1923,] Identification of Four Jatakas at Bharaut. 353 
of the Kusa-Jataka (No. 531), describing the circumstances 
of the birth of Prince Kusa. 
The story relates that, long ago, the subjects of king 
Okkaka or Iksvaku of the Malla country, were very anxious 
for him to leave at his death a descendant to continue his 
line. Happy and prosperous as they all were under his rule, 
they could not be satisfied with the idea that he should not 
have a son born to him before his death. The king, who was 
always bent upon doing all that he could to please his 
subjects, gladly consented to try all rightful means, in accord- 
ance with the rules of ancient morality, to obtain the birth of 
a son even sending out his chief queen Silavati into the streets 
for a week as a solemn act under religious sanction. (dharma- 
nataka).' By the power of the queen’s virtue the abode of 
Sakka, king of the gods, began to glow, and Sakka, deter- 
mined not to allow the virtuous queen to be molested by the 
an unconscious state to his abode. the heaven of the Thirty- 
three, where he granted her a boon of two sons, one of whom 
would be ugly but wise, and the other handsome but a fool. 
The queen preferred to have the ugly son first. Sakka 
presented her with a piece of kusa grass, a heavenly robe and 
Sandal wood, the flower of the coral tree and a Kokanada 
lute. Thereafter she was transported back to the king’s bed- 
womb. He then straightway went back to his heaven. The 
Wise queen knew that she had conceived. The king on waking 
Was surprised to see her and asked who had brought her 
th 
brought there by Sakka. ‘ With my own eyes,” he exclaimed, 
“Tsaw an aged Brahmin carry you off. Why do you try to 
deceive me?” She first showed him the kusa grass as a 



Wwitticisms, ‘que need not pre- 
__,,° The immorality of the story as a conte drolatique th Be iddhist 
judice the reader. In most of the Bharaut sculptures, the the 
Birth stories are represented by parts, and the parts Seeree NY 
