396. DSC 253: The Jataka (1 General Note)

The Jataka is part of the canon of sacred Buddhist literature, a collection of some 550 anecdotes and fables which depicts earlier incarnations, sometimes as an animal kr sometimes as a human of the being who would become Siddhartha Gautama, the future Buddha. Traditional birth and death dates of Gautama are 563-483 BC. The Jataka tales are dated between 300 BC and 400 AD.

Jataka may mean births which are extremely popular stories of the former lives of Buddha, preserved in all branches of Buddhism. Some Jataka tales are scattered in various sections of the Pali canon of Buddhist writings, including a group of 35 that were collected for didactic purposes. These 35 constitute the last book, the Cariya Pitaka (“Basket of Conduct”), of the Khuddaka Nikaya (“Short Collection”). Beyond this, a Sinhalese commentary of the 5th century that is questionably attributed to a Buddhist scholar named Buddhagosa and called the Jatakatthavannana, or Jatakatthakatha, gathers together about 550 Jataka stories, some of which are quite brief while others are as long as novelettes.

Each tale begins by noting the occasion that prompted its telling and ends with the Buddha identifying the lives of the people in the introductory story with those of people from the past. There is humour in these stories and other considerable varieties. The future Buddha may appear in them as a king, an outcast, a god, an elephant.

Many of the tales are set in or near Benares now called Varanasi, a city in north central India on the Ganges River. One of the world's oldest cities Varanasi is the most sacred place for Hindus. Buddhists and Muslims also have important religious sites nearby. According to tradition, Buddha began his teaching at Sarnath a short distance from this city.

Many Jatakas have parallels in the Mahabharata (“Great Epic of the Bharata Dynasty”), the Pancha-tantra (animal fables), the Puranas (collections of legends), and elsewhere in non-Buddhist Indian literature. Some turn up again in such places as Aesop’s fables. Again, the Jataka stories have also been illustrated frequently in sculpture and painting throughout the Buddhist world.

In the Jataka tales, the conflict in the story is caused by a negative emotion called Klesha and the stories take place as a result of one of the six Kleshas. The Klesha may be showcased as affecting an individual or society as a whole. The Bodhisattva resolves the conflict caused by the Klesha and imparts wisdom. The individual or animal, overwhelmed by a Klesha is often the antagonist of the tale. The Bodhisattva in the story imparts a lesson on how Kleshas can be overcome on the path to Nirvana.

Jatakas can also be seen as a reflection of the society of the times, references to social evils like caste system, etc. They Jatakas are dated a time when caste based discrimination was rampant in Hinduism. Even Jatakas were Buddhist texts, the society of the time was predominantly Hindu and social practices in the society can be seen in the Jatakas. For instance, The Prince’s Revenge is the story of the prince of Kosala‟s thirst for revenge.

The role of women characters is very

limited in the Jatakas, which may also reflect the societal norms of the time. Women are shown as being extremely submissive, opinionless or voiceless in many of the stories.

The Jatakas recount the development of the Bodhisatta—the being destined to become the present Buddha in his final life, not just through the events of one lifetime but of hundreds. Originally written in Pali; the language of the Theravada Buddhist canon; the Jatakas comprise one of the largest and oldest collections of stories in the world dating from the fifth century BCE to the third century CE. Generations in South and South-East Asia have grown up with these tales. 

The key to understanding the Buddhist cosmological scheme lies in the principle of the equivalence of cosmology and psychology. In the traditional understanding the various realms of existence relate rather closely to certain commonly (and not so commonly) experienced states of mind.

This powerful Jataka tale, the Buddha — in a past life — reveals how wisdom and clear thinking can save lives, even when lies sound sweet and tempting.

Panchatantra is written in Sanskrit and is collection of animal fables. While

Panchatantras are animal fables, the Jatakas describe the previous existences or births of the Buddha when he appeared as Bodhisattvas (beings who are yet to attain enlightenment or moksha), in both human and non-human forms. Therefore it can be stated that Jatakas has a greater religious influence on them more than the Panchatantras. The Jatakas are in Pali

and primarily deal with the themes of rebirth, virtue ,sacrifice and peace. The plot revolves around the Bodhisattva who is depicted as the embodiment of righteousness and wisdom. The Jataka contain more than 500 tales .Some Jataka Tales are excerpts from Cariya Pitaka, presented in a positive or negative light in different tales .For instance in the fable King Great Virtue , the demons are shown as taking advice from the King of Benares and helping him in return for his valuable guidance. While in some other tales like Demons in Desert and Monkey Chief and the Demon ,the demon is shown as being deceitful and cruel. Another narrative technique that is used is personification of animals. In animal fables, the Bodhisattva is always the chieftain amongst the group of animals. Most of the animal fables are set in the forest. One common theme in animal fables is the dangers posed by

human beings to the animals. In the animal fables the Bodhisattva can be seen protecting his herd or other animals in the forest from dangerous human beings. In some of the animal fables, the protagonist is the wise animal leader imparting wisdom and providing guidance to

the group. For instance, in the story, Earthquake, the Bodhisattva appears as a wise and imparting wisdom to the animals in the forest and diffusing their ignorance.

The plot of the Jatakas have a simple story line. The whole story revolves around the idea of good v/s evil. Jatakas are rooted in Buddhist ideologies and present the philosophical constrains of Buddhism in a very subtle manner. The Jataka Tales are stories of the previous births of Buddha. Each story comes with a teaching These stories revolve around the ideas of

Karma, Samsara and Dharma.According to Buddhism, all living beings are trapped in the cycle of Samsara or rebirth. In order to be achieve freedom from Samsara ,one needs to engage in Karma following the Eightfold path .The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: “right view, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right

mindfulness, and right samadhi („meditative absorption or union‟)” (“What are the six perfections to become a Bodhisattva ?”).The Bodhisattva or enlightened being is shown as

being free from worldly desires and following the Eightfold Path to Nirvana .The antagonist of the Jataka can either be an individual or a general ideology that dissuades the enlightened Bodhisattva from the Eightfold Path or tries to cause harm to the people under the

Bodhisattva. In Buddhism, the unwholesome mental states that lead individuals into wrong thoughts and actions are known as Kleshas. Kleshas serve as obstacles to knowledge and

wisdom. Primarily there are six Kleshas that is Moha(delusion), Pramāda (heedlessness, carelessness), Kauśīdya (laziness, slothfulness), Āśraddhya (lack of faith, lack of trust), Styāna (lethargy, gloominess) and Auddhatya (excitement,