[d-l] "Buddha" before the Pali Canon? (fwd)

[Anand M. Sharan]

On Wed, 20 Sep 2000 16:56:37 -0400, Phillip Ernest
<phillip.ernest at UTORONTO.CA> wrote:

>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000 03:30:05 -0500
>From: Sean Whittle <ratthapala at dhammanet.net>
>Reply-To: dhamma-list at egroups.com
>To: dhamma-list at egroups.com
>Subject: [d-l] "Buddha" before the Pali Canon?
>
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>As someone who has studied the Pali, and with the creation of my lexicon
>have had to investigate Pali words in other languages such as Sanskrit,
>Tamil, the language of the Pakistan Asokan edicts, Greek, and Latin, I have
>found that as yet it is very hard to come to any answer on the Buddha's
>language.  What can be said is that the Pali can certainly be regarded as a
>descendent from that language.  This is a matter of 400 years and languages
>evolve and certainly better methods develop(such as writing and
>standardization of the dialect).  I have seen theories that Pali is the
>lingua franca of Magadhi, also that it came from Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh,
>that it came from Andhra Pradesh in SE India, and that it came from the
>Western Bengal area.  Pretty inconclusive.  With this is mind, until we
>discover any real hard evidence on that actual language(which probably is
>not very far from Pali), we can only go on the content of the text.  There
I
>firmly believe that the early discourses have been preserved through the
>oral tradition and represent the Buddha's actual words.
>
>Sean
>
>
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What language Buddha spoke while giving his sermons, has certainly came as
a surprise to me. He wandered for twelve years in Magadh . It is well known
that his movement and ideas were against the established religion (
Hinduism ) at that time. As a matter of fact, he went to the Jain, as well
as Hindu Centers ( Gaya ) to know more about the truth which he was
searching for . His sermons were for common masses which spoke Magadhi (
Magahi ) then, and now . I have mentioned in one of the postings earlier,
various dialacts spoken in that area. No one knows Pali there . Ashoka's
edicts are also in Magadhi .
At Lumbini, I have seen Ashoka's message in the Mayadevi ( Bus\ddha's
mother ) written in Brahmi script . That would give clue as to what was the
language spoken in that area. At Kapilvastu ( his palace ) , I could only
see the remains of the palace but no museum etc . I was surprised that it
had not been given sufficient importance .

Thanks.

Anand M. Sharan