Reading Notes: Jatakas

(Beginning of Story, Pixabay, Source)

I loved the Jatakas because they remind me of stories I was told growing up. I feel like most cultures have their variations of Jatakas where they use animals to teach life lessons. I appreciated learning this version and seeing what motifs transition from one edition to the next. These were my favorites:

The Foolish, Timid Rabbit by Ellen C. Babbitt: This was one of my favorites. I felt bad for the rabbit because I think that getting caught up in our own thought spirals and letting others get sucked in too is an easy trap to fall into. I also thought it was interesting that the rabbit was foolish because in a lot of western fables, the rabbit is a trickster and witty. This version of the rabbit is skittish and timid, which seems more like how I would interpret real rabbits. I also think the idea that people will blindly follow in a scary situation is still very relevant. There were multiple occasions last year where some loud noise happened and it caused mass hysteria which injured people. While their fear is definitely valid in today's age of bombings and shootings, the sentiment of being cautious before reacting is still important.

The Turtle and the King by Ellen C. Babbitt: I enjoyed the cleverness of the turtle. The intelligence of the turtle is a little different than how I remember turtle being characterized in western stories. I was happy that the turtle got out of the situation since it had done no long. I appreciate how in these stories, the good guy usually wins, and the bad guy gets what they deserve.

The Cunning Crane and the Crab by W.H.D. Rouse: This is one of the satisfying stories where the bad guy gets what he deserves in the end. It also is one of the more violent stories, which is interesting because usually these stories (in western cultures) are passed down to children and this gets somewhat dark for a child, although, some stories like the Grimm Brothers Fairytales have very dark origins. I also think it is interesting that the crane is called cunning, and yet in the end it makes a simple error that leads to its death.

Honestly, I found them all quite entertaining and interesting to learn how different messages were passed along in fairytale like stories with talking animals or even mystical creatures like the goblins.