Matsya Purana (critical study)
by Kushal Kalita | 2018 | 74,766 words | ISBN-13: 9788171103058
This page relates 鈥楧ate of the Matsyapurana鈥� of the English study on the Matsya-purana: a Sanskrit text preserving ancient Indian traditions and legends written in over 14,000 metrical verses. In this study, the background and content of the Matsyapurana is outlined against the cultural history of ancient India in terms of religion, politics, geography and architectural aspects. It shows how the encyclopedic character causes the text to deal with almost all the aspects of human civilization.
Go directly to: Footnotes.
Part 3 - Date of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺
M. Winternitz, in A History of Indian Literature says that the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is one of the older works of the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 Literature.
In his words,
鈥淭his again, is one of the older works of the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 literature or at least one of those which have preserved the most ancient text and do fair justice to the definition of a 鈥槺食馨遽箛a鈥�.鈥� [1]
The 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is counted as one of the earliest and most authoritative 笔耻谤腻峁嘺s along with the 叠谤补丑尘腻峁囜笉补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 and the 痴腻测耻辫耻谤腻峁嘺.[2] V. S. Agrawala is also of the opinion that the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is one of the oldest 笔耻谤腻峁嘺s, the two other being 叠谤补丑尘腻峁囜笉补 and 痴腻测耻.[3] Dr. R.G. Bhandarkar stated that the 痴腻测耻辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is the oldest and the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is next to it.[4] This 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 which has high value from different aspects including political and historical must be studied thoroughly. But the study of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 cannot fully serve its purpose unless it is correlated to the age in which the text of the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 was compiled. Without fixing the date of the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 a fruitful study is bound to lose its desirable perspective. Hence the study on the compilation period of the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 must be done.
The eminent scholars have indicated many important points regarding the period of 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺. V. R. R. Dikshitar has said that the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is posterior to the 艢补迟补辫补迟丑补产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺 as the legendary account of the flood as found in the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 is originally found in the 艢补迟补辫补迟丑补产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺, the date of which is established back to the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺s.[5] Again, it is said by the same author that this 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 is post-P膩峁噄nian and post 础谤迟丑补艣腻蝉迟谤补 too.[6] In the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 itself the mention of the 础谤迟丑补艣腻蝉迟谤补 can be found in many passages.[7] In the introductory part of 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 Index, V.R.R. Dikshitar points out that 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 has included Adhisi峁僰峁涐梗峁嘺, the Paurava king in its list of kings. The Guptas are not mentioned.[8] It clearly hints at the fact that the last redaction of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 must have taken place not later than the commencement of the Gupta period. Guptas commenced their rule from about 320 A.D. Hence 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 may have come to its present form before 320 A.D. According to P.V. Kane, the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 cannot be later than the sixth century A.D.[9] Acharya Baldeva Upadhyaya places 惭补迟蝉补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 between the second century and fourth century A.D.[10] F. E. Pargiter is of the opinion that in the last quarter of the third century A.D., the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 borrowed from the 叠丑补惫颈峁补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 the shorter account of the future dynasties which concluded with the downfall of the Andhras and local kingdom survived them. While the 叠丑补惫颈峁补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 account was extended down to the time when the Gupta kingdom had acquired the territories assigned to it, its language was revised about 320-325 A.D. Pargiter further says that the date of the 痴腻测耻辫耻谤腻峁嘺 may be placed not earlier than the middle of the 3rd century A.D. and not later than 335 A.D. and most probably about the last quarter of third century A.D. The 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 may have been composed in the reign of king 驰补箩帽补艣谤墨 of the Andhra dynasty in or about 193 A.D.[11] There is some probability that the compilation was begun in the latter part of the second century in the Andhra king 驰补箩帽补艣谤墨鈥檚 reign. In the 273rd chapter, it is said, navavi峁兣沘ti var峁Ｄ佱箛i yaj帽a艣r墨m 艣腻苍迟颈办补谤峁噄办补岣�[12] which indicates 驰补箩帽补艣谤墨 reigned for 29 years. The Andhra kingdom fell about A.D. 236. Thus the compilation of this 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 might have been carried up to 236 A.D. So the text of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 seems to be composed during the Andhra dynasty i.e., the third century A.D.
However, R.C. Hazra remarks that the date of the earlier form of the present 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 seems to be the same as that of the Matsya's borrowing the chapters of the second group from the 痴腻测耻 i.e. about the last quarter of the third or the first quarter of the fourth century A.D.[13] According to P. V. Kane, it was in between 300 A.D. and 600 A.D.[14]
Professor V.R.R. Dikshitar spreads up the date of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺:
鈥淥ver a number of centuries commencing probably with the third or fourth century B.C. and ending with the third century A.D.鈥�[15]
The 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 account brings the historical narrative down to about the middle of the third century and no further.[16] From this survey it is clear that there is a diversity of opinion regarding the problem of the date of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺. The 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 also alludes to the concept of 惫测奴丑补 which is datable to the second century A.D. Furthermore, the chronological analysis of the different chapters of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 by R. C. Hazra shows that some of the chapters are datable to the last quarter of the third or the first quarter of the fourth century A.D., while some are datable to 1250 A.D.[17]
From the above discussion it is clear that it is very difficult to assign a general date to the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 because the chronological analysis of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 shows that the different dates will have to be assigned to different chapters and this means that the date of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 will have to be spread over a very long time period.
Professor V.R.R. Dikshitar rightly says,
鈥淭he 笔耻谤腻峁嘺s then constitute a work of various periods in succession. For example one and the same 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 may have spread over a long period of some centuries. The kernel of the 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 may have been born in the earlier times, and its contents could be amplified in the course of the following centuries.鈥�[18]
Thus from all the evidences produced by the learned scholars regarding the date of the 惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺 it can be inferred that the probable date of this 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 may be spread over from 4th Century B.C. to 1250 A.D.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
M. Winternitz, A History Of Indian Literature, Volume I, p. 575
[3]:
Cf., V.S. Agrawala, Matsya 笔耻谤腻峁嘺-A Study, Preface, p. iii
[4]:
Cf., R.G Bhandarkar, Early History of the Dekkan, p. 39
[5]:
Cf., V.R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, The Matsya 笔耻谤腻苍补-A Study, pp. 71-72; pp.36-37
[6]:
Cf., Ibid., pp. 38-39
[7]:
惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺, 7.63; 10.32; 24.2
[8]:
Cf., V.R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 Index, Volume I, Introduction, XXIII
[9]:
Cf., P.V. Kane, History of 顿丑补谤尘补艣腻蝉迟谤补, Volume IV, Chronological Table, p. X
[12]:
惭补迟蝉测补辫耻谤腻峁嘺, 273.14
[13]:
R.C.Hazra, Studies in the Pur膩峁噄c Records on Hindu Rites and Customs, p.32
[14]:
P.V.Kane, History of 顿丑补谤尘补艣腻蝉迟谤补, Volume IV, Chronological Table, p. X
[15]:
V.R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, The Matsya 笔耻谤腻苍补-A Study, pp. 71-72
[16]:
F.E. Pargiter, op.cit., Introduction, p.xii
[17]:
R.C.Hazra, 鈥楾he dates of the 厂尘峁泃颈-chapters of the Matsya 笔耻谤腻峁嘺鈥�, Annals of the Bhandarkar oriental Research Institute, Volume XVII, Part 1, p.1-36
[18]:
V.R. Ramachandra Dikshitar, The 笔耻谤腻峁嘺 Index, Volume I, Introduction, pp. XVI-XVII