THE SOURCES OF THE KAVYA 41
century the Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela of Kalifiga, which displays, though faintly, some of the characteristics of Sanskrit prose Kavya, makes no claim for the priority of Prakrit to Sanskrit in these literary uses ; on the contrary he acknow- ledges fully the coexistence of a Sanskrit literature.
Still less can be said for the priority of Prakrit in the sphere of the beast-fable. Such fables are readily current among the people, and the Mahabharata shows their popularity in the circles to whom the epic appealed. The Jataka tales of the Buddhists show likewise the skill by which they could be turned to the service of that faith, but of an early Prakrit fable literature we know little or nothing. On the other hand, the Sanskrit litera- ture is marked by the fact that it adopts the fable to a definite purpose, the teaching to young princes and their entourage the practical conduct of life, and thus constitutes a new literary genre.
The causes of the rise of Sanskrit literature are in fact obvious, and there was no need for writers in Prakrit to set an example. It would indeed have been surprising if the simplicity of the earlier epic had not gradually yielded to greater art. The Upanisads show us kings patronizing discussions between rival philosophers and rewarding richly the successful ; we need not doubt that they were no less eager to listen to panegyrics of themselves or their race and to bestow guerdon not less lavishly. We have indeed in the Vedic lists of forms of literature refer- ences to the Naracansls, encomia, 1 which candour admitted to be full of lies, and we have actually preserved a few verses from which we can guess the high praise promiscuously bestowed on their patrons by the singers. Into the Rgveda itself have been admitted hymns which contrive to flatter patrons as well as extol the gods, and added verses, styled praises of gifts (danastulis), recount the enormous rewards which a clever singer might obtain. We cannot doubt that from such contests must have sprung the desire to achieve ever-increasing perfection of literary form as compared with the more pedestrian style of the mere narrative of the epic.
In yet another sphere such heightening of style must have
1 Macdonell and Keith, Vedic Index, i. 445 f.
