Definitions for Jâtaka
jâtaka

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Jataka

   The Jātakas (meaning "Birth Story", "related to a birth") are a voluminous body of literature native to India which mainly concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form. According to Peter Skilling, this genre is "one of the oldest classes of Buddhist literature." Some of these works are also considered great works of literature in their own right. In these stories, the future Buddha may appear as a king, an outcast, a deva, an animal—but, in whatever form, he exhibits some virtue that the tale thereby inculcates. Often, Jātaka tales include an extensive cast of characters who interact and get into various kinds of trouble - whereupon the Buddha character intervenes to resolve all the problems and bring about a happy ending. The Jātaka genre is based on the idea that the Buddha was able to recollect all his past lives and thus could use these memories to tell a story and illustrate his teachings.For the Buddhist traditions, the jātakas illustrate the many lives, acts and spiritual practices which are required on the long path to Buddhahood. They also illustrate the great qualities or perfections of the Buddha (such as generosity) and teach Buddhist moral lessons, particularly within the framework of karma and rebirth. Jātaka stories have also been illustrated in Buddhist architecture throughout the Buddhist world and they continue to be an important element in popular Buddhist art. Some of the earliest such illustrations can be found at Sanchi and Bharhut. According to Naomi Appleton, Jātaka collections also may have played "an important role in the formation and communication of ideas about buddhahood, karma and merit, and the place of the Buddha in relation to other buddhas and bodhisattvas." According to the traditional view found in the Pali Jātakanidana, a prologue to the stories, Gautama made a vow to become a Buddha in the future, in front past Buddha Dipankara. He then spent many lifetimes on the path to Buddhahood, and the stories from these lives are recorded as Jātakas.Jātakas are closely related to (and often overlap with) another genre of Buddhist narrative, the avadāna, which is a story of any karmically significant deed (whether by a bodhisattva or otherwise) and its result. According to Naomi Appleton, some tales (such as those found in the second and fourth decade of the Avadānaśataka) can be classified as both a jātaka and an avadāna.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Jataka

   jä′ta-kä, n. a nativity, the birth-story of Buddha. [Sans.,—jāta, born.]

The Nuttall EncyclopediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Jâtaka

   a Pâli collection of stories recounting 550 previous "births" of the Buddha, the earliest collection of popular tales, and the ultimate source of many of Æsop's fables and Western folk-lore legends.

How to pronounce Jâtaka?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

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   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

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   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

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   South African

How to say Jâtaka in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Jâtaka in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Jâtaka in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

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References

1. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jataka
2. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=Jâtaka
3. ^ The Nuttall Encyclopedia
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12342/pg12342-images.html#Jataka