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JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [Vol. VIII. 



so in a former birth," established the connection and summed up 

 the birth-story by saying. u Then the mother was the mother, the 

 daughter the daughter, and I was the great nobleman." 



(End of " Rohini" Birth-Story.) 



46. — ARA'MADU'SAKA-JA'TAKA. 

 u The Pakk-Spoiler" Birth-Story. 

 " A Blunderer's" fyc. 

 This the teacher told in a certain village in Kosala, on occasion 

 of a park-spoiler. The teacher, it is said, in the course of his 

 rounds in Kosala, came into a certain village. There a man of 

 property invited the Tathagata (Buddha), and after having given 

 him a seat in his grounds, and made offerings to him and to the 

 monks in his train, said, " Sirs, stroll at your pleasure in these 

 grounds." The mendicants rose, and taking the park-keeper, 

 strolled about the park. Seeing a bare spot, they a9ked the park- 

 keeper, * ' Good layman, this park is in other parts thick with 

 shade, but in this spot there is not a tree nor a shrub ; what is 

 the cause ?" " Sirs, at the time this park was planted, a village 

 lad who was watering pulled up the young trees in this spot and 

 watered each in proportion to the root it had. Those young 

 trees faded and died : that is the season why this became a bare 

 spot. The mendicants went up to the teacher and told him this 

 fact. The teacher said : " Mendicants, this is not the first time 

 that village lad has been a park-spoiler ; formerly also he was a 

 park-spoiler ;" and then he told the story of the past. 



In past time, when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benares, they 

 proclaimed a festival. From the time the sound of the drum 

 proclaiming the festival was heard, all the townsfolk went about 

 full of the festival. At that time in the king's grounds there 

 were a great many apes living. The park-keeper thought : 

 " There is a festival proclaimed in the city ; I will ask these 

 monkeys to water (the trees), and I will go and take part in the 

 festival ;" and so he went up to the chief (or senior) monkey and 

 asked : " Sir chief monkey, this park is of great benefit to you 

 (and yours) ; you feed on the leaves and fruits and buds here. 

 Now, there is a festival proclaimed in the city, and I am going to 

 take part in it ('play at festival') ; while I am gone will you be 

 able to water the young trees in this park ?" " Yes, we can !" 



Then do your best (or, be careful)" he said ; and giving them the 

 leathern vessels and wooden pots for watering, he departed. The 

 monkeys took the leathern vessels and the wooden waterpots and 

 watered the young trees. Then the chief monkey said to them, 



