ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY. 



CEYLON BRANCH. 



THE FIRST FIFTY JATAKAS. 



PREFACE* 



The papers on the subject of " The First Fifty Jatakas," 

 which were read last year before the Society, were placed 

 by the Committee in my hands to be edited, with liberty to 

 omit, abridge, or re-arrange, as I thought best. Such 

 liberty was necessary, because several papers traversed in 

 many parts the same ground, some were merely introductory^ 

 and some were in disorder ; but this liberty made my task 

 a complicated and delicate one. I have kept in view two 

 objects, — the one, to record the information and the opinions 

 elicited in the Society's meetings ; the other, to present in 

 doing so a readable sketch of the whole subject. With this 

 view, while I have presented each author's contributions as 

 far as possible in his own words, I have not hesitated to 

 sacrifice his individuality when I could secure brevity or 

 distinctness by grouping, in my own language, the results 

 of several writers. I owe, perhaps, a special apology to 

 Professor Ktinte, whose kind co-operation was so highly 

 valued by the Society, for treating his learned papers with 

 the same freedom. 



The duty of reading the introductory papers in our meet- 

 ings fell to my share, and hence I am obliged reluctantly to 

 put some of my own work at the beginning. 



R. S. C. 



* I have not thought it necessary, in a compilation of this kind, to 

 insist on perfect accuracy or consistency in spelling and transliteration. 

 Pali words of frequent occurrence have been often written without 

 diacritical marks : v and w are used indiscriminately, or as each writer 

 had used them in his manuscript ; the mark of quantity has been left 

 on e and o in many cases, though it is of course unnecessary, when 

 these are always long. 



28—85 A 



