Panchatantra

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Composed around 200 BCE, this ancient Sanskrit collection of animal fables has been translated for thousands of years into Pahlavi, Syriac, Arabic, Greek, and Hebrew, Old Castilian and Latin before gaining popularity in the West as The Fables of Bidpai in the 16th century.

About the author

According to the introduction of Panchatantra, Vishnu Sharma was a wise old brahmin tasked with educating three wayward princes in the mysterious kingdom of Maiden's Delight. He compiles his teachings into this collection of fables with a guarantee to teach the princes the 'art of intelligent living'. The biographical detail of Vishnu Sharma's life is lost to history, with only Panchatantra to speak for him, whether historical figure or literary creation himself.