2 Max Miiller, Hist. Anc. Sansk. Lit., pp. 40-42. Weber, Literaturgeschichte, pp. 206-208. Though I fully subscribe to the opinion, held by the most illus- trious Sanskritists, that, in general, the existing Puriwas are not identical with the works designated by that title in Vedic works, still I cannot believe that they are altogether independent of the latter. Nor can I agree to the assertion that the Pura«as known to us, one and all, are not older than the tenth or eleventh century A. D. That is inadmissible, because Benin! (India, I, 131) enumerates them as canonical books. And his frequent quotations from them prove that in 1030 A. D. they did not differ materially from those known to us (see Indian Antiquary, 19, 382 seqq.). Another important fact bearing on this point may be mentioned here, viz. that the poet Ba«a, who wrote shortly after 600 A. D., in the Aiharsha^arita, orders his Panrawika to recite the Pavanaprokta-puri»a, i.e. the Vayu-pura«a (Harsha£arita. p. 61, Calcutta ed.). Dr. Hall, the discoverer of the life of Marsha, read in his copy Yavanaprokta- pura«a, a title which, as he remarks, might suggest the idea that Bawa knew the Greek epic poetry. But a comparison of the excellent Ahmadabad and Benares Devanagari MSS. and of the Kajmtr .Sar.ida copies shows that the correct reading is the one given above. The earlier history of the Purawas, •which as yet is a mystery, will only be cleared up when a real history of the orthodox Hindu sects, especially of the .Sivites and Vishwuites, has been written. It will, then, probably become apparent that the origin of these sects reaches back far beyond the rise of Buddhism and Jainism. It will also be proved
Introduction. Xxxi
authority was the original on which the existing Upa- purawa is based. And in favour of this view it may be urged that passages, similar to Apastamba's quotation, actually occur in our Paura;zic texts. In the Gyotish- pra^ara section of several of the chief Purawas we find, in connection with the description of the Path of the Manes (pitrzya#a) *, the assertion that the pious sages, who had offspring and performed the Agnihotra, reside there until the general destruction of created things (a bhutasawplavat), as well as, that in the beginning of each new creation they are the propagators of the world (lokasya sawtanakara-4) and, being re-born, re-establish the sacred law. Though the wording differs, these passages fully agree in sense with Apastamba's Bhavishyat-pura/za which says, ' They (the ancestors) live in heaven until the (next) general destruction of created things. At the new creation (of the world) they become the seed.' In other passages of the. Purawas, which refer to the successive creations, we find even the identical terms used in the quotation. Thus the Vayup., Adhy. 8, 23, declares that those beings, which have gone to the Ganaloka, ' become the seed at the new creation ' (puna/z sarge . . . bi^arthawz td bhavanti hi).
These facts prove at all events that Apastamba took his
quotation from a real Purawa, similar to those existing.
If it is literal and exact, it shows, also, that the Purawas of
his time contained both prose and verse.
Further, it is possible to trace yet another of Apastamba's quotations from ' a Purawa.' The three Purawas, mentioned above, give, immediately after the passages referred to, enlarged versions of the two verses2 regarding the sages, who begot offspring and obtained ' burial-grounds,' and
that the orthodox sects used Pura«as as text books for popular readings, the PurawapaMana of our days, and that some, at least, of the now existing Pura»as are the latest recensions of those mentioned in Vedic books.
1 Vayup., Adhy. 50, 208 seqq. ; Matsyap., Adhy. 123, 96 seqq. ; Vishwup. II, 8. 86-89; H H- Wilson, Vishmip., vol. ii, pp. 263-268 (ed. Hall).
* Ap. Dh. II, 9, 23, 4-5.
XXX11 APASTAMHA.
regarding those who, remaining chaste, gained immortality1. In this case Apastamba's quotation can be restored almost completely, if certain interpolations are cut out. And it is evident that Apastamba has preserved genuine Paurawic verses in their ancient form. A closer study of the unfortu- nately much neglected Purawas, no doubt, will lead to further identifications of other quotations, which will be of considerable interest for the history of Indian literature.
There is yet another point on which Apastamba shows a remarkable agreement with a theory which is prevalent in later Sanskrit literature. He says (Dh. II, n, 29, 11-12), * The knowledge which Sudras and women possess, is the completion of all study,' and ' they declare that this knowledge is a supplement of the Atharva-veda.' The commentator remarks with reference to these two Sutras, that ' the knowledge which .Sudras and women possess/ is the knowledge of dancing, acting, music, and other branches of the so-called Artha^astra, the science of useful arts and of trades, and that the object of the Sutras is to forbid the study of such matters before the acquisition of sacred learning. His interpretation is, without doubt, correct, as similar sentiments are expressed by other teachers in parallel passages. But, if it is accepted, Apastamba's remark that 'the knowledge of .Sudras and women is a supplement of the Atharva-veda,' proves that he knew the division of Hindu learning which is taught in Madhusudana Sarasvati's Prasthanabheda 2. For Madhusudana allots to each Veda an Upa-veda or supplementary Veda, and asserts that the Upa-veda of the Atharva-veda is the Arthajastra. The agreement of Apastamba with the modern writers on this point, furnishes, I think, an additional argument that he belongs to the later Vedic schoolmen.
In addition to this information regarding the relative
position of the Apastambiya school in ancient Sanskrit
literature, we possess some further statements as to the
1 An abbreviated version of the same verses, ascribed to the Paurawikas, occurs in 6ankara£arya's Cornm. on the A'^andogya Up., p. 336 (Bibl. Ind.). * Weber, Ind. Stud. I, 1-24.
Introduction. Xxx111
part of India to which it belongs, and these, as it happens, are of great importance for fixing approximately the period in which the school arose. According to the Brahmanical tradition, which is supported by a hint contained in the Dharma-sutra and by information derivable from inscrip- tions and the actual state of things in modern India, the Apastambiyas belong to Southern India, and their founder prooably was a native of or resided in the Andhra country. The existence of this tradition, which to the present day prevails among the learned Brahmans of Western India and Benares, may be substantiated by a passage from the above-mentioned commentary of the ATarawavyuha1, which,
1 ./Tarawa vydhabhashya, fol. 15", 1. 4 seqq. : —
in* HT*ft3fteu ^j«f %^wrenr (?
nran^<*Hm*iTfcre* f^rnri (?) : (?) i ^TT^% ^nmftftHTT ^snr I * ^ n^nlft \
H <\ u
(sic)
fum^i ^ w^^Tf?r*Trfn^: n ^u
fr?!^ TTTF i
B d U
[fa] -arais ^ ^TT^T ^nfT^R^ fain MM
(sic) i
(sic)
(sic) w II 9 H
(sic) i
XXXI V APASTAMBA.
though written in barbarous Sanskrit, and of quite modern origin, possesses great interest, because its description of the geographical distribution of the Vedas and Vedic schools is not mentioned elsewhere. The verses from a work entitled Mahar«ava, which are quoted there, state that the earth, i.e. India, is divided into two equal halves by the river Narmada (Nerbudda), and that the school of Apastamba prevails in the southern half (ver. a). It is further alleged (ver. 6) that the Ya^ur-veda of Tittiri and the Apastambtya school are established in the Andhra country and other parts of the south and south-east up to the mouth of the Godavart (godasagara-zivadhi). According to the MahSrwava the latter river marks, therefore, the northern frontier of the territory occupied by the Apa- stambiyas. which comprises the MaraYy&a and Kawara districts of the Bombay Presidency, the greater part of the Nizam's dominions, Berar, and the Madras Presidency, with the exception of the northern Sirkars and the western coast. This assertion agrees, on the whole, with the actual facts which have fallen under my observation. A great number of the Dejastha-brahma«as in the Nasik, Puwa, Ahmadnagar, Satard, Sholapur, and Kolhapur districts, and of the Kawara or Kar«ateka-brahma«as in the Belgam, Dharvad?, Kaladghl, and KarvadT collectorates, as well as a smaller number among the /Httapdvanas of the Konkawa are Apastambiyas. Of the Nizam's dominions and the Madras Presidency I possess no local knowledge. But I can say that I have met many followers of Apastamba among the Telirigana-brahma«as settled in Bombay, and that the frequent occurrence of MSS. containing the Sutras of the Apastambiya school in the Madras Presidency proves that the Ka.ra.na. there must count many adherents. On the other hand, I have never met with any Apastam- biyas among the ancient indigenous subdivisions of the Brahmanical community dwelling north of the Mara//£a country and north of the Narmada. A few Brahma«as of this school, no doubt, are scattered ove.r Gujarat and Central India, and others are found in the great places of
Introduction. Xxxv
pilgrimage in Hindustan proper. The former mostly have immigrated during the last century, following the MaraMa chieftains who conquered large portions of those countries, or have been imported in the present century by tne Mara/7/a rulers of Gwalior, Indor, and Baroda. The settlers in Benares, Mathura, and other sacred cities also, have chiefly come in modern times, and not unfrequently live on the bounty of the Mara/M princes. But all of them consider themselves and are considered by the Brahma«as, who are indigenous in those districts and towns, as aliens, with whom intermarriage and commensality are not per- mitted. The indigenous sections of the Brahma#as of Gujarat, such as the Nigaras, Khea&vals, Bhargavas, Kapilas, and Motalas, belong, if they are adherents of the Yagur-veda, to the Madhyandina or K^«va schools of the White Ya^ur-veda. The same is the case with the Brah- ma«as of Ra^putana, Hindustan, and the Pa«gab. In Central India, too, the White Ya^ur-veda prevails; but, besides the two schools mentioned above, there are still some colonies of Maitr&ya«iyas or Manavas1. It seems, also, that the restriction of the Apastambiya school to the south of India, or rather to those subdivisions of the Brah- manical community which for a long time have been settled in the south and are generally considered as natives of the south, is not of recent date. For it is a significant fact that the numerous ancient landgrants which have been found all over India indicate exactly the same state of things. I am not aware that in any grant issued by a king of a northern dynasty to Brahmawas who are natives of the northern half of India, an Apastambiya is mentioned as donee. But among the southern landgrants there are several on which the name of the school appears. Thus in a j&sana of king Harihara of Vidyanagara, dated 5akasawvat 1317 or 1395 A.D., one of the recipients of the royal bounty is 'the learned Ananta Dikshita, son of R£mabha//a, chief
1 See Bha(i Da^i, Journ. Bombay Br. Roy. As. Soc. X, 40. Regarding the Maitrayawiyas in Gujarat, of whom the A"ara«avytiha -speaks, compare my Report on the Search for Sanskrit MSS., 1879-80, p. 3.
XXXVI APASTAMBA.
Under the circumstances just mentioned, a casual remark made by Apastamba, in describing the -SYaddhas or funeral oblations, acquires considerable importance. He says (Dh. II, 7, .17, 17) that the custom of pouring water into the hands of Brihma«as invited to a Sraddha prevails among the northerners, and he indicates thereby that he himself does not belong to the north of India. If this statement is taken together with the above-stated facts, which tend to show that the Apastamblyas were and are restricted to the south of India, the most probable construction which can be put on it is that Apastamba declares himself to be a southerner. There is yet another indication to the same effect contained in the Dharma-sutra. It has been pointed
1 Colebrooke, Essays, IT, p. 264, ver. 24 (Madras ed.)
2 See Hnltzsch, South Indian Inscriptions, vol. i, p. 31 seqq., and Indiaa Antiquary, vol. xx, p. 414 seqq.
5 Apastambha may be a mistake for Apastamba. But the form with the aspirate occurs also in the earlier Pallava grant and in Devapaia's commentary on the KaMaka Gr/hya-siitra.
4 Ind. Ant. V, 135.
