Answer:
India has a rich and varied culture. Every dynasty that ruled India added something to its heritage. Different Literatures: (i) The Vedas and Associated Texts: The Vedas are the earliest literary works. There are four Vedas - Rigveda, Samveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda. They contain hymns in praise of different Gods and Goddesses. Along with the Vedas/ there are a series of texts called the Brahmanas. There are also 108 Upanishads. Puranas are scared literature. There are 18 surviving puranas. (ii) The Epics: The Mahabharata was composed by sage Ved Vyasa. The Mahabharata also includes the Bhagvat Gita. The Ramayana was composed by sage Valmiki. (iii) Secular Literature: The Arthashastra, Indika, Harshachrita, stories from the Jatakas and the Panchtantra, the works of Kalidasa and the accounts of foreign travellers are important secular works written during this period. There are many poems and plays in Sanskrit. (iv) Foreign Travellers: Many travellers and pilgrims came to India. Fa Hein came during the reign of Chandragupta II. His account gives a detailed description of the life of the people under the Gupta kings. Two centuries later, Hiuen Tsang came to India. He wrote about the conditions in those times. The ruler in the North was Harshavardhana. I-Tsing was another Chinese traveller who came to India. (v) The Sangam Texts: The Sangam literature was written in Tamil. It mentions about the kingdoms of South India. The Silappadikaram and Manimekalai are the famous Tamil epics.
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