We are in the middle of a discussion on the verses of Pandikkovai that say that Kon Nedumaran captured South Pāzhi. The word Pāzhi has the letter ழ (zha) that is unique to Tamil. Adiyārkku Nallar in his commentary to Silappadhikaram mentioned it as South Pāli (पालि) (பாலி) and not Pāzhi (பாழி). The zhi (ழி) – li (லி) change had happened. The zhi – li change is very much natural as even today the speakers of Tamil who cannot pronounce zhi ((ழி), pronounce it as ḷi (ளி) with retroflex l or just as ‘li’, with non- retroflex l. The transformation is from zhi (ழி) to ‘ḷi’(ளி) (retroflex l) and to ‘li’ (லி). This transformation is Pāzhi > Pāḷi > Pāli.
The phonetic similarity and transformation of Pāzhi
to Pāli is significant as it is everybody’s knowledge that there existed Pāli
as the oldest language of common people in India. There is no standard spelling
for the word Pāli. There is textual evidence to say that the word Pāli was written
as Pāḷi with retroflex l (1).
The use of retroflex l in Pāḷi is an
important element linking it with Pāzhi (பாழி).
This raises the question whether Pāli language was connected to Pāzhi.
Let us first take a look at the background of Pāli
language. The most commonly held opinion is that Pāḷi was the language of the
Buddhist canon. There is unanimous opinion that Buddha taught in the language
of the common people in his place. It was Magadha and the language of the
locals was Māgadhī. Buddhist scholars concur with the view that Māgadhī was the
language of Buddha’s teachings. This has led to the acceptance of Pāli as
referring to Māgadhī. This is further reinforced by the fact that Jaina canons
were written in Ardha- Māgadhī , in a way to differ from the language of
Buddhist canons. (2)
Now the question arises if Māgadhī was spoken by the
common people of Magadha, in what way they can be connected with Pāzhi of Tamil
lands or in what way their language (Pāli / Māgadhī) can be linked with Pāzhi
of Tamil lands, except that Pāli is phonetically similar to Pāzhi?
There are two possible scenarios linked with South
Pāzhi.
(1) The Pandyan’s land including South Pazhi got
submerged sometime in a distant past. Where did the survivors go? From Sangam
texts we come to know that there were survivors and along with the king they had
entered present day South India. Did all of them settle down in Tamil lands or
was there any scope to believe that some of them went to other places in India?
Did the survivors after submergence of Pāzhi enter the Indian mainland and
continue with the dialect they were speaking earlier and that came to be known
as Pāli?
(2) The other possibility centres on what happened
to the people who were subdued by the Pandyan king when he took control of
South Pāzhi. What happened to the people who inhabited that place until then?
Did they continue to live there by accepting the authority of Kon Nedumaran?
But the kind of title, ‘Panjavan’ that Kon Nedumaran got, conveys that he
caused extreme suffering to them. The best way out for them was to have escaped
from that place and ultimately from the Pandyan regions. Did they enter Indian
mainland and spread far and wide? Did they bring along with them their dialect
which was recognised by the name of the place from which they came?
These two background scenarios give scope to believe
that people of olden times had shifted from sunken Pāzhi to Indian mainland.
Their language was identified by the place of their origin.
This gives rise to the next question on how they
came to be known as Māgadhās and not by the name of the language Pāli that they
were supposed to have spoken.
For these questions, Tamil texts contain some clues
and also some explanations.
Māgadhās in Tamil literature
Māgadhās were a people. They find mention in ancient
Tamil texts. They along with Sūta and Vaidhālika (spelt here as pronounced in Tamil) formed a group and made a
living by singing in praise of the kings and narrating the stories of valiant
kshatriya soldiers.
When the Cheran King Seguttuvan started off an
expedition to the Himalayas, Māgadhās, Sūtas and Vaidhālikas came to him and
wished him success in the expedition.
“மாகதப்
புலவரும்
வைதாளிகரும்
சூதரும்
நல் வலந்தோன்ற
வாழ்த்த”
(3)
Meaning:-
மாகதப்
புலவரும்-
Māgadha poets, வைதாளிகரும் – Vaidhalikas, சூதரும் –
Sūtas, நல்வலந்- good victory , தோன்ற
– to get, வாழ்த்த- eulogised.
These three people were always mentioned as a group
in the Tamil texts. They were not immigrants or foreign to Tamil lands. They
were there in all kingdoms, mostly in the capital cities, closer to the King’s
location. In the above lines, their location was in Vanji,
the capital of Chera king Senguttuvan.
In an earlier chapter in Silappadhikaram, they were
mentioned as having residence in Pukār (Pumpukār),
the capital city of the Cholas. That context also explains the kind of people
they move with or live with. They were all permanent residents of Pukār.
That chapter describes the plan of the city of Pukār.
Pukār had two separate residential areas, one for immigrants or floating
population and another for local population. Māgadhās, Sūtas and Vaidhālikas
had residence in the area of local population.
“சூதர், மாகதர்,
வேதாளிகரோடு....”
(4)
They lived as a community along with Nazhigai- kaNakkar
(those keep track of time), Shanthi kootthar (dancers), courtesans, unmarried
women dedicated to dancing (they mostly danced in temples), prostitutes,
helpers and servants engaged in household works, players of musical instruments
and jesters.
All these people had residence in Pattina-p-pākkam of Pukār city with identifiable
variation in their houses. That is, by looking at a house one could say who
among them were residing there.
All these people living as one unit shared something
in common. They were entertainers and had access to the king’s court and
entertained the king and others in upper echelons. They made a living out of
their acquaintance with the palace people. Of them Māgadhās, Sūtas and
Vaidhālikas were engaged in singing and praising the king whenever a situation
arose. The time keeper was consulted for knowing the auspicious time to express
their talents in the presence of the king which made their appearance and words
something of an auspicious omen for the king.
The mention about these three people appears in the
text on Pandyan region too. The Sangam Text Madurai-k-kānchi
describes the entertainment given by them in the city of Madurai as an everyday occurrence.
சூதர் வாழ்த்த,
மாகதர்
நுவல,
வேதாளிகரோடு
நாழிகை
இசைப்ப
(5)
This verse
gives the important information about their job.
According to the commentary to these verses by
Nacchinārkkiniyar
The Sūtas were those who used to sing
praises by standing.
(நின்றேத்துவார்).
The Māgadhās were those who used to be seated
while singing praises of the victories and greatness of the king. (இருந்தேத்துவார்)
The Vaidhālikas used play instruments of their
expertise. (வைதாளிகர்
தத்தம்
துறைக்குரியனவற்றையிசைப்ப)
All these three people always performed as a group.
Madurai-k-kanchi says that one could find them in the streets of Madurai giving
their co-ordinated performance in the pre-dawn time every day. The people and
those in the palace including the king used to wake up hearing their songs
which were in the nature of praises of the glory and valour of the king.
This kind of scenario in the capital cities of Tamil
kings also existed in the capital city of north India particularly Ayodhya of Rama!
Māgadhās and Sūtas in Valmiki Ramayana
We come across the same kind of reference to these
people (minus Vedhalikas) in Valmiki Ramayana.
King Dasharatha had decided to transfer the crown to
Rama. Sita was eagerly waiting to receive Rama after knowing this news. But
Rama came to her chamber with his face slightly turned down. A perplexed Sita
started enquiring Rama as she noticed a change in the mood in him and in the
surroundings. One of the things she told Rama was about the absence of the
songs of Māgadhās and Sūtas.
She says,
वाग्मिनो बन्दिनः च अपि प्रहृष्टाः त्वम् नर ऋषभ |
स्तुवन्तः न अद्य दृश्यन्ते मन्गलैः सूत मागधाः || (6)
nararR^ishhTaaH = oh the best of men!
prahR^ishhTaaH = The overjoyed ; vaagminaH = eloquent; vandinashchaapi =
bards; suutamaagadhaaH =
Sutas and Magadhas who sing portions of epic poems and
ancient ballads ; na dR^ishyante = are not being seen
; atra = here; stuvantaH = praising; tvaam = you
; maNgalaiH = with auspicious words.
“Nor the overjoyed and
eloquent bards Sutas and
Maagadhas (who sing portions of epic poems and ancient ballads ) are
seen here , praising you with auspicious words”.
The occasion of the crowning of Rama was a momentous
one that professional singers would not miss it. They could be expected to crowd
around the mansions of the king and the queen to give their best performance
and receive gifts in return. The absence of their sounds was something
conspicuous that Sita did not fail to notice. Only if such performances had
been the norms of the times, Sita could have made this observation.
The professional performers were Māgadhās and Sūtas,
the same people who appear in Tamil texts and had permanent residence in Tamil
cities 2000 years ago. The verse in Valmiki Ramayana shows that they were there
in places far away from Tamil lands in a time period that can be truly termed
as ‘times of yore’.
The sound factor created by them is something that
is made out from Sita’s observation. These performers were giving their
performance in the streets and outside the mansions of royal people. So the
decibel level of their performance aided by the musical instruments must have been
higher than normal to reach the people inside the mansions and houses. One will
be surprised to know that noisiness of Māgadhās finds mention in Yajur Vedas!
Māgadhās in Yajur Vedas
Verse 5 of
Book 30 of Sukla Yajur Veda gives a list of the attributes
that bind with specific people. For example it says that priesthood is for a
Brahmin. Royalty is for a king. Darkness is for a robber because that is what
helps him in his efforts. In that list it says that excessive noise is for a Māgadhā!
“For Brahman Priesthood he
binds a Brahman to the stake; for Kshatra Royalty a Rajanya; for
the Maruts a Vaisya; for Penance a Sudra; for Darkness a
robber; for Hell a homicide or a man who has lost his consecrated fire;
for Misfortune a eunuch; for Venality an Ayogu;
for Kama a harlot; for
Excessive Noise a Magadha;” (7)
The same chapter connects ‘noise’ to a snarler, but
excessive noise is always associated with a Māgadhā!
This description of Māgadhās in Yajur Veda read
along with the verses in Tamil and Valmiki Ramayana establish beyond doubt that
Māgadhās as a people engaged in a particular profession of singing loudly with
all paraphernalia were in existence for a very long time in the entire Indian
sub continent.
Origin of Māgadhās and Sūtas from Vishnu
Purana.
The story of the origin of Māgadhās is found in Vishnu Purana in the story of the birth of Prithu.
There is mythological content in the description of Prithu’s birth. But sages
have always liked to say things with hidden meanings and therefore we have to
sift out the inner meanings.
Vishnu Purana traces the origins of Māgadhās and
Sūtas to the times of Prithu
from whom the earth received the name Prithvi. Prithu’s time marks the period
when cultivation of the land started. Until then people were subsisting on
hunted products and the naturally available vegetable products of the earth.
Prithu was said to have been born from the corpse of
his father Vena.
Vena led a life of vanity and therefore was killed by the sages. This is
something absurd. There must be some hidden meaning behind this idea.
There is no proper etymology for Vena in Sanskrit,
but this word has a definite meaning in Tamil.
Vena sounds
like ‘veeN’ வீண்
in
Tamil having the meaning wasteful or vain. The same
attribute that sages had given to Vena is there as the meaning of a similar sounding
word in Tamil!
Birth from Vena’s corpse could imply that from
something wasteful or wasted ones or of things that are no longer available,
people had to develop new ways and things for continuing their life.
The first to be born from the corpse of Vena was a
dwarf hunter. It was the symbol of evil Vena.
Therefore it was discarded. This
implies that until then people were dependant on hunting and hunted products
for living. By discarding the dwarf hunter (the first product from Vena’s
corpse), it is made known that people decided to stop depending on hunting for
food.
Prithu who was born after the hunter went after the
land and extracted milk from it, meaning to say that he extracted benefits from
land. This implies starting of agricultural operations. Prithu was known for
having started cultivation of the land. Like this many things were developed from
Prithu’s times and this is mentioned by Vishnu Purana as birth of different
people for different works.
In this context Vishnu Purana says that the Māgadhās
and Sūtas were born from the sacrifice at the birth of Prithu. They were asked
by the sages to praise the king. They refused to do so, saying that the king
had not yet started doing any heroic action. For this the sages asked them to
sing the future acts that were likely to be done by the king so that the king
would know what he was expected to do. This looked agreeable for Māgadhās and
Sūtas and they started singing and praising the expected valorous acts of king
Prithu.
Vishnu Purana
says,
“The virtues thus celebrated by
the Suta and the Magadha were cherished in the remembrance
of the Raja, and practised by him when occasion arose”
(8)
This narration from Vishnu Purana establishes the
legendary existence or a long time existence of a group of people by name Māgadhās
and Sūtas. They were known for nothing other than singing the glory of kings which
could be real or imagined but which itself acted as an impetuous for the kings
to do things in such a way that entered the ballads of these bards.
Though Vishnu Purana says that Māgadhās and Sūtas
were born along with king Prithu from the sacrifice of Vena, the description
about their capability to sing the acts of the king before they were done shows
that that such people existed beforehand and they did not come into existence
for the first time in Prithu’s times. They must have existed even before
Prithu’s times or else their legendary profession could not have found mention
in the story of Vishnu Purana.
They as a people had spread all over the land, been
to many kingdoms, seen or heard about the victories of kings and composed them
as songs and sung before the kings to please them and to inspire them as well.
Narration in Vishnu Purana only reiterates the fact that such singers existed
as inevitable parts of the groups found in the surroundings of the king. This
clarifies the mystery of how the same type of people by name Māgadhās and Sūtas
could exist in Deep South in a place like Pukār and also in a northern city
like Ayodhya at a remote past.
The common feature that made them all the same,
wherever they were, was the ability to compose and sing and the knowledge of
wars and war-front valour.
The interest in war related events must have come as
a genetic feature - something we know from Manu’s classification of people based on varna-mix.
Māgadhās and Sūtas in Manu Smriti.
According to Manu Smriti, Māgadhā is he who is born
to a Kshatriya female by a Vaisya male.
Sūta is he who is born to a Brahmana female by a
Kshatriya male. (9)
The Kshatriya connection to both Māgadhā and Sūta
was there. This made them take interest in warfare and war-front events of the
kings.
Manu thinks that a Sūta would be capable of managing
horses and chariots and Māgadhā would be interested in trade. But the Sūta - Māgadhā
combination that we have seen so far were experts in composing and singing the
war-front valour and also past histories of kings and kingdoms. This trait
seems to be something different from what Manu contemplated.
One may think that none of what we have
explained so far answers the riddle of Pāzhi- Pali connection or the connection
to Tamil land Pāzhi.
But they do point out to Tamil connection, for no
text exists in India other than Tamil Tholkappiyam that tells us who these
people were.
They were “Porunar” (பொருநர்),
the 7th varna in the 7-part classification of people!
Porunar – the people who sang ballads on
kings and war-front valour.
The people of ancient Tamil lands were classified
into 7 categories. The ancient Grammar work called “Thol
Kappiyam” (means ‘ancient Kāvya’), gives this classification along with
the kind of activities they did. This is not like the 7-part classification
found in the Megasthenes work on India. The 7- part classification that
Megasthenes found in India about 2000 years ago was based on the jobs that people
did. But the classification found in Tholkappiyam is based on attributes and
attitudes. It is a kind of Varna based classification.
The 7 types of people were
(1) Brahmins (known as Pārppanar, meaning those who
‘see’ the end of Vedas)
(2) Kshatriyas
(3) Vaisyas
(4) Farmers
(5) ARivan (Meaning those who ‘know’. Their
knowledge is “Tri-kāla Jnana” of everything from climate to human lives through
observation of sky, clouds, planets, stars etc. They were astrologers and more
than astrologers too.)
(6) Thāpathar (ascetics, Tapaswis)
(7)
Porunar. (Bards who sing genuinely the valour of the kings and
kshatriyas in wars. Why genuinely, because they did not say anything that was
not there. This trait made their compositions true and reliable.)
The verse from Thol Kappiyam is as follows:
“அறு
வகைப்
பட்ட பார்ப்பனப் பக்கமும்
ஐ வகை மரபின் அரசர் பக்கமும்
இரு மூன்று மரபின் ஏனோர் பக்கமும்
மறு இல் செய்தி மூ வகைக் காலமும்
நெறியின் ஆற்றிய அறிவன் தேயமும்
நால் இரு வழக்கின் தாபதப் பக்கமும்
பால் அறி மரபின் பொருநர் கண்ணும்
அனை நிலை வகையொடு ஆங்கு எழு வகையான்
ஐ வகை மரபின் அரசர் பக்கமும்
இரு மூன்று மரபின் ஏனோர் பக்கமும்
மறு இல் செய்தி மூ வகைக் காலமும்
நெறியின் ஆற்றிய அறிவன் தேயமும்
நால் இரு வழக்கின் தாபதப் பக்கமும்
பால் அறி மரபின் பொருநர் கண்ணும்
அனை நிலை வகையொடு ஆங்கு எழு வகையான்
தொகை நிலை
பெற்றது
என்மனார்
புலவர்” (10)
The 7th type of this classification
refers to “Porunar” – the singers. There also existed another kind of singers
in Tamil lands called “PāNar” (பாணர்).
They were also experts in composing and putting them into music. Both PāNar and
Porunar carried “Yāzh” ( யாழ்),
Veena-like musical instrument. But they differed in the topic they chose for
their songs. While PāNar sang on social life and personal life (agam), Porunar
sang only on war-front adventures of Kshatriyas including kings. This puts them
on par with or same as Māgadhās and Sūtas.
Ancient Tamil commentators have given a good deal of
description about them.
Porunars did not sing just for the sake of praising
a king. If they praised a king, it meant there was truth in it. They knew the
intricacies of things and of the kind of victories and bravery shown in a war.
They had a sense of discrimination on what is great and unique from what is
not. As such if a Porunar composed a ballad on a king, it meant that it was
genuine and true to the core. Kings looked forward to getting to hear such
praises by Porunar. This is why a separate class of people, who exhibited a
talent to identify bravery and greatness of a king or a kshatriya and put it
into a musical composition was considered as a Varna with a specific inborn
talent.
This description from Tamil works justifies why Māgadhās
and Sūtas got a special mention in Vishnu Puranam as someone persuaded by the
sages to sing in praise of the king Prithu even before he started his kingly
duties. Their words carried so much truth.
From Thol Kappiyam
and PuRapporuL VeNba Maalai - புறப்பொருள்
வெண்பா
மாலை - (another grammar work later to Thol kappiyam) we
come to know the exact things they sang about.
Porunars sang on the acts of bravery exhibited by
sword and by shoulder (wrestling). This is the commentary given by the olden
Commentator ILampooraNar (இளம்பூரணர் ),
for the above mentioned Thol-kappiyam verse on Porunar. In this context, he quotes
Thiru-k-kural.
Kural 648
says that the world (people) would accept the words
of those who are capable of systematically arranging ideas and delivering them
in sweet and great manner.(11)
Porunars fitted into the category of such speakers.
The same commentator also says that Porunars
conveyed their views through words, songs, dance and games. This description
reminds us of the kind of people with whom Māgadhās and Sūtas dwelled in Pukār
(mentioned in the beginning of this article). The dancers, jesters and gamers
helped them in developing their ballads. This description conveys that Porunars
and Māgadhās - Sūtas were interchangeable words.
The Grammar work called “PuRap poruL veNbA MAlai” makes
an explicit mention that they sang only what they meant. The description about
them comes under a separate heading called “Poruna
Vāgai” (பொருந
வாகை).
It says that they did not praise someone by damning someone else. They
concentrated on the positive aspects of the one whom they praised. (12)
It also says that they did not consider the size of
the army as the deciding the factor for victory. Instead they were able to
grasp the inner fire of kshatriya-hood in a person and highlighted it. This is
compared to sensing the presence of embers under the layer of ashes (13)
Māgadhās and Sūtas as Porunar.
One cannot see any difference between Porunar of
ancient Tamil lands and Māgadhās and Sūtas. By the nature of works and the name
of the language Pāli, Māgadhās and Sūtas fit well with the displaced or migrant
Porunars into Indian Mainland. By the time of Silappadhikaram, the name Porunar
was almost gone or forgotten, and was replaced by Māgadhās and Sūtas.
One reason could be that the word Porunan also
refers king of hills, soldier or the chief of army. In texts on Cheran kings,
we often find this name to address the Cheran king, the ruler of hilly regions.
Perhaps due to this reason, the name Porunar for such singers got replaced by Māgadhā
which had a presence all over Bharata.
How did this name Māgadhā come to stick
to the people who were Porunars?
The answer lies in “Shāka-
Dweepa”, a land form described by Sanjaya in Mahabharata and also
attested in Puranas like Vishnu Purana.
Māgadhās of Shāka dweepa.
Saka-Dweepa had the 4 varna system of which the
Kshatriyas were known as “Māgadhā”!
Vishnu Puranam Book 2, Chapter 4
says,
“The caste of Mriga is that of
the Brahman;
the Magadha, of the Kshetriya;
the Manasa, of
the Vaisya; and the Mandaga of
the sudra”
The same verse appears in Mahabharata
but with a variation in the name
for Kshatriyas. It says,
“As heard by all men there, in that island of Saka, are four sacred
provinces. They are the Mrigas, the Masakas,
the Manasas, and
the Mandagas. The Mrigas for the most
part are Brahmanas devoted
to the occupations of their order. Amongst the Masakas are
virtuous Kshatriyas granting
unto Brahmanas every
wish entertained by them. The Manasas, O king, live by
following the duties of the Vaisya order. Having every wish of theirs gratified, they are also
brave and firmly devoted to virtue and profit.The Mandagas are
all brave Sudras of
virtuous behaviour.”
The same idea but with slight variation in the name
of only Kshatriyas appears in the narration of Sanjaya in Mahabharata. The
kshatriyas of Saka dweepa were known as Magadha
as per Vishnu Purana, but were mentioned as Masakas
by Mahabharata. With other names and description of the Dweepa being same, we
infer that Sanjaya refers to Magadha only.
Sunken Tamil lands in Shāka Dweepa.
This Shāka Dweepa was not part of Jambhu Dweepa
where India is situated. Its location was in waters (as per the description). There
is an opinion that Shāka Dweepa was in Central Asia. This view is erroneous mainly
for two reasons.
One is that the very name Shāka in Shāka Dweepa was
derived from the tree Shāka that was abundantly found there. It was like how
Jambhu Dweepa was called by the name of Jambhu tree found in abundance there.
Shāka tree is native to South Asia and South East
Asia and not to central Asia or Europe. Its botanical name is Acacia sirissa or Albizia lebbeck. This
was known as Uzhinjil (உழிஞ்சில்) or Unna (உன்ன
மரம்) or Pālai (பாலை மரம்) in Tamil. Its flower was held in high esteem and worn
as a mark of victory in war. In Sanskrit it is known as Shirisha and in Tamil it is known as Vāgai (வாகை).
The Tamil
equivalent of Shāka is Vāgai!
Vāgai / Shāka flower that was worn as a symbol of victory.
The description
of Porunar comes in the chapter called Vāgai (Shāka) in the Grammar
works quoted above. The land form (among 5 land forms of Tamil lands) is Pālai – a word close to Pāli! The other name for Shāka tree also
was Pālai, giving a link to the word Pāli!
The sunken lands
of olden Pandyans had 7 lands with each of them having 7 divisions within.
Shāka Dweepa also had 7 divisions. Two of the 7 divisions of sunken lands of Pandyans had names having “Pālai” in them.
They were
Mun Pālai (முன் பாலை நாடு) implying front location,
Pin Pālai (பின்
பாலை
நாடு)
implying back location.
With 7 divisions
within themselves, these Pālai habitats were 14 in number. These 14 habitats were
lost into the seas in the 2nd deluge that ended up with Pandyan
kingdom getting shifted to Kapātapuram. Who were the survivors of
these 14 habitats and where did they go?
The similarity
in name with Pāli
is something difficult to ignore.
The second reason why Shāka Dweepa could not be
located in Central Asia was that the description from both Mahabharata and
Vishnu Purana says that every day Indra gulped the waters of the seas in Shāka
Dweepa and gave back as rains in time to the same place. This perfectly fits
with the monsoon activity in the Indian Ocean regions, thereby indicating the
location of Shāka Dweepa in that region. That region also housed the now sunken
lands of early Pandyans. We will see more details on Shāka Dweepa as sunken
Pandyan lands in another article.
It is important to say here that Shāka Dweepa was
dotted with river Kumari as per the description
from the scriptures mentioned above.
Pāli- Tamil connection to Proto Tamil!
Porunars are mentioned only in the land form Pālai which
had Vāgai /Shāka tree in abundance. Their language was of course Tamil but
Tamil had many Sanskrit words as its own. Thol Kappiyar gives meanings for Sanskrit
words such as Pindam, Mantra etc as Tamil words in his grammar work Thol
Kappiyam. There are many Sanskrit words as part and parcel of Tamil.
One can find similar kind of presence of Sanskrit in
Pāli language but with stunted or corrupt pronunciation. The words of Pāli can
be understood by a Tamil speaker for this reason. For example the word for
analogy in Pāli is ‘opamana’, an adaptation from Sanskrit Upamana. For a Tamil
speaker, Opamana sounds like stunted Tamil (கொச்சை)
as it is Uvamana in Tamil – derived from
the same word in Sanskrit. The Sanskrit Sāmarthya has become ‘sāmatthiya’ in Pāli.
It is ‘sāmartthiyam’ in Tamil. For a Tamil speaker, sāmatthiya sounds like
broken Tamil. One can quote many such words
in Pāli that sound like broken or corrupt Tamil but having Sanskrit basis.
Some Sanskrit words are pronounced in the same way
in both Pāli and Tamil. For example Bhikshu becomes Bhikku in Pāli and Tamil. Certain
Sanskrit words undergo minor change in the same way in both Pāli and Tamil. For
example Arya becomes Ariya both in Pāli and Tamil. Similarly Surya becomes
Suriya, virya becomes viriya in both Pāli
and Tamil.
And there are words that are purely of Tamil origin
like “ambila” of Pāli which is amilam (acid) in Tamil. “Neekipathi” in Pāli is from “neekkuthal”
(abdication) in Tamil. The name of the important Buddhist book on Pāli, “Theravada” has Tamil connection. ‘Thera’ in Pāli
refers to the learned person. The root of this word is in Tamil as “Theruthal”
(தேறுதல்) or “Thercchi” (தேர்ச்சி
)
with the same meaning.
It is possible to create a Pāli – Tamil dictionary
highlighting similar words and also the extent of presence of Sanskrit in both
the languages. This is being said here to highlight the possibility of the
presence of a Proto Tamil
that originally contained stunted words of Sanskrit. That continued with the people and
came to be identified as Pāli. Then came a time when the Sanskrit words were taken out from
Proto Tamil and developed separately as a refined language called Sanskrit.
This idea may look farfetched, but this is in sync
with the information found in Tamil texts that grammar for Tamil and Sanskrit
was given by Lord Shiva to sage Agasthya and PaNini respectively. (14)
{PaNini
here must be a generic name for Grammarians and does not refer to the one who
authored Ashtadhyayi. The name PaNini is more closer to Tamil PāNan, (பாணன்)
who originally promoted refined (grammatical) Tamil through the 3 parts of
Tamil, namely Iyal (literary or lyrical ), Isai (musical) and Natakam (dance
forms). Compositions of the 1st Sangam were all set to music and
dance forms only. We cannot ignore the fact that this feature matches with the
works of Māgadhās too.}
Bringing in Lord Shiva in this context
might give it mythological colour, but the idea was to declare that both the
languages, Tamil and Sanskrit were divine and therefore great.
The bottom line is that there existed a time when Tamil and Sanskrit were
developed almost simultaneously by developing grammar for them.
Assuming that a common language of the masses that
we call Proto-Tamil did exist with naturally evolved Tamil and Sanskrit sounds,
this means that there came a time when Sanskrit and Tamil parts were segregated
and refined independently. That was indicated by the repeated references in
Tamil works that Lord Shiva taught Tamil grammar to Agasthya and Sanskrit
grammar to PaNini.
Even before that segregation was done, speakers of
proto Tamil went far and wide with their language, Pāli. The extent of Sanskrit
words in corrupt forms found in Pāli could not have come through the so-called
Indo- Aryan influence or fresh connect with Sanskrit scholars. These Māgadhās were
very ordinary people that they could not have mingled with educated people.
Their residence as a community with select people in Pukār described in
Silappadhikaram in the beginning of this article testifies this.
Similarly the kind of presence of refined forms of
Sanskrit as found in Tamil language could not have come through contact with
Sanskrit. The Sanskrit component had existed originally in Proto Tamil and was
carried over to refined Tamil.
It may not be out of place to mention here that
Porunars had a Goddesses whose name is very much Sanskrit.
In the Sangam period composition by name “Pounar ARRu-p-padi” a PaNan guides a Porunar on how to
reach the palace of the great king KarikAl Cholan so that he could give his
performance and get paid by the king.
In that composition it is said that the deity “Matangi” resides in the Yazh (veena like instrument)
of the Porunar! (15)
Matangi
is a Sanskrit name and the presence of
this Goddess in Tamil lands is almost unknown. But a Porunar of ancient Tamil
lands held her as his deity, residing in his musical instrument. So much for
the presence of Sanskrit and also of the Hindu deities in Tamil lands!
From another angle, this deity stands as a proof for
Shāka Dweepa connection to Tamil Porunars. According to Devi Bhagavata Purana, Shakambhari is another
name for Matangi! Though there is a story connected with that, the words and Shāka
and ambhara could mean the sweet smell of Shāka or the garment made from the shāka
tree.
Thus there are too many links to olden Tamil for Pāli
and Māgadhās.
To recap the salient features discussed so far:
1. Porunar belonged to Pālai lands of olden Tamil lands.
2. Porunar and Māgadhās
share the same traits, works and life style.
3. Māgadhās were kshatriyas of Shāka Dweepa.
4. Shāka Dweepa is where the olden Pandyan lands
existed.
5. Māgadhās moved over to Indian main land from Pālai or it could be from Pāzhi.
6. Their
connection to Pālai or Pāzhi gave them an identity as or with Pāli.
7. With their
spread throughout India (as they made a living in capital cities of kingdoms),
their dialect spread throughout India and got into the dialects of the
localities where they settled. That is how the language Pāli could have become an olden dialect of common people
almost all over India.
Here another question arises:
Did Pāli speakers retain retroflex phonemes if it is
true that they originated from Shāka Dweepa or Tamil Pālai or Pāzhi lands?
It is true that not everyone can pronounce the
retroflex sounds. Persons having thick
tongue would find it difficult to pronounce this phoneme. This gives a genetic pre-requisite for
a person to be able to pronounce retroflex words.
Tamil has many words having this phoneme, but most
of them have come into disuse today. This must have happened over a period of
time, due to the inability of the speakers to use them in speech. This implies
that the genetic track of original Tamils had gone astray. Today not many
people who claim Tamil as their mother tongue can pronounce ‘zha’.
Globally, retroflex phonemes are found only in
certain regions / languages. They are present in the languages of South Asia
(India in particular) in Australian aborigines and in China but conspicuously
absent in Europe. Studies on retroflex phoneme show that the supposedly
Dravidian language Brahui has very low incidence of this phoneme. The spread of
people from the region of Brahui or Elam to South India is ruled out based on
the absence of this phoneme in their speech.
But did Māgadhās possess the ability to pronounce
retroflex phonemes?
To find an answer let us take a look at a study
published in 2016 on the presence of retroflex sounds across India.
A bird’s eye view of the results can be seen in the
map below. The higher value shows increase in frequency of retroflex phonemes.
It is marked in red and it tapers to lighter shades for less frequency.
The frequency is high in South Indian states of
Kerala and Tamilnadu, in the central region of Vindhyas, in East Rajasthan and
in regions covering river Yamuna.
The above study can be interpreted by AIT supporters
as a proof of movement of people from Indus region to south India – a migration
caused by invading or incoming Aryans. But from the point of view of the inputs
discussed above, the movement seems to have happened from South west seas
(Arabian Sea) to Indian main lands with higher concentration in South India and
spread through Vindhyan valley and Gujarat to Yamuna and middle Ganges regions.
Matsya Desa of the Ithihasas continues to have high level of retroflex sounds
even now. The eastern banks of Saraswathi River also show presence of this
sound, though it is not as high as in Matsya desa or Tamil lands.
This phoneme present in more than three fourth area
of India, with higher concentration in south and south west India follows a
track of expansion of Ancient
South Indian (ASI) ancestry across
India.
Surprisingly its incidence is low in the region of Magadha
– today’s Bihar. The only interpretation could be that those locals, the
speakers of Pāli, the Māgadhās had moved out of Magadha with the rise of urban
culture and change of kingdoms after Buddha’s times. Or they had aligned
themselves with the new and emerging culture and the language of the region
leaving out Pāli to the pages of history and Buddhist canons!
Location of North Pāzhi identified.
There is something serendipitous in this map!
Eastern region of Rajasthan is having high frequency
of retroflex sounds!
This region has place named “Pālī ”
and a district also named Pālī !
The currently held meanings of this Pālī
as Palli, Pallika, wadi etc are very much in sync with Tamil meanings for Pāzhi
as resting place for animals, place to sleep (Palli with retroflex l), city
etc.
The serendipitous discovery comes from the
geological revelation of this place as being a pre-historic site having “emerged
from the vast western sea spread over a large part of the present day
Rajasthan” (16)
This also implies that Pālī region was
very large and extended till sea shore.
Pazhi means dock yard or a port in Tamil.
Let us recall the name South Pāzhi of Pandyan lands.
If there was a “south” Pāzhi, it automatically pre-supposes that a “North”
Pāzhi also existed!
This trend of naming by directional location is
there in Tamil lands. There was South Madurai from where the Pandyans of 1st
Sangam age ruled. The specific prefix as South shows that there were two
Madurais at that time itself. The other Madurai was Madurai of the North. The North Madurai was Mathura of Krishna! All Tamil works
including those of Azhwars recognised Mathura as North Madurai (Vada Madurai - வட
மதுரை )
Pālī of Rajasthan very much fits in the picture as
North Pāzhi which also must have been a sea port by the name of it. Archaeological
search in the region between Pālī district and the current sea shore could yield
rich dividends.
The high incidence of retroflex phonemes in this
part of Rajasthan and Yamuna’s banks show the presence of ASI from a past that
shared similar ancestry with people of Shāka Dweepa and Tamil lands of 1st
Sangam age when 49 habitats existed in the Indian Ocean.
Tail piece on Yamuna:
Generally proper nouns are pronounced in the same
way in all languages. For example Ganga is called as Ganga and Saraswathi is
called as Saraswathi in all languages including Tamil. But Yamuna is an
exception as far as Tamil language is concerned. It is called as “Thozhunai” (தொழுநை)
with the retroflex ‘zha’ in it. Thozhunai means cow shed!
Cow shed translates as Gotra in Sanskrit! The early
Rig Vedic sages settled along Yamuna only. The retroflex phonemes in Rig Vedas
are something which further strengthens the idea of movement of people from
South Seas. We will discuss it in another context and for the time being continue with the
discussion on the other features of Kon Nedumaran’s expedition to the Himalayas.
References:-
(1) ‘Pāli Literature’, by Kenneth Ṛoy Norman,
professor of Sanskrit & Pāli, Cambridge University, UK
(3) Silappadhikaram – Ch 26, lines 74 & 75.
(4) Silappadhikaram – Ch 5, line 48
(5) Madurai-k-kanchi – lines 670-671
(6) Valmiki Ramayana – 2-26-12
(8) Vishnu Purana:- ch – 1- 13
(9) Manu Smriti – Ch 10- 11
(10) Thol Kappiyam :- Porul adhikaram - 74 (Pura-th- thiNai Iyal)
(11) ThirukkuraL – 648
"விரைந்து
தொழில்கேட்கும்
ஞாலம்
நிரந்தினிது
சொல்லுதல் வல்லார்ப் பெறின்."
சொல்லுதல் வல்லார்ப் பெறின்."
(12) PuRapporuL VeNba Maalai – 166.
(13) PuRapporuL VeNba Maalai – 166.
வெள்ளம் போல் தானை வியந்து விரிவாரை
எள்ளி உணர்தல் இயல்பன்று - தெள்ளியார்
ஆறுமேல் ஆறியபின் அன்றித் தம் கைக்கொள்ளார்
நீறுமேல் பூத்த நெருப்பு
எள்ளி உணர்தல் இயல்பன்று - தெள்ளியார்
ஆறுமேல் ஆறியபின் அன்றித் தம் கைக்கொள்ளார்
நீறுமேல் பூத்த நெருப்பு
(14) Thiruvilaiyaadal Puranam – Thiru Nattuch
Chirappu:- verse 56
விடையு கைத்தவன்
பாணினிக்
கிலக்கண
மேனாள்
வடமொ ழிக்குரை தாங்கியல் மலயமா முனிக்குத்
திடமு றுத்தியம் மொழக்கெதி ராக்கிய தென்சொல்
மடம கட்கரங் கென்பது வழுதிநா டன்றோ
வடமொ ழிக்குரை தாங்கியல் மலயமா முனிக்குத்
திடமு றுத்தியம் மொழக்கெதி ராக்கிய தென்சொல்
மடம கட்கரங் கென்பது வழுதிநா டன்றோ
(15) Porunar ARRUp padai – 20
அணங்கு
மெய்
நின்ற
அமை
வரு
காட்சி = யாழிற்குரிய தெய்வம்
தன்னிடத்தேநின்ற இலக்கணம் அமைதல்வரும் அழகு.
யாழிற்குரிய
தெய்வம் மாதங்கி; சீவக. 411,
550, ந.
(To be continued)
