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Contribution of Prakrit Literature to Indian Literature
(An Article written for the magazine 'Heritage India')
In comparison with Sanskrit the educated and cultured class generally knows very little of Prakrit languages. The ever-flowing streams of human language continue since time immemorial. It is import to know the exact status of Prakrits among the available stock of 2000 languages of the world divides into 12 major families. The Indo-European is a major family among them. The IndoAryan constitutes a major branch of the Indo-European family. The Indo-Aryan family is subdivided and titled as Old, Middle and New. The ancient language of the Vedas particularly that of Rigveda belongs to this period.
Besides the Vedic as a literary language, many regional dialects were prevalent among the common people. George Griersson in his Linguistic Survey of India has referred to all spoken or colloquial languages during and before the Vedic period as Primary Prakrits. Though various dialects and sub-dialects were employed to carry out day to day needs of common people, it took several centuries for Prakrit to assume a form of literary language.
Particularly it was when Mahaveer and Buddha adopted Ardhamagadhi and Pali respectively as languages of their religious sermons, we find the dawn of literature in these languages.
For many centuries there was a misconception that 'Prakrit' means 'Sanskrit' and those who could not pronounce it properly, resorted to impure Sanskrit i.e. Prakrit. It was a Jaina author Namisadhu who first proclaimed the explanation of the word 'Prakrit' very logically. He said, ***Prakrit' is 'Nature'. Prakrits are natural and spontaneous expressions of mass devoid of strict rules of grammar etc. These natural languages were intelligible to women, children and uneducated commoners."
The word Prakrit stands for a group of languages and does not refer to any individual language. Marathi (with all varieties), Bengali, Uriya, Assamese, Bihari, Hindi (with all varieties), Gujrati, Rajastani, Marwadi, Punjabi, Sindhi, Kashmiri are all the varieties of new or modern IndoAryan languages. All these regional languages are originated from there respective varieties of Prakrits (technically called Apabhramsha) and not directly from Sanskrit.
The Dravidian languages (Tamil, Telugu etc.) and Tribal languages are of course not included in the Indo-Aryan languages and therefore they do not posses their respect Prakrit
varieties.
Let us now consider the major varieties of Prakrit which are found in literary form.
* Magadhi was employed in Ashokan inscriptions and Sanskrit dramas. From which the eastern group of Indian languages derived.
Pali employed in Buddhist scriptures bears close similarities with Magadhi. * Ardhamagadhi found place in the total his scriptures of Svetambara sect of the Jainas.
* Shauraseni is found in Sanskrit dramas, from which the Hindi and its sub-variety of Shauraseni.
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