Academic Sutta Name Notes PSA Plae Vagga Nikaya PTS Keywords
J.492 Tacchasuukara Jaataka Once a carpenter in a village near Benares picked up a young boar from a pit and took him home and reared him, calling him Tacchasukara (the carpenter’s boar). The boar helped him in his work, fetching his tools and so on. When he grew up to be a big, burly beast, the carpenter let him go in the forest. There he joined a herd of wild boars which was being harassed by a fierce tiger. Tacchasukara made all the preparations for the counter attack, digging pits and training all members of the herd in their various duties, and their several positions at the time of the attack. under his guidance, they succeeded in killing the tiger and greedily devoured the corpse. Tacchasukara was told that there was a sham ascetic who had helped the tiger to eat the boars. The herd attacked the ascetic, who climbed up a fig tree -- but they uprooted the tree and devoured him. They consecrated Tacchasukara as their king, making him sit on a fig-tree, and sprinkling water on him from a conch shell, with its sprirals turning clockwise -- the one the ascetic had used for drinking. Hence arose the custom of seating a king on a throne of fig-wood and sprinkling water from a conch shell at his coronation. The Jataka was related in connection with the Thera Dhanuggahatissa. Spies of Pasenadi had heard him discuss with the thera Datta the plan of campaign which should be adopted if Pasenadi wished to defeat Ajatasattu. This was repeated to Pasenadi, who followed the suggestion and captured Ajatasattu. Dhanuggahatissa is identified with Tacchasukara. 60/469 Jaataka Khuddhaka J.iv.342ff. leadership


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Last modified on: Sunday, 2 January 2000.