tion of conquests achieved over barbaric hordes.* The aim of
Kama’s exploits in the southern region, where no mention
occurs of the inhabitants of towns or even of forests and
caves except hermits, apes, bears, vultures, demons and
* The Coromandel provinces on the east of the Peninsula from the Godavery
to Cape Comorin, axe described in all the traditionary accounts as one vast
tract of forest, towhich the name Dandaka or Dandaka-ranya was applied.
It was in these thickets that Rama and Sita resided during theft exile, where
he commenced his war against the Rakshakas, or savages and fiends, who
divided with hermits and sages the possession of the wilderness. After"ihe
subjugation of the savage inhabitants of Dandaka-ranya and the conquest of
Lanka, the northern Hindoos, it is said, performing pilgrimages to the scenes
Of Rama’s exploits settled in the unoccupied country with their families, and
cleared and cultivated tracts where they laid the foundation, of future principalities..
An adventurer of the Velalar or agricultural tribe,, named Pandya,
was thus the founder of the Pandyan kingdom.—(Wilson, Historical Sketch, of
the Kingdom of Pandya, p. 200). The kingdom of Pandion, well known to The
Homans, was doubtless the domain of the Pandya sovereigns.
Notwithstanding the representation given by thé Brahmans, who desGrihe
the inhabitants of the Dekhan as barbarous before the conquest,'there are
some reasons, as we have already observed, for supposing that letters were not
unknown in the southern parts of the Peninsula. ]
This was the opinion of two writers, who, more than all others, were
competent to form a correct judgement on the question, namely, Mr. "Elfilq
of Madras, and Mr. James Prinsep, the discoverer of the ancient Indian, alphabet.
Mr. Ellis observes, that the “ Tamil character, though perfectly competent
to the expression of the language to which it belongs,, is incapable of
representing with precision the sounds and combination of sounds of the Sanskrit.
To remedy this defect,” he says, “ the Brahmans, on their establishment
in Southern India, had but two methods at thek^optiop^tadnfrodnce the
Nagari, if it then existed, or to invent a new character. They preferred the
latter. They analysed the Tamil characters and supplied the symbols wanting
by recombining the lines and curves of these characters.. The alphabet thus
constructed they called Granfham. Mr. Ellis assures us that the Aryam
character which obtains in Canara and Malabar, as well as the Singalése and
Burmah alphabets, are derived from the Grant’ham or modified Tamil of the
Brahmans, while the characters of Java and Sumatra, all nearly connected, are
referrible immediately to the Tamil.”—(Ellis’s Dissertation on the Malayélma
Language.) It was remarked by Dr. Vincent, that nine features were mentioned
by Iambulus, thé voyager cited by Diodorus, as characteristic of the people of
Taprobane, which remark, though discredited by Klaproth, has been shown to
be correct. I t remained to inquire whether his account of the mode of writing
corresponded with facts. This has been proved by Mr. Prinsep.—See Journal
of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, No. 66, page 476.
Iambulus lived before Diodorus: perhaps a century before the Christian era.
He is said to bave resided seyèn years in Taprobane.—SeeDiod. Sic. Mbl., lib.
3.—Vincent on the Periplus of the Erythraean.
t h e d e k h a n a n d it s l a n g u a g e s . 139
magicians, was to deliver holy penitents from the fear of
Ravana and his giants, who possessed not only Lanka or
Ceylon, hut nearly all parts' of the Peninsula. At the
head of these penitent^;was Agastya, celebrated as the
apostle jpf Brahmanism, whose efforts were seconded by
Rama and his warriorsj, After the native princes who in
arms opposed the new doctrine had been subdued, numerous
colonies of Brahmans arrivedl^jj^ the south. The
native population was reduced, as it appears, into a servile
state; hut the distributionl.of castes and the hierarchical
system of the Brahmans were never. broughf?to that
perfection in the Dekhan which; they had attained in Hindustan
« The most;convincing proof that this revolution
really happened, is tojbe found in the languages of the
south-eastern parts of^the Peninsula, whioh, though. em-
lfellished or corrup|(gdvk^;.a mixture of Sanskrit words, yet
remain essentially distinct and afford clear evidence of a
different origin.
The era of this colonisation by Hindoos -is unknpwn,
hut whenever; ;it took place it-, was doubtless cpnnpeftgd with
the introduction of the religion and language ofVfbo Brahmans.
In Dravira they preceded the reigns of the Pandyan
kings who were coeval with tke^ChristiaH^^ the first
sovereigns of that dynasty have Sanskrit oamcS- In tb®
western parts the Sbalukyas pefc ^worshippers of Siva;
their date falls short of the same <eDnques% :and this might
be inferred from the Sanskrit language of the inscriptions
which contain their, .history* The Dekhan had already
jjeen reduced under the sovereigns of India before Buddhism
was spread through jt by order of Asoka, in some of
whose decrees the kingdom, pf Chola is mentioned.hy nam^
This brings us to the third century before the^Christ.ian era.
How long befcre this period1 the Hindu colonisation of the
Dekhan began can nnly he a theme of conjecture. It is
certain, howeyer, that fhe^age of Rama’s warsiin that
country preceded fby some centuries the birth of Sakya
Buddha.
But to return to the.inveptigation of languages:—it has
' been observed, that the, most celebrated Indian gram-
rmarians who have written in Sanskrit regarded the Tamul„