Pancatantra of Vasubhāga

This article surveys versions of the Pañcatantra that diverge from the well‑known tradition attributed to Viṣṇuśarman. While earlier editions assumed a single Sanskrit source, recent research has uncovered four distinct versions that cannot derive from the canonical codex. Durgasiṃha’s Kannada version, completed in 1031 AD under the Western Cālukya emperor Jayasiṃha II, names Vasubhāga as the author. A Middle‑Javanese version known as the Tantri exists in three forms and was summarised and translated in the 1920s. Laotian and Siamese versions, the latter translated by Lorgeou in 1924, show further variation. In some of these texts, Vasubhāga—not Viṣṇuśarman—is presented as the author or narrator. The article argues that these versions represent an alternative tradition of the Pañcatantra and may have originated from a lost work by Vasubhāga. By describing the contents, language and historical context of each version, the author highlights the richness of the Pañcatantra tradition across South and Southeast Asia.

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