Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, 214),
whose author, Amer-Sinh, or Amara-Singa, the immor-
tal lion, resided at the splendid court of Vicrqmad-
itya. (f 56 B. C. x )
Amarasinha, seu Dictionarii Samscrudamici sectio
I, de Coelo, ex tribus ineditis codicibus Indicis MSS.
curante P. Paulino a S. Bartholomaeo, Carmelita dis-
calceato, LL. Orient, praelectore, missionum Asiati-
carum syndico, etc., Romce, 1798, 4to. Typis congreg.
de propag. fide, xii, and 60 p. Containing only the
first section, concerning God and heaven, with various
passages, or strings of verses.
* See the preface to Wilson's Dictionary.
Bentley (Asiat. Researches, vii, 6, 4to. ; vi, 578, 8vo.) endeavours to
prove that neither Vicramaditya nor Amera Sinha, lived before the tenth or
eleventh century of the Christian era ; but his opinions are examined and
satisfactorily refuted by professor Heeren. At all events he was an eminent
poet, and one of the nine gems (for so these poets were called) who were
the ornament of Vicramaditya's court. From Mr. Colebrooke's note, the
settlement of the century in which he lived is a subject for the investigation
of chronologists. See Asiatic Researches, vol. vii, p. 214, 8vo.
F
34 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
The whole of this dictionary has been since pub-
lished by Colebrooke, under the following title :
Umuru-Coshu, or, a Dictionary of the Sanscrit Lan-
guage, by Umuru-Singhu, with an English Inter-
pretation, Annotations, and Alphabetical Index, by
H. T. Colebrooke, Serampoor, printed at the Mission
Press, 1803, 4to.; 1808, 4to. ; reprinted at London, 181 1,
4to. and again 1813, 4to. in the Deva Nagari character.
This contains about ten thousand roots ; and explains,
in seventeen chapters, the names of the gods, of men,
of the stars, elements, etc y . Table alphabetique pour
VAmara Cosha public par M. Colebrooke, par M. Jules
Klaproth, in his Table alphabetique du Journal Asi-
atique, Paris, 1829, 8vo. p. 105111.
An ample description of the work of Amara-Sinha
will be found in Q. Craufurd's Researches of Ancient
and Modern India, every word of which is taken from
Colebrooke's paper, in Asiatic Researches, vol. vii,
p. 199, so frequently referred to, and in the Cata-
logue des MSS. Sanscrits, p. 2326, where other
manuscript dictionaries are mentioned ; one, for ex-
ample, under the title of Viswa-Prakasa, i. e. the
Enlightened World, by Maheswara. Langles, in the
same work, p. 76, describes also a manuscript com-
mentary upon the Amara-Sinha, by Nayan Ananda
Dewa.
Eleven commentaries upon this great work are men-
tioned by Wilson, in the Preface to his Dictionary,
and four others by Ward, in his Account of the His-
tory, etc. of the Hindoos, vol. ii, p. 474, sqq.
A further account of this work will be found in the
work of Ward just referred to, p. 576 ; in the first
part of the Indischen Bibliothek, p. 12, by A. W. v.
y P. Paulinus holds a different opinion respecting the title and antiquity
of this dictionary from the one at present adopted by English scholars.
ANCIENT DICTIONARIES. 35
Schlegel; and in Colebrooke's paper on the Sanscrit
and Pracrit Languages, in the Asiatic Researches,
vol. vii, 199, and in the preface to his edition
of it
ffema-chandra-Cosha, or, the Vocabulary of Hema-
chandra, Calcutta, 1807, 8vo. 1818, 8vo*.
The Umuru-Koshu, Trikandusheshu, Medinee, and
Haravulee, four original vocabularies, Nagree charac-
ter, printed 1807, at the Shunskrit Press at Khizurpoor
near Calcutta, 8vo.
Four Sanscrit Vocabularies : the Amaracosha, Tri-
cdnda Sesha, Har avail, and Medini Cosa, published
by EL T. Colebrooke, esq. Calcutta, 1818, 8vo.
These five ancient vocabularies, namely*, Hoima,
by Hema Chandra ; Amara Kosha, by Amara-Singa ;
Trikanda-Shesha and Haravali, by Purushottumu, and
Medini b , of which some appear to be abridgements,
and others supplements of the Amera-Cosha, are only
printed in the original language c .
Among the supplements to this Dictionary must
also be reckoned Ecdcshara, a little collection of
monograms, by Purushottumu, whom I have just men-
tioned ; the Dharanicosha, and the vocabularies of
Helaynda Vachespati, and some others.
Amara-Sataka, Ghata Karparam, Sanscrit, Calcutta,
1818, 8vo.
Divirupa- Kosha, a dictionary of homonymes, in
the Devanagari character, is the title of a MS. in the
1 The Cosha of Htmachandra is important for explaining the theological
terms of the Jains, as is the Cosha of Amarasinha for those of the Buddhists.
a The titles here given are taken from Th. Roebuck's Annals of the
College of Fort William, p. 32, 33. See also Catalogue de la Bibl. de M.
Langles, p. 116, No. 1005.
b See Ward, View of the History, Literature, and Mythology of the
Hindoos, vol. i, p. 577.
c See Colebrooke on Sanscrit and Pracrit, in Asiat. Researches, vol. vii,
p. 218, and Wilson's Sanscrit Dictionary, Pref. p. xxvii.
36 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
royal library at Copenhagen; where there is also a
vocabulary in manuscript, inscribed with the title of
Sarasvata; and another by Gacla Sinha Nanartha-
daanimanjari. See Dansk Litter. Tidende for 1819,
p. 124.
3. Modern Dictionaries.
Yayadeva, printed entirely in Sanscrit, at Calcutta,
p. 68, in oblong 8vo. According to Ward (View of
the History, etc. vol. i, p. 584) it is a short treatise for
the explanation of difficult passages and expressions in
ancient writers.
A Catalogue of Indian Plants (419), comprehending
their Sanscrit, and as many of their Linnsean generic
names, as could with any degree of precision be ascer-
tained, by Sir Will. Jones, in the Dissertations relating
to the History and Antiquities of Asia, London, 1798,
vol. iv, p. 234238. See also his Works, vol. ii,
p. 39, 4to. edit.
Fleming's Catalogue of Indian Medicinal Plants and
Drugs, with their Names in the Hindustani and
Sanscrit Languages, Calcutta, 1825, 8vo.
Dictionary of Mohammedan Law, Bengal Revenue
Terms, Sanscrit, Hindoo, and other words used in the
East Indies, with full explanations, by S. Rousseau,
London, 1802, Svo.
Sanscrit and Hindoo Dictionary, by S. Rousseau,
London, 1812, 4to.
A Dictionary, Sanscrit and English, translated,
amended, and enlarged, from an original compilation,
prepared by learned natives for the college of Fort
William, by Horace Hayman Wilson, secretary of the
Asiatic Society, Calcutta, 1819, 4to. d . This, as the
rl A greatly improved and enlarged edition of Wilson's Dictionary is
now in the press, and was expected to be out by the end of the past year.
MODERN DICTIONARIES. 37
title expresses, is rather a condensation of the best
ancient dictionaries than an original work. It is com-
piled by Raghumani Bhatta Charya, and corrected,
arranged, and translated into English by Wilson. See
Bopp's Review of this dictionary, in the Getting. Gel.
Anz. 1821, St. 36, and Indische Bibliothek, von
A. W. v. Schlegel, i, 3, s. 295364, ii, 1, s. 211.
A Sungscrit Vocabulary, containing the nouns,
adjectives, verbs, and indeclinable particles, most fre-
quently occurring in the Sungscrit language, arranged
in a grammatical order, with an explanation in Ben-
galee and English/by William Yates, Calcutta, 1820,
8vo. Table alphabetique pour le Vocabulaire Sanscrit
de M. Yates, par M. Jules Klaproth, in his Table
alphabetique du Journal Asiatique, Paris, 1829, Svo.
p. 112135.
Sabda Kalpa Druma, a Sanscrit Dictionary, by
Rada Canta Deb, of which the first part was pub-
lished, Calcutta, 1828. See Asiat. Journ. xxv, 497.
San sifan man meng han sti yao, ou Recueil neces-
saire de Mots Sanscrits, Tangutains, Mandshous,
Mongols, par M. Abel Remusat. From a Polyglott
Dictionary written in China. In the Fundgruben des
Orients, torn, iv, 3, 183.
VocabulariumMalabarico-Samscrdamico-Lusitanum,
auctore P. Joan. Em. Hanxleden, a manuscript in the
library of the Propaganda at Rome.
Anquetil du Perron left also a Sanscrit Dictionary in
manuscript, in his own hand writing, and in a fit state
for the press, large folio. See Magasin Encyclop.
An v, vol. i, p. 241.
The Royal Asiatic Society of London possesses also
a Sanscrit Dictionary, compiled in modern times,
which bears the name of Sabda Calpa Druma, with
Professor Wilson has also the materials for a Sanscrit Dictionary, arranged
upon etymological principles. See Memorial to Convocation.
38 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
the words explained in Bengalee. See Asiat. Journ.
1828, April, p. 481.
An Original Dictionary, Sanscrit and English, by
Alex. Hamilton, is mentioned among the manuscripts
in the Oriental catalogue of Howell and Steward, 1827,
Suppl. p. 102, No. 4433. In the Journal Asiat. May,
1825, p. 319, general Boisserole announces his inten-
tion to publish a grammar and dictionary of the
Sanscrit language, for which new types were already
cut, of which he gives a very handsome specimen. So
far as I know, however, no portion of the work has yet
appeared.
Glossarium Sanscritum, auct. Fr. Bopp, Fascic. i,
Berolini, 1829, 4to.
COMPARISON OF THE SANSCRIT WITH OTHER
LANGUAGES.
THE great number of languages which are said to owe
their origin, or bear a close affinity to the Sanscrit, is
truly astonishing, and is another proof of its high
antiquity f . A German writer has asserted it to be
the parent of upwards of a hundred languages and
f After all, the literary world seem much divided respecting the high
antiquity of Hindoo learning. Tennemann says, " Writers who have
entered deeply into the study of history, with a view to its bearing on
theology, have declared the Hebrews to be the primitive race ; others, the
Egyptians ; and lastly, both these have been displaced by the Hindoos."
This opinion, which is supported by Fred. Schlegel, is learnedly and
forcibly combatted by Hitter, who has devoted a chapter of his History of
Philosophy to the examination of this subject. Those who consult it will
not be disappointed ; as in it he has condensed, with much ability, all that
could be gathered on the subject, and placed it before the reader in an
elegant and attractive form. It has been published since the work of
Adelung. See Tenneman's Manual of the History of Philosophy, trans-
lated by the Rev. Arthur Johnson, Oxford, 1832, 8vo. Schlegel (Fred.)
Ueber Sprache u. s. a. der Indier ; and, Geschichte der Philosophic, von
Dr. Heinrich Ritter, Hamb. 1829, 8vo. vol. i, p. 58137.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 39
dialects ; among which he enumerates twelve Indian,
seven Median-Persic, two Arnautic-Albanian, seven
Greek, eighteen Latin, fourteen Sclavonian, and six
Celtic-Gallics. It seems a remarkable fact, that the
various theories in which learned men have latterly
so much indulged respecting the origin and affinities
of languages, all tend to confirm this statement ; for,
however widely they may be opposed to one another
in the results of their speculations, they nearly all fix
upon the Sanscrit as the basis of some part of their
argument ; thus all tacitly acknowledging the an-
tiquity and influence of that language. The various
vocabularies which we now possess, and the results of
the laborious and learned investigations which the
next few pages will detail, render it pretty evident,
that the Sanscrit has not only furnished words for all
the languages of Europe, but forms a main feature in
almost all those of the East. A host of writers have
made it the immediate parent of the Greek, and Latin,
and German families of languages ; or regarded some
of these as descended from it through a language now
extinct 11 . With the Persian and Zend it has been
almost identified by Sir William Jones and others.
Halhed notices the similitude of Sanscrit and Arabic
words; and this not merely in technical and meta-
phorical terms, but in the main groundwork of lan-
guage 1 . In a contrary direction the Indo-Chinese,
and other dialects in that quarter, all seem to be
closely allied to it. One original language seems, in a
very remote period, to have pervaded the whole
Indian archipelago, and to have spread toward Mada-
gascar on one side, and the islands in the South-sea
? Rudiger, in Neuern Geschichte der Evangelischen Missions- Anstalten,
st. 66, s. 59.
"' See above, p. 3.
' Preface to his Grammar of the Bengal Language.
40 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
on the other ; but in proportion," adds the historian
from whom I borrow this remark, " as we find any
of these tribes more highly advanced in the arts of
civilised life than others, in nearly the same propor-
tion do we find the language enriched by a cor-
responding accession of Sanscrit terms, directing us
at once to the source whence civilisation flowed towards
these regions' 1 ."
Further information on this subject will be found in
the following works :
Researches into the Origin and Affinity of the
principal Languages of Asia and Europe, by Lieut.
Col. Vans Kennedy, London, 1824, 8vo. See an able
review of this work in Asiatic Journal, January, 1832,
p. 1, etc; in which much information will be found on
this subject.
The Eastern Origin of the Celtic Nations proved by
a Comparison of their Dialects with the Sanscrit, Greek,
Latin, and Teutonic Languages, by James Cowles
Prichard, M.D. F. R. S. etc., Oxford, 1881, 8vo.
Ueber die Uebereinkunft des Sanskrits mit den
Worten anderer alten Sprachen, see Adelung, Mithri-
dates, vol. i, p. 149, etc.
A comparison of the Indian words found in ancient
writers, in Hadr. Relandi Diss. Miscell. (de veteri
lingua' Indica), Traj. ad Rhen. 1706, 8vo. torn, i,
p. 757, vol. iv, p. 424.
Synglosse Indo-Europeenne par M. Eichhoff, Paris,
1829, containing a comparison of the principal lan-
guages of Europe with one another, and with the
Sanscrit.
1. With the Indian Languages.
La Croze quotes, in his Hist, du Christ, des Indes,
k Raffles's Hist, of Java, vol. ii, p. 369.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 41
torn, ii, p. 303, a Tamulic work of the twelfth century,
Divagarum l , in which is said to be proved the deriva-
tion of all the other Indian languages from the San-
scrit.
Plan of a Comparative Vocabulary of Indian Lan-
guages, by Sir James Mackintosh, in the Transac-
tions of the Literary Society of Bombay, London,
1819, 4to. vol. i, p. 297.
Familienverwandtschaft der indischen Sprachen,
von. G. Blumhardt, Nurnberg, 1819, 8vo.
Affinity of the Sanscrit with the Prakrit, Pali, and
Zend, in which is described the most holy books of
the Jains, by Dr. Leyden, in Asiatic Researches, vol.
x, p. 279 ; and in Essai sur le Pali, etc. par E.
Burnouf et Chr. Lassen, Paris, 1826, 8vo m .
Ivar Abel Symphona symphona, seu XI Ling. Orient,
discors exhibita concordia, Tamulicas videlicet, Gran-
1 See above, p. 8.
m These three dialects, the Prakrit, the Pali, and the Zend, are probably
the most ancient derivatives from the Sanscrit. The great mass of voca-
bles in all the three, and even the forms of inflection, both in verbs and
nouns, are derived from the Sanscrit. The Pali alphabet seems to be
derived from the Devanagari. Leyden's Essay, as above. Again, professor
Wilson observes, " There is one question of some interest attaching to the
construction of the Prakrit, which seems to merit a fuller enquiry than
has yet been given to it ; namely, Does it represent a dialect that was
ever spoken ; or is it an artificial modification of the Sanscrit language,
devised to adapt the latter to peculiar branches of literature 1 The latter,"
he continues, " seems the most likely." There certainly appears something
very mysterious about these languages. If the Prakrit be no more than
a modification of the Sanscrit, why may not the Sanscrit be a device, or
the modification of some other ancient language ? Why, indeed, may not
the round assertion of a recent critic be true, who affirms that this lan-
guage never could have been spoken, and that it is a fabrication from begin-
ning to end ? See Wilson's Preface to his Hindoo Theatre, p. 70; and
Theological Review, vol. v, p. 360. This opinion, however, is forcibly
combatted by Heeren, in his Researches on the Indians; who acutely
remarks, that it is not very easy to define what is meant by inventing a
language ; and asks how it is possible for any literature to be fully deve-
loped unless through the medium of vernacular speech.
G
42 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
thamicae, Telugicae, Samscrutamicce, Marathicae, Bala-
bandicae, Canaricae, Hindostanicae, Cuncanicae, Guzur-
raticae, et Peguanicae non characteristicae, quibus ut
explicativo-harmoifica adjuncta est Latina, Hafnice,
1782, 8vo.
History and Languages of the Indian Islands, in
Edinburgh Review, vol. v, 23.
Ueber die Verzweigungen der indischen Sprachen
mit dem Sanskrit in einer systematischen Aufzahlung
derjenigen Sprachen, welche in Vorderund Hinter-
Indien und in den anstossenden Landern gesprochen
werden, von Joseph von Hammer, in the Wiener
Jahrbiichern der Literatur, 1818, vol. ii, p. 276290.
The affinity of the Sanscrit to several Indian dialects
and kindred languages, is also shown by M. Wilhelm
Palmblad, in his essays on the origin of the Hindoos,
in the Swedish Journal, Svea, fur Wissenschaft und
Kunst, Upsala, 1819, vol. ii, p. 1168.
Fundgruben des Orients, vol. i, p. 459, 460.
Franz Alter's treatise, already quoted, upon the
Sanscrit language.
Concerning the influence of the Sanscrit upon all
the languages of the East Indian archipelago, see
Crawford's History of the Indian Archipelago, Edin-
burgh, 1820, 8vo. vol. ii, p. 71, and Raffles's Java,
vol. ii, 369.
Concerning the Sanscrit and its connection with
the East Indian languages which have sprung from
it, in Vater's Proben deutscher Volksmundarten
u. s. w. p. 169194.
Elucidation of the Hindoo family of languages de-
scended from the Sanscrit, in Carl Ritter's Erdkunde
im Verhaltnisse zur Natur und zur Geschichte des
Menschen u. s. w. Berlin, 1817, 8vo. Anhang, p. 800.
Q. Craufurd's Researches on Ancient and Modern
India, vol. ii, p. 182, 183, 190, 236238.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 43
t
Indian, and the languages related to the Sanscrit, in
Asia Polyglotta von Julius Klaproth, p. 53, 387
415.
I
2. With the Bohemian or Gypsy Language.
Mithridates von J. C. Adelung, Th. i, p. 244.
3. With the Zend.
Paulini a Bartholomseo Diss. de Antiquitate et Affi-
nitate Linguarum Zendicae, Samscritanicse, et Ger-
manicae, Padovce, 1798, 4to. Two hundred Zend and
sixty German words are here compared with the
Sanscrit.
The affinity of the Sanscrit to the Zend, by Dr.
Leyden, in Asiatic Researches, vol. x, p. 279.
Investigation of the affinity which the Sanscrit bears
to the Zend, in Link's Urwelt, p. 162172.
4. With the Persian.
Halhed in the preface to his Grammar of the Bengal
Language.
A Dictionary or Vocabulary of those words in Per-
sian which are derived from, or have Synonymes in the
Sanscrit. A manuscript in the Supplement to Howell
and Stewart's Oriental Catalogue for 1827, London,
p. 101 ".
De Affinitate qua Lingua Sanscrdamica cum ea
Persarum ita conjuncta est, ut potius ab hac ilia, quam
ab ilia hasc naturali ordine sit derivanda, in Othm.
Frankii Comment, de Persidis Lingua et Genio.
Comparaison du Persan avec le Samskrit, in the
Tableaux Synoptiques, ou Mots similaires qui se
n It is described as a small thick folio, veiy neatly and plainly written ;
and is priced at 11. 7s.
44 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
trouvent dans les langues Persane, Samskrite, Grecque,
etc., par H. A. le Pileur, Leyde, 1814, 8vo. p. 40.
Franz Bopp iiber das Conjugationssystem der Sam-
skritsprache, p. 116 136.
Concerning the Sanscrit language and its affinity to
the Persian, in J. S. Vater's Proben deutscher Volks-
mundarten u. s. w. p. 169.
On the identity of the Persian and Sanscrit lan-
guages, in Alex. Murray's History of the European
Languages, vol. ii, p. 379 ; and, concerning the light
which the Sanscrit throws upon the structure of
Persian words, in the same, p. 418.
Letters on India, by Maria Graham, London,
1817, 8vo.
Commentatio de Adfinitate priscae Indorum Linguae,
quam Sanscritam dicunt, cum Persarum, Graecorum,
Romanorum, atque Germanorum Sermone, P. i, Vin-
dobonce, 1827, 4to. See Jenaische Allg. Lit. Zeit.
1827, No. 199.
5. With the Chinese.
The Chinese letters and language compared with
the Sanscrit, in a Dissertation on the Character and
Sounds of the Chinese Language, etc. by J. Marsh-
man, Serampoor, 1809, 4to., and also in Quarterly
Review, vol. v, p. 393, etc. See also vol. xv, p. 367,
etc.
6. With the Arabic.
See Halhed's preface to his Grammar of the Bengal
Language, 1778, 4to.
Many Hebrew and Arabic words are compared with
the Sanscrit, Malay, Mahratta, Turkish, Tartaric, Chi-
nese, etc., by Math. Norberg, in his Vater-Unser in
den Sprachen Asiens in Nova Acta Reg. Societ. Scien-
tiar. Upsal. vol. ix, p. 207, etc. Only the beginning,
COMPARISON WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 45
however, of Norberg's work has appeared, death hav-
ing put an end to his labours.
7. With the Greek.
Sir William Jones says, (Asiat. Research, vol. i,
p. 422,) " The Sanscrit language, whatever may be its
antiquity, is of a wonderful structure; more perfect than
the Greek, more copious than the Latin, and more ex-
quisitely refined than either; yet bearing to both of
them a stronger affinity, both in the roots of verbs and
in the forms of grammar, than could have been pro-
duced by accident ; so strong, that no philologer could
examine all the three, without believing them to be
sprung from one common source, which perhaps no
longer exists." The Rev. Dr. Browne observes, in a
letter inserted in the Reports of the Bible Society,
" The Sanscrit answers to Greek, as face answers face
in a glass. The translation into it of the New Testa-
ment will be perfect, while it will be almost verbal : it
will be published with the Greek on the opposite page,
as soon as we can procure Greek types. You will find
the verb in the corresponding mood and tense; the noun
and adjective in the corresponding case and gender:
the idiom and government are the same; where the
Greek is absolute so is the Sanscrit ; and, in many in-
stances, the primitives or roots are the same." See Ap-
pendix to Barker's edition of Cicero de Senectute,
Valpy, 1811, p. xcviii.
Connection between the Sanscrit and Greek, Asiat.
Journal, 1830, vol. i, p. 325.
On the grammatical analogy which subsists be-
tween the Sanscrit, the Latin, and the Greek, in Phi-
lological Conjectures, by Dr. Wait, in Asiat. Journ.
May, 1830, p. 15.
Resemblances of the Sanscrit, Greek, and Roman
Numerals, in Asiat. Journ. iv, 117.
46 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
A comparison of the Sanscrit with the Greek, in
Prichard's Eastern Origin of the Celtic Nations.
Sur les Rapports entre le Sanskrit et le Grec et le
Latin, tant pour la Construction Grammaticale que pour
les Mots. In the correspondence of Barthelemy An-
quetil with the missionary P. Cceurdoux. See Me-
moires de 1' Academic des Inscr. torn, xlix, p. 647
712. As a Supplement to Anquetil's treatise upon the
Ganges of the ancients.
Halhed, in the preface to his Bengal Grammar.
A parallel between the Greek, Latin, and Sanskrita
languages, in the Classical Journal, No. xii, p. 375
384; No. xvii, p. 219222; and Suppl. to No. xviii,
p. 528538.
Franz. Bopp iiber das Conjugationssystem der San-
skritsprache, p. 61, etc. This author's investigations of
the affinity of the Sanscrit with the Greek, which he
first began in this work, were much amplified in the
Vergleichenden Zergliederung des Sanskrit und der
damit verwandten Sprachen, Erster Versuch, printed
among the treatises of the Berlin Academy of Sciences,
Wiss. 1824, 4to. In English, Analytical Comparison
of the Sanskrit, Latin, and Teutonic Languages, show-
ing the original identity of their grammatical structure,
printed in the Annals of Oriental Literature, P. i,
p. 1 65, reviewed by Burnouf, fils, in the Journal
Asiat. P. vi, p. 52, et 113.
De usu linguae Brachmanum sacrae in causis linguae
Graecae et Latinae indagandis, Programma, auctore
A. W. de Schlegel, Bonn, 1819, 4to.
A parallel between the Greek, Latin, Celtic, and
Sanscrit, in Alex. Murray's History of the European
Languages, Edinburgh, 1823, vol. i, p. 149; vol. ii,
p. 228. In German, Zum Europaischen Sprachenbau,
oder Forschungen iiber die Verwandtschaft der Teu-
tonen, Griechen, Celten, Slaven, und Juden. Nach
COMPARISON "WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 47
A. Murray bearbeitet von A. Wagner, Leipzig, 1826,
2 Bde. 8vo.
Comparison of the Sanscrit with the Greek, in A. W.
v. Schlegel's Indischer Bibl. ii, 3, p. 285.
Commentatio de Adfinitate priscae Indorum Linguae,
quam Sanscritam dicunt, cum Persarum, Graecorum,
Romanorum, atque Germanorum Sermone, P. i, Vin-
dobonce, 1827, 4to.
Affinity of the Sanscrit and Greek languages, in the
third volume of the Elements of the Philosophy of
the Human Mind, by Dugald Stewart, Edinburgh,
1827.
Beitrage zur allgemeinen vergleichenden Sprach-
kimcle, von G. C. F. Lisch, Berlin, 1826, 8vo.; Erstes
Heft, p. 6, sqq.
Ursprachlehre von Schmithenner, Frankf, a. M.
1826, 8vo.
8. With the Latin.
Halhed, in the preface to his Bengal Grammar.
Sir William Jones says, in the Preliminary Discourse
to his translation of the Sakontala, " I began with
translating it verbally into Latin, which bears so great
resemblance to the Sanscrit, that it is more convenient
than any other modern language for a scrupulous inter-
lineary version." See also above, p. 45.
Fr. Paulini a S^ Bartholomaeo Diss. de Latini Ser-
monis Origine et cum Orientalibus connexione, Romce,
1802, 4to. Contains only fifty-five Sanscrit words
bearing affinity to the Latin.
Fr. Schlegel, in his treatise, Ueber die Weisheit und
Sprache der Indier.
On the analogy of the Sanscrit with the Latin and
other languages, in the Edinburgh Review, vol. xiv,
p. 272.
48 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
On the conformity of the Latin and Sanskrita Lan-
guages, in the Edinburgh Review, 1811, Aug. No.
xxx vi, p. 345.
In Tableau Comparatif, quoted above, p. 31, of
Count Lanjuinais.
In the correspondence of Barthelemy, mentioned
above.
A parallel between the Latin, Greek, and Sanskrita
Languages, in the Classical Journal, Nos. xii, xvii,
xviii.
Fr. Bopp iiber das Conjugationssystem der Sanskrit-
sprache, p. 88 155; and his Analytical Comparison of
the Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, and Teutonic Languages,
in the Annals of Oriental Literature, P. I, p. 1 G5.
A comparison of the Sanscrit with the Latin, in
Prichard's Eastern Origin of the Celtic Nations.
On the Sanscrit and its affinity to the Latin, Per-
sian, and German, J. S. Vater, in Proben deutscher
Volksmundarten u. s. w. p. 169.
Letters on India, by Maria Graham, London, 1817,
8vo.
In the first section of Observations sur la Ressem-
blance frappante que Ton decouvre entre la Langue
des Russes et celle des Remains, Milan, 1817, 8vo.
In the preface to Fr. Bopp's Nalus, carmen Sans-
critum, Londini, 1819, 8vo.
On the grammatical analogies between the Sanscrit,
the Latin, etc., by Dr. Wait, see above, p. 45.
A parallel between the Greek, Latin, Celtic, and
Sanscrit, in Alex. Murray's History of the European
Languages, vol. i, p. 149.
Commentatio de Adfinitate priscae Indorum Lingua?,
quam Sanscritam dicunt, cum Persarum, Graecorum,
Romanorum, atque Germanorum Sermone, Pars i,
Vindobona, 1817, 4to.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 49
9. With the Celtic.
Prichard's (Dr.) Eastern Origin of the Celtic Na-
tions, proved by a Comparison of their Dialects with
the Sanscrit, Greek, Latin, and Teutonic languages,
Oxford, 1831, 8vo. A work which will be found very
satisfactory on this subject.
Coincidences of the Sanscrit with the Gaelic, in
Hermes Scythicus ; or the Radical Affinities of the
Greek and Latin Languages, with the Gothic, etc., by
John Jamieson, D. D. F. R. S. etc. Edin. 1814, Svo.
p. 218, etc.
They are also compared in Recueil de Monumens
Antiques, la plupart inedits, et decouverts dans 1'An-
cienne Gaule, etc. par Grivaud de la Vincelle, Paris,
1817, 4to. parti, p. 124.
A parallel between the Greek, Latin, Celtic, and
Sanscrit, in Alex. Murray's History of the European
Languages, vol. i, p. 149.
10. With the Irish or Erse, Welsh, Sfc.
The similarity between the Irish and the Sanscrit is
very striking, and deserves further research, as is ob-
served in Unterhaltungsblattern fiir Welt und Mens-
chendkunde, 1825, No. xxxvii, p. 617 ; in the Journey
through Ireland in the year 1818, which is there
inserted .
This has been done with great research, and, as I am informed by
one well qualified to judge, with great ability, by Dr. Prichard in his
Eastern Origin of the Celtic Nations. In this work the Sanscrit is not
only compared with the Erse, or old Irish, and Welsh, but also with the
other surviving dialects of the Celtic, namely, the Cornish, the Armorican,
the Gjelic, and the Manks. Further information on this subject may be
found in Valiancy's Prospectus of a Dictionary of the Language of the
the Airecoti, or Ancient Irish, compared with the language of the
Cuti or Ancient Persians, with the Hindostanee, the Arabic, and Chal-
dean languages : with a Preface, containing an Epitome of the Ancient
H
50 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
11. With the Gothic.
Franz Bopp iiber das Conjugationssystem der Sans-
kritsprache, p. 116 157; and in his Analytical Com-
parison, see above, p. 46,
12. With the German.
Paul, a S. Bartholomaeo de Antiquitate et Affinitate
Linguarum Zendicae, Samskritanicae, et Germanicae,
Padovce, 1798, 4-to. Only sixty words are here com-
pared with the Sanscrit.
Fr. Bopp iiber das Conjugationssystem der Sanskrit-
sprache, p. 116 157; and in his Analytical Compari-
son in the Annals of Oriental Literature, P. i, p. 1 65.
Ueber das Sanskrit und seine Verhaltnisse zum
Germanischen, von J. S. Vater, in his Proben deutcher
Volksmundarten u. s. w. p. 169.
On the identity of the Sanscrit with the Teutonic,
in Alex. Murray's History of the European Languages,
vol. ii, p. 228 ; in German, by A. Wagner, Leipzig,
1826, 2 Bde. 8vo.
Commentatio de Adfinitate priscse Indorum Linguae,
quam Sanscritam dicunt, cum Persarum, Graecorum,
Romanorum, atque Germanorum Sermone, Pars i,
Vmdobonce, 1827, 4to.
Ursprachlehre. Entwurf zu einem System der Gram-
matik mit besonderer Riicksicht auf die Sprachen des
indisch-deutschen Stammes : das Sanskrit, das Per-
sische, die Pelasgischen, Slavischen, und Deutschen
Sprachen, von Friedr. Schmitthenner, Frank/, a. M.
1826, 8vo.
History of Ireland, corroborated by late discoveries in the Puranas of the
Brahmins, and by our learned countrymen in the East, etc. Dublin, 1803,
4to. See also his Collectanea de Rebus Hibernicis. Dublin, 1786,
etc., 6 vols. 8vo., and his Grammmar of the Iberno-celtic or Irish Lan-
guage, etc. Dublin, 1773, 4to.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER LANGUAGES. 51
Letters on India by Mrs, Graham; Edinburgh
Review, xiii, 272; Prichard's Eastern Origin of the
Celtic Nations ; Kennedy's Researches into the Origin
and Affinity of the principal Nations of Europe.
Origin and Affinity of the Languages of Asia and
Europe, in Asiat. Journ. 1832, p. 1.
13. With the Scandinavian Languages.
Tableau des Peuples qui habitent 1'Europe, etc.,
par Fred. Schoell, second edition, p. 14.
On the affinity of the Sanscrit and Scandinavian
languages, in La Scandinavie veng6e de 1'Accusation
d'avoir produit les Peuples barbares, qui detruisirent
1'empire de Rome, par M. Graberg de Hemso, Lyons,
1822, 8vo.
Undersogelse om det gamle Nordise eller Islandske
Sprogs Oprindelse, forfattet af R. K. Rask, Kjoben-
haven, 1818, 4to.
Magnussen in the Index to the twelfth part of his
Edda, Copenhagen, 1818, 4to.
14. With the Sclavonic Languages.
Aweiar's Kalwiorhuckam, oder Sittenspriiche aus
Tamulischen Palmblattern, mit Bemerkungen iiber
indische Gelehrsamkeit, von J. C. C. Rudiger, Halle,
1791, p. 26.
De lingua Rossica ex eadem cum Samscrdamica
matre orientali prognata: adjectae sunt observationes
de ejusdem linguae cum aliis cognatione, et de primis
Russorum sedibus, auctore Conr. Gottl. Anton, Vi-
tembergce, 1810, 4to.
Rapports entre la Langue Sanscrit et la Langue
Russe. Presentes a 1' Academic Imperiale Russe, par
Fred. Adelung, St. Petersbourg, 1811, 4to. ; trans-
lated into Russian, by Paul v. Friedgang. The intro-
52 SANSCRIT LITERATURE. .
duction has been reprinted word for word by Millin,
in the Magasin Encyclop. 1813, Nov., and by Langles,
in the Mercure Etranger, No. xv p .
Etymologies Slavonnes tirees du Sanscrit, by count
T. Golowkin, in Fundgruben des Orients, vol. i, p. 459.
A table of two hundred words bearing some re-
semblance in sound and meaning in the Sanscrit and
Sclavonic languages, by A. v. Mihanovich, in the
Archiv fiir Geschichte, Geographic u. s. w. von Freih.
v. Hormayr, 1823, No. 66, 67, and 71. It has also
been printed separately.
Comparison of words alike in the Sanscrit and
Sclavonic, in Alex. Murray's History of the European
Languages, vol. ii, p. 346.
W. S. Majewski o Slavianach i ich probratymsach,
Warschau, 1816, 8vo. p. 166 180. The comparison
is made more particularly with the Polish language.
Comparison of the Sanscrit with the Sclavonian
Dialects, etc., by Bopp, in his Vergleichenden Zer-
gliederung des Sanskrits und der mit ihm verwandten
Sprachen, Erster Versuch.
Professor Bohlen read a public lecture in German,
in 1828, before the Royal German Society of Konigs-
berg, upon the affinity between the Lithuanian and
Sanscrit languages.
Pastor Carl Fried. Watson of Courland has noticed
a great similarity between the grammatical forms of
the Lettish and Sanscrit q .
15. With various other Languages.
Observations sur les Rapports grammaticaux de la
P It was for some time doubted whether Adelung was the author of this
little work or not ,- he, however, has now acknowledged it, and also his
obligations to M. Julius Klaproth for his assistance in its compilation.
i The early death of this amiable scholar has interrupted his more ex-
tensive labours upon this subject, which had been announced.
CHRESTOMATHIES. 53
Langue Sanskrite avec la plupart des Langues modernes
de 1'Europe, par M. Eichhoff. This treatise was pre-
sented by the author to the Asiatic Society at Paris.
See Rapport de la Societe Asiatique, Paris, 1828,
8vo. p. 8.
Friedr. Schlegel (Sprache und Weishiet der Indier,
p. 58) discovers a resemblance between the language
of Peru and the Sanscrit, and particularly in the
words which he considers as roots of the ancient
language of the Incas, who are said to have emigrated
from the regions eastward of China.
On the occurrence of Sanscrit words in the Hebrew,
Phoenician, etc. see Indien in s. Hauptbeziehungen,
von A. W. v. Schlegel, in the Berlin Taschenbuch fiir
1829, p. 5. Dr. Hale makes this language a dialect
of the ancient Syriac. See Analysis of Chronol. vol. i,
p. 421.
Dictionnaire Hindoustani, dans lequel on rectifie un
grand nombre d'erreurs repandues en Europe sur la
Religion, les Mceurs, les Usages, et les Connaissances
des Hindous ; precede d'une Grammaire, et d'un
Recueil d'Etymologies Indiennes, contenant plus de
mille Mots Europeens dont Vorigine remonte jusquau
Sanskrit, ou autres Langues de 1'Inde, par J. Morenas,
Paris, 1826, 3 vols. 8vo. Such was the ample pro-
spectus of a work which probably will never see the
light.
CHRESTOMATHIES.
Chrestomathia Sanscrita, quam ex codicibus manu-
scriptis, adhuc ineditis, Londini exscripsit, atque in
usum tironum versione, expositione, tabulis gramma-
ticis, etc. illustratam edidit Othmarus Frank, philos.
prof. Monachii, typographice ac lithographice sumtibus
propriis, 1820, 4to; pars secunda, ibid. 1821. See
54 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Annals of Oriental Literature, part iii, p. 558 562;
Getting, gel. Anz. 1820, p. 210; Hall. Allg. Lit. Zeit.
1821, No. ccxxxiii, ccxxxiv; A. W. v. Schlegel's Ind.
Bibl, ii, 1, p. 20, etc. A work much recommended.
PROVERBS.
A collection of Proverbs in various languages, Ben-
galee, Sanscrit, Arabic, Persian, Latin, and English,
under the title of Bhoodursun, edited by Neelrutten
Huldar, Calcutta, 1826.
Persian and Hindoostanee Proverbs, compiled by
Capt. Roebuck, edited by H. H. Wilson, Calcutta,
1824, 2 vols. 8vo. The second volume contains two
hundred and seventy-four proverbs, a great many of
which are borrowed from the Sanscrit.
ANCIENT INSCRIPTIONS AND BOOKS IN THE
SANSCRIT LANGUAGE.
THE remains of the ancient Sanscrit language con-
sist of inscriptions, which are considered to exhibit it
in its purest and most genuine form, and of books.
The following works give the best information with
regard to both these subjects.
1. Inscriptions.
These are not only of importance as exhibiting the
form of this language at an early date, but as serving
to elucidate the history of India. Their utilty in both
these respects has been duly appreciated by the
learned and indefatigable orientalist Mr. Colebrooke ;
who was one of the first to call the attention of the
literary public to this important branch of Indian
antiquity in his dissertation,
On Ancient Monuments containing Sanscrit Inscrip-
INSCRIPTIONS. 55
tions, by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., published in the
Asiatic Researches, vol. ix, p. 398, containing an
account of nine inscriptions ; with plates of the original
Sanscrit, and translations.
Some account of these also will be found in Heeren's
Researches upon India, an English translation of
which is now in the press.
The monuments of this sort are either inscriptions
upon temples, grottos, and single stones ; or engraven
upon copperplates, and containing grants of land, pri-
vileges, diplomas, etc. See Getting, gel. Anz. 1819,
St. 107.
The following are the most remarkable of these
inscriptions :
Among the most ancient are two inscriptions dis-
covered in a cave, or temple-grotto, near Gya in the
Vindya mountains. They were deciphered and trans-
lated by Mr. Wilkins, in the Asiatic Researches,
vol. i, p. 279; ii, 168, who states that the language is
pure Sanscrit, but that the character is the most
ancient he had met with, and even differed materially
from that found in inscriptions eighteen hundred
years old.
Account of Ancient Hindoo Remains, by R. Jen-
kins, with Translations and Observations by H. H.
Wilson.
These consist of three copperplates, united by a
ring of the same metal, with a seal embossed ; and of
an inscription which records the grant of some lands
by Tivara Deva, king of Korsala, to certain Brah-
mins. Professor Wilson, in his observations, remarks,
that " the copperplates furnish specimens of a charac-
ter which has not yet found a place amongst the
varieties of monumental writing in India, hitherto
offered to the public. This character was unknown
to the Brahmins of the place, and equally unintelligible
56 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
to the pandits of Calcutta ; but were deciphered by a
Jain of great respectability and learning, who had
belonged to the establishment of the late colonel Mac-
kenzie." Professor Wilson concludes by saying, that
" a comparison of these inscriptions with those which
remain to be deciphered in the province of Chatsisgerh
(of which a list is given), seems calculated to illustrate
the political and religious history of that part of India,
in the eighth and ninth centuries : information that
cannot but be acceptable in the utter gloom which
envelopes almost the whole of Hindoostan history,
anterior to the Mohammedan invasion." See Asiatic
Researches, vol. xv, p. 499 515.
An inscription on a pillar near Buddal, consisting
of twenty-eight Sanscrit verses, translated by Charles
Wilkins, esq., in the Asiatic Researches, vol. i, p. 131,
8vo. edition. The last ten verses have been trans-
lated into German, by Jos. von Hammer, in the Wiener
Jahrbiichern der Literatur, 1818, vol. ii, p. 335.
Sanscrit Inscriptions, by the late captain E. Fell;
with observations, by H. H. Wilson, esq., Sec. As. S,
in Asiatic Researches, vol. xv, p. 437, sqq. These
consist of various inscriptions, described and trans-
lated by captain Fell, and followed by historical re-
marks by Mr. Wilson, the present professor of San-
scrit. The first was found at Garha Mandela; in
what situation is not upon record. The Hansi in-
scription was found upon a stone near the fort. The
inscriptions from Benares consist of seven plates of
copper, with Sanscrit inscriptions, found in a field near
the town by a peasant. They contain the genealogy
of various princes, with occasional sketches of their
character and deeds ; and seem of importance for the
history of India r . See Asiatic Researches, vol. xv,
p. 436.
r These inscriptions are made the subject of two articles in Adelung
INSCRIPTIONS. 57
Inscriptions upon rocks in South Btfiar, described
by Dr. Buchanan Hamilton, and explained by Henry
Thomas Colebrooke, in the Transactions of the Royal
Asiatic Society, London, 1826, vol. i, part ii, p. 201
206. These are referred to the years 1219 and 1229
of the era of Vicramaditya, A. D. 1163 and 1173.
Translation of a Sanscrit inscription on a stone
found in Bundelchand, by lieut. W. Price, in Asiatic
Researches, vol. xii, p. 360, consisting of fifty verses
in a character approaching, except in some few letters,
very nearly to the Devanagari now in use, and contain-
ing a genealogical table of several princely families.
Inscriptions on the Staff of Firuz Shah, (a very sin-
gular monument near Delhi], translated from the San-
scrit, as explained by Radhacanta Sarman, Asiat.
Researches, vol. i, p. 379.
Translations of one of the inscriptions upon the pil-
lar at Delhi, called the Lat of Firuz Shah, by Henry
Colebrooke, esq. ; with introductory remarks, by Mr.
Harrington, Asiat. Research, vol. vii, p. 175.
The date of this inscription is ascertained to be 1220
of the Samvat era, A. D. 1164. It is considered of
great importance in confirming and illustrating the re-
cords extant, relative to the history of Hindoostan, im-
mediately preceding the Mahommedan conquest. See
Edin. Review, Jan. 1807, p. 284 s .
A copy of the inscriptions in the Pagoda of Saringam
was obtained by the late Prof. Rudiger, of Halle, from
the missionary John. See Neuere Gesch. der evan-
gel, Missionsanstalten, St. 66, Halle, 1816, p. 527.
A Royal Grant of Land, engraved on a copperplate,
bearing date twenty-three years before Christ and dis-
(p. 72), as are also those described by Mr. Jenkins ; but from the way in
which he has mentioned them, it is clear that he had not seen the volume
to which he refers.
* The two above articles are very incorrectly described in Adelung.
I
58 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
covered among the ruins at Mongueer, translated from
the original Sanscrit, by Charles Wilkins, in the Asiat.
Researches, vol. i, p. 123, and 357. Other insci'iptions
of grants of land are also found in the same work, vol.
iii, p. 39 ; and vol. iii, p. 3 ; and in the Transactions
of the Literary Society of Bombay, vol. iii, p. 391
397 ; Translation of a Grant of Land in the Concan,
by Dr. Taylor of Bombay.
Comments on an Inscription upon marble, at Mad-
hucarghar ; and three grants inscribed on copper,
found at Ujjayani, by major James Tod, Transact, of
the Royal Asiat. Society, vol. i, part ii, p. 207 229.
Three Grants of Land, inscribed on copper, found at
Ujjayani, translated by Henry Thomas Colebrooke,
esq., Transact, of the Royal Asiat. Society, vol. i, part ii,
p. 230239, and 463.
A description and translation of a collection of copies
of Sanscrit inscriptions found in the Aboo mountains,
was presented to the Asiatic Society of Calcutta, by
Major Jackson. See Asiatic Journal, 1824, December,
p. 605.
The inscriptions amount to above two hundred, and
throw much light on early Indian history. They espe-
cially illustrate the Chaulukyce, or the succession of
the ruling power at Guzerat, in the eleventh, twelfth,
and thirteenth centuries.
Lettre sur une Inscription Sanscrite a Gusurate, in
the Journ. Asiat. torn, viii, p. 110.
Note sur les Inscriptions Sanscrites decouvertes par
M. le lieutenant-colonel Tod, dans le Radjasthan, et
donnees par lui a la Societe Asiatique, par Eug. Bur-
nouf, in the Nouv. Journ. Asiat. 1828, No. v, p. 397
400.
These inscriptions are as follows :
1. Inscriptions upon the ancient temple at Char-
Chaornu, in the district of Haravati, dedicated to
INSCRIPTIONS. 59
Chandra-Ishvara-Mahadeva, from the year 500 of the
era Samval (A. D. 444), discovered in 1819.
2. Four inscriptions upon copper, found at Gwalior,
in the Decan, still older 'than the foregoing, and scarcely
to be deciphered.
3. Inscriptions found at Jayselmer in the Indian
desert. It is referred to king Bidjy Rae, who lived in
the ninth century, and contains a genealogical table
of Brahma down to Vidyaya Rajah (Bidjy Rae), writ-
ten by Somanathaka : without date.
4. An inscription found upon the walls of the an-
cient city of Chitore : very ancient, and almost illegible.
5. Many inscriptions upon marble, which refer to
the princes Solanki or Chalouka in the thirteenth cen-
tury, and found in the district of MandelgurJt.
The greater part of these inscriptions are pure Sans-
crit, and written either in the Devanagari character,
or so that they may be understood by it ; but the in-
scriptions in the temple grottos of Salsette, Mavali-
puram, and others, have not yet been deciphered.
Respecting the tables which record the privileges
obtained by the Jews in Cochin, and by the Chris-
tians on the Malabar coast, see the extract from Tych-
sen's treatise De Inscriptionibus Indicis et Privilegiis
Judaeorum et Christianorum S. Thomae in ora Mala-
barica, cum explicatione Inscriptionis trilinguis a Bu-
chanano adlatae, in the Getting, gel. Anzeigen, 1819,
St. 107.
The copies, drawings, etc. of inscriptions upon stone
and copper found in the East Indies, by lieut.-col. C.
Mackenzie, survey or -general of India, amounted to
807G, and were bound up in seventy- seven volumes.
See Asiat. Journal, 1823, Aug. p. 137.
60 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
WORKS IN SANSCRIT.
THE best information respecting Sanscrit literature
will be found collected in the following works :
On the literature of the Hindoos, from the Sanscrit,
communicated by Goverdhan Caul, translated, with a
short commentary, by the president Sir William Jones,
first printed in the Asiat. Research, vol. i, p. 340; and
again, in the works of Sir William Jones, vol. i, p. 349*.
Remarks upon Ancient Sanscrit Literature, the Ve-
das, Puranas, and Shastras, in the German transla-
tion of Sonnerat's Voyages to the East Indies and
China, Zurich, 1782, 4to.
Account of the History, Literature, and Religion of
the Hindoos, including translations from their principal
works, by William Ward, Serampoor, 1811, 4to. 4 vols.
Again, shortened and improved, with the following title,
A View of the History, Literature, and Mythology of
the Hindoos, including a minute description of their
manners, and customs, etc., by the Rev. William Ward.
The second edition, carefully abridged and greatly im-
proved, Serampoor, 1815, 2 vols. 4to. ; the third edition,
London, 1817, 2 vols. 8vo. ; 1821, 3 vols. 8vo.
This work is reviewed at length in the Asiatic
Journal for 1817, January and February, where a very
favourable opinion is given of it. The virtuous indig-
nation of the missionary seems to have led him to paint
the moral character of the Hindoos, in colours almost
too dark to belong to human nature ; the work, how-
ever, is undoubtedly very valuable.
Sketches relating to the History, Religion, Learn-
ing, and Manners of the Hindoos, by Quint. Craufurd,
Lond. 1792, 2 vols. Svo.
Catalogue and Detailed Account of a Valuable and
1 These are given as two distinct works by Adelung, p. 78 and 80.
WORKS IN SANSCRIT. 61
curious collection of mss. collected in Hindoostan, in-
cluding all those that were procured by Monsieur An-
quetil du Perron, relative to the religion and history of
the Parsees, etc , by S. Guise, esq., Lond. 1800, 4to.
On the literature of the Hindoos, in the Preface to
Selections of Popular Poetry of the Hindoos, by
Thomas Broughton, London, 1814, 8vo.
Upon the different ages of Indian literature, in Me-
langes de Litterature Sanscrite par A. Langlois, Paris,
1827, 8vo. p. 4048.
On the advantage of Sanscrit literature to science
and learning, in Vijasa, a journal, by Othm. Frank,
vol. i, p. 1 45.
Mackenzie Collection. A Descriptive Catalogue of
the Oriental Manuscripts, and other articles illustrative
of the literature, history, statistics, and antiquities of
the south of India ; collected by the late lieut.-col. Colin
Mackenzie, surveyor-general of India, by H. H. Wilson,
esq., secretary to the Asiatic Society of Bengal, etc.,
Calcutta, 1828, 2 vols. 8vo.
This collection consists of 1568 mss. of which six hun-
dred and sixty-seven are in Sanscrit, written in vari-
ous characters ; of 2070 local tracts, in two hundred and
sixty-four volumes; of 8076 inscriptions, in seventy-seven
volumes. Of translations and tracts, in loose sheets,
six hundred and seventy-nine, and 1480 in seventy-five
volumes. Plans, seventy-nine; drawings, 2630; coins,
6218; images, one hundred and six; antiquities, forty ;
Wilson's Preface, p. xxii. Besides these, col. Mac-
kenzie left an immense collection of notes, observa-
tions, journals of thirty-four years, inscriptions, draw-
ings, etc. amounting to many volumes, of which forty,
in folio, form but a part. An account of these is given
in two articles in the Asiat. Journal for 1822, March
and April, which concludes with the following observa-
tion : " Col. Mackenzie has done more than could rea-
62 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
sonably be expected from human industry ; and there
is something so vast in the discoveries he has made,
that they remind us of the protracted life of an ante-
diluvian, and seem totally unsuited to the limited span
allotted to our present existence."
Catalogus Bibliothecag Regia? Parisiensis, Parisiis,
\ 739, fol. by Etienne Fourmont.
Versuch einer Ostindischen Literatur-Geschichte,
von Henning, Hamburg, 1786, 8vo.
Systema Brahmanicum Liturgicum, Mythologicum,
Civile, ex Monumentis Indicis Musasi Borgiani Velitris.
Diss. notis historico-criticis illustravit Fr. Paulinus a
S. Bartholomaeo, Rom<e, 1792, 4to. See Nouv. Me-
langes Asiat. par M. Abel-Remusat, vol. ii, p. 307.
Paul, a S. Bortholomseo Examen Hist. Criticum
Codd. Ind. Bibliothecae Congregationis de propag. Fide,
Romce, 1792, 4to. The author at p. 23, gives rules
for distinguishing genuine Indian manuscripts from
spurious.
De manuscriptis Codicibus Indicis R. P. J. Eman.
Hanxleden S. J. Epistola, edidit Paul, a S. Bartholo-
maeo, Vindobonce, 1799, 4to.
Ejusd. Mussei Borgiani Codices Avenses, etc. Romce,
1793, 4to.
Ejusd. Lettera su' Monimenti Indici del Museo Bor-
giano, Roma, 1794, 4to.
Ejusd. Viaggi alle Indie Orientali, Roma, 1790, 4to.
p. 269, sqq.
A Catalogue of the principal Sanscrit works in the
Asiatic Researches, and in the treatises of Sir William
Jones, translated by Kleuker, and in Friedr. Her-
mann's Gemalde von Ostindien, Th. ii, p. 342, etc.
Sur la Poesie Mystique des Persans et des Hindous,
extrait de 1' Anglais de W. Jones. From the Archives
Litteraires in the Moniteur, 1806, No. cclvii.
A Catalogue of Sanscrit and other Oriental Maim-
WORKS IN SANSCRIT. 63
scripts presented to the Royal Society by Sir William
arid Lady Jones, in Sir William Jones's Works, vol.
vi, 4to u .
Specimens of Hindoo Literature, consisting of transla-
tions from the Tamoul language, of some Hindoo works
of morality and imagination, with explanatory notes,
to which are prefixed introductory remarks on the my-
thology, literature, etc. of the Hindoos, by N. E. Kin-
dersley, London, 1794, 8vo.
Sanscrit Fragments, or extracts from the sacred
books of the Brahmins, on subjects important to the
British isles, by the Rev. Thomas Maurice, London,
1798, 8vo.
The Oriental Miscellany, consisting of original pro-
ductions and translations, vol. i, Calcutta, 1798, 8vo.
The Asiatic Miscellany, consisting of original pro-
ductions, translations, fugitive pieces, imitations, and
extracts from curious publications, Calcutta, 1785,
1786, large 4to. 2 vols.
The New Asiatic Miscellany, Calcutta, 1789, small
4to. 2 parts.
Ancient Indian Literature, illustrative of the re-
searches of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, from original
mss., London, 1807; 4to. 1809.
Catalogue des Manuscrits Sanscrits de la Biblio-
theque Imperiale avec des notices du contenu de la
plupart des ouvrages, etc. par MM. Alex. Hamilton et
L. Langles, Paris, 1807, 8vo x . This catalogue con-
tains the title, and occasional extracts, from one hun-
dred and seventy eight treatises in Sanscrit, and four-
u Comprising fifty-nine articles (in seventy-one vols.) in Sanscrit; nine
in Chinese ; seventy-seven Persian ; thirty-four Arabic ; and two Hin-
dostani. It is also given in the Philosophical Transactions, abridged by
Hutton.
* Hamilton was the real author ; Langles did no more than translate
his English manuscript.
64 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
teen in Bengalee. A very ample review of this work
will be found in the Moniteur, 1808, 31 May and 25
June.
Vijasa, Ueber Philosophic, Mythologie, Litteratur,
und Sprache der Hindu. Eine Zeitschrift von Dr.
Othmar Frank, Erstes Heft, Munchen, 1826, 4to.
Monumens Litteraires Sanscrite ; contenant une ex-
position rapide de cette litterature, et un apergu du
systeme religieux et philosophique des Indiens d'apres
leurs propres livres; par A. Langlois, Paris, 1827,
8vo. A very ample review of this work is given in the
Journal des Savans, Avril, 1827, p. 2J1, etc., and
Asiatic Journal.
The Sanscrit Reader, Calcutta, 1821, 8vo.
Mithridates von J. C. Adelung, Th. i, p. 134143 ;
iv, p. 5356.
Geschichte der neuern Sprachenkunde, von J. G.
Eichhorn, Erste Abtheil, p. 228-r256.
Specimens of Hindoo Literature, London, 1813, 8vo.
Query if not a new edition of Kindersley's Work, see
above, p. 63.
Letters on India, by Maria Graham, London, 1817,
8vo.
Description of the Character, Manners, and Customs
of the people of India, and of their Institutions, Reli-
gious and Civil, by the Abbe J. A. Dubois, missionary
in the Mysore, London, 1817, 4to. An edition of the
original French, much improved by the author, ap-
peared at Paris, 1825.
Essays relative to the Habits, Character, and Moral
Improvement of the Hindoos, London, 1823, 8vo. first
printed in the Friend of India.
General View of the Literature of the Hindoos, in
the Oriental Herald, June, 1825, p. 859, sqq.
The Progress of Inquiry into the Learning of India,
in the Quarterly Oriental Magazine of Calcutta, and
WORKS IN SANSCRIT. 65
again in the Asiat. Journal, No. cxxxiii, Jan. 1827, p.
3034; Feb. p. 189196.
Catalogus Librorum Sanskritanorum, quos Bibliothe-
cae Univers. Havniens. vel dedit vel paravit Nathan.
Wallich. Auct. Erasmo Nyerup, Hafnice, 1821, 8vo.
Indische Bibliothek. Eine Zeitschrift von Aug. Wilh.
v. Schlegel. Erster Band, Bonn, 1823, 8vo. sqq.
A general View of the Language and Literature of
the Hindoos, in Niklas Miiller's Glauben, Wissen und
Kunst der alten Hindoos in urspriinglicher Gestalt und
im Gewande der Symbolik u. s. w. Mainz, 1822, 8vo.
I. Bd. F Abschn.
Quelques lignes sur les Sciences des Indiens, ex-
traites de l'Araich-i-mahfil, de Mir Cher Aly Assos et
traduites de 1'Hindostani par M. Garcin de Tassy, in
the Journ. Asiat. 1826, Cah. 1. p. 97.
Notice des Manuscrits Sanskrits laisses par Sir Ro-
bert Chambers, in the Journ. Asiat. vol. vii, p. 62.
Ueber religiose Bildung, Mythologie und Philoso-
phic der Hindus, mit Riicksicht auf ihre alteste
Geschichte, von J. G. Rhode, Leipzig, 1827, 2 B. 8vo.
m. Kfp.
Fraser, James, Catalogue of Manuscripts in the
Persic, Arabic, and Sanscrit Languages, London, 1742,
8vo.
A Succinct Account of the Sanscrit, or learned lan-
guage of the Brahmins ; in the Way to Things by
Words, by John Cleland, London, 1767, 8vo.
Catalogue of Sanscrit Books, and of Translations from
the Sanscrit, in Parbury, Allen, and Co.'s Catalogue of
books in Oriental literature, 1832.
Very interesting accounts of Sanscrit literature will
also be found in Heeren's Ideen, Inder, the first section
passim; Cousin, Victor, Histoire de la Philosophic du
xviii me Siecle ; in Hitter, Geschichte der Philosophic,
Th. i, p. 58, sqq. ; and in the Discours prononce au
66 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
College Royal de France a 1'ouverture du Cours de
Langue et de Litterature Sanscrite, par M. de Chezy,
Paris, 1815, 8vo.
A CATALOGUE OF SANSCRIT WORKS,
AND TRANSLATIONS.
SACRED WRITINGS .
1. ON THE VEDAS IN GENERAL.
THE whole .circle of Hindoo knowledge and science
is divided into eighteen parts, of which the first four
are the Fedas, from Fed or Bed, the law. Bed, Beid,
Bedam, Bedang, Bedaos, Fedam, Fidya, etc., accord-
ing 4;o the different modes of wi-iting and pronunciation
observed by Europeans in India. These are re-
garded as an immediate revelation from heaven ; and
as containing the true knowledge of God, of his re-
ligion, and of his worship, disposed into one harmo-
nious composition. Next to the Vedas rank four
Upavedas, which comprise the knowledge of medicine,
music, and other arts ; after these follow six Fedangas,
which relate to pronunciation, grammar, prosody,
religious rites and ceremonies, etc. ; and finally, four
Upangas, which treat of logic, philosophy, jurispru-
dence, and history.
Each Veda consists of two parts ; the Mantras, con-
sisting of prayers, hymns, and invocations ; and the
Brahmanas, comprising precepts which inculcate re-
* The usual division of these works into prose and verse is not
observed here, because even the first are written in metre, and the poetical
form of the latter does not seem to give a sufficient reason for dividing
SACRED WRITINGS. 67
ligious duties ; maxims explaining these precepts ;
and theological arguments. The complete collection
of the hymns, prayers, and invocations, belonging to
one Veda, is called its Sanhita. The Sanhitas with
their various commentaries are subdivided into Sahas,
that is, branches of the Vedas. The theology of the
Indian scripture, comprehending the argumentative
portion, entitled Vedanta, is contained in tracts called
Upanishads ; that is, the sacred science, the knowledge
of God.
The Vedas are undoubtedly the most ancient com-
positions in the whole range of Sanscrit literature.
Their obscurity, and the obsolete dialect in which
they are written, are such as to render the reading of
them difficult even to a Brahman y . Ramachandra
explains, in his treatise on the grammar of Panini
called Pracriya Caumudi, the anomalies of the dialect
in which the Vedas are composed. See Q. Craufurd's
Researches on Ancient and Modern India, vol. ii,
p. 171.
Sir William Jones fixes the date of the Vedas at
1 500 years before the birth of Christ ; but colonel
Kennedy remarks, in his Researches into the Nature
and Affinity of Ancient and Hindoo Mythology, that
Sir William Jones was misled in his notions of Indian
y When the study of the Indian scriptures was more general than at
present, especially among the Brdmanas of Canyacuhja, learned priests
derived titles from the number of Vedas with which they were conversant.
Since every priest was bound to study one Veda, no title was derived from
the fulfilment of that duty ; but a person who had studied two Vedas, was
surnamed Dioivedi ; one, who was conversant with three, Trued?'; and
one, versed in four, Chaturvedi : as the mythological poems were only
figuratively called a Veda, no distinction appears to have been derived
from a knowledge of them, in addition to the four scriptures. The titles
above,- mentioned have become the surnames of families among the Brah-
mans of Canoj, and are corrupted, by vulgar pronunciation, into Dobe ,
Tiwdre, and Chaube. Colebrooke, in Asiatic Researches, vol. viii, p. 381,
68 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
chronology, by taking the religious personages which
occur in the Hindoo sacred books for real historic
characters, and by attempting to define the exact age
at which they are supposed to have lived 2 . The
same author observes, that the sacred books of the
Hindoos afford no data from which the period of
their composition may be determined, even by approx-
imation ; the writers apparently never having intended
them to be the subject of chronological computation.
The first historical era is that of Vicramiditya (fifty-
six years B. C.), preceded by a period of three thou-
sand years, in which the Hindoos pretend to no " con-
tinuous accounts either religious, traditional, or histo-
rical." This three thousand years is a chasm which
cannot be filled up. Various other circumstances,
however, conspire to prove the antiquity and authen-
ticity of the Hindoo scriptures ; and particularly an
unvaried uniformity of conception, and a total absence
of all foreign modes of thinking and extraneous inter-
polations. The descriptions which the Vedas contain
of manners, customs, and faith, are too accurate to be
spurious ; and, as Mr. Colebrooke says, no system of
forgery would be equal to the task of fabricating large
works to agree with the very numerous citations per-
vading thousands of volumes, in evei'y branch of
literature, dispersed among the various nations of
Hindoos inhabiting India. Colonel Kennedy believes
the period at which they began to be composed to
have been at least one thousand one hundred, or
one thousand two hundred years B. C.; and Mr. Cole-
brooke, in pronouncing them to be genuine, adds, " I
mean to say that they are the same compositions
which, under the same title of Veda, have been
* Researches into the Nature and Affinity of Hindoo Mythology, hy
lieut.-col. Vans Kennedy, J.ondon, 1831, 4to. p. 494.
SACRED WRITINGS. 69
revered by Hindoos for hundreds, if not thousands of
years a ."
The original Veda is believed by the Brahmans, the
most learned of the Indian philosophers, to have been
revealed by Brahma ; and to have been preserved by
tradition, until it was collected and arranged into
books and chapters by the sage Dwdpdyana, who
thence obtained the surname of Vyasa, or Veda vyasa,
the compiler of the Vedas. See Colebrooke in the
Asiat. Research, vol. viii, p. 378, etc. 8vo. ed. Hamil-
ton makes this Vyasa to have lived in the eleventh
century after Christ. Ritter, the latest writer on this
subject, who certainly has examined with much atten-
tion all the authorities on the subject, and who
betrays his inclination to place the date of the Vedas
as low as possible, admits that they are certainly the
most ancient writings in the whole range of Hindoo
literature ; " as it would not," he observes, " be easy
to find an Indian work in which they are not men-
tioned." He supposes they were either collected or
composed one thousand four hundred, or one thousand
six hundred years before the Christian era b .
But another strong argument for the high antiquity
of the Vedas, is, that in the greater part of them the
common sloka is not to be found, but a more ancient
iambic metre of eight syllables, which may be justly
regarded as the more simple and ancient, and indeed
a See Colebrooke on the Vedas, in Asiatic Researches, vol. viii. : the
main authority on this subject. This treatise of Colebrooke is noticed in
the Edinburgh Review, vol. xii, p. 47 ; it is there said that " from its
subject it is the most curious, and from the ability, candour, and research
displayed by its author, the most entitled to approbation of any paper that
has appeared in the Asiatic Researches."
b Ritter, Geschichte der Philosophic, torn, i, p. 70, etc. Much informa-
tion, research, and close reasoning, will be found in the part of Ritter's
work here referred to, which has been published since the work of Ade-
lung.
70 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
as the true origin of the usual sloka of sixteen syllables.
See Asiatic Researches, vol. xiv, p. 1.
The very existence of the Vedas was formerly
regarded as a fable; and even Paulinus a S. Bar-
tholomaeo, in his Systema Brahman, p. 281, derides
the English and French for supposing them real com-
positions.
It was not only a question whether the Vedas were
extant; but whether, if portions were still preserved,
any person would be found capable of understanding
their obsolete dialect. It was also doubted, whether,
supposing a Brahman really possessed these Indian
scriptures, his religious prejudices would not prevent
his imparting the sacred knowledge to any but a
regenerate Hindoo .
These doubts were not removed until colonel Polier
obtained from Jypoor a transcript of what purported
to be a complete collection of the Vedas. This is now
deposited in the British Museum, bound in eleven
large folio volumes. Europe, therefore, propably pos-
sesses a complete collection of these important docu-
ments in the original language. They still, however,
remain untranslated ; and, from their vast extent, the
greater part of them will probably always remain so d .
See Asiatic Researches, vol. i, p. 347, and vol. viii,
p. 497.
Ample information respecting the Vedas in general
c Colebrooke, in Asiatic Researches, vol. viii, p. 377.
11 Mr. Wilson, in his interesting Memorial to Convocation, as candidate
for the Boden professorship, which chair he has, to the honour of the uni-
versity, been since elected to fill, says, " I have much at heart the printing
of the text, with a translation of the Ritual of the Vedas. I have made some
progress in one of them, the Rig Veda, but the execution of this and my
other projects, will essentially depend upon my being enabled shortly to
resign all public employment, and to devote the remaining portion of my
life, as I could be well content to do, to the cultivation of Sanscrit
literature."
SACRED WRITINGS. 71
will be found in the essay of Colebrooke', and the
works of Hitter and colonel Vans Kennedy already
quoted ; as well as in the following :
A. H. L. Heeren's Ideen, fourth edition, 1 824, part
i, vol. iii, p. 3 237, where will be found an interest-
ing assemblage of all that is known upon this subject.
See also the ample review of this classical work in the
Hall. Allg. Lit. Zeit. 1816, Oct. No. 232234, 247,
and 218 f .
Du Pons in the Lettres edifiantes, second edition,
torn, xiv, p. 74.
Hollwell's Interesting Historical Events relative to
the Provinces of Bengal, etc. London, 1765, 2 vols.
8vo.
Dow's History of Hindostan, London, 1768, 3 vols.
8vo.
Sonnerat, Voyages aux Indes Orientales, vol. i,
p. 211.
Ezour- Vedam, traduit par Ste. Croix, in the Obser-
vations preliminaires, vol. i, p. 111.
Catalogue des Manuscrits Sanscrits de la Biblioth.
Imp. par MM. Hamilton et Langles.
Eichhorn's Geschichte der schonen Literatur, 248.
Craufurd's Researches on Ancient and Modern
e The notes of Langles to this essay, in the French translation of the
Asiatic Researches, are also referred to by Adelung. But this work,
which was only continued to the end of the second volume, is not very
well spoken of by English critics.
f This interesting portion of professor Heeren's Ideen has been ably
translated into French by M. Suckau, with some original notes of the
author, as well as of the translator. The English reader, I hope, will very
shortly have an opportunity of consulting it in his own language, as the
Rev. Alfred Browne of Christ Church is at this moment occupied with a
translation. It will contain the improvements of the French translation,
and original notes by the translator ; some new additional matter, furnished
by the professor, on the ancient commerce of the island of Ceylon ;
on Palmyra ; and an unedited account of the progress made in Sanscrit
literature since the publication of the last edition of his works.
72 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
India, London, 1817, 2 vols. 8vo. vol. i, p. 185187,
241. Taken from Colebrookc's treatise already men-
tioned.
Brahma, von Friedr. Mayer, Leipzig, 1818, 8vo.
p. 99, etc. 231, 237.
Horae Biblicae : part the second : being a connected
series of miscellaneous notes on the Koran, Zend-
Avesta, the Vedas, the Kings, and the Edda, by
captain Butler, London, 1802, 8vo. Upon this work
see Catalogue de la Bibliotheque de M. Langles,
p. 31, No. 255.
Account of a Discovery of a Modern Imitation of
of the Vedas, with Remarks on the Genuine Works,
by Fr. Ellis, esq. in Asiatic Researches, vol. xiv,
159.
Precis des Livres sacres des Gentils de 1'Inde
Orientale et de leurs coutumes, in the Collec9oes
de noticias para e historia e geografia das nagoes
ultramarinas, Lisboa, 1827, torn, i, p. 1 3. See Bul-
letin univ. 1828, Juillet, Sciences Hist. p. 39.
Though the Vedas form altogether but one work,
they are subdivided, according to the Baghavata, into
four parts, each of which is again considered as a se-
parate Veda. These are, 1. Rig Veda; 2. Yajur
Veda; 3. Sama Veda; 4. Atharvana Veda*.
1. Rig Veda.
Rig Veda, from Rig or Rich, abounding in prayers
and texts, and also praises, in sixteen Sanldtas, or col-
lections of hymns or invocations. In the Ezur-Vedam,
the contents of this Veda is stated as follows : It
e Anquetil du Perron calls them in his Oupnek'hat : Rak, Djedir, Sam,
and Athrban. In the Ezur-Vedam, these names are written Kick, Zozur,
Chama, and Adorbo. It is moreover said that a fifth Veda exists, formed
out of the Ithiasas and other Puranas, and bearing the name of Vavadam.
SACRED WRITINGS. 73
treats of the first cause, of the creation of matter, of
the formation of the world, of angels, of the soul, of
rewards and punishments, of the bringing forth of all
creatures, of their corruption, of sins, etc. See Ith's
translation of the Ezur- Vedam, vol. i, p. 75.
The hymn, Mantra, to the sun, translated from the
Rig Veda, in Colebrooke's Disquisition on the Vedas,
in Asiat. Research, vol. viii. In this paper the learned
author gives an analysis of the whole Veda, with vari-
ous extracts from it in English. Some of these will he
found translated into German in Fr. Bopp's Conjuga-
tionssystem der Sanskrit-Sprache, p. 213 and 290.
Rigvedae Specimen, edidit Fred. Rosen, London,
1830. This work, by the professor of the London Uni-
versity, contains a specimen of the Rig Veda in the ori-
ginal text, with a translation and notes. It consists of
several short hymns, chiefly addressed to Agni, the
god of fire, and may be compared, with some interest,
with the Pseudo-Orphic Hymns of Greek poetry ; con-
sisting, like them, of appellations and descriptions of
the attributes of the different deities h .
2. Yajur Veda,
The Yajur Veda relates chiefly to oblations and sa-
crifices, as the name implies,' which is derived from
Yaj, to worship or adore.
This Veda contains instructions respecting religious
exercises, the castes, feasts, purifications, expiations,
pilgrimages, gifts, various sacrifices, the particulars re-
h See Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 6. Professor Heeren also, in an
unedited addition to his work on Ancient India, with which he has fa-
voured me, observes, " The only copy of the Vedas, (as far as my information
extends,) the one brought to England by Polier, has been lying many
years unnoticed in the British Museum. Professor Rosen has now com-
menced drawing it from obscurity ; and although his specimen is but of
limited extent, yet it is sufficiently ample to give us an insight into the
language, the poetry, and, to a certain degree, the contents of the Vedas.
L
74 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
quired in the animals offered, the building of the tem-
ples, the usual ceremonies at births, marriages, and
deaths of men of all ranks, etc. See Ezour-Vedam,
translated by Ith, part i, p. 72 '.
Isdvasyam, or an Upanishad from the Yajur Veda,
translated in the Works of Sir William Jones, torn, vi,
p. 423. A part of this Veda, Ukad Arangak, together
with a commentary on the same by Sankara-Acharya,
was in the possession of Sir William Jones, and is now
in the library of the Asiatic Society of London.
Yajur Veda, translated into German in the fifth
volume of the Danischen Missionsberichte, Halle,
1742, 4to. p. 1251, sqq.
Translations of many of the hymns and detached
portions of this Veda will be found in Mr. Colebrooke's
papers on the Religious ceremonies of the Hindoos,
and of the Brahmans especially, in Asiat. Research,
vol. v and vii.
The beginning of the prayers of the Sarvamedha
from the Yajur Veda, translated in Colebrooke's Essay
on the Vedas, in Asiat. Research, vol. viii, p. 431, 8vo.
edit, and in Fr. Bopp's Conjugat. System der Sanscrit-
Sprache, p. 280.
Eighteen Distichs, from the Yajur Veda, in Carey's
Grammar of the Sungscrit Language, p. 903, 904.
Translation of the Isopanishad, one of the chapters
of the Yajur Veda, according to the commentary of
the celebrated Sankara-Acharya, establishing the unity
and incomprehensibility of the Supreme Being, and
that his worship alone can lead to eternal beatitude,
by Rammohun Roy, Calcutta, 1816, 8vo. See Asiat.
Journ. 1818, May, p. 465, 468; Journal Asiat. Cah.
xvi, p. 244.
Translation of the Kuth-Opunishud (Keth Upanis-
' See below, p. 76.
SACRED WRITINGS. 75
chada) of the Ujoor Fed (Yajur Veda) according to
the gloss of the celebrated Sankaracharya, by Ram-
mohun Roy, Calcutta, 1819, 8vo. See Journ. Asiat.
Cah. xvi, p. 245.
Sankarce Atsharjce praefatio ad Jadshurveedte Bri-
hadaranjakun, cum versione et Anandce animadver-
sionibus, in Othm. Frankii Chrestomathia Sanscrita,
vol. i, p. 149. Sancara, one of the most celebrated
expositors upon the Vedas, flourished above a thou-
sand years ago at Sringagiri, in the Carnatic. One of
his most esteemed works is called Bhashrjum, an expla-
nation of the most difficult passages of the Vedas.
Frank has selected the Upanishad, entitled Urihada-
rdnyaki, forming part of the Yajur Veda. Sancara is
also the author of many other works, among which, one
of the best known is Upadesa-Sahasri, a metrical epi-
tome of the doctrines of the Upanishads and Brahma-
Sootras. There is an explanation of the same under
another Rama Tirfha, entitled Pada Yd'janica.
Fsdvasyam, or an Upanishad from the Yajur Veda,
translated by Sir William Jones, in his Works, vol. vi,
p. 423, and by W. Carey in his Sungskrit Grammar,
p. 903 k .
Equus mundi Mundus animans. Ex Jadshurvedce
Brihadaranjako. Sanskrit und Lateinisch, in Vjasa,
von Othm. Frank, part i, vol. i, p. 51.
A pretended translation of the whole of the Yajur
Veda appeared in 1778, under the following title:
L'Ezour Vedam, ou anciens Commentaires du Vedam,
contenant 1'exposition des opinions religieuses et philo-
sophiques des Indiens. Traduit du Samscretan par
un Brahme (a Pondicherry). Revu et public (par le
Baron de Sainte-Croix), avec des observations prelimi-
naires, des notes et des eclaircissemens, Yverdun, 1778,
k See below, under Extracts from the Vedas ; p. 79.
76 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
2 vols. I2mo. Reprinted verbatim in the Encyclopedic
Methodique Philosophique, ancienne et moderne, par
Naigeon, Paris, 1792, p. 790 871. In German,
Ezour- Vedam oder der alte Commentar iiber den Ve-
dam. Von einem Bramen aus dem Samskretanischen
ins Franzb'sische und aus diesem ins Deustche iiber-
setzt. Mit einer Einleitung und Anmerkungen, nebst
einem ungedruckten Fragmente des Bagavadam, von
J. Ith, 1779, 2 Bde. 8vo.
Upon the appearance of this work its authenticity was
much disputed, particularly by Sonnerat, in his Travels
to the East Indies, p. 180, etc., and by others. It is
said in the preface, that the work was originally among
the papers of M. Barthelmy ; that a copy was brought
from India and presented to Voltaire, who sent it, in
17G1, to the Royal Library of France. The forgery,
thus manufactured at the instigation of the Jesuits, (it
is said by father Roberto de Nobili, in the seventeenth
century,) has been lately exposed in the following
paper : Account of a Discovery of a Modern Imitation
of the Vedas, with remarks on the genuine works, by
F. Ellis, in the Transactions of the Literary Society of
Bombay, vol. iii, p. 1 59: see also Asiat. Researches,
vol. xiv, p. 1 ; Schlegel's Ind. Bibliothek, ii, 1, p. 50,
etc.; and Asiat. Journal, Feb. 1818, p. 188 1 .
Extracts from the Ezur- Vedam are found in Mignot
sur les Anciens Philosophes de 1'Inde; in the Me-
moires de l'Acad6mie des Inscript. torn, xxxi, p. 8 ;
and in Anquetil du Perron's Zend-Avesta, torn, i, in
the Discours prelimin. p. 83.
1 This interesting paper of Mr. Ellis's displays a profound knowledge of
Sanscrit literature. It contains an elaborate analysis of the genuine Vedas ;
and compares them with the forgeries, of which it appears copies were
found of the other three, in Sanscrit, written in the Roman character, and
in French, among the manuscripts of the catholic missionary at Pondi-
cherry ; where the one in question was discovered.
SACRED WRITINGS. 77
3. The Sama Veda.
The Sama Veda, from Saman, a prayer arranged for
singing, consists of more than a thousand Sanhitas.
Colebrooke says, a peculiar degree of holiness seems
to be attached to it, according to Indian notions, if re-
liance may be placed on the inference suggested by
the etymology of its name, which indicates, according
to the derivation usually assigned to it n , the efficacy
of this part of the Veda in removing sin. The prayers
belonging to it are composed in metre, and intended to
be chanted; and their supposed name is apparently
ascribed to this mode of uttering them.
This Veda is divided into several parts : a principal
division is entitled Archica, another portion is called
Aranyagana; both these are arranged for chanting.
Another principal division is Brdhmana Sama. It
comprises all religious and moral duties, hymns in
praise of the Supreme Being, and to the honour of sub-
ordinate spirits ; commandments to be observed by
all the castes, and others relating to separate ones, etc.
Upanishad, Commentar iiber den Sama Veda, in
Sanskrit mit Bengali-Schrift gedruckt und herausgege-
ben, von Rammohun Roy, Calcutta, 1818, 8vo. See
Revue Encyclop. torn, vii, annee 1820, p. 326.
Translation of the Cena (Kend) Upanishad, one of
the chapters of the Sama Veda ; according to the gloss
of the celebrated Sankaracharya, establishing the unity,
and the sole omnipotence of the Supreme Being, and
that he alone is the object of worship, by Rammohun
Roy, Calcutta, 1816, Svo; and again, 1817; Asiat.
m Asiat. Researches, vol. viii, p. 458, 8vo. edit. Here, as in many places,
I have translated all that is said by Adelung, and made considerable addi-
tions from Colebrooke, etc.
n From the root Shd, convertible into so and sd, and signifying to destroy.
The derivative is expounded as denoting something which destroys sin.
78 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Journ. 1818, Aug. p. 141 145; see Journ. Asiat. Cah.
xvi, p. 245.
A Hymn from the Sama Veda, translated in Cole-
brooke on the Vedas, and in Fr. Bopp's Conjugat.-Sys-
tem der Sanskrit-Sprache, p. 293.
4. Atharvana Veda.
Atharva, or Atharvan Veda, in four Sanhitas, con-
tains subjects of mystic theology and metaphysics. Se-
veral scholars, learned in Indian literature, have sup-
posed this fourth Veda, from its more modern dialect,
to be of less authority than the others, and will only
acknowledge the first three as genuine. Passages of
the Indian scripture itself, says Colebrooke, seem
to support the inference ; for the fourth Veda is not
mentioned in the passage, cited by me in a former
essay (on Religious Ceremonies, Asiat. Researches, vol.
vii, 251), from the white Yajush; nor in the following
text quoted from the Indian scripture, by the commen-
tator of the Rich. " The Rig Veda originated from fire ;
the Yajur Veda, from air; and the Sama Veda from
the sun." Hence some hold the Atharvana for no more
than a supplement to the others .
Translation of the Moonduk-(Mandhaka} Opmishud
of the Uthurva- Ved, according to the gloss of the cele-
brated Shunkara-Charyu, by Rammohun Roy, Calcutta,
1819, 8vo; see Journ. Asiat. Cah. xvi, p. 245.
Verses from the Athar Veda, translated by Cole-
brooke, in his Treatise on the Vedas, Asiat. Research,
vol. viii, p. 359 476; and by Fr. Bopp, in his Conjug.-
System der Sanskrit-Sprache, p. 310.
The popular dictionary Amerasina notices only three Vedas, and men-
tions the Atharvana without calling it one. From these circumstances, and
the received notions of the Hindoos themselves, it appears that the Kiga,
Yajur, and Sama, are the three principal portions of the Vedas ; that the
Atharvana is commonly admitted as a fourth ; and that some supplementary
matter and poems are reckoned as a fifth.
SACRED WRITINGS. 79
5. Extracts from the Vedas.
Sirr-i-Akbar ; the greatest secret, being the essence
of four Veds of Hindoo scriptures, compiled by prince
Dara Shekoh, manuscript, in Howell and Stewart's
Catalogue of Oriental Literature, for 1828.
Extracts from the Vedas, in the works of Sir William
Jones, torn, vi, p. 313423, and 427; and in Asiat.
Researches, vol. i, p. 33 36, etc.
These are imitations rather than translations; and
consist of hymns in verse, preceded by a summary of
their contents in prose. Besides these, there are ver-
sions of various passages from the Vedas in prose, and
fragments which appear to be materials towards a dis-
sertation on the primitive religion of the Hindoos. I
cannot resist giving the following extracts :
THE GAYATRI, OR HOLIEST VERSE OF THE VEDAS.
" Let us adore the supremacy of that divine sun,
(opposed to the visible luminary,) the godhead who illu-
minates all, who recreates all, from whom all proceed,
to whom all must return, whom we invoke to direct
our understandings aright in our progress towards his
holy seat."
" What the sun and light are to this visible world,
that are the supreme good and truth to the intellectual
and invisible universe ; and, as our corporeal eyes have
a distinct perception of objects enlightened by the sun,
thus our souls acquire certain knowledge, by meditat-
ing on the light of truth, which emanates from the
BEING OF BEINGS : that is the light by which alone our
minds can be directed in the path to beatitude."
There is one beautiful hymn, beginning, " May that
soul of mine, which mounts aloft in my waking hours
as an ethereal spark, and which even in my slumber
has a like ascent, soaring to a great distance, as an
80 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
emanation from the light of lights, be united by devout
meditation with the spirit supremely blest, and su-
premely intelligent !"
It ends : " There is one living and true God, ever-
lasting, without body, parts, or passion ; of infinite
power, wisdom, and goodness ; the maker and pre-
server of all things, both visible," etc. Sir William
Jones's Works, vol. vi, p. 421, etc.
W. Jones, Abhandl. iiber die Geschichte, Alterthu-
mer u. s. w. Asiens, Riga, 1795 1797, 4 Bde. 8vo;
vol. i, p. 265-, vol. iv, p. 1428.
6. Vedantas.
The word Fedanta, signifies view, or object of the
Vedas. Under this name there is an ancient work in
Sanscrit, by Vyasa or Jaimini, said to have been com-
posed above 2000 years ago, and to contain an abstract
and a quintessence of all the Vedas brought together.
This work is also known in India, under the title of
Purva Mimansa, that is, the first, most ancient enquiry,
in opposition to the Uttera Mimansa. The latter Mi-
mansa, which is called Brahma Mimansa, is a philoso-
phical-religious system.
The great authority for its doctrine is the collection
of Sootras or Aphorisms, bearing the title of Bramha-
Sootra.
The scholiasts, who have commented upon the
Brahma-Sootras, are, Baudhayana, called the sacred
(Rishi); Upavarsha, the venerable (Bhagavat), and
others. The most celebrated is, Sankara Acharya,
(see above page 74) placed by Colebrooke at the be-
ginning of the ninth century. His commentary bears
the title of S'ariraca p Mimansa Bhashaya. This has
had many expounders, among whom we may mention
P S'driru signifies incorporated.
SACRED WRITINGS. 81
Vachespati as one of the most esteemed. His treatise
is entitled Bhamati, or S'driraca Bhashya Vibhdga.
This commentary is again illustrated by Analananda,
surnamed Vydsdsrama, in his Veddnta Calpataru.
Many other commenters are mentioned by Colebrooke
in his Essay on the Philosophy of the Hindoos, in the
Transact, of the Royal Asiatic Society, vol. ii, p. 7, 8.
These religious dogmas are ascribed to Badarayana,
the same with Vyasa, Veda Vyasa, Dwaipayana and
Crishna Dwaipayana^. The Sootras of Badarayana
are divided into four books, Adhyaya, and each of
these into four chapters, Pada.
The principal works upon the Vedanta are Veddnta
Paribhdshd, by Dharma Raja Dikshita; A commentary
upon the same by the author's son, Rama Crish'na
Dikshita, under the title : Veddnta Sic'hdmani.
Vedanta Vdra, a very familiar exposition of the Ve-
danta, by Sadananda.
Preface, by a Brahmin, to a translation of an abridge-
ment of the Vedant, in Asiat. Journ. 1818, Nov. p.
468-474; and 1827, Oct. p. 464466.
The Bengalee translation of the Vedant, or resolu-
tion of all the Veds, the most celebrated and reserved
work of Brahminical theology, establishing the unity
of the Supreme Being, and that he is the only object of
worship, together with a preface by the translator
(Rammohun Roy), Calcutta, 1815, 8vo; 1816, 4to .
1817, 4to. A German translation was published in
Bran's Miszellen, 1814, under the title Remmohon Roy
Auflosung des Wedant oder aller Weds, des beriihm-
testen und verehrtesten Werks braminischer Gottes-
gelehrtheit u. s. w. Auch besonders daraus abgedruckt,
Jena, 1818, 8vo; and Journ. Asiat. Cah. xvi, p. 243
249.
i In an earlier state, as Brahman, he was called Apdntara Tamas.
82 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Under the title of An Enquiry into the Spiritual Or-
ganisation or Soul of the World, there was pub-
lished at Calcutta, 1818, 8vo. in Sanscrit, the Vedanta
Mimansa according to Vyasa and Sankara Acarya, by
Lallulala Sarma Kavi.
Vedanda Sara; or Essence of the Veda, Sanscrit,
Calcutta, 1818, 4to.
Vedanta Sara : Elements of Theology, according to
the Vedas, by Saddnanda Parivrajakdchdryya ; with
a commentary by Ramakrishna Tirtha, Calcutta Edu-
cation Press, 1829. From Parbury, Allen, and Go's
Catalogue.
Extract from the Brahma Mimansa, by H. Th.
Colebrooke, esq. in Transact, of the Royal Asiatic
Society, vol. ii, p. 1 39.
7. Upanishads.
The literary history of India enumerates fifty-two
Upanishads, or extracts of such portions of the Vedas,
as relate to argumentative theology. Among these
numerous Upanishads those most frequently quoted,
are, Ch'hdndogya, Caushitact, Vrihad-Aranyaca Aita-
reyaca, Taittiriyaca, Cdfhaca, Cat'havatti, Mund'aca,
Prasna S 'wetds 'watara, I'sd Vdsya, and Kena.
The four Upanishads, Katha, Isa, Kaena, and Mun-
daka, edited by Rammohun Roy, and printed at Cal-
cutta in the Bengalee character, with an English trans-
lation, have already been noticed under the Vedas.
Upanishad, in Bengalee character, Madras, 1818,
8vo.
Copious extracts from this portion of the Vedas may
be found in Anquetil du Perron's UpneVhat ; but these
were made from the Persian, and cannot be altogether
relied on. The Upnelchat, the Persian term for
Upanishad, consists of fifty sections, subdivided into
eighty-three Brahmes, or instructions, which explain,
SACRED WRITINGS. 83
under the form of dialogues and narrations, particular
points of theology.
Oupnek'hat, i. e. secretum tegendum, opus ipsa in
India rarissimum, continens antiquam et arcanam s.
theologicam et philosophicam doctrinam e quatuor
sacris Indorum libris, Rak Beid, Djedir Beid, Sam
Beid, Athrban Beid excerptam ; ad verbum e Persico
idiomate, Samscreticis vocabulis intermixto, in Latinum
conversum. Dissertationibus et annotationibus diffi-
ciliora explanantibus illustratum ; studio et opera
Anquetil du Perron, Indicopleustae, R. Inscript. et
human, liter. Academiae olim Pensionar. et Director.
Argentorati et Parisiis an. ix, 1801 1802, 4to. 2 vols.
Translated into German under this title, Versuch einer
neuen Darstellung der uralten indischen All-Eins-
Lehre ; oder der beriihmten Sammlung rZv Oupnekha-
ruv erstes Stiick : Oupnekhat Tschehandoult genannt.
Nach dem lateinischen der persischen Uebersetzung
wortlich getreuen Texte des Hrn. Anquetil du Perron
frey ins Deutsche iibersetzt und mit Amnerkungen
versehen von Th. A. Rixner, Nurnberg, 1808, 8vo r .
The original Indian text of this body of Indian
* In the Transactions of the Literary Society of Bombay, London, 1819,
p. 207, the following judgment is pronounced upon Anquetil du Perron :
" Anquetil's great merit was that of an enterprising traveller : as an
oriental scholar his rank is very low. The nation which possesses Silvestre
de Sacy may easily resign Anquetil du Perron." See also Fr. Schlegel's
Gesch. d. Liter, vol. i, p. 180. A milder sentence is passed upon him by
Lanjuinais, in the Mag. Encyclop. an 8, torn. iii.
There is a notice of this work also in the Edinburgh Review, vol. i,
p. 412. The critic therein does full justice to M. Anquetil's know-
ledge of the Persian, but questions his knowledge of the Sanscrit, or rather
announces his total ignorance of that language. Ritter also remarks, that
it contains so many mistakes and false interpretations, as to be quite useless
in a work of investigation. See Geschichte der Philosoph. vol. i, p. 75 ;
and Rhode uber Relig. Bildung, Mythol. and Philos. der Hindus, vol. i,
p. 99, f.
84 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
theology, was translated into Persian by Mohammed
Darah Shekuh, the brother of Aurengzeb, and thereby
first made known to the profane. A specimen of this
is given in Anquetil du Perron, Recherches historiques
et geographiques sur 1'Inde, torn, ii, and in German
in the Sammlung asiatischer Originalschriften, Bd. i,
p. 273 315. Another fragment of it is found in
White's Institutes of Tamerlane, Oxford, 1783, 4to.
translated from two Persian manuscripts in the pos-
session of Sir Broughton Rouse, formerly governor of
Bengal, and another in the preface to Halhed's Code
of Gentoo Law, London, 1781.
An extract from the UpneVhat is given by Lan-
juinais, in the Mag. Encyclop. an ix, torn, iii, v, vi,
under the title of Analyse de VOupnek'hat, par M. le
Comte Lanjuinais, which is reprinted in the Journ.
Asiat. Cah. x, p. 213236, vol. xi, p. 265, vol. xii,
344, vol. xiii, 15, and vol. xiv, 71; and again, sepa-
rately, La Religion des Indoux, selon les Vedah, ou
Analyse de VOupneVhat, publiee par M. Anquetil du
Perron en 1802, par M. le Comte Lanjuinais, Paris,
1823, 8vo.
A word in favour of the authenticity and value
of the Upnekhata, by Niklas Miiller, in his Appen-
dices to his treatise on the Glauben, Wissen und
Kunst der alten Hindus, Bd. i.
Considerations upon the Upnelthat, and the forma-
tion and character of this theological treatise of the
Hindoos, by Friedr. Mayer, in his Brahma, oder die
Religion der Indier als Brahmaismus, Leipzig, 1808,
8vo. p. 7 15. See again, J. G. Rhode iiber relig.
Bildung, Mythologie und Philosophie der Hindus,
Leipzig, 1827, 2 B. 8vo.
In this place also we may introduce the three follow-
ing works, by Rammohun Roy.
SACRED WRITINGS. 85
A Defence of Hindoo Theism, in reply to the attack
of an advocate for idolatry at Madras, Calcutta, 1817,
8vo. in Bengali.
A Second Defence of the Monotheistical System of
the Veds, in reply to an apology for the present state
of Hindoo worship, Calcutta, 1817, 8vo. in Bengali.
An Apology for the Pursuit of Final Beatitude,
independently of Brahmanical Observances, Calcutta,
1820, Svo. in Bengali.
8. Upavedas.
The Upavedas, from Upa, joined to, appended to,
are a kind of supplementary Vedas, said to be imme-
diately deduced from the Vedas. There are four of
them. The first comprises the theory of disorders and
medicines, with the practical method of curing diseases.
The second on music, in the more extensive sense of
the word : it is chiefly useful in raising the mind by
devotion to the felicity of the divine nature. The
third treats on the fabrication and use of arms and
implements of war. The fourth explains sixty-four
mechanical arts and handicrafts, for the improvement
of such as exercise them. Of their more minute con-
tents, however, we have as yet no accurate informa-
tion ; indeed it is believed that they are lost. Sir
W. Jones's Works, torn, i, p. 358.
Upon music, as forming a part of the religion of the
Hindoos, there is a treatise by Sir William Jones,
On the Musical Modes of the Hindoos, in Asiatic
Researches, torn, iii, p. 55, and in his Works, vol. i,
p. 413, From this a German translation has been
made, under the title of Ueber die Musik der Inder,
von F. H. v. Dalberg, Erfurt, 1802, 8vo., with a col-
lection of popular Indian ballads.
86 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
9. Vedangas.
Angas, member, or Vedangas, members of the
Vedas, supplements to the body of the Vedas, six
in number, teach the art of pronunciation, grammar,
prosody, the explanation of obscure and unusual ex-
pressions of the Vedas, astronomy, and the rites and
ceremonies to be observed in religion. To these
belong the prosody of Pingala, the grammar of Panini,
the treatise upon astronomy called Surya, Lilawati,
by Bhanara Charyya, etc.
10 Upangas.
The Upangas, four in number, contain the Hindoo
learning upon logic, moral philosophy, jurisprudence,
and history.
PURANAS.
Purana, Puranam, Puranon, history of life, poetical
representations of Indian mythology, and fabulous
history. The Puranas hold an eminent rank in the re-
ligion and literature of the Hindoos. Possessing, like
the Vedas, the credit of a divine origin, and scarcely
inferior to them in sanctity, they exercise a more
extensive and practical influence upon Hindoo society.
They regulate their ritual, direct their faith, and
supply in popular legendary tales materials for their
credulity. To European scholars they recommend
themselves on other accounts ; as they have been con-
sidered to contain not only the picturesque and mytho-
logical part of Indian superstition, but as the treasury
of extensive and valuable historical remains, whose data
reach back at least nearly to the deluge. The Ptiranas
include ancient traditions respecting the gods, religious
doctrines and rites, the creation, the ages of the world,
PURANAS. 87
cosmography , and the genealogy and history of the
ancient kings, as well as the deeds of their suc-
cessors*. Many of these Puranas or traditions treat
only of some part of these subjects, while others take
in the whole circle. Most of them relate a portion of
the history of the gods, which they narrate very cir-
cumstantially.
The Puranas are considered nearly as ancient as
the Vedas. They are divided into two classes, con-
taining eighteen each. The Puranas of the first and
higher class set forth hi detail the attributes and
powers of Krishna Dwaipayana. The Puranas be-
longing to this class are said to contain four hundred
thousand slokas, or one million six hundred thousand
lines. Ten of them comprise the love and history of
SMvea, four of Vishnu, and two of Brahma. Two
others, named Agni, sing the praises of the sun and
of fire. The eighteenth is the Bhagavata, or Life of
Crishna, which crowns the whole series u .
The actual operation of these works upon the minds
of a vast portion of mankind, and the reputation they
bear for high antiquity and historical worth, entitle
them to a full and candid investigation. A plan has
accordingly been adopted for submitting the whole of
them to analysis, the result of which, as regards one of
The section of the Puranas relating to geography is called Bku-Chanda,
or Bhuvana-Cosa.
* Five of the most important of these are called the Pantschalakchanu.
u Every Purana treats of five subjects : the creation of the universe, its
progress, and the renovation of worlds ; the genealogy of gods and heroes ;
chronology, according to a fabulous system ; and heroic history, containing
the achievements of demigods and heroes. Since each Purana con-
tains a cosmogony, with mythological and heroic history, the works which
bear that title may not unaptly be compared to the Grecian theogonies.
See Colebrooke's Essay on the Sanscrit, etc. in Asiatic Researches, vol.
vii, p. 202 ; and Sir William Jones's Works, vol. i, p. 360 ; or Asiatic
Researches, vol. i, p. 351.
88 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
them, was communicated to the Asiatic Society of
Calcutta by its secretary, the present Boden professor.
The Vishnu Purana, it appears from this account, is a
work of sectarial character, inculcating the preferen-
tial adoration of Vishnu. The legendary portion,
although considerable, is less extravagant than in most
of the Puranas; and the genealogical and historical
sections, contain much curious and valuable matter.
Professor Wilson does not consider this Purana to be
older than the middle of the tenth century, though
avowedly compiled from older materials. The histori-
cal portion is referred to ancient and apparently tra-
ditionary memorials. Upon the whole, it is considered
as perhaps the most rational and valuable of the class
of works to which it belongs x .
The names of single Puranas are given in detail by
Sir William Jones (Works, vol. i, p. 360 ; or, Asiatic
Researches, vol. i, p. 352, 8vo. edition) ; by Sainte
Croix, in his translation of Ezur- Vedam ; and Hamil-
ton and Langles, in the Catalogue of manuscripts.
Their statements, however, differ.
Catalogue of ten Puranas, presented to the London
Asiatic Society, by colonel Tod. See Transactions
of the Royal Asiatic Society, vol. i, p. 613.
For a general account of the Puranas the reader
may consult Asiatic Researches, vol. viii, p. 480, (Hall.
Lit. Zeit, 1816, Oct. No. 247), and Craufurd's Re-
searches on India, vol. i, p. 187.
For a long time only four complete Puranas were
accessible to Europeans, through a Tamulic translation
from the Sanscrit: namely Saywon, Kandon, Kurmon,
and Bagavadon. To these have been added, in some-
thing less than sixteen years, the Mahabbhrata and
Ramayana, which, with the Bhagavata, are among
* Asiatic Journal, April, 1825, p. 458.
BHAGAVATA. 89
the most celebrated ; and are now well known to
Europeans by translations of long extracts and com-
plete episodes.
1. Bhagacata.
Bagavadon, or Bhagavata, takes its name from
Bhagavat, the ruler, one of the appellations of Krishna.
The poem consists of twelve Skandhas, or books,
and contains the history of Vishnu, as Krishna, who
bore that surname. They are attributed to Krishna
Dwaipayana, under the appellation of Veda-vyasa, or
merely Vyasa, the compiler, who is said to have lived
in the ninth century. Colebrooke, however, from
its style, considers it of later date, and ascribes it to
Vopadeva.
A copy of the Bhagavata in Devanagari, of 1528, as
well as two others in Bengalee, are in the Royal
Library at Paris. See Hamilton and Langles Cata-
logue des mss. Sanscrits, p. 9, and Notice sur un manu-
scrit du Bhagavata-Pourana, envoye par M. Duvan-
cel a la Societe Asiatique, par M. Burnouf, fils, in the
Journal Asiatique, torn, vii, Juillet, 1825, p. 46, et
Octobre, p. 193.
Reflexions sur Bagavadam par Deguignes, in the
Memoires de 1'Academie des Inscriptions torn, xxxviii,
p. 312 ; see likewise the Monthly Review, 1788,
vol. Ixxix, p. 591600, and Fr. Schlegel's Geschichte
der Literatur, vol. i, p. 180.
Specimens of the Bhagavat-Purana will be found in
Asiatic Researches, in the Voyages de Sonnerat, and
the first thirteen strophes in Paul. a. S. BartholomaK).
Sidharubam, p. 171.
Bagavadam, ou Doctrine Divine, Ouvrage indien
Canonique, sur 1'etre Supreme, les dieux, les geans, les
hommes, les di verses parties de 1'univers, etc. (Traduit
du Sanscrit en Tamoul, et du Tamoul en Frai^ais, par
90 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
un Malabar chretien, nomine Manila- Poulle. on 17(i!>X
Pnblie par M. Foucher d'Obsonvillo. /',/w. 17SS. Svo.
According to Hamilton this is only an extract, of whirh
the beginning alone is tolerably faithful. It is trans-
lated into (lorman in the Sannnlnng asiatisehor
Originalschriften, Zurich, 1791, B. i, p. 1- Jlo
. Dialogue of Xarada irith Brahma.
Uebersetzung eincs ungoilruokten Fragments tK>s
ttagaeatkim (Dialogue of \tinnln with ItnihnHi^, by
J. I til, in bis translation of the l-^our-t cdttni from Ste.
Croix, Arm, 1779, 2 Bde. Svo. vol. ii, p. 2
/9. Marriage of Iii
Mariage de Kid-mini, tire du Bhagharata. in Me-
langes do Litterature Sanserite par A. Lan^lois. ]>. S,">
119. Unkmini. the golden, was the daughter of king
H/iishnitiktt. in ber sbapo Lakshini deseeiuled to the
eartb, whon ber busband 1'ia/tnn. as Krishna, th\eh
among mankituU This episode recites tbe espousals
of these deities upon tbe earth.
2. Afahabharat.
Ma/n't Bhdrata,or. as \>"ard writes it, Muluibhanttu,
that is. the great BhArata, is a gigantic Epic ]H>em
in eighteen cantos, and of more than one hundred
thousand slokns, generally of two lines each. It is
ascribed to tbe Brahman Krishna Dwatpayana ///</.%<;,
and said to be about four thousand years old y .
i Btwen the I Wu* and PrHtt^, in point of antiquity, or, at least,
older than parts of the latter, rank the two great epic poems, the futway-
and ATM BJUmt, the Iliad and Odyssey of Sanscrit poetry. Quar-
Mriy Review, vol. xlv. p. 8.
M AH ABU A RAT. ui
Whctlier this be the case or not, it appears certain,
from the various translations of separate parts of it
which have been made, that it is a composition not
more remarkable for the information it affords respect-
ing ancient manners, and habits of feeling, than for
the grandeur of conception, and spirit of poetry, which,
notwithstanding much that is offensive to our ideas of
good taste, are everywhere manifest *.
Its principal subject is a history of the misfortunes
of a race of kings, descended from the great llltarata,
who was banished the city of JIastinapuru, and wan-
dered about for a long time in misery ; but at length,
by the assistance of Krishna, became victorious, and
again happy.
A number of beautiful episodes are interwoven ; and
what the pandits say of the Sanscrit language, in
which it is preserved, may be said of the Mah&
Bhdrata, " It is a deep and noble forest, abounding in
delicious fruits and fragrant flowers, shaded and
watered by perennial springs *.
The contents of this poem are given in detail in the
Catalogue des mss. Sanscrits, by Hamilton and Lang-
les, p. 6264, and in Will. Ward's View of the
History, etc. of the Hindoos, second edition, vol. i,
p. 543557.
Anquetil du Perron Recherches historiques et geo-
graphiques sur 1'Inde, Berlin, 1787, 4to. torn, ii,
p. 297, 553.
Polier Mythologie des Indiens, vol. i, p. 395.
Heeren's Researches on the Indians, last edition,
in the original German, or in the French and Englisii
translation b .
1 See Asiatic Journal, 1817, p. 425. " Ibid.
b The other great epic too of the M ahabharata is coming gradually to
light. In addition to the episode of Nalus, which had already appeared,
professor Bopp of Berlin has added to our list the episode of the Deluge,
92 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Craufurd's Researches on India, vol. i, p. 187.
Asiatic Journal, 1817, May, p. 425.
This poem is held in high esteem throughout India,
and translated into many of the oriental languages. It
was rendered into Persian at the command of Acbar
the Great, and from this version the contents are given
in English in the Ayeen-Akberi, vol. ii, p. 100.
Aper9u d'un Memoire sur la traduction Persane du
Mahabharata, faite par ordre de 1'empereur Djelal-
eddin Mohammed AJcbar, par M. Schulz, in the Journal
Asiatic, 1825, Aout, p. 110117; Sept. 129138.
This translation is by Abou'lfazl, Visir to Acbar, and
exists in manuscript in the Bibliotheque du Roi. In
the notice of Sanscrit manuscripts it is quoted under the
title ofKttabMuhaberat, i. e. liber ingentium prceliorum.
An extraordinary beautiful Sanscrit manuscript of
the Mahabharata, in twelve volumes, is described in
the Supplement to Howell and Stewart's Oriental Ca-
talogue, for 1827, p. 96.
The History of Ferishta, translated by Dow, con-
tains an extract from the Mahabharat.
Mahabharat (in Sungskrit), Calcutta, 1801 1806,
4 vols. in 12mo.
a. Introduction and Separate Books.
Mahabharati exordium cum versione, in Othm,
Frankii Chrestomathia Sanscrita, vol. i, p. 3.
The first book of the Mahabharat, translated into
the Bengalee, Calcutta, 1812, 2 vols. 4to; also 4 vols.
in 8vo.
A literal translation of the first section of the first
book, by Mr. Charles Wilkins, will be found in the
the mythic histories of the Savitri, the Rape of Draupadi, and Arjuna's
Journey to Indra's Heaven. Professor Heeren, in a manuscript addition
received from him for the English translation of his Asiatic Nations now
in the press.
BHAGAVAT-GITA. 93
Annals of Oriental Literature, London, 1820, vol. i. p.
6586 ; vol. ii, p. 278296 ; vol. iii, p. 450461 ;
and a notice of it by Bopp, in the Gotting. gel. Anz.
1821, St. 54, 55.
The first four books of the Mahabharat, translated
into Bengalee, and printed at Serampoor, 1801, 4 vols.
12mo.
The seventh book of the Mahabarat, translated into
Persian, manuscript, in Howell and Stewart's Catalogue
of Oriental Literature, London, 1828.
/3. Episodes and Extracts.
The episodes of the Mahabharat, are called Upak-
hyanani, and the five most esteemed of them are named
in India, the five precious stones.
aa. Bhagavat-Gita.
The Bhagavat-Gita, or, according to Ward, the
Bhuguvu-Dschita, that is, the divine song, gives, in the
form of a discourse between the god Krishna and his
pupil Arjuna, which they hold in the midst of an unde-
cided battle, a full and most curious exposition of the
half-mythological, half-philosophical pantheism of the
Brahmans, and a general view of the whole mystic
theology of the Hindoos. A. W. Schlegel calls this
episode the most beautiful, and perhaps the only truly
philosophical poem, that the whole range of literature
known to us has produced c . Mr. Milman observes,
that it reads like a noble fragment of Empedocles or
Lucretius, introduced into the midst of an Homeric
c Indischen Bibl. ii, 2, p. 219.
d See a capital article in the Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 1, ascribed
to this gentleman, to which I am indebted for nearly the whole of the above.
See also, Catalogue des mss. Sanscrits, p. 19 ; and Recherches Asiatiques,
torn, i, p. 287.
94 SANSCRIT. LITERATURE.
thing singularly striking and magnificent, in the intro-
duction of this solemn discussion on the nature of the
godhead and the destiny of man, in the midst of the
fury and tumult of the civil war in which it occurs.
This episode is said to be an interpolation of later date
than the giant epic, of which it forms a part ; and if so,
it is allied with great address to the main subject of
the poem. " On the whole, the Bhagavat-Glta is cer-
tainly one of the most curious and the most character-
istic works we have received from the East. As a re-
cord of religious and philosophical opinion it is in-
valuable ; and if the progress of Sanscrit criticism
should hereafter be able to fix, with any certainty, the
date of this episode, it would throw light on the whole
history of Indian civilisation e ."
An analysis of this poem is given in an interesting
article in the Monthly Review, 1787, vol. Ixxvi, p. 198
and 205; by Langlois, in his Monumens Litteraires^le
1'Inde; and another, with metrical specimens, in the
article in the Quarterly Review just referred to.
In the library of the Asiatic Society of London, there
is a Sanscrit ms. embellished with miniatures, under
the title of The Bhaghavad-Gita and Devi Mahatmya.
The Bhagavat-Gita was printed in Sanscrit, Cal-
cutta, 1815, 8vo; and 1818, 8vo.
The Bhagvat-Geeta, or Dialogues of Kreeshna and
Arjoon, in eighteen lectures, with notes, translated from
the original in the Sanskreet, or ancient language of
the Brahmans, by Charles Wilkins, London, 1785, large
4to. A critique upon this work will be found in the
Monthly Review, 1787 f . In French, Le Baghvat-
e Quarterly Review, 1. c.
f This was the first work translated from the Sanscrit into any European
language. Adelung states, that the missionary John, in a letter to Riidiger,
writes, that Wilkins, in this version, has introduced many European notions
not in the original, and entirely opposed to the Hindoo life and genius.
Though I have found no other authority for this opinion, its correctness
BHAGAVAT-G1TA. 95
y ou Dialogues de Kreeshna et cTArjoon, conte-
nant un precis de la religion et de la morale des In-
diens, traduit du Samscrit, langue sacree des Brames,
en Anglais, par Charles Wilkins, et de 1'Anglais en
Franais, par Parraud, Paris, 1787, 8vo; German, in
the Sammlung Asiat. Original-schriften, Zurich, 1801,
8vo; Bd. i, p. 321330; and by Fr. Majer, in Jul.
Klaproth's Asiat. Magazin, Bd. i, p. 406 453. A
Russian translation was published at Moscow, 1788,
8vo.
A new and improved edition of the English transla-
tion appeared in 1809, under the title of Bhuguvud-
geela, or dialogues between Krishna and Arjuna, ex-
tracted from the Mahabarut, printed at Khizurpoor
near Calcutta, 1809.
Some passages of the English version were turned
into German metre, by Fr. Schlegel ; and will be found
in his work, under the head of " Aus dem Bhogovot-
gita" Ueber die Sprache und Weisheit der Indier,
p. 284307.
Bhagavadgitfs lectiones, in Othm. Frankii Chresto-
mathia Sanskrita, vol. i xvii; ibid, ii, 4. p. 115.
Bhagavadgitce loca selecta cum versione, ibid, ii, 3,
p. 83115.
Bhagadad-Gita, id est, Qe<nre<rK>v /xe'Xo?, sive almi Krish-
na et Arjunce colloquium de rebus divinis, Bharatece
episodium. Textum recensuit, annotationes criticas
seems probable, if we consider how little was then known of the people, of
their institutions, and their literature. That free intercourse which has had
a gradual growth between the learned caste of India and the literati of
Europe, was then in its infancy. The priests guarded their sacred books
with jealous care from strangers. The translator had to contend with the
obscurities of a language, confessedly one of the most difficult to Euro-
peans, and which the Brahmans spend their lives in studying. These cir-
cumstances, and many others which might be enumerated, rendered the
task of this venerable Sanscrit scholar tenfold more difficult than what it
would now be ; and will lead us rather to wonder at his eminent success
in the Herculean labour he undertook, than to carp at its slight blemishes.
96 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
et interpretationem Latinam adjecit, Aug. Guil. a
Schlegel, Bonn, 1823, 8vo., reviewed by Fr. Bopp in
the Getting, gel. Anz. 1824, St. 37, 38. Upon this cri-
tic's statements Langlois published some remarks in
the Journal Asiatique ; and this called forth Observa-
tions sur la Critique du Bhavagad-Gtta, inseree dans
le Journal Asiatique, par M. A. W. de Schlegel;
Journ. Asiat. torn, ix, p. 3 : Lettre a M. le Pr6sident
du Conseil de la Societe Asiatique, et reponse aux ob-
servations de M. A. W. de Schlegel, par M. Lan-
glois, in the Journ. Asiat. torn, ix, p. 185. The Latin
version is spoken of in the Quarterly Review, vol. i,
p. 7, by one of the most elegant Latin scholars of the
present day, as composed with singular elegance and
dexterity.
Ueber die unter dem Namen Bhagavad-Gita be-
kannte Episode des Mahabharata, von Wilh. v. Hum-
boldt, Berlin, 1826, 4 to. The writer just referred to
calls this " a remarkably able and profound disquisi-
tion on the philosophy as well as the poetry of the
Bhagavat"
Ueber die Bhagavad-Gita, Mit Bezug auf die Beur-
theilung der Schlegelschen Ausgabe im Pariser Asia-
tischen Journal, aus einen Briefe von Hrn. Staats-
minister von Humboldt. In Schlegel's Indischer Bi-
bliothekll. 2. p. 218258. 3. p. 328.
A Persian translation in manuscript, is mentioned in
Howell and Stewart's Oriental Catalogue for 1827,
Suppl. No. 4439, under the following title : Shri Bhag-
vat, a translation from Shanskrit into Persian of the
Discourses of Arjun and Kreeshna.
bb. The History of Nala, King of Nishadha, and his Wife
Damajanti.
This is another episode from the Mahabharat, of
which it forms part of the third book. It is entirely of
NALA AND DAMAJANTI. 97
a different cast from the last, and is said to partake
rather of the manner of our own Spenser, than of the
philosophic tone of the Bhagavat-Gita. A sovereign,
named Yudhisshthira, the eldest of the five sons of
Pandu, is an exile in the wilderness, where he and his
brothers are doomed to pass twelve years, according to
an engagement he had entered into with his opponent
Duryodhana, with whom he had lost at dice. The sage
Wrihasdasva bears him company ; and, to- amuse and
console him, relates the history of king Nala, who, like
himself, had lost his empire and wealth by playing at
dice, but in the end became fortunate and happy.
The critic g from whom is chiefly borrowed the notice
of the Bhagavat-Gita, (and who so well able to judge ?)
calls this a poem full of the most pathetic interest ;
and adds, that if any portion of Indian song hitherto
translated into the European languages is likely to
arrest general attention, it is this beautiful tale, which
wants only a poet's hand to transplant it, in its living
freshness, to our foreign climate. For though, indeed,
Indian poetry in general must always lose much of its
native interest with us, from its foreign associations and
learned character; yet, as the same writer observes,
" there are universal feelings, which lie in the very depth
of our common nature, affections and passions of which
the language is as universal as the shape and linea-
ments of man ; and when poetry, in however remote a
region, speaks this general dialect of the heart, it will
command attention, and excite a pleasing or a thrilling
interest. Such appears to be the case with the episode
of Nala."
The following outline of the subject of this poem, is
given word for word from the same article in the Quar-
terly.
* The Rev. H. H. Milman, in Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 13, from
whom most of what follows on this poem is copied verbatim.
O
98 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Nala, the monarch of Nishadha, centred in his per-
son all the noble qualities which could distinguish an
Indian monarch. He surpassed all kings in justice, all
men in beauty ; and he was unrivalled in the manage-
ment of horses. Bhima, the king of Vidarbha (Berar),
possessed an only daughter, the most beautiful and
most modest of her sex the gentle Damajanti. Like
the knights and ladies of old, these two perfect beings
become mutually enamoured, each from the fame of the
other's admirable qualities : but instead of human am-
bassadors the faithful squire or the adventurous hand-
maid, Indian poetry furnishes the enamoured prince
with a very different kind oT confidante. Wandering
in the woods, Nala beholds a flock of birds with golden
wings, who offer to convey the tidings of his passion to
the ear of the princess. Nala could not refuse a pro-
posal so courteous, and at the same time so acceptable.
Flew away the swans h rejoicing, to Vidarbha straight they flew,
To Vidarbha's stately city ; there by Damajanti's feet,
Down with drooping plumes they settled ; and she gazed upon the
flock,
Wondering at their forms so graceful, where amid her maids she sat.
Sportively began the damsels all around to chase the birds ;
Scattering flew the swans before her, all about the lovely grove.
Lightly ran the nimble maidens, every one her bird pursued ;
But the swan that through the forest gentle Damajanti followed,
Suddenly in human language spake to Damajanti thus :
" Damajanti, in Vidarbha dwells a noble monarch, Nala,
Fair in form as the Aswinas, peerless among men is he
Like Kandharba in his beauty, like a god in human form
Truly if that thou wert wedded to this man, O peerless princess !
Beautiful would be thy children, like to him, thou slender maid.
We have seen gods and gandharvas, men, the serpents, and the Rishis*;
All we've seen, but ne'er the equal have we seen of noble Nala.
Pearl art thou among all women, Nala is the pride of men."
h In the original, according to our translators, this is a far less poetic
bird ; and we must crave permission for once to turn our ' geese into swans.'
1 Intermediate beings in Indian mythology.
NALA AND DAMAJANTI. 99
They receive a favourable answer from the princess,
and take flight.
As in ancient Greece, or as in feudal romance, the
kings of all the earth, and all the chiefs or warriors
who aspire to the hand of this blameless Helen of the
East, are summoned to a solemn assemblage, called the
Swayambara, or self-election, where the princess is to
designate the favoured suitor by throwing a wreath of
flowers round his neck. The roads to the court of
Vidarbha are crowded with rajahs and kings; and
groan beneath the weight of steeds, and cars,, and ele-
phants. Nala, of course, is among the first; but on
his way he encounters four formidable and unexpected
rivals, Indra the god of the firmament, Agni the god of
fire, Varuna the god of the waters, Yama the god of
the infernal regions. They declare that they have de-
scended from heaven to seek the hand of the lovely
Damajanti; and they adjure the enamoured Nala, by
his piety and dutiful allegiance to the gods, to under-
take the ungracious task of bearing their message of
love to the fair. Nala remonstrates ; but piety tri-
umphs over passion. He is suddenly, by the divine
aid, transported into the bower of the princess.
There he saw Vidarbha's maiden, girt with all her virgin bands,
Bright in beauty, full of softness, worthy of her noble blood;
Every limb in round proportion, slender sides and lovely eyes;
Even the moon's soft gleam despising, in her own o'erpowering
brightness :
As he gazed, his love grew warmer to the softly smiling maid,
Yet to keep his truth, his duty, all his passion he suppressed.
He delivers the message of the gods; but the maiden,
in this delicate situation, permits her candour to pre-
vail over her bashfulness, and declares that, even in
the presence of the gods, she shall select the noble
Nala. But a new difficulty arises : the assembly is met
at the Swayambara, all the royal suitors arc in array,
100 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
and Damajanti discovers, to her dismay, five Nalas ;
for each of the deities had assumed the form, the fea-
tures, the dress of the king of Nishadha. She ad-
dresses the deities in a supplicating hymn.
With her words and with her spirit uttered she her humble prayer;
Folding both her hands and trembling, to the gods the maiden spake.
The gods are moved with compassion; they stand con-
fessed, pure (literally sine sudore), with eyes that do
not close, with chaplets of celestial amaranth, their feet
not touching the ground, their bodies casting no
shadow. The form of the mortal Nala is distinguished
by the opposite of all these celestial attributes. He is
not free from the dust and heat of earth, his feet press
the ground, his body casts a shadow.
Modestly the large-eyed maiden lifted up his garment's hem,
Round his shoulders threw she lightly the bright zone of radiant
flowers.
The assembly breaks up amid the applause of the gods,
and the jealous lamentations of the unsuccessful suitors.
The nuptials are celebrated : Nala and his bride are
blessed with two children: Nala is the model of all
virtue; beloved by his subjects, pious to the gods, a
diligent reader of the four Vedas, even of the fifth
he at length performs the Aswameda, the celebrated
sacrifice of the horse, the height of Indian devotion.
But ' the course of true love never doth run smooth.'
The gods, on their return from the Swayambara, had
met the fierce and vindictive Kali and another deity,
who, enraged to find themselves too late, and jealous
of the success of Nala, swore deep and eternal ven-
geance. But evil spirits have no power over the
blameless ; offence must be committed before they can
possess themselves of the soul of man. In unlucky
hour Nala is guilty of a nameless act of impurity in the
omission of a certain ablution : the demon Kali at once
enters into him ; his understanding is perverted, his
NALA AND DAMAJANTI. 101
disposition changed, and one lingering virtue, the love
of Damajanti alone remains. He plays at dice with
his unnatural brother Pushkara loses his wealth, pa-
laces, provinces, his kingdom, his very clothes. Da-
majanti had fortunately seized an opportunity of send-
ing her children, under the care of the chief charioteer
(the master of the horse), to her father's court. What
stake remains to the ruined gambler? none but Dama-
janti herself. The brother proposes the hazard ; but
the demoniac has not yet lost that last holy affection.
They are driven together into the wilderness with
but one garment between them ; for a bird flew away
with the only one Nala had retained, mocking the
spendthrift gambler and proscribed by an edict, which
makes it a capital crime to afford them any succour, or
to receive them under any roof. Nala persuades his
miserable wife to abandon him to his fate, and retire to
her father's court. It is our fault if we have entirely
marred the exquisite pathos of her reply.
Truly all my heart is breaking, and my sinking members fail,
When, O king, thy desperate counsel once I think on, once again.
Robbed of kingdom, robbed of riches, naked, worn with thirst and
hunger,
Shall I leave thee in the forest, shall I wander from thee far?
When thou, sad and famine-stricken, thinkest of thy former bliss
In the wild wood, O my husband, I will soothe thy weariness.
Like a wife is no physician; in a state so sad as thine,
Medicine none is like her kindness Nala, speak I not the truth ?
Nala promises that they shall not part ; but the evil
spirit within him strives to overpower this last virtue.
The frantic man determines to abandon her while she
is sleeping; he cuts off part of the single garment
they possess, and leaves her half naked, and lying on
the hard earth. Once he turns back to take a parting
look
Yet his cruel heart relenting, to the cabin turns he back :
On the slumbering Damajanti gazing, sadly wept the king :
102 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Thou, that sun or wind hath never roughly visited, my lov'd one,
On the hard earth in a cabin sleep'st, with no protecting friend.
When she sees her severed garment, she, that ever smiled so sweetly,
Will not all her senses fail her : loveliest how will 't fare with her ?
How will 't fare with Bhima's daughter, lonely, by her lord abandoned,
Wandering in the savage forest, where wild beasts and serpents dwell ?
He entreats the protection of all the gods and genii,
but rests his chief trust in a still surer safeguard.
Noblest, may they all protect thee, best of all thy virtue guard thee.
The strength of Damajanti, through which she is ena-
bled
To trace huge forests, and unharboured heaths,
Infamous hills, and sandy perilous wilds,
is her deep, and ardent, and self-regardless love for
her faithless husband.
Damajanti woke the beauteous, in the wild wood, full of dread,
When she did not see her husband, overpowered with grief and pain.
Loud she shriek'd in her first anguish Where art thou, Nishadha's
king?
Mighty king ! my sole protector ! Ah ! my lord, desert'st thou me ?
Oh ! I'm lost, undone for ever; helpless in the wild wood left.
Faithful once to every duty wert thou, king, and true in word ;
True in word art thou, to leave me, slumbering in the forest thus?
Couldst thou then depart, forsaking thy weak, faithful, once-loved wife,
Her that never sinned against thee, now, alas ! so sinned against ?
O, I fear; thou famous conqueror, show thee to me, oh, my lord ;
Yes, I see thee there I see thee there thou art, Nishadha's king.
In the straw why thus conceal thee ? why no answer ? speak, my lord,
Wherefore now, like one forsworn, thus sternly stayest thou aloof?
When I come beseeching to thee, wilt thou not console nor cheer me ?
For myself I will not sorrow, not for aught to me befalls.
Thou art all alone, my husband ; I will only mourn for thee.
How will 't fare with thee, my Nala, thirsting, famished, faint with
hunger,
At eve on some hard root reposing, and no more beholding me ?
Her adventures are as strange and various as ever
happened to errant damsel in romance. She is in dan-
ger from a terrible serpent ; is saved by a huntsman,
only to fall into more peril from his unhallowed desires :
NALA AND DAMAJANTI. 103
she prays for divine succour, and the lustful huntsman
falls dead at her feet.
She then descends into a quiet valley, inhabited by a
fraternity of Sanyasis, Gymnosophists or hermits, who
are clothed in the bark of trees. In amazement at her
beauty they worship her as a divinity.
Fear not thou, oh blessed spirit !
Speak, oh thou ! of form so beauteous ; who art thou, and what thy
purpose ?
As thy noble form we gaze on, as we gaze on thy bright eyes,
In amaze we stand and wonder : freely breathe, and wail no more.
Of the wood art thou the goddess ? or the mountain-goddess thou ?
Or the river-nymph, the beauteous ? Blessed spirit, speak the truth.
Her next adventure is more animating and pic-
turesque. She encounters a caravan of travelling mer-
chants, who, in the same manner, are inclined to adore
her as a celestial being, and gladly admit her into their
cavalcade. The conclusion of this scene is so charac-
teristic that we cannot omit it. At nightfall the tents
are pitched by a beautiful stream, covered with the
lotus flower.
When the midnight came all noiseless came in silence deep and still,
Weary slept the band of merchants. Lo ! a herd of elephants
Came to drink the mountain river, oozing moisture from their temples.
When the caravan they gazed on, the tame elephants they scented.
Forward ran they, wild and furious, tossing fierce their murtherous
trunks.
Irresistible the onset of the rushing ponderous beasts :
As the peak from some high mountain, thundering rolls into the valley,
Strewn was all the way before them with the boughs, the limbs of trees.
On they crash'd to where the travellers slumber'd by the lotus lake.
Trampled down without a struggle, helpless on the earth they lay.
Woe, O woe ! shrieked out the merchants; wildly some began to fly,
In the forest thickets plunging; some stood gasping, blind with dread.
With their tusks, their trunks, their feet, beat them down the elephants.
Many saw their camels dying, mingled with the men on foot,
And in frantic tumult rushing, fiercely struck each other dead.
Many, miserably shrieking, cast them down upon the earth ;
104 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Many climbed the trees in anguish, or plunged deep beneath the waves.
Such, so fearful was the tumult, the three worlds seemed all appalled.
" "Tis a fire that burns and blazes; save ye, fly ye for your lives!
Lo ! your precious pearls ye trample : take them up ; why fly so fast ?
Save them 'tis a common venture : fear ye not I would deceive :"
To each other cried the merchants, and in shrieking anguish scattered.
The calamity is ascribed to the presence of the ill-
fated queen. She is forced to fly, and at length reaches
a hospitable city, where, though half naked, worn with
toil, and withered with sorrow, she is adored for her
beauty as she passes through the streets, and is re-
ceived with the greatest kindness by the mother of the
king.
The adventures of Nala are not less strange and
stirring. He has an encounter with an enchanted ser-
pent, an incident of which we find, more than once,
almost the exact parallel in the Teutonic ballads. His
form is entirely changed, and he is received as ' master
of the horse' at the court of Ayodhya, or Oude. King
Bhima, distressed at the loss of his daughter, traces
out her retreat by means of some wandering Brahmans.
She returns home ; and after some time, in order to dis-
cover the retreat of Nala, proclaims her intention 'of
holding another Swayambara, that she may proceed to
a second marriage, the worst offence against female
propriety 11 , especially in a lady of her rank.
Rituparna, the king of Oude, determines to become
a candidate for the princess, and sets forth with his
charioteer the disguised Nala. This king was gifted
with so wonderful a faculty of calculation, that he could
count the fruits upon the tree as he drove rapidly
under it. Nala was no less distinguished for his un-
rivalled management of horses. They mutually com-
municate their secrets ; and Nala thus, already dispos-
k Second marriages are prohibited by the laws of Menu ; and hence, no
doubt, one great motive to the performance of the Suttee.
NALA AND DAMAJANTI. 105
sessed by the wicked spirit, becomes more than a match
for any gamester. As they enter the city of king
Bhima, Damajanti recognises the sound of her hus-
band's trampling steeds his driving could not be mis-
taken by her ear.
All her heart was thrilled with wonder, as she heard the welcome
sound;
On they seemed to come, as Nala drove of yore his trampling steeds ;
Damajanti heard and trembled at the old familiar sound.
On the palace roof the peacocks, th* elephants within their stalls,
And the coursers heard the rolling of the mighty monarch's car.
Peacocks, elephants, the trampling of the fiery coursers heard ;
Up they raised their necks and clamoured, as at sound of coming rain.
Damajanti employs every artifice to discover her
husband. She suspects the charioteer, about whom all
is wonderful and miraculous. The gates rise or ex-
pand to let him in; self-kindled fire is ever ready at
his call; the water flows towards him when he is hi
want of it. Her suspicions are still further excited by
a whimsical incident. She procures some of his food,
and recognises the well-known flavour of her husband's
cookery. This is Indian, what follows is universal na-
ture. By her handmaid she sends her children to him.
Soon as he young Indrasena and her little brother saw,
Up he sprang, his arms wound round them, to his bosom folding both;
When he gazed upon the children, like the children of the gods,
All his heart o'erflowed with pity, and unwilling tears brake forth.
Yet Nishadha's lord perceiving that she marked his strong emotion,
From his hold released the children, and to Cesina he spake :
Oh ! so like mine own twin children was yon lovely infant pair,
Seeing them thus unexpected, have I broken out in tears.
Damajanti contrives an interview, and questions the
mysterious charioteer :
Hast thou ever seen, Mahaka, an upright and noble man,
Who departed, and abandoned in the wood his wife that slept,
The beloved wife and blameless, in the wild wood worn with grief?
Him, who was my chosen husband him, for whom I scorned the gods;
Could he leave the true, the loving her that hath his children borne?
106 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Nala can conceal himself no longer; but the jealous
thought, that his wife was about to commit the faithless
and indecorous offence of taking a second husband,
rankles in his heart, and he rebukes her with sternness.
Damajanti adjures the wind, the sun, and the moon, to
bear witness that she was guiltless of any such design,
and only employed the innocent artifice to win back
her lord.
He through all the world that wanders, witness the all-seeing Wind,
Let him now of life bereave me, if in this 'gainst thee I've sinned.
And the Sun that ever moveth o'er the bosom of the deep,
Let him now of life bereave me, if in this 'gainst thee I've sinned.
Witness, too, the Moon that travels through the midst of all the
world ;
Let her, too, of life bereave me, if in this 'gainst thee I've sinned.
These three gods are those that govern the three worlds so let them
speak.
If these gods can say with justice, " Cast her off," so let it be.
Thus adjured, a solemn witness spake the Wind from out the air :
" She hath done or thought no evil ; Nala, it is truth I speak.
King, the treasure of her virtue Damajanti well hath guarded ;
We ourselves have seen and watched her, closely for three live-long
years."
Even as thus the Wind was speaking, flowers fell showering all around,
And the god's sweet music sounded, floating on the soft west-wind.
Nala re-assumes his form ; and the poem ends with his
winning back all that he had lost to his unprincipled
brother, his re-ascending his ancestral throne, and re-
commencing a reign of piety, justice, and felicity.
Thus closes a piece which, for interest of story, cha-
racteristic variety of incident, purity of moral tone, de-
licacy of sentiment, and richness of imagery, inspires a
very high idea of Indian imagination and feeling, and
wants but the aid of a faithful and spirited translator
to give the name of Vyasa acknowledged rank among
the celebrated poets of antiquity. ( The heroic truth
and devotedness of Damajanti,' observes A. Schlegel,
at the close of a glowing passage on the general merit
NALA AND DAMAJANTI. 107
of this poem, ' are as celebrated as those of Penelope in
the west, and deserve to be as well known in Europe 1 .
Besides this, there are many other Indian poems
which treat of the adventures of Nala. One of the most
celebrated is the Naishad'hiya, by Shri Harscha, the
son of Shri Kirah. This is one of the six Mahakavya,
or capital poems of profane literature. It recites, in
twenty-two cantos, the marriage of Nala with Dama-
yanti m , daughter of Bhima, king of Vidarbha, a very
favourite subject of Indian poetry ; and though not free
from faults, it is by many esteemed the most beautiful
composition in the Sanscrit language. Notwithstand-
ing, however, its striking poetical beauties, according
to Hindoo taste, it is very barren of incident. The
story proceeds no further than the marriage of Nala
and Damayanti, and the description of their mutual
affection and happiness. Their romantic and inter-
esting adventures subsequent to their marriage are
wholly omitted ; while the poet, with a degree of licen-
tiousness, but too well accommodated to the taste of
his countrymen, indulges in glowing descriptions of
sensual love n .
A copious commentary in Sanscrit upon this poem,
with remarks on the various kinds of metre in which
it is composed, is in the possession of the Paris Asiatic
Society. This manuscript bears the title of Sahityavi-
dyadhari Tika. See Journ. Asiat. vol. xxxvi, p. 383.
Nala Daya, a poem, with a Commentary, Calcutta,
1813, 8vo. This Nala Daya, which is ascribed
to the celebrated poet Calidasa, is a poem in four
cantos, comprising two hundred and twenty couplets,
or stanzas, on the adventures of Nala and Damayanti.
1 Indische Bibliothek, i, 98.
m In the foregoing extract from the Quarterly their mode of spelling
this name is followed, though properly Damayanti.
n Colebrooke, on Sanscrit poetry, in Asiatic Researches, vol. x, p. 428.
108 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
In this singular poem rhyme and alliteration are
blended in the termination of the verses : for the three
or four last syllables of each hemistich within the
stanza are the same in sound, though different in
sense. It is a series of puns on a pathetic subject n .
Nuloduyu, a celebrated romance, formerly translated
by Fuezee into Persian verse, under the name Juldu-
mum, Khizurpoor, 1814, 4to. The Persian version
was made by Scheickh Fizee, Abulfazel's brother. See
Gotting. gel. Anz. 1813, No. clvi.
A French translation of this episode from the Per-
sian version of the Mahabharat, exists among the
manuscripts in the Bibliotheque du Roi, presented by
professor Schultz of the Societe Asiatique of Paris.
See Journ. Asiat. Sept. 1825, p. 137.
Srimahabharate Nalopakhyanam. Nalus, carmen
Sanscritum, e Mahabarato. Edidit, Latine vertit, et
adnotationibus illustravit Franciscus Bopp, Londini,
Parisiis, et Argentor. 1819, 8vo. A critique upon this
edition and version is given in A. W. v. Schlegel's
Indischer Bibl. vol. i, p. 97128, Gotting. gel. Anz.
1820, p. 1 ; Leipz. Lit. Zeit, 1820, No. clvii clix;
Revue Encycl. 1820, Mars, p. 357.
Nala, eine indische Dichtung, von Vyasa, aus dem
Sanskrit, im Versmaasse der Urschrift iibersetzt und
mit Erlauterungen begleitet von J. G. L. Kosegarten,
Jena, 1820, 8vo.
A German metrical version of detached parts of
Nala and Damayanti, and especially of the ix, x, xi,
xii, and xiii cantos, is given by Francis Bopp, in his
Indralokagamanam, or Ardscuna's Wanderung zu
Indra's Himmel, u. s. w. Berlin, 1824.
n Colebrooke, in Asiatic Researches, vol. x, p. 402.
This is the second book printed in Europe in the ancient Indian
character: the types used for it being the same as those with which
Wilkins's Sanscrit Grammar was printed in 1808.
THE FIGHT WITH THE GIANTS. 109
Nal und Damajanti. Eine indische Geschichte, von
Fr. Riickert, Frankfort a. M. 1828, 12mo.
Another attempt of this sort is the Nala-Champu of
Trivicrama. It recounts nearly the same story of the
fortunes of King Nala and his wife Damayanti, in
prose, with a very frequent mixture of poetry ; a style
in which numerous works have been composed in
Sanscrit, and which is called Champu p .
cc. The History of Dushrvanta and Sakuntala.
The Story ofDooshwanta and Sokoontala, translated
from the Mahabharata, a poem in the Sanskreet Lan-
guage, by Ch. Wilkins, esq., originally published in the
Oriental Repertory, by Alex. Dalrymple, London,
1795, 12mo. Histoire de Douchmanta et de Sakoun-
tala, extraite du Mahabharata, poeme Sanscrit, et
traduite sur la version Anglaise de M. Charles Wilkins,
Journ. Asiat. 1828, Mai, p. 838874.
Part of the history of Sakuntala (his birth), from
the Mahabharata, is translated into German verse by
Fr. Schlegel, in his Works : Ueber Weisheit und
Sprache der Indier, p. 308324.
Dushwanta and Sakuntala, an episode from Maha-
bharata, in the Asiatic Journal, 1817, May, p. 425;
June, p. 548 ; July, p. 7 ; August, p. 126.
dd. The Fight with the Giants.
Der Kampf mit dem Riesen, Episode aus Maha-
bharat, in genauer metrischer Uebersetzung, nach einer
pariser Handschrift, von Fr. Bopp, in his Conjuga-
tionssystem der Sanskrit-Sprache, Frankf. a. M. 1816,
8vo. p. 237269.
v Colebrooke, 1. c. He mentions the Krishna Champu, the Ganga
Champu, Vrindavanna Champu, etc.
110 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
ce. The Discourse of Dhritarashtra to his charioteer Sanjaya.
In English in the first number of the Annals of
Oriental Literature, London, 1820.
Dhritarashtrce sermo ex Mahabarato excerptus cum
Nilakanthce scholiis et expositione, in Othm. Frankii
Chrestomathia Sanskrita, Monad, 1820, 4to. vol i,
p. 2. It consists of eighty slokas, or distichs, each
comprising two lines of sixteen syllables, having a
ca?sura at the end of the eighth syllable.
ff. The Death of Sisupala.
Sisupala- Badha, or the death of Sisupala, a poem
in twenty cantos, ascribed to king Magha ; yet, if tradi-
tion may be relied on, Magha, though expressly named
as the author, was merely the patron, not the poet. As
the subject is heroic, and even the unity of action well
preserved, and the style of the composition elevated,
this poem is entitled to the name of epic q . It is taken
from the Mahabharat, and narrates the war between
Krishna and the princes who united themselves with
Sisupala against him. A brief account of it is given
by Colebrooke, in the Asiatic Researches, vol. x,
p. 401 ; who observes, that the Indian taste for de-
scriptive poetry, and particularly of the licentious
kind, has disfigured this work, which is not otherwise
undeserving of its high reputation.
The Maghu Kavyu, an epic poem in the original
Sungskrit, published by H. H. Wilson, Calcutta, 1812,
4to. See W. Ward's View of the Literature, etc.
vol. i, p. 511.
The Sisupala Badlia, or Death of Sisupala ; also
entitled the Magha Cavya, or Epic Poem of Magha,
<> Colebrooke.
THE BRAHMAN'S LAMENT. Ill
in twenty cantos, with a commentary by Malli Natha.
Edited by Vidya Cara Misra and Syama Lada, pun-
dits, Calcutta, 1815, 8vo. Printed in the Nagari
character.
gg. Arjuna' s Journey to Indra's Heaven.
Indralokdgamanam, oder Arjuna s Wanderung zu
Indras Himmel, nebst andern Episoden des Maha-
Bharata, in der Ursprache zum erstenmal herausgege-
ben, metrisch iibersetzt und mit kritischen Anmer-
kungen versehen von Franz. Bopp, Berlin, 1824. Re-
viewed by F. E. Schultz, in the Journ. Asiat. vol. v,
p. 164. The ascent of Arjuna, and the palaces of
Indra, are described with great splendour of imagery,
and in one part with a kind of voluptuous colouring.
See Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 30.
hh. Arjuna 's Return to Indras Heaven.
This is a sequel to the above, and is another warlike
episode, in which the hero, armed with celestial wea-
pons, assaults and conquers the cities of the Danawi,
or demons. It will be found edited and partly trans-
lated into German verse, in Fr. Bopp's Die Siindfluth
nebst drey andern der wichtigsten Episoden des Maha-
Bharata, Berlin, 1829.
ii. The Death of Hidimba. .
Hidimbabadhah, or Hidimba' s Death, in the ori-
ginal text, with a German translation by Franz. Bopp,
in his Indralokagamanam, etc.
kk. The Brahman's Lament.
Brahmanavilapah, or the Brahman's Lament, is given
in the original text, with a German translation by Bopp,
in the same work.
Upon the last two articles the writer in the Quarterly
112 'SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
observes, " The Death of Hidimba is a curious illus-
tration of the universality of the same fictions all over
the earth. Hidimba is exactly the blood-lapping, bone-
cranching, marrow-sucking giant or ogre, who, having
thrilled with terror the bosoms of children of an older
growth, in the ballads of our Teutonic ancestors, has
sunk into our nursery tales, from whence he is well-nigh
exorcised by the more potent spirit of Utilitarianism.
But the Brahman's Lament, though grounded on a
similar legend, falls again into the softer and more
pathetic vein. While the sons of Pandu dwelt in Eket-
schara, Bhima, sitting alone with his mother, hears the
lamentation of a Brahman. A terrible giant infested
the neighbourhood of the city, to whom a tribute of
human flesh was daily paid. It had now come to the
turn of the poorer Brahmans to furnish forth the hor-
rible repast; and in this family either the Brahman
himself, the mother, the grown up daughter, or the
son, a little child, must be surrendered as the victim.
It is a contest of the most affecting self-devotion; and
in turn the father, the mother, and the daughter, in
what may be fairly called three beautiful elegies, full
of curious allusions to the state of Indian society, en-
force their claim to the privilege of being made the
sacrifice.
At the close they sit down and weep.
Seeing them together weeping, 'gan the little son to speak
Gazing with both eyes wide open, lisped he thus his broken words :
" Weep not, father, weep not, mother, oh, my sister, weep not thou."
First to one, and then to th' other, went he with a smiling mouth,
Then a spike of spear-grass lifting, spake he thus as though in mirth,
" With this spear point will I kill him, this man-eating giant, dead."
In their bitterness of anguish, as the playful child they heard
Prattling thus, within their bosoms stole unspeakable delight.
BAHIKAVARNANA. 113
II. The Deluge.
Diluvium cum tribus aliis Maha Bharati praestant-
issimis episodiis. Primus edidit Franciscus Bopp.
Fasciculus prior, quo continetur textus Sanscritus,
Berol. 1824, 4to.
Die Siindfluth, nebst drey andern der wichtigsten
Episoden des Maha-Bharata. Aus der Ursprache
iibersetzt von Franz Bopp, Berlin, 1822. Die Siind-
fluth is reprinted in the Berliner Conversations-Blatte
fiir Poe'sie, Literatur, und Kritik, 1829, No. cix. It
had previously been translated by Sir William Jones,
in his Works. See Getting, gel. Anz. 1829, St. 137.
Bopp's version of this poem on the Indian Deluge is
noticed in the Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 25, where
some passages from it will be found elegantly translated
into English. It is the Indian tradition of the deluge
of Manu, the Noah of the book of Genesis.
mm. Sundas and Upasundas.
Sundopasundopakhyanam, or Sundas and Upasundas,
in the original text, and a German translation by Fr,
Bopp, in his Indralokagamanam, etc.
nn. Bahikavarnana.
An episode from the sixth book of the Mahabharata,
under the title of Bahikavarnana, that is, a description
of the Bahikas, a people of the Punjab (the country
lying about the five rivers flowing from the north-east
which fall into the Indus,) is given in the original, toge-
ther with a Latin translation and notes, in Christiani
Lassenii Commentatio geographica atque historica cle
Pentapotamia Indica, Bonn, 1827, 4to. p. 6391. The
reviewer in the Jen. Allg. Lit. Zeit, 1828, No. cxciii,
believes that it contains many interpolations of a later
date than the original work.
114 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Some extracts from it have also been translated by
Wilson, in his paper on the History of Cashmire, in
Asiat. Researches, vol. xv, p. 1, etc.
oo. The Rape of Draupadi.
This episode represents the combat of the five hus-
bands of Draupadi, in order to revenge the rape of
their common wife. A fragment of this will be found
in Bopp's grammar, p. 19, etc., and the whole episode
in his Siindfluth. This community of husbands is a
singular arrangement, and we believe unprecedented
in the mythic or heroic age of India. It bears no re-
semblance to the loose morality said to prevail among
some of the tribes at the foot of the Himalaya, and
other parts of India. It is a ve/-te<r*?, or a privilege, to
which the princes had been predestinated in an earlier
state of being. The rescue of the wife from the king
of Sind is the subject of a bold and spirited battle-
piece. See Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 29. The
power of the Indian poets to paint these scenes of tu-
mult and strife, forms the subject of a glowing pa-
negyric by M. Chezy, which will be found translated
below, p. 118.
pp. Other Episodes and Extracts.
Die aufopfernde Gattenliebe der Sawitri, an episode
from the Mahabharat. In die Siindfluth, u. s. w. von
Franz Bopp, Berlin, 1829. The contents and extracts
are given in the Berliner Conversations-Blatte, 1829,
No. cxlviii.
A Dialogue between Bhrighu and Bharadvadja,
from the twelfth section, containing a philosophical en-
quiry into the most important points of Indian theology.
A French translation of this was presented by pro-
fessor Schultz to the Asiatic Society of Paris. See
Journ. Asiat. Sept. 1825, p. 137.
HARIVANSA. 115
Story of the Churning of the Ocean to obtain the
fourteen Jewels, from the Mahabharat, in the Asiatic
Journal, 1817, Oct. p, 346349.
The editor of this translation tells us at its close, that,
allowing for the difference of style and habits of think-
ing, the most unaccountable coincidence of machinery
and events is perceptible throughout between the sub-
limely poetic pieces of Milton and Vyasa. The simi-
larity of object in the combatants, the hope of immortal
vigour which inflames the etherial beings of Milton, and
the thirst of the Amrita which causes the quarrel in
the Mahabharat, will be found to furnish a series of
corresponding conceptions in the two poets, more rea-
dily perceived than accounted for. The historical con-
nection may indeed be no longer traceable ; but for
that very reason, we do not recollect to have met with,
in all our reading, a more fair opportunity of critically
comparing the merits of two bards, than we have here
in the specimens of the gigantic imagery of Vyasa,
and of Milton's ' flood of mind.'
The Hermitage of Kanwa, freely translated from the
Mahabharat, in the Asiatic Journ. 1826, Aug. p. 173.
3. Hanvansa.
Haricansa, the family of the Hari, form a sort of
appendix to the Mahabharat. They consist of 25,000
verses. Hari is a name of Vishnu under the shape of
Krishna; whose adventures, as well as the future fate
of his family, are here narrated.
A. Langlois in his Melanges de Litterature San-
scrite, Paris, 1828, 8vo., has given six historical ex-
tracts from this work.
1. Histoire de Cdla-Yavana, p. 49 84. An episode
from the war of Jara-Sandha against Krishna. The
word Yavana, is used by the Hindoos to designate
110 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
an inhabitant of the west r . An English translation
and a critique on the version of Langlois is given in
the Asiatic Journal, Feb. 1828. The writer suspects
M. L. to have taken great, if not unwarrantable liber-
ties with the original: " The style is florid and redun-
dant, and often appears to us to savour much more of
France than Hindoostan."
2. The second story is the Marriage of Rookmini
the daughter of Bhishmaka, and, as we have already
seen, the favourite mistress of Krishna. The exploits
of that god could not disarm her brother Rookmi of his
hatred ; and he prevailed on his father to promise
Rookmini's hand to one of his royal allies in the war so
unsuccessfully waged against the incarnate deity. On
the day appointed for the marriage, however, Krishna
arrived with a few attendants, carried off the princess,
and thus secured the happiness of both.
3. The third story, The Entertainments at Dwa-
raca, are curious from their exhibiting a picture (ne-
cessarily concise) of the manner in which the ancient
inhabitants of Hindoostan amused themselves on occa-
sions of public festivity.
4. The fourth is The Death of Rookmi. That
prince, the successor of Bhishmaka, had a daughter,
Soobhangi; and as he had renounced his enmity against
Krishna, he consented to bestow her on Radyoomna,
the son of that hero and his sister. Balarama is pre-
sent at the nuptials, and is inveigled into play with
Rookmi and other princes. He loses, is ridiculed for
his want of skill, becomes so violently enraged that he
overturns the table, and afterwards kills Rookmi with
the chess-board.
1 Wilford, and after him Colonel Francklin, are quick-sighted enough to
find Deucalion, in the Indian words, Dova Cala Yavana. This is almost as
bad a derivation as we have somewhere seen of chez from ;></.
RAMAYANA. 117
4. Ramayana.
There are many poems bearing this name, and all
relating to the same subject. The achievements of
Rama, its hero, have been sung by profane as fre-
quently as by sacred poets. His history occupies a con-
siderable place in many of the Puranas, and is the sole
object of Valmiki's poem, and of another entitled Ad'-
hydtma Ramayana, which is ascribed to Vyasa. There
are also others by Bhavabhuti, Murari-Misra, Paksha-
Dhara-Misra, etc. The most complete and valuable
of them all, however, is the great epic, the Ramayana
of Valmiki.
It narrates the banishment of Rama, under the name
of Chandra, (resembling the moon,) a prince belonging
to the dynasty of the kings of Ayodhya ; his wander-
ing to the peninsula; the seizure of his wife by the
giant ruler of Ceylon ; the miraculous conquest of this
island ; and the restoration of Rama to the empire of
his ancestors. It consists of 24,000 distichs, divided
into seven books, which are again subdivided into chap-
ters or raphsodies. Some idea of the esteem in which
this poem is held by the Hindoos, may be formed from
the following passage from the introduction: " He
who sings and hears this poem continually, has attained
to the highest state of enjoyment, and will finally be
equal to the gods."
Analysis of the Ramayana in Ward's View of the
History, etc. of the Hindoos, ed. 2. torn, ii, p. 187.
Langles in Catalogue des mss. Sanscr. p. 13, 14.
Craufurd, Researches on India, vol. i, p. 188.
Colebrooke, in Asiatic Researches, vol. x, p. 426.
Polier Mythologie des Hindous, and, after him,
Gorres in the Heidelb. Jahrb. 1810, vol. vi, p. 245, sqq.
Heeren's Ideen.
Discours prononce au College Royal de France a
118 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
1'ouverture du Cours de langue et de litterature San-
skrite, par Mr. de Chezy, Paris, 1815, 8vo. where
p. 17 26, is given an extract from the Ramayana*.
A very valuable manuscript of the Ramayana is men-
tioned in the Supplement to Howell and .Stewart's Ori-
ental Catalogue for 1827, p. 99 l .
A notice on the three Paris mss. of the Ramayana in
M. Chezy, in the discourse above quoted, says of this poem, " It is
more especially in epic poems that the Sanscrit seems to bear the pahn
from all other languages ; and among the Indian poets, the great Valmiki,
in his Ramayana, seems to have best understoood the art of displaying all
its beauties. Under his magic pencil it becomes pliant, and yields, without
effort, to every variety of tone and colour. If he would paint gentle and
affecting scenes, this beautiful, sonorous, and copious language, furnishes
him with the most harmonious expressions ; and, like a winding rivulet
creeping softly over banks of moss and flowers, it carries with it, imper-
ceptibly, our ravished imagination, and transports us into an enchanted
world. Yet, in subjects requiring energy and strength, as in martial com-
bats, his style becomes rapid and animated as the action itself. Cha-
riots roll and rebound ; furious elephants destructively move to and fro
their enormous tusks ; neighing steeds clash their metalled hoofs on the
resounding plain ; clubs are violently struck together ; arrows hurtle ; con-
fusion and death rage on every side : we no longer read, we are in the
midst of the terrible conflict." See Le Moniteur, 1815, No. 23, arid A. W.
v. Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. vol. i, p. 35. This high-flown praise, however,
others have endeavoured to lessen : Sainte-Croix in his Observat. prelimin.
to the Ezour-Vedam, p. 131, and Ward in his Views of the Literature, etc.
vol. i, p. 513. Yet it seems sanctioned by one, certainly equally well, and
perhaps better, qualified to form a just and enlarged view of the subject
than either of these critics, who has cited the whole passage in the Quar-
terly Review (vol. xlv, p. 3). Even his sanction, however, may be consi-
dered as modified by what follows : " If we may presume to judge, from all
that is yet before the European public, the excellence of the Indian poets
lies rather in softness than energetic action ; their battles want the truth, the
life, the distinctness of Homer .- they seem rather turgid and exaggerated
than sublime ; though, after all, we must take into the account the vast and
unwieldy character of Asiatic warfare. Still, we shall, we conceive, sooner
find a parallel in their works to the garden of Alcinoiis, the isle of Circe, or
even the parting of Hector and Andromache, than to Achilles standing on
the trench and averting the tide of Trojan victory."
* It is No. 4414, written in the Bengalee character, and priced 6/.
16s, 6d.
RAMAYANA. 119
the introduction to J. L. Burnouf s La Mort d' Yadj-
nadatta.
The Ramayana was at an early date translated into
Bengalee ; and, from this version Sir William Jones ren-
dered an extract from the last book into English : see
his works, vol. vi, p. 39941 1 . The first portion of a
complete translation into English at length appeared,
under the following title, but only a very small number
of copies were struck off:
The Ramayana of ValmeeJfi, in the original Sung-
skrit, with an English prose translation, and explana-
tory notes by William Carey and Joshua Marshmann,
Serampoor, 1806, 4to. vol. i, containing the first book" ;
vol. ii, containing the first part of the second book,
ibid. 1808; vol. iii, containing the latter part of the
second book, ibid. 1810. This work, which it was cal-
culated would make ten 4to. volumes, seems to have
been interrupted from want of sufficient support. The
second part of the three which have appeared is no
longer to be procured, as the vessel in which they were
embarked for Europe was wrecked. The first part
was reprinted at London in 1808, and the whole at Cal-
cutta, 1813, 3 vols. 4to.
The translation was reprinted without the original
text, under the title of The Ramayuna of Valmeeki,
translated from the original Sungskrit, with explana-
tory notes, by W. Carey and J. Marshmann, London,
18081814, 8vo x . Three parts. An ample review
u This portion of the work is priced at 51. 5s. ia the catalogue of Parbury,
Allen, and Co. for 1831 : vol. iii, is priced in the same catalogue at 31. 15s.
These also occur in Howell and Stewart's Catalogue, but in none of them
do 1 find any mention of vol. ii.
* I find the following: The Ramauana of Valmeeki, a poem, translated
from the original Sungskrit, by W. Carey and J. Marshmann, vol. 1, con-
taining the " first book," 8vo., Dunstable, 1808. See Parbury and Allen's
Catalogue of Oriental Literature, 1831.
120 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
of this publication, by Doctor Wilkins, will be found
in the Heidelb. Jahrb. 1814, April, No. 24.
A Bengalee version of the entire poem was printed
at Calcutta, in 5 vols. 8vo.
Ramayun, a Prose Translation into Persian, from
the Sanscrit of the very interesting History of Ram,
and his wife Sita, and brother Latchman, etc., a manu-
script in the Supplement to Howell and Stewart's Ori-
ental Catalogue for 1827, p. 100.
A poetical abridgement in Hindostanee appeared with
the following title : Kavita Ramayuna, in the Devana-
gari character, at Khidirpoor in Bengal, 1815, 8vo. See
Catal. de la Biblioth. de M. Langles, p. 158, No.
1367.
The Ramayuna, or the Exploits of Rama, abridged
and translated in the Tamul language from the cele-
brated Epic Poem of Valmiki, Madras, 1822, \ to.
The opening of the poem, translated into German
verse, is found in Fr. Schlegel's Uber die Sprache und
Weisch. d. Indier, p. 231271.
Proeve van Indische Dichtkunde volgens den Rama-
yon ; naar het oorspronkelyk Sanskritisch gevolgd door
Jacob Haafner, en uit deszelfs nagelatene Papieren in
licht gegeven door C. M. Haafner, Amsterdam, 1823,
8vo.
A. W. von Schlegel announced a new and complete
edition of the Ramayana in the original Sanscrit with
a Latin version, in a prospectus printed at London in
1823. The first part of this edition has made its ap-
pearance with the following title : Ramayana, id est,
Carmen Epicum de Ramce rebus gestis, poetae anti-
quissimi Valmici opus. Textum codd. mss. collatis re-
censuit, interpretationem Latinam et annotationes cri-
ticas adjecit Aug. Guill. a Schlegel, etc. Voluminis
primi pars prior, Ixxii, and 380, pp. large 8vo. Bonn,
1829, typis regiis, sumptibus auctoris. It contains the
RAMAYANA. 121
text of the first and a considerable portion of the se-
cond book out of the seven which complete the entire
poem.
A portion of the Ramayana translated into Tamul,
by P. Beschi, exists among the manuscripts at Paris.
See Rapport de la Societe Asiatique, 1828, p. 43.
The following episodes from the Ramayana have
been translated separately.
a. The Death of Yadnadatta.
A notice of this extract from the Ramayana, which
is said to possess " the same simple pathos, the same
tenderness of feeling, that charm in the more affecting
parts of the Nala," is given, with an outline of the
affecting incident which forms the subject of the epi-
sode, in the Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 23.
Yadjnadalta-BudJia, ou la Mort de Yadjnadatta,
episode extrait et traduit du Ramayana, poeme epique
Sanscrit, par M. L. Chezy, Paris, 1814, 8vo.
This work of M. Chezy's was intended as a speci-
men of a free translation of the whole poem, which ap-
peared twelve years later under the following title :
Yadjnadattabada, ou la Mort </' Yadjnadatta, episode
extrait du Ramayana, poeme epique Sanscrit ; donne
avec le texte grave et une analyse grammaticale tres-
.detaillee, une traduction Francais et des notes, par M.
L. A. Chezy, et suivi, par forme d'appendice, d'une
traduction Latine litterale, par M. J. L. Burnouf, etc.
Paris, 1826, 4to. avec planches. Ample reviews of this
will be found in the Journal des Savans, Avril, 1827,
p. 223230; and by Professor Rosen, in the Berl.
Jahrh. fur wissensch. Kritik, 1828, No. 17 and 18.
0. The Penances of Visvamitra.
Wiswamitras Biissungen. Eine Episode aus clem
Ramayana, aus dem Sanskrit im Versmaasze des Ori-
122 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
ginale getren iibersetzt, von Franz. Bopp, in his Con-
jugationssystem der Sanskritsprache, Frank/, a M.
1816, 8vo. p. 159233.
J. G. Rhode, in his treatise die relig. Bildung,
Mythologie und Philosophic der Hindus, considers
this episode to have been an early interpolation.
y. The Combat of Atikaya.
Der Kampf des Atikaya, ein Fragment aus dem
indischen Heldengedichte Ramayana, aus dem Englis-
chen iibersetzt von C. A. Semler, in the Zeitung fiir
die elegante Welt, 1816, No. clxxix clxxxi.
Le combat de Lakshmanas avec le Geant Atikayas,
traduit du Sanscrit par M. Chezy, Paris, 1818, 8vo.
8. The Descent of the Ganges.
Under this title A. W. von Schlegel has translated
into German hexameters the deification of the river
Ganges, as found in the first book of the Ramayana,
sect. 32 35, and illustrated it with annotations. See
his Indischen Biblioth. vol. i, p. 50 96.
Mr. Milman has also given an account of this
curious mythological poem, with some metrical ex-
tracts. He describes it as one of the most singular
of the cosmogonical notions of the ancient Indians.
Speaking of the above German translation, he calls its
author the first of all translators, as well as critics, in
the world ; and, contrasting his version with the prose
translation of Carey and Marshmann, in the Ramayana,
he says, "The difference between the two is a striking
exemplification of the too often forgotten truth, that
poetry can only be translated by a poet." Quarterly
Review, vol. xlv, p. 34.
The Legend of the Descent of Gunga; from the
Ramayana of Valmiki, in the Asiatic Journal, 1817,
Nov. p. 449 451. A prose translation.
PUR AN AS. 123
. Ultra Candum.
Estratto del libro detto Uter Cand, ultimo tomo del
gran libro Ramaen, libro dell Incarnazione. Commu-
nicate del Msgr. Munter, Vescovo di Selanda. In the
Fundgruben des Orients, torn, v, p. 80, 188.
Utara Kandam, an extract from the Ramayana, was
translated by Siddambala Vadyar, professor of the
Tamul language at the college of Madras, into Tamul,
and printed at Madras in 1817; and again with the
following English title prefixed : the Uttra Candum, an
Episode of the Ramayana of Valmiki, translated from
the Sanscrit into Tamul by Siddambala Vadyar, pro-
fessor of the Tamul, Madras, 18^6, 4to.
An episode of the Ramayana translated into the
Hindoostanee language, was published at Calcutta,
1815, under the title of Tulasidasa Ramayana.
4. Vishnu-Purana.
Professor Wilson read an account of the Vishnu
Purana, with an analytical summary of its contents, to
the Asiatic Society of Calcutta in 1824. See above,
p. 88.
5. Markandaya Purana.
Markonday, Markandeya Purana, or, according to
Ward, Markundeyu Puranu. Such is the title of a
long poem of nearly one hundred thousand verses,
containing the victory of the goddess Bhuvani, or
Durga, over the giants and demons Moisasur. See
the contents at length, in Langles Catalogue des mss.
Sanscrits, p. 54" 61.
An extract from this poem, containing the victory of
Durga, is known in India, under the title of CJutndika.
See Catalogue des mss. Sanscrit, p. 66. This frag-
124 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
ment Chandica, or Chandi, is also frequently quoted
under the name of Devi Mahatmyam*, (the great of
Divi}. A description of it, and an extract, are given
by M. Eugene Burnouf, in the nineteenth number of
the Journal Asiatique, p. 24 32, under the title of
Analyse et extrait du Devi Mahatmyam, fragment du
Markandeya Purana. A complete edition of this
episode is expected shortly from professor Bopp.
6. Brahma Valvartika Purana.
Respecting this very remarkable work, which de-
scribes the origin of the gods, see Catalogue des mss.
Sanscrit, p. 36, etc.
L'Ermitage de Kandou, poeme extrait et traduit du
Brahma-Pourana, composition Sanskrite de la plus
haute antiquite, par M. de Chezy, in the Journal
Asiatique, 1822, Juill. p. 116. German: Die Ein-
siedeley des Kandu, nach dem Brahma Purana, einer
epischen Dichtung aus dem hochsten Alterthume.
Eine akademische Vorlesung von Hrn. von Chezy.
Aus dem noch nicht gedruckten franzosischen Ori-
ginale iibersetzt von Aug. Wilh. v. Schlegel, in his
Indischer Bibliothek. Bd. i, Heft. 3, p. 257273. To
which we may add, Bemerkungen iiber von Chezy's
Einsiedeley des Kandu, von Niklas Miiller, in his
Glauben, Wissen und Kunst der alien Hindus, Bd.' i,
p. 615.
7. Agni Purana.
The Agni, or Agneya Purana, which Agni, the god of
fire, is said to have imparted to mankind, is chiefly
composed of mystic forms and religious prescriptions,
but contains besides a number of treatises on politics,
law, medicine, poetry, rhetoric, and grammar. It does
a See above, p. 94.
PURANAS. 125
not appear to be very .ancient. See Catalogue des
mss. Sanscrits par M. M. Hamilton et Langles, p. 44
48. Asiatic Journal, 182G, Oct. p. 429.
8. Bhavishyat Pur ana.
A description of the territory of Pundra-Desa, part
of Bengal, Behar, and Allahabad. Translated in the
Oriental Magazine, Dec. 1824; and from that into
the Bulletin Univ. 1827, Mai, Geograph. p. 134.
9. Sheeve Purana.
Ancient Indian Literature, being a Summary of the
Sheeve Pouran, the Brehme Vivertte Pouran, and the
Arthee Prekash Shastre ; with Extracts and Epi-
tomes, translated from Original mss., London, 1807,
4to.
10. Padma Purana.
An extract from this Purana, containing prescrip-
tions for widows, is found in Description of the Cha-
racter, etc. of the People of India, by the Abbe J. A.
Dubois, London, 1817, 4to. p. 224234.
Bhoumi-Khandam, section du Padma Pourana, par
M. E. Burnouf, Journal Asiatique, vol. vi, p. 3.
.. ( 11. Kurma Purana.
Kurma or Kaurma Purana, is included among the
eighteen great Puranas. It is said to have con-
tained eighteen thousand verses, of which probably
not more than eight thousand are now in existence. Pro-
fessor Wilson, in 1826, read before the Asiatic Society
of Calcutta, of which he was then secretary, an abstract
of this Purana, written by himself. He considers the
one now extant of rather doubtful authority ; though
it is unquestionably received in various parts of India
as the genuine Purana. On the other hand the copies
126 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
consulted consist of but about six thousand slokas,
while the Kaurma Pur ana is said in the Bhagavat and
Matsya Puranas to contain seventeen thousand verses.
The Agni, however, states eight thousand ; and per-
haps this difference proves little or nothing either way.
A more unanswerable objection is the testimony of
the work itself, which very particularly specifies its
being one of the four Sanhitas, collections, or com-
pendiums, of the Puranas. Mr. Wilson seems to
think it most likely that the work called the Kurma
Purana is not the original and genuine Purana, but a
compendium or summary of its contents, which appears
to have supplanted the original, probably lost in con-
sequence, and therefore no comparison can now be
made betwixt them.
12. Upa Purana.
The Upa Puranas belong to the second, subordi-
nate class, and are much less known than the fore-
going. They are a sort of supplement to the Puranas,
containing in eighteen books all those subjects which
are omitted in them. See Craufurd's Researches on
India, vol. i, p. 187.
13. Other Writings connected with the Puranas.
Siva-Sahasra-Nama, or Thousand Epithets of the
god Siva, enumerating all his attributes, drawn from
the Puranas, Mahabharata, etc. containing twenty-five
thousand verses, with a Comment, in two thousand
four hundred and ninety-six pages. Sanscrit, in the
Devanagari character. A manuscript in Howell and
Stewart's Oriental Catalogue for 1827, Suppl. p. 103.
Rddhdcdnta Sarman, a pandit of great learning and
extensive fame among the Hindoos, composed lately in
Sanscrit, a work called Purdndrf haprccdsd, or the
Puranas explained. This work contains a genealogy of
PURANAS. 127
the kings of Magada or Bahar. See Sir William
Jones's Works, vol. i, p. 288.
Dherma Purana. An extract from this will be
found in An Enumeration of Indian Classes, by H. T.
Colebrooke, esq., in the Asiatic Journal, 1816, Dec.
p. 515-578.
Tartarus, from the Sarwaswa Purana, or Com-
pendium of the Pur anas, in the Asiatic Journal, 1819,
June, p. 599.
Vajoupourana, a Tamul manuscript in the Bib-
liotheque du Roi at Paris.
Rules for the due observance of the ceremonies on
occasion of a widow burning with the corpse of her
husband. A fragment translated from .the Sanscrit of
Govindapa Raja, probably an extract from a Purana,
in the Asiatic Journal, 1817, Oct. p. o49, 350.
Notice sur le manuscrit du Shri-Bhdgavata-Purana,
envoye par M. Duvancel a la Societe Asiatique, par
Eugene Burnouf, fils, in the Journal Asiatique, vol. vii,
p. 4G, 193.
In this place also we must mention
Chadda Karinaga Mandanam, an extract from all
the Puranas.
Rag/iuwanssa, or the race of Ragu, an heroic poem
by Kalidasa, and Kumara Sambhdwa, or the birth of
Kumara, by the same author.
T^rurnda-Sorens History ; translated from the San-
scrit into Malabaric, by a clergyman, assisted by a
Brahman, and out of Malabaric into Danish, by N. S.
Fuylsang. Printed in Danish in the Skandinavisk
Museum, Copenhagen, 1798, Svo. vol. ii, part ii.
Sanscreet Fragments, or interesting Extracts from
the sacred Books of the Brahmans, on subjects im-
portant to the British Isles ; by the authors of Indian
Antiquities (Th. Maurice and K. Vallancey,) London,
1798, Svo.
128 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Account of the Jains, collected from a priest of
this sect at Mudgeri : translated by Cavelly Boria,
Brahman, for Major C. Mackenzie, in Asiatic Re-
searches, vol. ix, p. 44. Notices of the Jains re-
ceived from Charucirti Hcharya, their chief pontiff, at
Belligola in Mysore, ibid. p. 256. Particulars of the
Jains extracted from a Journal by Dr. F. Buchanan,
during travels in Canara, ibid. p. 279. Observations
on the Sect of Jains, by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., ibid.
p. 287. See also Researches on the Tenets and Doc-
trines of the Jains and Boodhists, conjectured to be
the Brachmanes of Ancient India: in which is intro-
duced a Discussion on the Brachmanes of Ancient
India; and another on the Worship of the Serpent
in various Countries of the World, by lieutenant-
colonel William Francklin, etc., London, 1827, 4to b .
3. Sastras.
Sastra, the book, the interpretation, explanation of
the Vedas, by Sasta, science. Sir W. Jones, in his
Works, vol. i, p. 361, explains this word to mean
sacred ordinance c .
At present our information extends to seven of these
Sastras, of which some account, with extracts, will be
found in A Discovery of the Sect of the Banians, con-
taining their History, Law, Liturgy, Castes, Customs
and Ceremonies, gathered from their Brahmans, teach-
ers of that sect, as the particulars were comprised in
the book of their law, called the Saster; together with
b Some account of the Jains will also be found in Asiatic Journal,
January, 1824, p. 22; and December, 1824, p. 573.
c Craufurd's Researches on India, vol. i, p. 188. Halhed, in the
preface to his Code of Gentoo Laws, attempts to determine the age of some
of these Sastras, and gives to one 7,204,990, and to another 4,004,905
years.
JURISPRUDENCE. 129
a display of their manners, by Henry Lord, London,
1630, 4to. Again in Wilkins's Bhagvat-Geeta. And
in French, Histoire de la Religion des Banians, con-
tenant leurs Loix, leurs Liturgie, leurs Coutumes, et
leurs Ceremonies, tant anciermes que modernes; re-
cueillie de leurs Bramanes, et tiree de leur Loy, qu'ils
appellent Schuster, Paris, 1667, 12mo.
Bedang-Schaster, or Vedanga-Schastra, book of the
principal verses of the Veda.
Neardirsen or Neaderzen-Schaster, Ni-a-der-szena
Schastra, book of the explanation of the law.
Schastra-Bhade.
Extracts from this Sastra will be found in the
work of Holwell and Dow already quoted, and these
are translated into German in the Asiat. Original-
schriften, Zurich, 1801, 8vo. Bd. i.
A Summary of the Art he Prekash Sastre, in the
Sanscrit Fragments quoted at page 78.
Metamorphoses of Sona, a Hindoo tale; with a
glossary descriptive of the mythology of the Sastras,
London, 1811, 8vo.
The collection of prayers called Neaeschs and
Jeschts, Sanscrit and Zend, 214 leaves, 8vo. Manu-
script in the library of the East India Company at
London. See Nouv. Journ. Asiat. 1828, Fevrier,
p. 124.
To this place also seem to belong the twenty-four
books Yagamon, which treat of prayers and offerings.
JURISPRUDENCE.
OF ANCIENT HINDOO LEGISLATION IN GENERAL.
THE legislative system of India was the first branch of
Sanscrit literature that attracted the attention of the
English ; not so much as an object of learning as of
130 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
policy; for it evidently must have been to them a
matter of first rate importance to become acquainted
with the jurisprudence of a people whom they had to
govern d .
The first step taken by the English in the study of
Hindoo legislation was made by governor Hastings :
as a commentary upon it, Vivadarnava-Setu, com-
piled under his directions, was printed at the cost of
the East India Company in 1 776, 4to.
A Code of Gentoo* Laws, or Ordinations of the
Pundits, from a Persian translation made from the
original, written in the Shanscrit language, published
by Nathaniel Brassey Halhed f , London, 1776, 4to.,
1777, 8vo., with plates. French: Code des Loix des
Gentoux ou Reglement des Brames, trad, de 1'Anglais,
Paris, 1778, 4to. German: Gesetzbuch der Gentoos
oder Sammlung der Gesetze der Pundits, nach einer
persianischen Uebersetzung des in der Shanskritsprache
geschriebenen Originals. Aus dem Engl. von Rud.
Erich Raspe, Hamburg, 1778, 8vo. The East India
Company printed an elegant edition of this work in
4to. at Bengal*.
The high antiquity ascribed to the Indian laws
by Halhed, was controverted in A Letter to Na-
thaniel Brassey Halhed, esq., containing some remarks
on his Preface to the Code of Gentoo Laws, lately
published, by George Costard, Oxford, 1778, 8vo.
Respecting the Sanscrit original of this collection of
laws, see Catalogue des mss. Sanscrit, p. 89.
J Heeren's Ideen Inder.
Gentoos is the Portuguese appellation of the Hindoos.
f Halhed may be regarded as the first European who learned the
Sanscrit.
Watts's Bibliotheca Britannica.
JURISPRUDENCE. 131
LAWS OF MENU ".
THE Institutes of Menu contain, in twelve books, the
institutes of criminal and private jurisprudence. They
are composed in a kind of measured prose, called
Pungtee Chund; their language evincing their high
antiquity. They describe the occupations of men,
and the religious exercises of the four castes ; and, as
colonel Haughton observes ', whether regarded for their
great antiquity and classic beauty, or for their import-
ance, as being considered a divine revelation by nearly
a hundred millions of people, they must ever claim the
attention of those who devote themselves to the study
of the Sanscrit language. Though inferior to the
Vedas in antiquity, they are held to be equally sacred ;
and owing to their being more closely connected with
the business of life, have tended so much to mould the
opinions of the Hindoos, that it would be impossible
to comprehend the literature or local usages of India,
without being master of their contents.
Sir William Jones, in the preface to his translation,
tells us, that it is the general opinion of Pandits, that
Brahma taught his laws to Menu in a hundred thou-
sand verses, which Menu explained to the primitive
world in the very words of the Mdnava Dherma-
Sastra, or Institutes of Menu ; but, in a short preface
to the law tract of Nared, it is asserted that Menu,
having written the laws of Brahma in a hundred thou-
sand slocas or couplets, arranged under twenty-four
heads, in a thousand chapters, delivered the work to
Hared, the sage among gods, who abridged it, for the
use of mankind, in twelve thousand verses, and gave
them to a son of Bhrigu, named Sumati, who, for
h Jones, vol. i, p. 58, 59.
' Preface to the Mdnava Dherma-Sastra.
132 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
greater ease to the human race, reduced them to four
thousand : that mortals read only the second abridge-
ment by Sumati, while the gods of the lower heaven,
and the band of celestial musicians, are engaged in
studying the primary code, beginning with the fifth
verse, a little varied, of the work now extant on earth ~ T
but that nothing remains of Hared's abridgement ex-
cept an elegant epitome of the ninth original article on
the administration of justice. Now, since these in-
stitutes consist only of two thousand six hundred and
eighty-five verses, they cannot be the whole work
ascribed to Sumati, which is probably distinguished
by the name of V-riddha, or ancient, Mdnava, and
cannot be found entire ; though several passages from
it, which have been preserved by tradition, are occa-
sionally cited in the new digest '.
The ordinances of Menu belong to the second
period of Indian literature, the work containing them
being placed by Sir William Jones between the publi-
cation of the Vedas and that of the Puranas and Itlha-
sas, about 880 B. C. Fr. Schlegel ascribes to it a still
higher antiquity, and calls it a monument to which no
sound criticism can assign a later date than that given
to the most ancient one known in western Europe.
Hitter questions the opinion both of Jones and Schlegel;
and enters upon the discussion of the age and merits
of the Institutes of Menu, from the internal evidence
they afford, and from a comparison of them with other
Sanscrit works k . From this he concludes, what in
itself seems very reasonable, that the work attributed to
' Sir William Jones's Preface, p. 59, etc. Fried. Mayer's Brahma,
p. 125, etc.
k Hitter exposes the defiance contained in the assertion of Schlegel ; and
quotes as authorities, of equal weight with his, the criticisms of Schlosser,
in his View of General History ; and Rhode, ueber religiose Bildung, etc.
i Th. p. 124, 125.
JURISPRUDENCE. m
Menu is a collection made from various materials, but
not according to one plan, and scarcely from the laws
delivered by one individual. This may be fairly pre-
sumed from the beginning and conclusion of the work,
and proved from its containing various laws for one
and the same offence; hence also the probability of
their having been made at different periods. This
seems established; as in many of the ordinances the
simplicity of antiquity is visible, while some evince a
degree of civilisation incompatible with the first rise
of a nation, and others a deep state of national corrup-
tion and decline. That poison and poinards, eunuchs,
extreme jealousy of the chiefs towards one another,
towards their ministers, and even towards the people,
may have been primeval in the East, may indeed be
conceived ; but that the refined system of espionage,
the shameless plans of avowedly selfish policy, and
the general communities of atheists, that are men-
tioned in the institutions of Menu, could belong to the
infancy of civilisation cannot for a moment be be-
lieved. Traces, moreover, are found in this work
that the ancient institutions of Indian life, such as the
division into castes, had ceased to be strictly observed ;
and that various opinions had been formed respecting
religious dogmas ; both proving that it could not form
part of the early literature of the nation : besides which,
the authors of these laws were not only acquainted
with the Brahmanas and Upanishads of the Vedas,
but cite also the Puranas, the Vedangas, and Sastras
that is, the treatises on grammar, metre, mathe-
matics, as well as a glossary to the Veda '. What should
we say (asks M. Ritter) if a high antiquity was
assigned to a Greek writer, who quoted such learned
treatises ?
1 Qeschichte der Phil. vol. i, p. 78. The glossary, as he observes,
seems a decided proof that the language of the Vcdas was then ancient. See
134 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
The Institutes of Menu contain abundance of matter
extremely interesting, to all who study the history of
mankind, and the progress of civilisation. It contains
much to be admired, and much to be condemned. It
is a system of despotism and priestcraft, both limited
by law, but artfully conspiring to give mutual support,
though with mutual checks. The punishments will
not always be found proportionable to European
notions of crime ; but a spirit of sublime devotion and
amiable benevolence pervades the whole work, suffi-
cient " to prove the author to have adored, not the
visible sun, but that divine and incomparably greater
light" to use the words of the most venerable text in
the Indian Scripture, " which illumines all, delights all,
from which all proceed, to which all must return, and
which alone can irradiate (not our visual organs
merely, but our souls, etc.) our intellects m .
Sir W. Jones forced upon the attention of the
government the necessity of bringing together a com-
plete body of the Hindoo laws ; and, as preparatory to
this great undertaking, was published the following
work:
Institutes of Hindoo Law, or the Ordinances of
Menu, according to the gloss of Culluca, comprising
the Indian System of Duties, religious and civil, ver-
bally translated from the original Sanscrit, with a
preface by Sir William Jones. Printed by the order
of government, Calcutta, 1794, 4to., reprinted at
London, 1796; and in Jones's Works, vol. iii. Again,
the Institutes of Menu, vol. ii, p. 105 ; vol. iii, p. 183 ; vol. iv, p. 98,
99, 100 ; vol. xi, p. 263 ; vol. xii, p. 109, 101 1. It is also to be remarked,
that among the foreign nations of which mention is made in the Laws of
Menu, vol. x, 44, the Chinese and Persians cannot well be mistaken : and
even the Yavanas are introduced, which, according to the genius of ori-
ental language, must signify the Greeks.
"' Sir William Jones's Preface, p. 62.
JURISPRUDENCE. 135
a new edition, collated with the Sanscrit text, and elu-
cidated with notes, by G. C. Haughton, London, 1825,
4to. German: Hindu's Gesetzgebung, oder Menus
Verordnungen nach Culluca s Erlauterung, ein Inbe-
griff des indischen Systems religib'ser und biirger-
licher Pflichten. Aus der Sanskritsprache wortlich
ins Englische iibersetzt von W. Jones, und verdeutscht
nach der Calcuttischen Ausgabe, und mit einem Glos-
sar und Anmerkungen begleitet von Joh. Christ. Hiitt-
ner, Weimar, 1797, 8vo.
The original has since been printed in Sanscrit, with
the following title : Manu-Sang-Hitd, or the Institutes
of Manu, in the original text, with the gloss of
Culluca Bhatta, (Nagari character). Printed at the
Sanscrit Press, 1813, 4to. (Calcutta, published by
Babu Ram, pundit).
The several glosses and commentaries, that have
been composed by the Munis or ancient philosophers,
on the code of Menu, are termed collectively Dherma-
Sdstra, or body of law. The most excellent of these
commentators is Culluca, of whose treatise Sir W.
Jones observes", that it is perhaps the shortest, yet
the most luminous ; the least ostentatious, yet the most
learned ; the deepest, yet the most agreeable commen-
tary ever composed on any author ancient or modern,
European or Asiatic.
Dharma Sdstra Manava, Sanscrit, Calcutta, 1818,
large 4to.
Manava Dherma-Sdstra ; or, the Institutes of Menu,
according to the Gloss of Culluca, with a verbal trans-
lation and preface, by Sir William Jones, edited by
Graves Chamney Haughton, M. A. F. R. S. Calcutta,
1824, 4to., 2 volumes, the first containing the Sanscrit
text, and the other the English translation, London,
" Preface to his translation, p. 60.
130 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
1825, 2 vols 4to. See Journ. des Savans, Oct. 1820,
p. 586, Article by M. Remusat. Journ. Asiatique,
Oct. 1826, p. 243, by M. E. Burnouf, which has been
translated into English, and published with notes in
the Asiatic Journal, 1827, Feb. p. 237. Perhaps it
will not be too much to say of this work, that it has
been printed with the greatest elegance, and edited
with the greatest care of any Sanscrit book that has
yet issued from the press. With regard to that por-
tion of the work which is exclusively Mr. Haughton's
own, it will be esteemed, by impartial judges, as one of
the finest monuments which have been raised to the
knowledge of Indian Antiquities .
Mitakskara Dharma Sastra, Sanscrit, published
by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., Calcutta, 1813, oblong
royal 8vo.
Mitakshara Darpana, translated from the Sanscrit
into the Bengalee language, by Lukshmi Narayan
Nyayal Ankar, Calcutta, 1824, 8vo.
Extracts from the Institutes of Menu.
Partes codicis legum quern Mamis edidit, cum ver-
sione. Select passages from the first and twelfth book,
in Othm. Frankii Chrestomathia Sanscrita, vol. ii, p. 1.
Kullukabhattfe animadversiones ad codicem legum
Manu, cum versione, ibid, ii, 2. p. 13 83.
The Laws and Institutes of Menu, by Q. Craufurd,
esq., in his Researches concerning India, London, 1817,
8vo. vol. i, p. 2790.
Aphorisms from Menu (extracts from the Mdnava
Sastra), in the Asiatic Journal, 1825, p. 513 518.
See the article in the Asiatic Journal cited in the text, in which it is
stated, that it was Mr. Haughton's intention to add to these two elegant
and learned volumes a third, containing the Commentary of Calluca
Bhatta. His want of health, unfortunately, has not permitted him to carry
this laudable design into execution.
JURISPRUDENCE. 137
Extract from the Readings of Hindoo Law, by Mr.
Ellis, in the Asiatic Journal, 1819, July, p. 17 23.
The Law of Inheritance.
Dataka-Mimansa, on the Order of Succession, in
Sanscrit, Serampoor, large 4to.
Mohammedan Law of Succession to the Property of
Intestates, Arabic, on copper plates, with a verbal
translation and explanatory notes, by Sir William Jones,
London, 1782, 4to.
Al Sirajiyyah, or the Mohammedan Law of Inherit-
ance, Arabic and English, with a commentary by Sir
William Jones, Calcutta, 1792, fol.P.
A Digest of Hindoo Law on Contracts and Succes-
sions, with a commentary by Jogannatha Tercapan-
chanana ; translated from the original Sanscrit by H.
T. Colebrooke, esq., judge of Mirzapore, resident at
the court of Berar, and M. A. S. vol. i, Calcutta, 1797 ;
vol. ii, iii, and iv, 1798, fol. and afterwards printed at
London, 1801, 8vo., 3 vols. Also separately. A Disqui-
sition on Regal Succession, etc., in the Asiatic Annual
Register, 1800, p. 245250.
Two Treatises on the Hindoo Law of Inheritance,
from the Ddya Bhdga and the Mitakshara, translated
from the Sanscrit by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., Calcutta,
1810, 4to.; London, 1813, 4to; College of Fort Si.
George, near Madras, 1825, 4to. ; translated into Per-
sian, under the title of Furaiz-i-irtazeeah, by Moulavi
Mohamed-Irtaza- Adi-Khan-Bahadur, Madras, 1825,
fol. ; again into Arabic, Madras, 1827, fol. This work
in Sanscrit is called Dayabhaga, and forms part of a
greater, entitled, Vivahara Khandam De-Rita-Nita-
kehara, containing a commentary upon the text of the
P The two foregoing works are both printed with the Arabic texts, in Sir
William Jones's Works, vol. iii, 4to. 1 do not see any reason for their
being mentioned here.
T
138 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Yagnyavalkia. The whole, being a general view of
Hindoo Laws, was translated into Tamulic, by Purur
Vadyar, and was put to press by his brother Sidam-
bala Vadyar, professor of the Tamulic language at the
college of Madras, in Madras, 1817.
The Dayubhagu, or Law of Inheritance of Jeemootu
Vahunu, Nagree character, Calcutta, 1813, 4to.
Ddya Bhaga, a Sanscrit Treatise on Inheritance,
by Yimuta Vahana, with a Commentary, by Krishna
Bhatta, published by R T. Colebrooke, Calcutta,
1814, 4to. A new edition of this work, with a com-
mentary by Krishna Terkalankara, Calcutta, Educa-
tion Press, 1829, 8vo., is mentioned in Parbury, Allen,
and Co.'s Catalogue for 1831.
Ddya Bhaga, a Treatise upon Inheritance and Di-
vision of Property, in verse, Sanscrit and Bengalee, pub-
lished by the Pundit Lukshmi Narayan Nyayal Ankar,
Calcutta, 1822.
Daya Tatwa, a Treatise on the Law of Inheritance,
by Raghunandana Bhattacharya, edited by Lakshmi
Narayan Serma, Calcutta, Education Press, 1828, 8vo.
Daya-Crama-Sangraha, or an Abstract of the Hin-
doo Law of Inheritance : an original treatise in San-
scrit, by Sri Krishna Tarkalankara, with an English
translation by P. M. Wynch, esq., Calcutta, 1818, 4to.
Of this work there is another edition, by Krishna Ter-
kalankara Bhattacharya, edited by Lakshmi Narayan
Serma, Calcutta, Education Press, 1828, 8vo.
Brief Remarks regarding modern Encroachments on
the ancient Rights of Females, according to the Hindoo
Law of Inheritance, by Rammohun Roy, Calcutta,
1822, 8vo. See Asiat. Journ. 1823, Sept. p. 446451.
Adoption.
The Dattaka Mlmansa and Dattaka Chandrlka, two
original Treatises on the Law of Adoption, by Naiula
JURISPRUDENCE. 139
Pundita and Devanda Bhatta ; translated from the San-
scrit, by J. C. C. Sutherland, esq., Calcutta, 1814, 4to.;
1817, 8vo. ; reprinted at the College of Fort St. George
near Madras, 1825, 8vo.
The Duttak Meemansa and the DuttuJt Chund, two
esteemed Treatises in the original Sanscrit on the Hin-
doo Law of Adoption, Calcutta, 1818, 4to.
Other Treatises on Jurisprudence.
Legislation Orientate, par Anquetil Duperron, Am-
sterdam, 1778, 8vo.
Digest of Mohummudun Law, by col. J. Baillie, esq.,
Calcutta, 1801, 4to.
A Dictionary of Mohammedan Law, Bengal Re-
venue Terms, Shanscrit, Hindoo, and other words,
London, 1802, 8vo., by S. Rousseau.
Veeru-Mitroduyu, a complete Digest of Hindoo Law,
on the Administration of Justice, edited by Babooram,
pundit, Calcutta, 1814, 4to.
Vira-Mitrodaya, the legal Work of Mitra-Mishra, in
Sanscrit, published by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., printed
at the Sanscrit Press, at Kizurpoor, near Calcutta,
1815, 4to.
Elements of Hindoo Law, published by Thomas
Strange, London, 1825, 2 vols. 8vo.
A Treatise on Obligations and Contracts, translated
by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., Calcutta, 1810, 4to.
Karma-Lotchana, translated from the Sanscrit into
Bengali, and printed at Serampoor, 1821. This work
contains prescriptions respecting domestic duties and
the various grades of impurity, as determined by the
law. Extracts from this are given in Essays relative
to the Habits, Character, and Moral Improvement of
the Hindoos, London, 1823, 8vo. See Journ. des Sa-
vans, 182o, Aoiit, p. 451).
140 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
PROFANE LITERATURE.
PHILOSOPHY 3 .
Literature.
Mr. Adelung, under this head, refers the reader to
the following works :
Colebrooke's Essays on the Philosophy of the Hin-
doos, in the Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society,
vol. i, p. 92, 439, 549.
Sur la Philosophic des Hindous, d'apres les Me-
moires de M. Colebrooke, in the Nouv. Melanges
Asiat. par M. Abel-Remusat, Paris, 1829, 2 vols. 8vo.
vol. ii, p. 331 (p. 348) 424.
Litteratur der Philosophic der Hindoo, in Vjasa, von
Othm. Frank, 1 Bandes, i, ii, und iii Heft.
Philosophic et Religion des Indiens, ou Relation du
Voyage d'un Grec dans 1'Inde mille ans avant J. C. in
Melanges de Litterature Sansci'ite, par A. Langlois,
p. 235268.
To these may be added, 1st, The fifth and sixth
lectures of Victor Cousin's Cours de 1'Histoire, de la
Philosophic du xviii eme Siecle, Paris, 1829; where the
reader will find a lucid and highly interesting expo-
sition of Hindoo philosophy, compiled chiefly from
the papers of Mr. Colebrooke above mentioned, and
an Analysis of A. G. Schegel's Latin version of the Bha-
gavat-Gita b , which M. Cousin, following the learned
G. Humboldt, holds to be a monument of the Sanc'hya
philosophy.
2nd, The second chapter of Ritter's History of Phi-
losophy, which is devoted to an enquiry into the chro-
nology and genuineness of the sacred books and legis-
This article is entirely new. b See above, p. 95.
PHILOSOPHY. 141
lation of the Hindoos, as forming the groundwork of
their philosophic systems. It seems to be the leading
object of this author, to expose the absurd and extrava-
gant notions which some writers have been inclined
to adopt respecting the antiquity of Hindoo history
and learning. The style in which this work is written,
and the information it contains, will make its perusal
agreeable to all who have mastered the German lan-
guage .
3rd, Some account of Hindoo philosophy will also be
found, together with a copious list of authorities, in
Tennemann's Manual of the History of Philosophy,
translated by the Rev. Arthur Johnson, Oxford, 1832 d .
Various Schools of Hindoo Philosophy.
It is the professed design of all the schools of Indian
philosophy, to teach the method by which eternal bea-
titude (the supreme good) may be attained, either after
death or before it.
The path by which the soul is to arrive at this su-
preme felicity, is science or knowledge. The disco-
very, and the setting forth of the means by which this
knowledge may be obtained is the object of the various
treatises and commentaries which Hindoo philosophy
has produced. A brilliant summary of them will be
found in the work of Victor Cousin already referred
to ; in which he endeavours to trace among the Hin-
doo philosophers, the Sensualism, the Idealism, the
Scepticism, the Fatalism, and the Mysticism, of the
ancient Grecian and modern European Schools.
c Von der indischen Philosophic in Hitter's Geschichte der Philosophic,
torn, i, Hamb. 1829, 8vo. p. 58136.
d The two following works, which did not come in ray way till this ar-
ticle was in print, must also be mentioned here. Rhode, ueber religiose
Bildung Mythologie und Philosophie der Hindoos, 1827, 2 vols. 8vo. ; and
Schlegel on the Philosophy of the Indians, in his Ueber die Sprache und
Weisheitder Indier.
142 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
The Hindoos possess various ancient systems of
philosophy, some of which they consider orthodox, as
consistent with the Vedas ; others they regard as he-
retical, from their being incompatible with the doc-
trines of their holy books.
In all there are enumerated six principal schools of
Hindoo philosophy : 1 st, The Mimansa founded by
Jaimini; 2nd, The Vedanta, by Vyasa; 3rd, The
Nyaya, founded by Gotama; 4th, The Vaiseshica, by
Canade ; 5th and 6th, The two Sdnchyaya, founded by
Capila and Pantanjala.
The Prior Mimansa, founded by Jaimini.
The two Mimansas (for there are two schools of me-
taphysics under this title) are strictly orthodox.
The prior one (Purva), founded by Jaimini, teaches
the art of reasoning with the express view of aiding the
interpretation of the Vedas. The latter ( Uttara), com-
monly called the Vedanta, deduces from the text of the
Indian scriptures, a refined psychology, which goes to
a denial of the material world.
It may here be remarked, that as religion, during
the early stages of civilisation, was generally of a gross
and mystical character, men, as they became more en-
lightened, made it their study to understand and ex-
plain the obscurities of their faith, and to accommodate
the rude superstitions of the early popular belief to
their own more refined conceptions of the being and
attributes of God. This was more particularly the
case in India. Philosophy undertook to reconcile the
written precepts of Brahma with the new state of moral
feeling, and to give them a meaning which should not
contradict the more enlightened views of wisdom and sci-
ence. Thus the obscurities of the Vedas gave the first
impulse to Hindoo philosophy ; since the most perfect
PHILOSOPHY. 143
faith could not seize their divine precepts without the
aid of reflection. Hence, too, became almost impercepti-
bly formed the school ofMimansa, which, professing the
most perfect obedience to the sacred commands of the
Vedas, undertook to render them clear and intelligible.
The aim of the Mimansa school was to determine the
sense of the Vedas, and to collect from them a perfect
system of religion and morality; for so nearly allied
are these in Hindoo philosophy, that Ethics seem no
more than a form of religious duties : the same word
(Dharmd) signifying, in the masculine gender, virtue
or moral merit, and in the feminine, devotion, or merit
acquired by acts of piety.
The prior (Purva) Mimansa, therefore, is practical,
relating to works (Carmd), or religious observances un-
dertaken for specific ends. It is not directly a sys-
tem of philosophy ; but, in delivering canons of scrip-
tural interpretation, it was natural that philosophi-
cal topics should be introduced; and scholastic dis-
putants have elicited from its dogmas, principles of
reasoning applicable to the prevailing points of contro-
versy agitated in the Hindoo schools of philosophy.
The business of the Mimansa is to investigate what
it is incumbent to perform as a duty. A subject or
case (adhicarania) is given for investigation. One of
these in full consists of five parts :
1st, The subject or matter to be explained.
2nd, The doubt or question arising upon the matter.
3rd, The first side (purva-pacshd), or prima facie ar-
gument concerning it.
4th, The answer (uttara), or demonstrated conclusion
(siddhanta).
5th, The pertinence or relevancy.
The whole of these five members are not always set
forth in Jaimini's text ; the subject, and the question
concerning it, are frequently merely hinted or left to
144 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
be surmised d . These are supplied by the commen-
tators.
Five sources of knowledge, or modes of proof, are
admitted by all Mimansacas ; namely, perception % in-
ference, verbal communication, comparison, presump-
tion. Privation is sometimes added to these as a sixth
source of knowledge.
This school of philosophy rests entirely upon the
authority of the Vedas, the words of which it regards
as decisive. Mr. Colebrooke has given a copious ana-
lysis of the lectures of Jaimini in the paper already re-
ferred to.
The sootras or aphorisms attributed to Jaimini, are
arranged in twelve lectures, divided into sixty chap-
ters, which are again subdivided into sections, cases,
or topics. These sootras, like the aphorisms of other
'' Mr. Colebrooke elsewhere observes, that Jaimini's arrangement is not
philosophical ; but that the logic of the Mimansa is the logic of the Hindoo
law, the rule of determination of civil and religious ordinances. Each
case is examined and determined upon general principles.
' Simple apprehension is defined in these words : When the organs of
man are in contiguity with an object, that source of knowledge is percep-
tion. Inference in these : On sight of one member of a known association,
the consequent apprehension of the other part, which is not actually proxi-
mate, is (anumana) inference ; but the association must be such as had been
before directly perceived, or had become known by analogy. Presumption
is deduction of a matter which could not else be. It is assumption of a
thing which is not itself perceived, but necessarily implied by another
which is seen, heard, or proven. Knowledge of a thing which is not proxi-
mate (or subject to perception), derived through understood sound, that is,
through words the acceptation whereof is known, is (sastra) ordinance or
revelation; or it is (safcda) verbal communication. I have introduced this
long note from Colebrooke, to give the reader some idea of the definitions of
the Sanscrit philosophy. It may be added, that the Chavacas recognise
but one source of knowledge, viz. perception : the followers of Canade,
and those of Sugata (Buddha) two, perception and inference. To these
two the Sanc'hya schools add affirmation. They also give the following
explanation: An external sense perceives; the internal one examines;
consciousness makes the selfish application ; and intellect resolves : an ex-
ternal organ executes. Trans. Asiat. Soc. vol. i, p. 31.
PHILOSOPHY. 145
Indian sciences, are extremely obscure and unintelli-
gible; and from their first promulgation, must have
been accompanied by an oral or written exposition.
An ancient scholiast (Vritticara) is quoted by the herd
of commentators for subsidiary aphorisms, supplying
the defect of the text, as well as for his commentary.
Besides this work, the sootras have been elucidated by
a perpetual commentary by Sahara Swami Bhatta,
after whom it is called Sahara Bhdshya; and by cor-
rective annotations upon this commentary, by Bhatta
Cumarila Swami, the great authority of the Mimansa
school f .
Among the numerous expounders of the Mimansa,
the next in eminence is Parthasarat'hi Misra, upon
whose commentary, entitled Sastra-Dipica, there is an
ample exposition by Somanatha, called Mayuchamdld.
The Mimdnsd-nyaya-viveca is another commentary
by a distinguished author, Bhavanat'ha Misra. The
two foregoing are spoken of as commentaries, because
they follow the order of the text, recite one or more
of the aphorisms from every section, and explain its
subject.
Among numerous other commentaries on Jaimini's
text, the Nydyd valididhtti of Raghavananda is not to
be omitted. It contains an excellent interpretation of
the sootras, which it expounds word by word: it is
brief, but clear ; leaving nothing unexplained, and wan-
dering into no digressions.
A summary or paraphrase of Jaimini's doctrine was
put into verse by an ancient author, whose work is
cited by the name of Sangraha. Another metrical
f Another esteemed commentary, by Guru, sometimes called Prabhacara,
is mentioned by Colebrooke. Cumarila Bhatta is celebrated in the tradi-
tionary religious history of India. He is considered to have been the chief
antagonist of the Buddha heresy ; and to have instigated an exterminating
prosecution against its disciples.
U
146 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
paraphrase is employed in the Vartica, or forms a part
of the work itself.
The most approved introduction to the study of the
Mimansa is Madhava Acharya's Naya-mala-vistara.
It is in verse, accompanied by a commentary in prose
by the same author, forming a summary of Jaimini's
text, and of approved deductions from it.
The Aphorisms of Jaimini are extremely ancient; but
they have been reconstructed at various epochs, and
illustrated in so many various commentaries, that the
cases assume a very diversified aspect in the hands of
the different interpreters.
2. The Vedanta.
The other Mimansa (the Vedanta) though strictly
within the pale of orthodoxy, carried human know-
ledge a step forward. Although it appealed to revela-
tion for its principles, it ventured upon a bolder inter-
pretation of the sacred text, and penetrated into the
metaphysical precepts of the Vedas. To this it owes
its name Vedanta, which signifies a philosophy resting
upon the Vedas ; though in fact it formed thus early
a metaphysical system, a true school of philosophy.
This system Mr. Colebrooke has reserved for a
future essay. Among the literature of the Vedanta
philosophy are reckoned the works of Sancara; par-
ticularly a highly esteemed commentary on the Vedas,
about A. D. 790825 ; the works of Madhava, of the
thirteenth century; Vedanta- Sara, the essence of the
Vedas, by Sadanandana g .
3. The Nyaya, or System of Logic.
The Nyaya, founded by Gotama, furnishes a phi-
losophical arrangement, with strict rules of reasoning,
not unaptly compared to the Dialectics of Aristotle.
* See Vjasa, von Othm. Frank, torn, i, p. 38.
PHILOSOPHY. 147
Nyaya philosophy is strictly a system of logic b . The
text of Gotama is a collection of sootras, or succinct
aphorisms, in five books, or lectures, each divided
into two days, or diurnal lessons.
In a logical arrangement the predicaments or objects
of proof are six: substance, quality, action, community,
particularity, and aggregation, or intimate relation.
A regular argument, or complete syllogism (Nyaya)
consists of five members : 1 st, the proposition ; 2nd,
the reason ; 3rd, the instance ; 4th, the application ;
5th, the conclusion. Ex. :
1. This hill is fiery:
2. For it smokes.
3. What smokes is fiery : as a culinary hearth.
4. Accordingly, the hill is smoking.
5. Therefore it is fiery.
Some confine the syllogism to three members ; either
the three first or the three last. In this latter form it
is quite regular. The recital, joined with the instance,
is the major; the application is the minor; the con-
clusion follows.
Of the logic of the Hindoos we have the sootras of
Gotama, in Ward's Work on India, and some others in
the Annals of the Asiatic Society of London, as well
as the following :
Nyaya Sootra Vritti, the Logical Aphorisms of
Gotama, with a commentary by Viswanath Bhatta-
charya, Calcutta, Education Press, 1828, 8vo.
Bhasha Pariclieda, and Siddhanta MuktavaU, an
Elementary Treatise on the Terms of Logic, with its
commentary, by Viswanatha Panchanana Bhatta, Cal-
cutta, Education Press, 1827, 8vo.
4. The Vaiseshica.
The Vaiseshica, of which Canade is the reputed
b See a curious anecdote respecting Aristotle's Dialectics below, p. 161.
148 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
author, is a system of philosophy connected with the
last. Its founder, like Democritus, maintained the
atomic theory. This system has so bad a reputation
in India, that it is i-egarded as opposed to the truth of
their scriptures. It may well be so, for it is purely
physical, and professes to account for all things, like
the Epicm-ians, by primary molecules, simple and in-
decomposable ; which, by their own nature, and by
certain inherent principles, were continually in motion,
congregated, formed various bodies, and the universe.
Canade's collection of sootras is comprised in ten
lectures, subdivided into lessons for two days each.
5. The Sanc'hya.
The Sanchya is another philosophical system, partly
heterodox, and partly conformable to the established
Hindoo creed. It embraces at once physics, psycho-
logy, dialectics, and metaphysics, and is, in short, a
complete philosophical system. Its followers are divided
into two schools ; one usually known by the general
name of Sanc'/tya 1 , the other called \6ga. Capila k , an
ancient sage, whose origin and adventures are variously
recounted, is the reputed founder of the Sanc'hya; and
1 A commentator (Capila-Bhaish) expounds Sanc'hya as here signifying
the discovery of the soul by means of right discrimination. Mr. Colebrooke
says, a system of philosophy in which precision of reckoning is observed in
the enumeration of its principles, is denominated Sanc'hya, a term which
has been understood to signify numeral, agreeably to the usual accepta-
tion of Sunc'hifa, number ; and hence its analogy to the Pythagorean phi-
losophy has been presumed. But the name may be taken to imply, that
its doctrine is founded in the exercise of judgment ; for the word from
which it is derived signifies reasoning or deliberation.
k He is represented as a son of Brahma ; as an incarnation of the
deity ; as the holy first and wise one, entering a mind by himself framed,
and becoming the mighty sage (Capita) who compassionately revealed this
science to Asuri. Mr. Colebrooke doubts whether Capila might not have
been altogether a mythological personage, to whom the true author of the
system thought fit to ascribe it.
PHILOSOPHY. 149
Pantanjali of the Yoga school of metaphysical phi-
losophy.
The tenets of the two schools of the Sdnchydya,
are on many points the same ; but they differ upon
the most important of all the proof of the existence
of a supreme God. The school of Pantanjali, there-
fore, which recognises God, is called theistical ; and
that of Capila atheistical ; the latter, like the sects of
Jina and Buddha, acknowledge no Creator, nor su-
preme ruling Providence. The gods of Capila are beings
superior to man ; but, like him, subject to change and
transmigration. A third school may likewise be men-
tioned called Paurdnica Sdnchya, which conforms in
most points to the doctrine of Pantanjali, except in
holding nature as an illusion.
A collection of sootras, or succinct aphorisms, in six
lectures, attributed to Capila himself, is extant under
the title of Sdnchya-pracacana '. As an ancient work
this must have been expounded by early scholiasts ;
but the only commentary which can at present be
referred to by name, is the Capila-Bhdshya ; or as the
author himself cites it in his other books, Sdnchya-
Bhdshya. The title at full length, in the epigraph of
the book, is Capila-Sdnchya-Pravachana-Sastra-Bhd-
shya. It is by Vijnyana-Bhicshu, a mendicant ascetic,
who wrote a separate treatise on the attainment of
beatitude in this life, entitled Sdnchya-sara, as well
as several other books.
Of the six lectures or chapters into which the
sootras are distributed, the first three comprise an ex-
position of the whole Sdnchya doctrine. The fourth
contains illustrative comparisons. The fifth is contro-
1 In the preface to the Capila-Bhtishii, a more compendious tract is men-
tioned, in the same form of sootras or aphorisms, bearing the title of Tatwa
Samdsa, which is also ascribed to Capila. The scholiast intimates that
both are of equal authority, and in no respect discordant. Colebrooke.
150 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
versial, confuting other opinions. The sixth and last
treats of the most important part of the doctrines, and
enlarges upon topics before touched.
The best text of the Sdnc'hya is a sort of treatise in
verse, which is denominated Cdricd. The acknow-
ledged author is Iswara-Crishna, described, in the con-
cluding lines, as having received the doctrine through
a succession of intermediate instructors, from Pan-
chaisec'ha, by whom it was first promulgated ; and
who was himself instructed by Asuri, the disciple of
Capila. On this brief tract, containing seventy-two
stanzas in dryd metre, there are numerous commen-
taries. One of these is the Sdnc hya-Bhashya of Gau-
dapada; a second is the Sdnc'hya-Chandrica, of Nara-
yana, who seems to have been an ascetic : there is a
third, under the title of Sdnchya-tatwa-caumudi, by
Vachespati Misra, a native of Tirhut, author of similar
works on various other philosophical systems. One
more commentary, bearing the simple title of Sdnchya
Caumudi, is by Ramachrishna Bhattacharya, a learned
and not ancient writer of Bengal.
The foregoing are the principal works in which this
system of philosophy may be now studied : there are
some others cited by the scholiasts ; but they are
scarce, and no satisfactory account of them can be
given upon the strength of a few scattered quotations.
Among them, however, the Rdja-vartica seems to be
referred to as a work held in much esteem.
Sanchia, one of the principal philosophical systems
of the Brahmans, translated from the Sanscrit, under
the direction of M. Carey, Calcutta, 1811, 4to.
Sankya Sara, a metaphysical work, translated by
Ward, in his Researches on India.
Sdnchya Cdrica, by Is'wara-Chandra, with a com-
mentary by Vachespati, contains seventy-two stanzas
in the metre called Arid.
PHILOSOPHY. isi
The Sanc'hya Cdrica, translated by Henry Thomas
Colebrooke, esq. Printed in London under the direc-
tions of the Royal Asiatic Society.
De la Doctrine appellee Sankia, in Nouv. Melanges
Asiat. par M. Abel-Remusat, vol. ii, p. 348.
The following sketch of the Sanchya system of
Capila will, it is hoped, convey to the reader some
notion of Hindoo philosophy. It is mostly drawn
from the papers of Colebrooke, in the Transactions of
the Asiatic Society of London, and the lectures of
Cousin already referred to.
It is the aim of all the philosophical systems of India,
as I have before said, to attain the sovereign good
eternal felicity. Such is especially the aim of the
Sanc'hya system. This summum bonum is to be sought
for, not in religious exercises, or in the schemes and
calculations of ordinary prudence for avoiding pain and
securing happiness ; but it is, according to Capila and
his followers, true knowledge alone that can secure
entire and permanent deliverance from evil. The
question then is, how this knowledge is to be obtained ?
According to Capila, there are two philosophical
means of acquiring true knowledge, perception, and
inference or induction. In addition to these his school
admitted a third, legitimate affirmation, that is, human
testimony, tradition, true revelation" 1 , and the authority
m True revelation, according to the Carika, the great Sanc'hya authority
to whom Colebrooke refers, is that of the Vedas, to the exclusion of pre-
tended inspirations and impostures. It may here be remarked, that the
Vaiseshica, the School of Canada, rejects tradition ; and that a branch of
the Sankhya, the Charvakas, only admits of sensation as a source of know-
ledge. Capila admits three, but apparently makes but little use of the
third ; and adopts conclusions so widely different from those of the Vedas,
that it is clear he did not consider their authority as very sacred. His
school, however, managed to escape the fate of the Buddhists. See Cousin,
1. c. p. 192.
152 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
of the Vedas. From these three sources, by the right
exercise of judgment, and due application of reasoning,
the disciples of Capila are instructed that true know-
ledge is to be derived; consisting in a right discri-
mination of the principles, perceptible and impercep-
tible, of the material world, from the sensitive and cog-
nitive principle, which is the immaterial soul.
Twenty -five of these principles are enumerated.
The first of them, from which all the others are de-
rived, is Prakriti, or Moula-Prakrita, nature : termed
Prad'hdna, the chief one, the universal material cause".
It is eternal matter, indiscrete ; undistinguishable as
destitute of parts ; inferrible, from its effects : being
productive, but no production.
The second principle is intelligence, called Budd'hi
and Mahat, or the great one : the first production of
nature, increate, prolific; being itself productive of
other principles. It is identified by the mythological
Sanc'hya with the Hindoo triad of gods. The great
principle is said to be produced from modified nature ;
and becomes distinctly known, as three gods, through
the influence of the three qualities of goodness, foul-
ness, darkness ; being one person and three gods :
namely Brahma, Vishnou, and Mahesnara.
After these, passing over the physics and cosmo-
gony of Capila, we come to the twenty-fifth and last
principle, Purusha, the soul, which is neither produced
nor productive. It is multitudinous, individual, sensi-
tive, eternal, unalterable, immaterial.
These twenty-five principles are thus summarily con-
trasted in the Carica. Nature, root of all, is no pro-
duction. Seven principles ; the GREAT or intellectual
11 Identified by the cosmogony of the Puranas with A7'i/' illusion ; and
by mythologists with Eruhmi the power or energy of Hrahma.
PHILOSOPHY. 153
one, etc., are productions and productive. Sixteen are
productions (unproductive). Soul is neither a produc-
tion nor productive.
Besides this, the Sanchya of Capila contains many
excellent observations upon method, on the causes of our
errors, upon the obstructions of the intellect, and the
same host of wise precepts which everywhere recommend
the writings of the Epicurean school. Capila also ana-
lyses, with much acuteness and address, the various phy-
sical and moral obstructions which oppose the perfec-
tion of the human soul. He enumerates forty-eight phy-
sical and sixty-two moral obstacles ; numbers nine things
which satisfy the mind, and in which it may repose ;
and adds eight more which raise it to perfection. He
exhorts us to follow with docility the instructions of
nature, who by sensation furnishes us with the mate-
rials of all our thoughts. But he enjoins us, at the
same time, not to be her idle passive scholars, but to
interrogate her freely ; and, instead of being satisfied
with her first reply, to draw from her, with all our skill
and address, her most hidden secrets, her most lucid
and extensive commentary upon her own works. It is
by resting upon nature and experiment, that man, with
the power of induction which belongs to him, may
arrive at true knowledge. Capila says, it is from the
contemplation of nature, and abstraction, that the
union of the soul with nature takes place. He com-
pares this union to the mutual want which the lame
and the blind have of one another, who become com-
panions, one to be borne, and directing; the other
to be guided, and carrying. The spectacle of nature
is always instructive, but many of her secrets can be
torn from her only by penetrating into her profoundest
sanctuaries, and by finding picklocks that will open
her most hidden treasures.
Nature, says Capila, is like a dancing girl exhibiting
154 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
herself to the soul as to an audience ; she at first makes
many scruples ; but, when once overcome, gives her-
self up without shame to the gaze of the soul, and has
no reserve till she has been sufficiently examined .
The system of Capila leads directly to fatalism, and
mediately to atheism. For, since he denies the rela-
tion of cause and effect, human action, which we be-
lieve an independent cause, is in fact no more than
a necessary effect. The application of this to ex-
terior nature is atheism. Capila denies the existence
of a God who governs the world. He argues, that
there is no proof of one by simple perception ; nor to
be deduced from sensation, by inference or induction ;
the only means he admits of obtaining true knowledge.
He acknowledges an intelligence ; but it is an intelli-
gence derived from nature, an attribute of matter, a
sort of soul of the world.
Besides the Sanchya of Capila and his disciples,
another system, bearing the same denomination, but
more usually termed the Yoga-Sastra, or Yoga-Sutra,
is ascribed to a mythological being, Pantanjali, the
supposed author of the great grammatical commentary
emphatically named the Mahabashya, along with a me-
dical treatise, and other distinguished performances.
The collection of Yoga-Sutras, bearing the common
title of Sdnc'hya Pravachana, is distributed into
four chapters (pada): the first on contemplation
(samdd'hi} ; the second on the means of its attain-
ment ; the third on the exercise of transcendent
power (vibhuti) ; the fourth on abstraction or spiritual
insulation (caiwalya).
An ancient commentary on this fanatical work is
See Cousin, p. 179, who asks if, under the simplicity and freedom of
this language, we do not discover something of the grandeur of Bacon.
Capila is also considered by the same author to have preceded /F.neside-
mus and Hume in his notions respecting cause and effect.
PHILOSOPHY. 155
the Pdntdnjala Bhdshya; attributed to Veda-vyasa,
the compiler of the Indian scriptures, and founder of
the Vedanti school of philosophy. Vachespati has
furnished scholia on both text and gloss; and the
number of copies found of his work evince how much
it is esteemed. There are also the Yoga-vartica of
Vijnyana-Bhicshu ; the Raja-martanda of Rana-Ranga-
Malla, surnamed Bhoja-Raja, sovereign of Dhara, a
lucid exposition ; and a more ample commentary by a
modern Brahman, named Nagogi-Bhatta-Upad'hyaya,
called Pantanjali-Sutra-Vritti, which is both clear and
copious P.
But perhaps the most complete exposition of this
scheme of philosophy is the Bhagavat-Gita^ ; now
almost universally considered as a development of Pan-
tanjali's system. It is a half mythological, half philoso-
cal episode of the great Mdhabharatta, leading to fa-
talism and absolute quietism. The subject is skilfully
interwoven by the poet into the greater epic. Two
rival armies are drawn up, ready to join battle, and
decide a civil contest for the throne of India. Ar-
juna, one of the competitors, is favoured by the deity
Crishna, who, in disguise, accompanies him in his
chariot, and under the name of Madhuis becomes his
Mentor. At the moment the combatants are about to
make the onset, Arjuna feels a melancholy compunc-
P Adelung mentions Joya Vasishtha, a great philosophical poem, which
however was not composed by Vasishtha, an ancient sage and tutor to the
son of Rama Chandra, although the instruction contained therein was
addressed to him. A manuscript of it is in the library of the Royal'
Asiatic Society of London.
i See above, p. 95, and the works there referred to, particularly Schlegel
Ue'ber die Sprache und Weisheit der Indier, and Humboldt, ueber die
Bhagavat-Gita : add to these the sixth lecture of Cousin ; Cours de 1'Hist.
de la Philos. ; and the Vjasa of Oth. Frank. See also Milman in Quarterly
Review, vol. xlv, p. 6. In the work of Cousin, Schlegel's Latin Version
of the Bhagavat-Gita has been made use of, with the criticism of Chezy in
the Journal des Savans, 1825, Jan. p. 37, and others.
156 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
tion at the idea of wading to the throne through the
blood of his brothers, kinsmen, and friends, whom he
recognises in the ranks of his enemy. He opens his
mind to his companion ; who, chiding him for his tame-
ness of spirit, tells him that he belongs to the caste of
warriors, that war is his element and his duty, and that
for him now to recede, will be to lose both empire and
honour. These reasons, not appearing to make a suffi-
cient impression upon Arjuna, his mysterious com-
panion reveals to him the system of metaphysics, which
forms the subject of the Bhagavat-Gita. Upon Ar-
j una's still testifying his reluctance to begin the work
of death, he replies to him in a strain * that breathes
the terrible sublime' of the Sdnchya doctrine of fa-
talism.
. " What canst thou urge of brothers, of kinsmen, and
friends ; or of men, of beasts, and of stones ? for they
are all as one. A perpetual, irresistible force has
made all thou seest, and unceasingly renews it. What
is to-day a man, was yesterday a plant, and will perhaps
to-morrow be a stone. This principle is eternal. As
a warrior thou art doomed to fight. A dreadful
slaughter will be the result. Be it so. Next day the
sun will shine upon the world, upon new scenes, and
still the eternal principle will exist. Except this prin-
ciple, all is illusion r ."
The eternity of the soul is made an awful argument
to Arjuna, for him to work the work of fate without
regard to the sufferings of his fellow-creatures in their
' " The presumptuous," says the Bhagavut-Gita, " believe themselves the
authors of their own actions ; while they are all the result of the irresist-
ible decrees of fate." A good or evil destiny is expressly attributed to the
good or evil spirit; and under the influence of one or the other of these
principles, every man is destined, not merely to good or ill, but to walk
in the ways of error or truth, that is, to auopt a false or true system of phi-
losophy. Cousin.
PHILOSOPHY. 157
present state of existence. It is thus beautifully ren-
dered by Mr. Milman :
Ne'er was the time when I was not, nor thou, nor yonder kings of
earth :
Hereafter, ne'er shall be the time, when one of us shall cease to be.
The soul, within its mortal frame, glides on through childhood, youth,
and age;
Then in another form renew'd, renews its stated course again.
All indestructible is He that spread the living universe;
And who is he that shall destroy the work of the Indestructible ?
Corruptible these bodies are that wrap the everlasting soul
The eternal unimaginable soul. Whence on to battle, Bharata!
For he that thinks to slay the soul, or he that thinks the soul is slain,
Are fondly both alike deceived : it is not slain it slayeth not;
It is not born it doth not die; past, present, future, knows it not;
Ancient, eternal, and unchang'd, it dies not with the dying frame.
Who knows it incorruptible, and everlasting and unborn,
What heeds he whether he may slay, or fall himself in battle slain ?
As their old garments men cast off, anon new raiment to assume,
So casts the soul its worn-out frame, and takes at once another form.
The weapon cannot pierce it through, nor wastes it the consuming fire;
The liquid waters melt it not, nor dries it up the parching wind;
Impenetrable and unburn'd ; impermeable and undried ;
Perpetual, ever-wandering, firm, indissoluble, permanent,
Invisible, unspeakable.
Arjuna is further instructed, that the root of all
error consists in the taking for reality what is only ap-
parent that is, all things except the eternal principle ;
and that supreme wisdom is action without passion.
" If thou attachest," he continues, " value to these ap-
pearances, thou deceivest thyself; if thou attachest
value to action thou deceivest thyself still more ; for as
all is but a great illusion, action, when seriously con-
sidered, is no more. The beauty, the merit of the ac-
tion consists in its being performed with a perfect in-
difference to the effects it may produce. We are
doomed to act ; but let it be as though we were not
acting."
The mysterious preceptor of Arjuna speaks with
158 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
disdain of the knowledge to be gained from books ;
and even slightingly of the sacred books of the Vedas.
He ridicules the religion which exacts a thousand cere-
monies, and promises rewards in a future state. He
attacks the theological dogmas to which its interpreta-
tion gives birth ; and regards as silly those who hold
strictly to the letter of the Vedas, and believe that cer-
tainty is not to be found elsewhere. The scriptures
are of no service but to him who is capable of true
contemplation, and to him they are altogether useless.
" As a well or cistern is useless to him who has a run-
ning spring at hand, so are the sacred books to the
true divine" that is, to him who is inspired, and has
delivered himself up to contemplation.
Having set aside books, theology, science, and the
employment of a regular and methodical manner of
reasoning, and prescribed a life of contemplation and
abstraction, the nature of the soul is next expounded.
It is represented as above perception; but inferior to
intelligence, which is again inferior to being. Con-
templation, in the intellectual scale, is regarded as
superior to the common employment of reason, and
existence as superior to thought ; hence it follows
that in the moral, that which bears most analogy to
pure contemplation and the simple state of being,
that is, inaction, absolute inaction, will be superior to
action.
This is only a further development of the same
spirit of mysticism. Arjuna is first taught to act with
indifference, and to attune his soul to a state of pas-
sionless tranquillity; but Hindoo mysticism does not
stop here. The highest perfection of the human soul
is to withdraw all its senses from external objects, ' as
the tortoise draws its limbs within its shell.'
In this state of unbroken quietude, the soul * floats
like the lotus on the lake, unmoved, unruffled by the
PHILOSOPHY. 159
tide,' with its senses bent continually on the absolute
eternal principle, which alone has a real existence. The
truly pious is taught to despise all action, good or
bad, and to give himself up to faith without works.
The words of Crishna are, " He who has faith has
science, and he who has science and faith by that may
attain supreme tranquillity. He who has deposited
the burden of action in the bosom of devotion, and
who has overcome all doubt by science, is no longer
held in the bond of works."
Such is the wisdom and devotion of the Sanchya of
Pantanjali. Among its highest attributes is the perfect
detachment of all affection from wife, children, and
country. u To the wise, the Brahman full of wisdom
and virtue, the ox, the elephant, dogs, and men, are all
equal." His only exercise is the contemplation of his
God ; and this God is the abstraction of being, which
exists as much in one part of nature as the other in
the dog as in the man. Into this abstract being he
aspires to annihilate himself.
Crishna, after these instructions, throws off his dis-
guise, and continues no longer the Mentor of Arjuna,
but gradually reveals himself as the supreme Deity, as
God himself, from whom all things proceed, and into
whom all things are re-absorbed.
Arjuna is favoured with the sacred privilege of
beholding the godhead in its proper form. The god
shows himself to him as creator, as preserver, as de-
stroyer, as spirit, and as matter.
" In an agony of terror, his hair uplift, his head on
high, his hands clasped in supplication, Arjuna ad-
dresses the awful being :
" All beings, God, in thee I see, and every animated
tribe, and Brahma on his lotus throne, and all the wise
and heavenly host. I see thee with thy countless arms,
160 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
and sides, and visages, and eyes ; infinite on every
side, without beginning, middle, or end 8 ."
In the enumeration of his attributes and perfections
he is tedious, for he is all things. Behold a few.
" I am the author of the creation and of the dissolu-
tion of the universe. There is nothing greater than
I; and all depends upon me, as the pearls upon the
thread on which they are strung '. I am the light in
the sun and the moon, the invocation in the Vedas,
the masculine energy in man, the soft perfume in the
earth, the brightness in flame, the life in animals, the
eternal seed of all nature. I am the wisdom of the
wise, the power of the powerful, the glory of the glori-
ous. I am the father of this world, and its mother
and tutor, I am the source of heat and of rain, I bear
in my hand immortality and death, I am what is and
what is not, I am the beginning, the middle, and end
of all things. I am Vishnou among the gods ; the sun
among the stars. In the body I am the soul, and in
the soul intelligence. In the orator I am eloquence,
in the secret, silence, in the learned, science. I am
the essence of all things, and nothing animate or in-
animate can exist without me. My divine virtues are
inexhaustible: there is nothing great, or happy, or
good, but forms a part of my glory. In short, Arjuna,
what more is wanting to fill up the examples of my
power? A single atom emanating from me produced
the universe, and still I remain entire."
" I may be seen such as thou hast seen by the
help of the Vedas, by mortifications, by sacrifices, and
by alms."
" Put thy confidence in me ; be poor in spirit, and
Mr. Milman in Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 12.
Mr. Milman compares this with a passage in Homer. Iliad viii, 25.
PHILOSOPHY. 161
renounce the fruit of works. Science is superior to
practice, and contemplation is superior to science."
" Among my disciples he is especially dear to me,
whose heart is friendly to all nature ; whom men fear
not, and who fears not men. I love him still more
who is without hope, and trusts not in human strength.
He is equally worthy of my love, who neither rejoices,
nor sorrows, who desires nothing, who is content with
all, and, because he is my servant, endureth all things.
Finally, he is my best beloved disciple who is the
same towards his enemy as towards his friend, in
glory and in disgrace, in cold and in heat, in pain and
in pleasure, who cares not for the things of this world,
to whom praise and blame are indifferent, who speaks
little, who rejoices in all things, and serves me with a
love immoveable."
The third chapter of Pantanj all's Ybga-sastra re-
lates almost exclusively to the powers which may be
attained by man in this life. It is full of directions for
bodily and mental exercises, consisting of intensely
profound meditation on particular topics, accompanied
by suppression of the breath, and restraint of the
senses, while steadily maintaining prescribed postures.
By such exercises the adept may acquire the knowledge
of every thing past and future, remote or hidden : he
divines the thoughts of others, gains the strength of
an elephant, the courage of a lion, and the swiftness of
the wind ; flies in the air, floats on the water, dives
into the earth (as though it were fluid), contemplates
all worlds at one glance, and performs other wonders.
See Colebrooke in Trans, of the Royal Asiatic Society,
vol. i, p. 36 ; who adds, that the notion that this tran-
scendent power is attainable by man in this life is not
peculiar to the Sanc'hya sect ; but prevails generally
among the Hindoos ; and amounts to a belief in magic.
It will not fail, however, to strike the philosophic
162 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
reader, that it is little more than an amplification of
Lord Bacon's apophthegm, that KNOWLEDGE is POWER,
coupled with an exaggerated picture of the intense ap-
plication and study required to obtain it.
The Jainas and Bauddhas.
Several other sects, eminently heterodox, are consi-
dered as related to the Sanc'hya school of philosophy :
the Jaina and Buddha are the principal". The Budd-
hists rejected so avowedly the authority of the Vedas,
that they were not only opposed by moral force, but
were so violently persecuted with fire and sword by
the orthodox Mimansa school, that they were con-
strained to flee beyond the Ganges, and take refuge in
the Indo-Chinese peninsula, and even in China itself;
where their doctrine has taken deep root, and now ex-
hibits itself among a philosophic class in a shape
which it would at present be difficult to describe, and
among the vulgar as an extravagant superstition, the
religion and philosophy of Fo.
Many observations are made by Mr. Colebrooke on
the similarities of the Greek and Indian philosophy.
They are interesting and numerous, but cannot be en-
tered upon here. I shall only add his last remark,
namely that a greater degree of similarity exists
between the Indian doctrine and that of the earlier
than of the later Greeks ; and, as it is scarcely prob-
able that the communications should have taken place,
and the knowledge have been imparted, at the precise
interval of time which intervened between the earlier
and later schools of Greek philosophy, and especially
between the Pythagoreans and Platonists; he feels
11 An account of them forms the subject of Mr. Colebrooke's fourth
paper in the Trans, of the Royal Asiat. Society, vol. i, p. 549.
PHILOSOPHY. 163
disposed to conclude that the Indians were in this in-
stance teachers rather than learners x .
The Karm Bibak may still be added to these. It
teaches that every disease and every infirmity is a con-
sequence of our conduct in an earlier state of exist-
ence, and shows that beneficence and penance are suf-
ficient to atone for them.
ETHICS.
Poorooshu Pureckshya, (Purusha Parikshya,} or the
Test of Man, a work containing the moral doctrines
of the Hindoos, translated into the Bengalee language,
from the Sunskrit, by Huruprusad, a pundit attached
to the college of Fort William, Calcutta, 1814, 4to.
Bhartrihari's Sentences, in Carey's Sanscrit Gram-
mar.
The Sanscrit Original of the Moral Sentences of the
* Colebrooke, in Trans, of Royal Asiatic Society, vol. i, p. 579. The
following curious fact, respecting a Sanscrit translation of the Dialectics
of Aristotle, is related in the Asiatic Journal, June 1827, p. 814.
After the introduction of juries into Ceylon, a wealthy Brahman, whose
unpopular character had rendered him obnoxious to many, was accused of
murdering his nephew, and put upon trial. He chose a jury of his own
caste ; but so strong was the evidence against him, that twelve (out of
thirteen) of the jury were thoroughly convinced of his guilt. The dissen-
tient juror, a young Brahman of Rumiserum, stood up, declared his per-
suasion that the prisoner was the victim of conspiracy, and desired that all
the witnesses might be recalled. He examined them with astonishing dex-
terity sad acuteness, and succeeded in extorting from them such proofs of
their perjury, that the jury, instead of consigning the accused to an igno-
minious death, pronounced him innocent. The affair made much noise
in the island; and the chief justice (Sir A. Johnston himself) sent for the
juror who had so distinguished himself, and complimented him upon the
talents he had displayed. The Brahman attributed his skill to the study of
a book, which he called " Strengthener of the mind." He had procured
it, he said, from some pilgrims at Rumiserum, who obtained it from
Persia ; and he had translated it from the Sanscrit, into which it had been
rendered from the Persian. Sir A. Johnston expressing curiosily to see
this work, the Brahman brought him a Talmul ms. on palm leaves, which
Sir Alexander found, to his infinite surprise, to be the Dialectics of Aristotle.
164 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Indian Philosopher Sanakea or Schanakei, were pre-
sented, in the year 1825, by a Greek, Nicolo Kiephala
of Zante, to the library of the Vatican. He had
brought it himself from Benares. A Greek and Ita-
lian translation of it likewise appeared under the fol-
lowing title :
vv ae/CTo e<? TIJV
vvo TGV 'EXXijvoj tfep^y^rov K. N<KXa
rov e/c ZaucvvBov. 'Acjufptavfrai '/$ oKovi; TeviKu/; TOIH; Ttartpa^
TUV <^)ajitXiSv. To Ket[/.evov 'IvfiiKov 'atyyepudy O.TCO TOV [/.eToupgaa'Triv
en; Tyjv 'Ay/av TlaiciKyv BijSXjofl^Ki))/ rov HaTucavov ei$ yeviKyv Ofugiav.
Pw/*>j pKe z .
An original Sanscrit manuscript of these moral sen-
tences of Chanakya, with a Nevari translation by H.
B. Hodgson, esq., was presented to the Asiatic Society
of Calcutta in 1826. See Asiatic Journal, 1826, May,
p. 618.
Mohadmudgara, (properly, the mallet of the ignorant,)
composed by the holy, devout, and prosperous Sancar
Acharya. Some fragments of this were translated from
the Sanscrit, under the title of The Ignorant Instructed,
by Sir William Jones : see his Works, vol. vi, p. 428-30.
A French version was made from this translation by
Langles, in the Catal. des mss. Sanscr. p. 71. The
correctness of Sir William Jbnes's translation is ques-
tioned by Lebedeff, in his Grammar cited above : see
p. 39.
To this place belongs a kind of Encyclopaedia, which
was published at Calcutta in 1818, under the title of
Vidya Darpan, or the Mirror of Science.
z The Italian title is : Sommario di Sentenze Morali del Filosofo Indiano
Sanekea, del dialetto Sanscrite ossia Bracmanico Indiano nella lingua
Greca e Italiano tradotto dal Viaggiatore Greco Cap. Nicola Chiefala di
Zante, dedicate a tutti li Padri di famiglia. II testo indiano e stato de-
positato del translatore nella sacra Papale Bibliotheca di Vaticano a gene-
rale osservazione. In Roma, 1825.
PHILOSOPHY. 165
MATHEMATICS.
a. Astronomy.
THE history of Hindoo astronomy, like almost every
other part of their literature, is involved in much mys-
tery and doubt. Respecting its antiquity, a very wide
difference of opinion prevails. M. Bailly a , founding his
belief upon a series of calculations made from various
astronomical tables brought from the East, was of opi-
nion that it reached back to a very remote period, farther
than any other record of profane history, and to up-
wards of three thousand years before our present era.
This opinion was very generally adopted by the learned
of Europe previous to the publication of the papers of
Mr. Bentley in the sixth and eighth vols. of the Asiatic
Researches, in which that gentleman attempts to prove
that the Surya Siddhanta, the most ancient Sanscrit
treatise on astronomy, is of no higher antiquity than
the year 1068 of the Christian era. These papers were
examined, at some length, in several numbers of the
Edinburgh Review, in which, not only the results of Mr.
Bentley's calculations are disputed, but likewise the
principles on which they rest. Since this, Mr. Bentley
has published a History of Astronomy, in which he has
treated the subject with much learning and ability. In
this work, speaking of Ihe ancient astronomy, he car-
ries back the era of its foundation to somewhere be-
tween the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries before
Christ ; and finally seems inclined to fix its commence-
ment at about the year B. C. 1425. This is said by a
critic in the Westminster Review to be so well esta-
blished in Mr. Bentley's work, that no remoter age can
ever again be attributed to it. In this work, too, the
birth of Rama, the most famous epoch in Hindoo his-
tory, is computed to have fallen on the sixth of April,
a Bailly, Histoire de 1'Astronomie Indienne, Paris, 1787, 4to.
166 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
B. C. 961. Other epochs also are calculated, the last
of which is the year of our Lord 538, from which mo-
dern Hindoo astronomy is dated.
The reader will find ample information on this sub-
ject, in the papers of Mr. Bentley in the sixth and
eighth numbers of the Asiatic Researches ; in vol. i,
x, and xii, of the Edinburgh Review : in the West-
minster Review, vol. ii : and in.
An Historical View of the Hindoo Astronomy, from
the earliest dawn of that science in India to the
present time, by the late J. Bentley, Calcutta, 1824,
8vo; again, London, 1825, 8vo. plates.
Astronomic der Inder, in the Blattern fur literal*.
Unterhalt, 1829, Juli, No. clxxv.
Rapport sur le Kola Sankalita, recueil de memoires
du lieutenant-colonel John Warren, public a Madras,
en 1825, 1 vol. in 4to. ; Lu a la Societe Asiat. dans sa
seance du 3 Dec. 1827, par M. Stahl, in the Journ.
Asiat. 1827, Ixvi, p. 356.
Sir William Jones states, that he had seen a cata-
logue of seventy-nine astronomical works in the San-
scrit language. See Craufurd's Researches on India,
vol. i, p. 243.
The principal and most ancient astronomical work
of the Hindoos is the Surya Siddhanta, which forms
one of the six supplementary works, Vedangas, to the
Vedas, (see above, p. 84,) and whose author is said to
have lived in the fifth century of the Christian era 3 .
Part of the first chapter of the Surya Siddhanta, in
the Asiatic Journal, 1817, May, p. 429, 430; June, p.
546, 547.
An English translation of the whole of the Surya
* See Asiatic Researches, torn, vi, p. 540. According to the notion of
the Hindoos, this work was a divine revelation made at the close of the
Satya-yug, of the twenty-eighth Maha-yug, of the seventh Manwantara:
that is, about 2,164,899 years ago. See 1. c.
PHILOSOPHY. 167
Siddhanta was printed at Madras in the treatises of
Captain Warren, upon the chronology of the Hindoos.
This was succeeded by Vishnu Chandra and Brah-
magupta in the early part of the seventh, and Munjala,
towards the middle of the tenth century.
Siromani, an astronomical work, by Bhascara, sur-
named Acharya, (the teacher,) dates from the middle of
the twelfth century : it is translated by Taylor in the
Lilavati, which will presently come under notice. It is
divided into two sections ; the Gola Adhyaya, or lec-
tures on the earth, and the Ganita Adhyaya, or lec-
tures on numbers as applied to astronomy.
Opinions of Bhascara, respecting the globe and the
attraction of the earth, in the Asiatic Journal, 1817,
Feb. p. 110: see also Millin's Annales Encyclop.
1818, Sept. p. 108. This is nothing more than an ex-
tract from Dr. Taylor's translation of the Lilavali.
A translation by Colebrooke, mentioned in this place
by Adelung, is placed under Arithmetic, to which it
properly belongs.
Tithi Tatua and Jyatisha Tatua, two treatises on
Astronomy and Astrology. Manuscripts in the Royal
Library at Copenhagen.
Barak Mdsd, a poetical description of the year in
Hindoostan, by Mirza Cazim Ali Tawun, Calcutta,
1812, 4to.
The Asiatic Society of London possesses a manu-
script treatise in Sanscrit upon the Eclipses of the Sun.
/3. Arithmetic.
Short Account of the present mode of teaching
Arithmetic in Hindoo schools, from Taylor's transla-
tion of the Lilavati, in the Asiatic Journal, 1817,
March, p. 213 217.
The principal work upon Arithmetic is the Lilavali,
168 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
which is reckoned one of the six supplements ( Vedan-
gas) to the Vedas. The author, Bhascara Acharya,
gave his work the name of his daughter, in order to
console her for the want of a husband h .
The original Sanscrit was printed for the first time
at Calcutta, with the English title, The Lilavati, or
System of Hindoo Arithmetic.
Lilavati, or a Treatise on Arithmetic and Geome-
try, by Bhascara Acharya, translated from the original
Sanscrit, by John Taylor, Bombay, 1816, 4to. A
copious extract from it is given in the Journal des
Savans, 1817, Sept. p. 535545.
Translation of the Lilavati and Vidyaganita, Trea-
tises of Arithmetic and Algebra, by Bhascara, and an
Extract from the Course of Astronomy of Brahma-
gupta, comprising his Arithmetic and Algebra, trans-
lated from the Sanscrit by H. T. Colebrooke, esq.,
and published with a preliminary Dissertation on the
Origin of Algebra, Calcutta, 1818, 4 to. This had
already been printed under the title of, Algebra, with
Arithmetic and Mensuration, from the Sanscrit of
Brahmagupta and Bhascara, by H. T. Colebrooke,
esq., London, Murray, 1817.
This work is considered of much importance in the
Edinburgh Review, where it is made the subject of
an article, vol. xviii, p. 141. It contains four differ-
ent treatises in Sanscrit verse. Two of these, the
Lilavati and Vidyaganita are the works of Bhascara
Acharya; the first on Arithmetic, the second on
Algebra. The others are still more ancient, and were
composed by a mathematician named Brahmagupta,
who is supposed to have lived in the sixth or seventh
century. These, like most of the mathematical
11 Respecting another Sanscrit work bearing the title of Lilavati, see
Catalogue des mss. Sanscrits, p. 65, 66.
ALGEBRA. 169
writings of the Hindoos, form systems of astronomy ;
the first two being the introduction to the Siddhanta
Siromani, and the other two forming the twelfth and
eighteenth chapters of the Brahma Siddhanta of Brah-
magupta.
Mr. Taylor possesses another manuscript under the
title Udaharna, which contains the proofs of rules
given in the Lilavati.
y. Algebra.
A Dissertation, by Mr. Colebrooke, on the Early
History of Algebra in India, Arabia, Greece, etc.
will be found prefixed to his translation of the Lilavati
and Vidyaganita, just mentioned under the preceding
head. It is full of learned and judicious research '.
Bija Ganita, or the Algebra of the Hindoos, by
Edward Strachey, of the East India Company's Bengal
Civil Service, with notes, by Davis, London, 1813, 4to.
The Bija Ganita, or System of Hindoo Algebra,
translated into the English, Calcutta, 1827.
Algebra of the Hindoos, with Arithmetic and Men-
suration, from the Sanscrit of Brahmagupta and Bhas-
cara, translated by H. T. Colebrooke, esq., London,
1817, 4 to. See notice of this work under Arithmetic.
Kola Sankalita, a complete System of Algebra, of
Arithmetic, and Geometry of the Hindoos, translated
from the Sanscrit, by J. Warren, Madras, 1827. See
Journal Asiatique, vol. xi, p. 356.
Some account of a Sanscrit work on a game resem-
bling Chess will be found in the Asiatic Journal, 1818,
February, p. 121, by Sir William Jones. This was
first printed in vol. ii of the Asiatic Researches, and
will also be found in Sir William Jones's Works, vol. i,
1 There is a notice of it in the Edinb. Review, Nov. 1817. It is also
made the subject of an appendix to Mr. Mill's History of India, vol. i,
Appendix, No. ii, and again Asiatic Journal, Dec. 1818.
Z
170 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
4to. Some particular positions at Chess from the San-
scrit, are given in the Asiatic Journal, Oct. 1819,
p. 347. Sir W. Jones believed that this game was
invented by the Hindoos, and the Persians are of the
same opinion.
HISTORY.
Professor Wilson informs us, that the only Sanscrit
composition yet discovered to which the title of histo-
rical can with any propriety be applied, is the Raja
Taringini, a history of Cashmire. This work was
first introduced to the knowledge of the Mahommedans
by the learned minister of Acber Abufazl ; but the
summary which he has given of its contents was
taken, as he informs us, from a Persian translation;
the Hindoo original being so scarce as not to be pro-
cured. Sir William Jones sought for it without suc-
cess; and it escaped the search of all Europeans,
until Mr. Colebrooke fortunately procured a copy in
1805, from the heirs of a Brahman, who died in
Calcutta. Since that time the late Mr. Speke pro-
cured another transcript from Lucknow ; and professor
Wilson procured a third, which was brought for sale
to Calcutta. The latter gentleman states, that he was
unable to meet with another copy either in that city
or at Benares.
The Raja Taringini, as we are informed by pro-
fessor Wilson, is not one entire composition, but a
series of compositions written by different authors at
different periods : a circumstance that gives a greater
value to its contents; as, with the exception of the
early periods of the history, the several authors may
be regarded almost as the chroniclers of their own
times.
HISTORY. 171
The first of the series is Raja Taringini of Calhana
Pundit, who begins with the fabulous ages, and comes
down to the reign of Sangrama-Deva (A. D. 1027).
He states his having made use of earlier authorities,
and gives an interesting enumeration of several that
he had consulted.
The next work is the Rajavalt, of Jona Raja,
which professor Wilson was unable to meet with. It
probably begins where Calhana ends, and comes down
to the 815th year of the Hijra.
The third work is the Sri Jaina Raja Taringini, by
Sri Vara Pandita, the pupil of Jona Raja, whose work
it professes to continue, and which it brings down to
the 882 of the Hijra, A. D. 1477.
The fourth, which completes the series, and was
written to bring down the history to the time when
Cashmire became a province of Acber's empire, is called
Raja vali Pataca, and is the production of Punya, or
Prajnya Bhatta.
From such of the foregoing works as he could
obtain, and the addition of various Persian authorities,
professor Wilson has composed a valuable and learned
essay on the Hindoo History of Cashmire. A slight
glance at its contents will convince the reader of the
industry, research, and learning of its author. A short
introduction gives an account of the authorities made
use of; and the work is followed by eight appendices,
some of which will be found highly interesting to classi-
cal scholars. The whole is embodied in the fifteenth
volume of the Asiatic Researches; and at page 81 will
be found a chronological table, carrying back the
history, according to one account, to B. C. 3714; but,
according to the more accurate adjustment of the au-
thor, to B. C. 2666 k .
k The account of this work, given by Adelung, is a tissue of errors, as
may be seen by comparing it with the above which I have taken from an
172 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Raghava - Pandaviya, a poem, by Caviraja (the
prince of poets). A poetical foppery, in which every
word may be taken in a variety of meanings, so that
the history of Rama, as well as that of Crishna, is
entirely related by the same expressions.
The Raghu Vansa, a Sanscrit historical poem, Cal-
cutta, 1827.
Mr. Adelung mentions under this head, the ex-
travagant tales of Beital Pachisi, and Vicrama Cha-
ritra, which will be found noticed under Works of
Fiction.
Kiratyooneeyu, a celebrated historical work in the
original Sanscrit, with the commentary of Mullee Nath,
Calcutta, 1814, 4to. See Colebrooke on Sunskrit and
Prakrit Poetry, in Asiatic Researches, vol. x, p. 431 '.
Cumara-Palacharitra, and Bodcha Charitra, two
historical works clothed in allegories.
History of Ram and Sectah his Wife, Sanscrit,
Devanagari character. Manuscript in Howell and
Stewart's Catalogue of Oriental Literature, London,
1828.
The Goroo Mooka, or from the month of the Goroo
Nanick, the founder of the Sikhs, commonly called the
Garsunti, in Sanscrit. A manuscript in the Catalogue
of Ogle, Duncan, and Co. of London.
Vansavali (d. i. Familienverzeichniss) ein Sanskrit-
werk iiber die Geschichte von Orissa, vor 300 Jahren
inspection of Professor Wilson's work in the Asiatic Researches. It may
be sufficient to mention, that the original Sanscrit work, and a translation
by Mr. Wilson, are spoken of as to be found in the volume referred to,
neither of which will be there discovered. He also refers to an extract from
Wilson's translation, by Klaproth, in the Journal Asiatic, 1825, Juillet,
p. i, etc.; and the Bulletin Univ. 1826, Dec. Philologie. p. 394, which I
suppose to be extracts from the Professor's original essay.
1 The following is the title as given in the Catalogue of Parbury and
Allen : Kirdta Arjuniya, a poem by Bharvi, with the comment of Malli-
natha, named Ghantapatha, Calcutta, 1814, 4to.
GEOGRAPHY. 173
geschrieben. See an Account, etc., of Orissa Proper,
or Cuttack, by A. Stirling, esq., in the Asiatic Re-
searches, vol. xv, p. 163 .338 m .
GEOGRAPHY.
Col. Wilford n is of opinion that the ancients, in the
times of Pliny and Ptolemy, had a better geographical
account of India than we had forty years ago. The
geographical treatises in Sanscrit do not appear to be
numerous or instructive; and relate rather to local
than general geography. In some of the Puranas
there is a section called the Bhuvana-cosa, a magazine,
or collection of mansions ; but these are entirely my-
thological, and of no value. Besides these there are
other geographical tracts, to several of which is given
the title of Cshetra-samdsa, or collection of countries :
one is entirely mythological, and is highly esteemed by
the Jainas ; another is entirely gepgraphical, and a
very valuable work. There is also the Trai-locya-der-
pana, or mirror of three worlds, (which again is entirely
mythological,) as well as lists of countries, rivers, and
111 1 have let this work stand in the text as given by Mr. Adelung. At
page 256 of the volume of the Asiatic Researches, to which he refers, Mr.
Stirling says : " The sources from which my information has been chiefly
derived, are 1st. A work in Sanscrit called the Vansavali, belonging to a
learned Brahman of Puri, said to have been originally composed by some
of his ancestors three or four centuries back, and continued down in the
family to the present date, etc." He also mentions in the following page,
as his third authority, another Vansavali, or genealogy, written in Sanscrit
on palm leaves, procured from another Brahman. The full title of Mr.
Stirling's paper is, An Account, Geographical, Statistical, and Historical,
of Orissa Proper, or Cuttack.
n On the Ancient Geography of India, in Asiatic Researches, vol. xiv,
p. 373470.
174 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
mountains, in several Puranas and other books; but
they are of little or no use, being mere lists of names
without any explanation whatever. Col. Wilford thinks
these were known to Megasthenes and Pliny .
The same author tells us that real geographical trea-
tises do exist ; but that they are very scarce, and the
owners unwilling to part with them, or to allow them to
be copied, as they consider it highly improper to impart
any knowledge of the state of the country to foreigners,
and they regard these works on geography as copies of
the archives of the government of their country.
Col. Wilford, though he spared neither trouble nor
money, could only procure information respecting seven
of these treatises, namely :
1. Munja-prati-desa-wyavasfha, or An Account of
various Countries, written by Raja Munja, in the latter
end of the ninth century : it was revised and improved
by Raja Bhoja his nephew; and republished in the
tenth, under the title of,
2. Bhoja-prati-desa-vyavasfha. Neither of these
treatises could be obtained by Col. W. nor did he ever
see any account of them in any Sanscrit book he had
seen; though he was assured of their existence, and
was informed they might be procured in Guzerat.
They are both voluminous.
3. The next is one written by command of Bucca-
raya or Bucca-Sinha towards the end of the thirteenth
century. It is mentioned in the commentary on the
geography of the Mdhabharata, and it is said he wrote
an account of the three hundred and ten Raja-ships of
India. Col. Wilford thinks this to be the geographical
work called (in the Dekhiri) Bhuvana Sdgara, or sea of
mansions.
He refers the reader to lib. vi, ch. 17 and 20, and says the account of
so many countries scattered over India, cannot be the result of the travels
of several individuals, but must have been extracted from such lists, p. 374 .
GEOGRAPHY. 175
4. The fourth is a commentary on the Geography
of the Mahabhdrata, written by order of the Raja Pau-
lastya in the peninsula by a pandit, who lived in 1485.
This was in the possession of Col. Wilford, who de-
scribes it as very voluminous, curious, and interesting.
5. The fifth is the Vicrama-Sagara, author un-
known, said to exist in the peninsula, as it did in Ben-
gal, in 1648. It is considered very valuable: Col. W.
possesses seventeen leaves of it, and says they are cer-
tainly very interesting.
6. The sixth is Bhuvana-cosd, which is declared to be
a section of the Bhavishya Purana ; if so it has been
revised, and many additions made to it : very properly,
for in its original state, it was a most contemptible per-
formance. It is a valuable work and dates later than
1552.
7. The seventh is the Cshetra-samdsa, already men-
tioned, written by Bijjala, the last Raja of Patna, who
died 1648. Though modern, it is a valuable and in-
teresting performance p .
Besides these, Wilford mentions the following geo-
graphical treatises: Dacsha-C'hand'aca; Desd-vali
Crita-dhard-vard-vali, by Rames'wara; CKhpana-desd,
or the fifty-six provinces ; and Gdlava-tantra.
The titles of the following geographical treatises
are taken from Professor Wilson's Catalogue of the
Mackenzie manuscripts. See above, p. 61.
1." Trailokya Dipika, a Description of the three
Worlds according to the doctrine of the Jainas : this
work however is chiefly confined to the geography of
the earth. Ms. on paper, Devanagari character.
2. Bhugola Sangraha, ms. on paper, Telugu cha-
racter. A collection of the geographical portions of
P This author reminds one of the simple manner of Herodotus. He says,
I have written this work after the Vicrama-Sagara and from enquiries made
of respectable well-informed people, and from what I have seen myself.
176 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
various Puranas, as the Matsya, Kudma, Markandeya,
Vishnu, Vardha, Narasinha, the Bhdgavat and Rdmd-
3. Desanirnaya, ms. on palm leaves, Grandham
character, incomplete. This is a description of the
fifty-six countries into which India is divided ; said to
be a portion of the Brahmanda Purana.
MEDICINE.
Some account of the medical and surgical sciences
among the Hindoos will be found in the following
paper, from which it appears that they were at one
time highly esteemed and extensively cultivated in
India : On the Medical and Surgical Sciences of the
Hindoos, Oriental Magazine, Feb. 1823; also in the
Asiat. Journ. 1823, Sept. p. 241243; translated into
German under the following title: Ueber die medizinis-
chen und chirurgischen Kenntnisse der Hindus im All-
gemeinen, im Morgenblatte, 1823, No. 292, 293.
The Ayur- Veda, is a collection of the medical trea-
tises of the highest antiquity and authority, and is con-
sidered to form a part of the Atharva Veda. It is con-
sequently the work of Brahma, by whom it was com-
municated to Dascha the Prajapati, who instructed the
two Aswins, the sons of Surya, the sun, who became
the medical attendants of the gods. This genealogy
cannot but recal to our minds the two sons of Esculapius,
and their descent from Apollo. The Ayur Veda, which
originally consisted of one hundred sections of a thou-
sand stanzas each, was adapted to the limited faculties
and life of man, by its distribution into eight subdivi-
sions, the enumeration of which conveys to us an ac-
curate idea of the objects of the Ars Medendi amongst
the Hindoos. The divisions are thus enumerated
1. Salgu is the art of extracting extraneous sub-
GEOGRAPHY. 177
stances, whether of grass, wood, earth, metal, bone, etc.
violently or accidentally introduced into the human
body ; with the treatment of the inflammation and sup-
puration thereby induced ; and by analogy, the cure
of all phlegmonoid tumours and abscesses.
2. Salakya is the treatment of external organic af-
fections or diseases of the eyes, ears, nose, etc.
3. Kaya Chikitsa is, as the name implies, the appli-
cation of the Ars Medendi (Chikitsa) to the body in
general (Kayo), and forms what we mean by the sci-
ence of medicine. The two preceding divisions consti-
tute the surgery of modern schools.
4. Bhatavidya is the restoration of the faculties from
a disorganised state, induced by demoniacal posses-
sion. This art has vanished before the diffusion of
knowledge ; but it formed a very important part of me-
dical practice through all the schools, Greek, Arabic,
or European.
5. Kaumarabhritya means the cure of infancy, com-
prehending not only the management of children from
their birth, but the treatment of irregular lactic secre-
tion, and puerperal disorders in mothers and nurses.
6. Agada is the administration of antidotes.
7. Rasayana is chemistry, or, more correctly speak-
ing, alchemy, as the chief end of the chemical combi-
nations it describes, and which are mostly metallurgic,
is the discovery of the universal medicine ; the elixir
that was to render health permanent and life per-
petual.
8. The last branch, Bajikarana, professes to pro-
mote the increase of the human race.
An abstract of this work, in the Devanagari cha-
racter, is contained in the Royal Library at Copen-
hagen.
According to some authorities, the Aswins instructed
Indra, who became the preceptor of Dhanwantari;
178 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
while others make A trey a, Bharadwaja, and Charaka
prior to the latter. Charaka's work, which goes by
his name, is still extant. The disciple of Dhanwantari
was Suruta, the son of Viswamitra, and consequently
contemporary of Rama : his work Sausruta is still ex-
tant, and is the great authority of Hindoostan practice.
It is unquestionably of great antiquity, though not of
the prodigious age assigned to it by Indian fable. We
must therefore be satisfied with knowing that it is the
oldest work on the subject, except that of Caraka. A
commentary on the text, by Ubhatta, a Cashmirian,
is probably as old as the twelfth or thirteenth cen-
tury; and his commentary, it is believed, was pre-
ceded by others. The work is divided into six por-
tions, namely :
1. Sutra-Sfhana, surgical definitions.
2. Nidana Sfhana, on the diagnosis.
3. Sarira St'/iana, anatomy.
4. Chikitsa Sfhana, internal application of medicine.
5. Kalpa Sfhana, doctrine of antidotes.
6. Uttara Sfhana, a supplementary section upon
various local diseases of the eyes, ears, etc. In all
these divisions, however, surgery, and not general me-
dicine, is the object of the Sausruta. See Asiat. Journ.
1823, Sept. p. 242.
The six following medical works are copied from
Professor Wilson's Catalogue of the Mackenzie mss.
See above, p. 61.
1. Vaidyajivana, ms. on palm leaves, Nandinagari
character. A work in three sections, on the practice
of medicine, by Rolamba Raja.
2. Vaidya grantha, ms. on palm leaves, Telugu cha-
racter. A section of a medical work, author unknown :
it includes the description of the body, or anatomy,
the treatment of women in childbirth, and the symp-
toms and treatment of various diseases.
POETRY. 179
3. Shadrasa Nighanta, on the properties of drugs,
Telugu character.
4. Chikitsa Sola Sloka, on the cure of sundry dis-
eases.
5. Hara pradipika, a work on alchemy and mercury,
and its combinations.
6. Vaidya Sangraha, a collection of medical for-
mulae.
Besides these, another medical manuscript exists in
the Royal Library of Copenhagen. It is quoted in the
Litter. Tidende for 1819, p. 124, under the following
title : Pathyapathya, sive tractatus de Materia Medica
et Diaetetica; auctore Baidyakeya, fol.
Account of the Spasmodic Cholera, from Hindoo
writers, by Calvi Virumbon, in Asiatic Journal, 1819,
Sept. p. 232235.
Rogantaka Sara, Materia Indica, auct. Whitelaw
Ainslie, Londini, 1827, 8vo. See Asiatic Journal, vol.
i, p. 126.
FINE ARTS.
POETRY.
On Sanscrit Poetry in general.
A HISTORY of Sanscrit poetry would be a general his-
tory of Sanscrit literature. Not only the Vedas, the
most ancient sacred books of the Hindoos, but even
treatises on science, apparently the most awkward to
reduce to a metrical form, are composed in verse ; as
examples of which we may mention the vocabularies
of Amara Sinha, and Menu's Code of Laws : and al-
though, in the extensive range of Sanscrit learning,
there are some few compositions which may be called
180 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
prose, yet, even the style of most of these bears so
great a resemblance to the language of poetry, from
their being written in a kind of modulated prose, as
scarcely to form an exception 8 . The age of Sanscrit
poetry, therefore, like that of all other nations, is coeval
with the earliest vestiges of the language ; and its anti-
quity, after deducting every fair demand that can be
made upon it, will still be sufficient to render it vener-
able, and give it a high claim to our attention. But
Sanscrit poetry, confining the term to its stricter
sense, as designating such compositions as from their
nature and form come within our ideas of the term,
has much loftier claims than this to our regard. Nor
has it been neglected; though, perhaps, of all the
countries of Europe it has been treated with most in-
difference in England, where, from the political con-
nection of the people with the land of its birth, it
might have been expected to excite the most general
and lively interest.
The classical poets of ancient India are divided into
three periods. The first is that of the Vedas; the
second, that of the great Epics ; the third, that of the
Drama. A fourth is mentioned ; but as it is of a later
date, (since the birth of Christ,) it is not considered as
belonging to the classic age. These three periods are
assigned to Sanscrit poetry, not only from historical
testimony, but from the language and style of the
compositions themselves b . One of the first Sanscrit
scholars of the present day observes, that the speci-
mens we have of the Vedas are sufficient to enable us
to trace a difference of style between them and the
other specimens of early Sanscrit literature, so great, as
a Sir William Jones, vol. v ; Colebrooke, Asiatic Researches, vol.
x, p. 447, 8vo, mentions several kinds of prose, but scarcely one used in
any reputable work which can be strictly called by that name.
b Heeren's Researches: Indians, ch. i.
POETRY. 181
to prove that many centuries must have elapsed be-
tween the Vedas and the Ramayana. The language
of the former is visibly softened and polished in the
epic, nearly as much as that of the Iliad in the hands
of the Grecian dramatists c .
The scholar who would estimate the character of
the ancient poetry of India, and see what has been
done by various critics and poets towards making
its beauties and deformities familiar to the nations of
Europe, will find an article in the Quarterly Review d ,
already frequently referred to, which will fully satisfy
him on this point, while to the general reader it will
afford a literary treat of great interest and amuse-
ment. What the learned author there says of the
Schlegels, may with perfect truth and justice be ap-
plied to himself; and in referring to him, " I appeal
to a poetical critic, whose boundless acquaintance with
ancient and modern literature, whose high and phi-
losophic principles of taste, if they do not command
universal deference, have at least a right to universal
respect and attention." It is meet, therefore, that I
should acknowledge the use I have made in the follow-
ing hurried sketch of the paper just referred to, written
by one who has so well known how to mould into the
most pleasing forms, and to set in the splendid adorn-
ments of language and eloquence, the rich ore which has
been dug from the productive mines of Indian poetry.
Ihe bards of India have given to poetry nearly
every form which it has assumed in the western world ;
and in each, and in all, they have excelled. Its heroic
poets have been likened to Homer, and their epics
dignified with the appellations of Iliad and Odyssey".
c Professor Ewald, in the Gb'tting. gelehrte Anzeigen.
d No. Ixxxix, ascribed to the late professor of Poetry, Mr. Milman.
e See Heeren's Researches : Indians, chap, i ; Quarterly Review, vol.
xlv, p. 6.
182 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
In the drama, Ca'lida'sa has been designated as the
Indian Shakspeare f ; Vyasa is not unworthy of com-
parison with Milton 8 ; the adventures of Nala and
Damayanti, with the Faerie Queene of Spenser h ; the
philosophic Bhagavat-Gita reads like a noble frag-
ment of Empedocles or Lucretius ' ; their didactic,
their lyric, their writers of fables, and of the lighter
kinds of poetry, have all carried their art to the same
high point of perfection k ; and so nicely are their
respective merits balanced, that it seems rather a
matter of individual taste than of critical acumen, to
which class the palm should be conceded. M. Chezy,
with the Hindoos themselves, gives it decidedly to
the epic; Milman to the softer and less energetic;
A. W. Schlegel appears inclined to bestow it upon
the didactic, while, if the praise of one of the first and
earliest judges of Sanscrit poetry be not lavish, it will
be difficult to say how any thing can excel their
descriptive 1 . Indeed among no people of the world
has poetry exhibited more magnificent appearances,
or been accompanied by a more bland and fascinating
imagery.
There exist, for instance, in our European literature,
few pieces to be compared with the MegJta Duta (The
Cloud Messenger) in sentiment and beauty ; and in
erotic poetry the voluptuous Jayadeva, in his little
poem on the loves of Madhava and Radha, far sur-
f Sir William Jones's preface to Sacontala.
s See above, p. 115.
'' Quarterly Review, vol. xlv, p. 13.
1 Ibid. vol. xlv, p. 7. A. W. Schlegel calls it the most beautiful, and
perhaps the only truly philosophical poem in any language Indischen
Bibl. vol. ii, p. 219. See above, p. 93.
k Heeren's Researches : Indians, sect. i.
1 Sir William Jones, in his preface to the Seasons (Works, vol. vi,
p. 432), says of the season of Calidas, " Every line is exquisitely polished ;
every couplet exhibits an Indian landscape, always beautiful, sometimes
highly coloured, but never beyond nature."
POETRY. 183
passes all elegiac poets known. Never were the fires
of love and its soft languors depicted in colours so
lively and enchanting as in the Gitagovinda. Yet, ac-
cording to the pandits, this entirely mystical work
expresses nothing but the aspirations of the soul, seek-
ing to unite itself to the Deity; and in this point of view
it affords a striking resemblance to the delightful alle-
gory of Psyche and Cupid m .
In the development of the higher powers of poetry,
the sublime and the pathetic, the Indian bards have
been eminently successful. Instances of the former
will be found in the extracts from the Bhagavat-Gita,
translated by Mr. Milman. See one specimen above,
p. 157, on the immortality of the soul. The Mahab-
harat, indeed, altogether, must be regarded as one of
the most splendid efforts of the genius of epic poetry.
But the power of the Indian bards in awakening
the more tender sympathies of our nature, in de-
scribing the soft touches of domestic feeling, and in
breathing, with simple pathos, the passionate sorrow
of parental affliction, is still more manifest. See for
example the beautiful story of Nala and Damayanti",
the pathetic episode from the Ramayana, of the death
of Yajnadatta, and the affecting yet beautifully simple
tale of the Brahman's Lament. The former of these,
so wonderful in invention, and still more wonderful in
its style, contains many passages that would do honour
even to Homer.
It has been an almost universal complaint against
the poetry of the East, that it is overcharged with
glitter and ornament ; that it is too lavish of fantastic
metaphor and unapt similitude; that it offends by a
m Ch6zy, Discours sur la Literature Sanscrit. See above, p. 118, for
his descriptive panegyric on their epic poetry. A notice of the Gitagovinda
will be found under the Drama.
11 See above, p. 96, sqq.
184 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
florid and redundant diction ; in short, that it is more
fitted to dazzle than to please, to excite admiration
than delight; and that its effect is rather to fatigue
the attention by a rapid succession of glaring and
startling images, than to maintain a rising interest, or
win a growing sympathy by a more moderate and less
confused display of attractions.
This exuberance of ornament in oriental poetry is
denied by two excellent judges, the late bishop Heber
and Mr. Milman. The latter goes so far as to
pronounce, what his own versions of Sanscrit poetry
seem to prove, " that the diction of the Indian poets is
peculiarly simple, and that their luxuriance is not in
language but in the subject matter of their poetry in
the infinite variety, vastness, and exuberance of their
mythological fables."
The mythology of the Hindoos is the great obstacle
which must ever prevent their poetry from becoming
popular in Europe. If the pantheon of the heathen
deities of our own classic world requires a guide to Par-
nassus, or a Lempriere to enable us to understand the
poets of Greece and Italy ; how much more shall we be
at a loss, where every thing is not only new and strange,
but frightful and shocking ? where the great personi-
fications of nature and mind have not been softened
down by the beau ideal of the Greeks to the perfection of
human symmetry; but are still exhibited in their
original, barbarous, and unwieldy forms ; majesty by
enormous stature, power by multitudinous hands, pro-
vidence by countless eyes, wisdom by the trunk of the
elephant, omnipresence by innumerable bodies .
In addition to this, and besides the ordinary loss
which all poetry must undergo by being translated
Heeren's Researches : Indians, chap, i ; Quarterly Review, vol. xlv,
p. 31. The number of Hindoo deities is said to be not less than three
hundred and thirty millions.
POETRY. 185
into a foreign language, that of India must suffer from
causes which seem almost to prevent the possibility
of its ever being familiar with us. " These causes,"
observes Mr. Milman, " are obvious. Poetry, which
departs from what may be called the vernacular idiom
of thought and feeling, must content itself with being
the treasured delight of the few. If it speak a dialect
the least foreign or learned, or require a more than
ordinarily vivid imagination to transport us into the
new world which it opens before us; if it not only
should awake no old delightful associations, but
depend upon others which are altogether alien to our
habits and usual tone of thinking; it must win its way,
even if successful, very slowly ; nor is it likely at any
time to become completely naturalized among the mass
of readers." Many of our own great bards are far
from popular ; and perhaps it may be said of these, as
well as of those of modern Europe, and of the ancient
classics of Greece and Italy, that they are more or less
so, nearly in exact-proportion to the degree of effort
required to transfuse the spirit and feelings of the
poet into our own bosom. If this be an obstacle in the
case of our own Chaucer and Spenser, and increasingly
so in that of Dante, Lycophron, etc. ; to what an
immeasurable degree must it operate upon the poets of
a people whose political and religious institutions, as
well as their moral habits in general, are so much at
variance with our own; and who dwell in a region
where nature altogether is clothed in so different a
garb, that it is not too much to say, no labour or skill
could render its associations familiar by translation
into any European language.
186 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Sanscrit Works on Poetry and Rhetoric.
The following list of books on this subject are mostly
taken from professor Wilson, On the Dramatic System
of the Hindoos, prefixed to his Hindoo Theatre. The
works relating exclusively to the drama, and Sanscrit
prosody, will be found below under their respective
heads.
The first treatise on poetical and rhetorical compo-
sition in general, is the Saraswati Kanthdbharana,
ascribed to Bhoja Raja. There is a commentary upon
it by Retneswara Mahopadhyaya.
The next work to be mentioned is the Kdvya
Prakdsa, by Mammatta Bhatta, a Cashmirian, written
about five centuries ago. It is on rhetorical com-
position in general, and of great repute.
The Sdhitya Derpana, by Viswanath Kaviraja, a
Bengali pundit, is described as a work of great
merit on poetical writing, and comparatively modern ;
perhaps four or five hundred years old.
The works which treat of the poetic art in general
are exceedingly numerous ; some of the principal are
the Kdvyddersa, by Dandi ; the Kdvydtankdra Vritti,
by Vamana Acharya; the Kuvaldyamanda, by Apyaya
Dikshita ; the Alankdra Suvaswa of Bhama ; the
Rasa Gangddhara of Jagannath Pandit Raj, and the
Alankdra Kaustubha, by Kavi Kernapuraka, who
illustrates all his rules by verses of his own, relating to
the loves of Crishna and Radha, and the pastimes of
the deity with the Gopis of Vrindavan.
Besides these, there are several treatises on the
passions and emotions which poetry is intended to
depicture or excite ; as the Sringdva Tilaka of Rudra
Bhatta ; and the Rasa Manjari, and the Rasa Tarin-
gini of Bhanu Datta: the latter comprises a number
of rules which are quoted as those of Bharata. ,
POETRY. 187
. On Metre and Prosody.
The capital essay on Sanscrit and Pracrit Poetry, by
H. T. Colebrooke, in the Asiatic Researches, vol. x,
p. 399, etc., is the great authority on this subject. It
discusses the laws of metre, the rules for which are
contained in Sootras, or brief aphorisms, attributed to
Pingalanaga, a fabulous being, represented by mytho-
logists in the shape of a serpent. The aphorisms of
Pingala are collected into eight books, of which the
first allots names, or rather signs, for feet consisting of
one, two, or three syllables. The second book teaches
the manner in which passages of the Vedas are mea-
sured. The third explains the variations in the subdi-
vision of the couplet and stanza. The fourth treats of
profane poetry, and especially of verses in which the
number of syllables, or their quantity, is not uniform.
The fifth, sixth, and seventh exhibit metres of that
sort which has been called monoschemastic, or uni-
form, because the same feet recur invariably in the
same places. The eighth and last book serves as an
appendix to the whole, and contains rules for comput-
ing all the possible combinations of long and short syl-
lables in verses of any length.
Pingala cites earlier writers on prosody, whose
work? appear to have been lost: such as Saitava,
Craushtica, Tandin, and other ancient sages, Ya'sca
Cas'yapa, etc.
" Pingala's text," says Mr. Colebrooke, " has been
interpreted by various commentators; and, among
others, by Hela'yud' habhalTa, author of an excellent
gloss, entitled Mrita Sanjivini. It is the work on which
I have chiefly relied. A more modern commentary, or
rather a paraphrase in verse, by Na'ra'yan'a-bhat't'a-
lara', under the title of Urtilocii-ratna, presents the
188 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
singularity of being interpreted throughout in a double
sense, by the author himself, in a further gloss entitled
Parieshd.
"Thedgnipurdna is quoted for a complete system of
prosody, founded apparently on Pingala's Aphorisms ;
but which serves to correct or to supply the text in
many places ; and which is accordingly used for that
purpose by commentators. Original treatises likewise
have been composed by various authors, and among
others by the celebrated poet Calidasa. In a short
treatise entitled Sruta bod'ha, this poet teaches the
laws of versification in the very metre to which they re-
late ; and has thus united the example with the pre-
cept. The same mode has been also practised by
many other writers on prosody ; and in particular, by
Pingala's commentator Nara'yari'a-bhat't'a ; and by the
author of the Vritta Retnacara and Vritta Dupan'a.
" Calidasa' s Sruta bbd'ha exhibits only the most com-
mon sorts of metre, and is founded on Pingala's Pra-
crit rules of Prosody ; as has been remarked by one of
the commentators on the Vritta Retnacara"
Colebrooke's Essay gives an account of the various
metres, with specimens from the most esteemed poets,
and engraved plates of the original text. Sanscrit pros-
ody has two sorts of metre ; one governed by the
number of syllables, and the other measured by feet,
like the hexameters of the Greek, and both are arranged
into a great variety of stanzas. Their poetry also ad-
mits both of rhime and. alliteration.
SaldtyavidyCidhari Tikd, ou Traite sur les metres
Sanserifs, Journ. Asiat. vi, p. 3S3.
The Prosody of Pingala forms part of the six Vc-
dangas, or supplements to the Vedas. See above, p.
86. Sir William Jones quotes the poem upon S.anscrit
Prosody, by Calidasa, called Sruta Bodha, and in the
Royal Library at Paris is a manuscript of an analysis
POETRY. 189
of vhimes by him, under the title of Chandasang
Mandjari.
Principles of Sanscrit metre and prosody, in the pre-
face to A. W. v. Schlegel's Baghavad-Gita, Bonn,
1823, 8vo.
Some account of Sanscrit metre will also be found
in the preface to Halhed's Translation of the Code of
Gentoo Laws,
Von dem epischen Sylbenmasse der Indier, von A.
W. v. Schlegel, in s. Indischen Bibl. vol. i, p. 3640.
On the metre of the Mahabharata, by M. Chezy, in
the Journ. des Savans, 1825, p. 44.
Ueber einige altere Sanskrit-Metra, ein Versuch von
Geo. Heinr. Ewald, Gottingen, 1827, 8vo.
Slokaratchanavidi. Theorie du Sloka, ou metre he-
roique Sanskrit, par M. Chezy, Paris, 1828, Svo.
0. Epic Poetry v.
Considerations upon the Indian Epos, in Schlegel's
preface to his edition of the Ramayana.
Vrihatcatha, by Somadeva. Sir William Jones com-
pares this work with the poems of Ariosto, and even
gives it the preference in point of eloquence.
Raga Bansu, or Raghu-Vansa. A poem by Cali-
dasa q , in nineteen cantos. This work is among the
most admired compositions in the Sanscrit tongue. It
contains the history of Rama and of his predecessors
and successors from Dilipa, father of Raghu, to Agni-
vebna ; with a genealogical table of twenty -nine princes.
See Asiatic Researches, torn, x, p. 426. There is a
P The greatest and most important of the Epic poems have already been
noticed among the sacred writings.
i The poets Culiddsa. BhAravi, Sri-Harcha, and Muglta, are dignified
with the surname of Mahacavya the great.
190 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
manuscript of it in the library of the Asiatic Society of
London. Captain Fell presented this society with an
abridgement of it, see Asiatic Journal, 1821, Nov. p.
487, which was afterwards printed at Calcutta, 1826.
Cumara-Sambhava, or The Birth of Carlikeya, the
god of war, a long poem by Calidasa. It has the ap-
pearance of being incomplete ; and a tradition reports
that it originally consisted of twenty-two books.
Cirata-Arjuniya ; a poem, by Bharavi ; with the
comment of Mallinatha, named Ghantapatha, pub-
lished by H. T. Colebrooke, Calcutta, 1814, 4to. It con-
tains an account of the wars which Arjuna carried on
against savage nations. Colebrooke gives us the con-
tents of this poem in the Asiatic Researches, torn, x,
p. 410; which are copied into Ward's View, etc., vol. i,
p. 514. Colebrooke, also, p. 410, 411, etc., gives spe-
cimens of the original. There is a manuscript of this
poem in the library of the Asiatic Society of London.
Uttara-Rama-Charitram, The Later Fortunes of
Rama, by Bhavabhutis, who is placed in the eighth
century of our era. See A. W. v. Schlegel's Ind.
Bibl. vol. ii, 2, p. 150.
Neschadiya, by Sriharcha, in twenty-two cantos, is
one of the six great poems which the Hindoos regard
as the masterpieces of their profane literature. A
manuscript of this poem, containing only the last six
books, was presented to the Asiatic Society of Paris.
See Journ. Asiat. torn, vi, p. 383.
A poem by Somadeva upon the death of Nauda and
the accession of Chandragupta to the throne.
Vivahara Caudam, of Ritumitacshara , translated
from the Sanscrit into Tamul, by the late Porur Vadiar,
completed and revised by his brother Sidumbala Va-
diar, late head Tamul master at the College of Fort
St. George, Madras, 1826.
The Bidteesee Sing Hasunu, from the Sunskrit,
POETRY. 191
translated in the Mahratta language, Calcutta, 1814,
4to.
Vetala-Pantschavimsati, by Sivadasa.
The Bhoga Prahbendha ; The Bhoga Charitra; and
The Vikrama Charitra, manuscripts in the library of
the Asiatic Society of London.
y. Erotic Poetry.
The Migha Duta (Meghudovta), or Cloud Mes-
senger, a poem in the Sanscrit language, by Cali-
dasa: translated into English verses, with notes and
illustrations by Horace Hayman Wilson, esq., as-
sistant-surgeon in the service of the honourable East
India Company, and secretary of the Asiatic Society,
published under the sanction of the College of Fort
William, Calcutta, 1813, 4to; reprinted London, 1815,
8vo. Calidasa, one of the celebrated poets of India,
was called by his enraptured countrymen, the Bride-
groom of Poetry.
The contents of the Cloud Messenger are given by
Colebrooke, in the Asiat. Res. vol. x, p. 435, and
by Ward in his View, etc. vol. i, p. 516.
Analyse du Megha-Doutah, poeme Sanscrit de
Kalidasa, par M. A. L. Chezy, Paris, 1817, 8vo.
The National Library at Paris possesses three
copies of this delicious poem, which consists of only
one hundred and sixteen strophees; one under No.
44, in Devanagari, and two, Nos. 115 and 172, in
Bengali character.
A few strophees of the original, with a Latin trans-
lation, had already been presented to the world by
Paulinus a S. Bartholomaeo, in his Sidharubam, p. 6G
68.
The Message, from the Megha Duta, or Cloud
Messenger, a poetical translation of a fragment, in
the Asiatic Journal, 1816, Sept. p. 253256.
192 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Chora- Panchasica, a short poem of fifty stanzas,
in which the poet Sundara, son of the king of Kant-
chipoor, sings his early fate. He had the misfortune,
in a mighty adventure, while going to visit Vidya, the
daughter of the king of Burdvan, Vera-Singha, to be
taken and condemned to death.
Bhdmam-Vilasa, erotic poems by Jagannatha.
Sapta-Sati, erotic poems by Govarddhana.
The erotic poem of Amaru, in a collection of a
hundred stanzas, compiled by Sancaratscharyya.
8. Lyric Poems.
Lyric Poems by Calidasa, as Sringara Tilaka,
Prasnottara Mala, Aasjanorwa, or Lachmeer, and
some others.
Song of Jay a Dem, from the Sanscrit, in the Asiat.
Journ. 1823, June, p. 741.
Paddhati, a Collection of Poems by S'arngadhara,
a manuscript in the library of the Asiatic Society of
London.
Chunda Stotra, Hymns to Chandi, Calcutta, 1817,
Svo.
Chandi, Hymns to Durga, Sanscrit, Calcutta, 1818,
8vo.
Chandana, an elegant Sanscrit stanza, in the Asiatic
Journal, 1825, April, p. 423.
e. Elegy.
Elegy on the Death of a Wife, from the Sanscrit of
Jagannatha Bandita Raja, in the Asiatic Journal,
April, p. 363.
POETRY. 193
g. Idyls.
Gatakarparam, r , or the Broken Vase, printed in
the original with Indian scholia, Calcutta, 1812.
Ghata-Karparam, ou 1'Absence, Idylle dialoguee,
traduite du Samskrit, par M. de Chezy, in the Journal
Asiatique, 1823, vol. vii, p. 39 45.
G'atakarparum, oder das zerbrochene Gefass, ein
Sanskritisches Gedicht, herausgegeben, iibersetzt,
nachgeahmt und erlautert von G. M. Dursch, Berlin,
1828, kl. 4. See Allgem. Liter. Zeit, 1829, No. Ixxi,
Ixxii; and Jahrb. fur wissensch. Kritik, 1829, No. Ixv,
Ixvii, Ixxiii, Ixxvi, by Wilh. von Humboldt.
Das Wiedersehn Elegie aus dem Sanskrit iibersetzt
von P. von Bohlen, in the Berliner Conversations-
Blatt, 1829, No. lix,
r,. Didactic Poetry.
Ritu Sanhara, the Seasons, a descriptive poem by
Calidasa, printed in the original Sanscrit, at Calcutta.
A short account is given of it by Sir William Jones, in
an advertisement to this edition. See his Works, vol.
vi, p. 432 s . Wilson gives sixteen verses of it in his
edition of the Migha Duta, p. 63.
r This little poem consists of thirty-two stanzas of various metres. Its
title, Ghata-Karparam (Broken Vase), is merely the last word of the sin-
gular epilogue with which the poet, whose name is unknown, has thought
proper so pleasantly and cheerfully to close this graceful composition.
M. Chezy has given it the title of Absence, a name which suits it very well,
as its subject matter is the plaints of a young wife, separated from an
indifferent husband, whom the rainy season, the happy epoch in which
the distant travellers return to the bosom of their families, brings not back
to her embraces.
s It is as follows : This book is the first ever printed in Sanscrit ; and
as it is by the press alone that the ancient literature of India can long be
preserved, a learner of that most interesting language, who had carefully
perused one of the popular grammars, could hardly begin his course of
study with an easier or more elegant work, than the Ritusa'nhara, or
C C
194 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Vana-Bhatta is the author of an incomplete de-
scriptive poem, bearing the title of Cadambari, full of
double allusions.
FABLES.
See concerning the Hindoo fables from books and
oral traditions, the Abb6 Dubois Description of the
Character, etc. of the People of India, p. 502, etc.
Gilchrist's Oriental Fabulist, or Polyglot transla-
tions of ^Esop's and other Ancient Fables, into Hin-
dostanee, Persian, Arabic, Sanscrit, etc., Calcutta,
1802, 8vo.
. Pancha Tantra.
Though it be impossible to trace the channel by
which they came into Europe, it is universally ad-
mitted that the old tales which first roused the in-
ventive faculties of our ancestors are of oriental origin.
It is too late to enquire whether Persia was their birth-
place ; for if so, they must have been clad in the Pahlvi
language ; and both body and dress are irrecoverably
lost. It is to the Hindoos, then, that we must look
for the source of nearly all that has interested and
amused our forefathers and ourselves in this depart-
ment of literature.
The Pancha Tantra is the parent stock of the Hito-
padesa*, Pilpay's Fables, and several other similar col-
Assemblage of Seasons. Every line composed by Calidasa is exquisitely
polished ; and every couplet in the poem exhibits an Indian landscape,
always beautiful, sometimes highly coloured, but never beyond nature.
Four copies of it have been diligently collated ; and, where they differed,
the clearest and most natural reading has constantly had the preference.
1 The Hitopadesa is not the only Sanscrit epitome of the Pancha Tantra.
Another abridgement of it, following the original much more closely, both
in matter and arrangement, is the Cat'hdmrita-nichte (Treasure of the Nectar
of Tales), by Ananta Bhatta. Note of Mr. Colebrooke, Transactions of
Asiatic Society, vol. i. p. 200.
FABLES. 195
lections. Mr. Colebrooke gave a sketch of the contents
of this ancient woi'k, in the preface to his edition of
the Hitbpadesa ; and professor Wilson a full and in-
teresting analysis of it in his Analytical Account of the
Pancha Tantra, illustrated with occasional Transla-
tions, in the Transactions of the Royal Asiatic So-
ciety, vol. i, part ii, London, 1826, p. 155 200. From
this the following brief account is taken.
The Pancha Tantra is so called from its being
divided into five tantras, or sections; it is better
known, however, in common speech, by the denomina-
tion Panchbpakhydna, which may be rendered the
Five (collections of) Stories. And under this appella-
tion the work may be met with in most parts of India.
It is attributed to Vishnu Sarmd, who is said to
have extracted the essence of all the most celebrated
works of this class, and to have composed the Niti
Sastra, in five tantras or chapters. Its origin is thus
narrated.
Amara Sucti, a learned and munificent prince, had
three sons, without capacity or diligence. Observing
their aversion to study, the king called his counsellors,
and said to them, " You are aware that my sons are
disinclined to application, and are incapable of re-
flection. When I contemplate their conduct, my king-
dom is full of thorns, and yields me no pleasure.
Better is a dead son than one who is a fool. Better
that a family should become extinct, than that a son,
endowed with their form, wealth, and family credit,
should want understanding ! If, therefore, their minds
can be aroused to a due sense of their situation, do you
declare it." On this, one of his counsellors answered
him, " As life is short, and to acquire a knowledge
of sciences demands much time, some means should be
found of shortening the path of learning, and of com-
municating the substance of each science in a compen-
196 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
dious form ; for it is said, the Sabda Sastra alone (phi-
lology) is a boundless ocean, its difficulties are many,
and the end of life soon arrives. The essence, there-
fore, is to be taken, as the swan extracts milk from
the water. There is a Brahman named Vishnu Sarma,
celebrated for his perfect knowledge of the sciences ;
to him intrust your sons, and he will render them
well-informed." Vishnu Sarma was accordingly sent
for. " Venerable Brahman," said the king, " confer
a favour upon me, by instructing these princes,
and rendering them superior to their companions ;
in recompense of which I promise you lands of large
extent." Vishnu Sarma replied, " Hear, O king, my
words. I am not a retailer of knowledge for lands
and wealth ; but if I do not instruct your sons in
the Niti Sastra" I will forego my own name." The
king delivered his sons to him, and retired. Vishnu
Sarma took the princes with him, and composed for
their instruction these five chapters : Mitra Bheda,
dissension of friends; Mitra Prapte, acquisition of
friends; Kakolukiya, inveterate enmity; Labdha Pra-
samana, loss of advantage ; Aparikshita Cdrilwa, in-
considerateness. Reading these, the princes became,
in six months, highly accomplished ; and the five
Tantras were henceforward famous throughout the
world. Whoever reads this work acquires the whole
Niti Sastra, and will never be overthrown by Indra
himself.
A complete translation of this work into French
appeared under the following title, Le Panicha-Tantra,
ou les cinq Ruses, fables du Brahma Vichnou-Sarma ;
aventures de Paramatra et autres contes : le tout tra-
duit pour la premiere fois sur les originaux Indiens,
u Niti Sastra is translated Ethics by Sir William Jones, in his works ;
but I have seen it somewhere stated to mean the whole course of learning
necessary for a prince.
FABLES. 197
par M. 1'Abbe J. B. Dubois, Paris, 1826, 8vo. An
ample review of this translation appeared in the Journ.
des Savans, 1826, Aoiit, p. 468479.
This work, from the earliest times, has been ex-
ceedingly popular in India, and translated into almost
every language of Asia. It was rendered into French
by Petit le Crox, from a Persian version said to have
been made in the seventh century of the Christian era.
It was translated into Tamul under the title of Pancha
Tantra Katha, Stories translated into the Tamul lan-
guage, by Tandavigia Mudaliyar, Madras, 1826, small
folio.
?. Hitopadesa, or the Friendly Instructor.
The oldest collection of fables and tales which has
been introduced among us, is the one that goes under
the name of Bidpai or Pilpay. The history of this
work is too well known to require any elucidation.
Mr. Wilkins and Sir William Jones first brought to
light the original text from among the hidden stores
of Sanscrit literature, and Mr. Colebrooke has pub-
lished it in its proper language : finally, the learn-
ing and industry of the Baron de Sacy have traced
the work through all its stages ; and few subjects
of investigation have been better illustrated than the
bibliographical adventures of the Salutary Instructions
of Vishnusarma, or the Fables of Pilpay. Its Sanscrit
name is Hitbpadesa, or Friendly Instructor ; but, pro-
perly, it is a collection of the political and moral apo-
logues of Pilpay, written half in prose and half in verse.
A detailed account of Hitopadesa is given by Lang-
les, in his Contes Indiens, Paris, 1790, 12mo., and
by Silvestre de Sacy in his Extraits et Notices de
la Bibliotheque du Roi, vol. x, p. 257 ; and, espe-
cially, a very circumstantial history of it in his edition
of Calila and Dimna, mentioned below. These fables
198 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
have spread in two different branches over nearly the
whole civilised world. The one under the original
name of Hitbpadesa remains nearly proper to India,
while the other, under the title of Calila and Dimna,
is famous over all Western Asia, and in all the coun-
tries of Europe.
EDITIONS OF THE ORIGINAL.
The original Sanscrit was first printed at Serampoor
under the superintendence of Mr. Colebrooke, bearing
the title of Hitbpadesa, or Salutary Instruction, in the
original Sanscrit, with Introductory Remarks in the
English Language, by H. T. Colebrooke, esq. The
real editor was Carey, but the introduction was writ-
ten by the learned Mr. Colebrooke. The Hitbpa-
desa, p. 1 60, is followed by Dasa Cumdra Charita,
or Adventures of the Ten Youths, abridged by Apayga,
in twenty-two pages. Three Satacas, or Centuries of
Verses, by Bhartri Hari, p. 23 iii. This edition was
reprinted under the management of Charles Wilkins,
esq., London, Library of the East India House, 1810,
4to.
Analysis (without further title) seventy-two pages in
4to. An Analysis of the first eleven pages of the
London edition of the Hitbpadesa, with continual
reference to Wilkins's Sanscrit Grammar, by Alex-
ander Hamilton, 1818, printed for the scholars of
Hertford College.
Hitopadesi particula. Edidit et glossarium Sanscri-
to-Latinum adjecit G. H. Bernstein. Accedunt V
Tabulse. Vratislavice, 1823, 4to. See Getting, gel.
Anz. 1823, St. 76.
TRANSLATIONS.
Perhaps there is no book, except the Bible, which has
been translated into so many languages as the Fables
FABLES. 199
of Pilpay. We can only mention here the most
esteemed, and must refer the reader for an account of
the remainder, to Silvestre de Sacy's Calila et Dimna.
aa. Pahlvi.
The physician Barzuyeh brought this work from
India into Persia in the reign of Nushirwan, where
he translated it into Pahlvi, with a preface by Bu-
zurjmihr.
jSjS. Persian.
The Hitbpadesa was translated into Persian at the
beginning of the tenth century of the Hegira, by
Hosain ben Ali, surnamed Vaez, under the title of
Musarrihu-l-kulub, or Mufarrihu-l-kulub, that is,
Heart's Balsam.
In the year 1805 Mulli Hussein, in conjunction
with Charles Stewart, published this translation, under
the title of Anvari Sohaili, or Unvar-i-Soohuelee,
Calcutta, folio. Under this head also must be men-
tioned, An introduction to the Anvari Sohaili of
Hussein Vaiz Kashify, by Charles Stewart, London,
1821, 4to. See Catalogue de la Bibliotheque de M.
Langles, p. 162, No. 1407.
In the Notices et Extraits des mss. de la Biblio-
theque du Roi, torn. x. Silvestre de Sacy describes
two other translations; one by Abulfazel, under the
title of Eyari danish, the other by Taj-Eddin.
yy. Hindoostanee.
Ukhlaqui Hindee, or Indian Ethics, translated from
a Persian version of the celebrated Hitoopades, or
Salutary Counsel, by Meer Buhadoor Ulee, head
Moonshee in the Hindoostanee department of the New
College at Fort William, for the use of the students,
200 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
under the superintendence of John Gilchrist, Calcutta,
1803, 4to.
Mufarrihu-l-Kulub, the Expander of Hearts, being
a Hindoostanee translation of the Hitopadesa, a cele-
brated Sanscrit work on friendship, etc. translated by
Mir Bahadur Ali Husaini, from a Persian version, in
Arabic characters, manuscript, 4to., purchased at
London, price II. 4s. Ogle, Duncan, and Co.
The Khirud Ufroz, originally translated into the
Hindostanee Language, by Muolovee Hufeez Ood-
Deen Uhmud from the Eyar'i Danish, written by the
celebrated Shueckh Ubool Fuzl, prime minister to the
illustrious Ukbur, emperor of Hindoostan, revised and
compared with the original Persian, and prepared for
the press, by Capt. Thomas Roebuck, acting secretary
and examiner in the College of Fort William, Calcutta,
1815, 2 vols. 4to.
A passage of the Hitopadesa was translated by Sri
Lalkab, of Guzurate, out of the Sanscrit into Hin-
doostanee, and printed in Devanagari character, at
Fort William in 1814, under the title of Raj-Niti.
Ukhlaqui Hindee, or Indian Ethics, in Hindoo-
stanee, translated from a Persian version of the cele-
brated Hitoopudes, or Salutary Counsel. Engraved
under the direction of Sandford Arnot and Duncan
Forbes, A. M. London, 1828, 4to.
8&. Bengalee.
Hitopadesa, or Salutary Instruction, translated in
the Bengalee from the original Sanscrit, Serampoor,
1801, 8vo., 1808, 1814.
. Mahratta.
Hitopudeshu, from the Sanscrit, translated in the
Mahratta language, printed under the superintendence
FABLES. 201
of Dr. Carey, at Serampoor, 1805, Svo; and again,
1814, 4to.
Hitopades Mahdrdshtri Bhdshent tarjama Vaijandth
panditane Kele, Serampoor, 1815, Svo.
$5. Arabic.
The Hitopadesa was first translated from the Pahlvi
into Arabic in the reign of Mansur, by Ibn MokafFaa,
under the title of Kelila ve Dimne (the proper name of
two jackalls). An elegant and learned edition of this
translation, or rather compilation, appeared at Paris
with the following title: Calila et Dimna, ou Fables
de Bidpai, en Arabe ; precedes d'un Memoire sur 1'ori-
gine de ce livre, et sur les diverses traductions qui
en ont ete faits dans 1'Orient, et suivies de la Moallaka
de Lebid, en Arabe et en Frangais, par M. Silvestre
de Sacy, Paris, 1816, 4to. Reviewed at length by
Chezy in the Journal des Savans, 1817, Mai.
From this translation two metrical versions were
attempted; one by Sehl, the son ofNeobacht: another,
entitled Durro-l-hilcam-ji amthali-l-hindi-wa-l-ajami
(pearls of wisdom from Hindoo and Persian discourses),
by Abdolmumin ben Hassan, is in the Imperial Library
at Vienna.
Silvestre de Sacy describes another Arabic transla-
tion made from the Persian, by Abou'lmaali Nasr-
Allah, about the year 1 140. See Notices et Extr. des
mss. de la Bibl. du Roi, torn. x.
Pars versionis Arabicae libri Colailah wa Dimna/i,
sive fabularum Bidpai philosophi indi, in usum audi-
torum edita ab Henr. Alb. Schultens, Lugd* Batav.
1786, kl. 4.
Silvestre de Sacy quotes, altogether, twenty oriental
translations; that is, seven Indian, three Turkish,
five Arabic, three in prose and two in verse, and five
od
202 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Persian, of which two are metrical and three in
prose.
A Syriac and a Malayan version are mentioned in
Nyerup's Catalogus librorum Sanskritanorum, Hafnits,
1821, p. 27.
Homain Namek, the celebrated Turkish Version of
the Fables of Bidpai, from the Persian of Anvary
Sohahyly, manuscript. See Howell and Stewart's
Catalogue of Oriental Literature, London, 1828.
pj. English.
Hitbpadesa of Vishnusarman, translated by Sir Wil-
liam Jones, in the sixth vol. of his works, p. 1 176.
The Heetopades of Veeshnov-Sarma ; in a series of
connected fables, interspersed with moral, prudential,
and political maxims, translated from an ancient manu-
script in the Sanscrit language, with explanatory notes,
by Charles Wilkins, Bath, 1787, Svo. This transla-
tion is highly esteemed. See Langles' notice of it in
the Revue Encyclop. 1819, vol. vi, p. 517, and Schle-
gel in his Ind. Bibliothek. vol. i, p. 17. The appended
remarks contain a treasure of important information
respecting Hindoo religion and Sanscrit literature.
Kalila and Dimna, or the Fables of Bidpai, trans-
lated from the Arabic, by the Rev. Wyndham Knatch-
bull, Oxford, 1819, Svo. A free translation.
The Serpent and the Frogs, a fable freely translated
from the Heetopadesa, in the Asiatic Journal, 1824,
Sept. p. 253255.
68. French.
Les Conseils et les Maximes de Pilpay, philosophe
Indien, sur les divers etats de la vie, Paris, 1709, 12mo.
Contes et fables Indiens de Bidpai et de Lokman,
traduction du Turc d'Ali-Tchelebi-Ben-Saleh, com-
FABLES. 203
mencee, par M. Galland et finie par M. Gardonne,
Paris, 1778, 2 vols. 12mo.
The above quoted elegant version of Wilkins, was
translated into French by Parraud, Paris, 1787, 8vo.
Fables et Contes Indiens, avec un discours prelimi-
naire sur la religion, etc. des Hindous, par M. Lan-
gles, Paris, 1790, 8vo. and 18mo.
Devouement de Viravare. Tire de 1'Hitopadesa,
Liv. iii ; in Melanges de la Litter. Sanscr. de A. Lan-
glois, p. 215 224; Journ. Asiat. vol. i, p. 239.
Le Jeune Prince et le Marchand Ambitieux. Tire
de 1'Hitopadesa, Liv. i. ; in Mel. de la Lit. Sanscr. de
A. Langlois, p. 225234.
Traduction d'une fable indienne, intitulee le Serpent
et les Grenouilles, par Eugene Burnouf, fils, in the
Journ. Asiat. vol. ii, p. 150.
u. German.
Respecting the German translation, by Eberhardt
im Bart, Count of Wiirtemberg, or which he caused
to be made, see D. Chr, Frid. Schnurrer Orationes
Academicae, ex edit. O. Henr. Eberh. Gottl. Pauli,
Tubingen, 1828, p. 205222.
Die Fabeln des Pilpai, iibersetzt, von Lucian Wer-
ber, Number g, 1802, 8vo.
Die Fabeln des Indischen Weltweisen Pilpai. Ue-
bersetzt von Volgraf, Eisenach, 1803, 8vo,
KK. Danish.
De gamle Vises Exempler og Hofsprog, etc. Kiob.
1618. See Nyerup's Almindelig Morskabslasning i
Danmark og Norge, Koibenhavn, 1816.
>.X. Latin.
Liber de Dina et Kalila, translated from the Spanish
into Latin, about 1313, by Raimond de Bezieres. See
Notices et Extr. de la Bibl. du Roi, torn. x.
204 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Hitopadaesi particula. Edidit et Glossarium San-
scrito-Latinum adjecit G. H. Bernstein. VratisL 1823,
4to.
Hr. von Hammer, in the Fundgruben des Orients,
vol. ii, p. 271, mentions thirty-six translations of the
Hitopadesa; and Eichhorn in his History of Litera-
ture, vol. i, p. 588, cites a Greek, six German, one
Dutch, and two Swedish.
THE DRAMA.
ON THE DRAMATIC POETRY OF THE HINDOOS.
For information respecting the dramatic poetry of
the Hindoos, see the preface to Halhed's Grammar of
the Bengal Language, p. iv ; and Q. Craufurd's Re-
searches on Ancient and Modern India, vol. ii, p. 183;
but the most satisfactory and interesting account of
the Indian drama will be found in Professor Wilson's
preface to his Theatre of the Hindus, and his preli-
minary discourse On the Dramatic System of the Hin-
dus x . Some information also upon this subject, but
mostly taken from Mr. Wilson's work, will be found
in the Asiatic Journal, 1827, January, March, April,
and May; and likewise in the Quarterly Review, vol.
xlv,p. 39 y.
. * The learned professor read a paper on this subject to the Calcutta
Asiatic Society, of which he was then secretary, as early as the year 1822.
See Asiatic Journal, June, 1823, p. 581. A notice of this was translated
into French, by M. Dondey Duprey, and published in the Journal Asiat.
vol. x, p. 174193.
y In the Asiatic Journal for May 1828, p. 612, there is a description of
a kind of dramatic representation of the history of Rama, called the Rama
Leela. This seems to bear no relation to the regular drama, but is quite
modern. It constitutes one of the principal festivals of the Hindoo calen-
dar ; at which it seems that the sacred legend of the Ramayana is chanted
by a band of priests from day to day, occupying altogether twenty or thirty
days, and that whatever incidents are capable of being acted are simulta-
neously performed in dumb show.
THE DRAMA. 205
Sur la litterature dramatique des Hindous. Me-
moire lu & la Societe Asiatique de Calcutta le 26 Dec.
1823, in the Bulletin Univ. Aout, 1826; Philologie,
p. 9092; from the Orient. Magazine, Fevr. 1823,
p. 250. German : Ueber die dramatische Literatur der
Hindu, in the Blattern zur literar. Unterhalt, 1827,
No, 86.
No branch of Sanscrit literature has been placed so
fully, so pleasingly, and so familiarly before the Eng-
lish public as that of the drama in the Hindu Theatre
of Professor Wilson ; a work which is not confined to
the mere translation of two or three Sanscrit plays, but
gives the reader full information respecting the history
and antiquity, the laws and language, the authors and
actors, in short, respecting the whole way and man-
ner of scenic representation in India. It is a matter
truly surprising, that the publication of this work,
which has been rapidly translated into German and
French, and is now, as I am told, reprinting in Ame-
rica, should not have awakened a more lively interest
among the literary countrymen of the author ; and the
more so, because the Indian drama, independently
of its importance as throwing a considerable light
upon the manners and habits of Hindoo society before
it had been sophisticated by foreign invasion and . in-
fluence, has high claims to our regard as abounding
in rich and forcible delineation of character ; in pure
and graceful descriptions ; and in plots full of life and
bustle, arranged with sufficient ingenuity and skill to
arouse the attention, and keep alive a continual interest
in the business of the stage.
The Hindoo drama, moreover, possesses, in its ori-
ginality, one striking peculiarity which it might be sup-
posed would alone ensure it general favour. Professor
Wilson says, it is impossible the dramatic compositions
of India should have been borrowed from any other
206 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
people either of ancient or modern times; besides
which, they present characteristic features in their con-
duct and construction which plainly evince their ori-
ginal design and national development.
The Hindoo drama, too, is said to bear, in most re-
spects, a closer resemblance to the romantic than to the
classical school. Yet the Nataka, the highest kind of
composition in this department of literature, possesses
many characteristics bearing a striking analogy to the
tragedy of the Greeks : these are pointed out by Pro-
fessor Wilson, as well as many particulars in which
they disagree. Like the Greek tragedy, the Nataka
is to represent none but worthy or exalted personages ;
the action, or more properly the passion, should be
but one, as love or heroism ; the plot should be simple,
the incidents consistent, the business should spring
direct from the story, as a plant from its seed, and
should be free from episodical and prolix interruptions.
The time should not be protracted, and the duration
of an act, according to strict rule, should not exceed
one day, though some allowances are made on this
score. Besides this, the Hindoo drama was derived
from, and formed a part of their religious ceremonies ;
many of their pieces contain a mixture of pantomime,
music, and dancing; and were seldom or never per-
formed except upon solemn or public festivals. On the
other hand, in the whole range of Indian scenic repre-
sentation there is nothing that can be properly called
tragedy ; prose and verse, the serious and the comic,
are intermingled in their compositions, with all the
licence, as Mr. Milman informs us, of the English and
Spanish scene. Yet, according to the aphorism of
Bharata, " the poet is to employ choice and harmoni-
ous terms, and an elevated and polished style, embel-
lished with the ornaments of rhetoric and rhythm."
The injunction, adds Professor Wilson, has, not been
THE DRAMA. 207
disregarded ; and in no department of Hindoo litera-
ture are the powers of the Sanscrit language more la-
vishly developed. One very extraordinary fact con-
nected with this part of the dramatic art in India, is
the employment of different dialects for different cha-
racters, according to their respective grades in society.
Thus, the more lofty personages speak pure Sanscrit,
while women and the less dignified classes of men make
use of the Pracrit, more or less refined, according to
the rank of the speaker.
According to Heeren, the Hindoo drama must be
considered as the latest offspring of the classical litera-
ture of India. Professor Ewald also remarks, that as
great a difference of style is observable between the
dramatic writings and the Ramayana, as between the
Epics and the Vedas : Professor Wilson likewise ad-
mits, that none of the plays at present extant can boast a
very high antiquity. Hindoo traditions, however, carry
the scenic art back to the age of fable, and ascribe
its invention to an inspired sage, named Bharata;
while some assert that it was gathered from the Vedas
by the god of Brahma, and by him communicated to
Muni. Three different kinds of dramatic representa-
tions are spoken of: first, Natya, which is properly
the dramatic, being defined to be gesticulation with
. language; the second is Nritya, or pantomime; and
the third is Uritta, which is simple dancing.
The general term for all dramatic compositions is
Riipaka, from rupa, form ; it being the chief object to
embody character and feelings, and to exhibit the na-
tural indications of passion. They are divided, how-
ever, into two classes, the Rupakas, properly so called,
which are again subdivided into ten different species ;
and the Uparupakas, or minor theatre, subdivided into
eighteen. But all these varieties, as Professor Wilson
informs us, may be clearly reduced to two, " differing
208 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
according to the loftier or lowlier tone of the composi-
tion, the more serious or comic tenor of the subject,
and the regularity or irregularity of the construction."
It would be of no service here to enumerate the minor
distinctions ; they prove, however, the great extent to
which dramatic literature was once cultivated by the
Hindoos.
Professor Wilson believes that the invention of dra-
matic performances is attributed to Bharata, from his
having been one of the earliest writers who reduced
the art to a system. His sootras, or aphorisms, are con-
stantly cited by commentators on different plays, and
suggest the rules which are taught by later authors ;
but his work is not supposed to be extant in an entire
form. One of the best and earliest treatises on dra-
matic literature, among those still in existence, is the
Dasa Riipaka, or description of the ten kinds of the-
atrical composition. It is exclusively devoted to dra-
matic criticism. It consists of a text and a gloss, with
examples. The text was written in the eleventh cen-
tury, (at which time the dramatic art of the Hindoos
must have been complete, or rather in its decline,) by
Dhananjaya: the date of the gloss is not known;
though, from its rarity, it is supposed to be ancient.
The Sangita Retnakara, by Sarngi Deva, a Cashmi-
rian pundit, treats rather of singing and dancing than
of dramatic literature. It furnishes, however, some cu-
rious notices of theatrical representation and gesture.
It was written between the twelfth and fifteenth cen-
turies. There is a commentary upon it by Kallinath.
Besides these, Professor Wilson enumerates various
other Sanscrit authorities, which he consulted in com-
piling his interesting view of the Hindoo stage. See
above, p. 186.
THE DRAMA. 209
COLLECTIONS OF INDIAN PLAYS.
Select Specimens of the Theatre of the Hindus,
translated from the original Sanscrit, containing the
Dramas of Mrichchakati, Vikrama and Urvasi, Malati
and Madhava, Uttara Rama Cheritra, Mudra Rak-
shasa, and Retnavali, together with an Account of the
Dramatic System of the Hindus, Notices of their dif-
ferent Dramas, etc., by H. H. Wilson, esq., Calcutta,
1825 1827, 3 vols. 8vo. This work was published in
six parts in the following order :
No. I. The Mrichchakati, or the Toy Cart, a drama
translated from the original Sanscrit, by H. H. Wilson,
esq., Calcutta, 1825.
No. II. The Drama of Vikrama and Urvasi, or the
Hero and the Nymph, translated by H. H. Wilson,
esq., Calcutta, 1826.
No. III. Malati and Madhava, or the Stolen Mar-
riage, Calcutta, 1826.
No. IV. Uttara Rama CJieritra, or continuation of
the History of Rama, Calcutta, 1826.
No. V. Mudra Rakshasa, or the Signet of the Mi-
nister, Calcutta, 1826.
No. VI. Retnavali, or the Necklace ; and an ap-
pendix, containing short accounts of different dramas,
Calcutta, 1827 Z .
Chefs d'osuvre du Theatre Indien, traduits de 1'ori-
ginal Sanskrit en Anglais, par M. H. H. Wilson, etc.,
et de 1' Anglais en Fra^ais, par M. A. Langlois, etc., ac-
compagnes de notes et d'eclaircissemens, suivis d'une
table alphabetique des noms propres et des termes re-
latifs a la mythologie et aux usages de 1'Inde, avec leur
explication, Paris, 1828, 2 vols. 8vo. German: Klas-
sisches Theater der Hindus. Aus der Englischen
z The original texts of four of these dramas were presented by Professor
Wilson to the Royal Asiatic Society, May, 1832.
E e
210 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Uebertragung des Sanskrit-Originals, von H. H. Wil-
son metrisch iibersetzt, von K. H. Hermes, erster
Theil., Weimar, 1828, 8vo.
Separate Plays.
MYTHOLOGICAL DRAMA.
aa. Sakontala.
Sakontala, or the Fatal Ring. The plot of this play
is taken from an episode in the Maha Bharata. It
was written by Calidasa, who lived in the court of Raja
Vicramaditya, and died in the year 56 B. C.
Sakontala, or the Fatal Ring, an Indian drama, by
Calidasa, translated from the original Sanscrit and Pra-
crit, by Sir Will. Jones, in the Asiatic Researches ; and
in his Works, vol. vi, p. 200312. Printed also se-
parately at Calcutta, 1789, 8vo; London, 1790, 4to.
It was translated into French, by A. Bruguiere, Paris,
1804, 8vo. ; into German, by G. Forster, Frank/, a. M.
1791, 8vo; and a second edition, revised by J. G. v.
Herder, ibid. 1803, 8vo.
Sakontala, oder der verhangnissvolle Ring; indis-
ches Drama des Kalidas in sechs Aufziigen. Metrisch
fur die Biihne bearbeitet von Wilhelm Gerhard, Leip-
zig, 1820, Svo.
Sakontala, ou 1'Anneau Fatal, drame Indien, en sept
actes, imprime pour la premiere fois en France, en
caracteres Samscrits, d'apres les meilleurs textes, suivi
d'une version Fra^aise et de notes explicatives ; par
M. de Chezy, Paris, 1826, 4to.
Sukoontula-Natuk ; being an Appendix to the Eng-
lish and Hindoostanee Dialogues, in a separate form
and as a dramatic performance, translated long ago
from the original Sunskrit, into elegant Hindoostanee,
but now first exhibited in the universal character, by
Dr. J. B. Gilchrist, London, 1827, Svo.
THE DRAMA. 211
An analysis of the Sakontala will be found in Craw-
ford's Researches on India, vol. ii, 186 188; Neue
Bibliothek d. schonen Wissensch. vol. xlvi, p. 64;
Herder's Werke, zur schonen Liter, und Kunst, Th.
ix, p. 207248 ; F. Schlegel's Gesch. der Literatur,
Th. i, p. 177; Heeren's Ideen, Th. i, p. 531538.
Of the Dramatic Art among the Indians, and of the
play of Sakontala, translated from the Polish, in the
Asiat. Boten (a Russian Journal) 1825, Nos. vii and viii.
Sir William Jones, in the preface to his translation
of this piece, says it must have been very popular when
it was first represented ; for the Indian empire was then
in full vigour, and the national vanity must have been
highly flattered by the magnificent introduction of
those kings and heroes in whom the Hindoos gloried a .
jSjS. Gitagovinda, or the Songs of Jayadeva b ,
The subject of this little pastoral drama, like the
loves of Crishna and Radha, as related in the tenth
book of the Bhdgavat, is the reciprocal attraction be-
tween the divine goodness and the human soul. It de-
rives its name from Gita, a song, and Govinda, an ap-
pellation of Crishna as a pastoral deity. Jayadeva, its
* See, however, above, p. 206. Mr. Adelung, in his note on this article,
has fallen into several mistakes. I may notice, that he applies what Sir
W. Jones says respecting the language and style of all the Sanscrit plays,
as though it were said of this one in particular. He also makes Mr. Craw-
ford attribute the translation of a modern Indian epigram to Halhed, which
was made by Sir W. Jones. See his preface, where he says, " A modern
epigram was lately repeated to me, which does so much honour to the au-
thor of Sakontala that I cannot forbear exhibiting a literal version of it."
" Poetry was the sportful daughter of Valmic, and, having been educated
by Vyasa, she chose Calidasa for her bridegroom, after the manner of Vi-
derbha : she was the mother of Amara, Sundar, Sanc'ha, Dhanic ; but
now, old and decrepit, her beauty faded, and her unadorned feet slipping
as she walks, in whose cottage does she disdain to take shelter 1 ?"
b This article altogether seems to me to be improperly inserted under
the head of the Drama. There is a piece founded on it described by Pro-
fessor Wilson. See below, p. 212.
212 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
author, is said to have flourished before Calidasa, and
Calinga and Berdwan dispute the honour of being his
birthplace. The inhabitants of the latter celebrate
an annual jubilee to his honour, passing a whole night
in representing his drama, and singing his beautiful
songs c .
Gitagovinda, or the Songs of Jayadeva, literally
translated from the Sanscrit, by Sir William Jones, in
the Asiatic Researches, torn, i, p. 262, 4to ; torn, iii, p.
185207, 8vo ; and in his Works, vol. i, p. 463. This
has been translated into German by the Baron F. H.
v. Dalberg, under the title of Gitagovinda, oder die
Gesange Jayadevas, eines altindischen Dichters, aus
dem Sanscrit ins Englische und aus diesem in Deutsche
mit Anmerkungen iibersetzt, Erfurt, 1802, 8vo. See
Allgem. Deutsches Bibl. Th. Ixxxi, p. 7476, and Fr.
Majer in Klaproth's Asiat. Magazine, Bd. i. An en-
tirely new German translation has since appeared with
a long preliminary discourse, under the following title :
Gitagovinda oder Krischna der Hirt, ein idyllisches
Drama des indischen Dichters Yayadeva; metrisch
bearbeitet, von A. W. Reimschneider, Halle, 1818,
12mo.
The Sanscrit original was printed by itself in 1808
with the following English title : The Geetu-Govinda,
or Songs of Juyudeva, in Devanagari character.
Fragmenta Gitagovinda;, in Othm. Frank's Chresto-
mathia Sanscrita, Monad, 1819.
METAPHYSICAL DRAMA.
PrabotVh Chandrodaya, or Rise of the Moon of
Intellect, an allegorical Drama, and Alma Bod'h, or
Knowledge of Spirit, translated from the Sanscrit, by
c See Sir William Jones on the Mystical Poetry of the Persians and
Hindoos:, in his Works, vol. i, p. 462, or Asiatic Researches, vol. iii, p. 1H3,
Bvo. edit. ; and Catalogue des inss. Sanscrits, p. 79.
THE DRAMA. 213
Dr. J. Taylor, London, 1812, 8vo. The author is
Chrishna Kesava Misra, (probably only an allegorical
name,) who in this work takes a review of, and opposes
the various philosophical systems of the Hindoos.
Prabod'h Chandrodaya, that is, the Rising of the
Moon of Science, an allegorical drama, after the Eng-
lish version of Dr. J. Taylor, in the Beitragen zur
Alterthumskunde, mit besonderer Riicksicht auf das
Morgenland, von J. G. Rhode, Berlin, 1820, 8vo;
heft ii, p. 4199.
Schlegel's Ind. Bibliothek, vol. i, p. 36; ii, p. 161.
HISTORICAL DRAMA.
Urvasi Vikrama, or the Hero and the Nymph, by
Calidasa.
Vikramorvasi, or Vikrama and Urvasi, a drama, by
Calidasa, (in Sanscrit,) 8vo. 2s. Parbury and Allen's
Catalogue. It is one of the plays translated by Mr.
Wilson.
Utlara Rama Cheritra, or continuation of the His-
tory of Rama ; a drama in seven acts, by Bhavabhuti,
(in Sanscrit,) 8vo. 2s. 6d. Parbury and Allen's Cata-
logue, 1831.
Uttara Ram Cheritra ; containing the history of the
family of Rama, after the reconquest of Sita, by Cali-
dasa. This piece also is one of those Mr. Wilson
translated into English, see above, p. 209 d .
Malavikagni mitra, by Calidasa, published by Mr.
Wilson.
Mudra Rakshasa, or the Signet of the Minister ; a
drama in seven acts, by Visa'kha Datta, (in Sanscrit,)
8vo. 2s. 6d. Parbury and Allen's Catalogue. One of
d I have continued this title from Adelung, though it is evident, from
the one which precedes it and Professor Wilson's notice at the beginning
of his translation of this play, that it is considered to have been written by
Bhavabhfiti.
214 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
the plays translated by Mr. Wilson. See Schlegel's
Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 151.
Anarghya-Raghavah, a play by Murari. See Hamil-
ton's Catal. des mss. Sanscr. No. cxii ; Schlegel's Ind.
Bibl. ii, 2, p. 160.
Chandrabhishekah, the Coronation of Chandra, (Chan-
draguptar^} a tragedy. See Asiat. Researches, vol. iv,
p. xviii*. It is among the manuscripts presented by Sir
William Jones to the Royal Society. See Catalogue,
No. 52.
Hari-Vansa, relates the history of Deo-CaVyun,
from whom Wilford believes Deucalion to be derived.
See Asiat. Res. vol. v, p. 507, or p. 288, 8vo. edition.
COMEDIES.
Malati and Madhava, or the Stolen Marriage. This
is one of the plays translated by Mr. Wilson, previously
to which, an outline of the plot and a version of part of
the fifth act, introduced by Mr. Colebrooke into his
Essay on Sanscrit Prosody (Asiat. Researches, vol. x.),
had made it known to the English public. See also
Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 150.
This piece was written by Bhavabhuti, who, Mr.
Wilson informs us, flourished in the eighth century of
the Christian era. It is esteemed one of the best San-
scrit plays. The same author observes, that there is
more passion in the thoughts of Bhavabhuti than in
those of Calidasa, but less fancy ; yet in summing up
their respective merits, he considers him entitled to
e The following is Sir William Jones's notice of it in the volume of the
Asiatic Researches referred to : "A most beautiful poem by Somadeva,
comprising a very long chain of instructive and agreeable stories, begins
with the famed revolution of Pataliputra, by the murder of king Nanda
and his eight sons, and the usurpation of Chandragupta ; and the same is
the subject of a tragedy in Sanscrit."
THE DRAMA. 215
even a higher place than his rival as a poet. See Mr.
Wilsons's translation, p. 133.
Invocation of Cardld, from the Malati Madkava, a
Hindoo drama, in Asiatic Journal, 1826, July, p. 31.
Lalita Madhava, the favourite comedy of Crishna.
See Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 160.
The Drama of Vikrama and Urvasi, or the Hero
and the Nymph, a comedy by Calidasa : in English,
translated by H. H. Wilson, see above, p. 209;
Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 150.
Carmarupa and Camalata, an ancient Indian drama,
elucidating the customs and manners of the Orientals,
translated from the Persian, by Franklin, London,
1793, 8vo.
The Mrichchakati, or the Toy Cart, a drama, one
of the plays translated by Mr. Wilson, who considers
it a work of great interest as regards both the literary
and national history of the Hindoos. It is announced
as the work of a celebrated king, Sudraka, who, ac-
cording to one account, flourished before the birth of
Christ, and, according to another, one hundred and
ninety years after it. At whatever time, however, this
drama may have been written, it displays a very singu-
lar picture of Indian manners and morals, in a plot full
of life, character, and incident.
Professor Wilson's translation of it was reviewed at
great length in the Calcutta Annual Register, 1826,
and in various journals published at the same place,
particularly in the India Gazette and John Bull ; again
in the Asiatic Journal, Jan. 1827. An analysis of the
piece also will be found in the Quarterly Review, vol.
xlv, p. 43. The Review in the Asiatic Journal was
translated into French for the Journal Asiatique, Mars,
1827, etc. It was also published separately under the
title of, Sur un Drame Indien, par M. H. H. Wilson,
traduit en Franais, par M. Dondey-Dupre, fils : see
216 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
also Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 149. In the Asiat.
Journal, 1826, Dec. p. 679, there is the translation of
a Simile from the Mnchckakati*.
Ratnavali, a comedy by Harsha Dewas, king of
Cashmire, who is said to have reigned in the eleventh
century of the Christian era, translated into English
by H. H. Wilson, see above, p. 209. Schlegel's Ind.
Bibl. ii, 2, p. 155.
Mahcinataka, or the great comedy, in Sanscrit and
Pracrit, a drama to the honour of Rama, by Hanuman,
and published by Madhusudana Misra. See Jones's
Oriental mss. No. 47; and Catal. des mss. Sanscr.
p. 8; Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 155.
Hdsyarnava, the Sea of Laughter, a farce in three
acts, by Jagadiswara. It is a bitter satire on kings
and their servants, who are described as profligate
scoundrels ; and on priests, who are represented as
hypocrites. See Sir William Jones's Works, vol. vi,
p. 451, Catal. des mss. Sanscr. p. 80, and Schlegel's
Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 161.
Dhurta-Samdgamah, the Assembly of Knaves, a
farce in one act. See Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 2, p. 161.
The following are taken from Professor Wilson's Ap-
pendix to his Hindu Theatre.
Mahavira Cheritra, a drama in seven acts, ascribed
to Bhavabhuti. The adventures of Rama form the sub-
ject of this piece, and the plot is much the same as
the story of the Rdmayana, but considerably com-
pressed. It possesses the same loftiness of sentiment,
excellence of picturesque description, and power of
language which distinguish the other works of this
author.
f In 1826 the first act of this comedy was represented by the pupils of
the literature and poetry classes, in the Sanscrit college at Calcutta, with
great humour and talent, and is said to have afforded much satisfaction to
all present. See Asiat. Journal, 1827, Aug. p. 238.
THE DRAMA. 217
Veni Samharah, a drama in six acts. The plot of
this piece is taken from the Mahdbhdrat. It alludes
to the incident of Draupadi's being dragged by the
Veni or braid of hair into the public assembly : a dis-
grace of a heavy nature, and which was most bitterly
revenged.
Malavikagnimitra, or Agnimitra and Malavika, a
comedy in five acts, written by Calidasa, but it seems
uncertain whether the great poet of that name or an-
other.
Viddha Salabhanjika, or the Statue, a comedy in
four acts. This piece is a comedy of domestic intrigue,
and gives a not unentertaining picture of the interests
and amusements of Hindoo princes in the retirement
of their harams.
Prachanda Pandava, or Offended Sons of Pandu, is
a Nataka (or most regular kind of drama) in two acts.
The subject is taken from the Mahdbhdrat ; and the
piece is written in a simple but powerful style.
Hanuman Nataka, a drama in fourteen acts. This
is an imperfect performance by various hands, describ-
ing the story of the Ramayana. It was composed in
the tenth or eleventh century.
Dhananjaya Vijaya, a drama in one act, by Kan-
chana Acharya.
Anergha Raghava, or'Murari Nataka, a drama in
seven acts. This play is most usually known by the
latter appellation, which it derives from the author,
whose name was Murari ; but the former is the proper
title, implying the sacred descendant of Raghu. Rama
is the hero of the piece.
Sareda Tilaka, a piece in one act, of a licentious
nature.
Yayati Cheritra, a drama in seven acts, by Rudra
Deva.
Ff
218 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Dutaugada, or the Mission of Augada. This con-
sists of only four scenes, taken from the Ramayana.
Mrigankalekha, a Natikd in four acts, by Viswes-
wara.
Vidagdha Madhava, a play in seven acts. The sub-
ject is taken from the Bhagavat, and relates to the
loves of Crishna and Rada. It is in fact the songs of
Jayadeva dramatised. See above, p. 212.
Abhirama Mani, a drama in seven acts, by Sundara
Misra.
Madhuraniruddha, a drama in eight acts, by Chandra
Sekhara, who probably lived in the seventeenth cen-
tury. It relates the secret loves of Usha the daughter
of Asura Bona, and Aniruddha the grandson of Crish-
na, and the defeat and death of the former by that di-
vinity.
Kansa Badha, a drama in seven acts, by Crishna
Kavi the son of Nrisintra, the subject of which is the
destruction of Kansa by Crishna. It is little more
than a re- set of the tenth section of the Bhagavat Pu-
rana, which gives an account of the early life of the
last incarnation of Vishnu as Crishna, thrown into dia-
logue. It contains but little action, and that inartifi-
cially and disjointedly put together. The language is
in general good, though highly elaborate. It was prob-
ably written about the beginning of the seventeenth
century.
Pradyumnha Vijaya, a drama in seven acts, the
subject of which is the victory of Pradymnha the son
of Crishna, over Vajranabha the sovereign of the Dai-
tyas. The story is entirely copied from the Harivansa,
the last section of the Mahabharat, and is tediously
spun out. It is a work of no imagination. Its author
is named Sankara Dikshita, who is supposed to have
written it about the middle of the last century.
THE DRAMA. 219
Sri Dama Cheritra. This is a modern play in five
acts, by Sama Raja Dikshita. The subject of it is
taken from the tenth section of the Bhagavat, and is
the elevation of Sidrama or Sudama, the early friend
of Crishna, to sudden and unexpected affluence in
requital of his attachment to that deity. It contains
too much description and too little action; though
there is some vivacity in the thoughts, and much me-
lody in the style.
Dhurtta Narttatea, a farce in one act, or two Gandhis
or portions, by the same author as the preceding play,
and of the same date. Its chief object is to ridicule
the Saiva ascetics ; and though the language is highly
laboured, it is neither fanciful nor humorous.
Dhurtta Samagama, an incomplete manuscript, some-
what indelicate, but not devoid of humour. The name
of the author does not appear.
Hasyarnava, a comic piece in two acts, the work of
a pundit named Jagaddisa. It is a severe, but grossly
indelicate satire upon the licentiousness of the Brah-
mans assuming the character of religious merchants,
the encouragement given to vice by princes, the ineffi-
cacy of ministers, and the ignorance of physicians and
astrologers.
Kautuka Suvaswa, a farce in two acts, being a satire
upon princes who addict themselves to idleness and
sensuality, and fail to patronise the Brahmans. It
contains more humour and less indecency than any
of the other farces. It is not supposed to be very an-
cient.
Chitra Yajna, a drama in five acts, the subject of
which is the celebrated legend of Daksha.
Iscias, the heterogenous composition of a pundit of
Nadiya about twenty or thirty years ago. It is valu-
able as conveying some idea of the sort of attempts
at dramatic composition made by the present race of
220 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Hindoos in Bengal, which is exactly similar to the Im-
provista Commedia of the Italians.
Some few other pieces are mentioned among the mss.
of Sir William Jones, Hamilton's Catalogue des Manu-
scrits Sanscrits, and Schlegel's Ind. Bibliothek, ii, 2;
but they are either included under some other name in
the foregoing, or are of little consequence.
TALES.
Sakontala-Natak, a kind of romance, from the drama
of the same name. This work was translated from
the Sanscrit by an inhabitant of Hindoostan, named
Afsous, into his native language, and printed in 1814,
at Fort William, in Roman characters. See above,
p. 210.
Vrihat Katha, a collection of Indian stories, trans-
lated into English in the Calcutta Quarterly Magazine,
and from thence inserted in Blackwood's Edinburgh
Magazine, July, 1825. Upakosa, one of these, has
been translated into German in the Abendzeitung,
1825, No. 209. An Indian abridgement of this
voluminous collection, is entitled Katha Sarit Sagara,
or, the Sea of the Rivers of Stories.
Singaassun Buttressee, or the Thirty-two imaged
Throne, Sanscrit, in the Devanagari character, orna-
mented with rude coloured drawings illustrative of
the story. Manuscript ; see Howell and Stewart's
Catalogue of Oriental Literature, London, 1828.
Batris Singhasan, or Fabulous History of Raja Vik-
ramaditya, as related by the thirty-two statues sup-
ing his throne, in Bengali, Serampoor, 1808, 8vo. e .
Le Trone enchante, conte Indien, traduit du Persan
par le Baron Lescallier, New York, 1817, 2 vols.
large 8vo.
e Priced in Parbury and Allen's Catalogue 12s. 6d., where another is
mentioned, with plates, 15s., and an edition, Landau, 181G, 8vo. 12s. 6d.
TALES. 221
Vasavadatta, by Subandhu, an allegorical romance,
setting forth the the loves of Candaspacetu and the
princess Vasavadatta, in a very ambiguous style, full of
double allusions. See Colebrooke's notice of this work
in Asiatic Researches, vol. x f .
Dasa Cumara Charita, or Adventures of the Ten
Youths, abridged by Apayya.
f The opinion of this work, given by Adelung in the text, is quite at
variance with that of Colebrooke in the work referred to. The latter says,
(Asiatic Researches, vol. x, p. 449, 8vo. edition,; this story is told in
elegant language, and intermixed with many flowery descriptions in a
poetical style. There is an allusion, however, in Bhavabuti's drama
(Malati madhdvr, act. ii.) to another tale, of Vasavadatta's having been
promised by her father to king Tanjana, and giving herself in marriage to
Udayana. I am unable to reconcile this contradiction otherwise than by
admitting an identity of name and difference of story. This passage was
perhaps misunderstood by the translator, and gave rise to the opinion in
the text.
The following is the outline of the story as given by Colebrooke :
" Candaspacetu, a young and valiant prince, son of Chintanani king of
Cusumapura, saw in a dream a beautiful maiden, of whom he became des-
perately enamoured. Impressed with the belief that a person, such as
seen by him in his dream, had a real existence, he resolves to travel in
search of her, and departs, attended only by his confidant Macaranda.
While reposing under a tree in a forest at the foot of the Vind'hya moun-
tains, where they halted, Macaranda overhears two birds conversing; and
from their discourse he learns that the princess Vasavadatta, having re-
jected all the suitors who had been assembled by the king her father for
her to make choice of a husband, had seen Candaspacetu in a dream, in
which she had even dreamt his name. Her confidant, Tamalica, sent by
her in search of the prince, was arrived in the same forest, and is dis-
covered there by Macaranda. She delivers to the prince a letter from the
princess, and conducts him to the king's palace. He obtains from the
princess the avowal of her love ; and her confidant, Calati reveals to the
prince the violence of her passion.
" The lovors depart together : but, passing through the forest he loses
her in the night. After long and unsuccessful search, in the course of
which he reaches the shore of the sea, the prince, grown desperate through
grief, resolves on death. But at the moment when he was about to cast
himself into the sea, he hears a voice from heaven, which promises to him
the recovery of his mistress, and indicates the means. After some time,
Candaspacetu finds a marble statue the precise resemblance of Vasava-
datta. Tt proves to be her ; and she quits her marble form and regains
222 SANSCRIT LITERATURE.
Tale of the Four Simple Brahmans, translated from
the Sanscrit, in the Asiatic Journal, 1817, May, p. 437
440. German : die vier einfaltigen Brahmanen, in
Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 3, p. 259.
Aventures de Paramadra, traduites par 1'Abbe
Dubois, avec le texte de 1'original, Paris, 1 826.
Beital Pachisi, or the Twenty-five Tales of a Demon,
( Vetala, Betal). This collection of stories is attributed
by some to Sivadasa, and by others to Jambhala
Datta, etc. The original Sanscrit is a composition of
considerable antiquity, and deservedly popular; it is
translated into all the dialects spoken in India. An
English version of it, Beital Pachisi, or the Twenty-
five Tales of a Demon, will be found in the Asiatic
Journal, 1816, July, p. 27, etc. Some of these tales
are given in Scott's additions to the Arabian Nights,
Entertainments.
Suka Saptati, Tales of the Parrot, of which the Per-
sian Tuti-Nameh is a translation.
The Four Dumbies, (hard of hearing,) an Indian tale,
in Schlegel's Ind. Bibl. ii, 3, p. 259283.
Loves of Camarupa and Camalatu, an ancient In-
dian tale ; elucidating the customs and manners of the
orientals, translated from the Persian, by W. Franklin,
London, 1793, 8vo.
Hindee Story-Teller, or Entertaining Expositor, in
the Roman, Persian, and Nagree character, by Gil-
christ, Calcutta, 1802, 8vo.
Gulzar i Hal, the Rosebud of the Moment ; a trans-
lation from a Sanscrit work, entitled Parbuden Chanden
Oudi, Persian, ms. See Howell and Stewart's Oriental
Catalogue for 1827, p. 91.
animation. She recounts the circumstances under which she was trans-
formed into stone. Having thus fortunately recovered his beloved princess,
the prince proceeds to his city, where they pass many years in uninterrupt-
ed happiness."
APPENDIX.
To p. 1 1 . For the German scholar, may be added
the second chapter of the first volume of the Symbolik
und Mythologic der alten Volker besonders der Grie-
chen von Dr. Fried. Creuzer, Leipzig, 1819, 8vo.
This very learned work contains much valuable matter
on the subject to which it more immediately refers ;
but it likewise gives an interesting view of the ancient
authorities, both native and foreign, upon Hindoo learn-
ing ; and goes deep into the religion of Brahma, as
well as the cosmogony, philosophy, sciences and arts
of the Hindoos in general. I am therefore surprised
that it should have escaped the notice of M. Adelung.
Early in the year 1831, Messrs. Parbury, Allen,
and Co., announced the speedy publication of a Dic-
tionary (1 large vol. 4to.), in Bengali, Sanscrit, and
English, by the justly celebrated Mr. Haughton. The
following is a prospectus of the work : This Dictionary
in addition to what is usually contained in similar com-
pilations, will have the words traced to their originals,
studiously avoiding whatever is fanciful in the deriva-
tion of the Unddi, and other Sanscrit words of doubt-
ful origin ; a distinction that must increase the value
and importance of its derivations. The originals of
all words introduced into the Bengali language from
the Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Hindustani, and other
languages, are likewise given. A copious index is
added, which, it is anticipated, will be highly ser-
viceable to the scientific student ; but particularly to
224 APPENDIX.
the Botanist, as every thing which recent investigation
has rendered positive has been embodied in this work,
and exact references given to the authorities from
which they are taken, such as the Asiatic Researches,
the Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, the
Publications of Mr. H. T. Colebrooke, etc.
To p. 54. Kobita Rutnakur, or Collection of Sung-
skrit Proverbs in Popular Use, translated into Bengalee
and English, compiled by Neel Rutna Holdar, Cal-
cutta, 1830.
To p. 66. Broughton's (Thos.) Selections from the
Popular Poetry of the Hindoos, arranged and trans-
lated, with a preface on the Literature of the Hin-
doos, London, 1814, 8vo.
Vedan Modi Taringini, or A Description of the Dif-
ferent Religious Sects and Ceremonies of the Hindus,
translated from the Sanscrit into English by Maharaja
Kalcekishen Bahadur, Calcutta, 1831.
The Mythology of the Hindoos, with notices of va-
rious Mountain and Island Tribes inhabiting the two
Peninsulas of India and the neighbouring Islands ; and
an Appendix comprising the minor Avatars, and the
Mythological and Religious terms, etc. etc. of the
Hindoos, with plates illustrative of the principal Hin-
doo Deities, etc., by Charles Coleman, esq., London,
1832, 4to.
To p. 136, A neat edition of Menu, with notes, has
recently been published at Paris by M. Loiseleur
Deslongchamps, M'hich is in a great measure founded
on that of Mr. Haughton. A fourth has just appeared
at Calcutta under the title of Manusanhita ; the In-
stitutes of Menu with the Commentary of Kulluka
Bhatta, published under the authority of the Com-
mittee of Public Instruction, 2 vols. 8vo. 1830-31.
The Mitakshara, A Compendium of Hindoo Law,
by Vijnanesvara, founded on the texts of Yajnavalkya,
APPENDIX. 225
edited by Lakshmi Narayana Nyayalankara (in San-
scrit), 1830, 8vo.
To p. 139. Vyavahara Tatwa, A Treatise on Ju-
dicial Proceedings, by Rhagunandana Bhattacharya,
edited by Lakshmi Narayan Serma (in Sanscrit), 1831,
8vo.
To p. 147. The Kutbi, A Treatise on Logic. Asiat.
Journal, March, 1817, p. 250.
To p. 167. The Navakiraha Sakaram, or Brah-
manical Astrological Tables. A drawing of one of
these was sent by the Rev. C. T. E. Rhenius, one of
the Church Missionaries at Madras, to the Missionary
Society; see Asiatic Journal, Nov. 1818, p. 504. It
would hardly be worth mentioning here, but that it
forms the subject of a curious mistake made by Ade-
lung, who classes it among the Stories, and calls it a
Brahmanical Astrological Tale.
To p. 169. The Lilavati was translated into Per-
sian by the celebrated Feizi, the brother of Abulfazl,
vizier to the emperor Akbar; this version has lately
been published at Calcutta.
To p. 186. Sahitya Derpana, A Treatise on Rhe-
torical Composition (in Sanscrit), by Viswanath Kavi-
raja, 1831, 8vo.
Kavya Prakasa, A Treatise on Poetry and Rhetoric,
by Mammata Acharya (in Sanscrit), 1831, 8vo.
To p. 193. The Rains, from the Ritusanhara, or
Seasons of Calidasa, translated into English verse.
Asiatic Journal, April 1817, p. 344.
To p. 204. Hitopadesa, id est, Institutio Salutaris,
Textum codd. mss. collatis recensuerunt, Interpreta-
tionem Latinam, et Adnotationes criticas adjecerunt
Aug. Gul. A. Schlegel et Christ. Lassen, part i, 1829,
part ii, 1831, 4to. Bonnes ad Rhenum.
To p. 210. Malati and Madhava, a drama in ten
acts, by Bhavabhiiti (in Sanscrit), 8vo. ; under the au-
Gg
2'2C> APPENDIX.
thority of the Committee of Public Instruction at Cal-
cutta, 1830.
To p. 214. Vikrama and Urvasi, a drama, by Cali-
dasa, printed in Sanscrit also by the same Committee,
1830.
To p. 215. The Mrichchakati, a Comedy, by Su-
drakar Raja, with a commentary explaining the Pra-
crit passages (in Sanscrit), Calcutta, 1830, 8vo.
In conclusion it may not be considered irrelevant to
the object of the present compilation, to notice a kind
of literary curiosity in the shape of an original work,
composed in Sanscrit, by the very learned Dr. Mill,
Principal of Bishop's College at Calcutta. This is en-
titled Sri-Chrishtasangita, or the Sacred History of
our Lord Jesus Christ. Book I, comprising his in-
fancy ( Yeshutpatliparvd) : and is an attempt to exhibit
the historical truths of Christianity in a dress bor-
rowed from the metrical legends of the Hindoos ; for
which purpose the author has made choice of the plain
style and easy versification of the great standard my-
thological epics of Vyasa and Valmiki. To the whole
is subjoined a genealogical and chronological table
(also in Sanscrit, and entitled ChrisJitai'ansavalij) of
our Lord's descent from Adam, Calcutta, 1831, 8vo.
We may also mention another work by the same au-
thor, under the title of Proposed Version of Theolo-
gical terms, with a view to Uniformity in Translations
of the Holy Scriptures, etc. into the various languages
of India ; part i, Sanscrit, with remarks on Dr. Mill's
proposed renderings, by H. H. Wilson, printed at
Bishop's College Press, 4to. (no date).
INDEX OF AUTHORS.
Abdolmumin ben Hassan, 201.
Abel, Ivar. 41.
Abou'lmaali Nasr- Allah, 201.
Abulfazl, 92, 199.
Adelung, John Chr. 9, 40, 43, 64.
.Fried. 51.
Afsous, 220.
Ainslie, Whitelaw, 179.
Alter, Franz, 9, 42.
Amara, 33.
Amara Singa, 33, 35, 179.
- Sataka 35
Bhama, 186.
Bhanar^ Charyya, 86.
Bharvi, 172.
Bhartri-Hari, 19, 23, 163, 198.
Bhascara Acharya, 167, 168, 169.
Bhatta Cumarila Swami, 145.
Bhattoji Dikshita,21, 22.
Bhavabhuti. 117, 190, 213, 214.
Bhavanat'ha Misra, 145.
Bhoja Raga, 155, 186.
Bidpai, 197.
Biiiala 175
Analananda, 81.
Ananda, 75.
Ananta Bhatta, 194.
Anquetil du Perron, 24, 37, 61, 72,
Bisurdschimihr, 199.
Blumhardt, G. 41.
Bohlen, Peter, 52, 193.
Boisserolle 30 38
76, 84.
Anton, Conr. Gottl. 51.
Bopp, Franz. 2, 15, 26, 28, 30, 32,
37, 38, 46, 48, 50, 52, 73, 74, 78
Anvary Sohahyly, 202.
Apantara Tamas, 81.
Apaya, 198, 221.
Aristotle, 146, 163.
Asuri, 150.
Babu Ram, 22, 139.
Badarayana, 81.
Baidyakeya, 179.
Baillie, J. 139.
Bailly 165
91, 96, 108, 109, 111, 114, 122,
124.
Brahmagupta, 167, 168.
Browne, Rev. Dr. 45.
Broughton, T. 61.
Bruguiere, A. 210.
Bucca-Sinha, 174.
Buchanan, F. 128.
Buddha, 144.
Burnouf, Eugene, 31, 41 , 58, 89, 124,
125, 127, 136, 203.
J L 119 121
Barsuje, 199.
Barthelmy, 46, 76.
Baudhayana, 80.
Bayer, Theoph. Siegfr. 13.
Bentley I. 165.
Butler, 72.
Cairata, 20.
Calhana, 171.
Calidasa, 107, 182, 188, 189, 190
Bernstein, G. H. 10, 198, 204.
Beschi, 121.
191, 192, 193, 210, 217.
Calvi Virumbon, 179.
Hh
224
Canade, 142, 144.
Capila, 142, 148, 151.
Capila-Bhaish, 148.
Carey, William, 23, 25, 74, 119,
122, 150, 163, 198,201.
Casyapa, 18.
Cattijana, 19.
Caul, Goverdan, 60.
Cavelly Bom, 128.
Caviraja, 172.
Chambers, Sir Robert, 65.
Chandra Sekhara, 218.
Charucirti Hcharya, 128.
Ch6zy, A. L. 9, 14, 15, 30, 31, 66,
114, 118, 121, 122, 124, 155,
182, 183, 189, 193, 201, 210.
Cleland, J. 65.
Clemente Peanio, 14.
Clerk, T. 8.
Coeurdoux, P. 46.
Colebrooke, Henry Thomas, 2, 8, 17,
18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 26, 32, 34, 35,
54, 55, 57, 58, 68, 69, 70, 71, 73,
74, 77, 78, 82, 87, 107, 108, 109,
117, 127, 128, 136, 137, 138, 139,
140, 144,145,146,148, 151,161,
162, 163, 167, 168, 169, 172, 180,
187, 188, 191, 195, 197, 214, 221.
Costard, George, 130.
Cousin, Victor, 65, 140, 141, 154,
155.
Crabb, 14.
Crawford, John, 42, 211.
Craufurd, Q. 10, 17, 18, 34, 42, 60,
67, 71, 88, 92. 117, 126, 128. 136,
166, 204.
Crishna Dwaipayana, 81.
Crishna Kesava Misra, 212.
Crishna Kavi, 218.
La Croze, 8, 40.
Culluca, 134, 135.
Cuvier, 16.
Dalberg, F. H. v. 85, 212.
Dalrymple, Alex. 109.
Dandi, 186.
Dara Shekoh, 79.
Davis, 169.
Declamation in Sanscrit, at Fort
William, in Bengal, 8.
Deguignes, 89.
Devanda Bhatta, 139.
Dhananjaya, 208.
Dhanwantari, 177.
Dharma Raja Dikshita, 8 1 .
Dondey-Dupre", 204, 215.
Dow, Alex. 14, 71, 92, 129.
Dubois, J. A. 64, 125, 194, 222.
Dursch, G. M. 193.
Dwapayana, 69.
Eberhardt im Bart., Count of Wiir-
temberg, 203.
Eckenstamm, Friedr. Wilh. 9.
Eichhoff, F. G. 40, 53.
Eichhorn, Job. Gottfr. 9, 64, 71,
204.
Ellis, Fr. 72, 76, 137.
Ewald, Georg. Heinr. 181, 189,207.
Fany, Mohammed, 3.
Fell, Captain, 56, 190.
Fizee, 108.
Fleming, 36.
Fo, 162.
Forster, G. H. 23, 32, 210.
, H. P. 26.
Foucher d'Obsonville, 90.
Fourmont, Etienne, 62.
Frank, Othmar, 3, 9, 11, 15, 28,29,
30, 43, 53, 61, 64, 75, 92, 95,
110, 136, 140, 146, 155, 212.
Francklin, William, 116, 128.
Fraser, J.65.
Friend of India, 11,64.
Fuezee, Scheickh, 108.
Fuylsang, N. S. 127.
Gada Sinha, 36.
Galava, 18.
Galland, 203.
Garcin de Tassy, 65.
Gardonne, 203.
Gargya, 18.
Gerhard, Wilh. 210.
Gilchrist, John Borthwick, 10, 194,
200.
Gbrres, 117.
Golowkin, Count T. 52.
Gotama, 142, 146, 147.
Govarddhana, 192.
Govindapa Raja, 127.
Graberg de Hemso, 51.
Graham, Maria, 44, 48, 51, 64.
Grivaud de la Vincelle, 49.
Guru, 145.
Haafner, Jacob, 120.
Hale, Dr. 53.
Halhed, Nathaniel Brassey.4,14,39,
43, 44, 46, 47, 84, 128, 130, 189,
204.
Hamilton, Alex. 38, 57, 63, 71, 88,
89, 90, 91, 125, 198.
Hammer, Joseph, v. 2, 6, 42, 56.
Hanxleden, P. Joh. Eman. 30, 37,
62.
Haradatta Misra, 20.
Harrington, 57.
Harsha Dewas, 216.
Hartmann, Ant. Theod. 11.
Haughton, Graves Chamney, 15,31,
131, 135, Ib6.
Heber, Bishop, 184.
Heeren, A. H. 9, 33, 41, 55, 65, 71,
73, 91, 92, 117, 130, 181, 182,
207,211.
Hela'yud' habhalTa, 187.
Hemachandra, 35.
Henning, 62.
Herder, J. G. v. 210, 211.
Hermann, Friedr. 62.
:x. 225
Hermes, K. H. 210.
Hissmann, 9.
Hodgson, H. B. 164.
Holwell, 71, 129,
Hormayr, Freih. v. 52.
Hosain Ben Ali Vaez, 199.
Huttner, Joh. Chr. 135.
Humboldt, Wilh. Freih. 15, 16, 31,
96, 140, 155, 193.
Huruprusad, 163.
Ibn MokafFa, 201.
Is'wara Chandra, 150.
Iswara Krishna, 150.
Ith, J. 73, 74, 76, 90.
Jackson, 58.
Jagaddisa, 219.
Jagadiswara, 216.
Jagannatha Pandit Raja, 186, 192.
Jaimini, 80, 142, 144.
Jambhala Datta, 222.
Jamieson, J. 49.
JayaDeva, 192,211.
Jeemootu Vahunu, 138.
Jenkins, R. 55, 57.
Jesuits, the, 7.
Jogannatha Tercapanchanana, 137.
John, Chr. Sam. 57, 94.
Jona Raja, 171.
Jones, Sir William, 2, 8, 14, 36, 45,
47, 60, 62, 63, 67, 74, 79, 80, 85,
87, 88, 119, 127, 128, 131, 132,
134, 135, 137, 164, 166, 169, 180,
188, 189, 193, 196, 197,202,210,
211,212.
Kalidasa, see CdlidAsa.
Kanchana Acharya, 217.
Kasinatha, 32.
Kavi Kernapuraka, 186.
Kennedy, Vans 3, 4, 6, 12, 40, 51,
67, 68, 71.
226 INDEX.
Kien Lung, 8.
MalliNatha, 111, 190.
Kiephala, Nicolo, 164.
Mammatta Bhatta, 186.
Kindersley, N. E. 63, 64.
Maridas Poull, 90.
Kircher, Athanas, 13.
Marshman, Joshua, 44, 119, 122.
Klaproth, Julius, 1, 2, 4, 12, 34, 37,
Maurice, Th. 63, 127.
43, 172,212.
Menu, 131, 179.
Kleucker, 62.
Mignot, 76.
Knatchbull, Wyndham, 202.
Mihanovich, A. v. 52.
Kopp, Ulr. Friedr. 13.
Milmau, Rev. H. H. 93, 97, 122,
Kosegarten, J. G. L. 108.
155, 157, 160, 181, 182, 185.
Krishna Bhatta, 138.
Mill, 13, 169.
Tcrkalankara 138
Millin, 167.
Dwaipayana, 87, 89, 90.
Milton, 115.
Kulluka Bhata, 136.
Mir Cher Aly Assos, 65.
Mirza Cazim AH Tawun, 167.
-Mitra-Mishra, 139.
Lallulala Sarma Kavi, 82.
Mohammed Darah Schekuh, 84.
Langles, L. M.2, 4, 30, 32, 34, 52,
Morenas, J. 53.
63, 71, 72, 88. 89, 120, 123, 125,
Moulavi Mohamed-Irtaza- Adi-Khan-
164, 199,202,203.
Bahadur, 137.
Langlois, A. 61,64,90,94, 96, 115,
Miiller, N. 65, 84, 124.
140, 203, 209.
Miinter, Dr. Bischof, 123.
Lanjuinais, Comte, v. 14, 31,48,84.
Munjala, 167.
Lassen, Chr. 41, 113.
Murari, 214, 217.
Lebedeff, Herasim, 29, 164.
Murari Misra, 117.
Lescallier, Baron, 220.
Murray, Alex. 11, 13, 31, 44, 46,
Leyden, Dr. 2, 11, 25, 41, 43.
48, 49, 50, 52.
Link, 11, 43.
Lisch, G. C. F. 47.
Lord, Henry, 129.
Nag6gf -Bhatta- Upad'hyaya, 155.
Lukshmi Narayan Nyayal Ankar,
136, 138.
Nanda, 138.
Na'ra'yan'a-bhat't'alara', 187.
Serma 13G
Nayan Ananda Dwa, 34.
Neelrutten Huldar, 54.
Nobili, Roberto de. 76.
Mackenzie, 56, 59, 61 , 128.
Norberg, Math. 44.
Mackintosh, 41.
Nyerup, Erasm. 65, 202, 203.
Madhava, 146.
Nyrup, N. 10.
Madhusudana Misra, 216.
Magha, 110, 189.
Padmanabadatta, 23.
Magnussen, 51.
Paksha Dhara Misra, 117.
Maheswara, 34.
Palmblad, VV. 42.
Mayer, Friedr. 72, 84, 95.
Panchaisec'ha, 150.
Majewsky, W. S. 27, 52.
Panini, 20, 86.
227
Paolini, 15, 24, 25.
Riemschneider, A. W. 212.
Parraud, 95, 203.
Ritter, Carl. 42, 65, 69, 71, 132,
Parthasarat'hi Misra, 145.
140, 141.
Patanjali, 142, 154, 155.
Rixner, Th. A. 83.
Paulinus a S. Bartholomaeo, 2, 14,
Roebuck, Thomas, 20, 35, 54, 200.
17, 24, 33, 43, 47, 50, 70, 89,
Rolamba Raja, 178.
191.
Rosen, 32, 73, 121.
Paulus, Heinr. Eberh. 203.
Rosenmuller, Em. Fr. Carl. 28.
Pileur, H. A. 44.
Rousseau, Sam. 36, 139.
Pingala, 86, 187.
Riickert, Friedr. 109.
Pingalanaga, 187.
Rudiger, 39, 51,57.
Polier, 73, 91, 117.
Rudra Deva, 217.
Du Pons, 9, 17.
Prajnya Bhatta, 171.
Price, W. 29, 57.
Sabara Swami Bhatta, 145.
Prichard, 40, 46, 48, 49, 51.
Sacalya, 18.
Punya, 171.
Sacatayana, 18.
Purur Vadyar, 138.
Sadananda, 81.
Purushottumu, 35.
Sadanandana, 146.
Sancara, 75, 146.
A nli a run 7J. 7^ 77 Qf\ l f: 4
Rada Canla Deb. 37.
Radhacanta Sarman, 126.
cnarya., /4, /o, / /, oU, Io4,
192.
Raffles, 3, 42.
Sanc'hya-Bhashya, 150.
Raghavananda, 145.
Chandrica 150
Raghumani Bhatta Charya, 37.
totwi m m H' 1 ^f 1
IdlWd CdUnilHU, 1OU.
Raghunandana, 138.
Sanc'hya, 144, 148,164.
Raja Munja, 174.
Sankara Dikshita, 218.
Bhoja, 174.
Sama Raja Dikshita, 218.
Rama Crish'na Dikshita, 81.
S'arngadhara, 192.
Ramakrishna Tfrtha, 82.
Sarngi Deva, 208.
Bhattacharya, 150.
Schlegel, Aug. W. v. 10, 11, 15, 31,
Raraachandra, 21, 67.
35, 37, 46, 47, 53, 54, 65, 76, 93,
Rames'wara, 175.
96, 106, 108, 118, 120, 122, 124,
155, 182, 189, 190.
138.
Schlegel, Friedr. 9, 30, 89, 95, 109,
Rasa Gangadhara, 186.
132, 141,211,213,214,222.
Rask, R. K. 14, 51.
Schleiermacher, Dr. 2, 12.
Raspe, Rud. Erich. 130.
Schlosser, 132.
Reland, Hadrian, 40.
Schmidt, J. J. 14.
Remusat, Abel. 24, 37, 62, 136,
Schmithenner, Fried. 47, 50.
140, 151.
Schnurrer, C. F. 203.
Retneswara Mahopadhyaya, 186.
Schoell, F. 51.
Rhode, J. G. 65, 84, 122, 132, 141,
Schultens, H. A. 201.
213.
Schultz, 108, 111, 114.
228
Scott, 222.
Sehl/201.
Semler, C. A. 122.
Shri Harscha, 107.
Shueckh Ubool Fuzl, 200.
Sidambala Vadyar, 123, 138, 190.
Silvestre de Sacy, 197, 199, 201.
Sivadasa, 222.
Somadeva, 190, 214.
Somanatha, 145.
Sonnerat, 60, 71, 76, 89.
Sriharca, 190.
Sri Krishna Tarkalankara, 138.
Sri Lalkab, 200.
SriVara, 171.
St. Croix, 75, 88, 90, 118.
Stahl, 166.
Stewart, Dugald, 47.
, Charles, 199.
Strachey, Edward, 169.
Strange, Thomas, 139.
Sugata, 144.
Sundara, 192, 218.
Sutherland, J. C. C. 139.
SyamaLada, 111.
Tadj-Eddin, 199.
Tandavigia Mudaliyar, 197.
Taylor, John, 58, 167, 168, 212.
Tennemann, 38, 141.
Tod, James, 58, 88.
Trivicrama, 109.
Tychsen, 59.
Ubhatta, 178.
Upavarsha, 80.
Vachespati, 35, 81, 150, 155.
Misra, 150.
Vadaraja, 22.
Vallencey, K. 127.
Valmiki, 117.
Vamana Acharya, 186.
Varanasi, 19.
Vater, Joh. Severin, 10, 11, 32.. 42,
44, 48, 50.
Veda Vyasa, 81, 89, 155.
Vijnyana-Bhicshu, 155.
Visa'kha Datta, 213.
Vishnu Chandra, 167.
Vishnu Sarma, 195, 197.
Viswanath Kaviraja, 186.
Bhattacharya, 147.
PancrTanana Bhatta, 147.
Visweswara, 217.
Volgraf, 203.
Volney, Comte, 4, 12, 13.
Vopadeva, 22, 23, 32, 89.
Vritticara, 145.
Vyasa, 11, 69, 80, 81, 89, 108, 117,
140, 142, 182.
Vyasasraraa, 81.
Wagner, A. 47, 50.
Wait, Dr. 45, 48.
Ward, William, 33, 34, 36, 60, 91,
110, 118, 147, 150, 191.
Warren, John, 166, 167, 169.
Watson, C. F. 52.
Weber, Lucian, 203.
Wesdin, I. Ph. 24.
White, 84.
Wilford, F. 116, 175,214.
Wilkins, Charles, 10, 15, 26, 32, 55,
56, 58, 92, 94, 109, 120, 129, 197,
202.
Wilson, Horace Hayman, 15, 25, 32,
34,36,37,41,54,56,61,70,88,
110, 114, 125, 170, 171, 175, 178,
186, 193, 195, 204,209,213,214.
Windischmann, Dr. K. J. 30.
Wynch, P. M. 138.
Yagnyavalkia, 138.
Yeates, William, 27, 37.
Yc'.ga, 148.
Ziegenbalg, 9.
INDEX OF WORKS.
Aasjanorwa, 192.
Bhasha Paricheda, 147.
Abhirama Mani, 218.
Bhashyum, 75.
Adhyaya, 81.
Bhatavidya, 177.
Adhyatma Raroayana, 117.
Bhavishya Purana, 125, 175.
Adorbo, 72.
Bhoga Prahbendha, 191.
Agada, 177.
Bhoga Charitra, 191.
Agni Purana, 87, 124, 188.
Bhoja-prati-desa-vyavast'ha, 174.
Alankara Kaustubha, 186.
Bhoiimi Khandara, 125.
Alankdra Suvaswa, 186.
Bhugola Sangraha, 175.
Al Sirajiyyah, 137.
Bhuvana Cosa, 87, 173, 175.
Amera cosha, 33, 35.
Bija Ganita, 169.
Amara-Sataka, 35.
Bodcha Charitra, 172, 184.
Amaru, 192.
Brahma, 72.
Anarghya-Raghavah, 214, 217.
Brahma Mimansa, 80, 82.
Angas, 17.
Brahma Siddhanta, 169.
Anvari Soohyly, 199.
Brahma-Sootra, 75, 80.
Arthee Prekash Shastre, 125, 129.
Brahma Vaivartika Purana, 124.
Aswin, 176.
Brahman, 77.
Atharvana Veda, 72, 78, 176.
Brahmanda Purana, 176.
Athrban, 72, 83.
Brahmanavilapah, 111.
Atma Bod'h, 212.
Butteesee Sing Hasunu, 190.
Ayeen-Akberi, 92.
Ayur Veda, 176.
Cadambari, 194.
Calila and Dimna, 199.
Bagavadam, 76, 89, 90.
Camarupa and Camalata, 215.
Baghavata, 72, 87, 88, 89, 176.
Capila-Bhashy, 149.
Bahikavarnana, 113.
Carica, 150.
Bajikarana, 17V.
Casica Vritti, 19.
Barah Masa, 167.
Cat'haca, 82.
Batris Singhasan, 220.
Cat'hamrita-Nichte, 194.
Bauddhas, 162.
Cat'havalli, 82.
Bedang Schaster, 129.
Caushitaci, 82.
Beital Pachisi, 172, 222.
Chadda Karinaga Mandanam, 127.
Bhagavat-Gita, 93, 155, 156, 182,
Chama, 72.
189.
Chanakya, 164.
Bhamani Vilasa, 192.
Chandana, 192.
Bhamatt, 81.
Chandi, 192.
ft
230
Chandrabhishekah, 214.
Chandrica, 24.
Chandika, 123.
Chandra 17.
Chavacas, 144.
Chandasang Mandjari, 189.
Ch'hand6gya, 82.
Ch'hapana Desa, 175.
Chikitsa St'haua, 178.
Chikitsa Sata Sloka, 179.
ChitraYajna, 219.
Chora-Panchasica, 192.
Chunda Stotra, 192.
Csh6tra-Samasa, see Shetra, 173.
Cumara-Palacharitra, 172.
Cumara Sambhava, 190.
Cumarila Bhatta, 145.
Dacsha C'hand'aca, 175.
Dasa Cumara Charitra, 198, 222.
Dataka Chandrika, 138.
Dataka IMimansa, 137, 138.
Daya-Crama-Sangraha, 138.
Daya Bhaga, 137, 138.
Day a Tatwa, 138.
Desanirnaya, 176.
Desa-vali Crita-dhara-vara-vali, 175.
Devi Mahatmya, 94, 124.
Dhananjaya Vijaya, 217.
Dharanicosha, 35.
Dharma Sastra Manava, 135.
Dherma Purana, 127.
Dhurtta Narttatea, 219.
Dhurtta Samagama, 216,219.
Divagarum, 41.
Divirupa Kosha, 35.
Djedir 72, 83.
Dutaugada, 218.
Ecacshara, 35.
Eyari danish, 199, 200.
Ezour-Vedam, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76,
90, 118.
Furaiz-i-irtazeeah, 137.
Galava-tantra, 175.
Ganita Adhyayaya, 167.
Garsunti, 172.
Ghata Karparam, 35, 193.
Ghantapatha, 172.
Gitagovinda, 183, 211.
Gola Adhyaya, 167.
Goroo Mooka, 172.
Goroo Nanick, 172.
Hanuman Nataka, 217.
Hara pradipika, 179.
Harivansa, 115, 214.
Haravulee, 35.
Hasyarnava, 216, 219.
Hema-chandra-Cosha, 35.
Hidimbabadhah, 111.
Hit6padesa, 29, 194, 197.
Hoima, 35.
Homain Nameh, 202.
Indra, 17.
Indralokagamanam, 108, 111.
Isavasyam, 74, 82.
Iscias, 219.
Isopanishad, 74.
Ithiasas, 72.
Jainas, 162.
Jains, (derivation of the word, Asiatic
Journal, April, 1832,) 128.
Jajadeva, 182.
Joya Vasishtha, 155.
Juldumum, 108.
Jyatisha Tatua, 167.
Kala Sankalita, 166, 169.
Kalpa St'hana, 178.
Kandon, 88.
Kansa Badha, 218.
Kann Bibak, 163.
Karma I.otchana, 139.
231
Katha Sarit Sagara, 220.
Markandeya Purana, 124, 176.
Kaumarabhritya, 177.
Mayuc'hamala, 145.
Kautuka Suvaswa, 219.
Medinee, 35.
Kavyadersa, 186.
Medini Cosa, 35.
Kavi Kalpa Druma, 32.
MighaDuta, 182, 191.
Kavita Kamayuna, 120.
Migrankalekha, 217.
Kavya Prakasa, 186.
Mimansa, 142, 144.
Kavyatankara Vritti, 186.
Mimansa-nyaya-viveca, 145.
Kaya Chikitsa, 177.
Mitakshara Darpana, 136, 137.
Kena Upanishad, 77, 82.
Mitakshara Dharma Sastra, 136.
Khirud Ufroz, 200.
Moallaka de Lebid, 201.
Kirata Arjuniya, 172.
Mohadmudgara, 164.
Kitab Muhaberat, 92.
Mrichchakati, 209, 215.
Kiratyooneeyu, 172.
Mrita Sanjivini, 187.
Kudma, 176.
Moferriholkolub, 199.
Kumara Sambhawa, 127.
Mudra Rakhesa, 209, 213.
Kurma Purana 135.
Mugdabodha, Mugdhabodha.Moogd-
Kurmon, 88.
boodha, 23.
Kuvalayamanda, 186.
Mugdab6dhatika, 22.
Miind'aca, 82.
Munja-prati-dsa-vyavast'ha, 174.
Lachmeer, 192.
Murari Nataka, 217.
Laghu Kaumudi, 22.
Lalita Madhava, 215.
Lilavati, 86, 167.
Naishadiya Tscharita, 107.
Nala Daya, Nalodaya, 107, 108.
Nala Champu, 109.
Madhya Caumudi, 22.
Nama Parayana, 24, 33.
Madhya Menorama, 22.
Narasinha, 176.
Madhuraniruddha, 218.
Nataka, 206.
Maghu Kavyu, 110.
Naya-mala-vistara, 146.
Maha Bashya, 19, 154.
Neardirsen Schaster, Ni-a-dr-szcna
Mahabharatta, 88, 90, 92, 96, 109,
Schastra, 129.
114, 155, 174.
Neschadtya, 190.
Mahakavya, 107.
Nidana St'hana, 178.
Mahavira Cheritra, 216.
Nflf Sastra, 195.
Maheshwara, 17.
Nyaya, 142, 145, 147.
Malati i Madhava, 209, 214.
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Malavikagni Mitra, 213, 217.
Manava Sastra, 131, 132, 135.
Mandhaka Opinishud, 78.
Pada, 81.
Mantra, 66, 73.
Pada Yo'janica, 75.
Manu-Sang-HitS, 135.
Paddhati, 192.
Matsya, 176.
Padma Purana, 125.
i i
232
Pantanjala Bhashya, 155.
Sabadasacti Prakarita, 23.
Sutra Vritti 155
Sabara Bhashya, 145.
Panchopakhyana, 195.
Sabda Caustubha, 21.
Pancha Tantra, 194, 197.
Sabda Kalpa Druma, 37.
Pantschalakchama, 87.
Sahitya Derpana, 186.
Parbuden Chanden Oudi, 222.
Sahityavidyadhari Tika, 107, 188.
Pariesha, 188.
Sakontala, 210.
Pathayapatha, 179.
Sakontala-Natak, 220.
Pauranica Sanc'hya, 149.
Salakya, 177.
Prabhacara, 145.
Salgu, 176.
Prabod'h Chandro'daya, 212.
Sam, Beid, 72, 83.
Prachanda Pandava, 217.
Sama Veda, 72, 77.
Pracriya Caumudi, 67.
T>i>os1Tii>vt*iVii IT^io'iTO O1 ft
Sanc'hyaya, 142, 150.
Sara 119 150
.rrauyumnna \ ijaya, Zlo.
T>foVi-ifi T%O
Caumudi 150
1 rukni], I-)-.
Pranta Menorama, 21.
Sanc'hya Carica, 150, 151.
Pras'na S'wetas'watara 8'^
Pravachana 149 151
Prasnottara Mala, 192.
Sangita Retnakara, 208.
Purana, Puranam, Puranon, 72, 86,
Sanhita, 67, 72.
87.
Sapta Sati, 192.
Puranart Haprecasa, 126.
Saraswati Kanthabharana, 186.
Poorooshu Pureckshya, 163.
Sarasvata, 24, 36.
Purva Mimansa, 80.
Sareda Tilaka, 217.
S'arira St'hana, 178.
Raghava Pandaviya, 172.
S'ariraca Bhashya Vibhaga, 81.
Raghevansa, 127, 172, 189.
Mimansa, 80.
Raja Vartica, 150.
Sarvamedha, 74.
Martanda. 155.
Sarwaswa Purana, 127.
Taringfni, 170.
Sastra, 128.
Raiavali, 171.
Dipica 115
Yali Pataca 171
Satacas, 198.
Rak, Beid, 72, 83.
Sausruta, 178.
RamaLila,215.
Schastra Bhade, 129.
Ramayana, 88, 90, 117.
Sheeve Purana, 125.
Rasa Manjari, 186.
Shri Bhagvat, 96.
Rasa Taringini, 186.
Bhagavata Purana, 127.
Rasayana, 177.
Shunkara-Charyu, 78.
Retnavali, 209, 216.
Siddhanta Kaumudi, 17, 21.
Rhatta Kavva 23.
Muktavali 1 47
Rick 72.
Siromani 1 69
Rig Veda, 72.
Sidharubam, 24, 89.
Ritu Sanhara, 193.
Singaassun Buttressec, 220.
Rogantaka Sara, 179.
Siromani, 167.
Kupakas 207.
Sirr-i-Akbar, 79.
233
Sisupala Badha, 110.
Siva Sahasra Xaraa, 126.
Slokaratchanavidi, 189.
Sri Jaina Raja Taringini, 171.
Sri Dama Cheritra, 219.
Dhatumanyari, 32.
Srimahabharate Xalopakhyanam,
Sringava Tilaka, 186.
Sruta Bodha, 188.
Subadhini, 23.
Suka Saptati, 222.
Sundopasundopakhyanam, 113.
Sukoontula-Natuk, 210.
Suryya, 86.
Suryu Siddantha, 166.
Sutra St'hana, 178.
S6tra Vritti, 20.
Taittiriyaca, 82.
Tatwa Samasa, 149.
Tithi Tatua, 167.
Trikandusheshu, 35.
Trai-locya-derpana, 173.
Trailokya Dipika, 175.
Tulasidasa Ramayana, 123.
Udaharna, 169.
Ulkhlaqui Hindee, 199, 200.
Ukad Arangak, 74.
Umura Coshu, 33, 34, 35.
Unvar-i-Soohuelee, 199.
Upa Parana, 126.
Upadesa-Sahasri, 75.
Upakhyauani, 93.
Upakosa, 220.
Upanga, 66, 86.
Upanishad, 67, 75, 77, 82.
Upadevas, 66, 85.
Uparupakas. 207.
Upnek'hat, 82, 84.
Urihadaranyaki, 75.
Urvassi Wikrama, 213.
Urtilucti-ratna, 187.
Utera Candum, Uter Kand, 123.
Uttera Mimansa, 80.
Uttera Rama Cheritra, 190, 209.
Uttara St'hana, 178.
Vaidya grantha, 178.
Yaidya Sangraha, 179.
Vaidyajwana, 178.
Vais6shica, 142, 147, 151.
Vajoupourana, 127.
Vansavali, 172, 173.
Varaha, 176.
Varticas, 19, 146.
Vavadam, 72.
Vedanga, 66, 86.
Vedanga Schastra, 129.
Vedanta, 80, 142, 146.
Calpataru, 81.
Paribasha, 81.
Sichamani, 81.
Vara, 81.
Miraansa, 82.
Sara, 82, 146.
Vedas, 66.
Veni Samharah, 216.
Vetala-Pantschavimsati, 191.
Viakarana, 23.
Vicrama Sagara, 175.
Vidya Darpan, 164.
Vidyaganita, 169.
Vidagdha Madhava, 218.
Viddha, Salabhanjika, 217.
Vikrama Charitra, 172, 191.
Vikrama and Urvasi, 209, 213, 215.
Vira Metra daya, 23, 139.
Vishnu Purana, 88, 123, 176.
Vivadarnava-Setu, 130.
Vivara Khandam De-Rita-Nitake-
hara, 137, 190.
Vriddha, 132.
Vrihad-Aran'yaca Aitareyaca, 82.
Vrihatcatha, 189,220.
234
Vrith, 22.
Vyakarana, 17, 23.
Yadjnadattabada, 30, 121.
Yagamon, 129.
Yajur Veda, 72, 73, 74.
Yayadeva, 36.
Yayati Cheritra, 217.
Yoga Sastra, 154.
Vartica, 155.
Zend-Avesta, 76.
Zozur, 72.
CORRIGENDA.
p. 3, note, read Raffles's History of Java, vol. ii, p. 369.
p. 19, note, 1. 14, For Varanais, read Varanasi.
p. 16, 1. 7, read, of the Greek, Latin, German, and Sclavonic.
p. 41, 1. 12, For is, read are.
p. 70, 1. 20, For propably, read probably.
p. 72, last line, For is, read are.
p. 77, 1. 20 23, substitute, Upanishad, a commentary upon the Sama Veda,
in Sanscrit, published by Rammohun Roy, Calcutta, 1818, 8vo., printed in
Bengali character.
p. 86, 1. 9, For Bhanar& Charyya, read Bhascaracharya.
p. 109, For Dushwanta, read Dushmanta, all through the article,
p. 128, 1. 18, For Sasta, read Sastra.
p. 131, 1. 29, For Hared, read Nared.
p. 152, 1. 24, For Mahesnara, read Maheshwara.
p. 163, note, last line but one, For Talmul, read Tamul.
p. 176, 1. 1, For Kudma, read Kurmar.
*
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