A History of Indian Literature v2.c19.s3.t2.194

v2.c19.s3.t2.194

From all this it can only be concluded that the position of the Jātaka book is probably no different from that of the Mahābhārata.³ Not only every large section and every single narrative, but often also every single Gāthā, will have to be tested independently as regards its age. Some of the Gāthās may possibly date back to the Vedic period,¹ others should perhaps be regarded as a preliminary stage of epic poetry;² but the collection as we find it in the Jātakaṭṭhavaṇṇanā, cannot as such, be the "earliest" collection of Indian fables, fairy tales and narratives, as has often been affirmed.