Chalmers The Jataka Tales, Volume 1

1. Auflage 2012
ISBN: 978-3-8496-2238-1
Verlag: Jazzybee Verlag
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 6 - ePub Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 458 Seiten

This is the extended and annotated edition including * an extensive annotation of more than 10.000 words about the history and basics of Buddhism, written by Thomas William Rhys Davids The Jtakas refer to a voluminous body of literature native to India concerning the previous births (jti) of the Buddha. These are the stories that tell about the previous lives of the Buddha, in both human and animal form. The future Buddha may appear in them as a king, an outcast, a god, an elephant-but, in whatever form, he exhibits some virtue that the tale thereby inculcates. The Theravada Jatakas comprise 547 poems, arranged roughly by increasing number of verses. This book comprises poem 1 through 150. (courtesy of wikipedia.com)

Autoren/Hrsg.

Chalmers, Robert

Leseproben

Katthahari-Jataka.

"Your Son Am I."--This Story Was Told By The Master While At Jetavana About The Story Of Vasabha-Khattiya, Which Will Be Found In The Twelfth Book In The Bhaddasala-Jataka . Tradition Tells Us That She Was The Daughter Of Mahanama Sakka By A Slave-Girl Named Nagamunda, And That She Afterwards Became The Consort Of The King Of Kosala. She Conceived A Son By The King; But The King, Coming To Know Of Her Servile Origin, Degraded Her From Her Rank, And Also Degraded Her Son Vidudabha. Mother And Son Never Came Outside The Palace.

Hearing Of This, The Master At Early Dawn Came To The Palace Attended By Five Hundred Brethren , And, Sitting Down On The Seat Prepared For Him, Said, "Sire, Where Is Vasabha-Khattiya?"

Then The King Told Him What Had Happened.

Sire, Whose Daughter Is Vasabha-Khattiya?" "Mahanama's Daughter, Sir." "When She Came Away, To Whom Did She Come As Wife?" "To Me, Sir." "Sire, She Is A King's Daughter; To A King She Is Wed; And To A King She Bore Her Son. Wherefore Is That Son Not In Authority Over The Realm Which Owns His Father's Sway? In Bygone Days, A Monarch Who Had A Son By A Casual  Faggot-Gatherer Gave That Son His Sovereignty."

The King Asked The Blessed One To Explain This. The Blessed One Made Clear What Had Been Concealed From Him By Re-Birth.

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Once On A Time In Benares Brahmadatta The King, Having Gone In Great State To His Pleasaunce, Was Roaming About Looking For Fruits And Flowers When He Came On A Woman Who Was Merrily Singing Away As She Picked Up Sticks In The Grove. Falling In Love At First Sight, The King Became Intimate With Her, And The Bodhisatta Was Conceived Then And There. Feeling As Heavy Within As Though Weighed Down With The Bolt Of Indra, The Woman Knew That She Would Become A Mother, And Told The King So. He Gave Her The Signet-Ring From His Finger And Dismissed Her With These-Words:--"If It Be A Girl, Spend This Ring On Her Nurture; But If It Be A Boy, Bring Ring And Child To Me."

When The Woman's Time Was Come, She Bore The Bodhisatta. And When He Could Run About And Was Playing In The Playground, A Cry Would Arise, "No-Father Has Hit Me!" Hearing This, The Bodhisatta Ran Away To His Mother And Asked Who His Father Was.

"You Are The Son Of The King Of Benares, My Boy." "What Proof Of This Is There, Mother?" "My Son, The King On Leaving Me Gave Me This Signet-Ring And Said, 'If It Be A Girl, Spend This Ring On Her Nurture; But If It Be A Boy, Bring Ring And Child To Me.'" "Why Then Don't You Take Me To My Father, Mother?"

 Seeing That The Boy's Mind Was Made Up, She Took Him To The Gate Of The Palace, And Bade Their Coming Be Announced To The King. Being Summoned In, She Entered And Bowing Before His Majesty Said, "This Is Your Son, Sire."

The King Knew Well Enough That This Was The Truth, But Shame Before All His Court Made Him Reply, "He Is No Son Of Mine." "But Here Is Your Signet-Ring, Sire; You Will Recognise That." "Nor Is This My Signet-Ring." Then Said The Woman, "Sire, I Have Now No Witness To Prove My Words, Except To Appeal To Truth. Wherefore, If You Be The Father Of My Child, I Pray That He May Stay In Mid-Air; But If Not, May He Fall To Earth And Be Killed." So Saying, She Seized The Bodhisatta By The Foot And Threw Him Up Into The Air. Seated Cross-Legged In Mid-Air, The Bodhisatta In Sweet Tones Repeated This Stanza To His Father, Declaring The Truth:--

Your Son Am I, Great Monarch; Rear Me, Sire!

 The King Rears Others, But Much More His Child.

Hearing The Bodhisatta Thus Teach The Truth To Him From Mid-Air, The King Stretched Out His Hands And Cried, "Come To Me, My Boy! None, None But Me Shall Rear And Nurture You!" A Thousand Hands Were Stretched Out To Receive The Bodhisatta;  But It Was Into The Arms Of The King And Of No Other That He Descended, Seating Himself In The King's Lap. The King Made Him Viceroy, And Made His Mother Queen-Consort. At The Death Of The King His Father, He Came To The Throne By The Title Of King Katthavahana--The Faggot-Bearer--, And After Ruling His Realm Righteously, Passed Away To Fare According To His Deserts.

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His Lesson To The King Of Kosala Ended, And His Two Stories Told, The Master Made The Connexion Linking Them Both Together, And Identified The Birth By Saying:--"Mahamaya Was The Mother Of Those Days, King Suddhodana Was The Father, And I Myself King Katthavahana."

Gamani-Jataka.

"Their Heart's Desire."--This Story Was Told By The Master While At Jetavana About A Brother Who Gave Up Persevering. In This Jataka Both The Introductory Story And The Story Of The Past Will Be Given In The Eleventh Book In Connexion With The Samvara-Jataka ;--The Incidents Are The Same Both For That Jataka And For This, But The Stanzas Are Different.

Abiding Stedfast In The Counsels Of The Bodhisatta, Prince Gamani, Finding Himself--Though The Youngest Of A Hundred Brothers--Surrounded By Those Hundred Brothers As A Retinue And Seated Beneath The White Canopy Of Kingship, Contemplated His Glory And Thought--"All This Glory I Owe To My Teacher." And, In His Joy, He Burst Into This Heartfelt Utterance:--

Their Heart's Desire  They Reap, Who Hurry Not;

 Know, Gamani, Ripe Excellence Is Thine.

 Seven Or Eight Days After He Had Become King, All His Brothers Departed To Their Own Homes. King Gamani, After Ruling His Kingdom In Righteousness, Passed Away To Fare According To His Deserts. The Bodhisatta Also Passed Away To Fare According To His Deserts.

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His Lesson Ended, The Master Preached The Truths, At The Close Whereof The Faint-Hearted Brother Won Arahatship. Having Told The Two Stories, The Master Shewed The Connexion Linking Them Both Together And Identified The Birth.

Makhadeva-Jataka.

"Lo! These Grey Hairs."--This Story Was Told By The Master While At Jetavana About The Great Renunciation, Which Has Already Been Related In The Nidana-Katha .

On This Occasion The Brethren Sat Praising The Renunciation Of The Lord Of Wisdom. Entering The Hall Of Truth And Seating Himself On The Buddha-Seat, The Master Thus Addressed The Brethren:--"What Is Your Theme, Brethren, As You Sit Here In Conclave?"

"It Is Naught Else, Sir, Than The Praise Of Your Own Renunciation." "Brethren," Rejoined The Master, "Not Only In These Latter Days Has The Tathagata  Made A Renunciation; In Bygone Days Too He Similarly Renounced The World."

The Brethren Asked The Blessed One For An Explanation Of This. The Blessed One Made Clear What Had Been Concealed From Them By Re-Birth.

# # # Once On A Time In Mithila In The Realm Of Videha There Was A King Named Makhadeva, Who Was Righteous And Ruled Righteously. For Successive Periods Of Eighty-Four Thousand Years He Had Respectively Amused Himself As Prince, Ruled As Viceroy, And Reigned As King. All These Long Years Had He Lived, When One Day He Said To His Barber,--"Tell Me, Friend Barber, When You See Any Grey Hairs In My Head." So One Day, Years And Years After,  The Barber Did Find Among The Raven Locks Of The King A Single Grey Hair, And He Told The King So. "Pull It Out, My Friend," Said The King; "And Lay It In My Palm." The Barber Accordingly Plucked The Hair Out With His Golden Tongs, And Laid It In The King's Hand. The King Had At That Time Still Eighty-Four Thousand Years More To Live; But Nevertheless At The Sight Of That One Grey Hair He Was Filled With Deep Emotion. He Seemed To See The King Of Death Standing Over Him, Or To Be Cooped Within A Blazing But Of Leaves. "Foolish Makhadeva!" He Cried; "Grey Hairs Have Come Upon You Before You Have Been Able To Rid Yourself Of Depravities." And As He Thought And Thought About The Appearance Of His Grey Hair, He Grew Aflame Within; The Sweat Rolled Down From His Body; Whilst His Raiment Oppressed Him And Seemed Intolerable. "This Very Day," Thought He, "Will I Renounce The World For The Brother's Life."

To His Barber He Gave The Grant Of A Village, Which Yielded A Hundred Thousand Pieces Of Money. He Sent For His Eldest Son And Said To Him, "My Son, Grey Hairs Are Come Upon Me, And I Am Become Old. I Have Had My Fill Of Human Joys, And Fain Would Taste The Joys Divine; The Time For My Renunciation Has Come. Take The Sovereignty Upon Yourself; As For Me, I Will Take Up My Abode In The Pleasaunce Called Makhadeva's...