Traditionally credited with compiling the four Vedas, composing the Mahabharata, and authoring the Puranas — perhaps the single most prolific figure in the entire tradition.
द्वापर युग · Dvapara Yuga
Born Krishna Dvaipayana to the sage Parashara and Satyavati, Vyasa is held to have organized the previously undivided Veda into four separate collections for easier transmission, earning him the title 'Vyasa,' meaning compiler or arranger.
Beyond the Vedas, tradition credits him with composing the Mahabharata itself, dictated to Ganesha, who agreed to write only if Vyasa never paused, along with the eighteen Puranas and the Brahma Sutras foundational to Vedanta philosophy. Guru Purnima, covered in this site's festivals chapter, is kept in his honor as Vyasa Purnima.