Jatakamala

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Buddha surrounded by images from the Jatakamala

Jatakamala (Skt. Jātaka­māla; Tib. སྐྱེས་རབས་འཕྲེང་བ་, kyerab trengwa, Wyl. skyes rabs 'phreng ba) — 'The Garland of Birth Stories' by the master Arya Shura describes 34 of Buddha Shakyamuni's previous lives.

  1. The Tigress
  2. Shibhi
  3. The dumpling
  4. The Merchant
  5. Avishahya, the Merchant
  6. The hare/rabbit
  7. Agastya
  8. Maitribala
  9. Vishvamtara
  10. The sacrifice
  11. Shakra
  12. The brahmin
  13. Unmadayanti
  14. Suparaga
  15. The lord of the fish
  16. The young quail
  17. The jar full of spirits
  18. The man without an heir
  19. The lotus stalks
  20. The royal treasurer
  21. Kuddhabodhi
  22. The king of geese
  23. Bodhi, the wandering ascetic
  24. The great ape
  25. The ibex
  26. The antelope
  27. The king of monkeys
  28. Kshantivadin
  29. The inhabitant of highest heaven
  30. The elephant
  31. Sutosama
  32. Ayogriha, the prince in the iron house
  33. Buffalo
  34. Woodpecker

It is said that Arya Shura planned to write 100 stories, ten to illustrate each of the ten paramitas. This project was later taken on by the 3rd Karmapa Rangjung Dorje, who wrote several works on the text, including an expansion to 100 tales.

Tibetan Translation

The Tibetan translation can be found in the Tengyur, in 'The Buddha's previous lives' section, Toh 4150.

Modern Translations

  • Ārya Śūra, Once the Buddha Was a Monkey, translated by Peter Khoroche (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1989)
  • Āryaśūra, The Marvelous Companion: Life Stories of the Buddha (Dharma Publishing, 1983)
  • Āryaśūra, Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives, Vol. 1 & Vol. 2, translated by Justin Meiland, (Clay Sanskrit Library, NYU Press, 2009)

External Links