Chapter 42 - The Monkeys saved from death

[Source: Kah-gyur, ii. ff. 115-116. This story is given in Spence Hardy’s “Manual of Buddhism” (London, 1853, p. 113), under the title of “The Tinduka Jātaka.”—S.]

In long-past times there lived in a hill-place a troop of five hundred monkeys, which, when the corn was ripe, devoured the crops. The men who lived in that place assembled and began to take counsel together, saying—

“Honoured sirs, what shall we do, seeing that the monkeys endanger the corn?”

Some of them held that the monkeys must be killed. But how were they to set about doing that? All the trees which stood around the place must be cut down, one Tinduka^[1] tree only being allowed to stand. And a hedge of thorns must be drawn around, and the monkeys must be killed inside the enclosure, when they climbed the tree in search of food. Accordingly all the trees growing around that place were cut down, only one Tinduka tree being allowed to stand; and that tree was surrounded by a hedge of thorns, and a watchman was set there, with orders to give notice as soon as the monkeys assembled.

Now one day when the Tinduka tree had put forth flowers and fruits, and these had grown ripe, the monkeys said to their chief—

“O chief, as the Tinduka tree is ripe, let us go to it and eat.”

Thereupon the chief, with a troop of five hundred monkeys, climbed the Tinduka tree, and they began to devour the fruit. The watchman brought word to the men who dwelt in that place, saying, “Honoured sirs, all the monkeys have climbed up the Tinduka tree and are feeding. Do ye do what ought to be done.”

Then in all haste the troop of men who dwelt there, with clenched fists, and armed with bows and arrows and battle-axes, betook themselves to the Tinduka tree and began to cut it down. Fear came upon the monkeys, and they sprang to and fro on the tree. But the chief sat still and did nothing. The monkeys said to him, “O chief’, wherefore do you sit there tranquilly, while we are running to and fro in the pangs of intolerable misery?” He replied in a verse—

“The busy and the idle are like unto each other. The ends of the tree are many; let food be taken by him who is intent upon his life.”

Āt that time one of the monkey-chief’s young ones, a captive in the village, was sitting absorbed in thought, leaning his cheek upon his hand. A good monkey came that way, saw the young monkey thus absorbed in thought, and said—

“O friend, why do you sit there thus absorbed in thought, leaning your cheek upon your hand?”

The young monkey replied—

“How could I not be absorbed in thought, since the whole troop of the men who live in the village have taken the field in order to put my relatives to death?”

“Why do you not behave with courage?”

“How can a captive behave with courage?”

“I will set you free from your bonds.”

So soon as the young monkey was set free, he set the village on fire. When it began to burn, and clamour and uproar arose, the inhabitants heard it and said—

“Honoured sirs, while we and the monkeys are at a distance, a great calamity has occurred. As the village is burning, we will put out the fire and then come back.”

So they hastened to put out the fire; but the monkeys came down from the Tinduka tree and ran away.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Diospyros embryopteris.—S.