Itihāsa — “so it was” — the Mahābhārata and Rāmāyaṇa. Classical tradition pairs Itihāsa with Purāṇa as the literature by which the Veda is to be expanded and understood (itihāsa-purāṇābhyāṁ vedaṁ samupabṛṁhayet), not as a lesser supplement. Pages here that treat it.
