mitrabheda are the chapter of the ancient text rigveda.
mitrabheda are the chapter of the ancient text rigveda.
mitrabheda are the chapter of which ancient text?
rigveda
the "hitopadesha" is quite similar to the ancient sanskrit classic, the "panchatantra", another collection of fables with morals. both have an identical frame story, although the "hitopadesha" differs by having only four divisions to the ancient text's five. according to ludwik sternbach's critical edition of the text, the "panchatantra" is the primary source of some 75% of the "hitopadesha"'s content, while a third of its verses can be traced to the "panchatantra". in his own introductory verses, narayana acknowledges that he is indebted to the "panchatantra" and 'another work'. the latter is unknown but may possibly be the dharmasastras or some other.
hitopadesha
the "ancient text" gives prominence not only to the three main subjects of the "cantong qi", but also to the three authors traditionally considered to be involved in its composition. this is likely to be the main reason why several commentators, for whom wei boyang could only be the single author of the whole "cantong qi", and internal alchemy its single subject, rejected the "ancient text" altogether. according to the new version, wei boyang wrote the portion entitled "canon" ("jing") in verses of 4 characters; xu congshi—whom the "ancient text" exegetes regularly identify as xu jingxiu 徐景休, as also did yu yan—contributed a "commentary" ("zhu" 注) in verses of 5 characters; and chunyu shutong added a final section, entitled "the three categories" ("san xianglei" 三相類). in the "ancient text", both the "canon" and the "commentary" are divided into three chapters, respectively devoted to cosmology, taoism, and alchemy.
cantong qi