Indian Antiquary Vol 42

SR No.: 032534
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications
Publication Year: 1984
Total Pages: 400
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 16 MB

Page 207

JULY, 1913.]
BRAHMAN IMMIGRATION INTO SOUTHERN INDIA
195
as a natural consequence, began to trouble the Aryan settlers in the Dandakâ forest. For the Ramayana says that for a long time before the advent of Rama the troubles from the Rakshasasmeaning thereby the aborigines of the south, had ceased; but only very recently they had begun again under the leadership of Máricba, Subbu, Khara, Ravana and others-all offspring of Non-Aryan mothers and Aryan fathers; R&rana is even represented as a Brahman and Sams. Vedin-a descendant of Pulastya. Thus the first movement of the Brâb mans towards the south seems to bave been caused by a split in the faith, and the succeeding settlements were made afterwards by ascetics and lay-brothers, seeking solitade and calm for practising aḥl the self-mortifications that they thought were necessary for gaining spiritual wealth. It was the combination of the two sets of circumstances that led to the slow Aryanisation of the south long before the rise of Buddhism, or the southward march of Jainism, Later on, after some advance was made in civilisation, emigration from other motives began also to take place ; until at last about the 1st century A. D. we find that it was the South that became the seat of revived Brahmanism. For the North had become almost Buddhistic, and powerful Scythian princes, like Kanisbka, who had embraced Buddhism, were ruling in Kashmir, and the Sungas and the Andhrabbřityas in Magadha, and Persian Satraps like Rudradâman in Ujjain. Only Kananj seems to have been still Hindu, but it was quite powerless then. The Kosalas had emigrated by that time to the south of the Vindbyas and had formed the Chalukyas, who later on founded in the 6th century A. D. the Chalukyan kingdom in the Maharashtra country, after defeating Indra of the Ratta or Rashtrakůța family. Gotamiputra Satakarņi, one of the Andhrabhsityas, who ruled at Pratisthana, is represented in the inscriptions, as having conferred on the Brahmans "the means of increasing their race and stemmed the progress of the confusion of castes," wbaterer that may mean. Perhaps it was from his time that the downfall of Buddhism may be dated. For after this time we find a revival of Sanskrit literature and re-institution of sacrifices ; and the long disused Aśvamedha is referred to as again having been performed by Pulakesin and others. Even the satraps of Ujjain, who had apparently been given a place in the Hindu social system, took the Brahmaņs under their wings: for Usbaradatta, son-in-law of Nahapana is represented as having fed thousands of Brahmans and, like Gotamiputra Satakarņi, given them "the means of increasing their race" (whatever that may mean). During the time of the Chalukyans, Brahmanism seems to have completely regained its lost power ; for it was then that the greatest Neo-Hindu teacher, SriSankaracharya made his appearance. Before his time, Parvamînd så had been studied with great attention and famous writers like Prabhakarasvâmi. Nandisvami and others lived and wrote during the reigns of the early Chalukyans; and as we have said elsewhere, Telugu and Kannada began to differentiate themselves about this time, giving rise to two distinct languages.
In the meanwhile Mayûraśarman, the founder of the Kadamba kingdom in Konkan in the 6th century A.D., introduced a colony of Brahmaņs from Abikshetra in Rohilkhand, and when it was found that during the reign of his son these showed a tendency to go back to their old home, the king seems to have set a mark upon them by obliging them to wear their top-knot in a special fashion. These formed the Nambudris (50489-our masters) of the West coast-a class of Brâhmans, who differ from the Brahmans of the East coast and of the Andhra, Kannada, and Tamil country in many particulars. These Brahmans slowly spread towards the south along the west coast and now inhabit the whole of the maritime country west of the Gunts as far down south as Trivandrum. It was the influence of these Kada mbas that led to the subsequent differentiation of Malayalam from Kannala on the one hand and Tamil on the other. The Kürgi and the Tela from the links connecting it with the two elder numbers of the Dravidian group; but none of these importations altered the essential character of the first settlers in manners and customs: they have remained distinct. The earlier settlers had borrowed many of the manners of the Dravidians, among which may be named the institution of tali-tying, the boring of the nose, the tying of the