This is a statement made by one of the best-known epigraphists of the twentieth century, D.C. Sircar: “There is no aspect of life, culture and activities of the Indians that is not reflected in inscriptions”. Discuss.

Although there are some truth in what D.C. Sircar has said that there is no aspect of life, culture and activities of the Indians that is not reflected in inscriptions. Because generally, inscriptions were commissioned by those whose achievements / activities / ideas were recorded in them. Inscriptions are virtually permanent records. Some inscriptions carry dates. Others are dated on the basis of paleography or styles of writing, with a fair amount of precision.

(a) Description of gifts made to religious institutions and description given by inscriptions: Votive inscriptions give us descriptions about gifts made to religious institutions . These mention the name of the donor, and sometimes specify his/her occupation as well.

(b) Information about people of the Mauryan Age and inscriptions: They tell us about people who lived in towns: washing folk, weavers, scribes, carpenters, potters, smiths, including goldsmiths and blacksmiths, officials, religious teachers, merchants, and kings. Sometimes, organisations of craft producers, guilds or srenis, are mentioned in inscriptions and texts. These probably procured raw materials, regulated production, and marketed the finished produce.

(c) Information about trade and inscriptions: Around the same time, there is evidence for long-distance trade. Historians combine evidence from a variety of sources to reconstruct and understand this process.

But inscription does have its own drawbacks that we need to discuss for example

1. There are technical issues like letters are very faintly engraved, inscriptions may be damaged or letters missing, it is not always easy to be sure about the exact meaning of the words used in inscriptions, some of which may be specific to a particular place or time. many of them yet to be deciphered etc.

2. And one of the most imporant problem is that not everything that we may consider politically or economically significant was necessarily recorded in inscriptions. For instance, routine agricultural practices and the joys and sorrows of daily existence find no mention in inscriptions, which focus, more often than not, on grand, unique events. Besides, the content of inscriptions almost invariably projects the perspective of the person who commissioned them.

Hence there are some truth in what D C Sircar has said but we still need other evidences to reconstruct the past.