1.6 Scripts and Languages of India

The prime languages steadily divided and formed their own respective scripts and set of grammatical rules. This era, where one could clearly distinguish between different languages, organized the way in which people communicated and preserved knowledge. People soon started to leave behind the raw and organic methods which required humans to use their senses and physically be involved in both sending and receiving information. Reading and writing became and still continues to be increasingly popular where people have to only use their minds to understand and process the information.

The museum intends to provide visitors with both environments:

1. Raw, natural spaces which require humans to be aware of the surrounding and engage in activities

2. Spaces which are organized and, in some way, restrict your actions and choices but also show the vastness and depths of ancient and existing languages.

Figure 1.6.1 A table showing the name ‘Ram” written in many of the scripts of India 1.6 Scripts and Languages of India

Latin, Hieroglyphics and the scripts of Indian languages such as Sanskrit are full scripts. Sanskrit, is a highly evolved language however, according to author Devdutt Pattanaik, it holds no script of its own. It was written down in Pali and Prakrit first and then in Brahmi which branched out into many different versions such as Siddham, Sharda and Grantha. (It is said in Jain tradition that Sage Rishabh passed on the first script to his daughter Brahmi thus introducing the Brahmi script).

Similarities in terms of meanings of words, are not only found between Pali and Sanskrit but also Pali and many Buddhist scripts used today, such as Singhalese and other Sri Lankan languages. Prakrit too, has been divided quite structurally for people to form several other languages based on their form and background. For example, Dramili was spoken by forest-dwellers and Avanti was spoken by cheats and rogues.

Traces of ancient symbols are evident in the initial Brahmi Scripts and even the Tamil scripts which people use till today. These scripts further evolved into modern scripts such as Devanagari, and Urdu since the nineteenth century.

As explained previously, Devdutt Pattanaik writes:

‘The brahmins resisted putting down Sanskrit in writing and preferred the oral tradition (shruti). It was the Buddhist and Jain scholars who chose the written word over the oral word…...in Pali and Prakrit’

Using the example of Ramayana, he explains the timeline of the evolution of Indian languages. ‘The story of Ramayana was transmitted orally for centuries, from 500 BCE onwards, reaching its final form in Sanskrit by 200 BCE.’

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Figure 1.6.2 A timleine of the Ramanayas written in different languages

Figure 1.6.3 An image of a document written in Pali Prof Devy’s research has revealed that Pali is a language in which initially (for a breif period of time) there were no tenses other than the present tense; the past tense, future tense and other tenses were introduced later on. This means that people spoke in terms of ‘what is’, what exists at that moment. Prakrit too is a language which is said to respect the rawness and the present situation of nature. The etymology of the word ‘Prakrit’ shows that it is derived from ‘prakrta’ which means natural or original, and/or it is derived from the word ‘prakriti’ which means ‘making or placing before or at first, the original/natural form or condition of anything, original or primary substance’.

The idea of conversing in the present tense is still respected in Sanskrit, in the form of shlokas. Most shlokas convey what exists, they do not have a tense other than the present thus indicating the conveyance of the ‘universal truth’ which exists from the beginning of time till the end. These studies prove that Pali was the ‘Language of Truth’, since by speaking Pali humans were contemporaneous, they were a lot more aware of their surroundings and situations. Compared to today’s situation, people were more connected to and conscious of the truth; today people seem to be lost in a sea of existential crisis. As time passes people have to dig deeper and deeper to find the truth.

It is believed that not just the use of ancient languages, but also ancient practices help in bringing people closer to the truth; helping them in realizing the core and crux of all tangible and intangible objects can be understood. Devdutt Pattanaik states:

‘….. one has to align the language heard (stories) with the language performed (rituals) and the language seen (symbol). All dissonances have

Scholars agree that the main aim of chanting Sanskrit shlokas is to unify people. The chanting generates energy from within the body and its waves are amplified in a ripple effect, reaching out to other people from the source point. As people gather, they focus on the present moment by concentrating on their own rhythm of speech and breath thus uniting with the ‘truth’.

Figure 1.6.4 Sketch of a group of people in meditation

Sanskrit is a very refined language. It has been carefully composed to respect a constant set of rules or patterns while both speaking and writing. Prof. Egenes, in his book Introduction to Sanskrit, explains these rubrics:

‘A syllable in Sanskrit is classified as either laghu (light) or guru (heavy)……The classical Sanskrit found in Hindu scriptures such as the Bhagavad Gita and many texts are so arranged that the light and heavy syllables in them follow a rhythm, though not necessarily a rhyme’

There is also a particular technique in which this language is meant to be spoken. Prof. A.M. Ruppel in The Cambridge introduction to Sanskrit, describes the system of sounds in Sanskrit:

‘[The] order of Sanskrit sounds works along three principles: it goes from simple to complex; it goes from the back to the front of the mouth; and it groups similar sounds together...... Among themselves, both the vowels and consonants are ordered according to where in the mouth they are pronounced, going from back to front.’

One rudimentary example of this system is the chanting of “Om”. The rule for chanting ‘Om” is to sense or believe that the sound is being created from inside the navel region starting with ‘O’. The origin point of the sound gradually travels upwards to finish at the edge of the mouth with the ‘m’ sound with closed lips. As part of the program, it important for the museum to incorporate activities which support the essence of Indian Language. Gathering spaces should be created and occupied by traditional performances and activities. Spaces should be dedicated to the practices of yoga and meditation. This way the museum, and therefore the languages remain interactive and connected to the people.

The transmission of knowledge has always been vital in the Indian tradition. Mythological stories such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata do not end with just the victory of heroes, but the transmission of knowledge from the person who dies to the victor of the war. Each event described the Bhagavad Gita focuses more on the knowledge communicated between people (whether it be in the form of advice, a person’s thoughts and perspective or the revelation of the truth) rather than the end result. The methods of knowledge transfer have ‘progressed’ in a way, throughout these centuries, however, these methods themselves have led to the loss of the vernaculars. Thus, the ancient knowledge gradually lost its essence in its raw form, which is perhaps the reason for those activities and languages to not be a part of daily practices.

Figure 1.6.5 An illustration showing the process of transfering knowledge from Ravan’s ten heads to Ram’s brain before Ravan dies

The museum aims to introduce traditional activities of arts and crafts as part of the program, which are an amalgamation of many subjects. Each part of India is unique as it holds its own rich culture and heritage yet blending with the rest. Each of these cultures should be celebrated by the center creating awareness of the existing diversity amongst the people. The museum can be completely dedicated to one state or part of India for a certain period of time. Various artists of that place should be invited and honored for the revival of such activities. As explained earlier, scripts were initially introduced to record mathematical information. That method however was exploited (one can say) as humans started recording not only numerical data but other information such as events and stories of the past. This led to a decline in the use of the oral methods of passing on information which had the ability to create memories in people’s minds. Orally reciting events led to discussions and different perspectives were exchanged; more questions were raised which led to more knowledge being passed on. By reading scripts people were not able to interact and justify their own arguments as they used to during conversations. This was the first transformation experienced in history of languages even though the methods of communication had ‘progressed’.

Other experts argue that the use of scripts and languages have provided opportunities to explain more complicated concepts and ideas which cannot be expressed using symbols or actions. One such example is explaining spiritual ideas or the notion of God or a supreme being, which are subjective and personally experienced by each individual. These thoughts or feelings can be described to others using words.