*While
I did read all the Jatakas from Part A, I only have comments for a few.
The
Giant Crab:
-
I think this might have been one of the most violent jataka's I have read so
far. I don't know what I was expecting but it wasn't a detailed description of
a crab getting crushed to death by an elephant.
The
Hypocritical Cat:
-
It is interesting that some of the other Jataka's I read seemed to really
praise cleverness and cunning plans but since the cat is also making a mockery
of religion, this jataka condemns him.
The Wise Parrot and the Foolish Parrot
-
If you maid-servant is thieving enough that you have to lock up everything, you
should probably just fire her.
-
I'm glad the author agrees with me on that note.
The Mouse and the Farmer
 |
| Mouse wikipedia.org |
-
Okay now I just want to know what the corn laws are. Were they are real law at
one point? Did the author just think the phrase corn law was funny? (if so he
was definetely right)
- Also
once again, this was a really graphic depiction of death a death for a jataka.
The Monkeys and the Gardener
-
I liked the distinction that the jataka made between cunningness and wisdom.
While some of the other Jataka's have featured wise monkey characters, I think
they have all been consistently cunning. I'm curious if that is a prevailing
belief in ancient India?
The Goblin in the Pool
-
I think it is always interesting when the jataka don’t just have
animals and humans interact but throw in a third, more supernatural, type of
character, such as the goblin.
- I also like that the
human and the monkeys needed each other to survive the goblin. The human would
have waded into the pool and died if the monkeys hadn’t warned him. And the
monkeys would have died of thirst if the human hadn’t
shown them the trick with the reed.
Bibliography
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