| J.333 |
Godha Jaataka |
A prince and his wife, returning after a long journey, were greatly distressed by
hunger, and some hunters, seeing them, gave them a roasted lizard. The wife carried
it in her hand, hanging it from a creeper. Arriving at a lake, they sat down at the
foot of a tree, and while the wife was away, fetching water, the prince ate the whole
of the lizard. When the wife came back, he told her that the lizard had run away,
leaving only the tail in his hand. Later the prince became king, but his wife, although
appointed queen consort, received no real honour. The bodhisatva, who was the kingís
minister, wishing to see justice done to the queen, contrived that the king should
be reminded of his ingratitude, by allusion being made to the incident of the roast
lizard. The king thereupon realized his neglect of his dutiful wife, and conferred
supreme power upon her. The story was told in reference to a couple who had been
given a roast lizard, when returning from a journey undertaken to collect debts.
The husband had eaten the whole lizard while the wife was away. She had said nothing
and drank some water to appease her hunger, but when they visited the Buddha, and
he asked her if her husband were good and affectionate, she replied in the negative.
The Buddha then told her the story of the past. |
58/599 |
Jaataka |
Khuddhaka |
J.iii.106ff. |
marital harmony |