Why I Paused

If you have been following me here, you may have noticed that the posts stopped rather suddenly.

There was no announcement, no explanation and no concluding post.

I felt I owed you an explanation.

There were two reasons behind that decision.

A Technical Problem

The first reason was a problem with Blogger.

It interrupted my publishing process and made it difficult to continue the series as planned. Fortunately, I had maintained backups of all the posts, so none of the material was lost.

From a technical point of view, I could have restored the content and continued from exactly where I had stopped.

However, during that unexpected break, I began reviewing the project as a whole. That led me to reconsider not just when I should continue, but also how I wanted to present these texts.

Why I Began with the Hitopadesha

Why I chose to begin with the Hitopadesha instead of the Panchatantra.

There was a reason.

The Hitopadesha is generally accepted to have been compiled in Bengal. Since much of my work has centred on texts associated with Bengal, beginning with the Hitopadesha seemed like the natural choice.

At the time, I was convinced that this was the right way to begin.

However, as I prepared each post, I found myself referring to the Panchatantra repeatedly.

A story would already appear there.

A character would already have been introduced there.

Sometimes the Hitopadesha followed an earlier version very closely. At other times, it adapted the material or presented it differently.

Gradually, I realised that readers would find the Hitopadesha much easier to follow if they had first become familiar with the Panchatantra.

I was frequently explaining earlier stories before I had actually presented them.

That was when I decided to change the order.

A Better Way Forward

Rather than resuming the Hitopadesha immediately, I decided to begin again with the Panchatantra.

That decision eventually led to the creation of Babu Tells Stories, where I am now presenting the Panchatantra from the beginning.

Once that series is complete, I will return to the Hitopadesha.

This time, however, I will present it alongside the corresponding Panchatantra stories wherever appropriate. We will examine where the two agree, where they differ and how the later adapted earlier material.

I believe that this sequence will make both works easier to understand.

Thank You

To everyone who followed the Hitopadesha series here, thank you for your patience and your encouragement.

The series has not been abandoned.

It has simply been postponed until the Panchatantra has been completed.

If you would like to continue the journey, I invite you to join me at Babu Tells Stories, where the Panchatantra series is currently underway.

When that series concludes, the Hitopadesha will return, and we will have both works together in a way that I hope will make each of them more rewarding.