Asoka and Aramaic
Topic started by prakash (@ hse-toronto-ppp311725.sympatico.ca) on Tue Nov 27 11:18:30 .
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.
I recall reading somewhere that a statue of Asoka was unearthed somewhere in India giving us the first look at the Monarch. Are there any pics of this on the Internet?
What is Asoka's connection with Aramaic? I understtand some of his edicts are in Aramaic.
Responses:
- From: Karthik (@ 129.212.54.201)
on: Tue Nov 27 14:36:00
Prakash:
I don't know about the statue of Ashoka, but his edicts were found. They were found in 3 languages:
Prakrits (Prakrit is not a language as many forumhubbers believe; it means local dialect. And Ashokas Prakrits were variations on Avadhi).
Greek.
Aramaic.
The latter 2 were found around Bactria (Afghanistan, Iran border). The Cambridge history series published a few photographs. I haven't seen any on the net.
Sorry for keeping it short. I find less time these days. Check out the above source. Will Durant mentions a lot about those Aramaic inscriptions and provides references to those slides in the bibliography. I don't recall the references now, but check out for his book in the library.
- From: Karthik (@ 129.212.54.201)
on: Tue Nov 27 14:41:28
Prakash:
"What is Asoka's connection with Aramaic?"
Aramaic was the language spoken in ancient Palestine. It was also Jesus's mother tongue. The speakers of Aramaic were found in pockets in Bactria and Greece as well. That explains why tablets in Aramaic were written by Ashoka.
But we don't know why he wrote only in 3 languages and not in others. His kingdom spread all the way till the south, yet he never inscribed in any local Dravidian language; nor in Sinhalese. We don't know why. There was no knowledge of Ashoka till the edicts were discovered. And history was reconstructed.
- From: prakash (@ hse-toronto-ppp313084.sympatico.ca)
on: Wed Nov 28 23:11:33
Karthik.
Thanks for the info. Here's the article on the discovery of Asoka statues http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_1646000/1646907.stm
- From: (@ h66-59-174-253.gtconnect.net)
on: Thu Nov 29 11:38:26
"he never inscribed in any local Dravidian language; nor in Sinhalese."
His kingdom did not reach the Sinhalese part. Jain and Buddhsit missionaries who were responsible for the literary growth on India (including S. India) prefered to use Prakrits in Andhra and Karnatak as it was the language of the elite except in Tamilaham where they encoraged Tamil because it was the langauge of the elite. Hence Askojka was trying get through to educated people and in so called Dravidian speaking region of AP and Karnatak the elite langauge were dialects of Prakrit so he use them. Eventaully the local Patois crept into the Prakrits and Hindu revivalism alos started using Telugu and Kannad for Bakthi related poety thus who have the eventual triumph of Dravidian lanh=guages in these regions.
Aramaic was used extensive across MiddleEast and it was oneof the officiallanguage ofthe Persian empires. Persian wrote in Persian, Aramaic, and in Elamite for a long time. Aramaic was alos the official language of the Assyrian Empire. Hence it was the Lingua Franka of the ancient Middle East up to the Indus and sometime beyond.
All so called Syrian immigrants and their mixed decendants of Kearal today have their liturgical language as Aramaic or a version of it called Syriac.
Till the late 19 th century pockts oF Syrians spoke in Aramaic till it was replaced by Arabic.
- From: prakash (@ 202.9.171.61)
on: Wed Jan 2 05:34:02
Look how the RSS maya makers like Karthik work:
Prakash starts the Asoka and Aramaic thread:
What is Asoka's connection with Aramaic? I understtand some of his edicts are in Aramaic.
http://www.forumhub.com/indhistory/5523.11.18.30.html
On Dec 28 Karthik interprets it to mean:
Now let us look at the facts regarding them. Don' forget that the same Prakash didn't know anything about Ashokan edicts till a few days ago!
http://forumhub.com/tnhistory/3358.21535.11.54.57.html
Response from Prakash : Dec 28
This is an RSS lie, a typical example of how RSS reps believe that repeating a lie a hundred times will somehow make it the truth.
I have been a silent member of indological discussions at universities for at least 4 years now and asokan edicts stale news to me.
Prakash is given the RSS Maya doctorate by the esteemed RSS scholar Karthik.
http://forumhub.com/tnhistory/6964.21535.11.54.57.html
"This is an RSS lie, a typical example of how RSS reps believe that repeating a lie a hundred times will somehow make it the truth. "
Is it? Read Dr.Prakash's request for information on Ashoka and Aramaic in this link:
http://www.forumhub.com/indhistory/5523.11.18.30.html
ANYWAY, while you all enjoy the RSS maya on the internet, I am going to be enjoying the real world Brahmin/non-Brahmin interactions for the next few days and believe me it is a very pleasant and enjoyable experience where I am.
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