The Monkey-Bridge
In this tale, the monkey king gives his life to save his people. He is truly selfless and never regrets his decision! This is a powerful lesson on love and leadership. It made me think a lot about the way that I want to lead others. I would love to make a story with this same theme!
The Guilty Dogs
Here, the palace dogs ruined the harnesses on the royal chariot. Unsure of which dogs did it, the King declares for all dogs in the city to be killed...except for the royal dogs. First of all, this is a crazy punishment. I think there are several different lessons you could learn from this tale. One could be that sometimes it is those closest to you (whom you would never suspect) who are capable of doing the most damage. Another would be not to punish a group for the wrongdoings of one individual.
Banyan
In this story, a deer is killed each day by the king and his servants. On a day that a doe with a young baby was supposed to be killed, she ran to her ruler and asked to wait until later so she could take care of him. He refused so she ran to the other deer ruler, Banyan, who selflessly took her place and ended up bringing love into the heart of the king.
More than anything, this story showed me that it is okay to step back and challenge the status quo. The first ruler, Branch, seemed harsh for denying the doe but he was only following the orders that they had set in place. Banyan did not hesitate to stray from the plan in order to do the right thing. He broke the "rules" but ended up being the hero. This is a powerful lesson to reflect upon.
The Tortoise and the Geese
This tale teaches a lesson in "holding your tongue". The tortoise is being carried through the sky by biting a stick that two geese are holding. When people make fun of him, he yells and falls from the sky.
This reminded me that others will always have something to say about your success, but keeping your mouth shut is the best way to keep succeeding.
The Fairy and the Hare
In this story, the hare and his friends decide to take whatever food they find and give it to other instead of eating it for a day. The other animal friends come by their food by rather dishonest means, whereas the hare offers himself up as food. A fairy comes to test his kindness, and the hare joyously jumps into the fire she prepares. However, the fire does not burn him, but teaches the animals the lesson of kindness, love, and selfless giving!
The Golden Feathers
I think I have heard a version of this tale before! The father leaves in search of wealth for his family and is turned into a gold goose. He gives the golden feathers to his family to sell, but one day the selfish wife captures him and steals all of the feathers...not knowing that it is her husband. After she steals the feathers, they become worthless.
This story made me think about the lesson that you never know who you are encountering! The woman thought this was an ordinary goose, but it was actually her beloved husband. It taught me the importance of treating everyone with equal respect. Everyone deserves it!
The Young Parrot
In this story, the young parrot eats and takes extra food for his parents. The owner of he field is angry that he takes extra at first, but after learning the reason why, he welcomes the parrots with open arms. This reminded me that 1) we should take care of our elders and 2) you never know someone's true motives for their actions unless you ask!
The Empty Lake
This story didn't have as clear of a lesson to me as the others did. In this tale, the king fish prayed for water to fill the lake for his people. His wishes come true and the elements restore the lake.
The Swan Kingdom
In this tale, a swan shows dedication to his king and amazes the human king and all of his people. The lesson here is the benefit of staying true to those whom you love and respect. Something that I have loved about these tales is that they all end with the group living happily ever after. This has been an uplifting series of tales to read!
The Master's Test
This story had an awesome lesson! The master told his pupils to steal when no one was looking, but one pupil said "my self is always watching" and that he could never live with the guilt of seeing himself steal. This lesson struck the other pupils and affected their every day life from then on. I think this is a great story to share with others! I will definitely think about it when making decisions.
(The monkeys from my favorite tale in today's reading!)
Title: Twenty Jataka Tales
Author: Noor Inayat (Khan)
Illustrator: H. Willebeek Le Mair
Year: 1939
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