Harshacharita

The Harshacharita (Sanskrit: हर्षचरित, Harṣacarita) (The deeds of Harṣa), is the biography of Indian Emperor Harsha by Banabhatta, also known as Bana, who was a Sanskrit writer of 7th century in India. He was the 'Asthana Kavi', meaning 'Court Poet', of King Harsha. The Harsha Charita was the first composition of Bana and can be treated as the beginning of writing of historical poetic works in Sanskrit language.

The Harsha Charita ranks as the first historical biography in Sanskrit although it is written in a florid and fanciful style. Bana's detailed and vivid descriptions of rural India's natural environment as well as the extraordinary industry of the Indian people exudes the vitality of life at that time. Since he received the patronage of the emperor Harsha, his descriptions of his patron are not an unbiased appraisal and presents the emperor's actions in an overly favorable light.