Jātaka Tales: Volume 3

By Eric Van Horn

The Jātaka Tales are the Buddhist equivalent of Aesop’s Fables. They are morality stories. In the Buddhist cultures of that time, these were the stories that children grew up hearing. They were the popular entertainment of their time. Families would gather together in the evening after the day’s work was done and share these tales. And it is from these stories that people learned about the standards of conduct for followers of the Buddha.

Like Aesop’s Fables, the main characters in these stories can be a king, a merchant, a craftsperson, or an animal. This collection contains stories 101-150 of the 547 total stories. Jātaka 124 tells a lovely story a monk whose selflessness leads to prosperity for his monastery, and in the past how he devoted himself tirelessly to providing water for animals during a drought. Jātaka 105 shows a tree fairy who calms an elephant’s fears. Jātaka 107 is a funny story about a priest who makes his king crazy by talking too much, and how the king enlists the help of a cripple who is deadly accurate with a pea shooter to cure him!

There are a number of stories about monks behaving badly. To a Westerner this may sound strange. But in a Buddhist culture there are bound to be people who ordain as monks – often with good intentions – but who find the monastic life too challenging. Jātaka 146 tells the story of three older men who find a pretty cushy way to live as monks.

In all these stories represent the breadth of human experience. What we see is that in 2500 years, the spectrum of humanity has not changed at all.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Eric Van Horn
• Release date: Aug 6, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463264911

Eric Van Horn

Eric Van Horn was born and raised in Lower Pottsgrove, Pennsylvania. He graduated Pottsgrove High School in 1970 and went to college at Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont. He graduated from Goddard in 1973 with a B.A. in Liberal Arts. His senior thesis was about his experience as a community organizer for a drug abuse prevention program in Pottstown, PA.After graduation he worked in a number of social service jobs, but eventually discovered a love of computer programming. He spent the next 33 years working as a software engineer. In his last job he spent 18 years working in the field of medical informatics at the PKC Corporation in Burlington, Vermont. He retired from PKC in 2011 to devote his life to his Buddhist practice.His interest in Buddhism began in 1991 when he attended a "spiritual support group" at the Burlington Unitarian Church. Over the next 20+ years he attended many retreats at the Insight Meditation Center in Barre, MA, the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies in Barre, MA, the Zen Mountain Monastery in Mt. Temper, NY, the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, NY, the Bhavana Society and Monastery in High View, WV, the Embracing Simplicity Hermitage in Asheville, NC, Kharme Choling in Barnet, VT, and Maple Forest Monastery in Woodstock, VT. He went to India on Buddhist Pilgrimage in 2004.Eric has written several papers on Buddhism, including "Jhāna in the Majjhima Nikaya" and "Reverse Engineering the Buddha's Enlightenment." These can be found at http://nobleeightfoldblog.com/resources/. In 2015 he published the "Travel Guide to the Buddha's Path," a practice guide that provides an outline of the whole of the Buddha's path as described in the Pāli canon. This volume has since been replaced by a greatly expanded three-volume set "The Buddha's Path Series," which includes (1) "Foundations of the Buddha's Path," (2) "The Heart of the Buddha's Path," and (3) "Awakening on the Buddha's Path." He has also written a biography of the Buddha called "The Life of the Buddha" and is currently editing and illustrating the Buddhist Jātaka Tales literature.He moved from Vermont to New Mexico in 2014 because it was "sunnier, warmer, and cheaper." He also found a living situation that is quieter and more conducive to meditation. He has an ongoing love of the Land of Enchantment, its rich cultural heritages, breathtaking landscapes, and ancient history. He has two adult children, Seth and Rebecca, a daughter-in-law Britomarte, a grandchild Jay, and a virtual son-in-law Toby.

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Jātaka Tales

Folk Tales of the Buddha’s Previous Lives

Volume 3

rebirth

as told and illustrated by Eric K. Van Horn

originally translated by Robert Chalmers, B.A., of Oriel College, Oxford University and

William Henry Denham Rouse, Cambridge University

originally edited by Professor Edward Byles Cowell, Cambridge University

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Smashwords Publishing

eBook ISBN: 9780463264911

First Edition 2019

Dedicated to my children,

Without whom I might never have discovered

this wonderful literature.

Also by this author:

The Travel Guide to the Buddha’s Path

The Little Books on Buddhism series:

Book 1: The Little Book of Buddhist Meditation: Establishing a daily meditation practice

Book 2: The Little Book on Buddhist Virtue: The Buddha’s teachings on happiness through skillful conduct

Book 3: The Little Book of the Life of the Buddha

Book 4: The Little Book of Buddhist Wisdom: The Buddha’s teachings on the Four Noble Truths, the three marks of existence, causality, and karma

Book 5: The Little Book of Buddhist Mindfulness & Concentration

Book 6: The Little Book of Buddhist Daily Living: The Discipline for Lay People

Book 7: The Little Book of Buddhist Rebirth

Book 8: The Little Book of Buddhist Awakening: The Buddha’s instructions on attaining enlightenment

The Jātaka Tales series:

Jātaka Tales: Volume 1

Jātaka Tales: Volume 2

Table of Contents

Jātaka Tales

Introduction to Volume 3

101: Parosata Jātaka, More Than 100

102: Paṇṇika Jātaka, The Green Grocer

103: Veri Jātaka, The Enemy

104: Mittavindaka Jātaka, The Curse of Mittavindika

105: Dubbalakaṭṭa Jātaka, The Nervous Man

106: Udañcani Jātaka, Infatuation with a Temptress

107: Sālittaka Jātaka, The Stone Slinger

108: Bāhiya Jātaka, The Story of Bāhiya

109: Kuṇḍakapūva Jātaka, The Rice Cakes

110: Sabbasaṃhāraka-pañha Jātaka, All Collected Wisdom

111: Gadrabha Jātaka, The Donkey

112: Amarādevī-pañha Jātaka, The Wisdom of Queen Amarā

113: Sigāla Jātaka, The Jackal

114: Mitacinti Jātaka, The Fish Story

115: Anusāsika Jātaka, Anusāsika’s Story

116: Dubbaca Jātaka, Headstrong

117: Tittira Jātaka, The Partridge Story

118: Vaṭṭaka Jātaka, The Quail

119: Akālarāvi Jātaka, The Noisy Rooster

120: Bandhanamokkha Jātaka, Freed from Bondage

121: Kusunāḷi Jātaka, The Grass Fairy

122: Dummedha Jātaka, The Fool

123: Naṇgaḷisa Jātaka, The Plough Beam

124: Amba Jātaka, The Fruits of Selflessness

125: Kaṭāhaka Jātaka, Kaṭahaka’s Tale

126: Asilakkhaṇa Jātaka, The Lucky Sneeze

127: Kalaṇḍuka Jātaka, The Story of Kalaṇḍuka

128: Biḷāra Jātaka, The Cat-like Nature

129: Aggika Jātaka, The Fire Worshipper

130: Kosiya Jātaka, The Story of Kosiya

131: Asampadāna Jātaka, The Mistreated Gift

132: Pañcagaru Jātaka, The Five Sense Pleasures

133: Gathāsana Jātaka, The Water Fire

134: Jhānasodhana Jātaka, Making It Clear

135: Candābha Jātaka, Sun and Moon

136: Suvaṇṇahaṃsa Jātaka, The Swan with Golden Feathers

137: Babbu Jātaka, The Cats

138: Godha Jātaka, The Lizard

139: Ubhatobhaṭṭha Jātaka, The Twofold Failure

140: Kāka Jātaka, The Crow

141: Godha Jātaka, The Iguana

142: Sigāla Jātaka, (Another) Jackal Story

143: Virocana Jātaka, The Shining

144: Naṇguṭṭha Jātaka, The Tail

145: Rādha Jātaka, Rādha’s Story

146: Kāka Jātaka, (Another) Crow Story

147: Puppharatta Jātaka, The Red Flower

148: Sigāla Jātaka, (Still Another) Jackal Story

149: Ekapaṇṇa Jātaka, The Single Leaf

150: Sañjīva Jātaka, The Story of Sañjīva

Abbreviations Used for Pāli Text References

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AN: Aṇguttara Nikāya, The Numerical Discourses of the Buddha

Bv: Buddhavaṃsa, Chronicle of Buddhas

BvA: Buddhavaṃsatthakathā, commentary to the Buddhavaṃsa

Cv: Cullavagga, the smaller book, the second volume in the Khandhaka, which is the second book of the monastic code (the Vinaya)

Dhp: Dhammapada, The Path of Dhamma, a collection of 423 verses

DhpA: Dhammapada-aṭṭhakathā, commentary to the Dhammapada

DN: Digha Nikāya, The Long Discourses of the Buddha

Iti: Itivuttaka, This Was Said (by the Buddha), a.k.a., Sayings of the Buddha

Ja: Jātaka Tales, previous life stories of the Buddha

JaA: Jātaka-aṭṭhakathā, commentary on the Jātaka Tales

Khp: Khuddakapāṭha, Short Passages

MA: Majjhima Nikāya Aṭṭhakathā, commentary on the Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha (by Buddhaghosa)

MN: Majjhima Nikāya, The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha

Mv: Mahāvagga, the first volume in the Khandhaka, which is the second book of the monastic code (the Vinaya)

Pm: Pātimokkha, The Code of Monastic Discipline, the first book of the monastic code (the Vinaya)

SN: Saṃyutta Nikāya, The Connected Discourses of the Buddha

S Nip: Sutta Nipāta, The Sutta Collection, literally, suttas falling down, a sutta collection in the Khuddaka Nikāya consisting mostly of verse

Sv: Sutta-vibhaṇga: Classification of the Suttas, the origin stories for the Pātimokkha rules

Thag: Theragāthā: Verses of the Elder Monks

ThagA: Theragāthā-aṭṭhakathā, Commentary to the Theragāthā

Thig: Therīgāthā: Verses of the Elder Nuns

ThigA: Therīgāthā-aṭṭhakathā, Commentary to the Therīgāthā

Ud: Udana, Exclamations, the third book of the Khuddaka Nikāya

Vin: Vinaya Pitaka, Basket of Discipline, the monastic rules for monks and nuns.

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Introduction to Volume 3

One of the things that stands out to me about the stories of the monks and nuns of the Buddha’s time is the different temperaments and how an individual’s personality leads them to the Dharma through a different doorway. Subsequently this different doorway leads to the Dharma expressing itself in different ways. It is like artists, all of whom create different art.

We have a vast literature from the Buddha’s time, many thousands and thousands of pages of teachings that have been preserved by the Saṇgha over the past 2500 years. Students of the Buddha’s teaching will know the iconic teachings: the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, the four elements, dependent co-arising, and so forth. But for any one student, one approach may speak to her or him in a uniquely personal way.

One of the stories from this collection that speaks to a unique path is Jātaka 124, The Fruits of Selflessness. In this story an unusually selfless monk finds his doorway to the Dharma through service. He spends his time taking good care of the monastery:

He was meticulous in the performance of the duties of the Dharma Hall, the monastery’s bath house, and so forth. He was perfect in the observance of the 14 major and the 80 minor disciplines. He used to sweep the monastery, the cells, the walkways, and the path leading to their monastery.

The Dharma is not all about supernormal powers and meditative accomplishments. Sometimes it is about the simplicity of selfless service. This is the lesson of this particularly simple and profound story, and it is through stories like this that we see one of the many doorways to the Dharma.

This is part of the challenge of following the Buddha’s path. In the beginning it can be overwhelming. The Buddha’s teachings are not simple. They have great depth and great breadth. And we have to keep pushing – gently – in order to find our unique doorway, and our own unique expression of the Dharma.

The way we do that is one step at a time. One of the great values of this wonderful literature is that we can nibble away at the edges of the Dharma. We see people just like us, even though these stories are centuries old. We see that in 2500 years, the human mind has not changed at all. We know these people all too well. They have the same foibles and challenges that we do. And it is in these common traits that we connect to followers of the Buddha throughout time.

Eric K. Van Horn

Rio Rancho, NM

August 2019

101: Parosata Jātaka,

More Than 100

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This story is identical to Jātaka 99 except in the capping verse where in this version the words think hard replace the words cry out.

"Far better than a thousand fools." This story was told by the Master when at Jetavana. It is about the question of the unconverted.

(The incidents will be related in the Sarabhaṅga Jātaka [Jātaka 522].)

On a certain occasion the monks met in the Dharma Hall and praised the wisdom of Sāriputta, the Commander of the Dharma, who had expounded the meaning of the Buddha’s concise statement. Entering the hall, the Master asked what the monks were discussing, and they told him. This is not the first time, monks, he said, that the meaning of a concise statement of mine has been explained by Sāriputta. He did so likewise in times gone by. So saying, he told this story of the past.

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Once upon a time when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, the Bodhisatta was born into the family of a northern brahmin. He subsequently completed his education at Takkasilā University. Abandoning sensual desire and renouncing the world for the life of a recluse, he won the Five Knowledges (the power of faith, the power of moral shame, the power of moral dread, the power of energy, and the power of wisdom) and the Eight Attainments (the eight jhānas). He lived in the Himalayas where 500 recluses gathered round him.

One rainy season, his chief disciple went with half the recluses to the domain of men to get salt and vinegar. That was the time when the Bodhisatta was about to die. His disciples, wishing to know his spiritual attainment, said to him, What excellence have you won?

Won? he said. I have won Nothing. (He is referring to the 7th jhāna, the base of no-thingness.) So saying, he died. He was reborn in the Brahma Realm of Radiant Devils. (For Bodhisattas, even though they may have attained to the immaterial jhānas, are never reborn in the Formless World because they are incapable of passing beyond the Realm of Form.)

(In the Buddhist Cosmology, there are four immaterial realms into which you are born if you can master the four immaterial jhānas. According to this text, however, a Bodhisatta will not be reborn into those realms.)

However, his disciples misunderstood him. They thought that he meant that he did not have any spiritual attainments. As a result, they did not pay the customary honors at his cremation.

When he returned, the chief disciple learned that the Master was dead. He asked the monks whether they had asked him about his spiritual attainments. He said he had won nothing, they said, So we did not pay him the usual honors at cremation.

You did not understand his meaning, the chief disciple said. Our Master meant that he had attained insight into the Base of No-thingness. But even though he explained this again and again to the disciples, they did not believe him.

Knowing their disbelief, the Bodhisatta cried, Fools! They do not believe my chief disciple. I will make this thing clear to them. And he came from the Brahma Realm and by virtue of his mighty powers rested in midair above the hermitage and uttered this stanza in praise of the wisdom of the chief disciple:

Far better than a thousand fools, though they

Think hard for a hundred years unceasingly,

Is one who, hearing, straightway understands.

Figure: Remedial Dharma Class

Figure: Remedial Dharma Class

Thus did the Great Being - from midair - proclaim the Dharma and chastise the band of recluses. Then he passed back to the Brahma Realm, and all those hermits, too, qualified themselves for rebirth in the same Realm.

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His lesson ended, the Master identified the birth by saying, Sāriputta was the chief disciple of those days, and I was Mahā-Brahma.

102: Paṇṇika Jātaka,

The Green Grocer

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This story has a key point that might get lost a little, and that is the wickedness of the father. This comes out in the verse where the daughter calls him out. The daughter, then, is the true hero of the story.

"He who should prove." This story was told by the Master while he was at Jetavana. It is about a layman who was a greengrocer in Sāvatthi. He made a living by selling various roots and vegetables and pumpkins and the like.

Now he had a pretty daughter who was as good and virtuous as she was pretty, but she was always laughing. And when she was asked in marriage by a family of his own station in life, he thought She should be married, but she’s always laughing. A bad girl married into a strange family brings shame to her parents. I must find out for certain whether or not she is a good girl.

So one day he had his daughter take a basket and come with him to the forest to gather herbs. Then to test her, he took her by the hand and whispered words of love. Straightway the girl burst into tears and began to cry out that such a thing would be as monstrous as fire rising out of water, and she pleaded with him to restrain himself. Then he told her that his only intent was to test her. He asked her if she was virtuous. And she declared that she was, and that she had never looked on any man with eyes of love. Calming her fears and taking her back home, he made a feast and gave her in marriage. Then feeling that he ought to go and pay his respects to the Master, he took perfumes and garlands in his hand and went to Jetavana. His salutations done and offerings made, he seated himself near the Master, who observed that it had been a long time since his last visit. Then the man told the Blessed One the whole story.

She has always been a virtuous girl, the Master said. You tested her now just as you did in days gone by. Then at the greengrocer’s request he told this story of the past.

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Once upon a time when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, the Bodhisatta was a tree sprite in a forest. And a layman who was a greengrocer of Benares had just the same doubts about his daughter, and all happened as in the introductory story. As her father took hold of her hand the weeping girl repeated these verses:

He that should prove my character strong,

My father, committed me this wrong.

Forlorn in thickest wood I cry,

My helper proves my enemy.

Figure: A Cruel Test

Figure: A Cruel Test

Then her father calmed her fears and asked her whether she was a virgin. And when she declared that she was, he brought her home and made a feast and gave the girl in marriage.

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His story ended, the Master gave a discourse on the Four Noble Truths, at the close of which the green grocer attained stream-entry. Then the Master identified the birth by saying, The father and daughter of today were the father and daughter in the story, and I was the tree sprite who witnessed the scene.

103: Veri Jātaka,

The Enemy

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The wild boar runs from the tiger, knowing that each be well-armed by nature with deadly strength, may kill the other. Running, he saves his own life and that of the tiger. This is not cowardice. It is the love of life. - [Master Kahn, Kung Fu Television Series]

This is a simple story about prudence. It has – perhaps – a slightly subtler message as well, and that is avoiding conflict when possible:

"If you are wise, you will not linger. This story was told by the Master at Jetavana. It is about Anāthapiṇḍika. For we hear that Anāthapiṇḍika was returning from a village where he was the headman when he saw robbers on the road. It won’t do to delay, he thought. I must hurry on to Sāvatthi. So he urged his oxen to speed up and got safely into Sāvatthi. On the next day he went to the monastery and told the Master what had happened to him. Sir, the Master said, in other times, too, the wise and good saw robbers on the road and hurried without delay to their homes." Then at the merchant’s request he told this story of the past.

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Once upon a time when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, the Bodhisatta was a rich merchant. He had gone to a village to collect his dues and was on his way home when he saw robbers on the road. At once he urged his oxen to their topmost speed and reached home in safety. And as he sat on his couch of state after a rich feast, he exclaimed, I have escaped from the robbers’ hand to my own house, where fear does not live. And in gratitude he uttered this stanza:

If wise, you will not linger amongst enemies.

A night or two with such brings miseries.

So, from the fullness of his heart, the Bodhisatta spoke, and after a life of charity and other good deeds he passed away to fare according to his karma.

Figure: Turbo-charging the Oxen

Figure: Turbo-charging the Oxen

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His story ended, the Master identified the birth by saying, "I was the merchant of Benares of those days.

104: Mittavindaka Jātaka,

The Curse of Mittavindika

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The PTS edition uses the title Mittavinda, but I believe that is a mistake. Everywhere else the name is Mittavindika.

This story references Jātaka 41. In that story, there is a nobleman who supplies Mittavindika with good food. When another monk shows up, Mittavindika is afraid that if he stays, Mittavindika will no longer be the beneficiary of the nobleman’s generosity. So when the nobleman gives Mittavindika some food to share with the other monk, Mittavindika buries it in the ground rather than give it to him. Because of this wicked act, Mittavindika suffers greatly, including 500 lifetimes as a dog and 500 lifetimes as an ogre!

"From four to eight." This story was told by the Master while at Jetavana. It is about unruly monk. The incidents are the same as those in the previous story of Mittavindika (Jātaka 41), but belong to the days of the Buddha Kassapa (a previous Buddha).

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Now at that time one of the damned who had put on the razor wheel (a wheel of razors that clamps onto the head) and was suffering the tortures of hell, asked the Bodhisatta, Lord, what offense have I committed? The Bodhisatta detailed the man’s evil deeds to him and uttered this stanza:

From four to eight, then to sixteen, and on

To thirty-two insatiable greed does go,

--Still pressing on until that greed

Does win the razor wheel’s misery.

So saying the Bodhisatta went back to the Realm of Devas, but the other man stayed in hell until his misconduct had run its course. Then he passed away to fare according to his remaining karma.

Figure: The Price of Greed

Figure: The Price of Greed

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His lesson ended, the Master identified the birth by saying, This unruly monk was then Mittavindaka and I was the deva.

105: Dubbalakaṭṭa Jātaka,

The Nervous Man

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One of the common themes in the Buddha’s teaching is how useful it is to come to terms with our own mortality. Contemplating and coming to terms with our own death is a way to be at peace. If we come to terms with our own mortality, we come to terms with one of the greatest fears with which most people live.

"Do not fear the wind." This story was told by the Master while at Jetavana. It is about a monk who lived in a perpetual state of fear. We learn that he came from a good family in Sāvatthi. He was inspired to give up the world by hearing the Dharma, but he lived in fear by night and by day. The whistling of the wind, the rustle of a fan, or the cry of bird or beast would fill him with such abject terror that he would shriek and run away. He never reflected that death was inevitable. Had he practiced meditation on the certainty of death, he would not have been afraid of it. For only they who do not meditate on the certainty of death fear it.

Now his constant fear of dying became known to the Saṇgha. One day they met in the Dharma Hall and started discussing his fear and the importance of every monk taking death as a theme for meditation. Entering the Hall, the Master asked, and was told, what they were discussing. So he sent for that monk and asked him whether it was true that he lived in fear of death. The monk confessed that he did. Do not be angry, monks, with this brother, the Master said. The fear of death that fills his breast was no less strong in bygone times." So saying he told this story of the past.

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Once upon a time when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, the Bodhisatta was a tree sprite near the Himalayas. And in those days the King put his state elephant in the elephant trainers’ hands to train him. They tied the elephant to a post, and with whips in their hands they set about training the animal. Unable to bear the pain while he was being forced to do their bidding, the elephant broke the post down, chased the trainers away, and made off for the Himalayas. The men, being unable to catch him, had to return empty-handed.

After this, the elephant lived in the Himalayas in constant fear of death. A breath of wind was enough to fill him with fear and to start him off running at full speed, shaking his trunk to and fro. It was as if he was still tied to the post to be trained. All happiness of mind and body were gone. He wandered up and down in constant fear.

Seeing this, the tree sprite stood in the fork of his tree and uttered this stanza:

If you fear the wind that ceaselessly

Wears the rotten branches away,

Such fear will waste you quite away!

Such were the tree sprite’s wise words. And after that, the elephant did not suffer from fear any more.

Figure: The Tree Sprite Calms the Elephant

Figure: The Tree Sprite Calms the Elephant

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His lesson ended, the Master taught the Four Noble Truths at the end of which the monk attained stream-entry. The Master then identified the birth by saying, This monk was the elephant of those days, and I was the tree sprite.

106: Udañcani Jātaka,

Infatuation with a Temptress

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The original translation of this story describes the young woman as a fat girl. However, the Pāli word for fat also means coarse. In the teachings a coarse person is someone who indulges in sensual pleasures and is something of a temptress, someone who is seductive and uses those seductive powers to manipulate others.

"A happy life was mine." This story was told by the Master while he was at Jetavana. It is about being tempted by a seductive woman. The entire incident will be related in the Culla-Nārada-Kassapa Jātaka (Jātaka 477) in the Thirteenth Book.

(In Jātaka 477, a sensuous young woman tries to lure the Bodhisatta’s son out of his life living as a recluse in the forest. However, the Bodhisatta composes a metaphorical poem that he recites and then explains to his son. This shows the son the dangers of the sensual world and brings him back to his senses.)

On asking the monk, the Master was told that it was true he was in love, and in love with the seductive girl. Brother, the Master said, she is leading you astray. So, too, in times gone by she led you into evil, and you were only restored to happiness by the wise and good of those days. So saying, he told this story of the past.

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Once upon a time when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, those things came to pass which will be told in the Culla-Nārada-Kassapa Jātaka. But on this occasion the Bodhisatta arrived in the evening with fruits at the hermitage. Opening the door, he said to his son, Every other day you brought wood and victuals and lit a fire. Why have you not done any of these things today, but sit sadly here pining away?

Father, the young man said, while you were away gathering fruits, a woman came who tried to lure me away with sweet talk. But I would not go with her until I had your permission, and so I left her sitting waiting for me. And now my wish is to depart.

Finding that the young man was too infatuated to be able to give her up, the Bodhisatta wished him farewell, saying But when she wants meat or fish or ghee or salt or rice or any such thing to eat, and she sends you hurrying to and fro on her errands, then remember this hermitage and come away back to me.

So the son went off with the woman to the world of men. When he got to her house, she made him run about to do every single thing she wanted.

I might just as well be her slave, he thought, and promptly ran away back to his father. Saluting him, he stood and repeated this stanza:

A happy life was mine until she arrived,

--That worrying, tiresome schemer defined my wife--

Set me to run the errands of her whims.

Figure: The Perils of Passion

Figure: The Perils of Passion

And the Bodhisatta praised the young man and encouraged him to be kind and show mercy. He described the four forms of right feeling towards people (loving-kindness, compassion, empathetic joy, and equanimity) and the practices for gaining insight. And it was not long before the young man won the Knowledges (supernormal powers) and Attainments (the jhānas). Further, he cultivated the right feelings towards his fellow beings, and with his father was reborn into the Brahma Realm.

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His lesson ended, the Master taught the Four Noble Truths, at the close of which that monk attained stream entry. The Master identified the birth by saying, The seductive girl of today was also the seductive girl of those days. This beguiled monk was the son, and I was the father of those days.

107: Sālittaka Jātaka,

The Stone Slinger

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This is a very funny story. One of the things that I love about the Pāli Canon is how much humor there is. In this story there is a man who is an obsessive talker and a King who is looking for a way to shut him up. The solution is quite ingenious!

In this story, the same skill is used in two different contexts. In one context, the skill is used wisely, in the other, it is not. Thus the Buddha’s