The Jātaka, vol. V (nos. 511-537)

’Mongst women folk the chief in fame, She’s wise and perfect, bright as flame, Shouldst thou eat her, thy skull be riven, O goblin, into fragments seven. So harm her not; let her go free, For a devoted wife is she. On hearing this the goblin let Sambula go. Sakka thought: “This goblin will be guilty of the same thing again,” and so he bound him with celestial chains and let him loose on the third mountain from thence, that he might not return; and, after earnestly exhorting the royal lady, he departed to his own abode. And the princess, after sunset, by the light of the moon reached the hermitage. No. 519. a | To explain the matter, the Master repeated eight stanzas: Escaped from ogre, to her hut she fled, As bird returning finds its fledglings dead, Or cow, robbed of her calf, laments an empty shed. Thus Sambula, of royal fame, made moan, Wild-eyed and helpless, in the wood, alone. , Hail, priests and brahmins, righteous sages too, Deserted, I for refuge fly to you. All hail, ye lions and ye tigers fell, And other beasts that in the woodland dwell. All hail, ye grasses, herbs and plants that creep, All hail, ye forests green and mountains steep.

All hail to Night, bedecked with stars on high, Dark as blue lotus of the deepest dye. [93] All hail to Ganges: mother of rivers she, Known amongst men as famed Bhagirathi. Hail, Himavyat, of all the mountains king, Huge rocky pile, o’ertopping everything. Regarding her, as she uttered this lamentation, Sotthisena thought, “She is overdoing her lamentation: I do not quite know what it all means. If she were acting thus for love of me, her heart would be broken. I will put her to the test.” And he went and sat at the door of his hut. She, still lamenting, came to the door, and, making a low obeisance, she said, “ Where has my lord been?” ‘ Lady,” he said, “on other days you have never come at this hour; to-day you are very late,” [94] and in the form of a question he spoke this stanza ; Illustrious lady, why so late to-day ? What favoured lover led to this delay ? Then she made answer, “My lord, I was returning with my fruit when I beheld a goblin, and he fell in love with me, and seizing me by the hand, he cried: ‘Unless you obey my words, I will eat you alive.’ And at that moment, sorrowing for you only, I uttered this lament ; and she repeated this stanza :

Seized by my foe, I, full of woe, these words to him did say; ‘No grief to me that I should be a hateful ogre’s prey, But that the love of my dear lord from me should fall away.’” Then she told him the rest of the story, saying, “So when I was * seized by this goblin, and was unable to make him let me go, I acted so as to excite the attention of the god. Then Sakka came, thunderbolt in hand, and, standing in the air, he threatened the goblin and made him release me. And he bound him with magic chains and deposited him on 52 The Jataka. Book XVI. the third mountain range from here, and so departed. Thus was I saved by means of Sakka.” Sotthisena, on hearing this, replied : “Well, lady, it may be so. With womenkind it is hard to discover the truth. In the Himalaya region dwell many foresters, ascetics and magicians. Who shall believe you?” And so saying, he repeated a stanza : You jades are ever by far too clever, Truth among such is a great rarity, Ways of the sex are enough to perplex, E’en as the course of a fish in the sea.

On hearing his words, she said: ‘ My lord, though you do not believe me, by virtue of the truth I speak, I will heal you.” So, filling a pot of water and performing an Act of Truth, she poured the water on his head and spoke this stanza : [95] May Truth for aye my shelter be, As I love no man more than thee, And by this Act of Truth, I pray, May thy disease be healed to-day. When she had thus performed an Act of Truth, no sooner was the water sprinkled over Sotthisena than the leprosy straightway left him, as it were copper rust washed in some acid. After staying a few days there, they departed from the forest, and, coming to Benares, entered the park. The king, being apprised of their arrival, went to the park, and there and then bade the royal umbrella to be raised over Sotthisena, and ordered that Sambula, by sprinkling, should be raised to the position of chief queen. Then conducting them into the city, he himself adopted the ascetic life and took up his abode in the park, but he still constantly took his meals in the palace. And Sotthisena merely conferred on Sambula the rank of chief consort, but no honour was paid her, and he ignored her very existence and took his pleasure with other women. Sambula, through jealousy of her rivals, grew thin and pale of countenance, and her veins stood out upon her body. One day when her father-in-law, the ascetic, came to have a meal, to get rid of her grief she came to him when he had finished eating, and saluting him, sat down on one side. On seeing her in this languid condition, he repeated a stanza :

Seven hundred elephants by night and day Are guarding thee, all ready for the fray, Hundreds of archers shielding thee from harm; Whence come the foes to fill thee with alarm ? [96] On hearing his words she said, “ Your son, my lord, is no longer the same to me”; and she repeated five stanzas: Fair as a lotus are the maids he loves, Their swan-like voice his deepest passion moves, And as he listens to their measured strain, In his affections I no longer reign, In human shape but like to nymphs divine, Adorned with ornaments of gold they shine, Of perfect form the noble maidens lie In graceful pose, to charm the royal eye. If I once more might wander in the wood, To glean a portion for his daily food, Once more I should a husband’s love regain, And quit the court in forest realms to reign. A woman may in softest robes be drest, And be with food in rich abundance blest, Fair though she be, yet if an unloved wife, Best fix a rope and put an end to life. Yea the poor wretch on bed of straw! that lies, If she find favour in her husband’s eyes, Enjoys a happiness unknown to one,

tich in all else, but poor in love alone. [97] When she had thus explained to the ascetic the cause of her thus pining away, he summoned the king and said, “ Dear Sotthisena, when you were crushed by the disease of leprosy and hid yourself in the forest, she went with you and ministered to your wants, and by the power of truth healed your sickness, and now after she has been the means of your being established on the throne, you do not even know the place of her sitting and uprising ; this is very wrong of you. An act of treachery to a friend like this is a sin,” and reproving his son, he repeated this stanza : A loving wife is ever hard to find, As is a man that to his wife is kind: Thy wife was virtuous and loving too ; Do thou, O king, to Sambula be true. [98] After he had thus reproved his son, he got up and went away. The king, when his father was gone, called for Sambula and said, “ My dear, forgive the wrong I have done you this long time. Henceforth I confer on you all power,” and he repeated the final stanza :

Shouldst thou, with wealth in great abundance blest, Still pine away, by jealousy opprest, I and these maidens, creatures of thy hand, Will be obedient to thy command. Thenceforth the pair lived happily together and after a life of charity and good works they departed to fare according to their deeds. ‘The ascetic, after entering upon ecstatic meditation, passed to the heaven of The Master here ended his lesson and saying, “ Not now only, but formerly too, Mallika was a devoted wife,” he identified the Birth: “At that time Sambula was Mallika, Sotthisena was the king of Kosala, and the ascetic father was myself.” 54 The Jataka. Book XVI.

“Zeal is the way,” ete. This story the Master, dwelling at Jetavana, told concerning the admonition of a king. This admonition of a king has already been related in full. Once upon a time in the kingdom of Kampilla, in a city of the Northern Paiicalas, a king called Paticala, being established in evil courses and reckless, ruled his kingdom unrighteously. So all his ministers likewise became unrighteous. His subjects being oppressed by taxation took their wives and families and wandered in the forest like wild beasts. Where once stood villages, there now were none, [99] and the people through the fear of the king’s men by day did not venture to dwell in their houses, but fencing them about with thorn branches, as soon as the day broke, they disappeared into the forest. By day they were plundered by the king’s men and by night by robbers. At that time the Bodhisatta came to life in the form of a divinity of a tinduka tree outside the city, and every year received from the king an offering worth a thousand pieces of money, and he thought, ‘‘ This is a roi fainéant ; his whole kingdom is going to ruin; besides me there is no one that can set the king in the right way, and he is a benefactor to me and every year honours me with an offering of a thousand pieces. I will admonish him.” So in the night he entered into the royal chamber, and taking up his position at the bed’s head he stood poised in the air, emitting a bright light.

The king, when he saw him thus shining like the newly-risen sun, asked him who he was and wherefore he had come. On hearing his words he said, ‘‘ Great king, I am the divinity of the tinduka tree, and I come to give you good advice.” “What advice have you to give me?” said the king. “Sire,” said the Great Being, ‘‘you are careless in your rule, and so all your kingdom is going to ruin, as if it were the prey of hirelings. Kings that are careless in their rule are not masters of all their realm, but in this world they meet with destruction and in the world to come they are re-born in hell, and when they are careless both those within their domain and those outside it are careless too, and therefore a king ought to

1 No. 334, vol. iii. Rdjovdda-Jataka. No, 521, vol. v. be exceedingly careful,” and so saying, to inculcate a moral lesson, he repeated these stanzas: Zeal is the way to Nirvana, but sloth leads to death, it is said; While vigilant souls never die, the careless are even as dead. From pride as its root cometh sloth: from sloth cometh loss and decay : Decay is the parent of sin. All sloth, O great king, put away. Brave souls by their sloth many times of wealth and of realm have been shorn, And so village lords may become like the waif, without home, all forlorn. [100] When a prince in his rule groweth slack, untrue to his name and his fame, Should his wealth all at once disappear, of that prince it is counted as shame. Thoy art slack out of season, O king, from the right thou hast wandered away, Thy realm that so flourished of old to robbers doth now fall a prey. No son shall inherit thy realm, with its treasures of gold and of corn, Thy realm to the spoiler a prey and thou of thy wealth liest shorn. The prince that is stript of his realm, with its stores and its wealth manifold,

- His friends and his kith and his kin esteem him no more as of old. His guards and his charioteers, his horse and his footmen so bold, As they see him of all dispossest, regard him no more as of old. The fool of disorderly life is by evil advice led astray, Soon stript is the fool of his fame, as the snake its old skin casts away. But the man who arising betimes unwearied and orderly is, His oxen and kine thrive apace, and riches increasing are his. Great king, ever open thine ears, and list to what people may say, That seeing and hearing the truth, thou mayst win to good fortune thy way. [101] Thus did the Great Being admonish the king in eleven stanzas, and “Go,” said he, ‘‘ without delay and foster thy kingdom, and destroy it not,” and so departed to his own abode. And the king hearkened to his words and, being much moved, on the morrow he handed over his kingdom to his ministers, and accompanied by his chaplain he left the city betimes by the eastern gate [102] and went a furlong’s distance. ‘here an old man, a native of the village, carried branches of thorn from the forest and putting them all round his house closed the door, and with his wife and children betook himself to the forest. At eventide when the king’s men had departed, he returned to his house, and by the door his foot was pierced with a thorn point, and sitting cross-legged and extracting the thorn he cursed the king in the following stanza :

Struck by an arrow in the fray, So may Paiicila mourn, As I have cause to grieve to-day, Thus wounded by a thorn.’ This imprecation on the king came about by the power of the Bodhisatta, and it was as one possessed by the Bodhisatta that he cursed him. In this light is his action to be regarded. Now at this 56 The Jataka. Book XVI. juncture the king and his chaplain stood before him in disguise. So the chaplain hearing his words uttered another stanza : Thou art old, my good sir, and thy. sight is too dim To discern things aright, I'll be sworn ;_ As for king Brahmadatta, what is it to him, That thy foot has been pierced by a thorn ? On hearing this the old man repeated three stanzas : 'Tis due to Brahmadatta, sure, that I am racked with pain, Just as defenceless folk are oft by their oppressors slain. By night to thieves a prey are we, to publicans by day, Lewd folks abound within the realm, when evil kings bear sway. Distrest by such a fear as this, men to the forest flee, And round their dwellings scatter thorns, for their security.

[103] On hearing this the king addressing his chaplain said, “ Master, the old man speaks truly: it is our fault. Come, let us return and rule the kingdom righteously.” Then the Bodhisatta, taking possession of the body of the chaplain, stood before him and said, “Great king, let us investigate the matter.” And passing from that village to another one they listened to the words spoken by an old woman, She was, it is said, a poor woman and had two grown up daughters under her care, whom she would not allow to enter the forest. But she herself brought fire-wood and leaves of trees and ministered to her daughters. One day she climbed up a bush to gather leaves and falling rolled upon the ground, and she cursed the king, threatening him with death, and uttered this stanza: Oh! when will Brahmadatta die, for long as he shall reign, Our daughters live unwedded and for husbands sigh in vain ? Then the priest checking her spoke this stanza : Evil and profitless withal these words of thine, O jade, Whence shall the king find in his realm a husband for each maid ? [104] The old woman on hearing this repeated two stanzas :

Not evil are these. words of mine, nor spoken all in vain, So long as thy defenceless folk are by oppressors slain. By night to thieves a prey are we, to publicans by day, Lewd folks abound within the realm, when evil kings bear sway, When times are bad, poor maids are sad, for husbands none have they. Hearing her words they thought, “She speaks to the point,” and going farther on they listened to what a ploughman was saying. As he was ploughing, they say, his ox called Saliya was laid low, being struck by the ploughshare, and its owner cursed the king and repeated this stanza : So may Pancala fall to earth by spear-thrust of his foe, As Saliya by ploughshare hurt, poor wretch, here lieth low. Then the priest, to check him, spoke this stanza: With Brahmadatta thou art wroth, though no good cause is shown, And while thou dost revile the king, the guilt is all thine own. Hearing this the ploughman replied in three stanzas : With Brahmadatta I am wroth, and rightly I maintain ; Defenceless folk are ever thus by their oppressor slain. By night to thieves a prey are we &c. [105] The slave had twice! to cook the food and brought it late to me; While all agape for her, my ox was wounded fatally. Going on still further they stayed in a certain village. Next day early in the morning a vicious cow kicked a milkman and upset him, milk and all. The man cursed Brahmadatta and repeated this stanza :

By stroke of sword Paicala’s lord shall fall amidst the fray, As Tm laid low by kick of cow, milk-pail and all, to-day. The brahniin in a stanza said : A cow, say, kicks against the pricks, or pail of milk upsets— What’s this to Brahmadatta that all this abuse he gets? On hearing this the milkman repeated three stanzas : Paiicala’s king, O brahmin, is to blame, for in his reign Defenceless folk are seen to be by their oppressors slain. A wild and savage cow that we had never milked before We milked to-day: demands for milk grow ever more and more. [106] They said, “‘He speaks the truth,” and going forth from that village they climbed into the highway and started towards the city. And in a certain village tax-collectors killed a young dappled calf and stripped off its skin to make a sword-sheath, and the mother of the calf was so grieved for the loss of her young one that she neither ate grass nor drank water but roamed to and fro, lamenting. On seeing her the village boys cursed the king and spoke this stanza : So let Paficala pine away and childless weep in vain, As this poor cow distracted seeks the calf that men have slain.

Then the priest spoke another stanza : When from its herd some beast escapes, and roars to ease its pain, Herein what cause hast thou of Brahmadatta to complain? Then the village boys repeated two stanzas : King Brahmadatta’s sin in this, brahmin, to me is plain, Defenceless folk are ever thus by their oppressors slain. By night to thieves a prey are we, to publicans by day, Lewd folks abound within the realm, when evil kings bear sway. Why should a tender calf be killed, just for a sheath, I pray ? “You speak truth,” they said and departed. Then, going on their way, in a certain dry tank crows were striking frogs with their beaks and 1 The scholiast explains that the royal tax-gatherers had eaten the food first cooked by the slave for her master. 58 The Jataka. Book XVI. devouring them. When they reached this spot, the Bodhisatta by the exercise of his power cursed the king by the mouth of a frog, saying, [107] So may Paficala killed in fight be eaten, sons and all, As woodland frog to village crows a prey this day I fall. Hearing this the priest conversing with the frog repeated this stanza :

Kings cannot, frog, as you must know, Guard every creature here below, In this no wicked king is he, That crows eat living things like thee. On hearing this the frog repeated two stanzas : The priest with words too flattering Thus wickedly deceives the king ; The king, though people are oppressed, Deems the priest’s policy the best. If blest with all prosperity This realm should glad and peaceful be, Crows richest offerings! might enjoy, Nor need aught living to destroy. [108] On hearing this the king and the priest thought, ‘ All creatures, including the frog that lives in the forest, curse us,” and going thence to the city they ruled their kingdom righteously, and abiding in the admonition of the Great Being they devoted themselves to charity and other good works. The Master here ended his discourse to the king of Kosala in these words, “A king, Sire, must forsake evil courses, and rule his kingdom righteously,” and he identified the Birth: “At that time the divinity of the tinduka tree was myself.” 1 A crow was called baliputtho, ‘nourished by oblations.”

$199] “OTs this I ask,” etc. This story the Master, while dwelling at Jetavana, told by way of admonition to the king of Kosala. Now this king came to hear the preaching of the law and the Master addressed him in the following terms : “A king, Sire, ought to rule his kingdom righteously, for whenever kings are unrighteous, then also are his officers unrighteous.” And admonishing him in the right wayas related in the Catukkanipita (4th Book) he pointed out the suffering and the blessing involved in following or abstaining from evil courses, and expounded in detail the misery resulting from sensual pleasures, comparing them to dreams and the like, saying, “In the case of these men, No bribe can move relentless death, no kindness mollify, No one in fight can vanquish death. For all are doomed to die. And when they depart to another world, except their own virtuous action they have no other sure refuge, so that they must inevitably forsake low associations and for their reputation’s sake they must not be careless, but be earnest and exercise rule in righteousness, even as kings of old, before Buddha arose, abiding in the admonition of the wise, ruled righteously and departing attained to the heavenly city,” and at the request of the king he told a story of the past.

Once upon a time Brahmadatta ruled in Benares and had no heir, and his prayer for a son or daughter was not answered. Now one day he went with a large escort to his park and after amusing himself a part of the day in the grounds [110] he had a couch spread for him at the foot of the royal 4] tree, and after a short nap he awoke and, looking up to the sal tree, he beheld a bird’s nest in it, and at the sight of it a desire to possess it sprang up in his heart, and summoning one of his attendants he said, “Climb the tree and see if there is anything in the nest or not.” The man climbed up and finding three eggs in it told the king, ‘Then mind you do not breathe over them,” he said, and, spreading some cotton in a casket, he told the man to come down gently, and place the eggs in it. When they had been brought down, he took up the casket and asked his courtiers to what bird these eggs belonged. They answered, “ We do not know: hunters will know.” The king sent for the hunters and asked them. “Sire,” said they, “one is au owl’s egg, another is a maynah bird’s, and the third is a parrot’s,” “Pray are there eggs of three different birds in

60 The Jataka. Book XVII. one nest?” “Yes, Sire, when there is nothing to fear, what is carefully deposited does not perish.” The king being pleased said, ‘They shall be my children,’ and committing the three eggs to the charge of three courtiers, he said, “These shall be my children. Do you carefully watch over them and when the young birds come out of the shell, let me know.” They took good care of them. First of all the owl’s egg was hatched, and the courtier sent for a hunter and said, “Find out the sex of the young bird, whether it is a cock or a hen bird,” and when he had examined it and declared it to be a cock bird, the courtier went to the king and said, “‘Sire, a son is born to you.” The king was delighted and bestowed much wealth on him and saying, [111] “‘ Watch carefully over him and call his name Vessantara,” he sent him away. He did as he was told. Then a few days afterwards the egg of the maynah bird was hatched, and the second courtier likewise, after getting the huntsman to examine it, and hearing it was a hen bird, went to the king and announced to him the birth of a daughter. The king was delighted, and gave to him also much treasure and saying, “Watch carefully over my daughter and call her name Kundalini,” he sent him away.

He also did what he was told. Then after a few days the parrot’s egg was hatched and the third courtier, when told by the huntsman who examined it that it was a cock bird, went and announced to the king the birth of a son. The king was delighted and paying him liberally said, “ Hold a festival in honour of my son with great pomp, and call his name Jambuka,” and then sent him away. He too did as he was told. And these three birds grew up in the houses of the three courtiers with all the ceremony due to royalty. The king speaks of them habitually, as ‘my son’ and ‘my daughter.’ His courtiers made merry, one with another, saying, ‘‘ Look at what the king does: he goes about speaking of birds as his son and his daughter.” The king thought, ‘These courtiers do not know the extent of my children’s wisdom. I will make it evident to them.” So he sent one of his ministers to Vessantara to say, ‘‘ Your father wishes to ask you a question. When shall he come and ask it?” The minister came and bowing to Vessantara delivered the message. Vessantara sent for the courtier who looked after him and said, “My father,” they tell me, “wants to ask me a question. When he comes, we must shew him all respect,” and he asked ‘When is he to come?” The courtier said, ‘“ Let him come on the seventh day from this.” Vessantara on hearing this said, ‘ Let my father come on the seventh day from this,’ and with these words he sent the minister away.

He went and told the king. On the seventh day the king ordered a drum to be beaten through the city and went to the house where his son lived. Vessantara treated the king with great respect and had great respect paid even to the slaves and hired servants. The king, after partaking of food in the house of Vessantara, and enjoying great distinction, returned to his

own dwelling-place. Then he had a big pavilion erected in the palaceyard, and, having made proclamation by beating a drum through the city, he sat in his magnificent pavilion surrounded by a great retinue [112] and sent word to a courtier to conduct Vessantara to him. The courtier brought Vessantara on a golden stool. The bird sat on his father’s lap and played with his father, and then went and sat on the stool. Then the king in the midst of the crowd of people questioned him as to the duty of a king and spoke the first stanza : Tis this I ask Vessantara—dear bird, mayst thou be blest To one that’s fain o’er men to reign, what course of life is best ? Vessautara, without answering the question directly, reproved the king for his carelessness and spoke the second stanza : Kamsa my sire, of Kasi lord, so careless long ago, Urged me his son, though full of zeal, still greater zeal to show. Rebuking the king in this stanza and saying, “Sire, a king ought to rule his kingdom righteously, abiding in the three truths,” and telling of a king’s duty he spoke these stanzas : First of all should a king put away all falsehood and anger and scorn ; Let him do what a king has to do, or else to his vow be forsworn.

By passion and sin led astray, should he err in the past, it is plain He will live to repent of the deed, and will learn not to do it again. When a prince in his rule groweth slack, untrue to his name and his fame, Should his wealth all at once disappear, of that prince it is counted as shame. ’Twas thus that Good Fortune and Luck, when I asked, made reply unto me, ‘In a man energetic and bold we delight, if from jealousy free.’ [113] Ill Luck, ever wrecking good fortune, delighteth in men of ill deeds, The hard-hearted creatures in whom a spirit of jealousy breeds. To all, O great king, be a friend, so that all may thy safety insure, Ill Luck put away, but to Luck that is good be a dwelling secure. The man that is lucky and bold, O thou that o’er Kasi dost reign, His foes will destroy root and branch, and to greatness will surely attain. Great Sakka all courage in man ever watches with vigilant eyes, For courage as virtue he holds and in it true goodness espies. Gandharvas, gods, angels and men, one and all, emulate such a king, And spirits appearing stand by, of his zeal and his vigour to sing.

Be zealous to do what is right, nor, however reviled, yield to sin, Be earnest in efforts for good—no sluggard can bliss ever win. Herein is the text of thy duty, to teach thee the way thou shouldst go: ’Tis enough to win bliss for a friend or to work grievous ill for a foe. [115] Thus did the bird Vessantara in a single stanza rebuke the carelessness of the king, and then in telling the duty of a king in eleven stanzas answered his question with all the charm of a Buddha, The hearts of the multitude were filled with wonder and amazement and innumerable shouts of applause were raised. The king was transported with joy and addressing his courtiers asked them what was to be done for his son, for 62 The Jataka. Book XVII. having spoken thus. ‘“ He should be made a general in the army, Sire.” “Well, I give him the post of general,” and he appointed Vessantara to the vacant post. Thenceforth placed in this position he carried out his father’s wishes. Here ends the story of Vessantara’s question. [116] Again the king after some days, just as before, sent a message to Kundalini, and on the seventh day he paid her a visit and returning home again he seated himself in the centre of a pavilion and ordered Kundalini to be brought. to him, and when she was seated on a golden stool, he questioned her as to the duty of a king and spoke this stanza: Kundalini, of royal birth, couldst thou resolve my quest,

To one that’s fain o’er men to reign, what course of life is best? When the king thus asked her as to the duties of a king, she said, “T suppose, Sir, you are putting me to the test, thinking ‘What will a woman be able to tell me?’ so I will tell you, putting all your duty as a king into just two maxims,” and she repeated these stanzas : The matter, my friend, is set forth in a couple of maxims quite plain— To keep whatsoever one has, and whatever one has not to gain. Take as counsellors men that are wise, thy interests clearly to see, Not given to riot and waste, from gambling and drunkenness free. Such an one as can guard thee aright and thy treasure with all proper zeal, As a charioteer guides his car, he with skill steers the realm’s common weal. Keep ever thy folk well in hand, and duly take stock of thy pelf, Ne’er trust to another a loan or deposit, but act for thyself. What is done or undone to thy profit and loss it is well thou shouldst know, Ever blame the blame-worthy and favour on them that deserve it bestow.

[117] Thou thyself, O great king, shouldst instruct thy people in every good way, Lest thy realm and thy substance should fall to unrighteous officials a prey. See that nothing is done by thyself or by others with overmuch speed, For the fool that so acts without doubt will live to repent of the deed. To wrath one should never give way, for should it due bounds overflow, It will lead to the ruin of kings and the proudest of houses lay low. Be sure that thou never as king thy people mislead to their cost, Lest all men and women alike in an ocean of trouble be lost. When a king from all fear is set free, and the pleasures of sense are his aim, Should his riches and all disappear, to that king it is counted as shame. Herein is a text of thy duty, to teach thee the way thou shouldst go, Be an adept in every good work, to excess and to riot a foe, Study virtue, for vice ever leads to a state full of suffering and woe. [120] Thus did Kundalini also teach the king his duty in eleven stanzas. The king was delighted and addressing his courtiers asked them, saying, “What is to be given to my daughter as a reward for her having spoken thus?” ‘The office of treasurer, Sire.” ‘ Well then, I grant her the post of treasurer,” and he appointed Kundalini to the vacant post. Thenceforth she held the office and acted for the king. Here ends the story of the question of Kundalini,

Again the king after the lapse of a few days, just as before, sent a messenger to the wise Jambuka, and going there on the seventh day and being magnificently entertained he returned home and in the same manner took his seat in the centre of a pavilion. A courtier placed the wise Jambuka on a stool bound with gold, and came bearing the stool on his head. The wise bird sitting on his father’s lap and playing with him at length took his seat on the golden stool. Then the king, asking him a question, spoke this stanza: We've questioned both thy brother prince, and also fair Kundalini; Now, Jambuka, do thou in turn the highest power declare to me. Thus did the king, in asking a question of the Great Being, not ask him in the way in which he had asked the others, but asked him in a special way. Then the wise bird said to him, “ Well, Sire, listen attentively, and I will tell you all,” and like a man placing a purse containing a thousand pieces of money into an outstretched hand, he began his exposition of a king’s duty : Amidst the great ones of the earth a fivefold power we see;

Of these the power of limbs is, sure, the last in its degree, And power of wealth, O mighty lord, the next is said to be. The power of counsel third in rank of these, O king, I name; The power of caste without a doubt is reckoned fourth in fame, And all of these a man that’s wise most certainly will claim. [121] Of all these powers that one is best, as power of learning known, By strength of this a man is wise and makes success his own. Should richest realm fall to the lot of some poor stupid wight, Another will by violence seize it in his despite. However noble be the prince, whose lot it is to rule, He is hard put to live at all, if he should prove a fool. "Tis wisdom tests reports of deeds and makes men’s fame to grow, Who is with wisdom gifted still finds pleasure e’en in woe. None that are heedless in their ways to wisdom can attain, But must consult the wise and just, or ignorant remain. Who early rising shall betimes unweariedly give heed To duty’s varied calls, in life is certain to succeed. No one that’s bent on hurtful things or acts in listless mood In aught that he may undertake will come to any good.

But one that will unweariedly a rightful course pursue, Is sure to reach perfection in whatever he may do. To safeguard one’s store is to gain more and more, _ And these are the things I would have thee to mind ; For the fool by ill deeds, like a house built of reeds, Collapses and leaves rack and ruin behind. [123] Thus did the Bodhisatta in all these points sing the praises of the five powers, and exalting the power of wisdom, like to one striking the orb of the moon with his words, he admonished the king in eleven stanzas : 64 The Jataka. Book X VII. Unto thy parents, warrior king, do righteously; and so By following a righteous life to heaven thou, sire, shalt gol. [124] After uttering ten stahzas about the way of righteousness, still further admonishing the king he spoke the concluding stanza : Herein is the text of thy duty, to teach thee the way thou shouldst go: Follow wisdom and ever be happy, the Truth in its fulness to know. Thus did the Great Being, as though he were letting down the heavenly Ganges, teach the Law with all the charm of a Buddha. And the multitude paid him great honour and raised innumerable shouts of applause. The king was delighted and addressing his councillors asked, [125] “How ought my son, wise Jambuka, with a beak like the fresh fruit of the rose-apple, to be rewarded for having spoken thus?” “With the post of commander-in-chief, Sire.” ‘Then I offer him this post,” he said, and appointed him to the vacant office, and thenceforth in the position of commander-in-chief he carried out the orders of his father.

Great honour was paid to the three birds, and all three of them gave instruction in temporal and spiritual matters. The king, abiding in the admonition of the Great Being, by almsgiving and other good works became destined to heaven. The councillors after performing the king’s obsequies, speaking to the birds said, “‘ My lord, Jambu, the king ordered the royal umbrella to be raised over you.” The Great Being said, “I have no need of the kingdom, do you exercise rule with all vigilance,” and after establishing thé people in the moral law, he said ‘“ Execute justice,’ and he had righteous judgment inscribed on a golden plate and disappeared in the forest. And his admonition continued in force forty thousand years.

The Master by means of his admonition of the king taught this lesson and identified the Birth: “At that time the king was Ananda, Kundalini was Uppalavanna, Vessantara was Sariputta, the bird Jambu was myself.”

“ Beringed and gallantly,” etc.—This was a story the Master, while dwelling in the Bamboo Grove, told concerning the death of the Elder, the Great Moggallana®. The Elder Sariputta®, after gaining the consent of the Tathagata 1 Here follow nine similar couplets already given in vol. 1v. No. 501, RohantamigaJataka, p. 263, English version ; see also Senart’s Mahdvastu, vol. 1. p. 282. 2 For the death of Moggallana, see Fausbill’s Dhammapada, p. 298, and Bigandet’s Legend of the Burmese Buddha, vol, 2, ch. 1. p. 26. * For Sariputta’s death, see vol. 1. No, 95, Mahdsudassana-Jataka, p. 230, English version, and Bigandet, op. cit. p. 19. when he was living at Jetavana, went and died in the village of Nala, in the very room where he was born. The Master, on hearing of his death, went to Rajagaha and took up his abode in the Bamboo Grove. An Elder dwelt there on the slopes of Isigili (Mount of Saints) at the Black Rock. This man, by attaining perfection in supernatural power, was able to make his way into heaven and hell. In the god-world he beheld one of the disciples of Buddha enjoying great power, and in the world of men he saw one of the disciples of the heretics suffering great agony, and on returning to the world of men he told them how In a certain god-world such and such a lay Brother or Sister was re-born and enjoying great honour, and amongst the followers of the heretics such and such a man or woman was re-born in hell [126] or other states of suftering.

People gladly accepted his teaching and rejected that of the schismatics. Great honour was paid to the disciples of Buddha, while that paid to the schismatics fell away. They conceived a grudge against the Elder, and said: “As long as this fellow is alive, there are divisions amongst our followers, and the honour paid to us falls away: we will put him to death”; and they gave a thousand pieces of money to a brigand who guarded the ascetics to put the Elder to death. He resolved to kill the Elder, and came with a great following to Black Rock. The Elder, when he saw him coming, by his magic power flew up into the air and disappeared. The brigand, not finding the Elder that day, returned home and came back day after day for six successive days. But the Elder, by his magic power, always disappeared in the same way. On the seventh day an act committed of old by the Elder, carrying with it consequences to be recognised on some future occasion, got its chance for mischief. The story goes that once upon a time, hearkening to what his wife said, he wanted to put his father and mother to death; and, taking them in a carriage to a forest, he pretended that they were attacked by robbers, and struck and beat his parents. Through feebleness of sight being unable to see objects clearly, they did not recognise their son, and thinking they were robbers said: “Dear son, some robbers are killing us: make your escape,” and lamented for him only. He thought, “Though they are being beaten by me, it is only on my account they make lamentation. I am acting shamefully.” So he reassured them and, pretending that the robbers-had been put to flight, he stroked their

_ hands and feet, saying, “Dear father and mother, do not be afraid, the robbers have fled,” and brought them again to their own house. This action for ever so long not finding its opportunity but ever biding its time, like a core of flame hidden under ashes, caught up and seized upon the man when he was re-born for the last time, and the Elder, in consequence of his action, was unable to fly up into the air. His magic power that once could quell Nanda! and Upananda and cause Vejayanta to tremble, as the result of his action became mere feebleness. The brigand crushed all his bones, subjecting him to the ‘straw and meal’ torture’, and, thinking he was dead, went off with his followers. But the Elder, on recovering consciousness, clothed himself with Meditation as with a garment, and flying up iuto the presence of the Master, saluted him and said, “Holy Sir, my sum of life is exhausted: I would die,” and having gained the Master’s consent, he died then and there. At that instant the six godworlds were in a general state of commotion. “Our Master,” they cried, “is dead.” And they came, bringing incense and perfume and wreaths breathing divine odours, and all kinds of wood, [127] and the funeral pile was made of sandalwood and ninety-nine precious things. The Master, standing near the Elder, ordered his remains to be deposited, and for the space of a league all round about the spot where the body was burned flowers rained down upon it, and men and gods stood mingled together, and for seven days held a sacred festival. The Master had the relics of the Elder gathered together, and erected a shrine in a gabled chamber in the Bamboo Grove. At that time they raised the topic in the Hall of Truth, saying, “Sirs, Sariputta, because

1 Nanda and Upananda were two kings of the Nagas, Vejayanta was the palace of Indra. Jataka Index, vol. vu. p. 66, gives corrected reading Nandopananda-damana. 2 But cf. Anguttara Nikaya, Pt. 1. p. 114, ed. by R. Morris, 1883, Mil. 1. 277. Translation with note by R. Davids. 66 The Jataka. Book XVII. he did not die in the presence of the Tathagata, has not received great honour at the hands of the Buddha, but the Great Elder Moggallana, because he died near the Master, has had great honour paid to him.” The Master came up, and asking the Brethren what they were sitting in conclave to discuss, on hearing what it was, said: “Not now only, Brethren, but formerly also Moggallana received great honour at my hands”; and, so saying, he related a story of the past. ‘Once upon a time, when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, the Bodhisatta was conceived by the brahmin wife of the royal chaplain, and at the end of ten months was born early in the morning. At that moment there was a blaze of all kinds of arms in the city of Benares for the space of twelve leagues. The priest, on the birth of the boy, stepped out of doors and looked up to the sky for the purpose of divining his son’s destiny, and knew that this boy, because he was born under a certain conjunction in the heaven, would surely be the chief archer in all India. So he went betimes to the palace and inquired after the king’s health. On his replying, “How, my master, can I be well: this day there is a blaze of weapons throughout my dwellingplace,” he said, ‘Fear not, Sire; not merely in your house, but throughout all the city is this blaze of arms to be seen. This is due to the fact that

a boy is born to-day in our house.” ‘ What, master, will be the result of the birth of a boy under these conditions?” ‘‘ Nothing, Sire, but he will prove to be the chief archer in all India.” ‘Well, master, do you then watch over him, and when he is grown up, present him to us.” And so saying, he ordered a thousand pieces of money to be given him as the price of his nurture’. The priest took it and went home, and on the naming-day of his son, on account of the blaze of arms at the moment of his birth, he called him Jotipala. He was reared in great state, and at the age of sixteen he was extremely handsome. Then his father, observing his personal distinction, said, “Dear son, go to Takkasila [128] and receive instruction in all learning at the hands of a world-famous teacher.” He agreed to do so and, taking his teacher’s fee, he bade his parents farewell and repaired thither. He presented his fee of one thousand pieces of money and set about acquiring instruction, and in the course of seven days he had reached perfection. His master was so delighted with him that he gave him a precious sword that belonged to him, and a bow of ram’s-horn and a quiver, both of them deftly joined together, and his own coat of mail and a diadem, and he said, ‘ Dear Jotipala, I am an old man, do you now train these pupils”; and he handed over to him five hundred pupils. The Bodhisatta, taking everything with him, said good-bye to his teacher and, returning to Benares, went to see his parents. Then his father, on seeing him standing respectfully before him, said, “My | son, have you finished your studies?” ‘Yes, sir.” On hearing his

' Compare vol. mz. No. 423, Indriya Jataka. 2 khiramilam, i.e. rpopeia. answer he went to the palace and said, “My son, Sire, has completed his education: what is he to do?” « Master, let him wait on us.” “What do you decide, Sire, about his expenses?” “Let him receive a thousand pieces of money daily.” He readily agreed to this, and returning home he called his boy to him and said, “Dear son, you are to serve the king.” Thenceforth he received every day a thousand pieces of money and attended on the king. The king’s attendants were offended ; “We do not see that Jotipala does anything, and he receives a thousand pieces of money every day. We should like to see a specimen of his skill.” The king heard what they said and told the priest. He said, “All right, Sire,’ and told his son. ‘Very well, dear father,” he said, “on the seventh day from this I will show them: let the king assemble all the archers in his dominion.” The priest went and repeated what he said to the king. The king, by beat of drum through the city, had all his archers gathered together. When they were assembled, they numbered sixty thousand. The king, on hearing that they were assembled, said: “Let all that dwell in the city witness the skill of Jotipala.”. And making proclamation by beat of drum, he had the palace yard made ready, and, followed by a great crowd, [129] he took his seat on a splendid throne, and, when he had summoned the archers, he sent for Jotipala.

He put the bow and quiver and coat of mail and diadem, which had been given to him by his teacher, beneath his under garment, and had the sword carried for him, and then came before the king in his ordinary garb and stood respectfully on one side. The archers thought, “Jotipala, they say, has come to give us a specimen of his skill, but from his coming without a bow he will evidently want to receive one at our hands,” but they all agreed they would not give him one. The king, addressing Jotipala, said, ‘Give us proof of your skill.” So he had a tent-like screen thrown round about him, and taking his stand inside it, and doffing his cloak, he girt on his armour, and got into his coat of mail and fastened the diadem on his head. Then he fixed a string of the colour of coral on his ram’s-horn bow, and binding his quiver on his back and fastening his sword on his left side, he twirled an arrow tipt with adamant on his nail, and threw open the screen and sallied forth like a Naga prince bursting out of the earth, splendidly equipped, and stood making an obeisance to the king. The multitude, on seeing him, jumped about and shouted and clapped their hands. The king said, “‘Jotipala, give us a specimen of your skill.” “Sire,” he said, “amongst your archers are men who pierce like lightning’, able to split a hair, and to shoot at a sound (without seeing) and to cleave a (falling) arrow’, Summon

1 akkhanavedhi, R. Morris, P. T. 8. J. for 1885, p. 29. Kern takes it as ‘target cleaving,’ Bodhicarydvatara comm. ed. Poussin (B. Ind.), p, 124 note. 2 Perhaps this refers to a feat like that of Locksley (‘‘ Robin Hood ”’) in Ivanhoe. 68 The Jataka. Book XVII. four of these archers.” The king summoned them. The Great Being set up a pavilion in a square enclosure in the palace yard, and at the four corners he stationed the four archers, and to each of them he had thirty thousand arrows allotted, assigning men to hand the arrows to each, and he himself taking an arrow tipt with adamant stood in the middle of the pavilion and cried, ‘‘O king, let these four archers all at once shoot their arrows to wound me; I will ward off the arrows shot by them.” The king gave the order for them to do so. ‘Sire,” they said, “we shoot as quick as lightning, and are able to split a hair, and to shoot at the sound of a voice (without seeing), and to cleave a (falling) arrow, but Jotipala’is a mere stripling; we will not shoot him.” The Great Being said, “If you can, shoot me.” “Agreed,” they said, and with one accord they shot their arrows. The Great Being, striking them severally with his iron arrow, in some way or other, [130] made them drop on the ground, and then throwing a wall’ round them, he piled them together and so made a magazine of arrows, fitting each arrow, handle level with handle, stock with stock, feathers with feathers;

till the bowmen’s arrows were all spent, and when he saw that it was so, without spoiling his magazine of arrows, he flew up into the air and stood before the king. The people made a great uproar, shouting and dancing about ‘and clapping their hands, and they threw off their garments and ornaments, so that there was treasure lying in a heap to the amount of eighteen crores. Then the king asked him, “What do you call this trick, Jotipala?” ‘The arrow-defence, Sire.” ‘‘Are there any others that know it?” ‘No one in all India, except myself, Sire.” “Show us another trick, friend.” “Sire, these four men stationed at four corners failed to wound me. But if-they are posted at the four corners, [ will wound them with a single arrow.” The archers did not dare to stand there. So the Great Being fixed four plantains at the four corners, and fastening a scarlet thread on the feathered part of the arrow, he shot it, aiming at one of the plantains. The arrow struck it and then the second, the third and the fourth, one after another, and then struck the first, which it had already pierced, and so returned to the archer’s hand; while the plantains stood encircled with the thread. ‘The people raised myriad shouts of applause. The king asked, ‘What do you call this trick, friend?” ‘The pierced circle, Sire.” ‘Show us something more.” The Great Being showed them the arrowstick, the arrow-rope, the arrow-plait, and performed other tricks called the arrow-terrace, arrow-pavilion, arrow-wall*, arrow-stairs, arrow-tank, and made the arrow-lotus to blossom and caused it to rain-a shower of arrows,

' Cf. Mahabharata, vt. 58, 2 and 101.32, koshthaki-kritya, surrounding, enclosing. * This is taken from a reading of one MS, and is required to make up the twelve examples of his skill. iP rdims abe 4 IN Gp O22: 69 [131] Thus did he display these twelve unrivalled acts of skill, and then he cleft seven incomparably huge substances. He pierced a plank of fig-wood, eight inches thick, a plank of asana-wood, four inches thick, a copper plate two inches thick, an iron plate one inch thick, and after piercing a hundred boards joined together, one after another, he shot an arrow at the front part of waggons full of straw and sand and planks, and made it come out at the back part; and, shooting at the back of the waggons, he caused the arrow to come out at the front. He drove an arrow through a space of over a furlong in water and more than two furlongs of earth, and he pierced a hair, at the distance of half a furlong, at the first sign of its being moved by the wind. And when he had displayed all these feats of skill, the sun set. Then the king promised him the post of commanderin-chief, saying, “Jotipala, it is too late to-day; to-morrow you shall receive the honour of the chief command. Go and have your beard trimmed and take a bath,” and that same day he gave him a hundred thousand pieces of money for his expenses.

The Great Being said, “T have no need of this,” and he gave his lords eighteen crores of treasure and went with a large escort to bathe; and, after he had had his beard trimmed and had bathed, arrayed in all manner of adornments, he entered his abode with unparalleled pomp. After enjoying a variety of dainty viands, he got up and lay down on a royal couch, and when he had slept through two watches, in the last watch he woke up and sat cross-legged on his couch, considering the beginning, the middle and the end of his feats of skill. ‘‘ My skill,” he thought, “in the beginning is evidently death, in the middle it is the enjoyment of sin, and in the end it is re-birth in hell: for the destruction of life and excessive carelessness in sinful enjoyment causes re-birth in hell. The post of commander-in-chief is given me by the king, and great power will accrue to me, and I shall have a wife and many children; but if the objects of desire are multiplied, it will be hard to get rid of desire. I will go forth from the world alone and enter the forest: [132] it is right for me to adopt the life of an ascetic.” So the Great Being arose from his couch, and without letting anybody know, he descended from the terrace, and going out by the house-door' he went into the forest all alone, and repaired to a spot on the banks of the Godhavari, near the Kavittha’ forest, three leagues in extent. _ Sakka, hearing of his renunciation of the world, summoned Vissakamma and said, “Friend, Jotipala has renognced the world; a great company will gather round him. Build a hermitage on the banks of the Godhavari in the Kavittha forest and provide them with everything necessary

1 aggadvaram perhaps a house-door opposed to the main entrance. Cf.1, 114 and y, 263. 2 The Kavittha is the Feronia Elephantum or elephant apple tree. 70 The Jataka. Book XVII. for the ascetic life.” Vissakamma did so, The Great Being, when he reached the place, saw a road for a single foot-passenger and thought, “This must be a place for ascetics to dwell in,” and travelling by this road and meeting with no one, he entered the hut of leaves. On seeing the requisites for ascetic life he said, “Sakka, king of heaven, methinks, knew that I had renounced the world”; and, dofting his cloak, he put on an inner and outer robe of dyed bark and threw an antelope’s skin over one shoulder. Then he bound up his coil of matted locks, shouldered a pingo of three bushels of grain, took a mendicant’s staff and sallied forth from his hut, and climbing up the covered walk, he paced up and down it several times. Thus did he glorify the forest with the beauty of asceticism, and after performing the Kasina ritual, on the seventh day of his religious life he developed the eight Attainments and the five Faculties, and lived quite alone, feeding on what he could glean and on roots and berries. His parents and a crowd of friends and kinsfolk and acquaintances, not seeing him, wandered about disconsolate. Then a certain forester, who had seen and recognised the Great Being in the Kavittha hermitage, told his parents and they informed the king of it.

The king said, “Come, let us go and see him,” and taking the father and mother, and accompanied by a great multitude, he arrived at the bank of the Godhavari by the road which the forester pointed out to him. The Bodhisatta, on coming to the river-bank, seated himself in the air, and after teaching them the Law, [133] he brought them all into his hermitage, and there too, seated in the air, he revealed to them the misery involved in sensual desires and taught them the Law. And all of them, including the king, adopted the religious life. The Bodhisatta continued to dwell there, surrounded by a band of ascetics. And the news that he was dwelling there was blazed abroad throughout all India. Kings with their subjects came and took orders at his hands, and there was a great assembly of them till they gradually numbered many thousands. Whoever reflected on thoughts of lust, or the wish to hurt or injure others, to him came the Great Being, and seated in the air before him, he taught him the Law and instructed him in the Kasina ritual. His seven chief pupils were Salissara', Mendissara, Pabbata, Kaladevala, Kisavaccha, Anusissa, and Narada. And they, abiding in his admonition, attained to ecstatic meditation and reached perfection. By and bye the Kavittha hermitage became crowded, and there was no room for the multitude of ascetics to dwell there. So the Great Being, addressing Salissara, said,, “‘Salissara, this hermitage is not big enough for the crowd of ascetics; do you go with this company of them and take up your abode near the town of Lambacilaka in

1 All these names occur in vol. m1. No. 423, Indriya Jataka, and for the legends of Kisavaccha and Nalikira see Hardy’s Manual, p. 55. ‘ a ee ey the province of king Candapajjota.” He agreed to do so and, taking a company of many thousands, went and dwelt there. But as people still came and joined the ascetics, the hermitage was full again. The Bodhisatta, addressing Mendissara, said, “On the borders of the country of Surattha is a stream called Satodika. Take this band of ascetics and dwell on the borders of that river.” And he sent him away. In the same way on a third occasion he sent Pabbata, saying, “In the great forest is the Afijana mountain: go and settle near that.” On the fourth occasion he sent Kaladevala, saying, “In the south country in the kingdom of Avanti is the Ghanasela mountain: settle near that.” The Kavittha hermitage again overflowed, though in five different places there was a company of ascetics numbering many thousands. And Kisavaccha, asking leave of the Great Being, [134] took up his abode in the park near the commander-in-chief, in the city of Kumbhavati in the province of king Dandaki. Narada settled in the central province in the Arajijara chain of mountains, and Anusissa remained with the Great Being. At this time king Dandaki deposed from her position a courtezan whom he had greatly honoured, and, roaming about at her own will, she came to the park, and seeing the ascetic Kisavaccha, she thought, ‘‘Surely this must be Ill Luck.

I will get rid of my sin’ on his person and will then go and bathe.” And first biting her tooth-stick, she spat out a quantity of phlegm, and not only spat upon the matted locks of the ascetic, but also threw her toothstick at his head and went and bathed. And the king, calling her to mind, restored her to her former position. And infatuated by her folly, she came to the conclusion that she had recovered this honour because she had got rid of her sin on the person of Ill Luck. Not long after this the king deposed his family priest from his office, and he went and asked the woman by what means she had recovered her position. So she told him it was from having got rid of her offence on the person of Ill Luck in the royal park. The priest went and got rid of his sin in the same way, and him too the king reinstated in his office. Now by and bye there was a disturbance on the king’s frontier, and he went forth with a division of his army to fight. Then that infatuated priest asked the king, saying, “Sire, do you wish for victory or defeat?” When he answered, “ Victory,” he said, ‘Well, Ill Luck dwells in the royal park; go and convey your sin to his person.” He approved of the suggestion and said, “ Let these men come with me to the park and get rid of their sin on the person of Ill Luck.” And going into the park, he first of all nibbled his tooth-stick and let his spittle and the stick fall on the ascetic’s matted locks and then bathed his head, and his army did likewise. When the king had departed the commander-in-chief came, and seeing the

1 Compare Frazer’s Golden Bough, vol. 11. p. 120, ‘ Divine Scapegoats.’ 72 ~The Jatukac: Book X WEL ascetic, he took the tooth-stick out of his locks and had him thoroughly washed and then asked, ‘“ What will become of the king?” “Sir, there is no evil thought in my heart, but the gods [135] are wroth and on the seventh day from this all his kingdom will be destroyed: do you flee with all speed and go elsewhere.” He was terribly alarmed, and went and told the king. The king refused to believe him. So he returned to his own house, and taking his wife and children with him, he fled to another kingdom. The master Sarabhaiga’, hearing about it, sent two youthful ascetics and had Kisavaccha brought to him in a palanquin through the air. The king fought a battle, and taking the rebels prisoners returned to the city. ~ On his return the gods first caused it to rain from heaven, and when all the dead bodies had been washed away by the flood of rain, there was a shower of heavenly flowers on the top of the clean white sand, and on the flowers there fell a shower of small coins, and after them a shower of big pieces of money, and this was followed by a shower of heavenly ornaments. The people were highly delighted and began to pick up ornaments of gold, even fine gold.

Then there rained upon their persons a shower of all manner of blazing weapons, and the people were cut piece-meal. Then a shower of blistering embers fell on them, and over these huge blazing mountain peaks, followed by a shower of fine sand filling a space of sixty cubits. Thus was a part of his realm sixty leagues in extent destroyed, and its destruction was blazed abroad throughout all India. Then the lords of subordinate kingdoms within his realm, the three kings, Kalinga, Atthaka, Bhimaratha, thought, “Once upon a time in Benares, Kalabu’, king of Kasi, having sinned against the ascetic Khantivadi, it is reported he was swallowed up in the earth, and Nalikira in like manner having given ascetics to be devoured by dogs, and Ajjuna®* of the thousand arms who sinned against Angirasa likewise perished, and now again king Dandaki, having sinned against Kisavaccha, report says, is destroyed, realm and all. We know not the place where these four kings are re-born: no one except Sarabhanga, our master, is able to tell us this. We will go [136] and ask him.” And the three kings went forth with great pomp to ask this question. But though they heard rumours that so and so was gone, they did not really know it, but each one fancied that he alone was going, and not far from Godhavari they all met, and alighting from their chariots, they all three mounted upon a single chariot and journeyed together to the banks of Godhavari. At this moment Sakka, sitting on his throne of yellow marble, considered the

1 The Jotipala of the early part of the story is here identified with the Bodhisatta, Sarabhanga, : 2 Vol. m1. No, 318, Khantivadi Jataka. * Arjuna, called Kartaviryya. See Tawney’s Katha Sarit Sagara, vol. 1. p. 639, and Uttara Kanda of the Ramayana, Sarga 32, > seven questions and said to himself, “Except Sarabhanga, the master, there is no one else in this world or the god-world that can answer these questions: I will ask him these questions. These three kings have come to the banks of Godhavari to make inquiry of Sarabhanga, the master. I will also consult him about the questions they ask.” And, accompanied by deities from two of the god-worlds, he descended from heaven. That very day Kisavaccha died, and to celebrate his obsequies, innumerable bands of ascetics, who dwelt in four different places, raised a pile of sandal-wood and burned his body, and in a space of half a league round about the place of his burning there fell a shower of celestial flowers. The Great Being, after seeing to the depositing of his remains, entered the hermitage and, attended by these bands of ascetics, sat down. When the kings arrived on the banks of the river there was a sound of martial music. The Great Being, on hearing it, addressed the ascetic Anusissa and said, “Go and learn what this music means”; and taking a bowl of drinking-water, he went there, and seeing these kings, he uttered this first stanza in the form of a question :

Beringed and gallantly arrayed, All girt with jewel-hilted blade, Halt ye, great chiefs, and straight declare What name ’midst world of men ye bear? [137] Hearing his words, they alighted from the chariot and stood saluting him. Amongst them king Atthaka, falling into talk with him, _ spoke the second stanza: And Atthaka—thus are we named— To look on saints of life austere And question them, are we come here. Then the ascetic said to them, ‘“ Well, sire, ye have reached the place where ye would fain be: therefore, after bathing take a rest, and entering the hermitage, pay your respects to the band of ascetics, and put your question to the master”; and thus, holding friendly converse with them, he tossed up the jar of water’ and wiping up the drops that fell he looked up to the sky and beheld Sakka, the lord of heaven, surrounded by a company of gods, and descending from heaven, mounted on the back of Eravana’, and conversing with him, he repeated the third stanza: Thou? in mid-heayen art fixed on high Like full-orbed moon that gilds the sky, I ask thee, mighty spirit, say How art thou known on Earth, I pray.

1 In the old Bengali poem, Chandi, a jar of water is amongst the good omens seen by the hero Chandraketu when starting on a journey. See note by Professor Cowell in his translation of the Sarva-dargana-samgraha, p. 237. 3 The third person with nominative bhavam understood seems to be used here for 74 The Jataka. Book WOVAHE On hearing this, Sakka repeated the fourth stanza: Sujampati in heaven proclaimed As Maghava on Earth is named ; This king of gods to-day comes here To see these saints of life austere. [138] Then Anusissa said to him: “ Well, sire, do you follow us ee and taking the drinking-vessel, he entered the hermitage, and after putting away the jar of water, he announced to the Great Being that the three kings and the lord of heaven had arrived to ask him certain questions. Surrounded by a band of ascetics, Sarabhanga sat in a large, wide enclosed space. The three kings came, and, saluting the band of ascetics, sat down on one side, And Sakka, descending from the sky, approached the ascetics, and saluting them with folded hands, and singing their praises, repeated the fifth stanza: Wide known to fame this saintly band, With mighty powers at their command:

I gladly bid you hail: in worth Ye far surpass the best on earth. Thus did Sakka salute the band of ascetics, and guarding against the six faults in sitting, he sat apart. Then Anusissa, on seeing him seated to leeward of the ascetics, spoke the sixth stanza: The person of an aged saint Is rank, the very air to taint. Great Sakka, beat a quick retreat From saintly odours, none too sweet. [139] On hearing this, Sakka repeated another stanza: Though aged saints offend the nose And taint the sweetest air that blows: Gay flowerets’ fragrant wreath above This odour of the saints we love; In gods it may no loathing move. And having so spoken, he added, “ Reverend Anusissa, I have made a great effort to come here and ask a question: give me leave to do so.” And on hearing Sakka’s words Anusissa rose from his seat, and granting him permission, he repeated a couple of stanzas to the company of ascetics : Famed Maghava, Sujampati —Almsgiver, lord of sprites is he— Queller of demons, heavenly king, Craves leave to put his questioning. Who of the sages that are here Will make their subtle questions clear For three who over men hold sway, And Sakka whom the gods obey ?

[140] On hearing this the company of ascetics said, ‘‘ Reverend Anusissa, you speak as though you saw not the earth on which you Soh ’ et ee eo oe stand: except our teacher Sarabhanga, who else is competent to answer these questions?” and so saying, they repeated a stanza: "Tis Sarabhanga, sage and saint, So chaste and free from lustful taint, The teacher’s son, well disciplined, Solution of their doubts will find. And so saying, the company of ascetics thus addressed Anusissa: “Sir, do you salute the teacher in the name of the company of saints and find an opportunity to tell him of the question proposed by Sakka.” He readily assented and, finding his opportunity, repeated another stanza : The holy men, Kondajfiia!, pray That thou wouldst clear their doubts away ; This burden lies, as mortals hold, On men in years and wisdom old. Then the Great Being, giving his consent, repeated the following stanza : I give you leave to ask whate’er Ye most at heart are fain to hear; I know both this world and the next; . No question leaves my mind perplext. [141] Sakka, having thus obtained his permission, put a question which he had himself prepared :

The Master, to make the matter clear, said: Sakka, to cities bountiful, that sees the Truth of things, To learn what he was fain to know, began his questionings. What is it one may slay outright and never more repent? What is it one may throw away, with all good men’s consent ? From whom should one put up with speech, however harsh it be ? This is the thing that I would have Kondajina tell to me. Then explaining the question, he said: Anger is what a man may ‘slay and never more repent ; Hypocrisy he throws away with all good men’s consent; From all he should put up with speech, however harsh it be, This form of patience, wise men say, is highest in degree. Rude speech from two one might with patience hear, From one’s superior, or from a peer, But how to bear from meaner folk rude speech Is what I fain would have Kondafiia teach. Rude speech from betters one may take through fear Or, to avoid a quarrel, from a peer, [142] But from the mean to put up with rude speech Is perfect patience, as the sages teach. Verses such as these one must understand to be connected in the way of question and answer.

1 This, the scholiast explains, is the family name of Sarabhanga. 76 The Jataka. Book XVII. When he had thus spoken, Sakka said to the Great Being, “ Holy sir, . in the first instance you said, ‘Put up with harsh speech from all; this, | men say, is the highest form of patience,’ but now you say, ‘ Put up here with the speech of an inferior; this, men say, is the highest form of patience’ ; this latter saying does not agree with your former one.” Then the Great Being said to him, “Sakka, this last utterance of mine is in respect of one who puts up with harsh speech, because he knows the speaker to be his inferior, but what I said first was because one cannot by merely looking on the outward form of people know for certain their condition, whether superior to oneself or not,” and to make it clear how difficult it is by merely regarding the outward form to distinguish the condition of persons, whether inferior or not, except by means of close intercourse, he spoke this stanza: How hard it is to judge a man that’s polished in exterior Be he one’s better, equal or, it may be, one’s inferior. See The best of men pass through the world ofttimes in meanest form disguised ; So then bear with rough speech from all, if thou, my friend, be well advised.

On hearing this Sakka full of faith begged him, saying, ‘ Holy sir, declare to us the blessing to be found in this patience,” and the Great Being repeated this stanza : No royal force, however vast its might, Can win so great advantage in a fight [143] As the good man by patience may secure: Strong patience is of fiercest feuds the cure. When the Great Being had thus expounded the virtues of patience, the kings thought, ‘‘Sakka asks his own question ; he will not allow us an opportunity of putting ours.” So seeing what their wish was he laid aside the four questions he had himself prepared and propounding their doubts he repeated this stanza : Thy words are grateful to mine ear, But one thing more I fain would hear; Tell us the fate of Dandaki And of his fellow-sinners three, Destined to suffer what re-birth For harassing the saints on earth. Then the Great Being, answering his question, repeated five stanzas: Uprooted, realm and all, erewhile Who Kisavaccha did defile, O’erwhelmed with fiery embers, see, In Kukkula lies Dandaki. Who made him sport of priest and saint And preacher, free from sinful taint, This Nalikira trembling fell

Into the jaws of dogs in hell. So Ajjuna, who slew outright That holy, chaste, long-suffering wight, [144] Angirasa, was headlong hurled To tortures in a suffering world. Who once a sinless saint did maim —Preacher of Patience was his name— Kalabu now doth scorch in hell, Midst anguish sore and terrible. The man of wisdom that hears tell Of tales like these or worse of hell, ? Ne’er against priest or brahmin sins And heaven by his right action wins. [146] When the Great Being had thus pointed out the places in which the four kings were re-born, the three kings were freed from all doubt. Then Sakka in propounding his remaining four questions recited this stanza : Thy words are grateful to mine ear, But one thing more I fain would hear: Whom does the world as ‘moral’ name, And whom does it as ‘wise’ proclaim ? Whom does the world for ‘pious’ take, And whom does Fortune ne’er forsake ? Then in answering him the Great Being repeated four stanzas : Whoso in act and word shows self-restraint, And e’en in thought is free from sinful taint, Nor les to serve his own base ends—the same All men as ‘moral’ evermore proclaim.

He who revolves deep questions in his mind Yet perpetrates nought cruel or unkind, Prompt with good word in season to advise, That man by all is rightly counted wise. Who grateful is for kindness once received, And sorrow’s need has carefully relieved, Has proved himself a good and steadfast friend— Him all men as a pious soul commend. | The man with every gift at his command, oe. True, tender, free and bountiful of hand, a Heart-winning, gracious, smooth of tongue withal— Fortune from such an one will never fall. [148] Thus did the Great Being, like as if he were causing the moon to arise in the sky, answer the four questions. Then followed the asking of the other questions and their answers. Thy kindly words fall grateful on mine ear, But one thing further I am fain to hear: Virtue, fair fortune, goodness, wisdom—say Which of all these do men call best, I pray. ° ; Wisdom good men declare is best by far, E’en as the moon eclipses every star ; Virtue, fair fortune, goodness, it is plain, All duly follow in the wise man’s train. Thy kindly words fall grateful on mine ear, But one thing further I am fain to hear : To gain this wisdom what is one to do, What line of action or what course pursue ? Tell us what way the path of wisdom lies And by what acts a mortal groweth wise.

78 The Jdataka. Book XVII. With clever, old, and learned men consort, Wisdom from them by questioning extort: Their goodly counsels one should hear and prize, For thus it is a mortal man. grows wise. The sage regards the lust of things of sense In view of sickness, pain, impermanence ; Midst sorrows, lust, and terrors that appal, Calm and unmoved the sage ignores them all. Thus would he conquer sin, from passion free, And cultivate a boundless charity; To every living creature mercy show, And, blameless soul, to world of Brahma go. = [149] While the Great Being was thus still speaking of the sins of sensual desires, these three kings together with their armies got rid of the passion of sensual pleasure by means of the opposite quality. And the Great Being, becoming aware of this, by way of praising them recited this stanza: Bhimaratha by power of magic came a With thee, O Atthaka, and one to fame As king Kaliiga known, and now all three, Once slaves to sensuality, are free. [150] On hearing this, the mighty kings singing the praises of the Great Being recited this stanza : "Tis so, thou reader of men’s thoughts: all three Of us from sensuality are free,

Grant us the boon for which we are right fain, That to thy happy state we may attain. Then the Great Being, granting them this favour, repeated another stanza ; I grant! the boon that ye would have of me, The more that ye from sensual vice are free: So may ye thrill with boundless joy to gain That happy state to which ye would attain. On hearing this they, signifying assent, repeated this stanza: We will do everything at thy behest, Whate’er thou in thy wisdom deemst the best ; So will we thrill with boundless joy to gain That happy state to which we would attain. Then did the Great Being grant holy orders to their armies and Fs dismissing the band of ascetics repeated this stanza: «a Due honour lo! to Kisavaccha came ; - » So now depart, ye saints of goodly fame, $ In ecstasy delighting calmly rest ; 4 This joy of holiness is far the best. ‘Z [151] The saints, assenting to his words by bowing to him, flew up : into the air and departed to their own places of abode. And Sukka rising 1 Reading karomi for karohi. from his seat and raising his folded hands and making obeisance to the Great Being, as though he were worshipping the sun, departed together with his company.

The Master on seeing this repeated these stanzas :— Hearing these strains that Highest Truth did teach Set forth by holy sage in goodly speech, The glorious Beings to their heavenly home Once more with joy and gratitude did come. The holy sage’s strains strike on the ear Pregnant with meaning and in accents clear ; Who gives good heed and concentrates! his mind Upon their special thought will surely find The path to every stage of ecstasy, And from the range of tyrant Death is free. Thus did the Master bring his teaching to a climax in Arhatship and saying, “Not now only, but formerly also, there was a rain of flowers at the burning of the body of Mogallana,” he revealed the Truths and identified the Birth: “Salissara was Sariputta, Mendissara was Kassapa, Pabbata Anuruddha, Devala Kaccayana, Anusissa was Ananda, Kisavaccha Kolita, Sarabhaiga the Bodhisatta : thus are ye to understand the Birth.”

[152] “Then mighty Indra,” etc. This story the Master, while residing at Jetavana, told about the temptation of a Brother by the wife of his unregenerate days. The subject-matter of the tale is related in full in the Indriya Birth? Now the Master asked the Brother, “Is it true, Brother, that you were rendered discontented?” “It is true, Reverend Sir.” “By whom?” “By my wife of former days.” “Brother,” he said, “this woman wrought mischief for you: it was owing to her that you fell away from mystic meditation, and lay for three years in a lost and distracted condition, and on the recovery of your senses you uttered a great lamentation,” and so saying he told him a story of the past. . Once upon a time in the reign of Brahmadatta in Benares, the Bodhisatta was born of a brahmin family in the kingdom of Kasi, and when of age he became proficient in all liberal arts, and adopting the ascetic life he lived on wild berries and roots in a forest home. Now a certain doe in the brahmin’s mingeing-place ate grass and drank water mingled with his semen, and was so much enamoured of him that she became pregnant and henceforth ever resorted to the spot near the hermitage. The Great Being examining into the matter learned the facts of the case. By and bye the doe gave birth to a man child, and the Great

1 atthikaroti, ‘to realise,’ ‘understand.’ RK. Morris, P. T. 8, J. 1886, p. 107. 2 Vol. ur. No. 423. 80. 4 The Jataka. Book XVII. Being watched over it with a father’s affection. And his name was Isisingat. And when the lad reached years of discretion, he admitted him to holy orders, and when he himself grew an old man, he repaired with him to the Nari grove and thus admonished him, “ My dear boy, in this Himalaya country are women as fair as these flowers: they bring utter destruction on all that fall into their power: you must not come under their sway.” And shortly afterwards he became destined to birth in the Brahma world. But Isisiiga, indulging in mystic meditation, made his dwelling in the Himalaya region, a grim ascetic, with all his senses mortified. So by the power of his virtue the abode of Sakka was shaken. Sakka, on reflection, discovered “the cause and thinking, “This fellow will bring me down from my position as Sakka, I will send a heavenly nymph to make a breach in his virtue,” and after examining the whole angel world, amongst twenty-five millions of handmaids, save and except the nymph Alambusa, he found no other that was equal to the task. So summoning her, he bade her bring about the destruction of the saint’s

[153] The Master, in explanation of this matter, uttered this stanza : Then mighty Indra, lord of lords, the god that Vatra slew, Unto his hall the nymph did call, for well her wiles he knew. And ‘Fair Alambusa,’ he cried, ‘the angel host above To Isisinga bid thee go, to tempt him with thy love.’ Sakka ordered Alambusa, saying, ‘Go and draw nigh to Isisinga, and bringing him under your power destroy his virtue,” and he uttered these words : Go, Temptress, ever dog his steps, for holy sage is he, And, seeking ever highest bliss, still triumphs over me. On hearing this Alambusa repeated a couple of stanzas: Mer king of gods, of all the nymphs regardst thou me alone, And bidst me tempt the saintly man that menaces thy throne? In happy grove of Nandana is many a nymph divine, To one of them—it is their turn—the hateful task assign. [154] Then Sakka repeated three stanzas : Thou speakest sooth ; in happy grove of Nandana, I ween, May many a nymph, to rival thee in loveliness, be seen. But none like thee, O peerless maid, with all a woman’s wile This holy man in folly’s ways. so practised to beguile.

Then queen of women as thou art, go, lovely nymph, thy way And by the power of beauty force the saint to own thy sway. 1 Ramayana 1. 9. The story of Rishyasringa; and Barlaam and Josaphat ed. by J. Jacobs. On hearing this Alambusa repeated two stanzas: * I will not fail, O angel-king, to go at thy behest, But still with fear this sage austere I venture to molest. For many a one, poor fool, has gone (I shudder at the thought) In hell to rue the suffering due to wrongs on saints he wrought. This said, Alambusa, fair nymph, departed with all speed, Famed Isisitiga to entice to some unholy deed. Into the grove for half a league with berries red so bright, The grove where Isisinga dwelt, she vanished out of sight. At break of day, ere yet the sun was scarce astir on high, To Isisinga, sweeping out his cell, the nymph drew nigh. These stanzas owed their inspiration to Perfect Wisdom. Then the ascetic questioned her and said: Who art thou, like to lightning flash, or bright as morning star, With ears and hands bedecked with gems that sparkle from afar ? Fragrant as golden sandal-wood, in brightness like the sun,

A slim and winsome maid art thou, right fair to look upon. So soft and pure, with slender waist and firmly springing gait, Thy movements are so full of grace, my heart they captivate. Thy thighs, like trunk of elephant, are finely tapering found, Thy buttocks soft to touch and like to any dice-board round. With down like lotus filaments thy navel marked, I ween, As though with black collyrium ’twere charged, from far is seen. Twin milky breasts, like pumpkins halved, their swelling globes display, Firm set, although without a stalk all unsupported they. Thy lips are red as is thy tongue, and, O auspicious sign, Thy neck long as the antelope’s is marked with triple linet. Thy teeth brushed with a piece of wood, kept ever clean and bright, Gleam in thy top and lower jaw with flash of purest white. Thy eyes are long and large of shape, a lovely sight to view, Like gunj4 berries black, marked out with lines of reddish hue. Thy tresses smooth, not over long and bound in neatest coil, Are tipped with gold and perfumed with the finest sandal oil. Of all that live by merchandise, by herds or by the plough, Of all the mighty saints that live true to ascetic vow—

Amongst them all in this wide world thy peer I may not see, Then what thy name and who thy sire, we fain would learn from thee. [157] While the ascetic thus sang the praises of Alambusa, from her feet to the hair of her head, she remained silent, and from his long drawn out speech observing how disturbed was his state of mind she repeated this stanza : Heaven bless thee, Kassapa®, my friend, the time is past and gone For idle questions such as these—for are we not alone !— Come let us in thy hermitage embracing haste to prove The thousand joys well known to all the votaries of love. 1 kambugiwa: three folds on the neck, like shell-spirals, were a token of luck, Jataka tv. 130. 2 Kassapa was the family name of Isisinga. 82 | The Jataka. Book XVII. So saying Alambusa thought, “If I stand still, he will not come within reach of me; I will make as if I were"running away,” and with all the cunning of a woman’s wiles she shook the purpose of the ascetic, as she fled in the direction from which she had approached him. The Master, to make the matter clear, spoke this stanza :

This said, Alambusa, fair nymph, departed with all speed, Famed Isisinga to entice to some unholy deed. [158] Then the ascetic, on seeing her depart, cried, “She is off,” and by a swift movement on his part he intercepted her as she was slowly making off and with his hand seized her by the hair of her head. The Master, to make the matter clear, said : To check her flight, the holy man with motion swift as air In hot pursuit o’ertook the nymph and held her by the hair. Just where he stood the lovely maid embraced him in her arms, And straight his virtue fell before-the magic of her charms. In thought she flew to Indra’s throne in Nandana afar ; The god at once divined her wish and sent a golden car, With trappings spread and all adorned with manifold array : And there the saint lay in her arms for many a long day. Three years passed o’er his head as though it were-a moment’s space, Until at last the holy man woke up from her embrace. Green trees he saw on every side; an altar stood hard by, And verdant groves re-echoing to the loud cuckoo cry.

He looked around and weeping sore he shed a bitter tear ; ‘I make no offering, raise no hymn; no sacrifice is here. Dwelling within this forest lone, who-can my tempter be? Who by foul practice has o’ercome all sense of right in me, F’en as a ship with precious freight is swallowed in the sea?’ [159] On hearing this Alambusa thought: “Should I not tell him, he will curse me; verily, I will tell him,” and standing by him in a visible form she repeated this stanza : Sent by king Sakka, here I stand A willing slave at thy command ; Though far too careless to know this, "Twas thought of me that marred thy bliss. On hearing her words he called to mind his father’s admonition, and lamenting how he was utterly ruined by disobeying the words of his father he repeated four stanzas : Thus would kind Kassapa, my sire, With prudence heedless youth inspire : ‘Women are fair as lotus flower, Beware, good youth, their subtle power. Of woman’s budding charms beware, Beware the danger that lurks there.’ "Twas thus my sire, by pity moved, Would fain have warned the son he loved. [160] My wise old father’s words, alas ! Unheeded I allowed to pass, And so alone, in sore distress I haunt to-day this wilderness.

Accursed be the life of old, Henceforth V’ll do as I am told. Far better death itself to face, Than be again in such a case. So he forsook sensual desire and entered upon mystic meditation. Then Alambusa, seeing his virtue as an ascetic and aware that he had attained to a state of ecstasy, became terrified and asked his forgiveness. The Master, to make the matter clear, repeated two stanzas : Alambusa no sooner knew His steadfast power and courage true Than bending low, the sage to greet, The nymph straightway embraced his feet. “O saint, all anger lay aside, A mighty work I wrought,’ she cried, ‘When heaven itself and gods of fame Trembled with fear to hear thy name.’ Then he let her go, saying, ‘‘I pardon thee, fair lady ; go, as thou wilt.” And he repeated a stanza: My blessing on the Thirty-three And Vasava, their lord, and thee: Depart, fair maid, for thou art free. Saluting him she departed to the abode of the gods in that same [161] The Master, to make the matter clear, repeated three stanzas : Embracing then the sage’s feet and circling to the right, _ With hands in suppliant attitude, she vanished from his sight,

And mounting on the golden car, with trappings rich o’erspread, All splendidly caparisoned, to heavenly heights she sped. Like blazing torch or lightning flash, she passed athwart, the sky, And Sakka, glad at heart, exclaimed, ‘No boon can I deny, 84 The Jataka. Book XVII. Receiving a boon from him she repeated the concluding stanza : If Sakka, lord of sprites, thou wouldst my heart’s desire allow, Let me ne’er tempt a saint again to violate his vow. The Master here ended his lesson to that Brother and revealed the Truths and identified the Birth:—At the conclusion of the Truths that Brother was established in the Fruit of the First Path—“ At that time Alambusa was the wife of his unregenerate days, Isisihga was the back-sliding Brother, and the great saint his father was myself.”

“Of comely presence,” etc. This was a story told by the Master, while dwelling at Jetavana, with regard to the duties of holy days. Now on this occasion the Master, expressing approval of certain lay folk who kept holy days, said : “ Wise men of old, giving up the great glory of the Naga world, observed holy days,” and at their request he related a story of the past. Once upon a time a king of Magadha ruled in Rajagaha. At that time the Bodhisatta was born as the son of this king’s chief consort, and they gave him the name of Duyyodhana. On coming of age he acquired the liberal arts at Takkasila and returned home to see his father. And his father installed him in the kingdom [162] and adopting the religious life took up his abode in the park. Thrice a day did the Bodhisatta come to visit his father who thereby received great profit and honour. Owing to this hindrance he failed to perform even the preparatory rites that lead to mystic meditation and he thought, “I am receiving great profit and honour : so long as I live here, it will be impossible for me to destroy this lust of mine. Without saying a word to my son, I will depart elsewhere.” So not telling a creature he left the park and passing beyond the borders of the realm of Magadha he built him a hut of leaves in the Mahirnsaka kingdom, near Mount Candaka, in a bend of the river Kannapenna, where it issues out of the lake Samkhapiala. There he took up his abode and performing the preparatory rites he developed the faculty of mystic meditation and subsisted on whatever he could pick up. A king of the Nagas, Sarhnkhapala by name, issuing forth from the Kannapenna river with a numerous company of snakes from time to time would visit the ascetic, and

he instructed the Naga king in the Law. Now the son was anxious to see his father and being ignorant as to where he had gone, he set on foot an inquiry, and on finding out that he was dwelling in such and such a place he repaired thither with a large retinue to see him. Having halted a short distance off, accompanied by a few courtiers he set out in the direction of the hermitage. At this moment Sarmkhapala with a large following sat listening to the Law, but on seeing the king approaching he rose up and with a salutation to the sage he took his departure. The king saluted his father and after the usual courtesies had been exchanged he inquired, saying, “Reverend sir, what king is this that has been to see you?” * Dear son, he is Sathkhapala, the Naga king.” The son by reason of the great magnificence of the Naga conceived a longing for the Naga world. Staying there a few days he furnished his father with a constant supply of food, and then returned to his own city. There he had an alms-hall erected at the four city gates, and by his alms-giving he made a stir throughout all India, and in aspiring to the Naga world he ever kept the moral law and observed the duty of holy days, and at the end of his life he was re-born in the Naga world as_ king Sarnkhapala.

[163] In course of time he grew sick of this magnificence and from that day desiring to be born as a man he kept the holy days, but dwelling as he did in the Naga world his observance of them was not a success and he deteriorated in morals. From that day he left the Naga world and not far from the river Kannapenna, coiled round an ant-hill between the high road and a narrow path, he there resolved to keep the holy day and took upon himself the moral law. And saying “Let those that want my skin or want my skin and flesh, let them, I say, take it all,” and thus sacrificing himself by way of charity he lay on the top of the ant-hill and, stopping there on the fourteenth and fifteenth of the half-month, on the first day of each fortnight he returned to the Naga world. So one day when he lay there, having taken upon himself the obligation of the moral law, a party of sixteen men who lived in a neighbouring village, being minded to eat flesh, roamed about in the forest with weapons in their hands and when they returned without finding anything, they saw him lying on the ant-hill and thinking, “To-day we have not caught so much as a young lizard, we will kill and eat this snake-king,” but fearing that on account of his great size, even if they caught him, he would escape from them, they thought they would pierce him with stakes just as he lay there coiled up, and after thus disabling him, effect his capture. So taking stakes in their hands they drew nigh to him. And the Bodhisatta caused his body to become as big as a trough-shaped canoe, and looked very beautiful, like a jasmine wreath deposited on the ground, with eyes like the fruit of the gufij4 shrub and a head like a jayasumana'

86 The Jataka. Book XVII. flower and at the sound of the foot-steps of these sixteen men, drawing out his head from his coils, and opening his fiery eyes, he beheld them coming with stakes in their hands and thought, ‘‘ To-day my desire will be fulfilled as I lie here, I will be firm in my resolution and yield myself up to them as a sacrifice, and when they strike me with their javelins and cover me» with wounds, I will not open my eyes and regard them with anger.” And conceiving this firm resolve through fear of breaking the moral law, [164] he tucked his head into his hood and lay down. Then coming up to him they seized him by the tail and dragged him along the ground. Again dropping him they wounded him in eight different places with sharp stakes and thrusting black bamboo sticks, thorns and all, into his open wounds, so proceeded on their way, carrying him with them by means of strings in the eight several places. The Great Being from the moment of his being wounded by the stakes never once opened his eyes nor regarded the men with anger, but as he was being dragged along by means of the eight sticks his head hung down and struck the ground. So when they found that his head was drooping, they laid him down on the high road and piercing his nostrils with a slender~stake they held up his head and inserted a cord, and after fastening it at the end they once more raised his head and set out on their way.

At this moment a landowner named Alara, who dwelt in the city of Mithila in the kingdom of Videha, seated in a comfortable carriage was journeying with five hundred wagons, and seeing these lewd fellows on their way with the Bodhisatta, he gave all sixteen of them, together with an ox apiece, a handful of golden coins to each, and to all of them outer and inner garments, and to their wives ornaments to wear, and so got them to release him. The Bodhisatta returned to the Naga palace and without any delay, issuing forth with a great retinue, he approached Alara, and after singing the praises of the Naga palace he took him with him and returned thither. Then he bestowed great honour on him together with three hundred Naga maidens and satisfied him with heavenly delights. Alara dwelt a whole year in the Naga palace in the enjoyment of heavenly pleasures, and then saying to the Naga king, ‘‘ My friend, I wish to become an ascetic,” and taking with him everything requisite for the ascetic life he left the abode of the Nagas for the Himalaya region and taking orders dwelt there for a long time. By and bye he went on a pilgrimage and came to Benares where he took up his abode in the king’s park. Next day he entered the city for alms and made his way to the door of the king’s house. The king of Benares on seeing him was so charmed with his deportment that he called him to his presence, seated him on a special seat assigned to him and served him with a variety of dainty food. [165] Then seated on a low seat the king saluted him and conversing with him gave utterance to the first stanza:

Ee a, ee ee ay pee ene AT Of comely presence and of gracious mien, A scion thou of noble rank, I ween ; Why then renounce earth’s joys and worldly gear To adopt the hermit’s robe and rule severe 4 in the way of alternate speeches by the ascetic and the king. O lord of men, I well remembering The abode of that almighty Naga king, Saw the rich fruit that springs from holiness, And straight believing donned the priestly dress. Nor fear nor lust nor hate itself may make A holy man the words of truth forsake: Tell me the thing that I am fain to know, And faith and peace within my heart will grow. O king, on trading venture was I bound When these lewd wretches in my path were found, A full-grown snake in captive chains was led, And home in triumph joyously they sped. As I came up with them, O king, I cried, —Atazed I was and greatly terrified — 4 Where are ye dragging, sirs, this monster grim, And what, lewd fellows, will ye do with him?’ [166] ‘ This full-grown snake that ye see fettered thus With its huge frame will furnish food to us.

Than this, Alara, thou couldst hardly wish To taste a better or more savoury dish.’ ‘Hence to our home we'll fly and in a trice Each with his knife cut off a dainty slice And gladly eat his flesh, for, as you know, Snakes ever find in us a deadly foe,’ ‘If this huge snake, late captured in the wood, Is being dragged along to serve as food, To each an ox I offer, one apiece, Should you this serpent from his chains release.’ ‘Beef has for us a pleasant sound, I vow, On snake’s flesh we have fed full oft ere now, Thy bidding, O Alara, we will do; Henceforth let friendship reign betwixt us two.’ Then they released him from the cord that passed Right through his nose and knotted held him fast, The serpent-king set free from durance vile Turned him towards the east, then paused awhile, And facing still the east, prepared to fly, Looked back upon me with a tearful eye, While I pursuing him ei his way Stretched forth clasped hands, as one about to pray. ‘Speed thou, my friend, like one in haste that goes, Lest once again thou fall amongst thy foes,

Of such like ruffians shun the very sight, Or thou mayst suffer to thine own despite.’ Then to a charming limpid pool he dog —Canes and rose apples both its banks o’erspread— [167] Right glad at heart, no further fear he knew, But plunged in azure depths was lost to view. Rr Ne ee CN STN Ny at LR en In what follows the connexion of the stanzas is to be understood 88 The Jataka. Book XVII. No sooner vanished had the snake, than he Revealed full clearly his divinity, In kindly acts he played a filial part, And with his gratefuk speeches touched my heart. ‘Thou dearer than my parents didst restore My life, true friend e’en to thy inmost core, | 4 Through thee my former bliss has been regained, Then come, Alara, see where once I reigned, A dwelling stored with food, like Indra’s town Masakkasara, place of high renown.’ [168] The serpent-king, sire, after he had spoken these words, still further singing the praises of his dwelling place, repeated a couple of What charming spots in my domain are seen, Soft to the tread and clothed in evergreen ! Nor dust nor gravel in our path we find, And there do happy souls leave grief behind.

Midst level courts that sapphire walls surround Fair mango groves on every side abound, Whereon ripe clusters of rich fruit appear Through all the changing seasons of the year. [169] Amidst these groves a fabric wrought of gold And fixed with silver bolts thou mayst behold, A dwelling bright in splendour, to outvie The lightning flash that gleams athwart the sky. Fashioned with gems and gold, divinely fair, And decked with paintings manifold and rare, "Tis thronged with nymphs magnificently dressed, All wearing golden chains upon their breast. Then in hot haste did Samkhapala climb The terraced height, on which in power sublime Uplifted on a thousand piers was seen The palace of his wedded wife and queen. ep ey De ee ee ee eet ae Quickly anon one of that maiden band Bearing a precious jewel in her hand, A turquoise rare with magic power replete, And all unbidden offered me a seat. » The snake then grasped my arm and led me where There stood a noble and right royal chair, ‘Pray, let your Honour sit here by my side, As parent dear to me art thou,’ he cried. A second nymph then quick at his command Came with a bowl of water in her hand, And bathed my feet, kind service tendering As did the queen for her dear lord the king.

[170] Then yet another maiden in a trice Served in a golden dish some curried rice, 4 Flavoured with many a sauce, that haply might With dainty cravings tempt the appetite. With strains of music then—for such they knew Was their lord’s wish—they fain were to subdue My will, nor did the king himself e’er fail My soul with heavenly longings to assail. a ee ee eT ee eT Drawing nigh to me he thus repeated another stanza : Three hundred wives, Alara, here have I, Slim-waisted all, in beauty they outvie The lotus flower. Behold, they only live To do thy will: accépt the boon I give. One year with heavenly pleasures was I blest When to the king this question I addressed, ‘How, Naga, is this palace fair thy home, And how to be thy portion did it come? Was this fair place by accident attained, Wrought by thyself, or gift from angels gained ? I ask thee, Naga king, the truth to tell, How didst thou come in this fair place to dwell ?” Then followed stanzas uttered by the two’ alternately : *Twas by no chance or natural law attained, Not wrought by me, no boon from angels gained ; But to my own good actions, thou must know, And to my merits these fair halls I owe.

What holy vow, what life so chaste and pure What store of merit could such bliss secure ? Tell me, O serpent-king, for I am fain To know how this fair mansion thou couldst gain. I once was king of Magadha, my name Duyyodhana, a prince of mighty fame : I held my life as vile and insecure, Without all power in ripeness to mature. T meat and drink religiously supplied, And alms bestowed on all, both far and wide, My house was like an inn, where all that came, Sages and saints, refreshed their weary frame. Bound by such vows, such was the life I passed, And such the store of merit I amassed, Whereby this mansion was at length attained, And food and drink in ample measure gained. This life, however bright for many a day With dance and song, yet lasted not for aye, Weak creatures harry thee for all thy might And feeble beings put the strong to flight. Why, armed to the teeth in such unequal fray, To those vile beggars shouldst thou fall a prey ? By what o’ermastering dread wert thou undone? Where had the virus of thy es gone ? Why, armed to the teeth and powerful as thou wert, From such poor creatures didst thou suffer hurt ?

By no o’ermastering dread was I undone, Nor could my powers be crushed by any one. The worth of goodness is by all confessed ; Its bounds, like the sea shore, are ne’er transgressed. 1 The two interlocutors are the Naga king and Alara. 90 The Jataka. Book XVII. : Two times each moon I kept a holy day ; ’Twas then, Alara, that there crossed my way Twice eight lewd fellows, bearing in their hand A rope and knotted noose of finest strand. [173] The ruffians pierced my nose, and through the slit : Passing the cord, dragged me along by it. Such pain I had to bear—ah! cruel fate— For holding holy days inviolate. Seeing in that lone path, stretched at full length, A thing of beauty and enormous strength, ‘Why, wise and glorious one,’ I cried, ‘dost thou Take on thyself this strict ascetic vow ?’ Neither for child nor. wealth is my desire Nor yet to length of days do I aspire ; But midst the world of men I fain would live, And to this end heroically strive. With hair and beard well-trimmed, thy sturdy frame Adorned with gorgeous robes, an eye of flame, Bathed in red sandal oil thou seemst to shine

Afar, een as some minstrel king divine. With heavenly gifts miraculously blest And of whate’er thy heart-may crave possest, I ask thee, serpent-king, the truth to tell, Why dost thou in man’s world prefer to dwell ? Nowhere but in the world of men, I ween, May purity and self-restraint be seen : If only once midst men I draw my breath, Vl put an end to further birth and death. Ever supplied with bountiful good cheer, ‘With thee, O king, I’ve sojourned for a year, Now must I say farewell and flee away, Absent from home no longer can I stay. My wife and children and our menial band Are ever trained to wait at thy command : [174] No one, I trust, has offered thee a slight For dear art thou, Alara, to my sight. Kind parents’ presence fills a home with joy, Yet more than they some fondly cherished boy : But greatest bliss of all have I found here, For thou, O king, hast ever held me dear. I have a jewel rare with blood-red spot, That brings great wealth to such as have it not. Take it and go to thine own home, and when Thou hast grown rich, pray, send it back again.

[175] Alara, having spoken these words proceeded as follows: ‘Then, O sire, I addressed the serpent-king and said, ‘I have no need of riches, sir, but I am anxious to take orders,’ [176] and having begged — for everything requisite for the ascetic life, I left the Naga palace together with the king, and after sending him back I entered the Himalaya country and took orders,” And after these words he delivered a religious discourse to the king of Benares and repeated yet another couple of stanzas: Desires of man are transient, nor can they The higher law of ripening change obey : Seeing what woes from sinful passion spring, Faith led me on to be ordained, O king. Men fall like fruit, to perish straight away, All bodies, young and old alike, decay : In holy orders only find I rest, The true! and universal is the best. [177] On hearing this the king repeated another stanza : The wise and learned, such as meditate On mighty themes, we all should cultivate ; Hearkening, Alara, to the snake and thee, Lo! I perform all deeds of piety. Then the ascetic, putting forth his strength, uttered a concluding stanza :

The wise and learned, such as meditate On mighty themes, we all should cultivate : Hearkening, O monarch, to the snake and me, Do thou perform all deeds of piety. Thus did he give the king religious instruction, and after dwelling in the same spot four months of the rainy season he again returned to the Himalaya, and as long as he lived, cultivated the four Perfect States till he passed to the Brahma heaven, and Sarhkhapala, so long as he lived, observed holy days, and the king, after a life spent in charity and other good works, fared according to his deeds, ow. The Master at the end of this discourse identified the Birth: “At that a time the father who became an ascetic was Kassapa, the king of Benares was P* Ananda, Alara was Sariputta and Satbkhapala was myself.”

“Good friends,” etc. This story the Master while residing at Jetavana told concerning the perfect exercise of self-abnegation. The introductory story corresponds with that of the Mahanaradakassapa? Birth. Once upon a time what is now Benares was a city called Sudassana and in it dwelt king Brahmadatta. His chief consort gave birth to the 1 apannaka, cf. vol. 1. p. 95, Apannaka-Jataka. 2 Vol. vi. No. 544. 92 The Jataka. Book XVII. Bodhisatta. His face was glorious as the full moon, and therefore he was named Somakumara. When he arrived at years of discretion, owing to his fondness for Soma juice and his habit of pouring libations of it, men knew him as Sutasoma (Soma-distiller). When he was of age, he was instructed in the liberal arts at Takkasila, and on his return home he was presented with a white umbrella by his father and ruled his kingdom righteously and owned a vast dominion, and he had sixteen thousand wives with Candadevi as chief consort. By and bye when he was blest with a numerous family, he grew discontented with domestic life and retired into a forest, desiring to embrace the ascetic rule. One day he summoned his barber and thus addressed him, ‘“‘ When you see a grey hair on my head, you are to tell me.” The barber agreed to do so and by and bye he espied a grey hair and told him of it. The king said, “Then, sir barber, pull it out and place it in my hand.” The barber plucked it out with a pair of golden tweezers and laid it in his hand. The Great Being, when he saw it, exclaimed, “ My body is a prey to old age,” and in a fright he took the grey hair and descending from the terrace [178]

he seated himself on a throne placed in the sight of the people. Then ’ he summoned eighty thousand councillors headed by his general and sixty thousand brahmins headed by his chaplain and many others of his subjects and citizens and said to them, “A grey hair has appeared on my head; I am an old man, and you are to know that I am become an ascetic,” and he repeated the first stanza : Good friends and citizens assembled here, Hearken, my trusty counsellors, to me, Now that grey hairs upon my head appear, Henceforth it is my. will a monk to be. On hearing this each one of them in a fit of dejection repeated this stanza : Such random! words as these in uttering Thou mak’st an arrow quiver in my heart: Remember thy seven hundred wives, O king ; What will become of them, shouldst thou depart 2 Then the Great Being spoke the third stanza: Their sorrows soon another will console, For they are young in years and fair to see, But I am bent upon a heavenly goal And so right fain am I a monk to be. His counsellors, being unable to answer the king, went to his mother and told her about it. She came in hot haste [179] and asking him, ‘Ts this true what they say, dear son, that you long to be an ascetic?” she repeated two stanzas:

abhumma, out of one’s range or sphere, unfit, improper. Te a ee ee ees Ill-fated was the day, alas! that I Was hailed as mother to a son like thee, For heedless of my tears and bitter cry, Thou art resolved, O king, a monk to be. Accursed was the day, alas! that I, O Sutasoma dear, gave birth to thee, For heedless of my tears and bitter cry, Thou art resolved, O king, a monk to be. While his mother thus lamented, the Bodhisatta uttered not a word. She remained apart all by herself, weeping. Then they told his father. And he came and repeated a single stanza : What is this Law that leads thee to become Eager to quit thy kingdom and thy home? With thy old parents left behind to dwell Here all alone, seek’st thou a hermit’s cell ? On hearing this the Great Being held his peace. Then his father said, “‘My dear Sutasoma, even though you have no affection for your parents, you have many young sons and daughters. They will not be able to live without you. At the very moment when they are grown up, will you become an ascetic?” and he repeated the seventh stanza :

[180] But thou hast many a child, I ween, And all of tender years, When thou no longer mayst be seen, What sorrow will be theirs! Hearing this the Great Being repeated a stanza: Yes, I have many a child, I ween, Of tender years are they, With them full long though I have been, I now must part for aye. Thus did the Great Being declare the Law to his father. And when he heard his exposition of the Law, he held his peace. Then they told his seven hundred wives. And they, descending from the palace tower, came into his presence, and embracing his feet they made lamentation and repeated this stanza: Thy heart in sorrow, sure, must break Or pity is to thee unknown, That thou canst holy orders take, And leave us here to weep alone. The Great Being, on hearing their lamentation as they threw themselves at his feet and cried aloud, repeated yet another stanza : My heart in sorrow may not break, [181] Though I feel pity for your pain, But holy orders I must take, That I may heavenly bliss attain. Then they told his queen consort, and she being heavy with child, though her time was well nigh come, approached the Great Being and

saluting him stood respectfully on one side and repeated three stanzas : gA The Jdataka. Book XVII. Ill-fated was the day, alas! that I O Sutasoma dear, espouséd thee, For heedless of my tears and bitter cry Thou art resolved, O king, a monk to be. Accursed was the day, alas! that I O Sutasoma dear, espouséd thee, For thou wouldst leave me in my throes to die, Determined as thou art a monk to be. The hour of my delivery is nigh, And I would fain my lord should stay with me Until my child is born, before that I See the sad day that I am reft of thee. Then the Great Being repeated a stanza : The hour of thy delivery is nigh, Until the babe is born, I'll stay with nee [182] Then will I leave the royal imp and fly _Far from the world a holy monk to be. On hearing his words she was no longer able to control her grief, and holding her heart with both her hands, said, ‘ Henceforth, my lord, our glory is no more.” Then wiping away her tears she loudly lamented. The Great Being to console her repeated a stanza :

My queen, with eye like ebon flower, Dear Canda, weep not thou for me, But climb once more thy palace tower : I go without one care for thee. Being unable to bear his words she mounted the palace tower and sat there weeping. Then the Bodhisatta’s elder son seeing it said, “Why does my mother sit here weeping?” and he repeated this stanza in the form of a question : Who has annoyed thee, mother dear, Why dost thou weep and stare at me? Whom of my kin that I see here Must I, all impious, slay for thee ? Then the queen uttered this stanza: No harm, dear son, may touch his head, Who lives to work such woe for me: [183] For know it was thy sire who said, ‘I go without one care for thee.’ Hearing her words he said, ‘‘Dear mother, what is this that you say? If this be so, we shall be helpless,” and making lamentation he spoke this stanza : I who once ranged the park to see Wild elephants engage in fight, If my dear sire a monk should be, What should I do, poor luckless wight ? Then his younger brother who was seven years old, when he saw them both weeping, drew nigh to his mother and said, ‘‘ My dear ones, why do ye weep?” and hearing the cause he said, “ Well, cease to weep ;

a a Sey a a a a, ee ey sa comin y ® Arathi ar I will not allow him to become an ascetic,” and he comforted them both, and with his nurse, coming down from the palace tower, he went to his father and said, “Dear father, they tell me you are leaving us against our will and say you will be an ascetic; I will not allow you to become an ascetic,” and clasping his father firmly by the neck he uttered this stanza : My mother, lo! is weeping and My brother fain would keep thee still, I too will hold thee by the hand Nor let thee go against our will. The Great Being thought, “ This child is a source of danger to me; by what means am I to get rid of him?” then looking at his nurse he said, “Good nurse, behold this jewel ornament: this is yours: [184] only take away the child, that he be not a hindrance to me,” and being : unable by himself to get rid of the child who held him by the hand, he promised her a bribe and repeated this stanza : Up nurse and let the little boy Disport him in some other place,

Lest haply he should mar my joy And hinder in my heavenward race. She took the bribe and comforting the child she went with him to another place, apd thus lamenting repeated this stanza : What now if I reject outright —I need it not—this jewel bright ? For should my lord a hermit be, What use would jewels be to me? Then his commander-in-chief thought, ‘This king, methinks, has come to the conclusion that he has but little treasure in his house; I will let him know he has a great quantity,” so standing up he saluted him and repeated this stanza: Thy coffers filled with treasures vast, Great wealth hast thou, O king, amassed : The world is all subdued by thee, Take thou thy ease; no hermit be. Hearing this, the Great Being repeated this stanza : My coffers filled with treasures vast, Great wealth has been by me amassed : The whole world is subdued by me ; I leave it all a monk to be. [185] When he had departed on hearing this, a rich merchant named Kulavaddhana stood up and saluting the king repeated this stanza : Great wealth have I, O king, amassed, . Beyond all power of reckoning vast : Behold I give it all to thee,

Take thou thy ease; no hermit be. 96 The Jataka. Book XVII. On hearing this the Great Being repeated a stanza : O Kulavaddhana, I know, Thy wealth on me thou wouldst bestow, But I a heavenly goal would win, So I renounce this world of sin. As soon as Kulavaddhana had heard this and was gone, he thus addressed his younger brother Somadatta, “ Dear brother, I am as discontented as a wild cock in a cage, my dislike to household life gets the better of me ; this very day will I bécome a hermit; do you undertake to rule this kingdom,” and handing it over to him he repeated this stanza : O Somadatta, sure I feel Strange loathing o’er my senses steal At thought of my besetting sins: To-day my hermit life begins. On hearing these words Somadatta too longed to be a hermit and to make this clear he repeated another stanza : Dear Sutasoma, go and dwell As pleaseth thee in hermit cell ; I too a hermit fain would be, For life were nought apart from thee. Then in refusing this Sutasoma repeated a half-stanza : Thou mayst not go, or through the land Home life would all come to a stand}.

[186] On hearing this the people threw themselves down at the feet of the Great Being and, lamenting, said Should Sutasoma go away, What would become of us, we pray ? Then the Great Being said, “ Well, grieve not: though I have been long with you, [ shall now have to part from you; there is no permanence in any existing thing,” and teaching the Law to the people, he said, Like water through a sieve®, our day So brief alas! fast slips away : With life thus circumscribed, I ween, No room for carelessness is seen. Like water through a sieve, our day So brief alas! fast slips away: With life thus circumscribed all round, Only the fool is careless found. Bound fast by lusts, wherein they fell, Such men enlarge the bounds of Hell, Crowd the brute world and realm of ghosts, And multiply the demon hosts. 1 Lit. ‘There is no cooking,” or as the commentary explains, ‘‘no one kindles a fire in the oven.” * camgavara., The word is rendered by R. D. in Mil. 1. p. 278 (S. B. E.) as ‘‘dyers’ straining-cloth.” Cf. Majjh. Nik. 1. 144, and Neumann’s translation 1. p. 239, where he renders it geflecht, basket-work.

[187] Thus did the Great Being instruct the people in the Law, and climbing to the top of the Palace of Flowers he stood on the seventh storey, and with a sword he cut off his top-knot and cried, “I am now nothing to you; choose ye a king of your own,” and with these words he threw his top-knot, turban and all, into the midst of the people. The people seized hold of it, and as they rolled over and over on the ground - they loudly lamented, and a cloud of dust rose at this spot to a great height, and the people stepping back stood and looked at it, and said, “The king must have cut off his top-knot and thrown it, turban and all, into the midst of the crowd, and therefore it is that a cloud of dust has risen near the palace,” and lamenting they uttered this stanza : Yon cloud of dust see how it towers Hard by the royal House of Flowers ; Famed King of Right, methinks, our lord Has shorn his locks off with a sword. But the Great Being sent an attendant and had all the requisites for an ascetic brought to him, and had a barber to remove his hair and beard, and throwing his magnificent robe on a couch he cut off strips of dyed cloth, and putting on these yellow patches he fastened an earthen bowl on the top of his left shoulder and with a mendicant staff in his hand he paced backwards and forwards on the topmost storey, and then descending from the palace tower he stepped out into the street, but no one recognised him as he went.

Then his seven hundred royal wives ascending the tower and not finding him, but seeing only the bundle of his adornments, came down and told the other sixteen thousand women, saying, “ Mighty Sutasoma, your dear lord, has become an ascetic,’ and loudly lamenting they went out. At this moment [188] the people learned that he had become an ascetic, and the whole city was greatly stirred, and the people said, “They tell us, our king has become a monk,” and they assembled at the palace door, and crying, “The king must be here or there,” they ran to all the places frequented by him, and not finding the king they wandered to and fro, uttering their lament in these stanzas :

1Here are his golden palace-towers All hung with wreaths of scented flowers, Where girt with many a lady fair Our king would oftentimes repair. Here wreathed with flowers and wrought of gold His gabled-hall one may behold, Where, all his kinsfolk by his side, Our king would range in all his pride. 1 Tt seems unnecessary to translate all the sixteen stanzas in the text, differing, as they do, from one another for the most part by a single word, usually the name of a tree or flower. 98 The Jataka. Book XVII. This is his garden bright with flowers Through all the season’s changing hours, Where girt, &c. His lake o’erspread with lotus blue, Haunt of wild birds, here comes in view, Where, all his kinsfolk, &e. [190] Thus did the people utter lamentation in these various places, and then returning to the palace yard they repeated this stanza : King Sutasoma, sad to tell, Has left his throne for hermit cell, And, clad in yellow, goes his way Like some lone elephant astray. Then they went forth leaving all their household gear, and taking their children by the hand they repaired to the Bodhisatta, and with them went their parents and young children and sixteen thousand dancing girls, The whole city had the appearance of a deserted place, and behind them followed the country folk. The Bodhisatta with a company covering twelve leagues set out in the direction of the Himalayas.