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More Jataka Tales
Large Format for easy reading. The Jataka is a voluminous body of folklore and mythic literature, primarily associated with the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as written in the Pali language around the 3rd century A.D. Some people believe that they formed the basis for Aesop's Fables and The Arabian Nights. Professor Rhys Davids speaks of them as "a priceless record of the childhood of our race." This is a beautifully illustrated edition.
- GenresEbooksShort Stories
76 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1922
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 29, 2016
"Once upon a time the king of a large and rich country gathered together his army to take a faraway little country. When they fed the horses they gave them some peas to eat.
One of the Monkeys living in the forest saw the peas and jumped down to get some of them. He filled his mouth and hands with them, and up into the tree he went again, and sat down to eat the peas.
As he sat there eating the peas, one pea fell from his hand to the ground. At once the greedy Monkey dropped all the peas he had in his hands, and ran down to hunt for the lost pea.
But he could not find that one pea. He climbed up into his tree again, and sat still looking very glum. "To get more, I threw away what I had," he said to himself."
One of the Monkeys living in the forest saw the peas and jumped down to get some of them. He filled his mouth and hands with them, and up into the tree he went again, and sat down to eat the peas.
As he sat there eating the peas, one pea fell from his hand to the ground. At once the greedy Monkey dropped all the peas he had in his hands, and ran down to hunt for the lost pea.
But he could not find that one pea. He climbed up into his tree again, and sat still looking very glum. "To get more, I threw away what I had," he said to himself."
June 22, 2018
An unusual collection of tales from India. Not great, but interesting.
Second in a series. Per the forward, these are Babbitt's retellings of the Jataka Tales for, mainly, a young audience. The originals, I think, are stories of the Buddha's past lives, though none of Babbitt's versions have distinctively Buddhist content. For most I'm not even sure where any of Buddha's prior incarnations could have been shoved in. All of that class of Buddhist tales I'm familiar with are full of extreme sacrifice, and not necessarily what a modern westerner would regard as self-sacrifice . Anyway, there's nothing like that in "More Jataka Tales", and I'm curious as to how close Babbitt stuck to her sources, and, if so, whether there's been some confusion about these matters online.
Second in a series. Per the forward, these are Babbitt's retellings of the Jataka Tales for, mainly, a young audience. The originals, I think, are stories of the Buddha's past lives, though none of Babbitt's versions have distinctively Buddhist content. For most I'm not even sure where any of Buddha's prior incarnations could have been shoved in. All of that class of Buddhist tales I'm familiar with are full of extreme sacrifice, and not necessarily what a modern westerner would regard as self-sacrifice . Anyway, there's nothing like that in "More Jataka Tales", and I'm curious as to how close Babbitt stuck to her sources, and, if so, whether there's been some confusion about these matters online.
March 4, 2018
More animal fables from India.
November 29, 2018
Not as mystical as I expected it to be; and the moral lessons didn’t really announce themselves with a sledgehammer. Though honesty and generosity were the more obvious ones.
June 10, 2020
3.5 stars.
February 22, 2011
More morality tales from the Buddha's past lives.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews