Literature

History
Main article: Indian literature

The earliest literary traditions were oral and have been passed down as such. Later, though, they were transcribed. Many of them derive from Hindu tradition and are represented by texts in Sanskrit such as the Vedas, the epics of the Mahabharata and Ramayana. Other are in Sangam literature from the beginning of the Common Era, and in Kannada such as the writings Prabhrita (650 CE) and Chudamani (Crest Jewel- 650 CE or earlier; a 96,000 verse commentary on logic)[1][2][3]. Furthermore, many Buddhist sutras and Jain works are in Prakrit languages like Pali (c. 250 BCE) and Ardhamagadhi, and later on in Sanskrit. All these represent some of India's oldest literary traditions.
During the period of the Delhi sultanate (after 1200 CE) and in the subsequent Mughal era, Islamic culture has influenced medieval Indian literature.[clarify] This was especially due to the increased influence of Persian, including the work of famous poets such as Amir Khusro.


Poetry
Main article: Indian poetry

India has strong traditions of poetry ever since the Rigveda, as well as prose compositions. Poetry is often closely related to musical traditions, and much of poetry can be attributed to religious movements. Writers and philosophers were often also skilled poets. In modern times, poetry has served as an important non-violent tool of nationalism during the Indian freedom movement. A famous modern example of this tradition can be found in such figures as Rabindranath Tagore and K. S. Narasimhaswamy in modern times and poets such as Basava (vachanas) , Kabir and Purandaradasa (padas and devaranamas) in medieval times, as well as the epics of ancient times. Two examples of poetry from Tagore's Gitanjali serve as the national anthems of both India and Bangladesh.


Epics
Main article: Indian epic poetry

The Ramayana and Mahabharata are the oldest preserved and still well-known epics of India; some of their versions have been adopted as the epics of Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. In addition, there are five epics in the classical Tamil language -they being Silappadhikaram, Manimegalai, Jeevaga-chintamani, Valayaapathi, Kundalakesi. Other regional variations of them as well as unrelated epics include the Tamil Kamba Ramayanam, in Kannada, the Pampa Bharata by Adikavi Pampa, Torave Ramayana by Kumara Valmiki and Karnata Bharata KathaManjari by Kumaravyasa, Hindi Ramacharitamanasa, Malayalam Adhyathmaramayanam.