Reading Notes: Jataka
1. The Foolish, Timid Rabbit
Similar to the English Folk Tale, Henny-Penny. The rabbit heard a coconut drop to the ground and was too afraid to look back and see where the noise came from, so he frantically began telling other rabbits. Soon, a Deer, Fox, and Elephant joined the Rabbit running through the animals. Then, the Lion (the King of the Beasts) saw the animals running, so he roared three times to get their attention. Each animal was questioned about the frantic running, and each one blamed it on the Rabbit. Finally, the Lion took the Rabbit back to the tree where he was sleeping and showed him that his foolish fear of the earth breaking only came from a coconut.
Similar to the English Folk Tale, Henny-Penny. The rabbit heard a coconut drop to the ground and was too afraid to look back and see where the noise came from, so he frantically began telling other rabbits. Soon, a Deer, Fox, and Elephant joined the Rabbit running through the animals. Then, the Lion (the King of the Beasts) saw the animals running, so he roared three times to get their attention. Each animal was questioned about the frantic running, and each one blamed it on the Rabbit. Finally, the Lion took the Rabbit back to the tree where he was sleeping and showed him that his foolish fear of the earth breaking only came from a coconut.
This illustration of The Foolish, Timid Rabbit was done by Ellsworth Young
2. Two Turtle Jatakas
A. The Turtle and the King
A king once had a lake and his young princes played and swam in it, and he also put fish in the lake. There was a turtle in the water, and the boys thought it was a demon because they had never seen one before and wanted to kill it. One old man suggested to throw the turtle out into the bank of the river by the rocks to kill it, and the turtle spoke. He ended up being safer in the water than on the land.
B. The Turtle and the Geese
A Turtle lived in a pond and two wild Geese talked to him while looking for food. They wanted the Turtle to go with them back to their beautiful home, but he stated that he had no wings. The Geese offered to take the Turtle as long as he didn't tell anyone, so he went. The next day, the Geese brought a stick to hold on to and took off with the Turtle. Village children saw the three animals in the air, and the Turtle spoke a snarky reply to the children and let go of the stick; he lost his life because he did not keep his mouth shut like the Geese said.
Out of these stories, I think I will prepare my storytelling assignment on the Turtle and the Geese. Both stories can be found in: The Turtle Stories. After all of the stories, this one has the most clear lesson and it pertains to lessons I learned as a child.
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