To the dry bones of grammar Bhatti gave juicy flesh in his poem, telling the greatest Indian story in elegant Sanskrit. Composed in the fourth century CE, in South India, Bhatti s Poem: The Death of Ravana is both a poetic retelling of Rama s adventures, and a compendium of grammatical and rhetorical examples for students. Bhatti s study aid to Panini s groundbreaking grammatical treatise, the Eight Books, gives examples disguised as the gripping, morally improving Ramayana story. In Bhatti s own words: This composition is a lamp to those whose eyes have language as their goal. Tradition...