On the Origin of the Indian Brahma Alphabet c5.77

c5.77

On the other hand the descriptions of the political, religious and social condition of the people clearly refer to the ancient time before the rise of the great Eastern dynasties of the Nandas and the Mauryas, when Pāṭaliputra had become the capital of India. The Jātakas mention neither the one nor the other, and they know nothing of great empires which comprised the whole or large parts of India. The number of the kingdoms, whose rulers play a part in the stories, is very considerable. The majority of the names, such as Madra, the two Pañcālas, Kosala, Videha, Kāśi, and Vidarbha agrees with those mentioned in the Vedic literature, while a few others, like Kaliṅga and Assaka *i. e.* Aśmaka or Aśvaka, occur in Brahminical literature first in the Epics and in Pāṇini's Sūtras. The characteristic names of the Andhras, the Pāṇḍyas and Keralas are not mentioned.