| Prakrit | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution | Indian subcontinent |
| Linguistic classification | Indo-European
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 /5 | pra |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | midd1350 (Late Middle Indo-Aryan) |
 Word for "Prakrit" (herePrā-kṛ-te) in LateBrahmi script in theMandsaur stone inscription of Yashodharman-Vishnuvardhana, 532 CE[1] | |
Prakrit (/ˈprɑːkrɪt/[a]) is a group of vernacularclassicalMiddle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in theIndian subcontinent from around the 5th century BCE to the 12th century CE.[2][3][4] The term Prakrit is usually applied to the middle period of Middle Indo-Aryan languages, excludingPali.[5]
The oldest stage of Middle Indo-Aryan language is attested in the inscriptions of Ashoka (ca. 260 BCE), as well as in the earliest forms of Pāli, the language of the Theravāda Buddhist canon. The most prominent form of Prakrit isArdhamāgadhı̄, associated with the ancient kingdom of Magadha, in modern Bihar, and the subsequent Mauryan Empire. Mahāvı̄ra, the last tirthankar of 24 tirthankar of Jainism, was born in Magadha, and the earliest Jain texts were composed in Ardhamāgadhı̄.[6]
There are two major views concerning the way in which Sanskrit and Prakrit are related. One holds that the original matter in question is the speech of the common people, unadorned by grammar, and that prākṛta thus refers to vernacular usage in contrast to the elevated register of Sanskrit usage. This is one of several views noted, for example, by Nami Sadhu (11th century ce) in his commentary on Rudraṭa’s Kāvyālaṅkāra (“Ornaments of Poetry”), a 9th-century treatise on poetics. It is also the usual explanation accepted by Western linguists. In contrast, the view most commonly held by Prakrit grammarians holds that the Prakrit languages are vernaculars that arose from Sanskrit:[7]
The dictionary ofMonier Monier-Williams (1819–1899), and other modern authors, however, interpret the word in the opposite sense: “The most frequent meanings of the termprakṛta, from which the word ‘prakrit’ is derived, are ‘original, natural, normal’ and the term is derived fromprakṛti, ‘making or placing before or at first, the original or natural form or condition of anything, original or primary substance.’”
Modern scholars have used the term "Prakrit" to refer to two concepts:[10]
Some modern scholars include allMiddle Indo-Aryan languages under the rubric of 'Prakrits', while others emphasize the independent development of these languages, often separated from the history ofSanskrit by wide divisions ofcaste,religion, andgeography.[11]
The broadest definition uses the term "Prakrit" to describe any Middle Indo-Aryan language that deviates from Sanskrit in any manner.[12] American scholar Andrew Ollett points out that this unsatisfactory definition makes "Prakrit" a cover term for languages that were not actually called Prakrit in ancient India, such as:[13]
According to some scholars, such as German IndologistsRichard Pischel andOskar von Hinüber, the term "Prakrit" refers to a smaller set of languages that were used exclusively in literature:[13]
According to Sanskrit and Prakrit scholar Shreyansh Kumar Jain Shastri andA. C. Woolner, theArdhamāgadhı̄ (or simplyMagadhi) Prakrit, which was used extensively to write the scriptures ofJainism, is often considered to be the definitive form of Prakrit, while others are considered variants of it. Prakrit grammarians would give the full grammar of Ardhamāgadhı̄ first, and then define the other grammars with relation to it. For this reason, courses teaching 'Prakrit' are often regarded as teaching Ardhamāgadhı̄.[14]
Medieval grammarians such as Markandeya (late 16th century) describe a highly systematized Prakrit grammar, but the surviving Prakrit texts do not adhere to this grammar.[15] For example, according to [Vishvanatha (14th century), in a Sanskrit drama, the characters should speak Maharashtri Prakrit in verse and Shauraseni Prakrit in prose. But the 10th century Sanskrit dramatistRajashekhara does not abide by this rule. Markandeya, as well as later scholars such as Sten Konow, find faults with the Prakrit portions of Rajashekhara's writings, but it is not clear if the rule enunciated by Vishvanatha existed during Rajashekhara's time. Rajashekhara himself imagines Prakrit as a single language or a single kind of language, alongside Sanskrit, Apabhramsha, andPaishachi.[16]
German Indologist Theodor Bloch (1894) dismissed the medieval Prakrit grammarians as unreliable, arguing that they were not qualified to describe the language of the texts composed centuries before them.[15] Other scholars such asSten Konow,Richard Pischel andAlfred Hillebrandt disagree with Bloch.[17] It is possible that the grammarians sought to codify only the language of the earliest classics of the Prakrit literature, such as theGaha Sattasai.[16] Another explanation is that the extant Prakrit manuscripts contain scribal errors. Most of the surviving Prakrit manuscripts were produced in a variety of regional scripts during 1300–1800 CE. It appears that the scribes who made these copies from the earlier manuscripts did not have a good command of the original language of the texts, as several of the extant Prakrit texts contain inaccuracies or are incomprehensible.[15]
Also, like Sanskrit and other ancient languages Prakrit was spoken and written long before grammars were written for it. The Vedas do not follow Panini's Sanskrit grammar which is now the basis for all Sanskrit grammar. Similarly, the Agamas, and texts likeShatkhandagama, do not follow the modern Prakrit grammar.[18]
Prakrita Prakasha, a book attributed toVararuchi, summarizes various Prakrit languages.[19]
Following are the prominent works on Prākṛta grammar available today:[20]
Prakrit literature was produced across a wide area of South Asia. Outside India, the language was also known in Cambodia and Java.[22]
Literary Prakrit is often wrongly assumed to have been a language (or languages) spoken by the common people, because it is different from Sanskrit, which is the predominant language of the ancient Indian literature.[23] Several modern scholars, such asGeorge Abraham Grierson andRichard Pischel, have asserted that the literary Prakrit does not represent the actual languages spoken by the common people of ancient India.[24] This theory is corroborated by a market scene in Uddyotana'sKuvalaya-mala (779 CE), in which the narrator speaks a few words in 18 different languages: some of these languages sound similar to the languages spoken in modern India; but none of them resemble the language that Uddyotana identifies as "Prakrit" and uses for narration throughout the text.[23]The local variants of Apabhramsha evolved into the modern day Indo-Aryan vernaculars of South Asia.[25]
Literary Prakrit was among the main languages of the classical Indian culture.[26]Dandin'sKavya-darsha (c. 700) mentions four kinds of literary languages: Sanskrit, Prakrit,Apabhramsha, and mixed.[27]Bhoja'sSarasvati-Kanthabharana (11th century) lists Prakrit among the few languages suitable for composition of literature.[26] Mirza Khan'sTuhfat al-hind (1676) names Prakrit among the three kinds of literary languages native to India, the other two being Sanskrit and the vernacular languages. It describes Prakrit as a mixture of Sanskrit and vernacular languages, and adds that Prakrit was "mostly employed in the praise of kings, ministers, and chiefs".[28]
During a large period of the first millennium, literary Prakrit was the preferred language for the fictional romance in India. Its use as a language of systematic knowledge was limited, because of Sanskrit's dominance in this area, but nevertheless, Prakrit texts exist on topics such as grammar,lexicography, metrics, alchemy, medicine,divination, andgemology.[29] In addition, theJains used Prakrit for religious literature, including commentaries on the Jain canonical literature, stories about Jain figures, moral stories, hymns and expositions of Jain doctrine.[30] Prakrit is also the language of someShaivatantras andVaishnava hymns.[22]
Besides being the primary language of several texts, Prakrit also features as the language of low-class men and most women in theSanskrit stage plays.[31] American scholar Andrew Ollett traces the origin of the SanskritKavya to Prakrit poems.[32]
Some of the texts that identify their language as Prakrit include:
The languages that have been labeled "Prakrit" in modern times include the following:
Not all of these languages were actually called "Prakrit" in the ancient period.[13]
Dramatic Prakrits were those that were used in dramas and other literature. Whenever dialogue was written in a Prakrit, the reader would also be provided with a Sanskrit translation.
The phrase "Dramatic Prakrits" often refers to three most prominent of them:Shauraseni Prakrit,Magadhi Prakrit, andMaharashtri Prakrit. However, there were a slew of other less commonly used Prakrits that also fall into this category. These include Prachya, Bahliki, Dakshinatya, Shakari, Chandali, Shabari, Abhiri, Dramili, and Odri. There was a strict structure to the use of these different Prakrits in dramas. Characters each spoke a different Prakrit based on their role and background; for example, Dramili was the language of "forest-dwellers", Sauraseni was spoken by "the heroine and her female friends", and Avanti was spoken by "cheats and rogues".[36] Maharashtri and Shaurseni Prakrit were more common and were used in literature extensively.
Some 19th–20th century European scholars, such asHermann Jacobi andErnst Leumann, made a distinction betweenJain and non-Jain Prakrit literature. Jacobi used the term "Jain Prakrit" (or "Jain Maharashtri", as he called it) to denote the language of relatively late and relatively more Sanskrit-influenced narrative literature, as opposed to the earlier Prakrit court poetry. Later scholars used the term "Jain Prakrit" for any variety of Prakrit used by Jain authors, including the one used in early texts such asTarangavati andVasudeva-Hindi. However, the works written by Jain authors do not necessarily belong to an exclusively Jain history, and do not show any specific literary features resulting from their belief in Jainism. Therefore, the division of Prakrit literature into Jain and non-Jain categories is no longer considered tenable.[37]
Under the Mauryan Empire various Prakrits enjoyed the status of royal language. Prakrit was the language ofEmperor Ashoka who was patron of Buddhism.[3]
Prakrit languages are said to have held a lower social status thanSanskrit in classical India. In theSanskrit stage plays, such asKalidasa'sShakuntala, lead characters typically speak Sanskrit, while the unimportant characters and most female characters typically speak Prakrit.[31]
While Prakrits were originally seen as 'lower' forms of language, the influence they had on Sanskrit – allowing it to be more easily used by the common people – as well as the converse influence ofSanskrit on the Prakrits, gave Prakrits progressively higher cultural prestige.[38]
Mirza Khan'sTuhfat al-hind (1676) characterizes Prakrit as the language of "the lowest of the low", stating that the language was known asPatal-bani ("Language of the underground") orNag-bani ("Language of the snakes").[28]
Among modern scholars, Prakrit literature has received less attention than Sanskrit. Few modern Prakrit texts have survived in modern times, and even fewer have been published or attracted critical scholarship. Prakrit was designated as aclassical language on 3 October 2024 by theGovernment of India, as the earliest Prakrit literature is older than most Indian literatures.[39]
In 1955, government ofBihar established atVaishali, theResearch Institute of Prakrit Jainology and Ahimsa with the aim to promote research work in Prakrit.[40]
TheNational Institute of Prakrit Study and Research is located inShravanabelagola, Karnataka, India.[41]
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