The Origin and the Development of the Brhatkatha

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The original text of the Brhatkatha (BK) ascribed to the legendary poet named Gunadhya had, already been lost. What remains of this famous collection of fables consists of some later redactions, such as the Brhatkatha manjari, The Kathasaritsagara, the Slokasamgraha, and the Vasudevahinde. The comparative study of these extant versions of the BK conducted by me in the above-mentioned project has shed ample light on the origin and development of Gunadhya's Grand Story", as well as on the mutual relationship of several different textual tradictions of the BK In my opinion the most original text of the BK, or at least the prototype from which all the extant versions of the BK are descended, had been divided into five sections, i.e. Pltha, Mukha, Pratimukha, Sarira and Upasamhara. Further, the fourth section called Sarira which constituted the central part of the entire composition seems to have consisted of about twenty-six subsections called lambhas, each dealing with wedding of prince Naravahanadatta with a particular fair maiden. Among the extant versions of the BK it is the Slokasamgraha and the Vasudevahindi which served as the basic materials for my attempt to restore the original framework of Gunadhya's composition.