shastra

Sanskrit texts which evolved in intellectual circles through predominantly oral tradition in India. A theory of knowledge which is basic to a Shastra has certain peculiar characteristics: (i) It believes in the validity of word revealed or otherwise as a source of knowledge. Indian cultural tradition positing faith in efficacy of word re-inforces this belief. (ii) Any Shastra is discovery of pre-existing knowledge. This underlines the importahistory of ideas than its formulation or rather interpretation by an individual author. Hence the mythical origin is always invoked. (iii) Individual authorship is not denied but impersonalised revelation of truth or its institutionalised formulation is underlined. This explains anonymity or near-anonymity of authorship of the shastras. (iv) Dates, chronology and biographies of authors are uncertain and ideas, opinions and their competitive co-existence are more important. (v) There is manifest anxiety to show rootedness or unity of knowledge than to emphasise its novelty or divergence. (vi) Each shastra is related to man and his destiny-through a scheme of fair ends of human life. (vii) The language of a shastra is Sanskrit-which gave it a PanIndian character by transcreating regional terms into a refined and polished Idiom. Sanskrit is the word or idiom for an all-India understanding of contents and ideas which may have originated in the circles which did not know or speak Sanskrit.