Dasaratha Jataka () is a Jataka tale found in

Buddhist literature Buddhist texts are religious texts that belong to, or are associated with, Buddhism and Schools of Buddhism, its traditions. There is no single textual collection for all of Buddhism. Instead, there are three main Buddhist Canons: the Pāli C ...

about a previous life of the

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist lege ...

. It is found as 461th Jataka story in Khuddaka Nikaya of

Sutta Pitaka Sutta may refer to: *The Pali version of the Sanskrit term Sutra **In Buddhism, a discourse of the Buddha: see Sutra ''Sutra'' ()Monier Williams, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Oxford University Press, Entry fo''sutra'' page 1241 in Indi ...

in the

Pali Canon The Pāḷi Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhism, Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant Early Buddhist texts, early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from t ...

. Opinions of whether the

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

is the book of reference for the Dasaratha Jataka remain controversial with the Buddhist and Hindu sides claiming an older origin in the accordance with their canonical literature. Most Hindus believe the Jataka to be a

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

of the Ramayana while revering both the versions. The Buddhists hold that it is not based on Ramayana as Lord Buddha existed before

Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...

(Buddha was born In 500 BCE-400 BCE) and Lord Rama was born in 5th century BCE-3rd century BCE. ''

'' and other adaptations of it such as the Thai ''

Ramakien The (, , ; ; sometimes also spelled ) is one of Thailand's national epics. It is a Thai version of the ancient Indian epic ''Ramayana'', and an important part of the Thai literature, Thai literary canon. King Rama VI was the first person t ...

'', Lao ''

Phra Lak Phra Ram ''Phra Lak Phra Ram'' (ພຣະລັກພຣະຣາມ, pʰrāʔ lāk pʰrāʔ ráːm) is the national epic of the Lao people, an adaptation of the ancient Indian epic ''Ramayana.'' ''Ramayana'' reached Laos much later than Cambodia (''Ream ...

'' and Burmese ''

Yama Zatdaw Yama Zatdaw (, ), unofficially Myanmar's national epic, is the Burmese version of the Ramayana and Dasaratha Jataka. There are nine known pieces of the Yama Zatdaw in Myanmar. The Burmese name for the story itself is ''Yamayana'', while ''zatdaw ...

'' are claimed to derive from this Jataka.

Synopsis

The Dasaratha Jataka describes the previous birth of the Buddha as Rama-Pandita, a Bodhisattva. The story emphasizes the virtues of non-attachment and obedience. Rama, the crown prince of Varanasi, was exiled for twelve years by his father, King Dasaratha, who feared that Rama's stepmother might attempt to harm him to secure the throne for her own son, Bharata. Accompanying Rama into exile were his younger brother, Lakkhana-Kumara, and their sister, Sita. After nine years, King Dasaratha passed away. Bharata, being honorable and just, refused to take the throne, as he believed that the rightfully appointed king was Rama-Pandita. He and his companions set out to find Rama and inform him of their father’s passing. Upon hearing the news, both Lakkhana-Kumara and Sita were overcome with sorrow. However, Rama-Pandita remained calm, explaining that grief could not bring their father back. He reminded them of the impermanence of all things, helping them overcome their sorrow. Despite Bharata’s insistence, Rama refused to return before completing his full twelve years of exile, honoring his father's decree. Instead, he symbolically handed over his slippers for Bharata to rule in his place. Once the exile was completed, Rama-Pandita returned to the kingdom, where the people celebrated his arrival. He then ruled wisely for 16,000 years.

References

External links

* {{commons, File:The Dasaratha-Jātaka – Being the Buddhist story of King Rama.djvu Sutta Pitaka Pali Buddhist texts Jataka tales Works based on the Ramayana