Indian LiteraturePages 350-355Yesenia LopezJosephine Mitchell

Vedic Period• 1500 B.C. - 500 B.C.• Poems, dramas, and hymns reflect Hinduism. • 1st literary period in India, the Vedic period

▫ Named for the Vedas, a collection of hymns and other texts from the Aryan

culture.

• Many Hindus believed sacred hymns were revealed to humans directly by the gods.

Classical Period• 500 B.C. - 1000 A.D. • Main literary language of N. India was Sanskrit

▫ Indo-European ▫ by 600 B.C. =“frozen” language.

had not changed

• Main languages of southern India ▫ Dravidian languages, (Tamil and Kannada).

Classical Period cont. • Sanskrit =“perfect speech”. • One of the most important legacies of ancient

Indian civilization.• Considered a sacred language,

▫ spoken by the gods.• Only appropriate form of expression for the

noblest literary works: epics, court poems, and dramas.