On the Aindra School of Sanskrit Grammarians, their Place in the Sanskrit and Subordinate Literatures c8.45

c8.45

The question of such modifications as these, and the results produced by them was first treated by Burnouf in the prefaces² to the several volumes of his edition and translation of the Bhāgavata Purāṇa; he there remarked the strong Vaiṣṇava tendency not only of the Mahābhārata but also of the Bhāgavatapurāṇa, and especially the assimilation of Viṣṇu with Nārāyaṇa³. The Rāmāyaṇa also displays a strong Vaiṣṇava tendency⁴. It is evident that this is the natural consequence of the vedāntism of Çaṅkarācārya which identifies Viṣṇu-Nārāyaṇa with the Supreme Being¹); this system is by far the most popular in the Peninsula, and has had the most influence in literature. The subsequent Vaiṣṇava reforms (of Rāmānujācārya and Madhvācārya) came comparatively late, and certainly did not lead to any alterations of texts. The literature to which they gave rise consists chiefly of commentaries on original works the text of which was already settled.