See the sophisticated study "Mahābhūtas" by Karin Preisendanz in Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism, that considers this topic from several previously unproblematized angles.

​​

Karin Preisendanz, “Mahābhūtas”, in:

​​

Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Edited by: Knut A. Jacobsen, Helene Basu, Angelika Malinar, Vasudha Narayanan. Consulted online on 04 September 2016 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2212-5019_beh_COM_2050180>
First published online: 2012

--

Professor Dominik Wujastyk*
Singhmar Chair in Classical Indian Society and Polity

Department of History and Classics

University of Alberta, Canada

​sas.ualberta.ca​

On 31 August 2016 at 12:11, Dean Michael Anderson via INDOLOGY <indology@list.indology.info> wrote:

_______________________________________________
INDOLOGY mailing list
INDOLOGY@list.indology.info
indology-owner@list.indology.info (messages to the list's managing committee)
http://listinfo.indology.info (where you can change your list options or unsubscribe)

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Dean Michael Anderson <eastwestcultural@yahoo.com>
To: Indology List <indology@list.indology.info>
Cc: 
Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2016 18:07:38 +0000 (UTC)
Subject: Earliest attestation of the elements in Indian thought?

Does anyone know which text has the earliest mention of the four or five elements?

Best,

Dean Anderson

East West Cultural Institute

_______________________________________________
INDOLOGY mailing list
INDOLOGY@list.indology.info
indology-owner@list.indology.info (messages to the list's managing committee)
http://listinfo.indology.info (where you can change your list options or unsubscribe)