Buddhist Spectrum

The genre of Jataka Legends

Dr Senarath Tennakoon

The Pali Cannon is also known as the Tipitaka (three baskets). The Vinaya Pitaka (monastic law), Sutta Pitaka (The Buddha's Discourses) and Abhidhamma (scholastic treaties) are these three baskets. The fifth and last division of the Sutta Pitaka is caleed Khuddaka Nikaya (Minor collection). Under the Khuddaka Nikaya there are fifteen works in all and the title of the tenth book is the Jataka (Birth Stories) which contains 547 stories of the Buddha's previous lives.

The Cariyapitaka, the fifteenth minor text under Khuddaka Nikaya, contains 35 Jataka stories in verse form illustrating seven out of the ten perfections (paramis) – generosity, morality, renunciation, wisdom, energy, patience, truthfulness, determination, loving, kindness and equanimity of the Bodhisattvas (beings oriented towards enlightenment/Aspirant Buddha). These match the corresponding Jataka stories in prose.

idiom and metaphor

The Pali Jataka contains 550 birth stories arranged in 22 books (Keown, 2003). In Sri Lanka during the reign of King Parakramabahu IV (1303-1333) the Jataka tales were translated to Sinhala from the PaliJataka-atthakatha by a Board of learned monks headed by Buddhist priest Medankara. There were also Indian priests in this Board. This great work in prose came to be known as the pansiya panas Jataka potha (Book of Five Hundred and Fifty Birth Stories) and it remains as a greatly venerated book and the aged Sri Lankan Buddhists and the Buddhist monks refer to it as the Jataka potha vahanse (the venerable Jataka book). The Buddha was a great story teller. He spoke in an idiom that everybody could appreciate. He used similes and metaphor relating to the field, the field ridge, paddy, rice, empties, goad, plough, winnowing, fan, oven, cowherds, carts, grain and water (Sri Sarada, 1998). For instance in the Chakkupala Jataka the Buddha explained why Bhikku Chakkupala has become blind.

In a previous birth this bhikku has been an ophthalmologist who undertook to treat a woman with an eye condition and cured her completely. But this woman to evade payment for the consultation said that her ailment was not cured. The ophthalmologist knew that she was telling a lie. So he prescribed another medicine which caused permanent blindness in her. While relating this Jataka, the Buddha uttered the first verse given in the Dhammapada viz.” All mental states have mind as their forerunner, mind is their chief, and they are mind made. If one speaks or acts, with a defiled mind, then suffering follows one even as the wheel follows the hoof of the draught – ox (Rahula 1959).”

The Buddha has narrated five-hundred and fifty tales about His past births which are called Jataka Tales and these have become part of world literature. The Buddha has declared to the Monks that He could remember any number of His past births and the events that have taken place and could extend His divine eye as far as He wished to see beings and life events. He knew the factors and reasons that caused different birth states of beings (Samyutta Nikaya-Kassapa Samutta). The Buddha displayed nine aspects of his unusual wisdom.

These are insight knowledge (vipassana nana), projecting multiple body forms in any place (manomaya iddhi nana), psychic power of changing the body into many forms (iddivida nana), clair audience (Dibba Sotan ana), ability to read the minds of others (paracitta vijanana nana), reminiscence of ones own past births (pubbenivasanussati nana), clair vision (dibba cakku nana), the knowledge that arises by eradicating defilements (asavakkhaya nana), and super natural knowledge (Buddha nana) respectively. The Buddha has declared that the subconscious mind is radiant, clear and lucid. It gets contaminated with the blemishes that come from outside. The Buddha has observed that the human female attracts the man's mind so tenaciously. (Sri Pemaloka, 1981).

A jataka story cannot easily be classified within a single genre as it may have elements of a mystery story and moral fable. It may resemble a social or psychological drama. One Jataka story titled Kulavaka Jatakaya deals with a Buddhist monk who drank water without filtering. But the Buddha makes it a beginning to relate several past births, several planes of existence and human and non human characters in a round about way. Any type of character could be identified in these stories, Martin Wickramasinghe who studied the Jataka tales in depth observed that these stories have been designed and structured for the insightful penetration of the human mind (Alwis, 1985). Rhys Davids has observed that some Jataka tales have originated from Indian folk tales and these illuminate some important aspects of the Buddha Dhamma. For instance chullahansa Jataka and the Mahasara Jataka have their origins in the Indian folk lore (Sumanadaja, 1996). In the Chullahansa Jataka there is a harrowing narration of the Buddha's arched enemy, Devdatta's attempt to destroy the Buddha, once by hurling a huge stone from the top of Gijjakuta crag that injured the Buddha's foot, and later by rousing a drunk elephant (Nalagiri) towards the Buddha. But the Buddha's disciple Venerable Ananda tried to sacrifice his life so as to save the Buddha. But the Buddha disallowed Ananda's attempt and He himself tamed the wild elephant Nalagiri.

Previous birth

The benevolent action of Venerable Ananda became an issue for discourse at the Dhamma Forum (Dam Saba Mandapa) and the Buddha observed that Venerable Ananda in a previous birth too saved His life and related the Chullahansa Jataka. In this jataka the principal characters are the swan king Druturasta, the swan commander in chief Sumuka, the hunter (Veddha) and the king. Druturasta was caught in a trap devised by the hunter and Sumaka has come to save him ready to sacrifice his life. When the hunter came there he was surprised to see Sumaka too there without leaving the place of danger.

Sumaka explained to the hunter that his king was the trapped swan and that he would sacrifice his life in order to save his king. The hunter changed his evil mind and released the swan king from the trap. Then the swan king, the swan commander and the hunter appeared before the king where matters were discussed. The swan king preached the Dhamma to the king and others. The hunter was rewarded with a land, vehicle, house and gold. The Buddha declared that in this story the hunter was priest Jantha, the king was priest Sariputta, the swan commander Sumuka was venerable Ananda and the swan king Druturastra was the Buddha himself as the aspirant Buddha (bodhisattva). In the Mahasara Jataka the theme of the current discussion has been the wisdom and cleverness of venerable Ananda who has devised appropriate strategies for finding king Kosol's lost precious jewel (chudamanikaya). The Buddha asked the monks what were they discussing about when He approached the forum (Damsaba Mandapa) and began to praise venerable Ananda's strategic approach and wisdom.

The Buddha declared that Ananda has been such a clever person even in his previous births and related the Mahasara Jataka. The past story revolved around the loss of a queen's precious gold necklace called Mahasara. She had kept this necklace on the bank of a river when she was bathing with her retinue. A servant woman was stationed to have an eye on the queen's valuable royal garments including the Mahasara. But at the end of the bath this very particular necklace was missing and the servant woman to escape death punishment said that some unidentified person robbed it and ran off. The king ordered a search for the robber and the guards caught a person who happened to be running away in fear of the approaching guards.

This person through fear told a big lie that he robbed it and gave it to the mayor (Sitana), but the mayor said that he gave it to the chief minister (purohitha), the purohita said that it was given to the royal musician (gandarva) and he in turn said that the queen's necklace was with the royal prostitute (vysya) which she denied.

Now all these suspects were imprisoned. The bodhisattva happened to be the chief advisor to the king during that period of time. He considered the matter with great erudition.

He thought that such a valuable necklace could not have been stolen by a human person as it was well guarded and looked after. He himself inquired into the facts from the suspects and realized that the suspects were innocent. What he noticed was that there were monkeys all over the place where the queen used to swim and bathe.

So he devised a strategic method to find the lost necklace. He ordered the guards to catch all the female monkeys and every money's neck was tied with a red string. The monkeys thought that they were wearing golden necklaces and were proud of themselves. But there was a female monkey who was hiding somewhere and did not wish to wear a red string.

Real culprit

When the other monkeys approached her she showed them a precious gold necklace that she was preserving. The guards caught her as she was the real culprit who had stolen the queen's Mahasara while the servant girl was looking somewhere else while the queen and her retinue have been swimming.

The bodhisattva gave the necklace to the king. Then the Buddha declared that venerable Ananda has been the king and the Buddha had been the wise advisor (bodhisattva) to this king. Structurally any jataka story is complex but satisfying and interesting.

They are written in the present tense in the first person narrative style. There are glimpses into past lives and previous life events. Flashback recounting events and characters are brought forward establishing wonderful linkages and connections. In the end the Buddha reveals the hidden relationships and clarifies latent issues and characters. In most of the stories the protagonist appears to be the Buddha. In a typical jataka story a uniform format may be identified – the current tale (paccupanna vattu) followed by the past tale (atita vattu), stanzas related to the jataka story (jtaka gata), interpretation of the stanzas (vaiviyakarana), elucidation of the moral (dharamavadaya) and establishing past and present linkages (samodanaya) respectively. However in some jataka stories the stanzas are not observed.

In the Nanda Jataka Ahiansaka Jataka and MahaKapina Jataka the vulnerable psychological aspects of the human mind are exemplified. In the Nanda Jataka a servant boy becomes proud and scolds his master whenever he stands over the place where his master's dead father had buried his treasure.

The servant was the only living person who knew the secret place. An innocent and intelligent student becoming a criminal because of the jealousy of his peers and his tutor is reflected in the Ahinsaka Jataka. Ahinsaka becomes a notorious criminal who was asked by his tutor to make a garland of chopped off human fingers. The Buddha was able to change the altered psychological state of mind of this criminal (Angulimala) and make him one of His disciples. In the Maha Kapina Jataka a monkey saved a person who has fallen into a deep pit.

He was in hunger for several days. He wanted to kill and eat the monkey who saved his life while it was sleeping on his lap as it was dead tired after the rescue effort. A king (Maha Pratapa) orders the chopping of his only son (Dharamapala) as the queen disregarded and ignored him while she was lovingly fondling the son. He was jealous of the son as the queen loved the son more than the king. This situation is described in the Chulla Darmapala Jataka.

Cruelty portrayed

In some Russian and French novels the psychological aspects revealed in some of these jataka stories are observed (Wickramasingha 1968). In the Jaddantha Jataka the bodhisattva was born as a majestic tusker elephant living on the top of a hill with his female companions. Its great tusks emanate rainbow colours. Queen Subadra is jealous of this tusker and dispatches a veddah archer hunter and ordered him to kill the elephant. The hunter digs a pit and covers it with a plank and he stays in the pit. When the elephant steps on this plank unknowingly, the hunter shoots an arrow that pierces through the umbilicus of the elephant and it is disabled. The hunter begins to cut the tusks with a saw. The elephant comes to know from the hunter why he was doing it. The elephant says to the hunter not to kill him and assists him to pluck off its tusks. The tusks are removed and the hunter carries them to present to queen Subadra. The glowing lusture of the tusks reminded the queen of her previous husband and she immediately died of a heart attack.

In Chulla Palopana Jataka we come across prince Asanaga who right from birth hates women. Whenever a woman touched him he would cry and get distressed. His mother had to breast feed him while hiding herself behind a screen only exposing her breasts through a hole in the curtain for him to suck. As a child too he grew among menfolk. It was a problem for the king as Asanaga has to take over the kingdom after him. But a dancing girl took over this challenge and she started singing songs and playing the violin (veena) quite unseen from a distance and gradually came nearer and nearer. The prince became sensually stimulated by this singing and veena tunes. He became friendly and engaged in sexual activities with her. Thus his latent senses flowered and erupted like a volcano. He became so wild and inflamed by the sudden burst of his sexual hunger, he took the sword and began to chop and kill all the men who came in front of him while he was running in the streets with the sword in hand.

His notion was that none other than himself should enjoy sexual pleasure with women.

The king had to banish prince Asanaga with the dancing girl to Himalaya forest. He was happy to live in the forest with her. But one day an ascetic dropped into the forest and this ascetic had sex with the dancing girl while Asanaga was away on fruit gathering. But when he came back the ascetic tried to run away by rising into the air through his psychic power. But the fellow fell down. Asanaga wanted to kill the fellow, but he thought that the ascetic has lost his psychic powers because of his sexual involvement with his wife and pitied him. He took the dancing girl to a road and asked her to go anywhere.

Asanaga returned to the forest and continued to practice asceticism. In this jataka prince Asanaga was none other than then bodhisattva.

Jataka tales are some of the oldest folk tales and the Tale of the Tunnel (Ummanga Jatakaya) which is one of the longest tales presents the story of bodisatva being born as Mahusasda pundit who through his strategic wisdom saved the life of his king Vedeha of Mithila. The story of Kusa deals with the sacrifices of a powerful king who was very ugly but very talented in artistic works as well as in warfare. King Kusa too was an aspirant Buddha (bodhisattva) who won the heart of a very pretty princess Pabawathie. A film termed Kusa-Paba illustrates the relationship quite eloquently. The sheer range and variety of jataka stories is impressive and in many the stream of consciousness seems to be in operation in relation to a character's mind-memory, sense perceptions, feelings, intuitions, thoughts in relation to the stream of experience. In the Asthamantha Jataka the Bodhisattva was a learned tutor (disapamok) who was looking after his very aged mother with defective vision.

Family relations

A young student comes to him for tuition as a resident student. The bodhisattva agreed to teach him free of charge on the condition that he should take good care of his very aged blind mother. Further he requested the student to inform him about the conversations between them during the process of offering good care.

The student continued to bath, clean, feed and massage the very aged woman. He often described her physical form. During the process her subdued senses became stimulated and she suggested the student to enjoy sex with her. But the student declined sating that he can't betray his teacher.

The old lady suggested that he should kill the teacher, her own son. But the student declined. Then she told him to lead her with an axe in her hand at night to the place where the teacher used to sleep, so that sh could chop him to death. The student has been informing all her suggestions to the teacher. The teacher kept a wooden idol and covered it with a cloth and kept it on his bed. During the night the aged mother led by the student came there tottering and she landed the axe blade on the neck of the wooden idol thinking that it was his son. But the sound of the wood made her realize her folly.

There are some parallels between the jataka stories and the epics Ramayanaya and Mahabharatha, Bible stories and Aesop's fables (Mahendra, 1996) Professor Edirivira Sarathchandra extensively used resources and opportunities from jataka stories for his dramatic creations. Pabawathie (1952) Maname (1956), Kadavalalu (1958), Mahasara (1967), Peamato Jayati Soko (1969), Sinha Bahu (1979), Vessantara (1980) and Lomahanse (1985) are some examples. Jataka scenes are found depicted in early scriptures, cave and temple paintings. The Jataka tales also provided the themes for mural painters in temples. The last of the jataka tales, Vessantara Jatakaya was one of the most popular tales the attracted the Sinhala painter. Words and phrases from these tales have entered the folk idiom of the Sinhala language. At village funerals this tale is still read by someone seated by the corpse (Disanayake, 2012). During the Vesak season the Jataka scenes are seen displayed in Vesak pandols, Vesak lanterns and Vesak greeting cards. The Jatakas are interesting as examples of Buddhist literature, but they are particularly interesting as a portrait of social life and customs of ancient India (Keown, 2003).

Book Review:

Valuable treatise on Buddhist marriage

Title: Baudhdha Vivahaya (Buddhist Marriage)
Author: Dr. M. Dhanawardana Guruge
Printed Vidyalankara Press –Kelaniya
Pages 90

The civil marriage allows men and women to live together as husbands and wives under one roof and raise families. The human race goes on owing to civil marriage duly recognized by the civil law. Society welcomes them as legally married couples. We witness civil weddings in which the majority tie the knot in the presence of a registrar, a state officer. We refer to them as civil weddings.

We are familiar with civil and religious marriage. When we say religious marriages our minds go to the weddings taken in Catholic and mainstream Christian churches. Or the marriages taken place in association with Hindu Kovils or mosques. They take place in the presence of a religious head.

The civil marriage allows men and women to live together as husbands and wives under one roof and raise families. The human race goes on owing to civil marriage duly recognized by the civil law. Society welcomes them as legally married couples. We witness civil weddings in which the majority tie the knot in the presence of a registrar, a state officer. We refer to them as civil weddings.

But it is very rare that we hear about or talk about Buddhist marriages or weddings taking place within Buddhist temples. And no one is bothered to think of a Buddhist marriage, a marriage performed in a Buddhist temple before a Buddhist Monk.

‘Baudhdha Vivahaya’ (Buddhist Marriage) sounds new and very unfamiliar concept that needs promotion.

A few years ago I remember reading about a marriage that had taken place before a Buddhist monk in a Buddhist temple of fame. It was indeed news to me and many who read about it. A very rare occurrence.

Marriage is the basis of the formation of a family from the beginning of human history. It is a sacred event in human life. The wedlock gives the necessary legal protection to, two persons to live as husband and wife, to a man and a woman under one roof. House becomes a home with their living together. The society accepts such unions and endorse in public the union of two to begin the continuation of human race by raising children, the future of the world.

How good it is if the civil marriage to which the majority enters has the blessing of the Buddhist monks officiating such marriages in the temples! Such a beginning is bound to change the lifestyle and there would be unbroken connection between the families and the temples throughout their lives. The society needs to think seriously to give a sort of religious flavor to civil marriage by arranging such weddings to take place centering the temple in the village or temple of the choice of couple entering married life. Perusing the pages of ‘Baudhdha Vivahaya’ authored by Dr. Danawardana Guruge with the able assistance extended by Captain H M T H Vimukthi Bandara and Dhammika Madampage as Associate Editors, I was happy that at last there is someone, conscious of the need, who has put his weight behind to author a book on Buddhist Marriage.

Undoubtedly it is a concept worth talking about in the face of considerable number of the unsuccessful civil marriages and ever increasing divorce cases in the present complex and sophisticated society with technical advancement. The concept of marriage is full of confusion and problems and it is being presented as a marketed product which could be thrown after use. The fundamental reason for the failure or the breakdown is that some of those entering marriages lack proper understanding of the wedded life.

The book is timely and provides positive response to resolve issues pertaining to the very concept of wedded life. The book ‘Baudhdha Vivahaya’ a very small step in a giant project and provides necessary ingredients to go into further research. The book points to the fact that Buddhist marriage is very different, because it is influenced by Buddhism. Marriages performed in line with the teaching of the Buddha are called Buddhist marriage. The discourses of the Buddha point out what things should be observed for a marriage to be successful. It is strong, joyous and simple, economically good, and does not waste colossal sums of money.

The book brings out the important role played by the age old marriage customs. It shows what a successful life one could lead by observing the Buddhist customs. Prathama and Duthiya Sanwasa, Uggaha and Samajjawee Suthras provide necessary advice for a successful marriage.

The Prathama Loka Wijaya Suthra refers to wife as the highest and the noble friend the husband has: ‘bharyacha paramo saba’. The book also refers to the Singalowada suthraya, Mangala suthraya and Wasala suthraya, which help to conduct and continue a successful Buddhist marriage.

The book points out the importance of couple entering married life and getting the Maha Sanga to perform Buddhist rites of marriage. The presence of the Maha Sanga creates the necessary grounds to begin good relationship with the temple.

The book, while encouraging the performances of the Buddhist rites of marriage in the presence of the Buddhist Monks, points out the need to make proper arrangements within the temple to hold weddings. The book speaks about the meaning of Buddhist marriage, rights and duties of both man and woman as wife and husband in the wedded life towards each other, the important points to be observed, rites, rituals and customs, and procedure to follow in performing Buddhist wedding.

The book is not a masterpiece but a seed buried in the fertile land to bear fruits in abundance with research. Students and scholars attending universities, including the Bhikkhu University, should give serious thought in proceeding in the path laid down by philanthropist Danawardana Guruge.

This book is a lamp lit to enlighten the research mind.

- Wiruma