 When Buddhist monks taught children in viharas, jataka stories took a prominent place in primary education. Young samaneras (novice monks) were required to read and preach effectively. Jataka tales speak eloquently of those human values, which contribute, to harmony, pleasure and progress.
The Jataka stories, over millennia, have been seminal to the development of many civilisations, the cultivation of moral conduct and good behaviour, the growth of a rich and varied literature in diverse parts of the world and the inspiration for painting, sculpture and architecture of enduring aesthetic value. The Buddha himself used jataka stories to explain concepts like kamma and rebirth and to emphasise the importance of certain moral values. A Jataka bhanaka (jataka storyteller) is mentioned to have been appointed even as early as the time of the Buddha.
The Jatakas were originally amongst the earliest Buddhist literature, with metrical analysis methods dating their average contents to around the 4th century BCE.
Monkeys Wearing Caps
The Silly Kid
The Three Fishes
The Three Fish
The Woodpecker and the Lion
The Lion and the Hare
The Fox, the Hen and the Drum
The Woodpecker, Turtle and Deer
The Wise Goat
The Elephant And The Dog
The King's White Elephant
The Red-Bud Tree
The Ox Who Won The Forfeit
The Fox and the Piece of Meat
The Lean Cat and the Fat Cat
The Brave Little Bowman
The Quarrel Of The Quails
The Partridge and the Crow
Why The Owl Is Not King Of The Birds
Blind Men Describing an Elephant
Two Frogs in a Well
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