The Panchatantra is an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, arranged within a frame story. The original Sanskrit work, which some scholars believe was composed around the 3rd century BCE, is attributed to Vishnu Sharma. It is based on older oral traditions, including animal fables that are as old as we are able to imagine. It is certainly the most frequently translated literary product of India, and these stories are among the most widely known in the world.