Reading A: Nigerian Folk Stories (Dayrell)

Cat and Rat
Together

Reading A

The Pretty Stranger who Killed the King

A story whose lesson is “Never marry a stranger, no matter how pretty she may be.” Indeed, the witch from the city of Itu disguised herself as a beautiful lady and with a knife hidden travelled to the town of Calabar to kill the king. The king, who had an eye for pretty girls, immediately fell for the girl. She made him a meal with poison to make him tired. Once he fell asleep she cut off his head, escaped the town, and presented the head to the king in Itu. Knowing the city of Calabar would not be expecting to be attacked, the Itu warriors travelled to Calabar and took over the city.

Why the Bat Flies by Night

The jealous bat tricks his friend, the Bush Rat, into believing that the reason the soup he makes is so good is because he soaks in it while it is boiling. The Bush Rat goes home and tells his wife that he is going to make her some delicious soup and jumps into the boiling water and is soon dead. The wife tells the king, who orders the bat to be taken prisoner. Expecting to be hunted, the bat changes his habits and becomes nocturnal.

The King who Married the Cock’s Daughter

An odd little story that ends with the death of the king from a broken heart and the people of the kingdom passing a law that no one should marry any bird or animal. Jealousy happens from the king’s 250 wives when he chooses the Cock’s daughter to be his next wife. The Cock warned him that her natural instinct for corn may kick in at any time. However, the king was so smitten with her that he didn’t care. The jealous wives had corn thrown out at a celebration and the king was mortified that the Cock’s daughter ate it. The king sent the Cock’s daughter back to her parents house and upon hearing that it was his head wife who had planned the stunt, sent her back to her parent’s house. However, the parent’s did not take her back and she eventually died on the streets. The king died the next year of a broken heart, having dismissed his favorite wife.

The Fish and the Leopard’s Wife or Why the Fish lives in the Water

According to the story, long ago when the fish lived on land, a leopard and a fish were friends. The leopard had a beautiful wife whom the fish had fallen in love with. The fish visited the leopard and his wife often. However, the friendship had escalated and the two had had an affair. An old woman told the leopard, who could hardly believe the story, but sadly one day walked in on the two. He told King Eyo. King Eyo announced that this was a very bad thing. That the fish and leopard had been friends and that the fish had taken advantage of the leopard’s absence. The king ordered that all future fish should have to live in the water and if they came on land they would die. Also, he added that animals and men should eat fish when they caught them. All of this was punishment for the fishes betrayal.

Why the Worms live Underneath the Ground

A great origin story about the fight between the driver ants and worms. A head driver ant had announced at Eyo’s feast that no one, not even elephants were stronger. He did add that worms, who he didn’t like were poor wriggling animals.The king said the two would meet on the road. The ants came out in millions, a “dark-brown band moving over the country.” The fight didn’t last long as the ants quickly beat the worms. The worms squirmed and buried themselves underground to escape the ants. From that day forward, the scared ants remain living underground.

The Elephant and the Tortoise or Why the Worms are Blind and Why the Elephant has Small Eyes

Another origin story explaining not only why worms are blind, but also why the elephant has small eyes. After watching the elephant eat more than his fair share of food. A tortoise decided to put an end to it. He packed a bag with dry kernels and shrimp and visited the elephant. The large eyed elephant watched in interest as the tortoise, with one eye shut, ate his snacks. The elephant wanted some and the tortoise told the elephant that he was eating his own eye. The hungry elephant was unphased and allowed the tortoise to remove one of his eyes. The tortoise gave him the snack of shrimps and kernels and the elephant thinking it was his eye, loved it. The elephant wanted more and the tortoise cut out his other eye. Being blind, the elephant suddenly figured out what had happened. He finally talked the worm into letting him borrow his eyes for the market, saying that he would later return them. The worm honored that the elephant was talking to him agreed. The elephant took the small eyes and never returned them. So now the elephant has small eyes AND the worm is blind.

Why a Hawk Kills Chickens

I love origin stories!!! This one is about a hawk who spots a hen. He swoops down and asked the hen to marry him. He pays the dowry and the hen goes to live with the hawk. The cock, who had loved the hen for a long time decided to pursue his love. He went to the hawk’s nest and called the hen. She loved the cock and followed him back to her parent’s house. The hawk, who was soaring in the sky saw what happened and went to tell the king. The king told the parents that they must pay the hawk back the dowry. They did not have the dowry because they were so poor, so the king told them that the hawk could kill and eat any of the cock’s children as repayment for the dowry. To this day whenever a hawk sees a chicken he carries it off as pay off for his dowry.

Why the Cat Kills Rats

My least favorite of the origin stories in this unit. A cat, housekeeper  to the kind and a rat who was his house-boy served the king. The rat fell in love with one of the king’s servant girls and because he was so poor made a hole in the storeroom roof and stole pears  and corn from it. The cat discovered at the end of the month that pears and corn were missing. Someone told the cat that the rat was stealing and the cat told the king. The king had the girl flogged and gave the rat to the cat and both were fired. The cat killed the rat and to this day whenever a cat sees a cat it kills and eats it.

Bibliography: Nigerian Folk Stories (Dayrell), http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/myth-folklore-unit-nigerian-folk-stories.html

Reading Notes-.Pantheons

Pantheons
India

Indian Pantheons

Discussing the Indian Pantheon is tricky because it remains a living belief system for over a billion. Indian is home to many different languages so the Indian Pantheon stories have many different variations. Sanskrit tis the sacred language of Hinduism. It is an extremely complex language that begin an inscription on stone. The Pantheon begins with a Sky Father and Earth  Mother deity, but then becomes very complex and unorderly. Many of the Indian gods take different forms and do not remain strictly under one form and also take on different names in myth. Brahman, which is common in the stories for this class namely, in the Indian tale unit, is often translated as the one soul and all individual souls exist within the soul, similar to God in the monotheistic belief. This seems simple to understand, however Brahman then is embodies and personified as three deities. Brahma, who is the creator and once he created, his work was complete. Vishnu,the Preserver and Shiva, the Destroyer take on a more prominent role in Indian myth than Brahma. The video ends with a story of Durga. It is more than evident that the Indian Pantheon is very complex and confusing, but interesting. It was very beneficial to leave about both Brahman and Durga, both who have been mentioned in the class readings

The Norse Pantheon

Main source of Norse mythology is very new and has its roots in the Germanic people. There are two sets of Norse deities with an odd nine waves that splits the two. The  Vanir is associated with earth and fertility, is the older of the two. Aesir is associated with the sky. The video explains that at a time they were separate and competing and not unlike two competing religions eventually figured out that it was better to not fight but to just team up. A few notable gods from the Aesir are Thor and his dad, Odin.  Another character in the Aesir is Liki, his pedigree is unknown, but he is surely a Trickster. He is the father of Jormungand, the World Serpent; Hel, Goddess of the Underworld, and Fenrir, the Wolf. Apparently, Norse myths are like the Frat party of myths - a lot of drinking and fighting. Norse tales tend to be more raucous and less reliant on metaphor than Roman and Greek myths.

African Pantheons and Orishas

Africa has diverse and enormous Pantheons. There is not one African Pantheon, like Native Americans, there exist so many tribes, regions, peoples, and languages in Africa that there is not no one consistent family of gods. For this video, Orishas will be explored. Orisha Pantheons is a single set of gods. Yoruba is both a language and a term for the people that speak that language. It encompasses a region around Nigeria that was center of the African slave trade. Orishas are the gods and the semi divine deities of the Yoruba culture. Three of the most important ones are: Olrun, great sky father; Eshu -trickster; Ogun - giver of Iron. Orunmila is an important god and featured in many African myths. Orunmila was all powerful and many of the Orishas sought powers the chameleon told Orunmila to distribute the power by rain. He sent his messengers to tell the Orishas and they came as the powers fell from the sky. This the an origin story of how the  Orishas received their powers and roles. Unlike Roman and Greek Pantheons, whose gods are often born with powers, these were fairly distributed as are the Orishas reflect more human qualities and fallibilities. Animals also play a big role in African stories.

The Mwindo Epic

This a long story about a cocky baby who grows, matures, and become a fair ruler. The story begins with the Chef of the Nyangan people who only wants daughters born in his kingdom. After bursting forth with an axe, a magical bag, rope, and scepter, Mwindo is fully able to speak. His father attempts to kill him many times and eventually his father sews him in a drum and throws him in the river. Mwindo rolls the drum to find his aunt defeats water serpents by singing. His Aunt sets him on his quest to revenge his father. The story takes on a Hero’s journey with a trip to the underworld, a goddess, tests, and eventual return to forgive his father. His father forgives him too. As a result, Mwindo changes and matures and set Rules by which to live and becomes a good and fair ruler.

Bibliography: More Panteons, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2017/12/crash-course-myth-more-pantheons.html

Wikipedia Trail

Sea monsters
Kraken

Sea Monsters in Mythology

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_monster

A subjective character, sea monsters can be scaly, slimy, and most often they are depicted as immense in size. Categories of sea monsters range from octopus-like, to serpents, to sea dragons. A topic common in mythology, sea monsters stories are evident in nearly every culture and region in the world that has contact with the sea. It is believed that most sightings of sea monsters are just misidentifications of dolphins and sharks. However, unidentified carcasses of sea animals are called globsters.

Kraken

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kraken

Known throughout Scandinavian folklore, stories of the Kraken are often told by sailors as tall tales. The Kraken is a giant cephalopod-like creature similar to an octopus although, early tales describe a crab-like creature. The Kraken is said to live off the coasts of Norway and Greenland and attack ships. Often depicted with its eight arms wrapped around a ship, it is thought that original sights may been those of giant squid, which can reach up to 40-50 feet in length.

Akkorokamui

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akkorokamui

In Shintoism, Akkorokamui is a minor kami. A part of self-purification practices, the benevolent kami has powers to heal and bestow knowledge. The Akkorokamui is octopus like, with the ability to self-amputate and regenerate limbs. It is commonly believed that giving offerings of fish, crab, and mollusks to Akkorokamui will lead to the healing ailments such as disfigurements and broken bones.

List of Cryptids

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cryptids

The List of Cryptids is simply a list developed by cryptozoologists that focus on entities mentioned in folklore stories. It’s categories include Aquatic or semi-aquatic, Terrestrialy, and Winged. A few example of some well known creatures that may be considered cryptids by cryptozoologists are Bigfoot, the chupacabra, and Mokele-mbembe. The animals listed under each category include lots of “lake tale animals” that are in specific bodies of water or areas.

Reading Notes: Ancient Mediterranean

Partheons
religion

Video 1: Pantheons of the Ancient Mediterranean

Pantheons are families of gods and they are extremely complicated. The video attempts to explain two Pantheons - the Mesopotamian and the Egyptian. The Egyptian Pantheon was the Nine-god Pantheon that forms the core of Egyptian belief. The narrator told the story of Iris and Osiris in two different forms, showing that there is not standard version. It was also pointed out that the gods roles are fluid and do not always follow a strict adherence to what they represent.

Video 2: The Greeks and Romans - Pantheons

The video discusses the Greek Pantheon and provides some useful definitions to understand the terms commonly used in mythology. Gods are divine, immortal beings, usually created out of the sexual union between other immortal beings, or sometimes out of some unorthodox nativity. Demigods are minor-deities or the offspring of gods and mortals. They usually have special powers. Sometimes they can be raised to divine status. Heroes are exalted mortals, meaning they can die, but they can perform special feats on earth. Sometimes they are also the offspring of a god and a human. Sometimes they are just lucky. Olympian gods are explained after the defeat of the Titans. Zeus, who was the youngest, led the defeat and was the greatest of the next generation of the Olympian Pantheon. The video briefly discusses the Roman Pantheon and how the Roman borrowed some of the greek gods and also had their own. Many of the greek gods were models for and renamed as roman gods. The video ends with the telling of Aphrodite and Ares getting caught in bed in the net set by her husband.

Video 3: Herakles. Or Hercules. A Problematic Hero

Hercules was born as the result of Zeus sleeping with Queen of Thebes. Born a twin, Hercules (then called Alcaeus) was identified when he was found holding the serpents that had been sent in the twin’s room by Hera. He had great strength and killed his music teacher with a lyre. Frustrated, his dad sent him out as a shepherd, then he later returned to Thebes. Turning point in Hercules life - He burns his children and nephews alive. He visits an oracle for help. The Oracle tells him  to appease Hera, hence he changed his name to Herakles and then the oracle tells him that he must atone the killings. He was given as punishment the 10 Labors of Hercules - which were impossible tasks. However, in completing them, he would not only atone for the killings of his children and nephews, but also gain immortality. He actually did 12 labors, but two didn’t count. He performs all the labors. Hercules dies after his second wife gives him a poisoned shirt which she was led to believe would make him love her again. He is granted immortality and becomes a god.

Bibliography: Crash Course Mythology: Ancient Mediterranean,http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2017/12/crash-course-myth-ancient-mediterranean.html

Reading B: Congo Unit (Dennett)

African Turtle
Turtle

The Antelope And The Leopard

A tale about why the leopard always kills the antelope when he comes across one. The story tells of the leopard betting the antelope that if he hid then the antelope wouldn’t find him, in fact, he bet his life on it. The antelope did find him and the angry leopard told the antelope to hide, the the same life bet. The leopard couldn’t find the antelope and being hungry packed a bag of nuts and returned to his village to get the villagers to help with his search. A dog jumped out of a cracked nut and ran to the first of the leopard’s wives. She beat it and it ran to the second, on and on until the fourth wife killed the dog. As the dog was dying it changed into a princess. The leopard desperately wanted to marry the maiden that he did all the things she asked including: killing his four wives, pulling his claws, cutting out his eyes, cutting off his ears, cutting of his feet, and pulling his teeth. By now the leopard was dying. The maiden then turned herself into the antelope and said that he destroyed not only the leopard’s life but also his family.

The Turtle and The Man

The greedy, mean trickster turtle starts by choosing the best side of the animal trap. Next, he tricks the ox into taking the antelope out of the trap, fetching water, cleaning the plates, and then hiding with all the meat in his house when the ox returned with leaves to wrap his share of the ox in. The mad ox sought to destroy the trap but only ended up dying in it. The same story happens with a leopard helping take out the ox for the turtle. This time, the leopard destroyed the trap, but put a rope around his neck and played dead. When the turtle came near the leopard, the leopard bit his head off and returned to the turtle’s house to eat the meat. The man agreed that the turtle was wrong and that the leopard should eat the meat.

How The Fetish Sung Punished My Great-Uncle’s Twin Brother, Basa

The female fetish, Sunga, watched as the fisherman, Basa, caught fish and hoarded them. He repeatedly lied to the people that he did not catch any. Sunga sent a servant to get Basa and bring him to her. When Basa arrived, Sunga had set a magnificent feast, Basa at first refused to eat, then he ate and drank. Sunga took away his ability to speak so that he couldn’t lie.

The Fight Between The Two Fetishes, Lifuma And Chimpukela

The resulting fight between the fetish Lifuma and the fetish Chimpukela result in each fetish impacting where they live. The first, Chimpukela swore after falling on the ant-hill, that no

Bibliography: Stories from the Congo, Dennett, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/06/myth-folklore-unit-stories-from-congo.html

Reading A: Stories from Congo (Dennett)

Cassava Tree
Root

How The Wives Restored Their Husband To Life

Interestingly it is the final paragraph of outsiders who contribute their wisdom to the story and perhaps provide the best answer to the problem presented. In this story a husband has three insatiably hungry wives. After the husband is killed following his killing an ox, the Dreamer wife dreams about the husband, the Guide wife guides the three wives to find him, and the Raiser of the Dead wife raises the husband from the dead. While arguing whose shimbec he would enter first, the wives decide to cook three meals and see which meal the husband chooses first. Two wives cook a dish with foul and the third cooks with pig. The husband chose the pig pot exclaiming that the first wife just dreamt that he was dead and did not give him food because he wasn’t found. The second wife showed the path to find him, but he was unfit to eat. The third gave him life and he was then able to eat the pig she made him. Many people agreed with his decision. However, women said that he should have poured all the pots together and eaten the food mixed. I agree, it took all wives to contribute to his being reborn.

How Gazelle Got Married

A silly tale of the two daughters from the two wives of Nenpetro. Nenpetro and his wives decided to be nontraditional and give their daughters in marriage to the one that could find out their names. The first suitor was the antelope and he was not able to know their names. Next was Nsassi, a prince from a neighboring town. His dog was the star of this tale and after overhearing Nenpetro say his name, he attempted to return to Nsassi and tell him. However, the dog had a horrible memory and finally gets to Nsassi and is paid with a pig. Nsassi says the names and then take the girls in marriage. He fights antelope and eventually kills and eats him.

The Jealous Wife

Indeed this is a very cruel and sad story. Two wives of the same husband each had a child. The Elder wife was jealous of the Younger wife’s brighter child. When the husband left for six months to trade, the two women tended to the home. The elder wife caught fish while the younger wife watched the children. Later they traded duties for the two day affair. The elder wife took advantage of the younger wife’s departure and at night killed the child. At daybreak the elder wife realized that she had killed her own son. She took the body and ran into the forest. She was found shaking and nursing the dead child. Believing that she was too ill for recovery, she was given casca and died.

The Wicked Husband

The stories in this unit are the most graphic in terms of death so far. After an argument with his wife about her using all the palm nuts, he drags her into the jungle and cuts off her arms and legs. She sings a song about wishing she had not married him. A hunter finds the wife singing and eventually the Prince finds out. The wife is brought back to the town and dies at arrival. Her body is placed on the grill to smoke (not certain if this is for eating or burial) and the husband's body is place as fuel under hers.

How Kengi Lost Her Child

A tongue in cheek tale about two wives. One was a portion of land and the other cultivates another portion. When one woman took beans from the other’s plantation, the wife became angry and the two came to an agreement that whatever was born on a plantation would be that plantation owners and the same was true for the other plantation. Well when the wife, who had made the rule came, uninvited to the others land, she had a baby. According to the rules, the wife who owned the plantation where the baby was born would be the baby’s owner. The prince and his men agreed.

The Younger Brother Who Knew More Than The Elder

Two brothers never got along for the younger thought he was smarter than the elder. The younger and his wife left the town in frustration and found a new town with a few huts to live. The man in charge of the town had the younger brother help him dig a hole in which to catch wild game for food. The man asked the younger brother rather he wanted the males or the females. The younger brother chose the males and from then on all the males caught in the trap were his. Luck was on his side and he accumulated lots of meat of which he chose to share none of it with the others. One night the younger brother’s wife was missing. When morning came she was discovered in the hole. The elder brother happened to be hunting in the area and heard the commotion. He heard the arguments of the men and said that the wife was a female and was therefore the man’s to have. The man jumped in the hole to kill the wife and then the younger brother figured out the elder brother’s wisdom and when he declared that the man in the hole was a male. The younger brother jumped in the hole and killed the  man and the elder brother, younger brother and his wife left.

Bibliography: Stories from the Congo, Dennett, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/06/myth-folklore-unit-stories-from-congo.html

Famous Last Words: Flu, ice, and big Art Project!

My Art
Source: Phone

A whirlwind week! First and foremost on my list - AVOID the FLU! I just don’t have time for five days in bed with aches and fever. Luckily, I do not know of anyone that has been diagnosed and I am hopeful that the flu shot worked for me and for my roommates! I have been fairly conscience of what I touch and have attempted to wash  my hands often. I must admit that a five day break from classes would be wonderful. Spring Break will be here in less than a month!

Ice storm or little ice storm or really not any type of significant weather. Kind of a bust! Although the afternoon off was nice, the cancelation of classes seems to just delay readings, assignments, and makes me procrastinate for a test that was canceled. A break in the rhythm can be hard, but I just need to focus. Hopefully, the lack of snow and ice this winter will NOT be reflected in a tornadic and unstable Spring. Although I enjoy a nice thunderstorm, tornadoes are not my favorite and I would prefer if Spring just yields more sunshine and warmer temperatures.

My “Untethered” art project and artist presentation was a success! I really enjoyed the project and enjoy working in the Studio. We were challenged to take somewhat ordinary and items from a baggie and reuse them in a themed art project. I really enjoyed just letting my mind and hands be free. The final piece, pictured, is something that I am proud of.

Also, and perhaps, most importantly was the epiphany I had in this class. I was struggling on connecting the topic of sea monsters - I love the water and anything ocean - to the broader mythology storyline. Finally, finally, finally - after watching the Mythology Crash Course (I completed the first set and the second set) it finally seemed to come together in my head. These videos were a HUGE help and I would recommend them for anyone who is taking this class who is not a Literature or Letters major. Unfortunately, I feel like my Psychology major classes have conditioned me to not think out of the box and adhere to strict guidelines in terms of research design….I am definitely rusty and reluctant in terms of “free” writing.

Week 6 Story: The Crow and the Coin

The Crow and the Coin

Crows
Crows

To authors note: a similar story plot as The River Fish and the Monkey, including the Bodhisatta and the younger brother. however, rather than being based on the water, this story involves horses, crows, and a tree spirit. And of course gold!

A very, very long time ago  during the rule of Brahmadatta over Benares, the Bodhisatta was born into a family as a farmer.

The Bodhisatta was a virtuous and successful farmer who was kind to his herds, watchful over his fields, and cared very much for his family. He enjoyed the riches of family and his money and  always sought to bring prosperity to others. The Bodhisatta had a younger brother.

Soon after the death of their farmer father, the two men ventured to the city on horses to settle the lands that had once belonged to the father. Upon selling the lands, the two brothers received two bags of gold. One for each brother. They packed their gold on the horses and started home.

Stopping to eat and rest, the two brothers shared the meal. The Bodhisatta sprinkled his leftover meal amongst the ground for the crows to eat and promptly laid back for a short nap under a tree. The tree spirit noticed the  Bodhisatta’s generosity to the small animals and shook his branches expressing his happiness.

While Bodhisatta slept the younger brother thought to himself that he was as good as his older brother yet his older brother had more success. He decided that he deserved all the gold that was left to them from their father. He took the bag of gold from the Bodisatta’s horse and hide the bagged gold in his hat. He awoke the Bodisatta screaming that they had been robbed while they slept and their gold was gone. Bodhisatta was unconcerned and said “and so be it.”

The tree spirit saw what had unfolded and told the crows. While the two brothers were riding home, the crows swooped out of the sky and attacked  the younger brothers head. His hat fell off and with it the bags of gold. The Bodhisatta looked at the gold bags on the ground and sadly, turned to his brother and said, “perhaps you needed more,” and rode away.

Bibliography: Jakata Tales unit (Shedlock), The River Fish and the Monkey, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/story-source-eastern-stories-and.html

Jataka Tales unit - Shedlock Reading B

Jataka Tales
Shedloc

The Pupil Who Taught His Teacher

A teacher seeks to discover why one of his pupil’s says that young people do not die in his family. The teacher first plays a trick on the Brahmin father by bringing a goat’s bones and claiming that they are his son’s. The Brahmin laughs and says that for seven generations his family has not known death in the tender years. The teacher inquired as to why and the Brahmin answered that his family is righteous, speaks no ill, avoids evil, doesn’t heed the foolish, listens to the wise, delights in giving, feeds the hungry, holds faithful in marriage vows, and is versed in sacred knowledge.The teacher was overjoyed and wrote the words on a leaf and returned to his students.

Image - picture of ancient city of Taxila

The Man Who Told a Lie

A false teacher desires so much for those around him to believe that what he says about himself is true that he declares to each of four divine beings who had come to the Earth that he should be given and allowed to wear the wreaths of the divine flowers that were fit only for those with great powers. Being that only the virtuous could wear the wreaths, the false teacher went to each of the divine beings and told them that he was due the honor of wearing them. When the fourth divine being placed the wreath on the teacher and left, the teacher became violently ill. He begged that the flowers be removed. However, only after, in the presence of the people, the Gods said that the teacher’s words were a lie, they removed the flowers.

Image - wreath of flowers native to India

The Crow that Thought It Knew

This story is all about greed and insistence on trying what one is unable to do. Savitthaka sees Viraka succeeding during a famine, the greedy crow seeks to have what Viraka has, so he becomes his servant. Viraka, being the ever self-sacrificing character agreed to Viraka servancy. Viraka would eat enough fish to keep him alive, then give the remaining to Savitthaka, who would eat until he was full and only then give the fishes to his wife. Fully encompassed at first by greed, next by pride, Savitthaka decides that he is everything that Viraka is and seeks to catch his own fish. Viraka warned him that he was not a water worthy crow, but Savitthaka insisted, became caught in the weeds, and died.

Image of a Crow

The River Fish and the Monkey

The unfamiliar world “filch” is used in this story. New Oxford Dictionary defines it as: to pilfer or steal (something, especially a thing of small value) in a casual way. The would be thief in this story is the Bodhisatta’s younger brother. The younger brother wishes to trick his older brother thus gaining all the money that the two had received after their father’s death. Little did the younger brother know, the river spirit who had accepted gifts of leftover food from Bodhisatta, was watching out for Bodhisatta. In an odd set of circumstances the money finds its way back to Bodhisatta, who despite better advice, gives his brother part of the money.

Image - picture of the city of Benares (or Varanasi) in the kingdom of Kasi

The Poisonous Trees

A simple story about the warning issued by the Bodhisatta, who in this story is a merchant, regarding the Poison-trees that looks just like a mango. The greed of the villagers is apparent as they pick off the wares of the people sickened and dead from eating the mango look-alike poison fruit. However, those that listened to the Bodhisatta to not eat the fruit until it was checked by him were safe. The villagers wondered how the merchant knew the tree was poisonous. He responded that since the tree held so much fruit and was easily climbable that it must be poisonous.

Image of a mango or mango tree

The Wise Physician

An endearing tale of a mother’s mourning for the death of her child and her endless quest to bring him back to life. The single mustard seed from a house who had not had death was what the Buddha needed for medicine for the child. The mother soon realizes from going house to house, that all had mustard seed and all had death in their homes. “The living are few, but the dead are many.” The mother returns to Buddha and learns from him. Understanding death and accepting it she becomes a disciple of Buddha.

Image- Budda

Bibliography: Shedlock, Jataka Tales, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/story-source-eastern-stories-and.html