Question

Which ancient literature contains short stories that have the priceless treasure of morality and knowledge?
a. Panchatantra
b. Hitopadesha
c. Mahabharata
d. None of the above

Answer 1

Hint: Indian history boasts of numerous works of Sanskrit literature, some of them were composed for children to impart in them the wisdom and morals using short interesting stories. It also helped them in learning the language it was written in.

Complete answer: Hitopadesha is ancient literature which contains short stories that have the priceless treasure of morality and knowledge.
- Hitopadesha is an ancient Indian text written in Sanskrit, it consists of interesting stories which have human and animal characters. Its main aim is to impart wisdom about life and morals in the children reading it.
- Not a lot is known about the history of Hitopadesha. The evidence that has been found indicates that it is as old as the 12th century. The oldest manuscript of the stories was discovered in Nepal dating back to the 1$4^{th}$ century. Its content is very similar to the Panchatantra which is also a collection of Sanskrit stories and it dates back to 100BCE to 500CE.
- Hitopadesha has a unique style of storytelling as it has illustrations of the characters and scenes to make the story more interesting for children.
- The Hitopadesha is a collection of four texts, it is available in various versions even today.
- Pandit Narayan who is the writer of the Hitopadesha, in his texts has acknowledged that the texts have been influenced by Panchatantra and one other work which is not specified but it is believed to be the Dharmastras.
Option A- Panchatantra is a collection of 5 ancient books, telling animal fables and stories.
Option C- The Mahabharat is an epic, it narrates the story of the greatest war, fought between Pandavas and Kauravas.

Thus, the correct option is (b).

Note: Pandit Narayan was a Brahmin scholar and the author of Hitopadesha. Although the exact dates of its composition are unknown it is believed to have been written between 800 to 950 CE. Pandit Narayan was a scholar in the court of King Dhwalchandra of Bengal.