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Education in Ancient India c17: Appendix IV

Education in Ancient India c17

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English

Appendix IV

c17.1

FOUR VEDAS, SIX ANGAS, TEN GRANTHAS; FOURTEEN VIDYĀS, EIGHTEEN ŚILPAS AND SIXTY-FOUR KALĀS.

c17.2

In connection with the curriculum in ancient India, the above expressions are frequently used; we therefore propose to explain them briefly in this appendix.

c17.3

Four Vedas :—They are the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda and the Atharvaveda. These were regarded as revealed, but there was a time when a deep prejudice was entertained against the Atharvaveda, which was therefore excluded from studies. The remaining three Vedas were therefore called Trayī.

c17.4

Six Angas :—These were the following; 1 Śikshā, the science of pronunciation; Kalpa, the science of ritualism; Vyākarana, grammar; Nirukta, philology, Chandas, prosody, and Jyotisha, astronomy.

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Dasa Granthas:—These were the following: 1 One's own Veda 2 Its Brāhmana 3 and Aranyaka 4 Nighantu and the six Angas enumerated above. A graduate, who had mastered all these, was known as a Daśagranthī Brahmana.

c17.6

Fourteen Vidyas: During the Pauranic period, a person was regarded as a distinguished scholar if he had mastered fourteen Vidyās. These were usually taken to be 1-4 Vedas, 5-10 Shadangas, 11 Dharma-śāstra (sacred and secular law) 12 Purānas; 13 Mīmānsā (science of exegis) and 14 Tarka (logic)

c17.7

Eighteen Silpas : There is no authoritative enumeration of eighteen śilpas. In one place the Milinda-pañha includes the four Vedas, the Purāṇas, philosophy, history, etc. among them (Vol. I, p. 6), but there is no doubt that this is wrong. The basic conception of śilpas is a profession requiring special skill¹ and the Vedic age denoted by this term arts like vocal music, instrumentalmusic and dancing² Taxila university claimed to specialise in eighteen śilpas, and archery, military art, medicine, magic, snake charming and the art of finding treasures figure among the subjects taught there³. These five therefore must have been included in the śilpas. Conveyancing and law, mathematics, accountancy, agriculture, commerce, cattle breeding, and issatha (?) are also mentioned as śilpas in the Buddhist literature.⁴ When we remember the basic idea of śilpa, we can include sculpture and engineering also among the traditional eighteen śilpas. The following therefore most probably constituted the eighteen śilpas.

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¹ एतद्वि दिव्यं शिल्पं न मानुषम् । Kss., XXV, 175

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² त्रिवृद्वै शिल्पं नृत्यं गीतं वादित्रम् । S. Br., XXIX, 5

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³ Jātakas Nos. 80 and 537; Mahāvagga, VII. 1. 6; Jātaka Nos 185., 256 & 416.

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⁴ M. N., Vol. I p. 85, A. N., Vol. IV pp. 281-2.

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1 Vocal music 2 Instrumental music 3 Dancing 4 Painting 5 Mathematics 6 Accountancy 7 Engineering 8 Sculpture 9 Agriculture 10 Cattle-breeding 11 Commerce 12 Medicine 13 Conveyancing and Law 14 Administrative training 15 Archery and military art 16 Magic 17 Snake charming and poison antidotes 18 The Art of finding hidden treasures.

c17.13

Sixty-four Kalās : According to Vātsyāyana I.3.16, the following are the traditional sixty-four Kalās, which a cultured lady was expected to master:—

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१ गीतम् २ वाद्यम् ३ नृत्यम् ४ आलेख्यम् ५ विशेषकच्छेद्यम् ६ तण्डुलकुसुमवलिविकाराः ७ पुष्पास्तरणम् ८ दशनवसनांगरागः ९ मणिभूमिकाकर्म १० शयनरचनम् ११ उदकवाद्यम् १२ उदकाघातः १३ चित्राश्च योगाः १४ माल्यग्रथनविकल्पाः १५ शेखरकापीडयोजनम् १६ नेपथ्यप्रयोगाः १७ कर्णपत्रभंगाः १८ गन्धयुक्तिः १९ भूषणयोजनम् २० ऐन्द्रजालाः २१ कौचुमाराश्च योगाः २२ हस्तलाघवम् २३ विचित्रशाकयूषभक्ष्यविकारक्रिया २४ पानकरसागरासवयोजनम् २५ सूचीवानकर्माणि २६ सूत्रक्रीडा २७ वीणा-डमरुकवाद्यानि २८ प्रहेलिका २९ प्रतिमाला ३० दुर्वाचकयोगाः ३१ पुस्तकवाचनम् ३२ नाटकाख्यायिकादर्शनम् ३३ काव्यसमस्यापूरणम् ३४ पट्टिका-वेत्रवानविकल्पः ३५ तक्षककर्माणि ३६ तक्षणम् ३७ वास्तुविद्या ३८ रूप्य-रत्नपरीक्षा ३९ धातुवादः ४० मणियाकरज्ञानम् ४१ वृक्षायुर्वेदयोगाः ४२ मेषकुक्कुटलावकयुद्धविधिः ४३ शुकसारिकाप्रलापनम् ४४ उत्सादने संवाहने केशमर्दने च कौशलम् ४५ अक्षरमुष्टिकाकथनम् ४६ म्लेच्छित-विकल्पाः ४७ देशभाषाविज्ञानम् ४८ पुष्पशकटिका ४९ निमित्तज्ञानम् ५० यन्त्रमातृका ५१ धारणामातृका ५२ सम्पाठ्यम् ५३ मानसीकाव्यक्रियाः ५४ अभिधानकोशः ५५ छन्दोज्ञानम् ५६ क्रियाकल्पः ५७ छलितकयोगाः ५८ वस्त्रगोपनानि ५९ द्यूतविशेषः ६० आकर्षणक्रीडा ६१ बालक्रीडनकानि ६२-४ वैनयिकीनां वैजयिकीनां व्यायामिकीनां च विद्यानां ज्ञानम्।

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Owing to want of space it is not possible to explain the meaning of each of the 64 kalās enumerated above. It would suffice to say that Nos. 23-4 refer to the art of cooking, Nos. 5, 8, 15 and 44 to personal toilette of women requiring skill in the use of ointments for the body, paints for the teeth, etc. Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 27 enumerate fine arts like music, dancing and painting. Arts necessary for home and personal decorations are mentioned in Nos. 6, 7, 9, 10 14-19, 48 and 58 and they include garland making, decoration of the floor, the preparation of the bed, proper use and care of dress and ornaments etc. Women, who were usually fond of ornaments, were expected to be able to appreciate correctly the value and quality of the different varieties of gold, etc, and Nos. 38-40 refer to the capacity in this connection. Arts useful for the housewife like sewing, patching, elementary carpentry, repairs of household tools and articles are mentioned in Nos. 25,33,35-6,37,41,44, and 49. Literary efficiency and skill of different variety is presupposed by Nos. 28-31,33,45-47 and 51-57. They require women to be skilled in reading, writing, understanding different languages, composing poems, understanding dramas, etc. Nos. 12 and 64 refer to different physical exercises and Nos. 11,20,22,26,42, 43,57,59,60 mention recreations for utilising leisure hours. The latter include magic, sleights of hand, dyūta etc. No. 61 requires every woman to know how to prepare toys for children.

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It will be thus seen that the 64 arts, which a woman was expected to master, endowed her with a healthy physique, taught her all arts necessary for an economic and an efficient housewife and made her a cultured companion of her husband, who could introduce her to any company of educated men and women. It is obvious that only ladies in higher sections of society could have got proficiency in 64 arts. What was their percentage we do not know.

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