Date of usage of the word Bhaarata to denote India

[Alfred Hiltebeitel]

We may note additionally in this discussion that according to Maitrāyaṇi Saṃhitā 2.6.6 and Taittirīya Saṃhitā 1.8.10.1-2, in the Rājasūya ceremony it is announced, “This is your king, Bhāratas,” on which Heesterman in his book on the Rājasūya (1957, 70) notes that Āpastamba Śrautasūtra annotates "Bhāratas” as “respectively Kurus, Pañcālas, Kuru-Pañcālas, or simply people.”  Āpastamba would thus seem to take “Bhāratas” as the default name that covers these janapadas or the “people” of at least these, and possibly other, territories. It would seem that the Mahābhārata is probably the first to then link this name with Bhāratavarṣa as a still larger people-and-land, and not through Sudās but through Śakuntalā’s son Bharata. This could make it interesting that Aśoka and Manu do not use the term. 


Alf Hiltebeitel
Professor of Religion and Human Sciences
Department of Religion
2106 G Street, NW
George Washington University
Washington DC 20052

----- Original Message -----
From: Dipak Bhattacharya <dbhattacharya200498 at YAHOO.COM>
Date: Saturday, December 25, 2010 11:48 am
Subject: Re: [INDOLOGY] Date of usage of the word Bhaarata to denote India
To: INDOLOGY at liverpool.ac.uk


> Yes, you are right! The use of the uncompounded word bhaarat(a) in the 
> sense of India was not common even in the earlier half of the 
> nineteenth century. The social reforrmer Vidyasagar (1820-1891) of 
> Calcutta had addressed the women of Bhaaratavarsha during his movement 
> for widow mrriage and women's right to education. Akshay Kumar Datta 
> had written his book Bharatavarshiya Upasak Sampraday 'Indian Sects' 
> about the same time. The word Bhaarat came to be in use in the sense 
> of India perhaps from late nineteenth century. Tagore used the term. 
> So also some leaders of the Indian National Congress. The final stamp 
> of authenticity might have been given by the Indian Constitution.
>  Seasonal Greetings and Best Wishes!
>  DB
>  
>  --- On Sat, 25/12/10, Christopher Wallis <bhairava11 at gmail.com> wrote:
>  
>  
>  From: Christopher Wallis <bhairava11 at gmail.com>
>  Subject: Re: [INDOLOGY] Date of usage of the word Bhaarata to denote 
> India
>  To: "Dipak Bhattacharya" <dbhattacharya200498 at yahoo.com>
>  Date: Saturday, 25 December, 2010, 7:20 AM
>  
>  
>  Dear colleague,
>  
>   I perhaps should have been more clear; I was aware of the compound 
> bhaaratavar.sa in earlier sources, but I was (perhaps mistakenly) 
> assuming that bhaarata was not found by itself in the meaning "India" 
> until the modern period.  My author uses Bhaarata to mean "all the 
> land in which tiirthas are found" so that is clearly not just north 
> India.  Does anyone else have any further evidence to date this usage?
>  
>  Happy holidays to all!
>  
>  thank you,
>  Chris
>  
>  
>  
>  On 24 December 2010 20:55, Dipak Bhattacharya 
> <dbhattacharya200498 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  25 12 10 
>  
>  Harisvāmin’s commentary on the Śatapatha-Br.1.8.1.2 aughá imāḥ 
> sárvvāḥ prajā́ḥ nirvvoḍhā runs as : sa imāḥ bhāratavarṣanivāsinīḥ 
> prajāḥ nirvoḍhā niḥśeśaṃ deśāntaraṃ prāpayitā. The word will be found 
> in all the major Purāṇas in Jambudvīpavarṇanam. Cf.,Matsya-P.122.te 
> bhāratasya varṣasya bhedā yena prakīirtitāḥ . Emperor Asoka knew only 
> the word Jambudvīpa. 
>  Best 
>  
>  DB
>  
>  --- On Fri, 24/12/10, Christopher Wallis <bhairava11 at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
>  
>  
>  
>  From: Christopher Wallis <bhairava11 at GMAIL.COM>
>  Subject: [INDOLOGY] Date of usage of the word Bhaarata to denote India
>  To: INDOLOGY at liverpool.ac.uk
>  Date: Friday, 24 December, 2010, 5:13 PM
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  Dear esteemed colleagues,
>  
>  Happy holidays.  I am reading and translating a very late ha.tha-yoga 
> text
>  called the Yoga-Kar.nikaa, the date of which can possibly be 
> determined by
>  its use of the phrase* sarvatiirthe.su bhaarate*.  Does anyone know the
>  earliest usage of Bhaarata in the meaning "India"?  I am guessing 19th
>  century, but I really don't know.
>  
>  thank you,
>  Chris Wallis
>  
>  -- 
>  ______________________________________
>  
>  Christopher D. Wallis, M.A. (Cal), M.Phil. (Oxon)
>  
>  University of California at Berkeley
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  
>