jataka tales

(noun)

A voluminous body of literature native to India concerning the previous births (jāti) of the Buddha, in both human and animal form.

Related Terms

  • bodhisattva
  • pagoda
  • mudra

(noun)

(Sanskrit ज) A voluminous body of folklore-like literature native to India and concerning the previous births (jāti) of the Buddha.

Related Terms

  • bodhisattva
  • pagoda
  • mudra

Examples of jataka tales in the following topics:

  • Painting in Southeast Asia

    • Buddhist art depicted images of the Buddha, the Bodhisattvas or enlightened beings, apsaras or celestial dancers, and tales and parables from Buddhist lore, including the Jataka tales—stories about the previous incarnations of the Buddha, both in human and in animal form.
    • In Thai art, the most frequent narrative subjects for paintings included the Jataka stories, episodes from the life of the Buddha, the Buddhist heavens and hells, and scenes of daily life.
    • These frescoes are reminiscent of the contemporary frescoes in the Ajanta Caves in India, which are masterpieces of Buddhist religious art and depict figures from the Buddhist pantheon and scenes from the Jataka tales.
  • Thai Painting

    • The most frequent themes for Thai painting are illustrations of the Jataka tales (a vast body of fables about the previous incarnations of the Buddha, both in human and animal form), events from the life of the Buddha, the Buddhist heavens and hells, and scenes from daily life.
  • Buddhist Rock-Cut Architecture

    • Executed using tempera technique on smooth surfaces and prepared by the application of plaster, the themes of the paintings are Buddhist and gracefully illustrate the major events of Buddha's life, the Jataka tales, and the various divinities of the Buddhist pantheon.
  • Buddhist Wall Paintings

    • The paintings depict the Jataka tales and are considered to be masterpieces of Buddhist religious art.
  • Pre-Iconic Buddhist Art and Architecture

    • His presence was indicated through symbols such as the wheel, a footprint, an empty seat, or as a character in a jataka tale.
  • Gupta and Post-Gupta

    • The paintings depict the Jataka tales and are considered to be masterpieces of Buddhist religious art .
  • Burmese Art

    • Three or four rectangular terraces served as the base for a pagoda, often decorated by a gallery of terracotta tiles depicting the Jataka tales.
  • Slave Religion

    • According to Blassingame, African culture was not entirely removed from slave culture through the process of enslavement and "was much more resistant to the bludgeon that was slavery than historians have hitherto suspected. " "African survivals" persisted in the form of folk tales, religion and spirituality, music and dance, and language.
    • Blassingame notes that many of the folk tales told by slaves have been traced by African scholars to Ghana, Senegal and Mauritania, and to peoples like the Ewe, Wolof, Hausa, Temne, Ashanti, and Igbo.
    • He remarks, "While many of these tales were brought over to the South, the African element appears most clearly in the animal tales. " Southern slaves often included African animals like elephants, lions and monkeys as characters in their folk tales.
  • Forming a Slave Community

    • "African survivals" persisted in the form of folk tales, religion and spirituality, music and dance, and language .
    • Many of the folk tales told by slaves have been traced by African scholars to Ghana, Senegal, and Mauritania, and to peoples such as the Ewe, Wolof, Hausa, Temne, Ashanti, and Igbo.
    • One prominent example discussed by Blassingame is the Ewe story of "Why the Hare Runs Away," which is a trickster and tar-baby tale told by southern slaves and later recorded by writer Joel Chandler Harris in his Uncle Remus stories.
    • Southern slaves often included African animals like elephants, lions, and monkeys as characters in their folk tales.
  • Painting and Calligraphy in the Heian Period

    • Dating from about 1130, the Genji Monogatari Emaki, a famous illustrated Tale of Genji, represents the earliest surviving yamato-e handscroll, and is considered one of the high points of Japanese painting.
    • Onna-e, epitomized by the Tale of Genji handscroll, typically deals with court life, particularly the court ladies, and with romantic themes.
    • A scene from the Illustrated scroll of the Tale of Genji (written by Murasaki Shikibu in the 11th century).
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