1.SOURCES FOR THE STUDY OF ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY

“ Early Indians lacked historical sense ?? No taste for Historiography ?? ” We have a variety of sources for reconstructing the history of ancient India .

Broadly, they can be classified under the following main categories:

  1. Literary Sources
  2. Archaeological Sources

Literary Sources :-

Literary sources fall into three categories: religious, secular, and first-hand reports from overseas travelers. Literary sources give accounts of our ancestors’ political, social, economic, religious, and cultural lives. Most old manuscripts have a religious theme to them. There are two categories of literary sources: written and oral. The fundamentals of ancient culture are explained by the knowledge compiled in written forms known as literary sources.

Journals, letters, books, and investigative reports are all used as sources for
impressionistic, automated, and visual compositions. The Vedas are the most revered
and historic of all religious writings. Vedic Sanskrit was used to create and write the
Vedas.

Archaeological Sources:-

  • Excavated Sites
  • Inscriptions and Epigraphs
  • Coins and Currency
  • Artifacts and Pottery
  • Sculptures and Monuments
  • Cave Paintings and Rock Art
  • Literary and Historical Texts

Example of Ancient Texts by Upendra Singh :-

“An ancient text does not necessarily offer a simple or direct reflection of the society of
its time. It constitutes a complex representation of that society and a refracted image of
the past. Information has to be teased out with care, skill, and ingenuity to make
historical inferences. Many early religious texts were not primarily meant to be read but
to be recited, heard, and performed. They were passed on orally from one generation to
the next, even after they were available in the form of written manuscripts”.

Upendra Singh

Manuscripts (known as talapatra in Sanskrit, Olai in Tamil):-

India has been the global center of attention for centuries due to its vast collection of ancient manuscripts, which are an important part of the country’s cultural heritage. Nonetheless, a great deal of manuscripts have been misplaced or are presently kept in foreign museums.


India is home to an estimated 10 million manuscripts in 80 ancient scripts, including Brahmi, Kushan, Gaudi, Lepcha, and Maithili, according to the National Mission for Manuscripts (NMM). Finding, safeguarding, and maintaining old manuscripts are essential components of preserving history.

  1. National Mission for Manuscripts was launched in 2003 to document, conserve, and make accessible the manuscript heritage of India.
  2. According to the National Mission for Manuscripts (NMM), India processes an estimated 10 million manuscripts in 80 ancient scripts like Brahmi, Gaudi, Lepcha, and Maithili.
  3. National Manuscript Bill 2023 envisages setting up a 10-member National Manuscripts Authority(NMA) with the Union Minister of Culture would be the chairperson of the body.
  4. A manuscript denotes a handwritten composition on materials such as paper, bank, cloth, metal, or palm leaf, having an age of at least seventy-five years and carrying significant scientific, historical, or aesthetic value.

Vedas as a Source?

Records state that the Indian Subcontinent is where the Veda originated.

  1. The Rig Veda, the oldest of the four Vedas, was composed between 1600 and 1000 BCE. The Vedic books were transmitted through literary oral tradition, which was a precise and intricate process at the time, so it is impossible to pinpoint a precise date for their composition.
  2. The manuscript materials, like palm leaves or birch bark, are so transient that the oldest ones that still exist today are from the 11th to the 14th century.
  3. The Vedas are also considered to be Apaurusheya, which translates to “not of a man” or “impersonal.”
  4. The Mimamsa and Vedanta schools of thought consider the Vedas to be Svatah Pramana.
  5. A collection of religious writings from ancient India is known as the Vedas.
  6. The books are the oldest scriptures of Hinduism and the oldest corpus of Sanskrit literature. They are written in Vedic Sanskrit. The Vedas were transmitted orally from master to pupil for centuries in India between approximately 1500 and 600 BCE (known as the “Vedic Period”) until they were written down.
  7. The masters made sure the students memorized the words both forwards and backwards, emphasizing accurate pronunciation to help them remember what they had heard in the first place.
  8. Unlike other religious texts, which are referred to as Smriti (what is remembered), the Vedas are called sruti (what is heard).

The four Vedas:

  • The Rigveda
  • The Yajurveda
  • The Samveda
  • The Atharvaveda

The four subdivisions of each Veda are:

  •  The Samhitas (mantras and benedictions)
  •  The Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices, and symbolic sacrifices)
  •  The Brahmanas (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies, and sacrifices)
  •  The Upanishads (texts discussing meditation, philosophy, and spiritual knowledge)

The Rigveda:-

  1. The Rigveda is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns
    (Suktas). It is one of the four sacred Hindu scriptures known as the Vedas.
    The Rigveda’s sounds and texts have been passed down orally since the second
    millennium BCE. The Rigveda is regarded as one of Hinduism’s most important texts. It has aroused the curiosity of scholars and historians due to its historical importance and antiquity.
  2. The Rigveda is divided into ten volumes, known as Mandalas. It has appr. 10,600 verses and 1,028 hymns. It is the first Indo-European text written in any language.
  3. The Universe was created by Prajapati, the first God and the essential foundation of creation, according to the Rig Veda.
  4. The hymns, known as Suktas, were composed to be used in ceremonies.
  5. The Rig Veda mentions Indra as the most significant deity.
  6. The sky God Varuna, the fire God Agni, and the Sun God Surya were three of the other important deities in the Rig Veda, in addition to the previous Aryan deities.

Brahmanas:-
 Brahmanas are composed in prose. They are regarded as manuals for the rituals and ceremonies described in the Vedas. They describe the roles of priests and the importance of sacrificial offerings. They provide practical instructions for vedic rituals and valuable insights into the culture of ancient India.


Brahmanas associated with different Vedas :

  1. Rig Veda : Aitareya Brahmana and Kaushitaki Brahmana.
  2. Samveda: Jaiminiya Brahmana, Tandyamaha, or Pancavisa Brahmana.
  3. Yajurveda : Taittiriya Brahmana, Satapatha Brahmana.
  4. Atharva Veda: Gopatha Brahmana.

Aranyakas:-

  1. The Aranyakas, or ‘wilderness scriptures,’ made up the Brahmanas’ last
    section.
  2. These are holy Scriptures or a treatise about saints who live in the woods. The
    Aryanaka debates philosophy and sacrifice.
  3. In contrast to the Brahmans, who merely give a methodical procedure of the rites,
    the Aryanakas offer a profound connotation and interpretation of the philosophy in
    the Vedas.
  4. The Aryanaks are divided into many groups and given names based on the shakas
    with which they are related.
  5. Aitereya Aryanaka is linked to the Rig Vedic Shakala Shaka, Taittiriya Aryanaka is
    linked to the Krishna-Yajur Vedic Taittiriya Shaka, Kaushitaki Aryanaka is linked to the Rig Vedic Kaushitaki and Sankhayana Shakas, and Kattha Aryanaka is linked to the Krishna-Yajur Vedic Katha Charaka Sakha.
  6. In the Atharvaveda, there are no Aranyakas.
  7. The Aryanakas’ language is more closely related to the oldest form of Sanskrit

Upanishads:-

Upanishad is derived from the words upa (near) and shad (to sit). It is derived from the concept of sitting near the feet of the teacher.

  • More than 200 Upanishads have been discovered. Each Upanishad is associated with a certain Veda. 13 Upanishads are the most well-known or most important –Katha, Kena, Isa, Mundaka, Prasna, Taittiriya, Chhandogya, Brihadaranyaka, Mandukya, Aitareya, Kaushitaki, Svetasvatara, and Maitrayani.
  • Upanishads is one of the 4 major text types of Vedas. Upanishads are texts on spiritual knowledge and philosophy. Upanishads originated from each branch of Vedas. Upanishads deal with the philosophical aspects of life.

These are some very popular Upanishads.

  • Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
  • Chandogya Upanishad
  • Taittiriya Upanishad
  • Aitareya Upanishad
  • Kausitaki Upanishad
  • Kena Upanishad
  • Katha Upanishad
  • Isha Upanishad
  • Svetasvatara Upanishad
  • Prashna Upanishad
  • Maitri Upanishad
  • Mandukya Upanishad

Analysis of Vedas as Sources:-

  1. There are issues of age and authorship.
  2. They are mainly religious and philosophical.
  3. Represents mainly Brahmanical traditions.
  4. They represent ideal situations, not actual situations.
  5. They lack linear historical narrative and precise dating.
  6. They must be complemented with archaeological evidence to construct a comprehensive understanding of ancient Indian history.

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Literary Sources and Non-Literary Sources

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