Brihatkatha

Brihatkatha
(c. 200 C.E.)
   The Brihatkatha (Great Story) is a collection of adventure tales ascribed to GUNADHYA and written around 200 C.E. It is said to have been originally composed in a dialect of the forest people, but if so, the original was not preserved. Several Sanskrit versions exist, the most famous the 11th-century KATHASARITSAGARA (The ocean of the streams of story) by Somadeva. Many of the stories of the Brihatkatha complex have found their way into the Jain tradition and reappear in such languages as Kannada and Tamil.
   The stories tell of merchants and kings, romance and adventure, quite unlike the tra-ditional Sanskrit PURANAS. The central hero is Naravahanadatta, the son of Udayana. Common in these stories is the appearance of semidevine wizardlike beings called Vidyadharas, who per-form magic.
   Further reading: J. A. B van Buitenen, Tales of Ancient India (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1969); Jag-dishchandra Jain, The Vasudevahindi: An Authentic Jain Version of the Brhatkatha (Ahmedabad: L. D. Institute of Indology, 1977); Sarla Khosla, Brihatkatha and Its Con-tributions (Delhi: Agam Kala Prakashan, 2003).

Encyclopedia of Hinduism. . 2007.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Brihatkatha — Brịhatkatha   [Sanskrit »die große Erzählung«] die, , ein verloren gegangener indischer Märchenroman, der in einem nordwestlichen Prakrit verfasst war. Stark abgewandelt und durch eingeschachtelte Erzählungen aufgebläht, liegt er in den… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Brihatkatha — Bri|hat|ka|tha die; sanskr.; »die große Erzählung«> ind. Märchenroman über die Abenteuer des Prinzen Naravahanadatta …   Das große Fremdwörterbuch

  • Durgasimha — (c. 1025) was the minister of war and peace (Sandhi Vigrahi) of Western Chalukya king Jayasimha II (also known as Jagadekamalla, r. 1018–1042).[1] Durgasimha adapted the well known set of fables, Panchatantra ( The five strategems ), from… …   Wikipedia

  • Kannada literature — is the body of literature of Kannada, a Dravidian language spoken mainly in the Indian state of Karnataka and written in the Kannada script. [Krishnamurti (2003), p. 78; Steever (1998), p. 129, 131.] The literature, which has a continuous… …   Wikipedia

  • Avanti (India) — Avanti (Sanskrit: अवन्ति) was an ancient Indian janapada (realm), roughly corresponded to the present day Malwa region. According to the Buddhist text, the Anguttara Nikaya , Avanti was one of the solasa mahajanapadas (sixteen great realms) of… …   Wikipedia

  • Nagananda — (Joy of the Serpents) is a Sanskrit play attributed to king Harsha (ruled 606 C.E. 648 C.E.). Nagananda is one of the best Sanskrit dramas in five acts dealing with the popular story of Jimutavahana s self sacrifice to save the Nagas. The unique… …   Wikipedia

  • Hinduism in Punjab — ethnic group group= Punjabi Hindusflagicon|India India flagicon|United Kingdom United Kingdom flagicon|United States USA flagicon|Canada Canada flagicon|Australia Australia flagicon|New Zealand New Zealand flagicon|European Union EU… …   Wikipedia

  • Durvinita — (529–579 CE) is seen as the most successful ruler of the Western Ganga Dynasty. Son of the previous ruler, Avinita, Durvinita s assession to the throne was disputed by his brother, who had gained the support of the Pallavas and Kadambas. There… …   Wikipedia

  • Shivakotiacharya — authored Vaddaradhane in 900 C.E., during the rule of Rashtrakuta king Krishna II. Vaddaradhane is considered the earliest extant prose work written in Kannada. However, there seems to be a 800 C.E. and a 930 C.E date given to this work by some… …   Wikipedia

  • Kannada literature in the Western Chalukya Empire — The Western Chalukya Empire (973 ndash;1200), in what is now southern India, produced a large body of literature in the Kannada language. This dynasty, which ruled most of the western Deccan, South India, is sometimes called the Kalyani Chalukya… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”