A History of Sanskrit Literature c19.s1.6

c19.s1.6

Nor can we say anything definite of the date of Guṇāḍhya. The connexion with the Sātavāhanas after all means nothing definite even if real, and the most important evidence we could have would be a clear² allusion in literature to, or employment of, the *Bṛhatkathā* before Daṇḍin or Bāṇa. It may be³ that Bhāsa's dramas drew some inspiration from this source, but we have no strict proof. We can fairly claim that Guṇāḍhya is not later than A. D. 500, but to place him in the first century A. D. is quite conjectural, nor in reality is any other later date more assured.