Kathasaritsagara
The Kathasaritsagara, The Ocean of the Rivers of
Story, by the Kashmiri writer Somadeva (c. 11th
century), is one of the most important collec-
tions of tales deriving from the lost BRIHATKATHA
of GUNADHYA. The work is the source for dozens
of stories that have since been repeated over and
over in various forms and versions within the
Indian literary tradition, both in Sanskrit and in
the vernacular languages.
The work itself consists of 22,000 verses, more
than the Iliad and Odyssey combined, divided into
18 books. The first section tells stories about how
the collection itself was created—for example, the
story of Gunadhya and the story of king Satava-
hana. Among the many popular tales in the later
sections are the story of Indra and King Shibi, the
story of Urvashi and Pururavas (see APSARAS), the
story of AHALYA (which appears in another form in
the RAMAYANA), and the story of the BRAHMIN and
the mongoose. Still other tales include the story of
Udayana, the story of Kadambari, and the story of
the 10 princes (Dasakumaracarita).
In the collection are stories of animals such
as The Mouse Merchant; The Ichneuman, the Owl,
the Cat and the Mouse, the Crane and the Crocodile,
the Lion and the Hare; The Parrot Who Was Taught
Virtue by the King of the Parrots; and The Ass in
the Panther’s Skin. Many of these stories closely
resemble Aesop’s fables in their structure and
moral objectives. However, a large proportion of
the hundreds of stories in this work are dedicated
to the lives and adventures of kings, some of
whom may have been historical, such as Satava-
hana and Vikramaditya.
Further reading: Aparna Chattopadhyay, Studies in the
Kathasaritsagara (Varanasi: A. Chattopadhyay, 1993);
N. M. Penzer, ed., The Ocean of Story: Being C. H.
Tawney’s Translation of Somadeva’s Katha Sarit Sagara
(or Ocean of Streams of Story), 10 vols. (Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass, 1968–84); J. S. Speyer, Studies about the
Kathasaritsagara (Wiesbaden: M. Sandig, 1968); C.
H. Tawney, trans., Stories of Vikramaditya (Bombay:
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1963–64); ———, Vetala-
panchavimsati: Twenty-five stories of a Vampire from
Somadeva (Bombay: Jaico, 1956).Katha Upanishad
The Katha Upanishad is part of the Black YAJUR
VEDA. It is based on an ancient story of a young
man, NACHIKETAS, who is mistakenly sent to hell
by his father after he questions his father’s gener-
osity. When the boy reaches the realm of the god
of death (YAMA), he finds no one at home. Since
he, as a guest, is kept waiting, Yama offers the
young, but very wise, boy three boons.
The story of the three boons of the god of
death forms the narrative core of this Upani-
shad. The first boon the boy asks for is that he
be returned to the upper world to live with his
father. The second boon he asks for is the secret
of preserving good works. His final request is to
learn the secret of overcoming continuous rebirth.
Death gladly assents to the first two requests, giv-
ing the boy the Nachiketas fire, named for him, to
fulfill the second wish. When asked for the secret
of ending rebirth, however, Death tries to dissuade
the boy with offers of wealth and other boons.
When Nachiketas persists he is given the secret of
Ultimate Reality or the BRAHMAN.Further reading: Swami Nikhilananda, trans., The Upa-
nishads (New York: Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center,
1975); S. Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanishads
(Atlantic Highlands, N.J.: Humanities Press, 1994).kaula
Kaula is a tantric practice (see TANTRISM) that seeks
unity with the kula, an esoteric term best under-
stood to signify SHIVA (but often the menstrual
blood of the goddess), sometimes focusing on
Shiva as the ultimate and sometimes on SHAKTI.
It includes a variety of different acts and has no
definitive boundaries. It is known to make use of
practices such as the PANCHA MAKARA or Five M’s,kaula 231 J