



Produced by Charlene Taylor, Bryan Ness, Les Galloway and
the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images
generously made available by The Internet Archive/American
Libraries.)









                        BUDDHIST BIRTH STORIES;

                                  OR,

                             JĀTAKA TALES.

              THE OLDEST COLLECTION OF FOLK-LORE EXTANT:

                                 BEING

                        THE JĀTAKATTHAVAṆṆANĀ,

           _For the first time Edited in the Original Pāli_

                            BY V. FAUSBÖLL,

                            AND TRANSLATED

                         BY T. W. RHYS DAVIDS.

                             TRANSLATION.

                              _VOLUME I._


                                LONDON:
                     TRÜBNER & CO., LUDGATE HILL.
                                 1880.
                       [_All rights reserved._]




                               HERTFORD:
                  PRINTED BY STEPHEN AUSTIN AND SONS.




                                  TO

                     GEHEIM-RATH PROFESSOR DOCTOR

                               STENZLER

                  MY FIRST GUIDE IN ORIENTAL STUDIES

              IN CONGRATULATION ON HIS ‘DOCTOR JUBILÄUM’

           AND IN DEEP RESPECT FOR HIS PROFOUND SCHOLARSHIP

                       THIS WORK IS DEDICATED BY

                          HIS GRATEFUL PUPIL

                              THE AUTHOR.




TABLE OF CONTENTS.


  TRANSLATOR’S INTRODUCTION.                                PAGE


  PART I.

  _The Book of Birth Stories, and their Migration to the West._

  Orthodox Buddhist belief concerning it. Two reasons
  for the value attached to it                      i-iv

  Selected Stories.--1. The Ass in the Lion’s Skin     v

  2. The Talkative Tortoise                         viii

  3. The Jackal and the Crow                         xii

  4. The Wise Judge                                  xiv

  5. Sakka’s Presents                                xvi

  6. A Lesson for Kings                             xxii

  The Kalilag and Damnag Literature                 xxix

  Origin of ‘Æsop’s’ Fables                        xxxii

  The Barlaam and Josaphat Literature              xxxvi

  Other Migrations of the Buddhist Tales             xli

  Greek and Buddhist Fables                        xliii

  Solomon’s Judgment                                xliv

  Summary of Part I.                              xlviii


  PART II.

  _The Birth Stories in India._

  Jātakas derived from the Pāli Piṭakas              lii

  Jātakas in the Cariyā Piṭaka and Jātaka Mālā      liii

  Jātakas in the Buddhavaŋsa                          lv

  Jātakas at the Council of Vesāli                  lvii

  Jātakas on the Ancient Sculptures                  lix

  The Pāli Names of the Jātakas                       lx

  The Jātakas one of the Navaŋgāni                  lxii

  Authorship of our present Collection             lxiii

  Jātakas not included in our present Collection   lxvii

  Jātakas in post-Buddhistic Sanskrit Literature   lxviii

  Form of the Jātakas.--The Introductory Stories   lxxiv

  The Conclusions                                   lxxv

  The Abhisambuddha-gāthā, or
  Verses in the Conclusion                         lxxvi

  Divisions of the Jātaka Book                     lxxix

  Actual Number of the Stories                     lxxxi

  Summary of the Origin of the Present Collection lxxxii

  Special Lessons inculcated by the Birth Stories  lxxxv

  Special Historical Value of the Birth Stories   lxxxvi


  SUPPLEMENTARY TABLES.

  I. Indian Works                                 lxxxix

  II. The Kalilag and Damnag Literature            xciii

  III. The Barlaam and Josaphat Literature           xcv

  IV. The Cariyā Piṭaka and the Jātaka Mālā       xcviii

  V. Alphabetical List of Jātaka Stories in the
     Mahāvastu                                      xcix

  VI. Places at which the Tales were Told              c

  VII. The Bodisats                                   ci

  VIII. Jātakas Illustrated in Bas-relief on the Ancient
  Monuments                                          cii


  THE CEYLON COMPILER’S INTRODUCTION, called the
  _Nidāna Kathā_.

  Story of Sumedha, the First Bodisat                  2

  The Successive Bodisats in the Times of the Previous
  Buddhas                                             31

  Life of the Last Bodisat (who became Buddha)        58

  His Descent from Heaven                             59

  His Birth                                           67

  Song of the Angels                                  69

  Prophecy of Kāḷa Devala                             70

  Prophecy of the Brāhman Priests                     72

  The Ploughing Festival                              75

  The Young Bodisat’s Skill and Wisdom                76

  The Four Visions                                    77

  The Bodisat’s Son is Born                           79

  Kisā Gotamī’s Song                                  80

  The Great Renunciation                              82

  The Great Struggle against Sin                      89

  The Great Victory over Satan                        96

  The Bliss of Nirvāna                               105

  The Hesitation whether to Publish the Good News    111

  The Foundation of the Kingdom of Righteousness     113

  Uruvela Kassapa’s Conversion                       114

  Triumphal Entrance into Rājagaha                   116

  Foundation of the Order                            119

  Return Home                                        121

  Presentation of the First Monastery to the Buddha  131


  THE BIRTH STORIES.

  1. Holding to the Truth... Apaṇṇaka Jātaka        134

  2. The Sandy Road... Vaṇṇupatha Jātaka            147

  3. The Merchant of Sēri... Seri-vānija Jātaka     153

  4. The Story of Chullaka the Treasurer... Cullaka-seṭṭhi
  Jātaka                                             158

  5. The Measure of Rice... Taṇḍula-nāḷi Jātaka     172

  6. On True Divinity... Deva-dhamma Jātaka         178

  9. The Story of Makhā Deva... Makhā-deva Jātaka   186

  10. The Happy Life... Sukhavihāri Jātaka          190

  11. The Story of Beauty... Lakkhaṇa Jātaka        194

  12. The Banyan Deer... Nigrodha-miga Jātaka       199

  13. The Dart of Love... Kaṇḍina Jātaka            211

  14. The Greedy Antelope... Vātamiga Jātaka        214

  15. The Deer who would not Learn... Kharādiyā
  Jātaka                                             219

  16. The Cunning Deer... Tipallatha-miga Jātaka    221

  17. The Wind... Māluta Jātaka                     224

  18. On Offering Food to the Dead... Mataka-bhatta
  Jātaka                                             226

  19. On Offerings given under a Vow... Āyācita-bhatta
  Jātaka                                             230

  20. The Monkeys and the Demon... Naḷapāna Jātaka  232

  21. The W