Page:The Folk-Lore Journal Volume 3 1885.djvu/261

 FOLK-TALES OF INDIA. 253

Garahita Jataka.* A Monkey^ s vieio of human life.

In former times, when Brahmadatta reigned at Benares, the Bodhisat was reborn in the Himalaya district among the monkey- kind. A certain forester caught and presented him to the king. Living for a long time in the king's palace, he became very faithful in the discharge of his duties (such as amusing the king, &c.), and had no little acquaintance with the doings and affairs going on among men.

The king, being pleased with his zeal, sent for the forester, made him appear before him and said, " Let this monkey loose in the very place where you captured him." He did so. The troop of monkeys, on hearing of the return of the Bodhisat, assembled on the top of a huge rock to get a view of him. While engaged in friendly conversa- tion with him they said, '* Sir, where have you been living all this time ? " He replied, " In the palace at Benares." " Then how did you get away ? " they asked. " The king made me play tricks for his amusement, and, being pleased with my performance, set me free."

Then said the monkeys to him : " Well, since you'll know all that goes on among men, tell us now (something about it); we'd like to hear it." " For goodness sake don't ask me anything about the concerns of men," he replied. *< Come," said they, '' speak out; we wish to hear (all about it)."

The Bodhisat in answer to their inquiries spake as follows : " Men, indeed, both nobles and brahmans, are ever saying, 'Mine, mine!' They know not that wealth, by reason of its nothingness and insta- bility, is impermanent and perishable. Listen now to the affairs of these blind dotards," said he, uttering the following gdtha : —

' My gold,' * my gold,' they spoke of nothing else ; Such was the talk of foolish worldly men, Who heeded not the noble eight-fold path."f
 * ' The whole day through methought I heard men say,


 * Jdtaha Book, vol. ii. No. 219, p. 185.

t In the first verse the male portion of the community is described ; in the second verse the female is meant, though the grammatical forms are masculine.