(The author, former Vice-Chancellor, Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Viswa Mahavidyalaya, Kanchipuram, was invited to attend the World Sanskrit Conference at Bangkok, Thailand, as a panellist. Excerpts from the paper he presented on ‘Bharata’s Natya Sastra and Ancient Tamil Literature.’)
The earliest Indian author to give a call to use Tamil in poetry, music and dialogue in plays was Bharata, the author of ‘Natya Sastra,’ 2,200 years ago. The date of Natya sastra is not settled yet but there seems to be no doubt that it goes back earlier than at least two centuries prior to the Christian era, as most of the great poets, dramatists and thinkers, who came after him (Bharata), such as Basa and Kalidasa have specifically mentioned its influence on their poetry and dance drama. The value of this text has not been properly appreciated so far. Most people think that this is a work only on dance and drama, but it gives norms and structures for use of languages, composition of poetry, aesthetics of poetry, rules for musical compositions, manufacture of stringed instruments, percussion instruments, wind instruments, the mode of playing them, the qualifications of musicians, and their art, directions for poets, use of paintings, colour, costume design, customs and manners of people, besides the fundamentals of dance and drama.
The text is written in simple Sanskrit but gives the technical names of various arts which have come down to this day. The book mainly aims that every region must be benefitted by its use to the last man, to appreciate dance and music as a reflection of the people of that region. So Bharata emphasised on regional styles and languages in the renderings. In dealing with languages he has discussed alphabets, syllables, composition of words, syntax, musical swaras and their grammar. In one chapter he deals with Sanskrit and in another he calls Bhaashas i.e., regional languages. He recommends the use of Sanskrit by mythical characters, gods and goddesses, Kings, Vedic Brahmanas, Buddhist monks and others.
Bharata states four different languages, in general, to be employed in poetry, music and dance, namely the natural language of the region (Prakriti), colloquial words in popular usage (vibhramsa), regional or border languages and Sanskrit. Amazingly the earliest Tamil grammarian Tholkaappiar, recommends the use of the same set of languages in Tamil poetry. The emphasis on regional languages made Natyasastra the greatest text to have ever been written, which was quickly adopted in a vast region of Asia and South East Asia from Afghanistan in the east to India, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Laos and even Japan and China, as seen in their sculpture, painting, music and dance. People 2,000 years ago were aware of language as a tool of communication. Each region was quick to benefit by the concepts of Natyasastra, adapt them to the genius of their own region and bring out the fascination for the arts.
Maha Chakri Srindorn, of the Thai royal family, who graced the Sanskrit conference, wrote “Sanskrit - my personal treasure.” In Ancient times merchants and Brahmins from the Indian sub-continent came to explore this part of the world. They brought with them the Indian civilisation, which blended with local cultures and beliefs. It had an impact on South Asian religions and administrative systems, concepts of law and legality, arts of all branches and most important of all, the Sanskrit language and literature. The Princess goes on to state that she was inspired by her grand mother, the queen mother of Thailand, who was also a great Sanskrit scholar who could write books, etc.” Inscriptions declare that many queens were an expert in Sanskrit.
We witness here that Sanskrit poses no threat to any region. On the other hand it helped each region to flourish. It has also served as a unifying factor among vast human races. The role of musicians and dancers in this field is enormous. This emerged in the recently concluded World Sanskrit Conference at Bangkok, Thailand. In 2001 when the Sanskrit conference was held in Bangkok only 14 countries participated but this year 55 countries participated attesting to the realisation of Sanskrit's contribution to world culture.
