Jataka 507
Mahā-Palobhana Jātaka
The Story of Allure
as told by Eric Van Horn
originally translated by H.T. Francis and R.A. Neil, Cambridge University
originally edited by Professor Edward Byles Cowell, Cambridge University
This story is essentially the same as Jātaka 263, The Culla Palobhana Jātaka. As I explain in the comments to that Jātaka, this story also distorts the Buddha’s teaching on sense desire to specifically mean “women.” Women, of course, are not the issue. The problem is sense desire, and that applies to all people.
“From Brahma’s heaven.” The Master told this story while living at Jetavana. It is about the defilement of the noble. The circumstances have already been given. Here again said the Master, “Sensual desire causes defilement even in noble people.” Then he told this story from the past.
Once upon a time in Benares—here the story of the past is to be expanded as in the Culla-palobhana Birth (Jātaka 263). Now once again the Great Being came down from Brahma’s world as the King of Kāsi’s son. His name was Prince Anitthi-gandha, the Pleasure-hater. He would not be in the hands of a woman. They must be dressed as men to give him the breast. He lived in a closet of meditation, and he never saw a woman.
To explain this, the Master repeated four stanzas.
“From Brahma’s heaven a god came down, and here upon this earth
As a King’s son whose every wish was law, he had his birth.
“To Brahma’s heaven no deed of lust, no mention, ever came,
So born into this world, the Prince now loathed its very name.
“Within the palace he had made a closet all his own,
Where deep in meditation plunged, he passed his days alone.
“The King, grown anxious for his son, laments to know him there,
One only son I have, and he for pleasures will not care.”
The fifth stanza describes the King’s lamentation:
“O who can tell me what to do! O is there no device?
Who’ll teach him joys of love to crave, and who can him entice?”
The next stanza and half a stanza, are those of perfect wisdom:
“A girl there was, of graceful shape, of fair and lovely skin,
She knew a world of pretty songs, and well could dance and spin.
This maiden sought his majesty, and thus she did begin.”
The other line is spoken by the young girl:
“I will entice him, if you will in marriage grant him me.”
The King answered the maid and said :
“If you succeed in tempting him, your husband he shall be.”
The King now gave orders that she should be given every opportunity and sent her to attend upon the Prince. In the morning, she took her lute and went to just outside the Prince’s sleeping chamber. She touched the lute with her finger-tips and tried to tempt him by singing in a sweet voice.
Figure: Tempting the Prince
To explain this, the Master said:
“The maiden went within the house, and where she stood apart,
Sang ditties sweet and languishing, to pierce a lover’s heart.
“There as the maiden stood and sang, the Prince, who heard the sound,
Straight fell in fancy, and he asked the servants waiting round—
“What is that sound of melody that comes to me so clear,
Piercing the heart with thoughts of love, delightful to my ear?”
“A maid, your highness, fair to see, of dalliance infinite,
Would you enjoy the sweets of love, yield, yield to this delight.”
“Ho, hither, nearer let her come, and let her sing yet more,
Here let her sing before my face within my closet door!”
“She who had sung without the wall stood in the chamber there,
She caught him, as an elephant is caught in woodland snare.
“He felt the joy of love, and lo! see jealousy full-grown,
‘No other man shall love!’ cries he, ‘but I will love alone!’
“’No other man, but I alone!’ he cries, and then away—
Seizes a sword and runs amuck all other men to slay!
“The people shouting in alarm all to the palace fly,
‘Your son is slaying everyone all unprovoked!’ they cry.
“Him did the warrior King arrest, and banish from his face,
‘Within the boundaries of my realm thou shalt not find a place.’
“He took his wife and travelled on till by the sea he stood
There built a hut of leaves and lived on gleanings from the wood.
“A holy hermit flying came over the ocean high,
Entered the hut what time the meal was standing ready by.
“The woman tempted him— now see how vile a thing was done!
He fell from chastity, and all his magic power was gone!
“The evening came, the prince returns, and from his gleaning brings
Hung to his pole a plenteous store of roots and wild-wood things.
“The hermit sees the Prince approach, down to the shore goes he,
Thinking to travel through the air but sinks into the sea!
“But when the prince beheld the sage down-sinking in the sea,
Pity sprang up within him, and these verses then said he:
“To here not sailing on the sea, by magic power you came,
But now you sink, sensual desire has brought you to this shame.
“Seducing traitresses, they tempt the holiest to his fall,
Down—down they sink, from sensual desire should flee afar from all.
“Soft-speaking, hard to satisfy, as rivers hard to fill,
Down—down they sink, who know passion should flee far from them still.
“And whomsoever they may serve for gold or for desire,
They burn him up, as fuel burns cast in a blazing fire.”
“The hermit heard the Prince’s word, he loathed the world so vain,
Turned to his former Path and rose up in the air again.
“No sooner had the Prince beheld how in the air he rose,
He grieved and with a purpose firm the holy life he chose.
“Then, returning holy, fully quelled his lust and hot desire,
And passion quelled, to Brahma’s world henceforth he did aspire.”
This discourse ended, the Master said, “Thus, monks, for sense desire’s sake, even holy people misbehave.” Then he taught the Four Noble Truths, and at the conclusion of the teaching, the backsliding monk became an arahant. Then he identified the birth, saying, “At that time I was Prince Anitthigandha.”
