History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c90.112

v7.c90.112

The author's position about the Purāṇas is as follows: We know hardly anything about the Purāṇa mentioned in Atharvaveda, the Śatapatha and the ancient Upaniṣads; but this much is clear that Purāṇa had attained a status of sacredness like the Vedas and was closely associated with Itihāsa even in Vedic times. This is the first stage in the evolution of Purāṇa Literature, but we know nothing about the contents of the Purāṇa in those ancient times. The Tai. Ā. mentions *Purāṇāni*; therefore in its time there must have been three Purāṇas at least. As Āp. Dh. S. quotes four verses from a Purāṇa and expressly names Bhaviṣyatpurāṇa, it follows that by the 5th or 4th century B. C. at the latest there was in existence a Bhaviṣyat-purāṇa and other Purāṇas or a Purāṇa, that contained sarga and pratisarga and some Smṛti material. This we may regard as the 2nd definite stage of Purāṇa Literature, of the contents of which we have some traces at least.