History of Bengali Language and Literature c6.s8.23

c6.s8.23

Though Buddhism, as we have said, gave Bengali its first impetus towards the attainment of a literary status, the Sanskritic School afterwards took it up in right earnest and set themselves to the task of embellishing it. Let us take a survey of Hindu society in its entirety, after the downfall of Buddhism. The attempts of the revivalists to introduce the spirit of Paurāṇik religion amongst the masses were directed in various channels. There were the Yatrās, or popular theatres; Kathakatās or narratives and recitations to which we shall have to refer hereafter; the Pāthas, or readings from Sanskrit texts; the Kīrtanas, singing by the Vaiṣṇavas; and other similar organised efforts to popularise the creed of the Paurāṇik religion all over Bengal. The influence of these institutions upon the popular mind was immense. No village in Bengal, however humble it might be, was without them. Not only did they form a perennial source of amusement to the people, but they formed the mission and the propaganda of Paurāṇik religion. The whole atmosphere of Bengal was permeated by these influences; and as Sanskrit texts formed their main basis, a greater number of Sanskrit words was every day imported into Bengali and a closer contact with Sanskritic forms made the ear constantly keener in the perception of faultly expression. Thus the process of self-correction held an uninterrupted course.