Literature of India
Jataka Katha
‘Jataka Katha’ are parables in Buddhism that expounds teachings through simple stories. The style, beliefs, themes, etc. used in the stories are novel to modern readers. It offers a peep into Buddhist philosophy and the teachings of Buddha. They are the easiest way to acquaint the reader with Buddhist ideas as the stories are fun to read, easy to understand, and associated with fundamental concepts of Buddhism. We have selected a story to offer an example of Jataka Tales. Jataka Tales have a unique style of storytelling. They are about the stories of various births of Buddha and maintain a certain theme across the literature. They are fun to read, easy to understand, and an interesting gateway to the minds of over 2,000 years old Buddhist authors.
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Sources
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The Jataka Tales, Volume 1 By Robert Chalmers
Lullaby of Madalasa
Madalasa's Lullaby is a very beautiful song that gracefully puts forth a deep philosophical message a mother teaches her children in gentle words. Through the story and the song, the author explains how the name, form, appearance, and other superficial aspects of a personality do not make the identity of an individual. A person is a soul within it and not the attributions associated with it. This small piece of literature is also a representation of woman’s position in ancient Indian society. In the story, the husband of Madalasa, a king, learns a lesson from her. It is, in a way, one of the many debates found in ancient Indian Literature about a woman being philosophically on an equal footing with men. Other such women include Gargi debating with Yagyawalkya, Ubhaya Bharati challenging Shankaracharya, and more!
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Sangam Literature
Although from the ancient Indian period, Pali, Sanskrit, and Prakrit texts are very well known, the spending, unique and extremely beautiful Tamil Sangam Literature is often overlooked. Ancient 'Tamilakam' i.e. the Tamil speaking countries of Southern India, rich with lush greenery, serene coasts, windy hills that make the regions so enthralling induced the people living here to compose poetry equally mesmerizing. Although the corpus of Sangam Literature is enormous, we have selected a few layers from its five major categories weaving an animating storylines around their verses. We hope that they will do justice to the beauty of the material.