Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s1.t8.2

v2.c10.s1.t8.2

**Tradition** The *Vedas*, among the oldest sacred texts, are a collection of ancient Indian folklore but have been mistakenly excluded as such by some people, since they were compiled very long ago and have been deified by Hindus. As a matter of fact, they are the beginning of Indian folk literature. Following them, the *Brahmanas* also contain a great number of folk tales, which, however, had been transformed and provided with more turns and twists. The two epics, *Ramayana* and *Mahabharata*, have a treasure of ancient Indian folk literature, and their framework of stories belong to folk literature and are inter-woven with many myths, fables and tales. Almost contemporaneous with these two epics, the *Puranas* arose and focused on ancient myths and legends. The *Jataka*, compiled several centuries before Christ, contains over 500 fables and some tales about the great sage. Like *Jataka*,