Sanskrit Literature: Important resources-Indian Textiles and Design

Parul Bhatnagar, Lecturer

parulpb@gmail.com
Textile Designing Section, Faculty of Arts
Dayalbagh Educational Institute (Deemed University), Agra
Anamika Pathak, Curator
apathak.nm@gmail.com
Textiles and Decorative Arts
National Museum, New Delhi-1
Meenakshi Gupta, Asst. Professor
gupta_meenakshi@gmail.com
Department of Textile Designing
Banasthali VidyaPith, Rajasthan

In the recent years Sanskrit has received wide recognition throughout the world; it has
been mainly used in the field of philosophic speculations and different religious
systems.

For a complete picture of Indian Textile costumes and Designs, it is necessary

that its material aspects should be looked into. There is no dearth of material to make
such investigation; Sanskrit’ Prakrt, Pali, Apabhramsa and modern vernacular
literatures supply details. The information can be checked and supplemented by
contemporary sculptures, paintings and other archaeological finds; a writer however
versatile cannot actually create the object before your eyes in such a vivid manner as a
painter or sculptor, who therefore is more reliable. Literary text is good in its own
way but it should be avoided where more convincing proofs are at hand.

To prove this I have selected the development of Indian Textiles, costume and
design from the earliest times, which from the very beginning have played a very
important part in expressing the advancement of material culture of the human race.
The Aryans whose origin is uncertain appear in India and western Asia at the
same time. The Indo-Iranian separation may date to about 2500B.C. The Aryans seem
to have entered India between 2000 and 1400 B.C. through Afghanistan and
Hindakusa.

The Jatakas reveal that the craftsmen were organized, In the Mahajanaka
Jataka Cotton, silk, and linen 75% were influenced by nature and geometrics.

This is a very waste topic and pinning down everything is next to impossible,
for this purpose only extremely important parts have been penned here.

Key words: Sanskrit Literature, Aryans, Jatakas, Designs