Two further submissions received to add to the list (thank you to all who have responded):

1.Mahabharata for its general and omnipresent influence on all kinds of cultural and literary creativity.

2.Piṅgala’s Chandaḥśāstra with its technically varied breakdown of Ancient Indian metres & metrics, being as intricate as intriguing. 

From my side I would add the Caraka Saṃhitā for its detail and depth touching upon virtually every aspect of life (from birth to death) and giving us a deep insight into general life at the time of its compilation and the Pañcatantra for its brilliance and ubiquity.

Kindest wishes,

Martin

On Wed, Sep 18, 2019 at 10:39 AM Martin Gluckman <m.gluckman@alumni.anu.edu.au> wrote:
Here is what I have so far thank you:

1.Sankara’s Brahma-sutra-bhasya for the superb prose style and clarity.

2. Bhaṭṭikāvya: "I love grammar, I love pedagogy, and I love poetry, and so an epic didactic poem about grammar is just the bee's knees for me."

Kindest wishes,

Martin


On Tue, Sep 17, 2019 at 5:36 PM Martin Gluckman <m.gluckman@alumni.anu.edu.au> wrote:
Dear Colleagues,

I have a lecture to prepare and am conducting a short survey:

I would like to know from the Sanskrit scholarly community what those feel are the utmost most excellent works from the entire corpora and a short line about why.

Think of it as "if there were to be a Pullitzer or Booker Prize for the notable Sanskrit works", who and what would be the nominees and why.

It could be a text that was of exceptional technical value for example Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī or those that have introduced a novel method in a field of science for example the Suśrutasaṃhitā. Then of course a notable poetic marvel such as Śakuntalā.

If there exist some already compiled lists of the same I would most appreciate it.

With warmest wishes,

Martin