Importance of Prakrit

֎ Common People’s Language
Prakrit developed very gradually. It was the common people’s language during the Vedic times and had many forms of its use, and gradually the structure of the language became more and more simplified. By the time of Mahavira (5thcentury B.C.) Prakrit became so enriched and natural that it could become the language of religion and ethics. By the first century of the Christian era Prakrit began to be respected from the cottages of the villages to the assemblies of courts, so much so that it was adopted as a powerful medium of communication in the society. By compiling the ga-tha-s of various of various Prakrit poets in his Gaathasaptsati-, the great poet Ha-la made Prakrit a language which can be used not only to depict village life but also for aesthetics. Kalidasa and other distinguished poets gave a prominent place to the role of Prakrit speakers in their dramas because of the attraction of the common people towards the Prakrit language. Almost all the characters in the major dramas Sakuntala, the daughter of the Risi in Abhijnanasakuntalam ; the Princess Vasavadatta in the play by the dramatist Bhasa; the city woman Vasantasena in the play by the Sudraka; Bhavabhuti’s chaste woman Queen and the king’s friends, etc. speak in Prakrit : From this it is evident that Prakrit was well known as a kind of common language and that it represented the medium of communication in the daily life of the people. Obviously, Prakrit was a language adopted by all groups of the society.

The heritage of Prakrit is an invaluable treasure of India. Innumerable works have been written in Prakrit for over 2500 years. These works in various fields of learning have greatly contributed to this treasure. The Prakrit language has a very significant place among the ancient languages of India. In the gradual development of Indian languages, Prakrit has been related to almost all the languages in some form or the other. Since it developed out of the language of the common people and since it continued to be used by them, this language of the common people is called Prakrit.The history of Jainism after Lord Mahavira  is recorded in the Jaina literature preserved in various Indian languages. The Jaina literature is a rich compendium of diverse subjects and is written in several Indian languages so as to reach all the people. The writings of Jaina acaryas  are having "manifold attractions" not only for those in Jaina studies but for the lovers of literature, history, culture, philosophy, and comparative religion.

The canonical literature is very valuable as besides the teachings of Mahavira and his disciples, it contains social and cultural material unknown from Sanskrit or Pali sources. It is also important from the point of view of the history and development of Indo-Aryan languages. The Agamas  are classified as Angas , Upangas , Chedasutra and Mulasutra works etc. Dr. J. C. Jain and Muni Nagraj  have given a detailed account of these Agamic Scriptures in their books. Digambaras  have their own tradition about their canonical literature. It is stated that Dharasena (between 613-783 years of Viranirvana, i.e. between 86-156 AD) knew a part of the 12 Angas. When he was practicing penance at Girnar , he called two young talented monks from the country of Andhra for imparting them the knowledge of the Purvas . The monks Puspadanta  and Bhutabali arrived and were imparted instructions in a portion of the Purva  texts incorporated in the Dristivada and in a part of the Vivahapannatti (Vyakhyaprajnapti). Later they composed the Chakkhanda-gama (Satkhandagama).

From the 2nd to the 6th Century AD a number of important commentaries were written on the Satkhandagama text, which unfortunately are not available. The most important available commentary on this text is the Dhavala (completed in 816 AD) by Acarya  Virasena . He composed this Curni-type of work with the help of Bappa-devaguru’s Vyakhayaprajnapti, an earlier commentary on the work. Virasena, besides quoting well-knownDigambara  works, has extensively quoted from the canonical literature. Acarya Gunadhara, a contemporary of Dharasena, was another renowned Digambara scholar, equipped with the knowledge of a portion of the 12 angas. He is author of the Kasayapahuda (Kasayaprabhrta)

Apart from narrative, biographical and poetic works in Prakrit philosophical texts have also been written in theArdhamagadhi  and Sauraseni canonical tradition. In these works a great deal of light has been thrown on various aspects of the Jaina religion, the conduct of the ascetic and the householder, and on philosophy. This philosophical literature in Prakrit provides significant material especially for comparative study of Indian philosophy in general and ethics in particular. Prakrit was not only Mahavira’s and Buddha ‘s mother tongue but also of groups of common folk scattered over a broad area. It was for this reason that Mahavira and Buddha used Prakrit in their teachings for the enrichment of the culture of the people. By using Prakrit as the medium of their teaching they waved the flag of revolution in their diversified areas of the society of their times. Since Prakrit already assumed such an importance as a form of folk language in early times, it earned the status of state language during Ashoka’s time, and fame continued for hundreds of years. Apart from the inscriptions of Ashoka, Kings of different parts also used Prakrit for their seals and inscriptions. In the 700 years from 300 BC to 400 AD about two thousand inscriptions were written in Prakrit. All this material is useful not only for the development of signi­ficance of Prakrit alone, but is also valuable document for the history of Indian culture.

 Prakrit developed very gradually. By the first centuries of the Christian era Prakrit began to be respected from the cottages of the villages to the assemblies of courts, so much so that it was adopted as a powerful medium of communication in the society. By compiling the gathas of various Prakrit poets in his Gathasaptsati, the great poet Hala made Prakrit a language which can be used not only to depict village life but also for aesthetics. Kalidasa and other distinguished poets gave a prominent place to the role of Prakrit speakers in their dramas because of the attraction of the common people towards the Prakrit language. The poetic beauty and sweetness of the language is inherent in all the works written in Prakrit, such as the Agama  texts, the commentarial literature, the narratives and the biographies. In these works Prakrit has maintained a continuity of these qualities throughout its life of 2300 years. In their writings Indian literary critics have also preserved hundreds of Prakrit verses in the form of quotations, because of their simplicity and sweetness. In this way Prakrit has always enlivened the views of the country, of ethics and of the literary world. And, thus, Prakrit has been the vehicle for Indian culture.

֎ Significant Development Prakrit language is the link between old Indo Aryan and middle Indo-Aryan languages. The cultural heritage of India is amply preserved in the literature and inscriptions of prakrit language. The zeal to learn Prakrit and critical study of Prakrit texts has considerably increased in some Institutions and Universities of India during the last few years. Some research work has also been done on Prakrit Texts by Western Scholars with other classical languages and philosophy. A detailed survey and an exhaustive study in this field are essential. We have neither any literature of the ancient form of Prakrit nor of the way in which it was spoken, but it was undoubtedly known by the people. Prakrit was not Mahavira’s mother tongue but also of groups of common folk scattered over a broad area. It was for this reason that Mahavira and his contemporary thinkers used Prakrit in their teachings for the enlightenment of the culture of the people. By using Prakrit as the medium of their teachings they waved the flag of revolution in their diversified areas of the society of their times. Prakrit has gained reputation of being the language of the Agamas and of the Indians. Since Prakrit already assumed such importance as a form of folk language in early times, in earned the status of state language during Asoka’s time, and fame continued for hundreds of years. Apart from the inscriptions of Asoka, Kings of different parts also used Prakrit for their seals and inscriptions. In the 700 years from 300 BC to 400 AD about two thousand inscriptions were written in Prakrit. All this material is useful not only for the significant development of Prakrit but also as a valuable document for the history of Indian culture.