Bodhisatta’s Wisdom and Devadatta’s Downfall

In this Jataka tale, the Bodhisatta was once the son of a village householder, and he was playing with his friends under a banyan tree. While they were playing, an elderly poor doctor spotted a snake coiled up asleep in the tree. Desiring to make money by curing snakebite victims, the doctor devised a plan to trick the children into getting bitten.

The doctor lied to the Bodhisatta, telling him there was a hedgehog in the tree and that he should catch it. Without thinking, and trusting the doctor’s words, the Bodhisatta climbed the tree and grabbed what he thought was a hedgehog by the neck. However, upon realizing that it was actually a snake, he immediately flung it away in shock. The snake fell on the doctor’s neck and bit him. The doctor dropped dead instantly, and the Bodhisatta’s quick thinking ended up saving the lives of his friends.

In the Lifetime of the Buddha

The doctor in this story was an earlier birth of Devadatta, a disciple of the Buddha who later became his nemesis and tried multiple times to harm him. When discussing Devadatta’s malicious attempts on his life, the Buddha recounted this story to show that Devadatta’s actions, whether in past lives or the present, had never caused him fear or harm. The Buddha used this tale to teach his disciples that no matter how many times Devadatta might try to cause harm, he was always able to rise above such challenges with wisdom and fearlessness.

Moral of the Story

The moral of this Jataka is twofold:

1. Deceit and dishonesty can lead to one’s own downfall, as seen with the doctor who sought to harm others for personal gain. His deceitful intentions resulted in his own death.
2. The Bodhisatta demonstrated wisdom and quick thinking in a potentially dangerous situation, saving himself and his friends from harm.

The story also has an underlying lesson about karma: those who seek to cause harm to others for selfish reasons will eventually face the consequences of their actions, as the doctor did in this case. Additionally, it highlights the importance of wisdom and not blindly following others, especially when their intentions are unclear or harmful.

In the Buddhist context, the story also reinforces how Devadatta’s negative actions, whether in past lives or the present, could never truly harm the Buddha, who remained unfazed by the attacks and remained focused on his path of enlightenment.