Gunadhya

Dates of birth and death unknown. Ancient Indian poet.

Gunadhya wrote in the paisaci language. His fairy tale epos, Brhatkatha (The Great Tale. c. fifth-sixth centuries A.D.), is a digest of ancient Indian popular literature. It includes the narrative of the adventures of Naravahanadatta, son of King Udayana. The Great Tale has come down to us in Sanskrit, in a Nepalese version (Selected Slokas from The Great Tale, by the poet Budhasvamin, eighth-ninth centuries A.D.), and in two Kashmiri versions from the 11th century (Offshoots of the Great Tale, by the poet Ksemendra. and Ocean of Story, by the poet Somadeva). The last has been translated into many modern Indian languages.