The Pali Language

The Pali Language (inflected language) has undoubtedly a high claim to the attention of the literary world. It has long been a contested point whether the Pali or Sanskrit is the more ancient language of India. It is certain, that Pali was (the popular dialect of the native country of Magadh. Its literature contains a considerable number of volumes both in prose and verse; which, whatever may be their merits in. In some respects, form the only authentic depositary of Buddhism, and the learning in general of Ceylon, and the whole of India beyond the Ganges, to which the Pali now is, and has been for many centuries, what Sanskrit is in India Proper, and Latin in Europe.

But although so ancient, so widely spread and containing so many valuable records of antiquity, yet nothing has hitherto been published in respect to the Pali language hence in many excellent papers in the Asiatic Researches it still appears as an unknown world.

Pali is one of the Prakrits of ancient India which was spoken in the sixth century before Christ, and has been a dead language for upwards of two thousand years. It was the dialect of Magadha, or Central Bihar, and was the language in which Gautama Buddha preached. Originally a mere provincial dialect, it was raised by the genius of the great reformer to the dignity of a classic language. It stands to Sanskrit in the relation to a sister. Pali and Sanskrit, though intimately connected, being independent corruptions of the lost Aryan speech which is their common parent.

History and Classification of Languages: The Monosyllabic, the Agglutinated and the Inflected

Sanskrit Vedas

Bihar

Chandragupta, the time when Pali was spoken

Life of Buddha

Bihar, a short story

History of Buddhism

Patna, capital of Bihar

Jainism

The Sinhalese or Sri Lankan Buddhists possess several original poems of some merit, and an extensive and most interesting series of native chronicles, but their most valuable literature is written in Pali, though the greater portion of it has been translated into Sinhalese, and is best known to the people through these Sinhalese translations. The Pali literature is of great extent; it comprises (1) Buddhist Scriptures, called the "Tripitaka", dating from 309 BC, (2) the commentaries of "Buddhaghosha", which date from the 6th century A.D and (3) Historical, grammatical, (4) and other works, of various dates from the 2nd of 3rd century to the present day of which the most important are the two histories "Dipavanua".

The examination of the grammar of the Pali language has established its close affinity to Sanskrit, from which it differs only in such modifications as are exhibited by those European dialects which are most immediately derived from the idioms of antiquity.

Pali compared with Prakrit is found to be almost the same; but as Pali is derived from Sanskrit, so Prakrit is derived from Pali, and thence it follows, that the Pali of the Buddhism is anterior to the Prakrit of the Jains.

For Magadhi, Pali, and Prakrit, the language of ancient Bihar, and the sacred language of Buddhism and Jainism are all one and the same. Furthermore, Pali and Prakrit were being both termed Magadhi by Jains and Buddhists.