History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c23.s6.2

v1.c23.s6.2

Usage of animal skin by ascetics is mentioned in the Ṛgveda. This text is dated by Kane between B.C.4000- 1000. Vedic texts refer to animal skins as ajina Macdonnell, and Keith, p.14, ajina, q.v. The bark cloth tradition which is so rich in Africa and the Pacific Islands, is relatively weak in India. Valkala, a bark cloth worn by ascetics, is mentioned in the Yājñavalkya-smṛti and the Mahābhārata (Monier Williams, p.928 Valkala q.v.; Sardesai and Padhya, p.61). The Yājñavalkyasmṛti and Mahābhārata have been dated respectively between A.D. 100-300 (Kane,) and between B.C. 4th century to A.D.4th century (Winternitz, p.465, Krishnamoorthy, p.272). Both these texts refer to a bark cloth, potti in usage in the districts of Ganjam in Orissa and Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. It is not clear if this has been confused with the woven bast fibre, pāṭa, which, according to Professor R.S. Singh (formerly of the Department of Rasa Shastra, Institute Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi), is derived from a plant of the Malvaceae family, the fabric being called Pāṭu (see below paṭṭa n.10).