The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v1.c7.s2.24

v1.c7.s2.24

Much has been made of the language of the inscriptions of the Sātavāhanas in order to deny their connexion with the Andhras. The form of Prākrit they used is likened to ‘some kind of Proto-Mahārāṣṭrī, having no affinity with the Telugu, the language of the Āndhradeśa.’¹ It is implied in this statement that Prākrit was the mother tongue of the Sātavāhanas, which is far from being true of the Andhras. But as has been ably pointed out by Mr. Somasekhara Sarma,² it is not true that the language of the inscriptions was necessarily the language of the country where these Sātavāhanas had their home, nor is it by any means certain that this was introduced into the Andhra country by the successors of Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi. For the much earlier Bhaṭṭiprolu, Ghaṇṭasāla, and Amarāvatī inscriptions in the Andhra area are inscribed in Prākrit. Indeed Prākrit was the language of the inscriptions not only of the Sātavāhanas but of all the other ruling families of India, with very few exceptions, from 300 B.C. to A.D. 300. It was the language of the court and of the cultured. It was the sacred medium of religious literature and orations. The teachings of Buddha and Mahāvīra were immensely popular during these times and the Pāli they employed for their purposes was only the earlier form of Prākrit written and spoken in those days. As Sanskrit was to the Vedic age, so was Prākrit to this epoch. Whatever had any touch of religion or culture about it came to be expressed in Prākrit. The Sātavāhana and other records of the times registered gifts to Śrāmaṇas and institutions, Buddhist or Jaina. Hence the employment of Prākrit in Sātavāhana records. The celebration of Vedic sacrifices by Śrī Sātakarṇi (II) does not affect this argument in the least. For some time later when Sanskrit was restored to its former eminence Nannaya Bhaṭṭa, the first and greatest Telugu poet, wrote his Telugu grammar in Sanskrit. Therefore, it cannot be said positively that the language of the Sātavāhanas was ‘Proto-Mahārāṣṭrī’. The Prākrit of their inscriptions does not in any way militate against Sātavāhana–Andhra identity.