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A remarkable interlude in a long sermon in Tibetan (March 2011) by the Dali Lama simultaneously translated into English by an anonymous monk who speaks with crystal clarity and stunning alacrity. This tale is a single sample from one of the world’s oldest, originally orally-transmitted, collections of allegorical stories — The Jatakas, 547 narratives about his previous incarnations, believed to have been told by the historical Buddha to his disciples during his 45 year teaching mission. That mission ended with his death at 80, roughly 450 BCE, fitting the Buddha’s life (as far as we can guess) into proximity with that of the Greek, Aesop.
This tale from the Dali Lama illustrates that most of the 547 Jataka Tales are not found in the Panchatnatra – just a few.